Tag: Arts & Culture

Listen: A West Virginia Superintendent Sings to Announce Closings, Delays

Winter weather has shut down government offices, shopping malls and, of course, public schools. School was in session for President’s Day in some schools…

Winter weather has shut down government offices, shopping malls and, of course, public schools. School was in session for President’s Day in some schools systems in order to make up for snow days.

There’s no doubt that children look forward to the automated calls from school administrators canceling or delaying school days. But some working parents dread those calls since another snow day means another day to find child care or even miss work.

Fayette County Superintendent Keith Butcher is hoping to ease the tension by adding a melody to the message.

"This is the phone call kids love to hear, So gather around let me be clear. Ice and snow has come our way, And so I announce this two-hour delay. Please don't cry and please don't complain, You'll get a chance to wake up your brain. Two more hours of sleep and then it's back to the school again."

On Friday of last week, Butcher announced schools in Fayette County would be closed. Central office staff didn’t have to report to work but, custodians, maintenance, and transportation staff were called into work. At least he broke the news to everyone with an adaptation of “Let It Snow.”

0214FayetteCoClosing.mp3
Fayette County Superintendent of Schools Keith Butcher announces a Code B Closing on Friday, February 14 through an automated voice message.

"Oh, the snow outside is still falling. That's the reason that I'm calling. Since traveling is not cool, There's no school, there's no school, there's no school."

DEP Orders Fayette County Waste Pit Shutdown, Renews Well Permit

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection has renewed a permit for an underground injection well in Fayette County that accepts fracking water and other waste.

A public hearing in 2013 brought concerned residents and former workers of Danny Webb Construction, the owner of the site. Residents have been concerned about the site for years.

The DEP renewed the permit on February 6 for a class two UIC, or underground injection control disposal well owned by Danny Webb Construction. The permit allows the company to accept fluids from oil and gas exploration, development drilling, and production fluids for another five years, although during the renewal process, the company could accept the waste anyway.

The permit was granted with the condition that the company close a waste pit and no longer use it. The pit is located near the underground well and was used to help remove sediments from the waste before injecting underground.

The DEP ordered the pit closed after the operator failed to submit a plan to bring the pit up to code. Although the DEP did not find the pit to be leaking, officials say it needed to be upgraded.

Underground Injection Control Permit Reviewer for the DEP Office of Oil and Natural Gas James Peterson says the pit needs a leak detection system and a new liner.

DEP is asking DWC to submit an engineered plan to properly close the pit.

The renewal comes despite opposition letters from several national and local environmental groups.

This pit and the well have received waste from Pennsylvania, Virginia and other parts of West Virginia.

The DEP says there are 54 non-commercial and 17 commercial disposal wells in the state as of late last year.

Shutdowns, Shoveling, and Sleighriding: A W.Va. Winter Story

Several public school systems across the state remained closed Friday. It was the same story at several universities and colleges. Some West Virginians are still digging out of a deep snow that fell over Wednesday and Thursday.

Preliminary totals from the National Weather Service include more than a foot  in the Eastern Panhandle and Southern West Virginia. American Electric Power’s website showed minor outages during the storm. Governor Tomblin urged residents to stay home unless absolutely necessary. Still, the deep snow created slick conditions treacherous for driving and a workout to shovel but perfect for sleigh riding. 

Students at Concord University enjoyed a day off as did Mercer County public schools, so residents quickly flocked to campus to enjoy a Concord tradition. Listen to the audio file above to hear West Virginians shovels, plow and even slide through the snow day.

Jessica Lilly can be reached at 304.384.5981, or by email jlilly@wvpublic.org. You can also follow her on twitter: @WVJessicaYLilly.

For updates from West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s statewide news team, follow @wvpubnews.

Herd Tennis Player Grew Up in Sochi

One Marshall University athlete has a unique perspective on the home of the 2014 Winter Olympics.

When Anna Pomyatinskaya talks about Sochi, Russia she reflecting on a place she calls home. The freshman Marshall University tennis player just arrived on campus in January after spending the last few years at IMG Academy in Florida. She says she’s not been back to Sochi since winter break of the 2012-2013 school year. She said her home looks completely different.

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“It’s really exciting, but at the same time unbelievable, maybe a year ago I was there and walking down all the streets and now I see it on TV and people see all the beauty that our people just built,” Pomyatinskaya said.

She said since officials in Russia found out in 2007 that they’d host this year’s games, work has been underway to change a sleepy small town on the black sea into a Winter Olympics mecca. She said work immediately began to turn a diverse area with beaches near the black sea, but an abundance of snow in the mountains into a place that millions of people would see.

“It was a resort town, it was a place where people use to go in the summer or early autumn. It was a perfect place to get in the sea, but now it is changed and is an all four seasons resort and now people go there and ski in the winter and swim in the summer,” Pomyatinskaya said.

Pomyatinskaya said her reaction to what she sees on TV and what she hears from her family are equal to the pride she felt when the Olympic Committee originally announced the games would be in Sochi. She’s excited about what the transformation could mean for her hometown.

“I remember the first time that I heard Olympics 2014 were going to be in Sochi and I was wow this is really cool, this is going to take a lot of time and energy and money and effort, but in the end it is going to be great,” Pomyatinskaya said.

She said it’s just as exciting to think what the games and all the development will mean for the area once the Olympics are over.

“It will make Sochi a better place and obviously there will be more space for jobs and people can go there and start and making their future and especially for students and everybody it’s a really good opportunity for Russian citizens,” Pomyatinskaya said.

She hopes to be able to go home this coming summer and looks forward to that first site of what her home will look like.

Credit Braxton Crisp
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“I will be so excited because I can imagine what kind of view I’ll get when I’m on a plane, because from the plane you can see all of the sea and the buildings and it will be awesome,” Pomyatinskaya said.

Pomyatinskaya said she could not be prouder of her hometown.

W.Va. Group to Start 'Rosie The Riveter' Movement

A West Virginia group dedicated to honoring the working women of World War II wants to start a national movement.
 
     “Thanks! Plain and Simple” executive director Ann Montague says a public meeting will be held Friday afternoon at Huntington’s Pullman Plaza Hotel.
 
     Millions of women worked at defense plants to supply the war effort. Their real lives were behind the cultural icon known as Rosie the Riveter.
 
     Montague’s group wants to launch the national movement on Memorial Day, May 26. The group’s past work includes the naming of a building in Huntington and a permanent display at the Pullman Plaza Hotel.
 
     Montague says the goal is to tell the stories about living Rosies and educate the public about their work. She says Rosies are typically 90 years old.
 

Concord Charlie Agrees with Punxsutawney Phil for Groundhog Day Prediction

The last few weeks, most of West Virginia has endured bitter cold and snowy weather. Many residents were hoping the famed furry friends would bring predictions of an early Spring.

On Groundhog Day, Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania predicted six more weeks of winter after seeing his shadow. But French Creek Freddie emerged from the West Virginia Wildlife Center in Upshur County and did not see his shadow. According to Groundhog Day tradition, that means an early spring.

Perhaps the dispute can be settled with the folk tale friend, Concord Charlie. 

The Groundhog friend in Athens shared his predictions to interum president Dr. Kendra Boggess via cell phone. 

“You came out yesterday (Groundhog Day, Feb. 2) and you saw your shadow,” she confirmed with Charlie. She then told the furry forecaster, “Go back in your burrow.”  

The Concord Charlie tradition was originated in 1978 by the late Professor R.T. “Tom” Hill. As chairman of both the geography department and the Appalachian Studies program at Concord, Hill started the Groundhog Day Breakfast as a means to celebrate a bit of Appalachian heritage and highlight the program.

Concord tradition shares the spotlight with the Grand Groundhog Watcher, an individual who has positively impacted life and culture in West Virginia.  

This year, Greg Puckett, a native southern West Virginian, 1993 Concord graduate, and one of professor Hill’s former students is the recipient.

“He taught me a lot about Appalachian tradition and Appalachian culture and Appalachian studies,” Puckett said. “That sort of got me involved in a lot of the different things and a lot of the levels and understanding our rich history and what it means.”

Puckett is Executive Director of Community Connections and a key player with the local Creating Opportunities For Youth (COFY) community coalition. His work includes substance abuse prevention efforts among young people and their families.

Concord University student Tyler Jackson contributed to this story.

Jessica Lilly can be reached at 304.384.5981, or by email jlilly@wvpublic.org. You can also follow her on twitter: @WVJessicaYLilly.

For updates from West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s statewide news team, follow @wvpubnews.
 

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