Mark White

Every winter, Poplar Grove Baptist Church Pastor Bobby Joe Eaton tells the same story about a time many years ago when he was on the staff at Central Baptist Church in Corbin when it was a snowy, slick Sunday evening. Despite the weather, the church decided to still hold services figuring that many of those, who could make it there safely, would still come, and the rest wouldn’t. There was a devout little old lady, who lived relatively close by, and was always at church anytime the doors were open. (Thankfully, nearly every church has one or two of those, who set the example that the rest of us should follow.) On...

Across the country, statues of confederate leaders are being moved, removed or vandalized and torn down, including a statue of Jefferson Davis, which was recently removed from the Kentucky State Capitol. For those who don’t know, Davis was president of the Confederacy during the Civil War. Although not everyone agrees, there is a valid argument for removing statues of confederate leaders, who many would rightly argue were traitors to their country. There is also a sizable contingent in this country, who want statues honoring past presidents like George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson removed because they owned slaves. Again, whether you agree, it is a valid argument. In a vacuum, it would be...

On Monday evening, the Corbin City Commission officially voted to abolish the position of Downtown Manager. Downtown Manager Aaron Sturgill was let go from the position a few weeks ago. The Downtown Manager’s position over the last several years when Andy Salmons was at the helm was one that helped foster the revitalization of downtown Corbin, which has been a model for other small cities. While it is sad to see the elimination of a position, which has done a lot of good, the Corbin City Commission made the right decision in my opinion. Here is why. First, let’s just be frank about COVID-19 for a minute. It is not going away any time...

Here are some words that I never thought I would ever say. It was actually nice to physically attend a school board meeting Thursday. Perhaps the even sadder part is I am pretty sure there were other people there, who probably shared the same sentiment…LOL. Unless you are being recognized, receiving an award, or knew someone in one of those two categories, I don’t think anyone gets excited about attending a government meeting. Let’s just be honest, these aren’t interesting things to attend, although Mayor Roddy Harrison does tend to liven up Williamsburg City Council meetings. After being largely confined in either our homes or at work for months due to COVID-19...

Simply put, the era of COVID-19 is not a good time to be in the newspaper industry. (Although for that matter, it also isn’t a good time to be in radio, the restaurant industry or pretty much any business or profession that isn’t selling Clorox or Lysol products…lol.) Numerous newspapers around the country and in Kentucky have closed during these unprecedented times. Locally, COVID-19 economics are hitting newspapers hard, too. Case in point are two area newspapers where I previously worked at early on in my career. The papers have been forced to merge their operations into one building and significantly cut back on their number of publication days in recent months. Even...

With the possible exception of those, who own stock in Clorox or Lysol, I think that we can all pretty much agree on one thing. COVID-19 stinks. First there were the business shutdowns, then the layoffs. Now we have the cancelation of events, such as NIBROC, Old Fashioned Trading Days, and fireworks celebrations and other festivities in Corbin, Williamsburg and Jellico. One bit of good news is that those, who are still wanting to celebrate Independence Day this weekend, still have multiple local options, even if some of these events aren’t as close to home. For those interested in celebrating the true meaning of Independence Day, which was the founding of the country...

A few weeks ago, I read a post that a friend of mine from college posted on his Facebook page about having “the talk” with his 10-year-old son. No, it wasn’t “that” talk…lol. This friend is black, and the talk he had with his son was what he should do if he encounters a police officer. Among other things, the talk involved discussion that some police officers will see him as a threat just because of the color of his skin. His son asked him how he could tell the difference between the good cops and the bad ones if he saw a police officer, and my friend’s response in part...

From graduations and church services to government meetings and eating out at restaurants, COVID-19 has certainly changed the way we do things, and next Tuesday’s primary election in Kentucky is no exception. Because of the coronavirus, the election is taking place in a quite a different format some of which is an improvement, quite frankly, over what we are used to. During a typical Kentucky election, you are only supposed to go vote early via absentee ballot at the clerk’s office if you are going to be out of state on Election Day, such as working elsewhere, or will be unable to go to the polls that day because of surgery...

Wearing masks. It has become a hot button topic recently with several people proclaiming that they have a right not to wear a mask and that they simply aren’t going to do it. Here are the reasons why I try to wear a mask when I go out in public settings, particularly large or crowded public settings. First, I would rather not get this virus, which can be particularly deadly and problematic for the elderly or those with underlying health conditions. While I am definitely not in the category of “elderly” quite yet, I am 49 and hope to get there one day. (Hey, getting older beats the alternative…LOL.) I also have minor...

To our recent high school and college graduates, sorry your senior years got cut short, and some of you missed out on prom and a traditional graduation ceremony. It stinks. It really does. As you have probably already figured out though, life isn’t fair. Bad things happen outside of your control. You just have to learn to deal with it, and move on. The bad news is that I can’t help you with any of that. The good news is that I can offer you some real world advise for the next chapters of your lives, which for many of you will include landing that first job or internship that will...