We had two guests planned for this evening, but unfortunately, neither of them could join us. So, we discussed the status of the Parkersburg Soap Box Derby that we are trying to get off the ground and our most recent venture as newly appointed officers of Parkersburg Homecoming, Inc. Here are the website URLs for both of those ventures:

https://parkersburgsoapboxderby.org/support/

https://parkersburghomecoming.org/

This evening we talk about our activities during our hiatus as well as, among other things, our current involvement in the Parkersburg Soap Box Derby and the 2025 Parkersburg Homecoming Festival.

With over 20 years in the Wood County Magistrate's office, Heather is running to serve as the magistrate in the newly-created 5th Magisterial Division. As a Magisterial Assistant for 20+ years, she will bring a wealth of experience to the office. Please visit her Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61553851604251 and email her at hscformagistrate@yahoo.com.

From his website:

Running for Cabell County Board of Education is my way of continuing to pay it forward. It is an opportunity to use my energy, passion, community organizing, and leadership skills to ignite action and drive positive change in the community.

I believe that every child deserves to be loved and supported.

I believe that the stronger our families are, the healthier our communities will be.

We all must play an active role in building a shared vision for our future.

Trust that every decision I will make that affects Cabell County will be made to support a healthy, thriving community.

This means:

• Doing more of what works, less of what doesn't, and being courageous enough to ask hard questions and reimagine the way we operate.

• Making proactive investments that address the root causes of systemic issues, instead of reactively backpedaling to clean up shortsighted mistakes.

• Reducing waste and incentivizing success

. • Creating a welcoming culture that includes families and community members prioritizes encouraging and empowering youth.

Reed's broad professional experience spans grant writing and evaluation, policy review, developing youth programs, non-profit and social impact consulting, creating curriculum, delivering trainings, facilitating community conversations, and directly serving youth and families as a recovery coach and race director. He has held over 10 positions with various Boards of Directors and committees, from the Chamber of Commerce to the Community Service Council and Boys and Girls Club, which speaks to his commitment to service and competency as an executive leader. His philanthropic efforts have helped raise over $50,000 for West Virginia communities and his tenacity for positive change has impacted thousands of people across Appalachia.

His web presence:

https://sites.google.com/view/votereedbyers/home

https://www.facebook.com/votereedbyers

Email: info@votereedbyers.com

Friends of Vienna is an all-volunteer non-profit formed to support the efforts of the Tree and Beautification Commission in mission and fund-raising endeavors. Through projects and events, they are helping the residents of Vienna develop and care for their community. They are presenting a 4-day Freedom Festival in Vienna. On June 28th and 29th, they will be at the Grand Central Mall, ending with a drone display and fireworks. On July 5th and 6th, they will be at Spencer’s Landing with a rodeo and tethered hot air balloon rides. Tonight, Jack talks all about the fabulous talent and events that will be part of this Celebration of America.

Contact them:

www.facebook.com/FriendsOfViennaWV

Facebook Group, Friends of Vienna

www.friendsofviennawv.org

Patrick says:

A friend of mine asked me, “What happened? Why are you running for city council?” The answer is simple. I have lived here since 1999, and other than houses burning down or being torn down, there has not been any improvement in our district. In fact, it is steadily declining. Unfortunately, our district has taken a back seat to other districts and doesn’t get the attention it deserves. That’s because we don't have a voice. When you run a business, it’s a common habit for the people running it to put all their efforts into the areas that are easy to manage and ignore the problem areas. This is exactly what happens in city government as well. If given the opportunity, I will spend my time and energy collaborating with city officials to focus on fixing our issues in District 4. You are going to hear that these problems cannot be fixed. You are also going to hear that no one else can do better. You will hear excuses from elected leaders who sit on multiple different outside committees about why things aren’t getting better while being cheered on by people outside our district. This is my promise to you. I will actually be the voice of the people who actually live in our district. I will make noise, and District 4 will be heard! District 4 Deserves More! Restore District 4!

Facebook: Patrick McCormick for PKB City Council District 4

From their website: “A father and son duo act from Fleetwood, UK.

“Dion has always followed his dad’s singing career very closely and loves joining in when Wal is on stage, but they have never sung as a duo until April 2020. The coronavirus lockdown in the UK impacted a lot of people very hard and Wal and Dion both agreed that their love of music should be shared across the world, so felt it was time to combine their talents.

“We created the Father and Son Karaoke Kings channel in April 2020, and have posted a new song every day since, for over 350 songs. You can check out our channels on either YouTube, Facebook, or Instagram.

“Despite Dion having disabilities, it has never stopped him from doing the things he wants to do in life and his ambition and passion has been an inspiration for children and adults alike. He is extremely grateful to all those he can inspire around the world.

“Sharing our musical love with the world has helped overcome the daily struggles through the past year and we are so thankful our music has helped others overcome their own struggles.

“From all of us supporting Wal and Dion, welcome to our online family. We cannot thank you enough!”

Their web presence:

https://fatherandsonthekaraokekings.uk/"

https://www.youtube.com/@FatherandSononlinesingingduo

https://facebook.com/Wal.and.Dion.fatherandson

North Star Child Advocacy Center is a safe, child-friendly facility where child protection, criminal justice, and child treatment professionals work together to investigate abuse in Wood, Wirt, Pleasants, Calhoun, and Ritchie, hold offenders accountable, and help children heal. In the darkest moments, North Star CAC creates a safe environment for children to tell their stories and begin their path to healing.

North Star Child Advocacy Center

200 Star Ave. Suite 212, Parkersburg, 26101

304-917-4437 or Toll-Free 833-245-4437

nscac@northstarcac.org

https://northstarcac.org/

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