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Next phase of flood recovery

Immediately after the deadly flooding of July 21, West Virginians once again showed how big their hearts are by providing donations of supplies, money and volunteer man hours to Upshur and Lewis counties. Those donations and charitable efforts were vital in getting the communities past the initial shock of the flooding, providing people temporary housing in shelters while emergency workers rescued those stranded by the rushing waters, and then began clearing the area of the massive amounts of flood debris left behind. Now that the Upshur and Lewis county distribution centers have ...

Remembering Another Flood

The deadly flood in Upshur County on July 21 ranks as one of the worst in West Virginia's history, reminding many local residents of another natural disaster we experienced more than 40 years ago. This week, officials announced that, in Upshur and Lewis counties alone, 33 homes were destroyed, with 91 other homes experiencing major damage, 235 with minor damage, and 182 otherwise impacted. Using FEMA’s Individual Households Program Cost Estimator, the initial assistance needs for just these two counties are nearly $4.9 million, officials said. In Upshur County, around 5 inches ...

Finding Hope After Tragedy

Tuesday, July 21, 2026 will be remembered as a terrible night for our local community. In Upshur County, around 5 inches of rain fell by 7:26 p.m. Tuesday, leading to massive flooding, which caused tremendous property loss, much of which is still being evaluated. On Thursday afternoon, it was confirmed that two people lost their lives in the flooding. What can we learn from the worst of times? How can we find hope, a glimmer of sunlight in the gloom and tragedy? First of all, this week we learned, once again, that our emergency response personnel in this part of the state is peerless. ...

Purple Up

Educators across the state understand each child comes to the classroom with different experiences. They try to meet the needs of individuals even while they’re teaching many students at once. Some of those children are part of military families, with their own set of challenges. During Purple Up Month — the month of the military child — members of the state board of education got some updates on efforts to support those kids and their families. “West Virginia has a strong record of citizens volunteering to enlist in a military service at a higher rate than most other states ...

Overreach

Federal officials continue to behave as though they have the right to demand access to West Virginia’s full unredacted voter registration database. Earlier this week, U.S. Department of Justice attorneys filed a memorandum asking the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia to compel West Virginia Secretary of State Kris Warner to turn over that list. Unbelievably, they tried to use the Civil Rights Act to do it. Christopher J. Gardner, a trial attorney for the Voting Section of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, wrote: “Secretary Warner cannot deny the ...

Salute

April is National Volunteer Month, a period to honor those who graciously give their time every day to help others. It’s one of the younger of such celebrations, established by President George H.W. Bush in 1991 as part of his 1,000 Points of Light initiative, but youth doesn’t take away from its importance. Because there’s no taking away from the importance of volunteers in our communities. They’re in our churches, our schools and our nursing homes. Nonprofit organizations couldn’t exist without them, as their compassion and call to serve provide essential assistance and ...