If you are a senior citizen who reads our paper, or if you have a friend/family member/acquaintance who happens to be a senior citizen, then you have likely seen our monthly Senior Living insert. These have been running in our publication for a long time, and the content inside is dedicated to covering a wide range of topics pertaining to issues that seniors might deal with on any given day.
In recent years, I have had the opportunity to write some very interesting feature stories for Senior Living. I’ve spoken to seniors who are AmeriCorps volunteers in some of our local schools, I’ve learned about several special programs dedicated to bettering the lives of our senior citizens, and I’ve even interviewed a couple of special individuals who have now lived past the century mark of 100-years-old.
On one occasion I was able to do a feature on one of our local pastors, Dr. Bob Tibbs of First Christian Church of Corbin, and I am happy to say that the story was very well received. In fact, I have wanted to do more stories about senior citizens who are remaining active in our local churches ever since that story on Dr. Tibbs ran back in February, but it hasn’t quite worked out so far.
With that being said, I know that we have a lot of “retired” folks in Whitley County and surrounding areas who are continuing to play vital roles in many of our houses of worship. It doesn’t have to be leading the congregation as a pastor, either. Maybe we have some senior citizens who have been in charge of the music ministry for many years. Perhaps there are some who have helped raise multiple generations of churchgoers while volunteering in the nursery. There may be some others who are still embarking on long trips to other states, or other countries, in order to participate in important mission work.
Whatever the case may be, if you know a special senior citizen in your church who you think would be a good subject for a future Senior Living feature story, feel free to shoot me an e-mail at tsherman@corbinnewsjournal.com. I can’t make any promises, but if everything works out then maybe I can come do an interview and find out some more about the good work that they are doing.
• Just a heads up that you may need to alter your routine if you are used to picking up copies of our paper in the west Knox County area. Every so often it becomes necessary to re-evaluate where we deliver our papers each week. Sometimes certain stops will get cut or added in order to optimize the efficiency of the route. A few different factors go into making these decisions, including average paper sales, mileage and making sure that we can be in certain areas by a certain time.
In the near future, perhaps as early as next week, if you live anywhere in the Gray area of Knox County you will need to make the short trip up to the Trademart Center in Corbin to pick up your weekly copy of the News Journal. Look at Save-A-Lot first, as we leave a stack of papers every Wednesday near the front entrance of the store. If that doesn’t work, just jog down to Walgreen’s. You should see papers as soon as you walk in the front door. If that doesn’t work, there should be copies available in the coin-operated box that is located in the middle of the parking lot over near Subway.
An even better option would be to give us a call and enquire about getting set up with a mailed subscription. It’s the easiest, and many times the most cost-effective way to get your news each week. Call us at (606) 528-9767 to learn more.
• Finally, before I end my column this week I just wanted to say that I was excited to see the Lane Theatre in downtown Williamsburg opening its doors over the weekend and welcoming folks inside to have a look around. Of course, the building is still far from being fully operational right now, but the new landlord, Rocky Moses, Jr., seems intent on getting the property back in order as quickly as possible.
I will refer everyone to Timothy Wyatt’s story in this week’s edition to get the full details on what is currently happening with the Lane, but I did want to comment on the situation personally, as I witnessed firsthand just what a mess the whole endeavor had become when I attended a public meeting at the theatre last fall. Long story short, there was a lot of internal drama that was holding up efforts to restore the building. With that internal drama now seemingly resolved, I join many others in the local community in saying that I wish Moses nothing but the best as he begins the work of trying to get people back inside the building in some form or fashion.
