John Coffelt, Editor

Sam Harper Named Coffee County E911 Director

The Coffee County Communications Center Board, led by Chairman Missy DeFord, unanimously voted to appoint Sam Harper as the new Coffee County Emergency 911 Director during their December 18 meeting.

“Mr. Harper, who has served as interim director for several months, has demonstrated exceptional determination and leadership during his tenure,” DeFord said.  “His efforts have significantly improved employee morale and ushered in a new era of professionalism at the E911 center.”

DeFord said the selection process involved interviews with four applicants, conducted by members of the Coffee County Consolidated Communications Center Board and Coffee County Human Resources.

“Ultimately, Mr. Harper was the only nominee for the position. His commitment to enhancing the center’s operations was a decisive factor in his appointment,” she said. 

“We congratulate Mr. Harper on his new role and look forward to the continued progress under his leadership,” DeFord said. 

Harper, who had served as the late County Mayor Judd Matheny’s Chief of Staff, was named interim director during a special call meeting June 26 following the resignation of former 911 director Scott Leduc on June 19.

“I appreciate the way you jumped in and learned coming into this,”  DeFord said. “I know you knew the business side and the management side, but you needed the 911 side. You jumped in there and took all the classes.”

 The nomination and vote to appoint Harper were quick and unanimous, yet the membership of the board was questioned early in the meeting by Sheriff Chad Partin.

 “We don’t have a Manchester City representative,” Partin said. “The mayor is not part of the charter (that governs this board).”

 Partin said he brought the issue to the meeting due to the significance of the vote for director.

 Sitting in attendance was Manchester Mayor Joey Hobbs, who was appointed as the Manchester representative while alderman.

 “Rules are rules,” Hobbs said. “(Alderman) Ryan French will be Manchester’s representative. He’s Chairman of (the) Safety (Committee).”

 Midway through the meeting, Hobbs requested the vote for director be delayed slightly so that French could participate. About 35 minutes into the meeting, French joined the meeting. 

 Harper’s hire follows a director’s search in which the board received four submissions, including one by Operations Manager Bob Jarman, who was brought in by Leduc to handle the day to day operations of the center which sees roughly 250 emergency calls per month.

 Harper commended Jarmin during the meeting for his work helping implement the center’s new computer aided dispatch (CAD) system that recently went live.

 “Bob did a great job of getting all the databases and things we had to get in there for this thing to work,” Harper said. “The mapping and all that stuff, he did a very good job.”   

 Harper also highlighted Warren County 911 Chuck Haston, whom the board contracted to aid in the process, and Ben Loman’s Eugene Starkley for their help in the process. 

 Harper’s appointment follows Leduc who was named director in July 2021 to replace Director Diane Argraves who was terminated in February of 2021.

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.