Tyler Morning Telegraph

Smith County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Gerald Rhey Atchison Jr. died after experiencing a medical emergency while on duty Tuesday afternoon, the sheriff’s office announced Wednesday morning. Atchison, 53, was on duty at the sheriff’s office at 227 N. Spring Avenue in downtown Tyler performing his duties as a property and evidence technician when he collapsed around 2 p.m. due to a medical event, the sheriff’s office said.

Covered head to toe in whatever personal protective equipment is available, doctors inside the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda are racing against time to save patients and contain the world’s third-largest Ebola virus outbreak. Doctors on Mission International (DOMI), a Ugandan-based Christian volunteer nonprofit founded in 2023, unites health care professionals to provide free care to underserved, rural and often conflict-stricken communities.

Students walk on campus on the first day back to classes for the fall semester at Tyler Junior College Monday Aug. 21, 2017. (Tyler Morning Telegraph) Texas community colleges have struggled with enrollment over the past 15 years as many high school graduates opted to go straight into the workforce, but a new report points to signs of the campuses pivoting to stay relevant.

A Tyler drug dealer has been sentenced to over 15 years in federal prison for trafficking methamphetamine in the Eastern District of Texas, U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs announced Tuesday. Charles Ray Griffith, Jr., 36, also known as “Root,” pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced Monday to 188 months (or 15 years and 8 months) in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Jeremy D. Kernodle.

The City of Tyler issued the following commercial and residential permits from June 25 to July 2, 2026:

Smith County issued the following assumed business names from June 25 to July 2, 2026: Renteria Jose Felix Carbajal and Minerba Carbakal doing business as 369 Home Remodeling Lacy Conicia Harmon doing business as Essence of Life Funeral and Cremation Kierra Green Walsh doing business as The Teacher Cleaning Cynthia Carol White doing business as Heart of Texas Math Carl Lee Lane doing business as Toms Coffee of Tyler Gregory O Littlefield doing business as Family of Faith Christian Church...

GRAPEVINE — Services for Gloria “Gail” Huggins, 84, of Grapevine will be held on Monday, July 13, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. at Stewart Family Funeral Home. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service. Full obituary on Gail’s tribute page at www.stewartfamilyfuneral.com

TYLER — Memorial services for Tammie Hiett Leewright, 67, of Tyler will be held on Friday, July 10, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. at Stewart Family Funeral Home. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the service. Full obituary on Tammie’s tribute page at www.stewartfamilyfuneral.com

JACKSONVILLE — A funeral service for Vickie Ann (Casper-Jackson) Ross, 67, is scheduled for 10 a.m., Thursday, July 9, 2026, at Autry Funeral Home in Jacksonville with Bro. Charlie Smith officiating. She will be laid to rest at Myrtle Springs Cemetery in Ponta. Visitation will be Wednesday, July 8, 2026, and family will receive friends from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Autry Funeral Home, Jacksonville.

TYLER — A visitation to honor the life of Coach Charles Joseph “Joe” Crawford, 69, of Tyler, was held on Monday, July 6, 2026, at Crawford-A. Crim Funeral Home. Interment took place under the direction of Crawford-A. Crim Funeral Home. Coach Crawford passed from this life on June 30, 2026, in Tyler. He was born on March 2, 1957, in Carthage to the late Charles Delmar and Velma Louise (Layne) Crawford.