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WV History

There is no doubt West Virginia has contributed much about which we can be proud to building and powering our country and the world. A new exhibit planned for the West Virginia State Capitol Complex will celebrate that history in an outdoor complex called “West Virginia: Nature Designs a State that Fuels a Nation.” According to the Governor’s Office the exhibit is part of the America 250 WV “legacy project.” And while the name might lead visitors to believe they are about to learn about coal, oil and natural gas, the project will highlight 11 industries. Iron and steel, clay, ...

Communities in Schools

For many years now, West Virginia’s public schools have served as much more than a place where students spend about six hours a day learning reading, writing and arithmetic. They have become a place where teachers and administrators are taking in loco parentis to new levels. They have become health clinics, resource centers, food pantries and clothes closets. “Everyone in this room, you all have washed clothes at school, gotten a child out of class who doesn’t feel well,” said West Virginia First Lady Cathy Justice during a celebration of the Communities in Schools program ...

Decisions

West Virginia’s Department of Human Services appears to be looking not just for more people to support its mission, but also for better tools. DoHS Bureau of Social Services Commissioner Jeff Pack told WV MetroNews the state has contracted with Evident Change to develop a Structured Decision Making tool to support those screening alleged abuse and neglect cases. Now the Child Protective Services supervisor in charge of reviewing the facts tries to decide whether the allegations are true and/or meet the definition of abuse or neglect. “Honestly, oftentimes that’s a little ...

Give Blood

How wonderful a day it will be when the American Red Cross does not have to keep asking, asking, asking for blood donors to shore up the supply. But we are not there yet. Month after month the organization is forced to come up with creative ways to encourage people to roll up their sleeves. As the summer winds down, the Red Cross has a particular need for Type O blood donors to help keep hospital shelves stocked. Yet somehow there are still fewer donors answering the call, even before we turn the corner back into a school year of calendar-filling activities. The Red Cross does not ...

Concerning

“The social and economic inequities patients suffer in life often shapes their death” was a key point of a July 13-14 article in the Review section of the Wall Street Journal. It is a key point most Americans should consider, not only when they become senior citizens but, in fact, well before. No one is immune from the necessity of looking well beyond the present to a time when frailty and need, now often beyond comprehension, are likely to be a part of daily life and tightening their terrible grip, seemingly with every passing day. But it was the “What’s next?” that was ...

Boos & Applause

Applause to an Elkins teenager who took it upon himself to spruce up three Blue Star Memorial Marker Gardens that are spread throughout the city. The Blue Star Marker Garden at Elkins City Park has been given a complete facelift thanks to the efforts of Ashton White, his family and others in the community. Last summer, White started off by redoing a Blue Star Marker located on Graceland Drive across from Walgreens. He also provided landscaping and pruning at a Blue Star Marker that sits at the Little Arlington Cemetery in Cravensdale. Last week, Elkins Mayor Jerry Marco read a ...