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My home is empty … but not as much as I am

I wish I would have told them more often in words. Perhaps I should have showed them more often with actions. It’s funny how you contemplate every “what if ...” after it’s too late. I miss my children. I miss my dogs. It is definitely lonely at my house. I remember a time when it seemed as if there wasn’t enough room in my spacious home for everyone to fit comfortably. Having three teenage boys 5-foot-11 or taller, we actually did need that much room in which to live. And love. And grow. The addition of two puppies that eventually grew into fairly large dogs, ...

Advocating for our area

Chambers of commerce fill a lot of different roles in a community. Among all of the other jobs they do during the course of a year, they educate, they honor, they work to improve the community and they advocate. Reminders of those missions were offered on March 26, when the Weirton Area Chamber of Commerce held its 87th-annual membership meeting and awards banquet. An example pointed out by Brenda Mull, president of the chamber, was the cooperation and collaboration it has taken to restore several of Weirton’s vintage holiday decorations back to life. “Last year, we ...

It’s not about the price you pay … but rather, the cost

When I was a year old, we had a dog named Fluffy. Around the age of 8, my brother and I were allowed to visit the pound to get another dog for our small family. We chose the sad one lying in the corner as opposed to the one jumping on the bars, excited to see us. Funny how I remember that all these years later. My mom named her Poco. (Yes, after the band.) However, as a child, you do not fully understand exactly what a dog adds to your life. So, following her loss, it ultimately cost us some sadness. Time passed by. Life went by. And it wasn’t until I bought my first home ...

Good area for holiday

This weekend certainly carries special significance for Christians around the world. Easter, coming when it does in the early part of spring, offers a sense of renewal, and a reminder that no matter how bleak things might seem or how desperate the situation might appear, there is always room for hope. About 81 percent of Americans say they will celebrate Easter this year. That’s a number that hasn’t changed all that much in the last decade or so, according to Statista. The high point was 83 percent in 2013, the provider of market and consumer data reports. Those numbers ...

History in the Hills: Traveling through history

This weekend is Easter and typically we try to spend it with my wife’s family in New York City. Spending time away from home and the same old routine is good for a change, not to mention the great time spent with family. This trip there won’t be much time for sightseeing, but we may try to stop at a few places along the way. For my son Paulie, one of the best parts about the trip, not only seeing grandparents, is the anticipation of traveling. He loves getting up early, packing into the car before daybreak and starting our journey. I remember loving that, too, as a child. It ...

Guest column/ODNR should protect Ohio’s public lands

On Feb. 26, Ohio proved once again that nothing in the state is sacred when it comes to making money from fracking. In addition to some Department of Transportation parcels, the five-member Oil and Gas Land Management Commission approved bids to frack Salt Fork State Park in Guernsey County, Valley Run in Carroll County and Zepernick Wildlife area in Columbiana County. In some cases, the accepted bids were considerably “below market value” as noted by Commissioner Matthew Warnock, who voted against a bid of $500 per acre by EOG Resources Inc. for a DOT parcel. This would ...