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Pike Co. News - 5.25.26 · Eastern Kentucky Newspapers

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Speaker 1: Now we turn to the reading of the Appalachian News
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Express for news in Pikeville and Pike County. As a reminder,
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RADIOI is a reading service intended for people who are
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blind or have other disabilities that make it difficult to
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read printed material. The Appalachian News Express is donated to
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Radio I by the publisher. Your reader today is Bill Sally.
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We'll begin with the E edition and this is dated
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May twenty two through twenty five, twenty twenty six. The
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first article, the primary headline in this edition is entitled
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Primary election results announced. This is a News Express staff report.
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The twenty twenty six Pike County primary election is now
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in the books and party nominees will move on to
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the general election in November. The ballot weighed heavily, with
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the vast majority of Campre candidates being on the Republican ticket.
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Several races saw no contenders seeking the nomination of the
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Democratic Party. Two races, Sheriff and Jaylor, drew attention during
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the primary election campaign. Incumbent Sheriff Rodney Scott handily took
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the lead in the election with four three hundred and
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fifty votes compared with challenger Ellis McCoy, getting one nine
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hundred eleven votes. Quote. I'm glad the people of Pike
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County didn't fall for all the lies and mudslinging that
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went on. Scott said, I get up every morning wanting
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to do what's best for Pike County and that will continue.
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I want to see the Sheriff's office to be the
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best it can be. Jaylor candidate Rick Bostick won the
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Republican nod for that position with thirty seven point sixty
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six percent of the vote's cast. The race had a
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field of five candidates, with Bostick taking ty three hundred
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six votes. The next highest vote getter was Jeremy Todd
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Miller with one one thousand, four hundred forty three votes.
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While Scott and Bostick enjoyed comfortable wins, there were two
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races decided by a dozen votes or less. Eight candidates
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were vying for the Republican nomination for magistrate and District three.
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In that race, Cliff Smallwood took the victory by twelve votes.
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He had three hundred thirty three votes, while Jamie Little
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captured three hundred twenty one. The Democratic race for magistrate
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in District five was even closer according to numbers released
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by the Pike County Clerk's Office. In that race, former
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Pike County Magistrate Hillman Dotson barely squeaked by Herald Justice
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with a four vote margin. Dotson received three hundred fifteen votes,
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with Justice earning three hundred eleven votes. The following are
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the unofficial vote totals for the May nineteenth, twenty twenty
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six primary election in Pike County according to the Pike
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County Clerk's Office. For those offices that cross into multiple
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areas only, the Pike County results are shown. For United
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States Senator Pike County results only for the Republican nominees
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Daniel Cameron one thousand, eight hundred fifty seven, Jonathan M.
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Holliday forty two, Andy Barr three thousand, four hundred seventy five,
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Valerie Frederick sixty two, A Nick Shelley sixteen, James D.
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Duncan thirty, Michael James Ferris one hundred four, A Nissek
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Catlet thirty, other, Donald Wenzel three, Jimmy I. Leone seven,
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George Washington one hundred fifteen. In the Democratic Party, Vincent
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Anthony Thompson one hundred eighty eight Amy mc grath one thousand,
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three hundred forty, Dale Lewis Romans ninety five, Charles Booker
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one thousand, twenty five, Pamela Stevenson one hundred forty one,
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Joshua Blanton Senior one hundred fifty nine, and Logan Forsyth
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one hundred forty one for United States Representative only. Pike
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County results are shown this On the Republican side Kevin
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Smith five hundred eight, Benjamin Hurley one thousand, seventy two,
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how Rogers three hundred thirty six, Jerry Lee Shelton eighty four,
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Brandon R. Moholland ninety nine for the Kentucky State Representative
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ninety fifth district only. Pike County results shown in the
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Republican side Willie Creast Junior two hundred seventy six, Tanner
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Hesterberg seven hundred eighty one for Pike County Judge executive.
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On the Republican side, Suzy Gibson Shearer three thousand, three
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hundred sixty two, Brian A. Morris two thousand, nine hundred
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twenty nine for Pike County Clerk Republican side, SOBRAINA. Thacker
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Moon one thousand, four hundred sixty eight Daryl Pew thousand,
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seven hundred fourteen for Pike County Sheriff on the Republican side,
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Rodney Scott four thousand, three hundred fifty, Ellis McCoy one thousand,
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nine hundred eleven for Pike County Jailer on the Republican ticket.
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Ronald Bubby Scott the Second one thousand, two hundred four,
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Jeremy Todd Miller one thousand, four hundred forty three, Perry
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Wayne Hatfield one hundred ninety two, William A. White seven
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hundred two, Ricky Bostick two thousand, three hundred six next
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for Pike County Corner on the Republican ticket. Brenda Johnson
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one thousand, forty. Kevin Hall five thousand, one hundred two
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for Pike County Magistrate District one on the Republican ticket,
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Ronald Scott seven hundred thirteen, Amanda Blackburn munseye six hundred
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three for Pike County Magistrate District two Republican ticket, Ronnie
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Robertson three hundred seventy, Jamie Kidd two one hundred twenty eight,
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Danny Lee Newsom twenty three, Elman L. Waters three hundred
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three for Pike County Magistrate District three on the Republican side,
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Alvin D. Newsom one hundred twenty two, Justin Colby Kaiser
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one hundred seventy two, Nathan Little forty nine, Jamie Little
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three hundred twenty one, Jackie Dean Dusk Justice forty three,
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rob Elkins one hundred sixty four, and Cliff Smallwood three
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hundred thirty three On the Democrat side. Ansel Trivett one
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hundred thirty Jerry Neil Little five hundred seven for Pike
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County Magistrate District four. On the Republican side, Tony Taylor
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the Second two hundred twenty eight, Kenneth Allen Prater two
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hundred thirty three, Clenard Bubby Adkins three hundred thirty nine,
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and Jeremy bo Roberts one hundred ninety nine on the
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Pike County MAGI strip line. For the Republicans, Sammy Wilson
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two hundred eight. This is District five. I should have
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mentioned Sammy Wilson two hundred eight, Joshua Mayhorn two hundred
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ninety one, Levetta Pearl Sloan one hundred thirty, Thomas W.
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Davis two hundred sixty three, Benjamin Eric Hurley one hundred
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four and on the Democratic side Herald Justice three hundred
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eleven in Hillman Dotson three hundred fifteen. The next article
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is entitled Kentucky ranks high in reading, math recovery, Pike
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named among leading districts. This article is written by Terry L.
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May News Editor. Kentucky ranks among the nation's best in
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terms of academic recovery and reading in mathematics according to
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the twenty twenty six Education Scorecard. As part of the report,
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Pike County, along with five other counties, was highlighted as
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a quote district on the Rise. These Kentucky counties were
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among only one hundred eight districts nationwide for the honor.
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The other Kentucky districts were Anderson, Perry, Marion, Ohio Counties,
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and Corbin Independent. This recognition is a direct reflection of
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the hard work and dedication of our teachers, staff, students
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and families across Pike County. Pike County School Superintendent Freddie
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Bowling told the News Express quote, We're proud to be
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recognized as a district on the Rise for both reading
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and math growth. Our focus on high quality instruction, strong leadership,
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and evidence based practices continues to make a positive difference
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for students each day. He continued. While we celebrate this achievement,
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we also remain committed to building on this momentum and
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ensuring every student in Pike County has the opportunity to succeed.
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In addition to the district's accomplishment in the education scorecard,
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two teachers were also awarded the Reading one eighty and
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Math won eighty awards from curriculum development company hm H
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that produces textbooks and educational resources. On May twelfth, in
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her presentation, Kimberly Elms with HMH said, quote, HMH honored
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forty teachers this year. With this award, Pike County had
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to go above and beyond. With two national award winning teachers,
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Pike County is the only one in this region to
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get two one in both reading and math. In reading,
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Elm said, Kathy Spencer at Belfry Middle School saw her
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students increase MAP measure of academic progress scores from fifteenth
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percentile to twenty six percentile. Quote. Even more impressively, many
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of her students achieved more than double their year growth,
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Elm said, in some cases, they merely tripled their yearly
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growth in reading quote. Kathy won the award not just
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for her data, but for her intentionality and her heart
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behind her instruction. She continued. She is cultivated growth and
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planted seeds of confidence and capability. Darren Lockhart of Elkhorn
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City Elementary was given the Math one eighty award. Quote.
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The impact of student ownership and high expectations really show
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in Lockhart's classroom. Elm said, some of his students completely
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completed nearly five full blocks of instruction. That is almost
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two years of instruction. One of the things we talk
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about in Math one eighty is the quote force multiplier,
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that is the teacher, she continued. Lockhart takes what is
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in that program and amplifies it for those students and
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their growth. The Education Scorecard is a collaboration between the
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Center for Educational Policy Research at Harvard University, the Educational
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Opportunity Project at Stanford University, and faculty at Dartmouth College.
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The KDE statement said, the latest report provides insight on
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where students academic recovery stands, combining state time test results
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for roughly thirty five million three third three through eight
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students nationwide with national assessment data to describe changes in
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local communities. Kentucky ranked eighth out of thirty eight states
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and academic growth in mathematics and fifth out of thirty
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five states in reading between twenty twenty two and twenty
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twenty five. Quote, the Kentucky Department of Education has been
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making great strides in literacy and numerousy education the last
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several years with several new innovative methods of improving instruction
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in these areas, and we're seeing even more evidence that
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these investments are working, said Commissioner of Education Robbie Fletcher.
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Other districts that were highlighted specifically for growth in mathematics
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performance were Paducah Independent and Harland, Grayson, Franklin, Johnson, and
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Boyd Counties. Districts that were honored for growth in reading
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were Clay and Davies Counties. The twenty twenty six Educations
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core card also highlighted other issues surrounding education in recent
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years across the country, including an uneven recovery from the
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COVID nineteen pandemic, recent chronic absenteeism rates, and how the
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rise of social media has affected learning in the classroom.
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The statement said. The next article in this edition of
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the Appalachian News Express is entitled Five Health Departments launch
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Quote Mountain Wellness Collaborative. This is a special to The
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News Express. In a step toward improving the health and
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well being of residence across Eastern Kentucky, five health departments
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have come together to leverage their collective resources, expertise, and
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partnerships to confront chronic disease epidemic throughout the Big Sandy region.
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The collaborative effort includes the Floyd County Health Department, the
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Johnson County Health Department, the Macgoffin County Health Department, the
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Martin County Health Department, and Pike County Health Department. According
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to Community Outreach Coordinator Courtney Walker with the Martin County
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Health Department, public health directors from each organization gathered at
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the Martin County Health Department on May twentieth to officially
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announce this regional initiative and formally sign cooperative memoranda of
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understanding for the collaborative. She said, quote. Chronic diseases such
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as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and hypertension continue to impact
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families and communities across the region. Walker said. By joining forces,
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the five health departments, aim to strengthen prevention efforts, improve
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health education, increase access to community resources, and create long
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term strategies that support healthier lifestyles and better outcomes for residents.
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The region has many problems relating to chronic diseases. Statistics
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show first, in some Eastern Kentucky counties, more than one
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in five adults is living with diabetes, nearly double the
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national average. Next, adult obesity rates in parts of Appalachian
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Kentucky exceed forty percent, placing residents at greater risk for
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heart disease, stroke, and cancer. Next. Heart disease remains the
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leading cause of death in Kentucky, with Appalachian counties experiencing
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disproportionately high mortality rates. Next, smoking rates in some Eastern
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Kentucky communities approaches thirty percent for adults, nearly twice the
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national average, and residents in some Appalachian counties may live
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ten to fifteen years fewer than individuals in healthier regions
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of the country. The chronic disease epidemic in the mountains
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is a cultural challenge with medical symptoms, said Martin County
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Director of Public Health Eric Mills. For too long, traditional
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medicine has treated just the symptoms of chronic disease like
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diabetes and obesity. While the root causes what we eat,
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how we move in the daily barriers of our families
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face have been overlooked quote. The Mountain Wellness Collaborative will
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focus on holistic wellness, with all five county health departments
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coming together to confront social determinants of health so we
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can turn the tide on this chronic disease epidemic, said
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Pike County Director of Public Health Tammy Riley, who is
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also the president of the Kentucky Health Departments Association. The
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initiative reflects a growing recognition that regional collaboration is essential
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in addressing complex public health challenges like this, Walker said.
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Through coordinated efforts, the participating health departments and their partners
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will work to increase chronic disease awareness and access to care,
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support healthier communities, and improve quality of life for generations
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to come. Quote. This partnership represents a powerful commitment to
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improving the health of our communities, said Martha Ellis, Floyd
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County Director of Public Health. By working together, sharing resources
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and partnerships, we can expand our impact and drive meaningful
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improved health outcomes across the region. Community leaders believe this
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partnership will open the door to innovative programming, expanded outreach opportunities,
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and stronger support systems of care for residents throughout eastern Kentucky,
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and that it's time for today's obituaries. We read only
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the name, age and location if given. Jerry Abshire seventy
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three of Raccoon, Hansel Brown eighty five, Okalla, Florida, Roma,
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Aldridge eighty one of Fed's Creek, Pansy Blevins seventy five Pikeville,
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Irene Damren ninety two of Kemper, Emma Dingus ninety four
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of Crumb, West Virginia, Arnold Johnson ninety one, no location given,
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Mary Dean Smith Ray eighty seven, Maida Debbie Varney fifty
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six Kemper. If you'd like any more information about any
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of those listed in today's obituaries, there is a location
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that you can visit. It is Legacy dot com slash
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obituaries slash Kentucky. Again, that site is Legacy dot com
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slash obituaries slash Kentucky. The next item comes from the
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opinion page. It's entitled protect REAP, a federal program Rural
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Kentucky can't afford to lose this articles written by Josh
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Bills of the Mountain Association. Over the past several decades,
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rural Kentucky has faced significant changes. In Eastern Kentucky, a
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shrinking tax base, population loss, and the decline of long
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standing industries have made resilience an ever changing challenge. Through
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it all, our communities have adapted and searched for new
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ways to build a stronger, more diverse economy. Increasingly, a
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new crisis has emerged, the soaring cost of keeping the
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lights on for small businesses and farms that are essential
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to our local economy. Electric rates for commercial facilities have
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more than doubled over the last twenty years. When you
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layer in historic inflation, the math becomes overwhelming. Overhead costs
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eat away at already thin margins, forcing owners to choose
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between a new hire, a new piece of equipment, or
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simply paying the utility bill. At Mountain Association, we have
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been supporting small businesses since nineteen seventy six and saw
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this energy crisis coming early. In two thousand and eight,
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as costs began their steep climb, we launched an energy
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savings program. Through this work, we continually see one of
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the biggest challenges facing businesses is upfront capital. That's where
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the Rural Energy for America Program REAP for short comes in.
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REEP is a federal program administered by the U. S
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Department of Agriculture that provides guaranteed loan financing and grant
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funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable
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energy systems or energy efficiency improvements. For a rural small
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business owner, that means a grant can cover up to
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twenty five percent of the cost of solar, more efficient
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HVAC systems, lighting, or better insulation. These are the kinds
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of upgrades that pay for themselves in a short time,
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reducing overhead and improving the bottom line, but for many,
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the upfront cost is simply out of reach. At Mountain Association,
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we've been packaging REAP grants for our clients since two
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thousand and nine. To date, our team has secured more
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than sixty REAP grants for small businesses and farms across
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eastern Kentucky, totaling over two point five million dollars for
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our clients. These energy savings projects keep rural businesses open
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and competitive. As a bonus, many of the projects are
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completed by local contractors, allowing those federal investments to go
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even farther in supporting Eastern Kentucky's economy. Without support from
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programs like REAP, some of the businesses and farms we
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work with simply won't make it as costs continue to rise.
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Mike Long is the general manager of Long's Pickpack and Pineville,
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town of about sixteen, one hundred thirty people in southeastern Kentucky.
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His father started the business in nineteen sixty four with
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a three thousand, five hundred dollars loan. Today, Mike is
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fighting to keep it the grocery store of choice for
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a community where the median household income is just twenty
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seven one hundred and fifty nine dollars. Grocery stores typically
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run on a razor thin two point two percent profit margin.
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One bad year or one season of sky high demand
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charges and a rural store can vanish. For Long's Pickpack,
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a REAP grant funded forty percent of a project to
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install solar panels on the store's roof and a sixty
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kilowatt battery. The battery can store excess solar energy and
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vastly reduce the punishing quote demand charges that make up
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more than half of the grocery's monthly power bill. The
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result is an estimated cost savings of at least fifteen
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thousand dollars per year, money that can go to staffing
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the DELHI, offsetting delivery costs, or simply keeping prices stable
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for PAM families in Pineville. Long expects to pay back
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the entire cost of the project in just four years.
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The need for this program has never been more urgent.
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With each devastating flood or winter storm, utility companies are
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forced to make expensive repairs to aging infrastructure. Businesses and
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ratepayers pay for those repairs through higher rates. As the
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frequency and intensity of these storms increase, utilities will continue
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passing those recovery costs back to us. For a business
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like Long's Pickpack living on a two point two percent margin,
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this compounding cycle of damage recovery and rate hikes is
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a threat to its existence. REAP is a proven efficient
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tool that uses modest federal investment to unlock private capital
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and lower operating costs, but it only works if it's
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funded and protected. It isn't just an energy policy. It's
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the difference between closing the doors and keeping the lights
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on again. This is an opinion piece in today's Appalachian
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News Express from Josh Bills. He's the senior Senior Energy
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Analyst at the Mountain Association. He can be reached at
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Josh at mt Association dot org. We have one more
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opinion piece in today's edition. It's entitled in the Blood,
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and it's in a column entitled Paddling Upstream. It's written
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by Steve Ruth. I have no idea where to begin
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this week. The slow drip of chemicals pumping into my
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bloodstream isn't helping. I wonder what's pumping through the bloodstream
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of the Repubs who voted against Thomas Massey just because
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he wanted names named from the Epstein files. What's running
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through the bloodstream of folks who think a president of
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the United States and his family should be exempt from
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tax audits for life. What's running through the bloodstream of
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folks who think it's a good idea to award the
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criminals who attack the Capitol as Congress was certifying the
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legitimate election of someone not named Trump. They want to
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pay them with your tax dollars. It won't be from
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the president's tax dollars, because he's not paying any billionaires
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don't pay taxes, at least not at the same rate
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as you and me. What I'm hoping is pumping through
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the bloodstream of Thomas Massey and all the other Republicans
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Trump primaried out of office is blind revenge. The genius
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forgot all those folks keep their seats in Congress until January.
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That's a lot of time for naming names and remembering
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the role of the legislature. Sure enough, the shock has
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caused a couple of people to remember the War Powers Act,
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and that may be a billion dollars for a ballroom
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basement was slightly extravagant. That ballroom is looking more like
24:45
a bunker every day, which is what it was meant
24:48
to be. All along the head of Massive Crimes syndicate
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generally live in bunkers. Expect ten foot walls with razor
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wire on top around the White House next. It's pretty
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clear whatever running through a Trump supporter's bloodstream insures they'll
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be fine with those things too. Whatever it is, it's
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not natural, and it's a thousand times more corrosive than
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the stuff running through mine. Right now, maybe all that
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bleach from the pandemic, there's no doubt that they're the
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most brainwashed bunch we've seen in this country since Mooney's.
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At least Mooneyes had the good sense not to vote.
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While Magas think they're sticking it to the Libs, they're
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really just sticking it to their children and grandchildren. They'll
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go to their graves swearing otherwise while the Great Big
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Housing Corporation takes possession of their house because tariffs bankrupted
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the farm. That's what this is really all boils down
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to the complete fleecing of the American public and government
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assets by the billionaire class. It's happening right before your eyes,
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and most just continued doomscrolling on their chosen social media
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addiction as it happens. Watch for another corporate tax cut
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before the midterm elections. I'm sure these people have really
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good reasons to support the party that holy supports child molestation,
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sexual assault, criminal rewards systems bankrolled by the general public,
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and wars around the world with no plan, no end,
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no reason. Support Trump. That's what you support. It's cut
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and dry, and denial is still a river in a
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country you hate and couldn't find with a globe. What
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I do know is I'm not taking any chances on
26:26
a blood transfusion anytime soon. What's running through my veins
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is bad, but it's nothing like that again. This is
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a column entitled Paddling Upstream, written by Steve Ruth and
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it's on the opinion page of this edition of the
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Appalachian News Express. This concludes today's reading. Your reader today
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has been Bill Sally. Thank you so much for listening,
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and now we ask you to stay tuned for continued
26:57
news and entertainment right here on RADIOI