The sunny, warm weather may not make it seem like the Christmas season, but recent events sure have. Below are a few events to enjoy ahead of Christmas along with a few business notes that came across my desk recently:
鈥 Saint Nick will make a stop at the historic General Morgan Inn in Greeneville on Sunday. 鈥淪anta鈥檚 Workshop at the Inn鈥 will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. in the hotel鈥檚 Grand Ballroom. Tickets are $10 per child. Adults will be admitted free with child admission. Tickets must be purchased in advance from the hotel鈥檚 front desk. Limited tickets are available. For more information, call (423) 787-1000.
鈥 Blountville will host its tree-lighting ceremony in front of the old Sullivan County Courthouse on Thursday at 6 p.m. Just look for the 30-foot blue spruce.
鈥 The Weber City Fire Department will host a Winter Funderland at the old Food City in Weber City on Dec. 18 at 5 p.m. The event will include carols and marshmallow roasting and Santa will also be on site. Backdraft 黑料视频 will also be available. For more information, call (276) 386-3116 or (423) 430-7614.
鈥 Natural Tunnel is holding its Christmas Lighting of the Tunnel every Friday and Saturday from 6 to 10 p.m. The event includes live music, open fires, letters to Santa, stories at the cabin and a light display at the park. The weekly event will run through Dec. 18. For more information, call the park at (276) 940-2674.
• The Kingsport Fire Department is looking to fill firefighting positions. The application period is now open, and testing is scheduled for Jan. 12, 2022. For more information, go to .
鈥 Tri-City Advertising Inc. is celebrating 70 years of being in business. They are a family- run business based in Kingsport.
• The East Tennessee Purchasing Association’s Diversity Business Alliance is making efforts to improve its directory of Disadvantaged Business Enterprises, including minority-, woman- and veteran-owned small businesses. Businesses currently in the directory are encouraged to verify their information, and new businesses are invited to join the directory. Business owners can update their information or join the database through a link at .
Notes from the field
Recently, the 黑料视频 asked readers to submit their suggestions for businesses they鈥檇 like to see added to Kingsport. More than 1,400 people commented with their choices, which ranged from grocery stores and restaurants to family-fun destinations and entertainment venues. Below are some of the top suggestions:
鈥 A second Chick-fil-A
鈥 Costco
鈥 Trader Joe鈥檚
鈥 Publix
鈥 Family venues such as a skating rink, arcade, etc.
鈥 Cheesecake Factory
鈥 Red Lobster
One of the main topics mentioned centered around entertainment for younger generations. Many said they felt having more entertainment options would keep kids out of trouble. Some comments have been suggested many times in Kingsport, such as Red Lobster, while others reminded me of the businesses we鈥檝e had in Kingsport.
Over the years, Kingsport has had places such as Sam鈥檚 Club, a skating rink, Denny鈥檚, laser tag, Cootie Browns and a Cici鈥檚 Pizza, which were all suggested multiple times throughout the thread. Some departures are out of the community鈥檚 control. There are different circumstances for different businesses. In many situations, that is beyond the community鈥檚 control. But it could help if the people of Kingsport made a point to support their beloved businesses while they鈥檙e here.
When the beloved 41-year-old restaurant Rush Street closed, someone in the building that day said she had heard so many people expressing their sadness over the loss of the small business. But her comment was, 鈥淲here have they been?鈥 Sure, the owners sold the business. But on the other hand, times have not been easy for businesses, much less small businesses since the start of COVID-19. We need to show our support for our favorite local establishments. Let them know we support them before they close. Otherwise, they too could end up on a list of businesses we wish were in Kingsport.
Sometimes which business owners buy land or leave Kingsport or shut down multiple stores throughout the United States is out of Kingsport鈥檚 control and that of its decision makers. But I think more than anything, we all need to become advocates for Kingsport 鈥 for its businesses, its parks, its schools and its housing.
If we love our town, we should want others to enjoy what we enjoy about Kingsport and want to see those aspects of the city supported. Tell your out-of-town friends what you find positive about Kingsport. Encourage them to visit you if not just to show them your city.
If you feel less overwhelmed by Kingsport, that鈥檚 OK. Constructive criticism can be the best tool to better shape a place. Your concerns or disapproval is worth a conversation with your family, your friends and co-workers. It鈥檚 also worth an email or phone call with your commissioner or alderman. But I encourage you to learn more about how it all works.
I encourage you to hold your stones before you cast them on an alderman, mayor or community member you think could have done more to get businesses to come to Kingsport. Most likely you will learn or consider an aspect of the conversation you never considered as you scrolled through Facebook pondering why certain businesses aren鈥檛 in Kingsport. And there鈥檚 a good chance your comment will spur on conversations between local representatives regarding issues his or her constituents have made known.
And if none of that works, you can always brainstorm ideas while running your car through one of Kingsport鈥檚 car washes. (Yes, we read all your carwash jokes. And yes, we get it. You鈥檝e had enough of car washes.)
Have a note or business anniversary notice (ending in a five or zero) you want to send me? Email those to mwaters@timesnews.net and you could read it in an upcoming edition of the Minding Your Business column in the Times News.
