Mike Thompson: “I want to recognize the passing this week of a great entertainer and citizen, Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon. Mrs. Cannon…”

“I want to recognize the passing this week of a great entertainer and citizen, Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon. Mrs. Cannon, better known as Minnie Pearl, was a tribute to the entertainment industry and to our community. She graced the stage of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, TN, with her animated humor for 51 years. Who could forget the stories of Grinders Switch, her straw hat with the $1.98 price tag still attached, and her well-known and beloved ``How-dee!'' Minnie Pearl made many contributions off-stage as well. She was a humanitarian who contributed much to her community. Many of her efforts were focused on fighting cancer. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan presented Mrs. Cannon with the American Cancer Society's Courage Award. In 1991, the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center at Centennial Medical Center in Nashville was dedicated in her name. I know that I join all Tennesseans and all Americans in saying that Sarah Cannon and Minnie Pearl will be sadly missed.”