B OONE COUNTY RECORDER
Your Community Recorder newspaper serving all of Boone County
K1
THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 2015
BECAUSE COMMUNITY MATTERS
Newlyweds lose everything in house fire Amy Scalf ascalf@communitypress.com
BURLINGTON — One night Rick Bowlin and Kelly Chapman were dancing at their wedding reception and the next night their Belleview Bottoms home went down in flames. The couple met at a 2012 New Year’s Eve party, but knew each other through work in Boone County. Chapman, 43, started working at the Boone County Jail in 2001 and moved to public works, where she is now solid waste supervisor. Bowlin, 30, has been a mechanic for the county since 2006. Boone County Judge-executive Gary Moore married them on Friday, March 27, then they celebrated their wedding reception at Immaculate Heart of Mary on Saturday night. They were awakened by flames and smoke around 2 a.m. Monday and lost everything. A Belleview-Mcville Fire representative Department
PROVIDED
Kelly Chapman and Rick Bowlin got married Friday and lost their home Monday. They are shown here on their wedding day, March 27, 2015.
confirmed the fire, but could not provide additional details. The newlyweds were planning a honeymoon cruise to the eastern Caribbean this summer, but expect they won’t get to go now. “The firemen said it started in the fireplace,� Chapman said. “We had a fire all day Sunday, and they said it started with the mortar in the fireplace. I guess because it’s an older house, the
mortar had disintegrated. The back side of the fireplace is my daughter’s room. The fire got out and caught her closet and it just went up.� Bowlin and Chapman have lived in the three-bedroom ranch house at 6766 Mcville Road for more than a year, she said. “I don’t even know where to start,� said Chapman. “We lost everything.� The family also includes Chapman’s 21-year-old son, Nick, and daughter, Kaylee, 15, along with Bowlin’s 6-year-old daughter Callie. Callie lives with her mother in Ohio, but lost a room full of toys, clothing and other belongings in the fire. For information on how to donate, call Amy Hammonds at 859-443-2149. Another Boone County employee, Bill Lipscomb, is helping his friends collect donations. PROVIDED
See FIRE, Page A2
Kelly Chapman and Rick Bowlin’s hallway after the fire.
Two female pastors welcomed to Florence Christian Church Amy Scalf ascalf@communitypress.com
FLORENCE — In January, Florence Christian Church welcomed two new female pastors. The Rev. Dr. Susan Diamond came from Montgomery, Ala., to serve as senior pastor, and the Rev. Diana Hodges-Batzka relocated from Lemoyne, Pa., , as associate pastor at the church that’s been located at the eastern corner of Main Street and Dixie Highway since 1831. The pair had served together in Alabama and were glad to join forces again. “In our system, each congrega-
CITIZENS IN FRANKFORT Pages, college students and pastors visit the legislature. A5
tion calls their own pastors,� said Diamond. “We worked well together. Our styles complement each other, not the same, we’re very different, but it’s one of those ‘God things’ that fell together at the right time. We hit the ground running and part of that was because we knew each other.� Together they’ve planned several services during Holy Week, including a sunrise service along with their two usual Sunday morning services, as well as an evening worship service. The church will be open for Maundy Thursday, the holy day celebrating the Last Supper, and Good Friday, and they will serve breakfast after the sunrise
RITA’S KITCHEN Top off chicken cordon bleu with mimosa for brunch. A7
75¢
Furry, friendly face draws attention to park project Amy Scalf ascalf@communitypress.com
service until 10:30 a.m. Both say they’ve been welcomed by the 250-member congregation, in addition to the greater community.
UNION — While the Big Bone Lick State Historic Site’s visitor center is getting a facelift, the prehistoric attraction is adding a new, super cool ambassador. Harlan G. Sloth is a perky representation of Harlan’s ground sloth, also known as parmylodon – a nearly 11-foot-tall, furry four-legged creature not directly related to today’s sloths, which was first discovered in ice age sediments at Big Bone Lick, according to Ossana Wolff, the site’s new program ser-
See PASTORS, Page A2
See PARK, Page A2
AMY SCALF/THE COMMUNITY RECORDER
Pastors Diana Hodges-Batkza and Susan Diamond lead the congregation at Florence Christian Church.
Contact us
THANKS TO SARAH PHIPPS, FIREMANE STUDIO
Harlan G. Sloth, who recently awakened after a 10,000-year nap, brings ice-age style cool to Big Bone Lick State Historic Site’s Indiegogo campaign.
For the Postmaster
News ...................283-0404 Retail advertising ..513-768-8404 Classified advertising 513-421-6300 Delivery .................781-4421 See page A2 for additional information
The Boone County Recorder 3647 O’Hara Rd. Erlanger, KY 41018
Published weekly every Thursday. Periodicals postage paid at Florence, KY 41042 ISSN 201108 � USPS 060-780 Postmaster: Send address change to The Boone County Recorder, 3647 O’Hara Rd., Erlanger, KY 41018 Annual subscription: Weekly Recorder In-County $18.02; All other in-state $23.32; Out-of-state $27.56; Kentucky sales tax included
Vol. 139 No. 25 Š 2015 The Community Recorder ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Are you ready for a
?
$
129
95
FS 38 RC-E GAS STRING TRIMMER
3545 North Bend Road, Hebron • 859.586-0222
&(