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Me and Phil

Letters to the Editor

To the Editor, So Ground Hog Day has passed. Six more weeks of this lovely weather. Now I came up with this idea that I to go talk to Phil. Yes, the groundhog that sees his shadow every year. As I set off on my journey, my wife says I am crazy. I nodded my head, and obliged to her accusations. As she proceeded to go shopping with her sisters, I headed off to my journey. Being that it was a Saturday morning, I knew traffic would be light. Pennsylvania Avenue, Route 22, the Parkway…which we all love. Onward to find Pennsylvania Route 219 North. North to Indiana. Once I arrived in ...

The office is bigger than the person who serves

Editorials

Monday is Presidents Day, and it should be a chance to reflect, to honor and to give thanks. It should be an opportunity to remember that while our president changes every four or eight years, our democracy continues to set a standard that is the envy of the rest of the world. The office itself always has served as testament to the peaceful transfer of power, even when that concept has been met with extraordinary challenges, and to the symbol of leadership that resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington, D.C. The holiday is the combination of days that originally had been set ...

History in the Hills: Historic objects

Local Columns

Here at Historic Fort Steuben, our museum collections are important. The historical stuff we have really makes the museum special and it can make the past feel alive to our visitors. To me, the fort itself is an artifact, even though it is a reconstruction. These buildings invite us to appreciate what life was like for the First American Regiment and the team of surveyors working to map the Northwest Territory while they were here in the winter of 1786 and 1787. With the recent cold weather and snow on the ground, I feel more connected to them than ever as the winter the soldiers were ...

Paying for the decisions of our forefathers

Local Columns

Last August, this newspaper published an editorial, under the “Our Opinion” banner, titled “The water bill will come due, eventually.” Well, it’s looking as if that time is approaching. At the time, the Weirton Area Water Board was working with Thrasher Engineering to develop a plan for the replacement of 147,500 linear feet of cast iron and galvanized water lines within the distribution system. It’s all part of the order given last summer by the West Virginia Public Service Commission following last winter’s water woes, with an initial focus on some of the worst ...

Guidance for our future journalists

Editorials

A local educator who is helping to guide potential future journalists has been recognized for her work, and we hope you all will join us in offering her congratulations. Morgan Bricker, adviser to the media programs at Weir High School, recently was announced as the recipient of the Candance and John Bowen Advisor First Amendment Leadership Award, which is presented annually to an individual in recognition of their efforts to support, defend and fight for student journalism. In addition to her teaching at Weir High, Bricker is the state director of the Journalism Education Association ...

Consider all options to make state healthier

Editorials

As a few attempts to address West Virginia’s woeful health indicators and perpetually bottom-of-the-barrel quality of life rankings have made their way into public policy over the past year, lawmakers have continued to look for new ways to address the matter. As it seems these days everything must have a call back to some other well-known political slogan, the Make West Virginia Healthy Act of 2026 is meant to get ahead of some of our state’s worst health challenges. “We all know the numbers … West Virginia leads the nation in chronic disease, disability, preventable ...