Local residents apparently really wanted to see a Whitley County Fair this year. While official attendance figures aren’t in yet, it looks like over 600 people turned out for the inaugural demolition derby last Thursday night. This was the largest crowd that I can ever recall on...

They are back and hopefully will be better than ever. We’re talking about festivals, fairs and the like, which were mostly all canceled last year due to the pandemic. For those of you, who were cooped up for the better part of a year, it’s time to get back out and support our...

Wow! I have to say the Williamsburg fireworks display at the Kentucky Splash waterpark Saturday evening was probably the best fireworks show there that I have ever seen in my more than 25 years of covering Williamsburg. Organizers started the show a little earlier than usual...

While well-intentioned, placing a historical marker to commemorate the Corbin 1919 Race Riot, as the Sunup Initiative has proposed, probably isn’t the best idea in the world for multiple reasons. First, some background about the incident for anyone unfamiliar with it, which would...

Sports writers are a different breed. Many of them are die hard sports junkies, who really like sports and you have to be in order to do that job well. Most of our sporting events take place either in the evening or on the weekends. There are long hours spent out at games at...

It’s time to start planning a post COVID-19 party. Hear me out. On June 11, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear lifted pretty much the last of his COVID-19 restrictions. In other words, there are no more mask mandates, nor limited seating capacity requirements at restaurants, or other...

The upcoming 2021 SOAR Summit, which will take place Oct. 13-14, will be a great way for Corbin to showcase itself to leaders and VIPs, who are expected to attend from all over the country, including Washington, D.C. SOAR, which stands for Shaping Our Appalachian Region, was...

Some people really tick me off. A couple of Saturdays ago, I was having a pretty good day. My wife, Cecelia, and I were out for a drive in the country after eating an early dinner. We had just driven across the railroad tracks, and were waiting to make a right turn onto KY 26...

When the Corbin Tourism Commission first brought the 2132 locomotive to Corbin, I think many people, including myself, had some serious doubts about whether it would actually attract visitors to downtown. Without a doubt, the funniest comment about it came from then Corbin Police...

Young people, consider this tale of two summer interns for a moment. Several years ago, we had a summer intern that showed up for work late every day, except for one. He didn’t dress very well when he came to work. He never could seem to get a hold of much of anybody. Don’t get...

Thanks to the efforts of a few hundred volunteers, the recent 2021 PRIDE (Personal Responsibility In a Desirable Environment) Spring Cleanups at Cumberland Falls State Resort Park really made a big difference for our local environment. Initially, the cleanup was slated to take...

Happy 50th birthday to Southeast Kentucky Rehabilitation Industries (SEKRI), which was founded on May 10, 1971. For those that don’t know, SEKRI is a non-profit, which was created in Corbin to provide jobs for people with disabilities and to help prepare them for the competitive...

Chances are that if you lived or worked in Williamsburg for very long, and you heard someone mention the name “Nannie,” then you immediately knew who they were talking about. Nannie Hays was a Williamsburg icon. Many knew her from her days as the beloved longtime band teacher at...

Although it might not seem like it based on the temperature at times the last few weeks, spring is finally upon us. (My sinuses and allergies can verify that…LOL.) Unlike last spring with the COVID-19 lockdown, there are several upcoming events that I think a lot of local and...

Compromise. It’s something that happily married couples have usually figured out and figured out sooner rather than later. For instance, they go to the ballet on Friday night to make her happy and then the monster truck rally on Saturday night to make him happy. No, he doesn’t...

Retired district judge and U.S. Army Colonel Ronald Blaine Stewart was both an officer and a gentleman. He had this classy quality about him, but was also down to earth at the same time. Judge Stewart passed away Saturday at the age of 87. He was born and raised in Williamsburg,...

Change. Sure, many words can, have and will be used to describe the COVID-19 pandemic, such as awful, terrible, horrible, deadly, etc., but in terms of its impact on society, change may be the one word that sums it up best. In-person meetings changed to Zoom meetings, and many...

They say there are two things that you never want to see being made. Hot dogs are one and laws are the other. I can’t speak for the hot dog part of this analogy. After watching the Kentucky Senate and Kentucky House of Representatives debate many things before they finally got...

Last Friday night, I went to The Arena box office to pick-up my photographer’s pass for the Winger concert. What the lady at the box office came back with was a bit unique to say the least. I received a 3”x5” index card with “Photo Pass Winger” written on it with a blue Sharpie....

Attention members of the Kentucky House of Representatives, let me tell you a little bit about the area around Exit 29 in southern Laurel County that is the subject of Senate Bill 274, or as us locals refer to it, north Corbin. First off, let introduce myself. I am Mark White,...