Monroe County Farmers Market

Just What the Sweetwater Valley Needs... A Local Farmers Market! 

What a great opportunity for local green thumbs and crafters of all ages!!! Let's gather as a community and help support the Monroe County Farmers Market.  Show your support by liking their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/MCFarmMarket).  For more information, visit their web site at https://sites.google.com/site/mcfarmmarket/

"We Got You Covered!"

Are you the lucky recipient of a "We Got You Covered!" card? Congratulations! Here's how the card works:

1) Use your card for up to $10 in the purchase of a product or service, either with the merchant who gave you the card or with one of our other participating businesses (see the current list of participants as a pdf file on our website). The merchant will separate the card at the perforation and keep the half with the red serial number. You should keep the other half and….

2) Bring your We Got You Covered card to any office of Volunteer Federal and we'll redeem the other half (the non-numbered half) and give you a free gift just for stopping by! We have many great gifts for you to choose from.

It's that simple! We thank you for doing business in Monroe County and investing in our local economy.

• More than one card may be used in a transaction. One card may be applied to multiple purchases.
• There is no expiration date - redeem at any time.
• Not valid towards the purchase of tobacco products, alcohol or lottery tickets.
• The card can only be redeemed by a participating business for a credit value of no more than $10.00.

Holiday Season Phishing Scams and Malware Campaigns

In the past, the US-Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) has received reports of an increased number of phishing scams and malware campaigns that take advantage of the winter holidays and holiday shopping season. US-CERT reminds users to remain cautious when receiving unsolicited email messages that could be part of a potential phishing scam or malware campaign.

These phishing scams and malware campaigns may include but are not limited to the following:

• electronic greeting cards that may contain malware
• requests for charitable contributions that may be phishing scams and may originate from illegitimate sources claiming to be charities
• screensavers or other forms of media that may contain malware
• credit card applications that may be phishing scams or identity theft attempts
• online shopping advertisements that may be phishing scams or identity theft attempts from bogus retailers

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to use caution when encountering these types of email messages and take the following preventative measures to protect themselves from phishing scams and malware campaigns:

• Do not follow unsolicited web links in email messages.
• Use caution when opening email attachments. Refer to the Using Caution with Email Attachments Cyber Security Tip for more information on safely handling email attachments.
• Maintain up-to-date antivirus software.
• Review the Federal Trade Commission's Charity Checklist.
• Verify charity authenticity through a trusted contact number. Trusted contact information can be found on the Better Business Bureau National Charity Report Index.
• Refer to the Recognizing and Avoiding Email Scams (pdf) document for more information on avoiding email scams.
• Refer to the Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks Cyber Security Tip for more information on social engineering attacks.

Refer to the Shopping Safely Online Cyber Security Tip for more information on online shopping safety.

Reprinted from:

http://www.us-cert.gov/current/index.html#holiday_season_phishing_scams_and

Tricks, Treats and Scares Galore!!!!

Join us as we once again transform ourselves into a haunting variety of ghastly and ghouly creatures of the night!  Better bring a friend... you'll need someone to hang on to during the tour.  Monday night, October 31st from 7:00 to 10:30 p.m. in the abandoned stone building behind Volunteer Federal's Main branch in Downtown Madisonville.  Admission is $5.00 (proceeds benefit Toys for Tots). 

Local Band Seeking Your Support!
The Surfers, Madisonville's golden oldie quartet consisting of Mike Anderson, John Byrum, Jim Samples and Volunteer Federal's own Bobby Moser, are poised to hit the big time as one of eleven finalists in Charter Communications' CenterStage Battle of the Bands Contest.  Let's show the entire country what a small town community can do by helping The Surfers win the grand prize worth nearly $25,000!  Voting will begin on September 18th and last through September 25th on Charter Communications Facebook site.  You can check out all the finalists, their music video entries, and vote for The Surfers at the same time using this link: 
CenterStage Battle of the Bands Finalists

For the Serious and Not-So-Serious...

Come and enjoy the spring weather and the great outdoors by participating in the inaugural Ridgerunners and Redcoats event on Sunday, April 17th.

For the serious competitor, Ridgerunners and Redcoats will challenge you on a timed course consisting of an off-road trail meandering through the beautiful lake side scenery of Fort Loudoun State Historic Area. For the rest of us, the event also offers families the opportunity to walk the trail at their own pace. There's even a Kid's Fun Run!

Register now to take advantage of early discounts (early entry deadline is April 8th). For more information, or to register online, click here or contact Abby Cook at 423-442-4545 (acook@volfed.com).

Donations for Kylie Grace Overton Accepted at Volunteer Federal

Kylie Grace Overton is the 2-1/2 year old daughter of Nikki Cline and Sam Overton and the granddaughter of Mike and Teresa Cline. In the span of less than a week, Kylie and her family have been through a tremendous ordeal. Kylie had been diagnosed with a brain tumor, was airlifted to St. Jude Medical Center in Memphis and was scheduled to have surgery Monday, January 3rd. Her condition worsened and she was rushed into emergency surgery the night before. She has made it through surgery -- the tumor has been removed and she continues to have full use of her extremities. The battle is not over, however, as Kylie and her family are in need of prayer and support from a caring community. Volunteer Federal has been asked by the family to establish an account and begin accepting donations to help them with medical and travel expenses. Please make your donation at any Volunteer Federal branch today.

For more information on Kylie's story, see her Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Prayers-for-Baby-Kylie-Overton/134504613276501.