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Still a part of the news

Since its first presentation nearly 11 years ago, the Herald-Star Speaker Series has brought some powerful presentations into our area. That’s why it’s not unusual to see the names of those who have appeared as part of the series continue to turn up in news stories. A couple of those have come to mind during the past few weeks, and they involved the first two speakers in the series, Clint Hill and Tony Mendez. Hill, the former Secret Service agent who was in charge of first lady Jacqueline Kennedy’s protection detail, was the inaugural speaker in the series. He and co-author ...

Guest column/City Council has noted the importance of tourism

The board of trustees, staff, volunteers and members of the Old Fort Steuben Project want to thank the Steubenville City Council for Tuesday’s decision to financially support our efforts to add public restrooms to the Visitor Center in Fort Steuben Park. These funds will help match other funding we hope to receive that will allow us to construct a much-needed addition to the building that will serve visitors and local residents. This project is crucial as we expect an increase in tourism in the state and the area due to the recent designation of the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks ...

Guest column/Here’s more proof that we can make a difference

“By all rights, I should be dead,” said Tomas Santiago, a recovering addict willing to speak up about the path the 54-year-old has taken and led him to become an advocate for recovery that works. He is 11 years clean. “Family Recovery saved my life.” Tomas speaks of his millionaire father, who was ordered to pay $25 per week in child support, and then took the child’s mother back to court to remove the child support. He speaks of his stepdad who bought a house in the Bronx. But the man was a cheater, he said, and told his mother that she, Tomas, and his half-siblings had to ...

History in the Hills: The Market Street Bridge

A few days ago, I was going through my T-shirt drawer and came across a shirt I haven’t seen for a while. This shirt is yellow with blue lettering that reads, “I was there Veterans Memorial Bridge, Governor Gaston Caperton, May 4, 1990.” This was a souvenir from the opening of the Veterans Bridge between Weirton and Steubenville, or, as we still call it here, “The New Bridge” now some 33 years later. This colloquial terminology though, will need to change because on Wednesday, the Wellsburg-Brilliant Bridge is set to open. With its opening, it will literally be “The New ...

Stirring ‘Chiller’ memories

If you are of a certain age and grew up anywhere across the Tri-State Area, it’s a pretty safe bet that you spent the end of a lot of Saturdays and the start of a lot of Sundays watching “Chiller Theater.” For a lot of its 20-year run, you could count on tuning to WPXI-TV (or WIIC-TV, as the station was known until April 20, 1981) at 11:30 p.m. Saturday and catching a double-feature of B- or C-level science fiction films with some entertaining skits thrown in during the ad breaks. “The Mummy,” “The Werewolf,” “The Fly,” “The Wolf Man,” “The Last Man on ...

Guest column/The signs of vaping can be hidden in plain sight

It’s a fact: Kids hide things from their parents, for whatever reason. It seems that now, more than ever, parents need to have good communication with their children because outside influences encourage secrecy for their own benefits. As parents, we are legally responsible for our children, the souls we brought into this world, have loved to the moon and back. We protect and guide them for their good health and well-being, encourage them to dream and pursue their goals. Let’s use vaping for an example. More youth than adults use e-cigarettes, says the U.S. Surgeon General. ...