4.6.25

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now we turn to the reading of the Hazard Herald
for news of Hazard and Perry County. I'm Lee Townshend.
We begin with the online edition dated April third, twenty
twenty five as a reminder radioiser reading service intended for
people who are blind or have other disabilities that make
it difficult to read printed material. Chief of Police recognized

(00:23):
as Kentucky Legendary Partner. Hazard Police Chief Zach Miller was
recognized as one of the Children's Advocacy Centers of Kentucky's
Legendary Partners during the organization's annual ceremony, held in honor
of those who have gone above and beyond in helping
child abuse victims. The Children's Advocacy Centers of Kentucky, a

(00:45):
statewide coalition, coordinates efforts to support children affected by abuse.
Its network of sixteen centers provides forensic interviews, victims, support advocacy,
medical evaluations, and mental health services, all in child friendly locations.
They were celebrating their twenty fifth year. Miller said, every

(01:08):
year we do what's called legendary partners. I had been
nominated by the care Cottage of Hazard to be a
legendary partner with the Children's advocacy center, you get recognized
for your work and dedication on child abuse cases throughout
your community. Miller said it requires commitment to handle these

(01:29):
challenging cases from min A well, it's about working the
case until you have exhausted all your resources. He said
that means if a case needs social workers involved, or
if the care cottage needs to get involved, we make
sure that happens. Working child abuse cases can be emotionally taxing.
Miller said it takes a special person to be able

(01:51):
to work these kinds of cases. I worked with officers
who don't want to be involved with these kinds of
cases because of how traumatic it can be. It's hard
not to carry that we're home with you, and it
takes a sense of calmness and a remembering of why
you took an oath to begin with to protect all
citizens in your community. The vulnerable part of our communities

(02:14):
are the children and the elderly. As chief, when I
get these cases, I want them to be worked with
all of our resources until they're exhausted, to be able
to have justice served with whatever perpetrators are involved, and
to be basically alike to these kids who are going
through some of the darkest times of their lives. Miller

(02:37):
expressed gratitude for the local care Cottage and the collaborative
approach it facilitates. We're thankful to have care Cottage and Hazard.
Miller said. They cover Wolf, Alsley, breathat Leslie, lecher Not
and Perry Counties. To have them basically at a five
minute drive from the station is a huge benefit to

(02:57):
the community. From what the Care Cottage has told us,
our resources together and as a whole or a standard
for the state. We are prosecutors, law enforcement, care cottage workers,
social workers. We all get together and work really well
together to make sure what needs to be done in
these cases is done and again to give a little

(03:21):
hope and a little justice to the people involved. Miller
said he was surprised by the award. I'm thankful for
the nomination and I really do appreciate it. But I
really see it just as me doing my job, Miller said,
I'm doing it as I'm supposed to do and seeing
the case to the end. Caroline Rochelle, CEO of Children's

(03:44):
Advocacy Centers of Kentucky, commended Miller for his dedication. We're
so honored to name Detective Lieutenant Zach Miller as one
of our twenty twenty five Legendary Partners. Rochelle said he
has gone beyond his scope of work to ensure children
who are victims of abuse receive the care they need
and deserve. Hazard bookstore owner Chronicle's grief, addiction and Appalachian

(04:10):
resilience in debut work by Justin Begley. Inside a small
but beloved bookshop tucked in downtown Hazard, the Heartbeat of
Appalachia quietly pulses between shelves. The Red Spotted Neude, owned
by a local literary advocate and now published author, Mandy Scheffel,
has become more than a place to find a good book.

(04:32):
It's become a sanctuary for stories, both shared and written. Now,
Sheffel is preparing to release one of her own. Her
debut work, The Nature of Pain, Roots, Recovery and Plus
Redemption amid the Opioid Crisis, is a deeply personal reflection
born out of tragedy. The story, shaped by her lived

(04:53):
experiences and the devastating grip of opioids across Eastern Kentucky,
centers on her co Eric Fugett, who was murdered in
twenty thirteen as a result of his addiction. I was
deeply and profoundly affected and questioned my own ability to
stay here. At the time, Shuffle said, I would have

(05:15):
had these flashes of memory anytime I was driving in
a car, or was in the shower, in the line
at the grocery store. I would think about things that
we had done together and had this real intense fear
that I was going to forget about them. She found
herself driven to preserve those memories, so I would get

(05:36):
them down on paper when I could, She said, a
lot of times at night, because my son was young,
he was about six months old, maybe, so I would
sit in the room with him while he was going
to sleep, in the dark with my laptop and kind
of write these memories of what we shared. Got started
in the winter of twenty thirteen, but I never thought

(05:58):
of it as a book. It was more of a
coping mechanism at the time. But over time, those fragments
of memory began to form something larger. I guess it
was when I started feeling compelled to share these stories
with other people. She said. The bookstore and my inception
as a writer run very parallel together. It happened all

(06:21):
at the same time. In April twenty nineteen, Cheffle attended
a poetry reading at Hazard Community College and met Renownd
Appalachian Arthur Gurney Norman. What began as a conversation turned
into an unexpected turning point. I went to see Gurney
because I love him, and we got to talking back

(06:43):
and forth, and I was opening up to him about
some of this, and he asked me if I had
written any of these stories down. He told me to
send him what I had so far. So I went
home and I sent it to him. She said, But
this is Gurney Norman, and I'm not really thinking he's
going to to read that, but he gets back to me.
By midnight. That night, Scheffle received an email from Norman

(07:07):
before she went to bed. He was talking about how
strong the voice was, and he picked out excerpts that
he liked and encouraged me to go to the Appalachian
Writer's Workshop in Hyman. She said. So, I ended up
at the Writer's Workshop for the first time in twenty nineteen,
and I've just had to hang on ever since. The

(07:29):
journey has been incredible. It's been nothing that I'd planned
or predicted, even still at that point, I don't think
I really realized that it was a book for Scheffel.
It wasn't about ambition. It was about finding belonging in
a space where her voice could take shape. I looked
at it more as me being in a space with

(07:52):
other Appalachian writers writing about experiences. She said, So, I
guess maybe that summer probably realized that maybe I can
take this and put it all together and make it
something that others would want to read. Though the process
wasn't effortless, it felt natural. It didn't come out me effortlessly,

(08:13):
she said, but it did come out of me easily.
I love the oral storytelling tradition here, and it felt
a lot like that to me. Writing the book was
not unlike having a conversation with her late cousin. It's
the way I would have reminisced with Eric where he's
sitting there, she said. It was almost like I was

(08:35):
speaking to him, reminiscing on old times. That emotional honesty
became the heart of the manuscript. I think it's an
important story, she said. I'm not sure this story is
written anywhere from an addictive person's perspective. I don't know
anyone in recovery who's written about this experience, and that

(08:57):
helps balance the vulnerability. It's not going to show me
in a great light in a lot of ways, Sheffles says.
The book focuses on a pivotal chapter of her life.
It's not a memoir in a sense, but it does
center in that time span of my life from ages
eleven to twenty five, that period of my life, not

(09:21):
so much after I got cleaned, she said. It really
centers on that period of time. But to me, it
does not feel like an addiction memoir. I'm writing about
family in place and the importance of those things, and
it just so happens we ended up getting addicted to drugs.
To me, it was about my relationship with my family,

(09:41):
particularly my cousin Eric, and what those relationships mean when
you're from Central Appalachia. The opioid epidemic hit Appalachia with
particular cruelty, Scheffle said, especially in the late nineties and
early two thousands. And I were together now in our forties,

(10:02):
how will we tell these stories to each other now
we're just sitting on the porch. It's my way of
preserving those memories. He passed before there was this realization
that this was a targeted effort, that this was another
form of extractive industry. It took time an outside perspective
for her to see the full scope of the crisis.

(10:25):
I think I thought this was a choice, these were repercussions,
but now looking back, we can see this was very
much a targeted effort. She said. It wasn't until I
read Dope Stick by Beth Macy that I figured out
that this was a very rare eye opening for me.
There were a lot of players in this that were

(10:45):
not aware of and there's a reason why it was
so accessible and was showing up everywhere. Shuffle hopes her
book paints a fuller, more human portrait of the region
and its youth. I hope that this book captures the
way I grew up in a way that people can
see what we were exposed to environmentally and genetically. She said,

(11:09):
we were really good, tender kids, and it was just
around us a lot. It was a perfect storm. Oxycotton
came into the scene right during our formative years. The
fact this stuff came from a doctor made it feel
safe and we had some level of control. But overall,
empathy is the main theme of the book, she walks

(11:31):
readers through the journey of her childhood, adolescence, and dissent
into addiction, not from sympathy, but for understanding. Owner and
operator of Tattoo Shop Lost Gypsy, Draven Gayheart and his
artists faced the devastating loss of their entire shop after
the flooding event of February fifteenth. According to Gayheart, the

(11:55):
shop has since been rebuilt and is better than ever
as they look forward toward a future of serving a
community that helped them get back on their feet. Eight
CTC students advanced the nationals after big wins at State
Skills USA conference. Hazard Community and Technical College students attended

(12:16):
the Kentucky Skills USA Leadership and Skills Conference in Louisville
from March twenty fourth through twenty seventh. During the conference,
Cayden Adams, Ethan Campbell, Ethan Johnson, and Michael Salvador placed
first in their respective categories Architectural Design, Automotive maintenance and
light Repair, Technical Drafting and Welding. The four will now

(12:41):
advance to Skills USA Nationals in Atlanta. According to a
statement from HCTC, all of the students placed first in
their regional competitions, including Matthew Cook and Robbie Higgins, who
also competed in the statewide Carpentry IE and Welding I competitions.
In addition to student accolades, Dean of Advanced and Professionals

(13:05):
Technologies Tony Beck earned the state Advisor of the Year award.
All the advisors are very proud of the students and
the Skills USA student organization at eight CTC. This statement said,
fourth round of grants from opioid Settlements awarded nearly twenty
million dollars for seventy five organizations. Attorney General Russell Coleman

(13:30):
announced more than nineteen point eight million dollars in grants
from the opioid Settlements to seventy five Kentucky organizations at
Goodwill's West Lexington Opportunity Center, one of the grant recipients.
The announcement was made March twenty seventh. Coleman lauded the
many good ideas found in the applications to combat the

(13:53):
state's opioid and drug epidemic that killed nineteen hundred and
eighty four Kentuckians in two thousand twenty three. According to
the last year's Kentucky Drug overdose fatality report. Eastern Kentucky
pastor finds motivation on mission trip to Chile. The first

(14:13):
international mission trip for an Eastern Kentucky by vocational pastor
proved to be an eye opening experience. Several Kentucky Baptists
were on a vision tour to Chile during two weeks ago.
It was one of the great experiences of my ministry,
said Jodi Maggart, pastor of Willow Fern Baptist Church, after

(14:33):
returning from a Kentucky Baptist Convention vision tour two weeks ago.
Nineteen people from Kentucky went on the trip with the
goal of developing partnerships with Chilean churches in junction with
the International Mission Board. Not only did we get to
do mission work evangelizing serving some of the homeless and

(14:54):
downtrodden people, but we also got to go into schools.
This was relatable to what I do, Magard said, who
was CFO of the Perry County school System. Despite lawmaker's
contradiction on virtual school, Basher lets Calamity Day's bill become law.
Democratic Governor Andy Basher decided to let a bill become

(15:18):
law that not only allows Kentucky schools to make up
days lost to bad weather and floods, but also protects
a controversial online school from enrollment caps imposed by state
education officials. But Sheer allowed House Bill two forty one
to become law without his signature. The bill's passage in

(15:39):
the General Assembly was in doubt for a time after
the Senate added a provision to protect the Kentucky Virtual
Academies after the Kentucky Department of Education sought to curb
its enrollment due to poor student performance and failure to
meet staffing requirements. The bill was introduced to relief to

(16:01):
Kentucky school districts running out of their ten NTI days
or non traditional instruction days this school year. Even before
Kentucky was hit with widespread floods in mid February, some
schools had closed and temporarily moved to virtual instruction due
to bad weather or sickness. Leading up to the veto period,

(16:24):
a free conference committee made up of House and Senate
members reached an agreement on the bill that allows public
schools to waive five required days and make up for
lost instruction by lengthening the school day. While the free
conference committee also agreed to guardrails the guardrails limit enrollment

(16:45):
at the Kentucky Virtual Academy. A Governor's office press release
said Governor Basher's action is due to the General Assembly's
contradiction of their own actions and attitudes in person learning.
In twenty one, lawmakers approved the legislation ending a MASK
mandate in K through twelve schools and limited schooled districts

(17:08):
to ten NTI days a school year. The General Assembly
previously mandated that children return to in person learning during
the pandemic, yet now they're promoting all virtual learning. The
release said. Concerns about the Kentucky Virtual School have been
reported by the Louisville Courier Journal and the Lexingdon Herald Leader,

(17:31):
which highlighted numerous accusations and lawsuits raised against Stride, a
for profit company that has a contract to run the
Virtual Academy while it serves students across the state through
online instruction. The academy is attached to the district in
Breckinridge County. From the opinion page, the under current by

(17:53):
Russ Cassiday as Chainsaw Musk and the Trump administration continue
with the Bull and a China Shop Act in DC.
The Kentucky legislature finished its annual business in Frankfort by
overriding Veto's last week. While there were some actions taken
by the legislature that are being branded as radical by some,

(18:16):
it was, for all intents and purposes, a pretty traditional
session and in a national environment where people are expecting
action and leaning in favor of less government. Only time
will tell whether that will be enough to carry members
of the Supermajority to its re election in their next campaigns.

(18:38):
Change has been underway on the conservative side of things
since the advent of the Tea Party movement close to
twenty years ago. I don't know if we've seen the
most extreme break from tradition yet, but it certainly feels
like we're in the midst of a radical shift in
the conservative side. After years of big talk about cutting government,

(18:59):
most of which was clearly just lip service. Big talk,
no walk. Merciless cutting is happening in the new Trump administration,
and especially among libertarian and libertarian leaning conservatives, it appears
to be pretty popular. Time will tell whether the lack
of more radical legislation in this in recent years Kentucky's

(19:22):
General Assembly sessions will give an opening for maga minded
hopefuls to step up against the current crop of legislators
and challenge them based on their more conservative approaches. It
wouldn't surprise me, though, especially as the libertarian voices grow
in importance in the conservative sphere of influence. There's a

(19:43):
large contingency within the Republican Party, which remains more Reagan
oriented than Trump oriented, but they're not at the lead
right now. The Republican Party if today, is not your
grandparents or your parents' Republican Party and their It is
a sizeable rift evident and growing between the factions as

(20:04):
they become more clearly defined. There's been a massive shift
in Kentucky and voter and official registration since Trump's first term,
part of which is a result of more radical leaning
individuals seeing the strength of the GOP as a means
to an end that may not agree with the traditional

(20:25):
goals of the party. That's not necessarily a bad thing.
If anything, the Republican Party of the Reagan Bush Bush
Air were becoming a bloated dinosaur, hauling behind its war mongering, corruption,
and a disconnect from the realities of everyday life. Time
will tell whether the high and slash approach currently underway

(20:47):
in Washington d C is a benefit to the American
people and whether the DOGE is on its way to
the Commonwealth. But I wouldn't be surprised. The guest column
is by On Schaff Shifty Bar betrays McConnell to get
Musk cash. Kentuckian's watching their Washington politicians are witnessing Representative

(21:11):
Andy Barr betraying his friend and mentor, Senator Mitch McConnell
in a way that reminds people of what Judas did
to Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. Over the years,
McConnell's hard work single handedly built the Republican Party of
Kentucky into the state's majority party. McConnell made it possible

(21:32):
fifteen years ago for a former government lawyer like Barr
to even dream of running for Congress in central Kentucky.
Without McConnell, there would be no Congressman Bar, and for years,
Barr followed McConnell's lead in voting to protect social security,
veterans and a strong military. Sadly, Bar has gone weak

(21:55):
and fainted into the arms of multi billionaire government contractor Elon.
As with Judas, there's a reason for Barr's radical reversal.
He's doing it for Elon's money. If money is the
root of all evil, Musk's campaign contributions are certainly at
the heart of Bar's treachery toward McConnell. Bar's in frantic

(22:18):
pursuit of McConnell's Senate seat, so he's ditching his longtime
ally and desperately chasing Elon. In years to come, Bar's
lust for Musk's money and his betrayal of McConnell will
be remembered as one of the most despicable double crosses
in Kentucky political history. McConnell's a constitutional conservative, and as

(22:41):
the nation's founders intended, he's always stood up for budget
making power of Congress, the branch of government closest to
the people. In contrast, and for Elon's money. Bar's cheerleading
for Musk, an i elected rich guy whose plundering tax
dollars that were approp created by law with Barr's votes,

(23:02):
and trying to pull the plug on Social Security so
it can be handed over to Wall Street bankers. Elon
calls social Security the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time,
and Bar smalls and says, thank you, sir, may I
have another for Elon's money and another slap in McConnell's face.

(23:23):
Bar is supporting tariffs that amount to a national sales tax.
Tariffs will increase inflation and cause chaos in the market
and the retirement accounts of millions of Americans. Both McConnell
and Senator Rand Paul are telling Bar that tariffs are
simply taxes. Conservatives, once united against new taxes. Taxing trade

(23:46):
will mean less trade and higher prices. Here are the obituaries.
Bradley Campbell eighteen of Viper died Saturday March twenty ninth.
Pearl Campbell Junior seventy five on Saturday March twenty ninth.
Benjamin Franklin Hughes seventy six of Hazard died Tuesday March

(24:08):
twenty fifth. Ireland Colistra Trent twenty sixth of Ico died Sunday,
March twenty third. Carl Mouse Campbell sixty eight of Busy
died Sunday, March twenty third. Vicki Hubbard seventy six of
Blackie died Friday March twenty eighth. Scott Randallschell thirty four

(24:32):
of Viper died Sunday, March twenty third, Kendall Eugene Davidson,
twenty eighta viper, died Thursday March twenty seventh, and William
Earle Macintosh, eighty one of Hazard died Tuesday March twenty fifth.
Hazard Health and Rehabilitation Center most recently held an appreciation

(24:55):
lunch acknowledging the invaluable service of social workers. We wanted
to celebrate the social workers in our area, said Director
of Hazard Health and Rehabilitation Center, Beth Jackson. We have
members of rh Hospice our almsbudding here so we can
basically celebrate our social workers and their importance to the community.

(25:18):
They help our residents and families adapt. There's a lot
of transition when you come into a long term healthcare facility,
so we're here to celebrate all social workers here today.
Colon cancer what you need to know as March comes
to a close, Pipe Bull Medical Center PMC is reminding

(25:38):
the community that it's not too late to learn about
co Erectal Cancer Awareness Month. This month is dedicated to
raising awareness about one of the most common and deadly
cancers in the world. Coorectal cancer, also known as colon cancer,
is often called the silent killer because many people don't
have symptoms until it isse is in a later stage.

(26:02):
That's why catching it early is so important. In early
twenty twenty four, the American Cancer Society released new information
colon cancer is now the leading cause of cancer related
deaths in men under fifty and the second leading cause
in women under fifty. In the nineteen nineties, that didn't

(26:24):
affect younger people as much, but now that's changing. Doctors
still aren't sure what causes colon cancer, but they found
several risk factors. These include being over forty five, having
a family history of colon cancer, and having conditions like
Chrohn's disease or ulcerative colitis. Some warning signs of colon

(26:47):
cancer include changes in how often a person uses the bathroom,
frequent diarrhea or constipation, blood in the stool, stomach pain
or cramps that don't go away, and or weight loss.
Without trying, these symptoms can be easy to miss or
may seem like something less serious. That's why screening is

(27:08):
the key. The best way to check for colon cancer
is with a colonoscopy. During this test, the doctor uses
a small camera to look inside the colon and check
for polyps. Or signs of cancer. This concludes the reading
of the Hazard Herald. Please stay tuned for continued programming.
Thank you for joining me and on behalf of everyone

(27:29):
here at RADIOI. This is Lee Townshend, wishing you a
good day.