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Don’t get scammed!

Utility scams and senior citizens are a lethal combination. Keep this in mind: if you get a demanding call, it’s a scam. When somebody calls to tell you your electricity, gas, water or any utility is going to be cut off immediately if you don’t pay up, hang up. Don’t take steps to make payment. Don’t even discuss it with them. But do take steps to report what’s happened. Real utilities don’t operate this way. But scammers do. These are people who prey on you through fear and intimidation to illegally obtain your money. The Public Service Commission hears horror stories ...

There’s just some things I’ll never understand

So, I actually passed out candy this year for Halloween. You probably don’t think that’s a very big deal. But I have never given out candy before. Not one time in 53 years. I was always in the frame of mind that if I was in possession of chocolate, I was certainly not going to share it with somebody else. Especially strangers. I mean, who does that? This year however, I changed my mind. About 30 minutes before it was time for trick-or-treating to begin. Don’t ask me why. I rushed to the store and purchased five packs of “fun size” Reese’s Cups, Kit Kat, Nestlé ...

Compare and contrast the candidates

Beginning Tuesday, we are a week out from the end of the 2024 general election. And also Tuesday, voters will finally get their first side-by-side comparison of the two major party candidates for governor. Republican Attorney General Patrick Morrisey and Democratic Huntington Mayor Steve Williams will face off at Fairmont State University Tuesday, Oct. 29, at 7 p.m. The event will be moderated by WV MetroNews Talkline Host Hoppy Kercheval and broadcast on MetroNews radio stations as well as livestreamed at wvmetronews.com. It really is a shame that we’re just now getting a debate ...

The voters are turning out this election

In a little more than a week, Election Day will be upon us. Hundreds of area residents already have cast their votes through the state’s in-person early voting process. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if the numbers in Hancock and Brooke counties each surpass 1,000 by the time you’re reading this piece. That’s incredible at any point, but then consider that in the 2020 presidential election, Brooke County had a total voter turnout of 10,740, with Hancock County seeing 13,942 votes cast that year, according to results listed on the West Virginia Secretary of State’s ...

History in the Hills: Finding buried history

Fall is a special time of year here in our area. I love to watch the seasons change and our local colors come out on the trees. There is a chill in the air, but it is not too cold to be uncomfortable. There seems to be an anticipation, too, of the holidays just around the corner and all the fun that season brings as well. Usually this time of year, my family and I are going between horseback riding for our twins, football and scouts from my son, and dance for my daughter, but we still manage to squeeze in some fun at festivals and pumpkin patches. Fall is traditionally a spooky time of ...

It’s worth taking a moment and doing my job

When I started this job, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. I hadn’t worked here in years. In the past, I’d written stories and taken photos as a staff writer. I had my “beats.” Those places I was continuously assigned to go. It was my responsibility to attend city council and school board meetings. It was my duty to follow along and understand what everyone was trying to get across. Through the disagreements. Amid the arguments. After a long-winded discussion back and forth. It was my job to tell you what was going on in the world. At least … in our ...