Last week I started a review of my 34 years as publisher of this newspaper, from my first interview with Terry Forcht to the first issue of the Whitley Republican we published on our new Mac Plus computers. This week I will move the story further to the big splash we made on Aug....

It is hard to believe that 34 years ago this week I was being interviewed by Terry Forcht to be the publisher of the Whitley Republican. I had been the advertising director at the London Sentinel-Echo the past seven years, but when Al Smith, the owner, sold the newspaper to the...

Thanks to the efforts of a few hundred volunteers, the recent 2021 PRIDE (Personal Responsibility In a Desirable Environment) Spring Cleanups at Cumberland Falls State Resort Park really made a big difference for our local environment. Initially, the cleanup was slated to take...

If Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones ever had to be in combat there’s one person he would like to have in his foxhole, Ryan Lemond. But, if that never happens, Jones is content to have him as his sidekick on their popular radio show heard over 53 radio stations across...

Each year I lend my voice to the hundreds of singing spectators waiting for the horses to come out of the gate. As I sing along with the exited crowd, the beautiful words of My Old Kentucky Home, the song written by Stephen Collins Foster, bring tears to my eyes. My mind flashes...

May, what a wonderful month! It is the month for the Kentucky Derby, warmer weather and the Ossoli Club’s May Day Festival. The festival started 78 years ago and because of Covid last year’s and this year’s festivals have been a virtual event. Three years ago, for the 75th...

Happy 50th birthday to Southeast Kentucky Rehabilitation Industries (SEKRI), which was founded on May 10, 1971. For those that don’t know, SEKRI is a non-profit, which was created in Corbin to provide jobs for people with disabilities and to help prepare them for the competitive...

Going to the Lane Theatre and the Dixie Drive-In with my friends, when I was a teenager, was so much fun, and one of my favorite past-times. I have many fond memories at both places. I’ve written about the theaters before, which are both closed and have been for years, b...

Chances are that if you lived or worked in Williamsburg for very long, and you heard someone mention the name “Nannie,” then you immediately knew who they were talking about. Nannie Hays was a Williamsburg icon. Many knew her from her days as the beloved longtime band teacher at...

The best, and often described most important meal of the day is breakfast. As the name suggests, breakfast breaks the overnight fasting period and replenishes the supply of glucose in our body to boost the brain’s alertness and our body’s energy levels. In my opinion there’s...

Although it might not seem like it based on the temperature at times the last few weeks, spring is finally upon us. (My sinuses and allergies can verify that…LOL.) Unlike last spring with the COVID-19 lockdown, there are several upcoming events that I think a lot of local and...

Vince Gabbert, Vice-President and COO of Keeneland Association told us what we have been wanting to hear for a long time at Tuesday’s Southern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce luncheon, that is, work will be starting soon on the facilities in Williamsburg and Corbin. We first heard...

Driving through Corbin last week, I noticed in the green grassy areas in the city, the beautiful, bright bursts of yellow that are everywhere! Each year, dandelions announce spring with their pure sunshiny color, and what do we do? We all rush to mow them down like they are not...

Compromise. It’s something that happily married couples have usually figured out and figured out sooner rather than later. For instance, they go to the ballet on Friday night to make her happy and then the monster truck rally on Saturday night to make him happy. No, he doesn’t...

We don’t realize how much we use or need something until it’s gone. Being without, whatever it is, sure makes us appreciate it all the more when we get it back, doesn’t it? Case in point, the water at our house was out for a day last week, and I am so thankful to East Knox Water...

For years I have considered the clank of a metal bat hitting a baseball to be sacrilegious. Baseball should involve the crack of the ball coming off of a wooden bat. As a baseball fan since I could get in to watch the Cincinnati Reds for free because I could walk under the...

For three-fourths of my life I have worked in the media. I spent the first ten years working in radio. During that time, as a disc jockey, I wasn’t concerned with much other than entertaining my audience. In the beginning of my newspaper career, which goes back 50 years, I spent...

Retired district judge and U.S. Army Colonel Ronald Blaine Stewart was both an officer and a gentleman. He had this classy quality about him, but was also down to earth at the same time. Judge Stewart passed away Saturday at the age of 87. He was born and raised in Williamsburg,...

Change. Sure, many words can, have and will be used to describe the COVID-19 pandemic, such as awful, terrible, horrible, deadly, etc., but in terms of its impact on society, change may be the one word that sums it up best. In-person meetings changed to Zoom meetings, and many...

Are you a spud eater? Spuds, potatoes, or as I like to call them, taters, are probably America’s most favorite vegetable. Potatoes, which are made up of 80% water and 20% solid, are one of the most versatile vegetables you will find in the garden. There are over 200 different...