EKB News

A groundbreaking ceremony was recently held for the new Long Fork Community Center. The 1,860 square foot hand hewn log structure is scheduled to open in November.
The building will feature a 32-foot by 40-foot great room, and include a deck on the rearof the building with a covered porch on the front. There will also be office space, restrooms, and a kitchen in the facility that will be enhanced by a cathedral ceiling and a wood-burning fireplace. An electric heat pump system will provide primary heating and cooling. Hardwood floors and a stone fireplace are designed for the interior, and native stones will be used in construction of the chimney.
Construction cost is estimated at $215,000.

Governor Ernie Fletcher has added Andy Hightower and Jason Keller to work for his campaign.

Hightower will serve as Issues and Policy Director. The 1999 Georgetown University graduate served under fletcher while the governor was in Congress. Hightower assisted then Congressman Fletcher in drafting the language that would eventually become the federal tobacco buyout. Hightower has served as a member of the board of directors for the Kentucky Long-Term Policy Research Center and the Southern Growth Policies Board.

Keller will serve as Communications Director. Keller was recently named by the Bluegrass Chapter of the Society for Professional Journalists as the recipient of the 2006 Jennifer Schaaf Memorial Award for Excellence in Government Communications. He also served on the board of directors of the Kentucky Association of Government Communicators in 2006. Keller is a graduate of Georgetown College.

Friends and family will say goodbye Friday, to a legend in the bluegrass music industry. Funeral services will be held at 1pm at the Unity Freewill Baptist Church in Rockhouse.

Ray teamed up with his brother Melvin to form the Goins Brother Band, which lasted for over 50 years. They received numerous awards.

Ray Goins was 71.

A memorial service for Dr. John A. Strosnider has been scheduled for Saturday, July 7, at 2pm inside the Booth Auditorium on the campus of Pikeville College.

Dr. Strosnider passed away June 21st at the age of 59, due to complications related to pancreatic cancer.

Dr.Strosnider was the founding dean of the Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine. Strosnider came to Pikeville in 1996 as he accepted the challenge of building a first-class medical school from the ground up.

Since the school opened in 1997, the medical school has produced more than 400 physicians, and has a current enrollment of 300 students.

In a press release, Pikeville College President Harold H. Smith, said, “We have lost a great educator, physician, and friend.”

At the time of his passing, Dr. Strosnider was serving as president of the American Osteopathic Association, the highest honor in the osteopathic profession. It is the first time that a physician from Kentucky has held this position of leadership in the 56,000- member organization.

The memorial service will be open to the public. Booth Auditorium is located on the fifth floor of the Record Memorial Building.

The Strosnider family has requested that, in lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Dr. Strosnider's memory to the Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine, Attn: Development Office, 147 Sycamore Street, Pikeville, Ky, 41501.

Jarrod Fletcher took over the role of Homeland Security Director for Mingo County. Fletcher passed a physical from a physician. The 37 year-old Borderland resident will be paid $20,000. Fletcher is a veteran when it comes to emergency services. Fletcher began his career as a volunteer fireman in 1988. He later was a paid fireman for the City of Williamson for nearly 10 years.

A new cancer treatment center is scheduled to open in mid-july in Hazard. Construction has been completed and the 10,000 square foot facility will feature the latest in radiation therapy and a chemotherapy suite. The center is associated with ARH.

Mingo County is seeking ownership of more than $23,000 in U.S. currency seized during various raids and arrests in the county. Mingo County Prosecuting Attorney Michael Sparks said the county is entitled to the drug money, part of which was seized in Williamson and Lenore . Sparks also said the civil action is an important part of an aggressive and effective drug control policy.

Sandy Valley Habitat for Humanity has received a good neighbor donation from the new First Commonwealth Bank which recently opened on Cassidy Boulevard in Pikeville. Andrew Dinsmore, Habitat Executive Director, said that while some new neighbors bring brownies, First Commonwealth wanted to do something a little more powerful, and make a contribution to a good cause. The $500 donation will be applied to the upcoming Women's Build scheduled for September.

Officials say that pollution could be hurting tourism in the county. Trash appears to be the problem and officials used the Loretta Lynn Homeplace as an example. Nancy Price, Paintsville Tourism Director, says that the trash in Johnson County is not what they want people all over the world to see and remember.

West Virginians will save a little more money at the grocery store. The result in a drop on the state sales tax on food, from five cents to four cents. The cut is expected to save consumers 25 million dollars a year. Another one percent drop on the food tax is scheduled for July of 2008.

Homeowners in the Sydney area are watching their water wells very closely nowdays. Leaking methane gas from wells in the area are posing the threat of explosion. Pike County officials are taking a cautious approach to a dangerous situation.

A Harlan County Man faces eight years in prison if he doesn't repay defrauded homeowners in the New Orleans area. William Michael Noe of Wallins promised renovation work on homes that he never deliveredon,or did inferior work for the homeowners. Noe was convicted in Orleans Parish of bilking homeowners,many of them elderly, out ogf $54,000. The work Noe promised was the result of damage done by Hurricane Katrina.

The space shuttle will be in Kentucky for the next dew days. The shuttle landed at Fort Campbell for refuelingand because of iffy weather at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The new state law allowing an increase in spped limits in Kentucky is beginning to take shape. It appears that all Interstate Highways in the Commonwealth will increase to 70 mph. A couple of exceptions are scheduled, mainly around Lexington. The Mountain Parkway the speed limit will be 70 mph for the last 43 miles, traveling from east to west. The change is expected to take place in the next few weeks,as soon as new signs have been erected.

The water is the problem. That's what residents in Knott County are telling officials. At a meeting of the City Council in Hindman, several residents painted a frustrated picture of life without one of the basic amenities of life. Laundry,bathing the kids,cooking and drinking water are some of the problems outlined. Low pressure and the quantity of water available are causing the people of Knott County to demand a solution.

Murder charges against William David Sowards of Johnson County have been dropped. Originally, Sowards was charged with murder for the shooting death of his brother Frank Sowards. Evidence of the shooting was presented to a Johnson County Grand Jury. But, they said there was a lack of sufficient evidence to return an indictment.

Mingo County is in line to receive a share of $800,000 in grant funding to help the homeless and domestic violence victims. The money comes from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development's Emergency Shelter Grants Program. Governor Joe Manchin says that the money will be available to fund utilities, maintance, equipment and staff support.

Teamwork is underway in Pike County between the Sheriff's Department and American Electric. The goal further educate the public on the dangers involved in the theft of copper. A reward of $5,000 is being offered for the arrest of copper thieves. Despite warning and keep out signs, Sheriff Fuzzy Keesee says that people keep going into power stations and the practice is very dangerous, within the past year two Pike County residents have been electrocuted as they attempted to steal power lines for copper.

The Kentucky State Police says they are trying to speed up the investigation into a double murder case in Pike County. The KSP has sent setectives to Frankfort to attempt to get the lab work expedited. The case involves the deaths of Mack Blankenship and Brandi Daugherty, found dead in Blankenship's home last Friday.