Business

Tractor Supply Company, the largest rural lifestyle retailer in the United States, recently donated $100,000 to the Farmer Veteran Coalition (FVC), including awarding $1,000 gift cards to 50 military veterans nationwide to support their agriculture businesses and $50,000 from the Tractor Supply Company Foundation to support additional programming and grants. Local farmer and veteran Paul Dengel in Williamsburg received the award for his business, Good Thymes Organic’s business. Good Thymes Farm is a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) certified Organic vegetable farm nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in southeastern Kentucky. They are members of the Kentucky Proud, Appalachia Proud, and Home Grown by Heroes programs and have completed the Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) training program. Good Thymes Farm is a...

A pair of University of the Cumberlands (UC) online programs were recently recognized by an online college ranking service. College Values Online has identified UC as having one of the top online Ph.D in criminal justice degree programs. The ranking considered tuition and ROI (return on investment). The UC program ranked fourth on the list, and has a graduate tuition rate of $4,282. “The Ph.D. criminal justice online program from the University of the Cumberlands is technically a Ph.D. in Leadership Studies with a concentration in criminal justice. The fully online curriculum for the program requires 27 credit hours of core courses,” according to College Values Online. Students pursuing the concentration in criminal...

So how do you thank customers and your communities for naming you the best bank in Kentucky in a recent national magazine survey? Free food is always a good choice. At least this was the answer that Forcht Bank came up to thank its customers. Forcht Bank was recently been named the 2021 Best Bank in Kentucky by Forbes Magazine’s Best-In-State Banks list. Forcht Bank is listed as the number one ranked bank in Kentucky ahead of four other banks that also made the list of Best-In-State Banks. Across all states, 135 banks were recognized, which equates to only the top 2.7 percent of all United States-based financial institutions. Forbes partnered with Statista,...

  Local, state and national dignitaries were in attendance at the groundbreaking for Firestone Industrial Products’ 68,000 square-feet expansion on Monday. “Firestone Industrial Products has been a part of the Whitley County Community and a key team Kentucky player since it first opened its facility here in 1989,” said Governor Andy Beshear. “Already, Firestone Industrial Products employees more than 500 people. That means 500 families know where their paycheck is coming from and can provide opportunities to their kids and to their grandkids.” “That is the type of security we like to see from our corporate partners, so while Firestone Industrial Products has already invested in the Commonwealth and our people, today...

The Kentucky Agricultural Development Board approved $2,339,883 for agricultural diversification and rural development projects across the commonwealth at its monthly board meeting, including $32,726 for Whitley County. The Whitley County funding will be part of the County Agriculture Investment Program (CAIP), which provides Kentucky agricultural producers with cost-share assistance on practices to allow them to improve and diversify their current farm operations. CAIP covers a wide variety of agricultural enterprises in its 11 investment areas, including, but not limited to, bees and honey; equine; forage; beef and dairy cattle; goats and sheep; horticulture; poultry; swine; timber and technology, as well as energy efficiency and production; farm infrastructure and water enhancement; marketing;...

Unemployment rates increased in Whitley, Laurel, Knox, McCreary and Bell counties between May 2021 and June 2021, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS), an agency of the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet. Whitley County Whitley County’s unemployment rate increased from 4.5 percent in May 2021 to 5.9 percent in June 2021. Whitley County’s June 2021 unemployment rate was 0.4 percent lower than the June 2020 unemployment rate. Laurel County Laurel County’s unemployment rate increased from 3.9 percent in May 2021 to 5.4 percent in June 2021. Laurel County’s June 2021 unemployment rate was 0.4 percent lower than the June 2020 unemployment rate. Knox County Knox County’s unemployment rate increased from 5.4 in...

A beloved local business will be receiving a “fresh start” after 55 years in business. Bryan and Jessica Hinkle announced the closure of Hinkle Printing in June. The business, which has served the tri-county area for 55 years, will become part of the Hinkle Ink Spot Print Shop. The Hinkle Printing location has closed, but two new locations for the Ink Spot Print Shop have opened. There is a location in downtown Corbin and Pineville. The Ink Spot Print Shop will continue to offer the same diverse range of products, such as graphic design, letterhead, brochures, banners, screen printing and more. Hinkle’s Print Shop was started by Bryan Hinkle’s grandfather, and it was located...

Unemployment rates increased in Whitley, Laurel, Knox, McCreary and Bell counties between April 2021 and May 2021, according to the Kentucky Center for Statistics (KYSTATS), an agency of the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet. Whitley County Whitley County’s unemployment rate increased from 4.3 percent in April 2021 to 4.4 percent in May 2021. Whitley County’s May 2021 unemployment rate was 7.3 percent lower than the May 2020 unemployment rate. Laurel County Laurel County’s unemployment rate increased from 3.5 percent in April 2021 to 3.9 percent in May 2021. Laurel County’s May 2021 unemployment rate was 8.2 percent lower than the May 2020 unemployment rate. Knox County Knox County’s unemployment rate increased from 5.0 in...

(LEXINGTON, KY) –  Forcht Bank has recently been named the 2021 Best Bank in Kentucky by Forbes Magazine’s Best-In-State Banks list. Forcht Bank is listed as the number one ranked bank in Kentucky ahead of four other banks that also made the list of Best-In-State Banks. Across all states, 135 banks were recognized, which equates to only the top 2.7 percent of all United States-based financial institutions. Forbes partnered with Statista, a leading provider of market and consumer data, to identify the best banks in each state based on customer surveys. The surveys collected consumer scoring in areas of overall satisfaction, trust, branch services, digital services, customer service, financial advice, and...

Forcht Bank and Forcht Broadcasting were both named Best Places to Work (BPTW) in Kentucky at the annual BPTW Awards Dinner in Lexington on June 17. In the final rankings, Forcht Bank was named #20 in the medium-size company category and Forcht Broadcasting was #26 in the small-size company category. This is the seventh consecutive year that Forcht Bank has been named a Best Place to Work in Kentucky, and the first year for Forcht Broadcasting. “It’s an honor to have been named one of the Best Places to Work in Kentucky for the seventh year in a row,” stated Tucker Ballinger, Forcht Bank President and CEO. “We pride ourselves on...