Unemployment rates increase in Whitley, Laurel, Knox counties

Unemployment rates increased in Whitley, Laurel, Knox, Bell and McCreary counties between May 2023 and June 2023, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS), an agency of the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet.

Whitley County

Whitley County’s unemployment rate increased from 4.4 percent in May 2023 to 5.3 percent in June 2023. Whitley County’s June 2023 unemployment rate was 0.1 percent lower than the June 2022 unemployment rate.

Laurel County

Laurel County’s unemployment increased from 4.3 percent in May 2023 to 4.9 in June 2023. Laurel County’s June 2023 unemployment rate was 0.1 percent lower than the June 2022 unemployment rate.

Knox County

Knox County’s unemployment rate increased from 5.5 percent in May 2023 to 6.4 percent in June 2023. Knox County’s June 2023 unemployment rate was the same as the June 2022 unemployment rate.

Bell County

Bell County’s unemployment rate increased from 5.4 percent in May 2023 to 6.3 percent in June 2023. Bell County’s June 2023 unemployment rate was 0.3 percent higher than the June 2022 unemployment rate.

McCreary County

McCreary County’s unemployment rate increased from 5.5 percent in May 2023 to 6.3 percent in June 2023. McCreary County’s June 2023 unemployment rate was 0.3 percent higher than the June 2022 unemployment rate.

Statewide unemployment

Kentucky’s unemployment rate increased from 3.9 percent in May 2023 to 4.5 percent in June 2023. Kentucky’s June 2023 unemployment rate was 0.1 percent higher than the June 2022 rate.

Unemployment rates rose in 53 counties between June 2022 and June 2023, fell in 47, and stayed the same in 20 counties, according to the KYSTATS.

Carroll, Spencer and Woodford counties recorded the lowest jobless rates in the commonwealth at 3.5 percent each. They were followed by Anderson, Nelson and Oldham counties, 3.6 percent each; and Fayette, Marion, Scott, Shelby and Washington counties, 3.7 percent each.

Magoffin County recorded the state’s highest unemployment rate at 9.7 percent. It was followed by Elliott County, 9.4 percent; Martin County, 9.1 percent; Carter County, 8.8 percent; Breathitt and Lewis counties, 8.4 percent each; Owsley County, 8.2 percent; Pike County, 8.1 percent; Leslie County, 7.8 percent; and Knott County, 7.5 percent.

Kentucky’s county unemployment rates and employment levels are not seasonally adjusted because of small sample sizes.

The comparable, unadjusted unemployment rate for the state was 4.5 percent for June 2023, and 3.8 percent for the nation.

Unemployment statistics are based on estimates and are compiled to measure trends rather than actually to count people working. Civilian labor force statistics include non-military workers and unemployed Kentuckians who are actively seeking work. They do not include unemployed Kentuckians who have not looked for employment within the past four weeks.

Whitley County has a civilian labor force of 14,330 people with 13,576 employed and 754 unemployed. Statewide, Kentucky has a civilian labor force of 2,068,390 people with 1,976,077 employed and 92,313 unemployed.

Learn more about Kentucky labor market information at https://kystats.ky.gov/KYLMI.

 

Baptist Health Corbin’s Weight Loss Specialist speaks at Rotary

Lisa Long APRN, Weight Loss Specialist, was the guest speaker on July 27 for the Corbin Rotary Club meeting.

Long was instrumental in establishing the Weight Loss Clinic at Baptist Health Corbin. The task of losing weight can be overwhelming, especially if you are trying to do it on your own.

At the Baptist Health Weight Management Clinic, you can enroll in a supervised medical weight-loss program which is one of the safest ways to lose weight.  If past diet and exercise attempts were not enough to help you lose weight and keep it off, then the providers at Baptist Health who specialize in weight loss can help you.

Long is available to create individualized weight-loss plans based on your medical history, current medications, lab work and health goals.

She will also address nutrition, exercise, lifestyle modifications and when indicated, the prescriptions of appropriate medications to aid in weight-loss efforts.

To make an appointment with her or for more information, call (606) 523-8770.

Baptist Health Corbin

Baptist Health Corbin is a 273-bed, acute care facility providing a wide variety of healthcare services to the residents of Whitley, Knox, Laurel, Bell, Clay, McCreary, Harlan and Campbell counties in Kentucky and Campbell County in Tennessee.

Learn more at BaptistHealth.com/Corbin.

 

Diving for Hope: Graham Barrineau speaks about helping families through water recovery work

Graham Barrineau graduated from Corbin High School just three years ago, but in that relatively short amount of time he has found several ways to help those in his local community, and beyond. (more…)

 

‘Happy retirement’ to two friends: Danny Moses and Jerry Rains

Goodbye and good luck to two friends of mine, who have recently retired from working in emergency services.

I’ve known Danny Moses pretty much as long as I have been at the News Journal, which is close to 30 years.

I first got to know Danny when he was a member of the Whitley County Board of Education, and then got to know him better when he served as an auxiliary sheriff’s deputy for several years and worked as a volunteer firefighter.

At the time, Danny’s day job was being assistant manager at IGA in Williamsburg. If I needed to get hold of Danny back in those days, I would usually just drive across the Cumberland Avenue bridge or sometimes walk over to IGA from my Second Street office and just look for Danny, who would usually be stocking the aisles.

On Mother’s Day 2008, I was down at Cumberland Falls covering a tornado that had struck that morning when Whitley County Judge-Executive Pat White Jr. introduced me to his new emergency management director.

It was Danny. We both laughed.

When Whitley County Sheriff Todd Shelley retired in November 2021 with 13 months remaining in his term, Danny stepped up to serve as interim sheriff until a new sheriff, Bill Elliotte, was elected and took office in January 2023.

Over the years, Danny has always been great to work with helping me out in any way that he could. He always answered the phone if he could, and when he couldn’t he’d always call me back as soon as he could.

Danny has devoted a good chunk of his life to public service, and he will be missed by several people not the least of whom will be me.

Let me also take this opportunity to congratulate Jerry Rains on his recent retirement as a regional manager for the Kentucky Division of Emergency Management, which is a job he has held since October 2002.

I first got to know Jerry when he served on the Williamsburg Rescue Squad, which was long before he ever got paid to work in emergency services. The rescue squad was a volunteer organization, and 30 years ago it was one of the few Whitley County organizations that had a set of the Jaws of Life to extricate people trapped during automobile accidents.

When I first met Jerry, he served as the lieutenant for the organization, which was the number two person there, and then he served as the captain, which was the top person.

Jerry’s day job used to be over at Piggly Wiggly in Williamsburg as assistant manager. When I needed to get a hold of Jerry, I would just drive over and find him usually stocking shelves.

I’ve spent more than one Saturday out on Laurel Lake and on the Cumberland River with both Danny and Jerry as they were searching for the body of a deceased drowning victim, and many an evening out with them at a big accident scene on I-75.

I’m happy for both Jerry and Danny as they settle into a long overdue and much deserved retirement, but I’ll admit that a part of me is sad to see them go.

Now to touch on a few unrelated topics before I conclude this column.

• I got to check out The Mint Gaming Hall – Cumberland Run in Corbin as it held its soft opening last Wednesday. The facility features 50 historical wagering machines, food and drinks. It opened to the public Thursday, and is worth checking out.

There appears to be a lot of interest in the new facility, especially on social media. I posted a link on Facebook Thursday morning to a photo gallery of images on the News Journal website that were taken during the soft opening.

As of Sunday afternoon, it had already been shared more than 80 times.

I can’t wait to see the race track there host its first race this October.

It will definitely be something unique for this area.

• Remember that school is about to start back for some of our local school districts so be on the lookout for school buses, children waiting on school buses and so forth.

Whitley County School District teachers will report for duty on Tuesday, Aug. 8, and the first day for students will be Wednesday, Aug. 9.

Students in the Corbin Independent School District will return to classes on Monday, Aug. 28.

Williamsburg Independent School students will return to class on Wednesday, Aug. 30.

• Speaking of school about to start, not sure why somebody decided that now would be a good time to start resurfacing work on US25W in front of Whitley Central Intermediate School.

 

Scam Alert involving company claiming to represent Baptist Health Corbin

The Corbin Police Department is reporting that it has received a report from Baptist Health Corbin about a company soliciting money for a T-shirt project in the hospital’s name, which is a scam.

The company, which is calling itself Promotional Specialties International out of Ft. Worth, Texas, is calling local businesses in Corbin to solicit money for sponsorships on a breast cancer awareness T-shirt in the hospital’s name.

“This is a scam. This is not an approved project nor an approved contract with Baptist Health Corbin,” the Corbin Police Department wrote in a release.

 

Registration deadline approaching for 2023 NIBROC photo contest

The deadline is quickly approaching for the annual NIBROC Photo Contest 2023, but fear not, you still have time to enter.

Photos must be the original work of the participant. The contest is open to amateur photographers, who are ages 16 and above. There will not be a youth category this year. An amateur is a photographer, who does not take photos for work or for profit.

There are four categories this year: people; nature, wildlife or pets; scenic; and miscellaneous. Miscellaneous includes: still life/enhanced or altered images, i.e., an image that does not fit any other categories.

One color or black and white photo may be entered in each category. Photos must be 5’X7” or larger in size.

Photos must be mounted and ready to exhibit. They can be matted if desired. Photos can be in a frame, but the glass must be removed for safety reasons.

An entry form should be filled out and attached to the back of each mounted/framed photo. No personal identification, name, logo or watermark is allowed on the front of the photo.

Entries can be dropped off at Folktale Coffee and Bakehouse, which was formerly known as You, Me, Coffee & Tea, or at the Corbin Public Library. The entry deadline is 5 p.m. on Aug. 9.

The Appalachian Photographic Society is sponsoring the contest. For more information, please visit the Southern Kentucky Chamber website and click on the NIBROC Festival tab, or go to http://www.southernkychamber.com/events-1.

 

Festival season is here! Here’s what we will have to offer…

Ready or not, festival season is upon us again. This time next week downtown Corbin will be packed with folks ready to seek thrills on carnival rides, indulge in greasy and/or sugary treats, hear some great tunes, and maybe participate in a friendly competition or two. (more…)

 

Whitley County ReadyFest gets students set for coming school year

Photos by TIMOTHY WYATT 

There was a variety of free items available for students during the annual Whitley County ReadyFest Monday at the Whitley County Intermediate School. The yearly event helps provide students with items they may need for the upcoming school year as well as lunch and free haircuts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Forcht Bank, University of Kentucky basketball player Reed Sheppard reach Brand Partnership deal

(Lexington, KY) – Forcht Bank is delighted to announce a Brand Partnership deal with University of Kentucky Men’s Basketball Player Reed Sheppard, a renowned name across Kentucky and surrounding areas. This partnership brings together two like-minded families in Kentucky, the Sheppard’s and the Forcht’s, who have demonstrated a common vision of great work ethic and giving back to the community.

Reed Sheppard is son to Jeff and Stacey Sheppard who both played collegiate level basketball at the University of Kentucky.

After tremendous success in basketball and other business ventures, Jeff and Stacey moved to London, Kentucky to raise their family and eventually have two children, Reed and Madison. Madison played college basketball at Campbellsville University while Reed is an incoming freshman on the 2023-2024 University of Kentucky Men’s Basketball team.

“Our partnership with Reed and the Sheppard Family is a natural fit, as we share a set of core values in great work ethic and the power of giving back,” said Tucker Ballinger, President and CEO of Forcht Bank.

“We see immense potential in combining our shared values and strengths to create a positive impact in our communities through community outreach events and offering competitive financial products and services to local Kentucky and Ohio residents.”

Forcht Bank and Reed Sheppard are planning a series of initiatives, joint events, and campaigns that will aim to foster community engagement and instill the values of giving back and work ethic among their customers and followers.

To stay up-to-date on all happenings, please follow us on social media @ForchtBank or visit forchtbank.com/reed-the-news.

Forcht Bank is a Kentucky-owned community bank with approximately $1.5 billion in assets, three loan production offices, and 23 banking centers in 13 counties across Kentucky and Ohio – Fayette, Jefferson, Boone, Grant, Madison, Taylor, Pulaski, Laurel, Whitley, Knox, Green and Hamilton.

Learn more about Forcht Bank at www.forchtbank.com.

 

Kayaking for Kids set for this Saturday in W’burg

Organizers of a local boating race are hoping to generate more than $20,000 to help local schools and children’s programs this weekend.

The seventh annual Kayaking for Kids race will take place on Saturday, Aug. 5.

Registration starts at the Whitley County Fairgrounds at 8 a.m. and the race will begin at 10 a.m. The registration fee is $30, though those interested in preregistering can get a slight discount. The fee for those who preregister is only $20. Preregistration is being accepted at the Whitley County Judge-Executive’s Office through Friday evening.

As of press time Tuesday evening, there have been 30 racers who have preregistered, according to Whitley County Projects Director Amber Owens.

The five-mile race will begin at the Clearfork River access point at the fairgounds before winding through downtown Williamsburg along the Cumberland River and eventually ending at the Croley Bend Boat Ramp. A shuttle will be provided at the exit point to bring participants back to their vehicles at the fairgrounds.

After the race is over, participants can enjoy lunch and prizes.

“We want to invite everyone to join us this year on a fun day on the river. We award cash prizes to the first, second, and third-place winners. All the money goes to the kids in the community,” said Owens.

All the proceeds from the event go to help children in the community. Owens said that $1,100 is given to each Upward basketball league in Williamsburg and Corbin, with the remainder of the money being disbursed between elementary school resources centers throughout the county.

Last year, the event raised over $20,000 and Owens said they are hoping to at least match that sum this year.

In addition to the race, there is a raffle being held for a Blackstone flattop grill. Tickets are five for $20 or $6 each. Tickets can be obtained at the Whitley County Judge-Executive’s Office or at the registration table on the day of the race. The winner will be drawn at the finish line following the end of the race.

For more information on the race or the raffle, contact Owens at (606) 549-6000.