Published: April 01, 2008 05:00 pm            

In Your View — 04/02/08

FED UP to have rally Saturday

On Saturday, April 5, FED UP (Family Education for Drug Use Prevention) will hold a rally from noon to 4 p.m. near the bandstand in Central Park. This program was started by Jailer Joe Burchett and his wife Debbie, and with the help of volunteers, is showing great promise for this area.

The purpose of the organization is to raise awareness of the growing drug problem in this area, and to provide information about help that is available to people with substance abuse problems and their families.

There will be several speakers, including Sen. Walter Blevins, Rep. Rocky Adkins, Mayor Steve Gilmore, and representatives of several agencies. There will be entertainment, free food and inflatables for the kids.

As someone who has seen first-hand the effect that substance abuse can have on families, I urge people to come out to this rally to show that you too are “Fed Up” with the growing drug problem and find out what you can do to help or to get information about where you can get help for yourself.

There is also a Family Support Group that is now meeting on Tuesday evenings at 6 p.m. in the lobby of the Boyd County Detention Center.

If you have a family member or friend with a substance abuse problem, we urge you to attend the meetings.

Jamie Roberts, Rush



Old Boyd trophies should be displayed

I’m writing to express my concern for the lack of school spirit and even ethics at Boyd County High School.

Recently, my English class was in a school storage building getting out decorations to prepare for our upcoming prom. As we went into the building, we encountered countless old trophies, many of them broken, carelessly strewn all over the floor. It was positively sickening to see so many beautiful trophies destroyed.

This problem has existed at BCHS for some time and no action has been taken.

There have even been offers to build display cases for these trophies but to no avail.

If Boyd County High School doesn’t have enough pride to display rewards worked tirelessly for by several generations past, then they should give the trophies to people who will care for them and actually take pride in what they stand for.

It is unjust to condemn so many beautiful artifacts to an eternity spent in a dark, dingy storage building.

I’m asking the community and supporters of our Lions to stand up and do something about this ignorance.

The motto of Boyd County is “Lion Pride is County-Wide,” but to me it seems more like it should be “Lion Pride is Shoved in a Storage Building.”

Alisa A. Brown, junior, Boyd County High School



Money being raised for home visits

I am writing to you on behalf of the families and friends of the 201st Engineer Battalion in Ashland.

This is the largest unit deployment in the state. These units cover Ashland, Hazard, Olive Hill, Prestonsburg and Cynthiana.

The soldiers have an opportunity to come home to spend six more days with their families before being deployed to Afghanistan for 10 months. We are now in the process of collecting donations to cover this cost. The bus transportation to bring the soldiers home is $60,000, which would be $130 per soldier.

If you would like to sponsor a soldier or make a donation to this cause, please make your check payable to: United Way of Northeast Kentucky Inc. (UWNKI), P. 0. Box 2063, Ashland, Ky. 41105-2063, and on the memo line please write: Family and Friends of the 201st.

This needs to be done by April 14. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Mari Jo Ferguson, Wife of LTC Michael Ferguson, Battalion commander



Scholarships to honor Leon Tackett

In honor and memory of Leon Tackett, People Helping People’s founder and past president, PHP’s board of directors established a yearly scholarship program, the Leon Tackett Memorial Scholarship.

This year, three local high school seniors will receive a one-time gift of $500 to help with tuition, books, fees or other school-related expenses. High school seniors from four local schools are eligible to apply for this scholarship program: Boyd County High School, East Carter High School, West Carter High School and Greenup County High School.

To be eligible, students must be a graduating senior, have a minimum grade point average of 2.0, show financial need, not be related to anyone affiliated with People Helping People Inc., submit a copy of ACT and/or SAT college entry exam scores, attach two letters of recommendation (one must be from a high school teacher or guidance counselor), return the completed scholarship application to the guidance counselor by the April 30 deadline.

High school seniors from these four high schools may pick up applications for the 2008 scholarship in their guidance counselors’ office. Deadline to apply for the scholarship is April 30. Recipients will be notified in May.

John Jenkins, director, People Helping People Inc

        

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