12.4.25

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the reading of the Courier Journal for Thursday,
December fourth, twenty twenty five, which is brought to our
Louisville listeners feel Louisville Public Media. As a reminder, Radio
I is a reading service intended for people who are
blind or have other disability to make it difficult to
read printed material. Your reader for to day is Cindy Fraser.

(00:22):
Let's begin with the five day forecast brought to you
by w h A s to day high thirty three,
flurries possible to night, low twenty one, cloudy and cold.
Friday high thirty seven, low twenty four, mostly cloudy. Saturday
high forty, low twenty six, partly sunny and chilly. Sunday

(00:48):
high thirty nine, low twenty six, rain or snow shower.
Monday high thirty six, low thirty partly sunny and cold.
Tuesday high thirty nine, low thirty one, mostly cloudy. The
local forecast sun sunshine Wednesday and Thursday, with some florries

(01:11):
possible on Thursday, turning mostly cloudy by Friday, with sun
showers in the southern portions of Kentuckiana highs year forty
this weekend. The Almanac for Louisville on Tuesday. Temperature high
thirty two, low twenty five, normal high fifty one, normal

(01:32):
low thirty five. The record high was seventy five in
nineteen eighty two, the record low six in eighteen eighty six.
Precipitation Tuesday zero point four two inches. Months to date
zero point five zero inches normal months to date zero

(01:55):
point two six inches. Year to date fifty two point
eight zero inches normal year to date forty four point
four seven inches. Air Quality was moderate Wednesday and will
be moderate today. Sun and moon Thursday sunrise seven forty

(02:15):
three a m. Sunset five twenty three pm, moon rise
four fifty two pm, moonset seven forty three am. Friday
sunrise seven forty four am, sunset five twenty three pm,
moon rise five fifty five pm, moonset eight forty seven am.

(02:41):
The full moon will be December fourth, the last quarter
December eleventh, the new moon December nineteenth, and the first
quarter will be December twenty seventh. Weather history. On December fourth,
nineteen ninety five, a rare severe thunderstorm formed over the
block Black Hills of South Dakota, which produced two inch

(03:03):
diameter hail and wind gusts to sixty miles per hour.
Whether trivia question, what is the record low temperature for
the lower forty eight states in December? Answer? Minus fifty
nine degrees fahrenheit at West Yellowstone, Montana on December nineteenth,

(03:24):
nineteen twenty four. Now let's read the headlines from today's
front page. Our first headline dangerous and unsafe, first two
wrongful death lawsuits filed in UPS crash, Next Kentucky Disasters
eight saying State Panel says could make a difference. And

(03:46):
the final headline from today's front page Booker to inter
race to replace McConnell x Rep's third attempt to win
seat in US Senate. Now let's turn to our first
item entitled dangerous and I say, first two wrongful death
lawsuits filed in UPS crash by Stephanie could of him.

(04:07):
The two women, each wearing black, sat between the lawyers,
staring at their hands as a tissue box slid down
the table. Lexi Faith and Gabby Anosio Nunez had no
reason to be in this law office's conference room exactly
one month ago. Then a plane fell from the sky
and exploded near a business. Both their loved ones were

(04:29):
inside the moment eternally bonded them now. The first two
wrongful death lawsuits related to the November fourth UPS plane
crash were filed December third in Jefferson's Circuit courts for
Alexi's mother, Angela Anderson and Gabby's sister Trina Chavez. The
lawsuits which closely marry each other, playing negligence by several

(04:52):
major companies affiliated with UPS flight twenty nine seventy six,
which crashed shortly after take off from Mohammad Ali International Airport,
killing fourteen at around five fourteen p m on November fourth.
Accelerating down the runway, UPS flight twenty nine seventy six
initiated take off. It reached an altitude of about thirty

(05:14):
feet above ground level, according to the flight data recorder
from the left engine and pylon separated from the wing.
The plane, carrying more than thirty eight thousand gallons of
jet fuel, was scheduled for a journey to Honolulu when
a fire ignited and the crash of the flight acted
like a bomb. Per the lawsuits, Anderson, forty five, a

(05:38):
mother of three daughters and a son, was dropping off
scrap at gray A Auto Parts of Recycling, a business
located due south of the airport when the plane crashed,
Anderson remodeled houses. She would have turned forty six on
November twenty third. My mom was loved by many and
were grateful to everyone who shared beautiful memories and of

(06:00):
her faith, said in his statement read aloud by attorney
Jonathan Holland like a lot of it. She had some
challenges in the past, but I know how hard you've
been fighting to overcome them. I was proud of her efforts,
but I'm now living with the regret that i didn't
tell her before it was too late. Chavez, a thirty
seven year old mother of two young children, was employed

(06:23):
at Great A. She was one of nine siblings. As
the oldest. In difficult childhood circumstances, Chavez stepped up to
take care of her siblings, sacrificing for them and fiercely
protecting him, even though she was still a child herself.
Her sister said, Nana really was the heartbeat of his family.
Ansieur Nunez said, we want to make Nana proud and

(06:46):
do for her children what Nana always did for us,
care for them and protect them. That's why we're prepared
to do what's necessary with the support of our attorneys
to make sure that there is accountability and that Nana
as children are taken care of. The suit names UPS
and Upsair, as well as GE, the engine manufacturer, and Boeing,

(07:08):
which acquired McDonald douglas, the original manufacturer of the MD eleven.
It also names VT San Antonio Aerospace Incorporated or VTSAA,
an engineering and aerospace company. The company provided maintenance and
repair services to UPS owned MD elevens. According to the suits,
The lawsuits alleged UPS and Upsair negligently allowed the MD

(07:33):
eleven to fly despite defects or unsafe conditions affecting the
left wing, left engine or related components. They also claimed GE,
the engine maker, failed to employ safe methods to adequately design, manufacture, maintain,
and or operate the engine on UPS flight twenty nine

(07:54):
seventy six. The lawsuits alleged Boeing, as well as VTSAA
New or Shoe I, could have known that the MD
eleven used for flight twenty nine seventy six was in
disrepair or otherwise dangerous and unsafe. The Courier Journal requested
comment from GOING and VT San Antonio Aerospace, but did

(08:14):
not receive an immediate response. UPS spokespersons Michelle Polk and
Jim Mayer said December second and December third, respectively, that
those of the company remained deeply saddened for those affected
by Flight twenty nine seventy six. UPS is fully supporting
the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation into the accident and

(08:36):
working tirelessly with settled state and local authorities and response efforts.
The statement said, we do not comment unpending litigation. A
spokesperson for GE Aerospace also said the company did not
comment unpending litigation. We are deeply saddened by the loss
of UPS flight twenty nine seventy six. We extend our

(08:57):
heartfelt sympathies to the families and luved ones of those impacted.
Safety is our first priority, and we are supporting the
ntsp's investigation, the spokesperson said in a statement. Anderson's case
was assigned to Judge Patricia Tish Morris's court. Chavis's case
was assigned to Judge Tracy Davis's court. Local attorneys San

(09:20):
Auguier of Augliar Injury Lawyers and Holland, along with attorneys
from Chicago based Clifford Law Office, represent the families in
hopes of finding answers, accountability and reform that leads to prevention.
They said. Clifford Law Offices have represented plane crash victim
families across the last four decades, including nine to eleven.

(09:41):
With a holiday season in full swing and the family
still grieving. Auglia said they filed the suits soon after
the crash in hopes that even though the aircrafts have
since been grounded, someone will speak out and provide the
lawyer's answers to make sure these types of planes do
not get up in the air again. Second or safety record.

(10:03):
Louisville is the center of UPS Worldport, the company's main
global air hub. The five point two million square foot facility,
located at the city's Muhammad Ali International Airport, employs twelve
thousand people and processes more than two million packages and
facilitates three hundred flights each day. An MD eleven is

(10:23):
a three engine wide body airplane. The aircraft for flight
twenty nine seventy six was thirty four years old. The
MD eleven has a second or safety record of any
commercial aircraft still in service. The Lass of alleges the
aircraft for a flight twenty nine seventy six registered as
n two five nine. UP started as a passenger plane

(10:47):
with Thai Airways in nineteen ninety one. The aircraft was
converted to a cargo plane and joined UPS's fleet in
two thousand and six. Per the lawsuit, at the time
of the crash, the aircraft had accumulated a total time
of about ninety two thousand, nine hundred ninety two hours
and twenty one thousand, forty three cycles. The suit states,

(11:09):
for more than a month, the aircraft underwent extensive maintenance
for significant structural issues, including a crack in the center
wing fuel tank, as well as corrosion on structural components.
Per the lawsuit and as previously reported by The Courier Journal,
VTSAA performed maintenance on it in San Antonio between September

(11:31):
three and October eighteenth. According to flight logs, a twenty
four month, four thousand, eight hundred hour lubrication task of
the pylon thrust links and pilon spherical bearings was last
accomplished on October eighteenth. The lawsuit states the plane's left
and right engines are attached to the plane by pylons.

(11:51):
The center engine is attached at the base of a
vertical stabilizer. The pylons attached to the respective wings underside
via a forward nath on, a bulkhead, a thrust link assembly,
an aft mounted bulkhead providing a mounting point for the engines.
The National Transportation Safety Board released its preliminary report on
the crash over the twentieth. The ntsp's investigation found the

(12:15):
left engine detached from the plane and caught fire. The
report also said the investigation found evidence of fatigue cracks
on the left pilon aft mounting lug fractures. After initial
cleaning of the fracture surfaces, examination of the left pilon
aft mount lug fractures found evidence of fatigue cracks in
addition to areas of overstressed failure the investigation found. The

(12:40):
lawyers said they will launch their own investigation alongside the
NTSB investigation and look into not just why, but how
the unairworthy condition was allowed to develop in the first place,
as well as what happened at these corporations that they
allowed a plane in this condition to continue to be
flown at the risk of not only the people on

(13:02):
the airplane, but at the risk of all the communities
surrounding the airplane, said Tracy Brammeire, a partner with Clifford
Law Offices. Allowing an airplane in this condition to fly
from an airport in a community full of innocent people,
loaded completely with fuels is completely unforgivable, Bradmeire said. A

(13:23):
preliminary report and a fleet grounded Boeing recommended on November seventh,
all operators of the MD eleven, including FedEx and Western Global,
ground the aircraft's UPS temporarily grounded is MD eleven SLEEP,
which makes up about nine percent of UPS airlines SLEEP,
according to the company. Then, the Federal Aviation Administration issued

(13:46):
an emergency airworthiness directive on November eighth, prohibiting further flight
of the MD eleven. On November fourteenth, the FAA issued
another emergency Airworthiness directed adding nine other model of similar
planes to the Granding, including models of similar design like
the MD ten and the DC ten. The FAA's directive

(14:08):
stated the planes are subject to the same unsafe condition
as the MD eleven. Before the SAA issued its emergency
airworth and is directive for all MD eleven operators. UPS
proactively grounded its MD eleven fleet out of an abundance
of caution. UPS said in a November twenty statement. We
appreciate the National Transportation Safety Boards prompt to release her

(14:31):
preliminary findings and will fully support the investigation through its conclusion.
UPS officials believe it will be several months before m
D eleven's return to the skies, according to an internal
letter obtained by The Courier Journal and later confirmed by
UPS folksperson. The letter issued to employees by UPS Airlines

(14:51):
President Bill Moore the week of November twenty fourth, so
the company's MD eleventh fleet will require inspections and potential
repairs that are more extensive than originally believed. The plans
are expected to remain grounded for several months instead of
weeks as originally anticipated, Moore said in the letter. As

(15:11):
the lawyers answered questions about the NTSB, its investigation and
the legal process, the families of Andersen and Chavez sat
quietly along the wall, including another Chada's siblings. Dressed in
a burgundy sweater, she stared at the photo of unknown
smiling faces decorating the conference room wall. She pursed her

(15:32):
lips as a single tear ran down her cheek. Our
next time from to Day's from page is entitled Kentucky disasters,
eight things State Panel says could make a difference by
Stephane Quizoim, Kentucky States Senator Robin Webb held up a
thick black binder stuffed full of white paper. The binder,

(15:53):
which she hefted in the air during the November twenty
first meeting in Frankfort, contained the many recommendations the design Master,
Prevention and Resiliency task Force, co chaired by Web and
Representative Chris Freeland, Republican from Benton, received the last five months.
A General Assembly created the task force during the twenty
twenty five session to study disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and

(16:18):
mitigation after Kentucky suffered three major natural disasters in the
first forty five days of the year. That followed several
major recent natural disasters, including the Mayfield tornadoes in twenty
twenty one, which killed more than eighty people, and mass
flooding in eastern Kentucky since twenty twenty two. After months

(16:38):
of gatherings, it was a task force's final meeting, and
Webb gave an overview of several of its recommendations for
consideration by the General Assembly, which will begin session January sixth.
It is a budget year. Here are eight recommendations the
task Force will ask lawmakers to consider. First, Chief Resilience Officer.

(17:00):
The task Force's first recommendation is for the state to
create a state level position known as a Chief Brasilience Officer.
Little concrete details were given on how this office would
be created for the Commonwealth, but it resembles what other
states have in recent years. Based on a study by
the Georgetown Climate Center, at least twelve states have a

(17:20):
cro position. States like Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Rhode Island
have created the position with executive orders. Other states like
West Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina have created the
position through statutory authorization website. The position would focus initially
on data. That office would work with agencies and tear

(17:42):
down some of those silos to get information and make
sure we don't have duplication of expenditures and just that
agencies are talking to one another sharing maps and data.
Web site. Second, the continuation of the task Force. The
task Force is also recommended that its work be continued
either as an oversight or regular committee. Web said the

(18:05):
General Assembly needs to get involved. Other members of the
committee echoed how much they learned they didn't know prior
to the creation of the task Force. I've learned more
in this committee than probably all my committee meanings combined.
This interim represented Ashley Tackard Lafferty set third stream gauges,

(18:27):
flow systems, and monitoring Kentucky's waterways. The task Force is
also considering a recommendation regarding stream gauges used to observe
water levels and better monitoring to alert residents ahead of flooding.
We heard great information on preparedness and monitoring and slow
systems that are just no brainer's web set, hearkening back

(18:49):
to a September meeting that included presentations on stream gages
and flood inundation maps from both Jerry Brodsky as the
Kentucky Mezenet and Rebecca Shelton with the Appalachians Citizens Law Center.
The task Force also discussed recommendations regarding four public education
and awareness, five long term recovery groups, six commonwealth sheltering programs,

(19:13):
seventh enhancing or expanding urban search and swift water rescue teams,
and eight mitigation. Other members of the task Force included
Senator Cortura j Herron Democrats from Louisville, Senator Jason Howell,
Republican from Murray, Senator Scott Maiden, Republican from Pineville, Senator

(19:35):
Aaron Reed, Republican from Shelbyville, Representative John Blanton Republicans from Saliersville,
Representative Mark Hart, Republican from Falmouth, Representative of Ashley Tackett Lafferty,
Democrat from Martin, and Representative Mitch Whittaker, Republican from Plumbing Neon.
The task Force's final report is expected December fifth. Now

(19:59):
the final adam from Today's friend page, which is entitled
Booker to enter race to replace McConnell. Ex representatives third
attempt to win seat in US Senate by Lucas Albach,
a familiar name from Louisville, is planning to take a
third crack at representing the Bluegrass state in the US Senate.
Charles Booker, the former West End state representative who ran

(20:22):
Senate campaigns in twenty twenty and twenty twenty two, announced
December third he plans to seek the Democratic nomination to
replace retiring US Senator Mitch McConnell, whose final term will
expire at the end of next year. They thought we
were done. We ain't quitting, Booker said in a campaign
announcement with a clip of his speech, Let's lead for

(20:44):
the change we want to see. While Brooker served just
two years as a state representative in Frankfort, he needs
little introduction among Kentucky voters. Keeping an eye on the
Senate race, he's run for a seat in the chamber
two times. In twenty twenty, he lost a contempt a
Democratic primary against Amy McGrath, who was also seeking to
replace McConnell, and in twenty twenty two, he cruised in

(21:07):
the primary but was sadly defeated in the general election
by current Republican U S Senator Ran Paul. Booker ran
to the left of McGrath in twenty twenty and has
promoted progressive policies in the past. He worked in Governor
Andybuscher's administration following his twenty twenty two loss, but left
the office in earlier this year. He appeared recently at events,

(21:30):
including Louisvill's No King's rally in October, and last month
hinted he was considering jumping in the race. Booker would
be Kentucky's first black US Senator if elected, a distinction
that would also go to Republican primary candidate Daniel Cameron,
the state's former Attorney general. Booker stuck by his progressive
bona fides in his campaign announcement video, alongside clips of

(21:54):
him distributing food at charities and speaking with crowds of supporters,
He spoke in favor of policies such as Medicare for all,
universal child care, affordable housing, and forty for forty, a
minimum salary of forty thousand dollars for a forty hour
work week. He also took a few not so veiled

(22:14):
shots at others in the race. A reference to greedy
industries and politicians was accompanied by a shot of President
Donald Trump standing next to U S Representative Andy Barr,
a GOP primary front runner, and at one point he
told viewers Kentuckians are tired of politicians flying into our
communities telling us what we need, alongside a clip of

(22:36):
a military jet. Mc grath was a former Marine fighter
pilot who made that piece of her background a key
part of previous campaigns. Other Democrats in the race include
State House Minority leader Pamela Stephenson, Lexington, attorney and former
Secret Service agent, Logan Forsyth, thoroughbred trainer Dale Romans, and

(22:57):
former CIA Officer Joel Willett. The primary will take place
May nineteenth, twenty twenty six. Now let's turn to the
interior of to day's paper, where next item is entitled
Southern Indiana restaurant known for oysters has closed. In Hall's
Restaurant Group, Brand Hospitality will stay in the space at
two O seven East Main Street and work on conceptually

(23:20):
something new that could open my early twenty twenty six
by Man Hancock. A seafood restaurant in downtown New Albany
has closed after less than three years in business. Outcast
Fish and Oyster Bar opened in April twenty twenty three
at two O seven East Main Street from owner Ian Hall,
a New Albany native who also owns two nearby restaurants,

(23:43):
The Exchange Pub Plus Kitchen and Brooklyn and the Butcher.
In a video posted on Outcast social media pages on
December first, Hall announced it's likely the end for the
restaurant known for its raw bar and nods to Outcast
the hip hop duo. We've made the difficult decision to
hit the pause button here for the next couple of months,

(24:04):
Hall said in the video. Hall's Restaurant Group Brand's Hospitality
will stay in this space at two seven East Main
Street and work on conceptually something new that could open
by early twenty twenty six. Hall said he and his
staff have been weighing the decision for eight months or so,
a hoping business that Outcast would pick up. Unfortunately, right

(24:28):
now this industry is going through a pretty difficult time
with a lot of closing and expenses rising. He said
in the video. It's just really challenging, more than I've
ever seen it in my fifteen years of owning and
operating restaurants. Hall also said that Outcasts former employees have
been placed with jobs at either the Exchange Club Plus

(24:48):
Kitchen or Brooklyn in the Butcher. Additionally, Outcast's popular raw
oyster bar will soon be part of Brooklyn and the
Butcher's menu. It's a sad thing, but at the same time,
it's an opportunit unity to get better and bring something
to downtown that might be just a little better fit.
Hall said. He hinted that the new concept could be

(25:09):
a reincarnation of Outcasts or serve a totally different cuisine.
We've had a good, hard two and a half year run,
and we just think it's time to evolved a little
bit into something else, Hall said next an autumn entitled
time short for Lawmakers to tackle health care costs by

(25:29):
Zachary Chermelli of USA Today from Washington. As millions of
Americans braced for the healthcare costs to skyrocket in twenty
twenty six, President Donald Trump and the Republican controlled Congress
remained deadlocked over what to do about it. Time is
running out. The White House and lawmakers have just a

(25:50):
matter of weeks before federal subsidies are set to expire,
potentially kicking roughly fifty two million Americans off their health
insurance per se Mastery. The subsidies, which come in the
form of tax credits, are part of the Affordable Care Act,
also known as Obamacare. Just before Thanksgiving, the Trump administration

(26:11):
was gear enough to intervene, potentially resolving the crux of
the issue before the end of the year holidays. Multiple
news outlets reported that Trump planned to propose prolonging the
subsidies for two years, but the President pumped the brakes
amid opposition from congressional Republicans. Something's going to happen to
address the problem, Trump said during the December second Cabinet meeting.

(26:33):
Though the President also signaled it's probably not going to
be easy. Partisan politics are one big challenge in resolving
the standoff. With the subsidi's expiration looming by years end,
Democrats have vowed to make them and health care more
broadly a quarterstone of their twenty twenty six mid term
messaging strategy. They're hoping to springboard off the national attention

(26:57):
they drew to rising health care costs during the recent
government shutdown in order to wrestle back control of Congress
in the November twenty twenty sixth elections. We're going to
get this done, said Senator Amy Klobuchar, Democrat from Minnesota,
who ran for president in twenty twenty. We're going to
get it done by getting it on some piece of legislation,

(27:19):
or we're going to get it done by marching through
into the mid terms and winning. Though the Senate is
expected to vote in early December on a bill to
address the problem, it's not clear exactly what legislation they'll consider.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat from New York, said
December second that whatever the measure is, it'll focus on

(27:41):
lowering costs. Regardless, serious challenges exist for any bill winning
enough support to become law, considering the Senate's sixty vote
threshold to overcome a filibuster. Also standing in the way
of any potential Senate compromise the GOP controlled House, though
there's a bypart group of lawmakers pushing for an extension

(28:02):
of the healthcare subsidies, many House Republicans had big issues
with the ACA generally and wouldn't support any plan that
survives the Senate absent a last minute breakthrough. Some lawmakers
are already warning that the next Senate vote could end
up being nothing more than a partisan exercise. I'm afraid

(28:23):
that's a real risk, said Senator Tom Tillis, Republican from
North Carolina. Tillis, who is retiring next year, is among
a group of Republicans who have voiced support for extending
the premium tax credits at least in the short term
while Congress figures out a bigger solution to problems with
the ACA. Our next item is from the Metro page

(28:44):
and is entitled Saint Xavier now has its own Kentucky
license plate by Caroline Neal, Louisville. Saint Xavier High School
recently became the first Kentucky high school to acquire its
own license plate. According to a November twelfth Facebook post
from school administrators, Saint Xavier got the license plate through
the Special license Plate Program, which aims to provide opportunities

(29:07):
for Kentuckians to support their hobbies, nonprofits, schools, veterans, and
others through the state's vehicle registration process. According to the
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, any nonprofit organization based in Kentucky can
apply for a special license plate, and completed proposals are
reviewed during the Special license Plate Committee's quarterly meeting. Saint

(29:30):
Savior's Senior Vice president for Special Initiatives, Michael Little, said
the Saint Xavier Alumni Association has been very interested in
getting a license plate after seeing regional colleges with their
own after the state requirements changed. School administrators started the
application process early in twenty twenty five. We demonstrated that

(29:51):
we felt that we were a statewide organization because we
have alumni, parents, grandparents, and parents of alumni living in
over one hundred counties in Kentucky. He said, we had
a pretty strong footprint to present to them. By early summer,
Little was notified that the plate would soon be in production.
The license plates can be purchased at the County Clerk's office.

(30:14):
Saint Xavier will receive ten dollars of the initial charge
of forty four dollars. According to kytc's plate list application page.
The proceeds from the license plates will go toward the
school's lead based scholarship fund. The school has a pretty
robust scholarship program. That's a very popular area for support.
We provide over three point five million dollars in scholarships

(30:35):
a year to our students. We felt that would be
a good way to connect with the license plate opportunity,
he said. Little said Saint Xavier has a very motivated
community that is interested in being supportive. Since the school
announced the license plate, Little has seen interest in the
initiative online, with some posting photos of the plate on

(30:55):
their car. As some Saint Xavier's students start driving, administrative
are hopeful families will take the opportunity to add that
play to the vehicle that he is going to end
up using to come to school. Little said the school
is blessed to have such a significant support of alumni
and paired community, and that's why things like this work.
She said, Now it is time to read the obituaries,

(31:18):
we read only the name, age and location. If you
would like further information on any of the obituaries, please
call us during the weekdays at EGE five nine four
two two sixty three nine zero and we will be
glad to read the entire obituary for you. I will
repeat that number at the end of the listings. Robert

(31:38):
Bob Collins ninety seven of New Albany, Indiana. Janice jan M.
McCormick ingall seventy four of New Albany, Indiana. Robert Dean
Munt ninety one of Brazil, Indiana. Donna Leo Williams seventy
two of Louisville. If you would like for the information

(32:01):
about any of the listings today, call us on weekdays
at eight five nine four two two six three nine zero,
and we will be glad to read the entire item
to you. Now, let's return to the metro page where
next side of his entitled Liberty High's Fight to Remain open,
supporters say school is more than a credit recovery program.

(32:22):
JCPS works to cut over one hundred and thirty million
dollars from budget. By Christi Johnson. It's been two years
since Millie Larkins graduated, but she still tears up trying
to talk about how rustlings had gotten before she transferred
to Liberty High, an alternative school that leaders of Kentucky's
largest school system are seeking to close. When I got there,

(32:46):
I really wasn't doing well, Larkins recalled, while choking back tears.
The COVID nineteen pandemic disrupted her freshman year, though she
said she'd already began to disengage in the classes beforehand.
When school's re open, she was far behind and felt
her teachers weren't offering her the help she needed to
catch up. She was at one of Jefferson County public

(33:08):
schools most highly rated non magnet high schools, but she
felt alone. Her disillusionment grew, as did her mental health
issues and thus her truancy. When she was offered the
chance to go to Liberty, she worried he'd strip her
of the traditional high school experiences, but Larkin said she
was excited to try something new, hoping it would pull

(33:30):
her out of the dark hole she was in. The
school ended up giving her far more than she expected,
including the chance to go to prom, donate blood, and
enjoy Spirit Week. I really found myself there, Larkin said.
When I got there, I was a shell of a
human and that's not the case now. As JCPS leaders

(33:52):
worked to cut more than one hundred thirty million dollars
from next year's budget, they presented a list of schools
to close or relocate as a means to meet that goal.
That list includes Liberty, which they argue is a costly
school that is giving students the same opportunity to recover
credits that they can get in any other high school.

(34:13):
To Larkin's, her dad, and several others connected to the school,
though that representation of Liberty is misleading and narrow. It's
more than just a credit recovery school. Larkin said, I
did go there for that, but I got so much
more out of the experience. Plus, she said she wouldn't
have made it across that finish line if she'd stayed

(34:35):
at her former school. It was so refreshing to be
able to go to a place that cared about me
and how I learned, she said. If I stayed, I
would not have made it through Liberty. Staff students questioned
reasons for proposed closure. In his short five months leaving
j CPS, Superintendent Brian Yearwood has made the district's financial

(34:59):
blows his largest focus, declaring that rather than the fifty
million dollars previously cited by his predecessor, one hundred thirty
two million dollars needs to be cut from the twenty
twenty six to twenty seven budget to achieve that goal.
He's promised central office cuts will be prioritized, and he
recently indicated his team has identified the vast majority of

(35:22):
what will be cut overall. So far, no details of
what that looks like have been shared with the community,
save for his plans to close three schools and relocate
two others that she is expected to save the district
about four million dollars annually. This alone is an optics issue,
said Melissa Brooks, who recently retired from Liberty after nineteen

(35:44):
years at the school. More than that, Burkes question why
Liberty is being targeted for closure when reasons provided by
the district don't match the same reasoning for other proposed closures.
She also wondered whether Yearwood has enough information about the
school to propose such a decision. Four out of the
five schools that are being targeted in Yearwood's plan have

(36:07):
been listed on a critical needs list based off the
Operations Team's Facility Profile Index, a new tool being used
to identify which schools might be ideal candidates for closure.
Liberty is the outlier, the one out of the five
not on that list. In his explanation for seeking to
close the school, the district has said well rounded credit

(36:30):
recovery resources are implemented across jcps, making the standalone Liberty
model no longer necessary. Other schools, however, do not offer
the same path toward graduation for students who have fallen
behind that Liberty does. People familiar with the school said
it is not simply this credit recovery place where kids

(36:52):
are put on a computer and that's how they are
reaching their graduation components. Brooks said it's not that at all.
Liberty students may have experienced bullying in their previous schools, or,
like Larkins, felt out of place and unimportant. They must
be at least a year behind in classes to attend Liberty,

(37:12):
and upon acceptance, Liberty staff own in on what the
student's career interests are and what academic standards they are
missing to build all of their experiences around that. This
approach appears to be paying off, given the school's college
and career readiness rate is higher than the districts. Even
though Liberty takes in kids who are on the path

(37:35):
to drop out, eighty four percent are demonstrating post secondary
readiness upon graduation, compared to seventy eight percent across JCPS district.
Data shows Liberty High School was designed to be an
opportunity for very capable and unmotivated students. Martha Katz, a
retired Liberty teacher, said at the first of three community

(37:57):
forums about the proposed closures. We knew there were students
in conventional high schools that did not fit into the
classrooms of thirty or more students. They were not succeeding,
They were falling through the cracks. If a Liberty student
wants to become a mechanic, the school will find job
shadows and internships in that field and build lessons around

(38:19):
that interest for them. For example, a history lesson could
focus on which automotives were used during World War Two.
Larkins remembers that when she first got to Liberty, she
was interested in becoming a photographer. Within three weeks, she said,
a trip to the zoo to take pictures of the
animals was organized. It shocked me how fast that happened.

(38:40):
She said, I'd just gotten there and they were already
so willing to help me. Later, when her photography passions
grew into an interest in journalism, the school organized trips
to local news stations and support of Larkin, which he
launched the school's first student newsletter. In addition to this
individualized roach to engage students, Liberty is able to more

(39:03):
quickly catch students up because they are assessed and earn
credits based on standards, not classes. The same method is
currently being used by Newcomer Academy to catch up immigrant
students who arrived to the school lacking formal education or
having lots of education experience but no transcripts to show
for it. In both schools, the goal is to catch

(39:25):
students up and get them across the finish line before
they age out of the system. To accelerate students learning,
Liberty students use online learning platforms that do exist in
other JCPS high schools, but they also receive live instruction
that covers a variety of their missing standards that are
rooted in their interests. If closed, Liberty students would be

(39:48):
sent back to the reside schools, where the options for
credit recovery are to enroll in the course they previously failed,
an option only provided if space is available and last
for the whole semester, or they will be able to
enroll in summer school, or do the course work online,
which is faster. Those online platform options include E school,

(40:10):
a Unity, or Adminum, the last of which has been
the focus of criticism among teachers and parents locally and nationally,
who say the program allows students to bus through lessons
without actually learning anything. The district has also pointed to
the costs of running Liberty as a reason for its
impending closure. JCPS spends just under sixty seven thousand dollars

(40:33):
per Liberty student, which is significantly higher than the district's
other multi level schools, though it is on par with
Breckenridge Metropolitan High another JCPS alternative school, was roughly the
same number of students. Students are court ordered to attend
breck Metro, though while students apply to attend Liberty. Two

(40:54):
reasons for the higher costs are that more than seventy
percent of the teachers at Liberty hold master's degrees and
the years of experience for the faculty is significantly higher
than the districts about sixteen years compared to less than
thirteen factors that drive up their salaries and thus the
cost of running the school. It is the district's hidden gem,

(41:15):
Brooks said, of why more experienced teachers work at Liberty,
There's nowhere else you'd rather have spent nearly two decades
in the district. Plan calls for Liberty students to return
to larger high schools, despite the passion within those connected
to Liberty. JCPS leaders have to make a choice about
how they will save money, and there are passionate voices

(41:38):
urging them to reconsider closing two elementary schools, as well
as relocating the district's Team Mom program to another campus too.
These decisions are not easy, Yearwood said during the December
first forum. No one wants their school closed. Making this
kind of decision is not easy. When we have to

(41:58):
close schools, it is emotion it is draining, It affects students,
it affects families. If schools aren't closed, though, what's going
to happen to our school district in twenty twenty seven
when we can't pay our teachers? He asked, what's going
to happen in twenty twenty seven when we can't pay
our bills. In announcing its proposed closure, JCPS said Liberty

(42:22):
students will have personalized learning plans at their next stops,
which will include a clear, attainable graduation timeline, recommended coursework
or credit, recovery opportunities, social emotional and wrap around supports
based on the student's needs, and regular check ins to
monitor progress and adjust the plan as needed. Ask how

(42:44):
an ongoing staffing shortage might negatively impact this plan, jcps's
Chief of Schools, Robert Moore, said, while we remain mindful
of broader staffing pressures that affect many districts, we are
confident personalized supports can be delivered through a layered, team
based approach. The personalized plan, he continued, will not depend

(43:06):
on a single staff member. Instead, each student's plan will
be supported by a co ordinated team to ensure continuity
and consistency. Despite assurances students and staffs that Liberty's model
and environment is a unique combination, larger high schools can't provide.
That's why they left and were not successful, Brooks said

(43:29):
of the other schools, Liberty students came from. Why is
there this assumption that that will somehow miraculously work for
them now? I think they need to understand that the
program works, and that to say these students are going
to seamlessly transition into another school that they likely just
came from for specific reasons is unlikely. She added, As

(43:52):
if what's being done at Liberty can quickly be replicated
in j CPS's other high schools, Brooks said, not a chance.
Corey Shull, chair of the Jefferson County Board of Education
and Liberty's representative, agreed that referring to Liberty as simply
a credit recovery school is wrong. I think it's an
incomplete articulation of what Liberty does. Schull said. Liberty has

(44:17):
provided a place for students who were not as successful
as we wanted them to be in larger schools. It
is credit recovery, but it is also helping students find
a sense of belonging. As if he felt other high
schools can quickly offer what Liberty has, Shull said, the
education professionals tell us it can. I have to trust

(44:38):
their word on that. The closure will require board approval.
With members set to vote on the measure, December ninth,
Shull said he hasn't made up his mind on whether
or not he will support all or any of Yearworth's plan.
I am listening to community conversations, making sure I am
exploring all of the info that is being presented, and

(45:00):
I will make a decision closer to the time, he said.
Next still from the Metro page is an item entitled
Christmas in the Highlands Guide to the fortieth Annual Bartstown
Road to Glow by Kirby Adams. The Highlands neighborhood kicks
off the holiday shopping season with a special celebration in

(45:20):
honor of the fortieth Bartstown Road to Glow on December sixth.
The beloved annual event features holiday shopping, free trolley rides,
live music, festive holiday drinks and an official tree lighting ceremony.
The seasonal celebration is traditionally the largest night of commerce
of the year for Highlands area. Merchants and visitors will

(45:44):
find discounts and specials at local bars, restaurants and shops.
Held on the first Saturday in December since nineteen eighty five,
the Highland Commerce Guild invites the community to celebrate the
event's fortieth anniversary with extended chopping hours from noon until
ten pm. Here's what you know about the twenty twenty

(46:05):
five Bardstown Road to Glow. When is Bartstown Road to Glow?
This year? The day long event will be held Saturday,
December sixth from noon to ten pm. Where is Bartstown
Road a Glow? The annual holiday festivity is held along
Bartstown Road, Baxter and Barrett Avenues and Douglas Sloop in

(46:27):
the Highlands neighborhood. When and where does a Christmas Tree
lighting ceremony take place? The annual Wendy's Holiday tree lighting
will take place at six pm and will feature Santa
Claus and festive music from voices of Kentuckiana. The holiday
tree is located outside Wendy's Restaurant eleven A eight Bartstown

(46:48):
Road at the corner of Grinstead Drive. Free hot chocolate
will be provided by Wendy's starting at five thirty pm.
Does a cost to ride the trolley? Thanks to Trolley
Deville and the Highland Commerce Guild, visitors ride free during
Bardstown Road to Glow. The trolley runs between Douglas Loop
and Bartstown Road to Baxter Avenue. What activities are planned

(47:13):
for the fortieth Bartstown Road to Glow. The angle event
offers discounts at many shops and restaurants, plus live music
from various local musicians and groups. In addition, Maker's Mark
will be featured in holiday cocktails at participating restaurants for
a Glow, with a portion of the proceeds going to

(47:33):
Gilda's Club Kentuckiana. Look for free hot chocolate and selfie's
with Santa at the P and C parking Lot thirteen
oh one Bartstown Road from six thirty to eight pm.
There will also be a Bartstown Road to Glow photo contest,
which will award cash prizes for first, second and third place.

(47:54):
Post your best photos from the event to Instagram with
the hashtag HASHTAGA Glow five two. For more information on music,
performances and vendors taking part in the event, visit Bardstown
Road aglow dot org. And the final item from today's
Metro page is entitled It's National Cookie Day. Nine places

(48:18):
to get one in Louisville by g G read Craving
something sweet your in luck. National Cookie Day is celebrated
each year on December fourth, and there are numerous places
around town to snag your favorite treat. Treat yourself to
a cookie on National Cookie Day at these places listed

(48:38):
in alphabetical order. In Louisville, Caine and Flower What Cane
and Flower is a Louisville based cottage bakery specializing in
small batch cookies that include the classics like chocolate chip, snickerdoodle,
white chocolate, macadamia and omeal raisin. Or try its signature
cookies that include Gimme Somemore cookie loaded with milk, chocolate chips,

(49:01):
mini marshmallows, and gram Cracker pieces, all baked into a
soft golden cookie, The Blue Monster Cookie with gooey chunks
of Oreo Cookies, chocolate chip cookie pieces at a blend
of white and rich milk, chocolate chips, and more. Where
eleven twenty six rudling Her Avenue hours Monday through Wednesday

(49:23):
eight thirty am to seven pm, Thursday through Saturday eight
thirty am to nine pm. More information. Order online at
cananflour dot com to have cookies delivered or for pickup
five O two five five seven sixteen eleven. Crumble What

(49:43):
Crumbele Cookies are not just a cookie, but a dream
dessert made fresh daily with a weekly rotating menu of
over three hundred flavors, from classic cookie favorites to inventive
new creations. The rotating lineup promises unique flavors and an
excited the experience every week. Where seventy seven fourteen Bartstown

(50:05):
Road two nine one North Hubbard's Lane twelve nine, forty
nine Shelbyville Road, forty one ten Summit Plaza Dry forty
nine oh one Outer Loop thirty five forty eight East
tenth Street, Jeffersonsville, Indiana. Hours hours vary by location. More
information Crumblecookies dot com, That's c r U, M B,

(50:29):
L COO, K I E s dot com, Heidspin Traditional
Bakery and Delhi what Heidespin Traditional Bakery in Delhi has
been baking in Louisville for over one hundred thirty two years.
Cookies are baked daily and include chocolate chip, snickerdoodle, Eminem,
double chocolate chip, Oameal raisin, peanut butter chip, Macedonia, and

(50:54):
sugar iced cookies. Where ninety four twenty six Shelbyville Road.
Hours Monday through Friday six a m to six p m.
Saturday six a m to five p m. Sunday six
a m to four pm. More information. The Bakery can
create any design cookie with its state of the art printer.

(51:16):
Also sells pies, cakes, donuts and more. Heidspan Bakery dot com.
That's h e I t z M A n b
A k e r y dot com. Homemade ice cream
and Pie Kitchen. What the Homemade ice Cream and Pie
Kitchen offers chocolate chip cookies with a chocolate drizzle, monster

(51:40):
cookies with a hand iced monster face, sugar cookies and
more top them with ice cream. Where twenty five twenty
five Bartstown Road, fifty six oh six Bartstown Road, thirty seven,
thirty seven Lexington Road, thirty five, twenty one Springhurst Commons Drive,
twenty one oh four plant Side Dry thirty one thirteen

(52:03):
Blackiston Mill Road, New Albany, Indiana. Hours Monday through Thursday
ten a m to nine p m. Friday and Saturday
ten a m to ten p m. Sunday noon to
nine p m. More information. It also sells cakes, pies,
cupcakes and more. Pie Kitchen dot com. Kisito Cookies What

(52:27):
Kisito Cookie sells cookies baked fresh daily, including chocolate chip,
chocolate chocolate chip, white chocolate chip, de Luxeldmeal, and sugar
cookies where thirteen ninety eight Bardstown Road. Hours Tuesday through Saturday,
seven a m to four p m. More information. Kitzeito
also offers brownies, muffins, piscottie, granola, and African crafts. All

(52:52):
cookies are three ounces each. Kitzeito dot com, that's k
z I t O dot com. Nord's Bakery what. Nord's
Bakeery sells a gooey delicious chocolate chip cookie, Sninkerdoodles, sugar
thumb print macaroons, oatmeal raisin, double chocolate chip, sugar cookies

(53:14):
and more where twenty one eighteen South Preston Street. Hours
open daily six a m to two p m. More information.
Also sells cakes, doughnuts and pastries. Nord's Bakery dot biz.
That's n O r d S Bakery dot b I

(53:34):
Z please and thank you, what Pleason thank You. Chocolate
chip cookies are often called the best in Kentucky and
are made from a secret recipe that took the SHOT's
owner two years to perfect. It also sells peanut butter
cream pie, sugar, oatmeal cream pie cookies, cookies and cream,

(53:55):
and an eight in salted butter cream cookie cake where
eight hundred East Market Street twenty three, forty one, Frankfort Avenue,
ninety five sixty one U S forty two Prospect Ours
Market Street Monday through Saturday seven a m to seven
p m. Sunday eight a m to seven p m.

(54:16):
Frankfort Avenue and Prospect Monday through Saturday seven a m
to five thirty p m. Sunday eight a m to
five thirty p m. More information. Gluten free options available.
You can also purchase chocolate chip, cookie dough and bake
cookies at home. We are Please and thank you dot com.

(54:36):
That is w E A R E P L E
A s E A N D T h A n
K y o U dot com. Plains Bakery What Plains
Bakery has been in business for more than one hundred years.
It serves a variety of cookies that include chocolate chip, oatmeal,

(54:56):
old fashioned sugar, spikerdoodle, thumb prints, almond macaroons, ice box
and more. It also has ice cookies, pecan tea Cookies,
Fiend Sugar Cookies, is as a baseball, heart balloons and more.
Where thirty nine forty Shelbyville Road hours Tuesday through Friday

(55:17):
seven am to five pm, Saturday six thirty am to
five pm. More information. Plains also makes ice cream and
sells cakes, cupcakes, bread and more. Plaines dot com. That's
pl eh ns dot com. S'more Nordic Bakery. What This

(55:39):
Scandinavian bakery offers cookies and bars available in half and
full dozen, including sambo Hills, a buttery almond Norwegian cookie
with a sandy texture, Rosettes fried light and crispy on
a traditional rosette iron with confection sugar, Kermkokka Light Norwegian
waffle Cookies Small, its take on a classic chocolate chip

(56:02):
cookie with the addition of Swedish mork syrup, toffee, Sneakerdoodles,
Classic cookie with Melton your Mouse sugar cinnamon deliciousness, and
the Cloudcoca rich chocolate sticky cake similar to a brownie
dusted with powdered sugar and more. Where one O O
one Tavilian Way hours Thursday through Sunday, nine a m.

(56:26):
To three pm. More information. It also sells cakes and
breads more nordicakrai dot com. That's s M O R
N O R D C B A K E r
I dot com. Next is an item entitled emails DC

(56:47):
shooting suspect at PTSD records detail ambush attack on Guard soldiers.
Isabelle Mays Ostermann and Natalie Nissa Alland of USA Today
from Washington. The Afghan refugee accused of shooting two National
Guard members near the White House on November twenty sixth

(57:07):
had descended into severe depression ampusar behavior, locking himself in
his room for days and driving off suddenly on long
solo road trips, according to emails of community advocates sent
out last year in a plea to help his family.
Armonola A Kanva twenty nine, who served since he was
a teenager with violent CIA backed zero units in Afghanistan,

(57:31):
is charged with murder, assault, and weapons possession in the
shooting of two West Virginia National guardsmen blocks from the
White House. One soldier died and the other remains in
critical condition. Both ambush service members suffered gunshot wounds to
the head. According to new details released about the attack,

(57:51):
US Army specialist Sarah Bestrom and US Air Force staff
Sergeant Andrew Wolfe were on control near the intersection of
seventeenth and im Streets Northwest in Washington in full uniform
when shots rang out. According to an eight page complaint
filed by Metropolitan Police Department Detective Joshua Branson. An autopsy

(58:12):
conducted by doctor Kusina Geese with the DC Office of
the Medical Examiner confirmed Bextram died from a single gunshot
wound to the back of the head at approximately two
thirteen p m. Eastern time. The charging document said two
majors with the Army National Guard were talking with Bexsham
and Walth when gunfire erupted. One of the witnesses alleged

(58:34):
to officials that he saw the pair fall to the
ground while simultaneously seeing the defendant shooting a gun and
screaming Allah Akbar, the Arabic phrase translates to God is
Greatest in English. Due to time constraints, we will be
unable to complete this item. This concludes readings of the
Courier Journal for Thursday, December fourth, twenty twenty five. Stay

(58:57):
tuned for more news to follow immediately. Your reader has
been Cindy Frazer