Applause to the organizers who helped dedicate and rename the Philip Barbour High School Fieldhouse at George Byrer Field at BC Bank Park in honor of Keaton “Beef” McDermott. Family, friends, football players and school officials gathered recently during a special ceremony for the unveiling. Multiple signs were placed at the facility, one with a photo of McDermott raising his hands in victory after a football win. Another sign features McDermott’s photo along with his No. 61. McDermott was killed in a three-car auto accident in Randolph County in June. He was a 2024 graduate of Philip Barbour High School, where he was a standout on the football and track teams. He had committed to compete in track at West Virginia Wesleyan College. The Love Like Keaton Foundation, a charitable nonprofit organization, has been established in McDermott’s honor, with plans to raise funds to be used in support of community causes.

Applause to a former Davis & Elkins College triathlon coach who brought home the gold medal for Team USA in the 2024 Paris Paralympics Games. Chris Hammer, 38, the former women’s triathlon coach at D&E, secured gold in the men’s PTS5 para triathlon on Sept. 2. He finished the race with a time of 58:44, just 17 seconds ahead of second place. This is his first-ever Paralympic medal.  He is one of only two U.S. men in history to win gold in triathlon at the Paralympic or Olympic Games.

Applause to a two-day event that will raise money for the Kump Education Center, which provides professional development for teachers, outdoor education opportunities and historic restoration guidance. Many unique items will be up for sale during the two-day fundraising Yard Sale event, which will run from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. today and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday at the historic Kump House located on Randolph Avenue in Elkins. The Yard Sale was originally scheduled to be a one-day event today, but because of the amount of items donated for the event, the Sunday date was added earlier this week.

Applause to Five Rivers Public Library, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary in Parsons with an open house from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The event will feature tours of the facility, community social time, gift bags and refreshments for those attending. “The Tucker County County Commissioners and the mayor of Parsons both signed proclamations this week making it Five Rivers Public Library Week in the county and town,” librarian Nancy Moore, who has worked at the facility for the past 31 years, told The Inter-Mountain.

Boo to the financial realities which apparently prompted the Beverly Town Council to disband the town’s police department. A council member confirmed for The Inter-Mountain this week that Town Council voted 5-0 during a special meeting on Aug. 26 to dissolve the BPD and lay off the town’s two active police officers. “It all came down to lack of funding,” the council member said. “It got to the point it was hurting the town, and before it got any worse, we decided to shut it down before anything drastic happened.” After decades of not having a police officer in Beverly, the town hired Allen Vanscoy as the new police chief in January 2021. “Some time down the road, we may look at bringing the police department back,” the council member told The Inter-Mountain. “To be honest, though, if it doesn’t do any better than it has, I don’t see it working out in the future.” Here’s hoping Beverly officials can find a way to bring back police protection for the town’s residents.