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The summer concert season is upon us

No matter what style you like to listen to or your preference for performance, there will be plenty of opportunities to enjoy live music in beautiful outdoor settings across the Tri-State Area during the next several months. The Brooke County Area Chamber of Commerce helped to kick things off on Memorial Day with the launch of this year’s Monthly Monday Music Madness and a performance by Twice As Nice at Follansbee Park. Shows will continue June 16, June 30, July 14, July 28, Aug. 11, and Aug. 25, alternating between Follansbee Park and a spot near the log cabin in Wellsburg. The ...

All gave some, but some gave all

This weekend has become what is considered to be the start of the summer vacation season. The kids are out of or about to get out of school. The days are getting longer. The grills are out in full force. But this weekend in general, and Monday in particular, also must be a time to pause and consider those freedoms we enjoy as Americans - the things we too often take for granted, like living in a place where we can travel as we choose, read the newspapers and publications we want to, watch the movies and television shows that we prefer and enjoy picnics and good weather as harbingers ...

Gee leaves a mark on West Virginia

Imagine a career in which you personally celebrate the accomplishments and achievements of more than 335,000 young (and some older) men and women. That’s the mark retiring West Virginia University President E. Gordon Gee set Sunday when he conferred degrees to graduates of WVU’s final three colleges — the College of Applied Human Sciences, the Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Sciences and the Eberly Colleges of Arts and Sciences —during ceremonies at the Coliseum. Gee offered graduates words of wisdom accumulated over 43 years as a college president at ...

Celebrate successes, don’t stop fighting

West Virginia’s deadly substance abuse epidemic has become significantly less so lately. According to the National Center for Health Statistics through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there has been a 43.5% decrease in overdose deaths in the state over the past year. “That’s great news and it’s really unprecedented,” Dr. Matthew Christiansen, chief medical officer for Valley Health and a former state public health officer, told WV MetroNews. It is wonderful news, yes, but it begs the questions: What has changed? And are use rates as high as they ever ...

Brownfield funding has been beneficial

It is good news, indeed, to hear more brownfield assessment funding will be making its way to our region. Officials with the Brooke-Hancock-Jefferson Metropolitan Planning Commission announced Monday that the Brooke-Hancock Region IX Regional Planning and Development Council has been awarded a $1.2 million assessment grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The funds, which are eligible for use in Hancock and Brooke counties in West Virginia, and Jefferson County in Ohio, will assist with the costs of conducting an analysis of targeted properties – in this case, ...

Addressing state’s abandoned wells

Abandoned oil and gas wells have been a problem in West Virginia for more than a century. Lawmakers did the right thing during the most recent regular session by passing House Bill 3336, which allows operators to fill wells with cement without having to remove the central casing. That might not mean much to a lot of us, but the process is said to be easier, cheaper and safer. It could also help protect groundwater, and with staying on top of modern efforts. “It gives accounting for the casings that are put in,” said Del. Mark Zatezalo, R-Hancock, “the double casings that are ...