Editorials

Girls’ Flag Football Program Is a Touchdown for St. Clairsville

A new chapter is being written on the field in St. Clairsville — one where girls are suiting up, pulling flags and proving the gridiron isn’t just for the boys. The St. Clairsville Parks and Recreation Department’s launch of girls flag football at the elementary level marks an important step in creating more inclusive opportunities in youth athletics. Ranging from kindergarten through third grade, the athletes capped their inaugural season in exciting fashion: playing their final game during halftime of a junior varsity contest at Red Devils Stadium. That halftime showcase ...

‘Culineering’ Challenge Is a Great Way To Learn

For high school students to be most dialed into their educations, how they learn must be much more than just desk-centric, skill-and-drill lessons. There needs to be some ingenuity, some fun, an opportunity for those students to utilize their imagination and creativity. An event hosted this past week at Oglebay Park Resort did just that. High school teams from across West Virginia came to the resort for the fourth-annual Culineering Challenge, a competition that allowed both aspiring chefs and aspiring engineers to work together on a project. In this competition, high school teams ...

Helping the United Way

United Way organizations across the country serve their communities by connecting those in need to resources to support them as they face their challenges. “When you donate to United Way, you help kids succeed. You help adults secure jobs. And you help families become healthier. Your support fuels our mission and creates stronger communities where all can thrive,” according to its website. Plenty of financial support comes from individuals, of course, but there are also reliable community partners who make a big difference for the organization. One of those partners is the ...

A Clearer View for a Revitalized Downtown

Wheeling’s downtown has been remade over the past five years — not in small ways, but with big, bold strides. From major infrastructure investments to open and vibrant public spaces, the city is recapturing its historic heart. Now, leaders are setting their sights on something that doesn’t require a new building or ribbon-cutting, but likely will be even more impactful to the city’s overall health and image: giving residents and visitors a clearer view of the Ohio River. City officials are preparing a project to trim back trees and brush along the riverbank near the south ...

Questions Need Answered

Wheeling’s elected leaders made their thoughts known last week when they voted 6-1 to support the closure of the city’s managed homeless encampment. City Manager Robert Herron followed up with a notice posted at the camp that it would be closed, effective Dec. 1. Council made its wishes known and the city manager followed through. That’s how the process works. But there are questions that need answered over the coming five weeks. - Members of council called the camp, in operation for nearly two years, a “failure.” Is there data to back that assertion? - Council members ...

Deputies, Firefighters Deserve Much Praise

So often during their daily rounds do law enforcement officials go above and beyond in protecting the people in their communities. Another shining example of that came this past weekend in Ohio County. A pair of Ohio County Sheriff’s deputies, Aidan Zamborsky and Brenda Lesnett, as well as two West Liberty volunteer fire fighters, Ed and Elizabeth Wolfe, entered a home this past weekend to help someone who had fallen unconscious in a basement. When they entered that basement, they were faced with the same toxic gases that injured the resident. The victim was part of a three-man ...