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Little kitchen, big job

Editorials

West Virginia Health Right is on the move. Three mobile units now allow the agency to provide a dental clinic, a medical clinic and now a teaching kitchen to communities in even the most remote corners of the state. With the most recent addition, the non-profit will be able to travel to parts of 34 counties to provide nutritional education, healthy cooking demonstrations and preventive health outreach such as blood pressure readings, body mass index checks and A1C/blood sugar tests. “Food is medicine,” said West Virginia Health Right CEO Angie Settle. “It’s not just the ...

Are we ready for the ‘brawl’?

Editorials

Gov. Patrick Morrisey has been on quite a tour over the past few weeks as he signs legislation, makes important announcements and listens in communities all over the state. Here’s hoping he is using those visits to gain an honest understanding of where West Virginia stands against our competition in an economic Backyard Brawl. While there are bright spots here and there, for the most part the Mountain State’s communities and counties are struggling. Backing that up is WalletHub’s “2025’s Best and Worst State Economies” report. No, we’re not dead last. We are second from ...

Building future community leaders

Editorials

At some point in our lives, we each are given an opportunity to step into the role of a leader. Whether through a family function, a school activity, a work project, or organizing a community event, we quickly learn what leadership entails and the important role real leaders can play in getting things accomplished. The 11 graduates of the 2025 class of Leadership Ohio Valley have picked up similar experience over the last few months as they planned and attended their various sessions, volunteered their time toward a variety of causes, and organized a project in service to the ...

Doing more with healthy food options

Editorials

West Virginia is not only routinely ranked as one of the poorest and most unhealthy states in the country, it also has the third-oldest population, according to data from the 2020 census. That means plenty of people with challenges related to their health, age and income. Fortunately, we have a state Department of Agriculture that understands all that, and is once again offering vouchers through the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program, through Oct. 31. Though seniors must receive their vouchers in their home counties, they can use them at any participating farmers market in the ...

Reporter's Notebook: I’m getting that sense of Déjà vu...again

Local Columns

Here we go again, the merry-go-round that simply will not end. If it seems like I’ve written a whole column on the efforts by some to eliminate West Virginia’s certificate of need law, I did back in March. Remember, I got to shoehorn in a Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan reference. But supporters and detractors of CON repeal were back at it last week. Once again, many health care services are required to apply for a certificate of need from the state, which can approve or reject it based on many factors, such as the availability of similar services in the region. Gov. Patrick ...

Somehow I forgot to mention my Mother’s Day

Local Columns

So, I failed to mention that on Mother’s Day, my children once again remembered me. And I didn’t even have to tell them what day of the year Mother’s Day fell on. Somehow they just knew. For that, I am thankful. For them, I am thankful. My oldest son, Dylan, shipped me a box of Starbucks coffee, just as he does on my birthday and for other occasions. He knows it is my favorite and something I can’t always afford to buy myself. I appreciate his thoughtfulness. He truly is a special man. My second child, Caleb, who is the father of my grandson, little Layne, gave ...