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The McMinn County Living Heritage Museum is set to host its 2nd annual Living Legacy Fall Trade Fair this weekend.

Currently the event is planned to take place this coming Friday and Saturday and will go from noon until 5 p.m. at the museum, located on 522 W. Madison Avenue in Athens.

Admission to the event is free to the public, with donations to the museum being optional but welcome.

According to museum Event Coordinator Charlene Such, this event is a gathering of local artisans and crafters with the intention of teaching the public their craft.

"There are a lot of other categories this event covers from people within our area," Such said. "This is a local cultural heritage fair."

The museum is expecting to have vendors from a variety of topics, including: hand quilting, blacksmithing, model making, Cherokee beads, felting and spinning, finger weaving, book binding, topiaries, brass spoons, pyrography, Appalachian music, war encampment, paper quilling, butter making, hand piecing, wood spinning, acrylic painting and more.

"I am very excited for this event," Such expressed. "I've been working on it for roughly eight months and I am thrilled to have all of these people come together."

Last year, the event had around 700 guests attend and featured around 29 crafters and vendors. This year, however, the event is planned to be larger with over 40 planned crafters and vendors scheduled to participate.

"Those who enjoy music will probably have fun Saturday from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., we will have the Tennessee String Busters playing," she stated. "They are a local, popular group who has played in various locations around the area."

Another music group people may be interested in is Harmony and Grits that will be playing on Friday.

"We will also have a food truck from Vonore called Meatheadz Food Truck," Such said. "We really hope that people will stop by and give their food a try."

While this year's event is planned to be larger than last year's, the 2022 festival did prove to be beneficial to the museum as several new members joined.

"We got a lot of new membership last year and I believe that we will get more memberships this year," she expressed. "There will also be around nine activities that are kid friendly and will give them hands-on experience here. For example, there will be an activity that will allow kids to milk a live cow. There will be a lot of activities at this event so there is a little for everyone."

Living Heritage Museum Director Ann Davis stated that over the past year the museum has tried to make history fun for children.

"History, sometimes, is considered a dry subject, especially by young children," she stated. "We wanted them to learn more about their pioneer heritage, how their ancestors lived, and do it in a fun, creative way. We have concentrated this year on putting in children's interactive exhibits and increasing events to bring children to history. This trade fair is a prime example of how we can reach children because they will have so many opportunities at the trade fair to not only see pioneer crafts and different forms of their heritage demonstrated but they can also try them out themselves. The museum is working really hard in being more child friendly."

A man who impacted the local community for nearly eight decades passed away last week and those who knew him are remembering the life of Burkett Witt.

Witt was born in 1926 in the Free Hill community of Athens and he served many roles throughout his life, including in the armed forces, as the owner of a barbecue restaurant and as the town’s first African-American mayor.

After serving in the United States Navy, Witt ran Burkett’s Bar-B-Q from 1949 until 1971 as well as the Southern Soda Shop on the campus of Tennessee Wesleyan University (then-College). After that, he transitioned into local politics, serving for 33 years in various roles.

From 1983 to 1985 he was the mayor of the City of Athens and then from 1991 to 1993 he was the town’s vice mayor.

According to former Athens Mayor Bo Perkinson, it’s “difficult to list all of the contributions he made.”

“He was a joy to be around. He was a pillar of the community, active in so many ways,” Perkinson recalled. “He made so many huge contributions to Athens. He loved Athens, loved his church and loved people.”

Perkinson described Witt as a “quiet leader, an impactful leader” and noted that he was “very constructive as he expressed himself.”

Perkinson also saw Witt as an aspirational person, someone for others to look up to as they progress through life.

“He made contributions from just about every area — church, civic and, certainly, with TWU,” Perkinson noted. “So many people passing through Wesleyan really appreciated him.”

Perkinson also recalled Witt’s cooking ability, referring to him as a “chef and a person that loved everybody.”

“His barbecue shop was a mainstay for so many years in the community,” Perkinson said.

During his time working in the local area, Perkinson said Witt became both well-known and much beloved among the citizenry.

“People in so many areas knew Burkett and loved Burkett,” he said. “He was so pleasant, so knowledgeable, so smart. His kindness and the way he went about participating in solving issues in whatever area, it was just something really wonderful. He was such a family man — he loved his family.”

The importance of church to Witt made an impression on his pastor of 10 years, Rev. Roxianne Sherles. She was his pastor at St. Mark’s AME Zion Church in Athens from 2014 through 2023. Sherles is now the pastor at Fields Chapel AME Zion Church in Ooltewah.

“Brother Burkett was always very kind and generous and easy to talk to,” she said. “He was a historian and a wealth of information. Him being a leader in the community, he knew everybody and everything.”

Sherles described Witt as a “leader, trainer and teacher” and a “great inspirer” for those in the church community.

She also noted that Witt brought a great deal of joy to his time at church.

“He was of the Lord — he loved the Lord,” she said, adding that he always had a positive thing to say to anyone speaking with him. “His first comment would be ‘God is in the picture’ or ‘God is going to take care of it.’ He would always give that blessed assurance.”

Sherles said it was very meaningful to Witt when a plaque was added near the Athens-McMinn Family YMCA in recognition of the Free Hill community of Athens by local children.

“He was just so happy and pleased to know some children had remembered Free Hill, where he was raised and grew up,” she said.

Witt dealt with health struggles in recent years and Sherles noted that he was intent on making it to church as long as he was able.

“He continued to come to church until a year or a year and a half ago when he couldn’t get there,” she said. “He loved St. Mark’s.”

After he couldn’t make it to church anymore, Sherles said she and a few others would go to his house to bring him communion.

“He was always an encourager — he would always encourage us,” she said. “He would always have that smile and tell us to come on in.”

She added that he would always have something to quote from the Bible, mentioning “the joy of the Lord is my strength” as an example.

“He was just a delight and an encourager,” she said. “I will never forget Burkett Witt.”

Vant Hardaway knew Witt since Hardaway was a young child and he described Witt as “a surrogate father figure for me in a lot of ways.”

Hardaway also talked about the significant impact Witt made on the community during his life.

“The Lord used him to be a major part of this community,” Hardaway said. “So many people have contacted me about him in the last few days.”

Hardaway said one of Witt’s most important roles in the community was serving others.

“He was a servant,” Hardaway said. “In addition to being a servant, he served with a special spirit.”

Like Perkinson, Hardaway discussed how well known Witt was throughout his life, with his notoriety stretching beyond local boundaries.

“He was well known throughout the state — people knew who Burkett Witt was,” Hardaway explained. “His life emulated love, community and brotherhood.”

With Witt’s passing, Hardaway said people can do more than just remember his life.

“This is an opportunity for our community to not only celebrate his life and legacy, but to emulate him going forward,” he said. “We can emulate his spirit and model what he’s been.”

Keeping Witt’s legacy in mind, Hardaway said he hopes that will help people focus on working together moving forward.

“I hope it will help us continue to be cohesive and together, not separated, divided and polarized,” he said.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held Saturday, Aug. 19, at 5 p.m. in the McMinn County High School gymnasium with Hardaway delivering the eulogy and the Rev. Walter King officiating. The family will receive friends one hour before the service from 4 until 5 p.m.

The family will also be receiving friends on Friday, Aug. 18, from 4 until 7 p.m. at Light of Life Faith Ministries International, located at 1112 Congress Parkway in Athens. Interment will follow the Celebration of Life Service on Saturday with military honor guard in Hammonds Cemetery in Athens.

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