Breaking News

Editorials

We must step up

Local residents answered the call last month when Belpre Area Veterans hosted a spring food drive to benefit the Belpre Area Ministries. It wasn’t just those who brought in enough food to fill several totes, it was also those who brought in cash donations who made a big difference for the food pantry. “This is great this time of year,” said Judy Frum, co-vice president of the Belpre Area Ministries board. “We appreciate these guys.” Shelves do not stay full for long at the Belpre Area Ministries pantry, which serves an average of 125 families per month. (A year ago, that ...

Success looks different for everyone

No two Ohioans’ life and career paths look the same. Every individual finds their own way. And what qualifies as “success” to one person might mean nothing to another. Ask any classroom teacher whether a one-size-fits-all approach to helping students succeed will work and they may well laugh. But state Sen. Al Cutrona, R-Canfield, doesn’t see it that way. He introduced Senate Bill 156, which would require integration of the “success sequence” in the required curriculum for middle and high school students. The idea is for students to be taught that the proper order in ...

Finding ways to fight the substance abuse epidemic

A couple of members of Congress are not giving up on finding ways to fight the substance abuse epidemic that has gripped our region. Last week, U.S. Reps. Troy Balderson, R-Ohio 12th, and Robin Kelly, D, Ill. 2nd, reintroduced the Remote Opioid Monitoring Act, which would direct the federal government to study the effectiveness of remote monitoring technology in helping health care providers track patients who have received prescriptions for opioids. “The opioid epidemic has devastated communities and families in Ohio and across the country,” said Balderson. “To combat this ...

Getting distracted isn’t worth it

Plenty of us are guilty of hearing the alert from our phones and finding it difficult to resist the temptation to glance down, maybe even tap out a quick response. But during National Distracted Driving Month in April, law enforcement agencies are reminding us that it’s not just against the law, it could be deadly. Distracted driving can be anything from use of a cell phone to trying to feed a toddler in the back seat. It is anything that keeps a driver’s attention away from the road. According to the West Virginia Governor’s Highway Safety Program, in 2022 there were 1,860 ...

Congratulations to those who participated at BPA event

The future looks bright, indeed, for those watching an impressive group of young people work their way through courses at the Washington County Career Center that prepared them for competition in the Business Professionals of America state event in Columbus. In a wide range of categories, 11 WCCC students finished in the top 10 in Ohio during the event. In fact, three of them did well enough to qualify for national competition at the BPA National Leadership Conference in May. Bridget Crock, a senior at Marietta High School, placed second and qualified for nationals in the Digital Media ...

Congratulations to Washington County 4-H

Washington County 4-H is already a stand-out organization to those of us in the region who know it. But earlier this month, it received recognition at the state level, during the Ohio 4-H Conference. Jeremy Barth of Fleming received the Ohio 4-H Alumni Award — he’s been a member of three different 4-H clubs, has been a 4-H volunteer for 25 years and is the Washington County club’s advisor and chairman of the 4-H Endowment Committee. Meanwhile, the Washington County Carteens 4-H Club received the Ohio 4-H Innovator Award for its work to reduce the number of fatal car crashes in ...