LINK Kenton Reader - Volume 1, Issue 21 - April 14, 2023

Could changes to this law affect your ability to get care?

We are grateful to all LINK’s Partners - those organizations in the community who believe strongly in what we are doing, and have thrown their full support behind us. These NKY institutions are helping bring a voice back to our community.

PRESIDENT & CEO Lacy Starling

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Regional certificate of need debate plays out at Erlanger council meetings

BY NATHAN GRANGER | LINK nky REPORTER

topic that has divided some in the Northern Kentucky medical community took center stage at a pair of Erlanger City Council meetings over the last month, with those for and against it both saying they’re looking out for people in rural, low-income communities.favor of maintaining certificate of need argue that it protects services for patients who rely on Medicare or are uninsured.

One council member called the requirement archaic.

A certificate of need is required under Kentucky law for healthcare providers to open up a new facility, acquire major medical equipment, make substantial changes to a facility or project, or “alter a geographical area or alter a specific location which has been designated on a certificate of need or license,” according to the Kentucky Cabinet of Health and Family Services.

The debate over Kentucky’s requirement for a certificate of need brought backers and detractors of the law to the April 4 council meeting.

In Northern Kentucky, one of the biggest proponents of certificate of need is St. Elizabeth Healthcare, which merged with St. Luke Hospital in the early 2000s. With at least eight hospital locations across Northern Kentucky, St. Elizabeth is one of the largest healthcare institutions in the region and inevitably becomes the focus of certificate of need discussions as opponents of the policy view institutions like St. Elizabeth as an example of the market dominance they aim to upend. Those in

Most of the speakers who criticized certificate of need that night added a caveat that they weren’t opposed to St. Elizabeth as an organization, just the policy. Some even stated that they were patients or former patients at St. Elizabeth.

“What I’m looking to do is reduce the amount of services that are regulated by the certificate of need,” Rep. Marianne Proctor (R-Union), told LINK nky.

Proctor sponsored legislation in this year’s session that would allow any healthcare provider to operate in Boone, Campbell, and Kenton counties without first requiring a certificate of need.

Among supporters of the requirement, which Erlanger City Council voted 6-3 to reform after a two-hour discussion that April 4 night, was St. Elizabeth CEO Garren Colvin.

“Communities like ours greatly depend on access to safety net facilities like St. Elizabeth,” he told council members. “Certificate of need ensures that we’re able to provide these comprehensive, critical, top-quality services to the entire community.”

“I hope that if it passes that it will carry over to the whole state because there are some rural areas, I feel like, that lack services,” said Council Member Jennifer Jasper-Lucas, who works as a nurse. “I think that removing the certificate of need process would allow, obviously, providers to come into those areas, too.”

City resolutions like the one passed April 4 have little concrete power – they’re not binding pieces of legislation like statutes –but the way in which cities resolve to treat an issue sets the tone for future discussions at the state level.

If certificate of need laws are abolished by the state legislature, it would be much easier for other healthcare providers, such as Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Christ Hospital, to expand facilities throughout the region. Many of these institutions already operate in Northern Kentucky but are limited in their ability to proliferate due to certificate of need regulations.

Certificate of need proponents claim that medical markets can become oversaturated in their absence. They argue that this lack of state oversight can lead to higher prices, redundant services and the crowding out of essential services in favor of more profitable but less necessary services. They also argue that over-saturation can make it harder for people who rely on Medicare, Medicaid and other subsidized health care coverage to get access to affordable care, as medical providers tend not to turn profits from government coverage plans.

Opponents say that certificate of need adds an extra layer of bureaucracy to an already administratively top-heavy sector, leading to inefficiency. They also say that such laws allow regionally dominant health care providers to extend monopoly power over particular areas by giving them the means to suppress economic competition, which, in

Erlanger Mayor Jessica Fette speaks during a city council meeting on April 4. Photo by Joe Simon | LINK

on the cover

A

nky contributor

Continued from page 3 turn, leads to a decline of healthcare quality and price fixing for services.

Both sides contend that their policy solutions would increase accessibility for rural, low-income areas that may not have well-developed medical infrastructure.

The conflict in Erlanger began on March 21 when Proctor, who occupies the seat for the state’s 60th district, made an unexpected visit to Erlanger’s council chambers. Her visit did not appear on the city’s published meeting agenda, but council allowed her to speak anyway.

Elranger Mayor Jessica Fette gave the city’s reasoning for allowing both sides of the issue to speak in front of the council at the meeting on April 4.

“We make sure that we give our legislators the opportunity to have time in front of our council members,” Fette said. “We want to hear from them, and we want them to be able to hear from us.”

She extended this courtesy to other institutions as well, including hospitals that are in favor of certificate of need regulation.

The bill Proctor presented to reform certificate of need floundered in the legislative session, never making it to committee. She promised to reintroduce similar legislation during the next session and even hoped to extend the repeal to the state as a whole.

“We need some choices in health care,” Proctor said. “A lot of people were disappointed with the quality they received.” People were particularly concerned, she said, with wait times and a lack of due diligence.

“They felt like it was taking too long to be seen,” she said, “or that they weren’t adequately being addressed. I believe that

when people have choices, then informed people can make those decisions, and we don’t have that in Northern Kentucky.”

Medical providers must apply for a certificate of need if they want to provide services flagged by the health cabinet. There are 21 medical services in Kentucky that require a certificate of need, including inpatient surgery centers, long-term elder care, imaging services (e.g. MRIs and PET scans) as well as residential psychiatric care.

A cabinet judge assesses if the provider meets the state’s criteria for need before issuing or denying a certificate. Other healthcare providers can challenge the issuance of a certificate at a public hearing if they feel that granting it to a new provider is unnecessary or would lead to adverse effects in the community. The judge then weighs both sides and makes a determination from there.

Certificate of need laws have been around for over half a century. The first example of such a law in the United States was passed in New York in 1964. Ten years later, Congress with the support of the Nixon Administration passed the National Health Planning and Resources Development Act, which set the standards for certification around the country.

Many states began passing similar laws following Congress’s action, but over time the policy lost support at the federal level, ending with the repeal of federal certificate of need regulations in 1986. There are currently no federal regulations relating to certificates of need, and certification policies vary from state to state.

Thirty-five states currently have certificate of need laws on the books. Many states, however, have drastically reduced their requirements over the years: Both Ohio and Indiana, for example, only require certifi-

cate of need issuance for long-term eldercare facilities.

The Kentucky Hospital Association is in favor of maintaining certificate of need in the state, and argues that many healthcare facilities would close without its protection –particularly rural hospitals. Those closures would mean patients would have to travel farther for healthcare.

“If Kentucky were to mirror the no-CON state statistics, the state would lose 12 hospitals, and Kentuckians (and their payors) would pay $600 million more per year for inpatient services, with Medicaid alone picking up $125 million more,” the report said.

Proctor concluded her statements at the March 21 meeting by asking the Erlanger council to make a resolution to support the reform of certificate of need at the state level. In doing so, she referenced a recent resolution from Fort Wright, which expressed opposition for the change.

Staff members and representatives from St. Elizabeth Healthcare also attended the March 21 meeting but did not speak.

Council members appeared to be in support of such a resolution at the March meeting.

Fette held a straw poll after the statements to see which council members would be in support of reforming the requirement. Every council member present raised their hands.

Both supporters and opponents of certificate of need filled the seats on that Tuesday night, including staff members from St. Elizabeth and other healthcare institutions. St. Elizabeth’s CEO and President Garren Colvin gave a brief history of CON and how it worked, then began arguing for its necessity.

He characterized St. Elizabeth as a “safety net hospital,” which is not an official, legal designation, but refers, instead, to St. Elizabeth’s policy of accepting all patients regardless of their ability to pay.

“In fact, it’s only because of certificate of need processes that St. Elizabeth can be a safety net hospital,” Colvin said. “Without certificate of need, outside operators could come into our communities and cherry pick the most profitable services to offer.” Most of the patients St. Elizabeth cares for are Medicare and Medicaid patients, he said, adding that the percentage of their client base on Medicaid matched the proportion of the region’s population on Medicaid, which he claimed fluctuates between 22% and 23%.

Data provided by the U.S. Census Bureau showed it to be closer to 16% in 2021.

He said that Medicare and Medicaid does not usually cover the cost of healthcare, meaning that many of the services at their facilities are not profitable. According to survey data from the American Hospital

St. Elizabeth Healthcare CEO Garren Colvin speaks during an Erlanger City Council meeting on April 4. Photo by Joe Simon | LINK nky contributor

Association, hospitals received an average of 84 cents from Medicare for every dollar spent caring for Medicare patients in 2020. Likewise, they received 88 cents from Medicaid when caring for Medicaid patients in 2020.

He went on to say that leaving healthcare entirely up to the free market would disincentivize providers from setting up in rural communities, where it would be difficult to turn a profit. Nonprofit, mission-based organizations like St. Elizabeth provided an equitable alternative, he argued, as they could provide services even in the absence of profitability.

After some clarifying questions from council members, the public was allowed to speak. Nineteen people spoke, with opinions being about evenly split on the issue. Statements from both camps elicited cheers and applause from audience members.

Several staff members and administrators from St. Elizabeth spoke in favor of certificates of need, often drawing attention to St. Elizabeth’s work with nonprofit organizations and its status as one of the region’s largest employers.

Leaders from other healthcare providers spoke in favor of the requirement as well.

Dan Thomas, the COO of Sun Behavioral Health, an Erlanger psychiatric hospital, said that the law is especially important for his facility because about 70% of their patients are either on Medicaid or are uninsured.

“CON is a protection device,” Thomas said.

John Muller, the COO of Villaspring, an Erlanger skilled-nursing facility, said that certificates of need offered predictability and accessibility, enabling people who are older or less mobile to stay close to their families.

The detractors were numerous, too.

Several of the speakers against certificates of need regaled the audience with bad experiences they’d had at St. Elizabeth facilities.

Carol Dwyer from Florence, said that her mother was the victim of neglect on the part of St. Elizabeth when a wound on her mother’s leg led to a case of septic shock, which was only resolved when she took her mother to another provider.

Bill Woodside said that he spent nearly five hours at a St. Elizabeth emergency room. He even called on one of the council members, Tom Cahill, who works for St. Eliza-

beth’s sleep medicine department, to recuse himself from voting on the resolution. Cahill ended up casting a vote opposing the resolution.

In addition, Greg Proctor, a representative from the Kentucky branch of Americans for Prosperity, a fiscally conservative thinktank funded by Charles Koch, compared certificate of need in Kentucky to “permission slips from a government board that hometown healthcare providers must receive if they wish to open new health care services or expand an existing service.”

Jerry Gearding, a Republican Kentucky House of Representatives candidate who lost the 67th district to Democrat Rachel Roberts in the last election, said that revoking certificate of need laws would grant Northern Kentucky residents a wider degree of choice in finding healthcare.

“Please give Northern Kentucky families a choice and help support this resolution,”

Gearding said, “so Rep. Proctor can get this passed next session.”

Boone County Commissioner Chet Hand and state Rep. Steve Doan, Erlanger resident and co-sponsor of Proctor’s bill at this year’s legislative session, also spoke in favor of revoking certificates of need.

Doan thanked both St. Elizabeth and Erlanger council in his statement.

“I thank this body [Erlanger City Council] for considering this resolution and for sending a message to all of us down in Frankfort,” Doan said.

When public comments concluded and the time came for the council to vote on the resolution, City Attorney Jack Gatlin reiterated that the resolution would only assert that Erlanger was in favor of investigating current certificate of need laws with an eye to reform rather than outright repeal.

Council Member Vicki Kyle reasserted the sentiment.

“CON needs to be modernized and updated by new regulations,” Kyle said, “which will improve health care, which will give our constituents a choice. And also while they’re doing that, hopefully, this will help promote helping the Medicaid and Medicare patients.”

Council members Diane Niceley, Tyson Hermes, Vicki Kyle, Renee Wilson, Rebecca Reckers and Jennifer Jasper-Lucas eventually voted in favor of the resolution.

Council members Tom Cahill, Don Skidmore and Renee Skidmore, meanwhile, cast opposing votes.

The next Erlanger City Council meeting will take place on April 18 at 7 p.m. at the Erlanger city building.

Percentage of region’s population on Medicaid compared with the state’s Medicaid percentage as of 2021. Data: provided | The US Census Bureau via the American Community Survey. Chart by Nathan Granger | LINK nky

April 1968: King leaves legacy in Northern Kentucky before assassination highlights divide

BY RICK ROBINSON | LINK nky GUEST AUTHOR

The life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. remains an integral part of American society. As so many of the marches and protests he led are legendary in the Civil Rights Movement, his time in Kentucky is often overlooked or forgotten.

And while his appearances in the Commonwealth were in Louisville and Frankfort, the impact of his visits were felt statewide.

King’s visits to Kentucky began early in his career. In 1957, he was the commencement speaker at Kentucky State University. He was 28 years old at the time. He told the graduates they were “traveling towards the promised land of social integration, of freedom, and of justice.”

In the mid-60s, King’s brother, Rev. A.D King, became the pastor of a church in Louisville. Martin Luther King’s visits to Kentucky became more frequent. On a cold March day in 1964, King led a march on the state capitol in Frankfort.

King was joined in the march by Major League Baseball legend Jackie Robinson, the singing trio Peter, Paul and Mary and over 10,000 marchers.

Northern Kentucky participated in the rally as

local churches sent busloads of people to join in the march. An estimated 300 people from the region attended. For those that could not attend the march in Frankfort, local prayer vigils were held. There were calls for the Kentucky General Assembly to adopt a state civil rights law. Although initial efforts to pass such a law failed to get out of committee, in 1966 Kentucky became the first southern state to adopt a state civil rights law.

The passage garnered much local support. State Senate Pro-Tempore James Ware (D) of Lakeside Park said, “I am reluctant to deprive others of rights which I enjoy.”

King’s presence in Kentucky was never more impactful than in 1967, when he led a series of marches in Louisville advocating for a fair housing ordinance in the city. While King did not attend each march personally, they were occurring on a nightly basis. Police lines separated protesters and hecklers. Arrests were made. Tear gas was dispensed into crowds. At one event, Louisville native Muhammad Ali spoke.

“Well, I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now, because I’ve been to the mountaintop.”

Martin Luther King

April 3, 1968

The Louisville marches of 1967 came to a head during Kentucky Derby week, when protesters threatened to disrupt the annual Run for the Roses. King appeared in Louisville that week and spoke to marchers.

“If we are engaged in a righteous and just struggle for freedom, we know the jails can’t stop us,” King said. “We have tried to get the city to do what it ought to do. And since it refused, we have to let them know that we are not afraid to fill up the jails.”

“No housing ordinance, No Derby” was the rally cry.

During the week preceding the 1967 Kentucky Derby, robed and hooded members of the Ku Klux Klan appeared at Churchill Downs offering aid to local police in main-

taining law and order. On the morning of the first Saturday in May, over fears of violence, King called off the Derby Day protest. Later in the summer of 1967, just prior to passage on a city housing non-discrimination ordinance, King was back in Louisville registering voters. It was his final appearance in Kentucky.

On April 4, 1968, following a speech the night before in support of striking sanitation workers, Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot and killed outside his room at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, Tennessee.

A march in Northern Kentucky following the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Photo provided | Kenton County Public Library photo archives

The days preceding and following King’s murder remain etched in America’s collective conscience.

The speech Dr. King gave the night before he was shot was an eerie foreshadowing of what was to come. After recounting several times when he was concerned for his safety, he told those assembled:

“Well, I don’t know what will happen now. We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn’t matter with me now. Because I’ve been to the mountaintop. And I don’t mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And I’m happy tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man.

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”

The next day, residents of Northern Kentucky (and the world) learned King had been assassinated.

In the spring of 1968, Bob McCray was a 17-year-old student at Newport High School struggling with his own path in life. On one hand, he closely followed the non-violent teachings of Martin Luther King Jr. The other hand was a bit more complicated. As it was with many young African American people at the time, the voices of the radical Black Panther Party spoke to him.

“I was personally torn,” McCray recalled,

“between peaceful opposition to racism or radical violence.”

McCray had written a high school term paper on the Black Panther Party.

“There were so many voices … H. Rap Brown … Bobby Seale … Huey Newton … who believed peaceful means would not accomplish anything,” McCray wrote. “They spoke in a way that made us proud to be black.”

McCray grew up in the west side of Newport and remembers his tight knit minority neighborhood as being shocked over King’s death. Even today, McCray struggles to express the deep pain his family experienced.

“My family ... my brother … my mom … my sisters,” he closed his eyes and formed his words carefully, “we were distraught beyond comfort.”

In the days following King’s murder, McCray recalls marchers from Covington attempting to cross the Fourth Street Bridge into Newport, only to be turned away by black residents of Newport’s west end.

“A bunch of our people met them at the bridge and let them know they were not welcome in Newport,” McCray said. The encounter on the bridge was not violent. “I think it was because Newport’s black and white community had a unique relationship. Back then everybody knew everybody, and we respected each other.”

King’s assassination set McCray on a journey to becoming the first black police officer in Newport. He retired after 36 years on the force.

McCray’s perspective of a tight knit minority community is important to understanding life in Northern Kentucky in 1968.

Northern Kentucky is far more diverse today than it was in 1968.

In Campbell County at the time, the African American population of just over 800 was less than 1% of the county’s total population and almost all minority families lived in McCray’s neighborhood on the west side of Newport. In Kenton and Boone Counties the minority population was under 3% and under 0.5%, respectively. In all three counties, other minorities were nearly non-existent in census data.

Across the Licking River from McCray’s Newport home lived Covington’s Arnold Simpson. The future State Representative was a sophomore at Holmes High School in 1968. He echoed McCray’s comments about Covington being a small, segregated minority community where everyone knew each other.

Reflecting on the times Simpson thinks of 1968 as “the great clash of ideas … a merging of two societies, each quite unfamiliar with the other.”

On one side were people who wanted to maintain the status quo.

On the other side was “a revolution of independent thought of what should happen.”

Arnold Simpson’s father – Jim Simpson –was a groundbreaking minority business leader in Northern Kentucky who taught his son that in order to further a dialogue about race you had to first get a seat at the table. The elder Simpson taught his son by example by being very active in Northern Kentucky.

He served on many boards and commissions, including being the Chairman of

the Northern Kentucky/Greater Cincinnati Airport Board and was the first African American person to serve on Covington’s City Council.

In an interview, the younger Simpson laughed at the thought of him being involved in any of the violence occurring following King’s death.

“My parents kept me on a pretty short leash,” Simpson said.

Newspaper coverage by The Kentucky Post and Times Star was limited to the aftermath of King’s death. There was not a single story declaring King’s murder. Local readers looking for stories about King’s shooting or the search for his killer were directed to visit the newspaper’s Cincinnati edition. The stories that were written for local readers were a mixed bag of stories that often contradicted each other.

Editorially, the Kentucky Post and Times Star commented on the riots in Cincinnati by heralding the violence did not cross the river. “Order in Kentucky” was the headline. Of course, the order was somewhat forced. The bridges connecting Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky were policed by National Guardsmen. Car searches were conducted, guns were confiscated that, according to a police spokesman, were “mostly from white people going to Cincinnati to work.”

Continues on page 8

Newport’s Bob McCray. Photo provided | Kenton County Public Library photo archives

The rose-colored editorial was betrayed by the newspaper’s actual stories. Firebombs were hurled in Covington, which then set up a special telephone line to deal with emergencies. Newport adopted emergency ordinances. The river towns and other cities with little or no racial population also adopted curfews. Schools were closed and buses were searched. Students from Holmes High School slashed seats on buses. Florence remained open.

While the disruption in Northern Kentucky was minimal compared to what other cities across the nation were experiencing, tensions were undeniably high. Headlines trumpeted the preparedness of city police departments.

One local city official declared, “If anyone starts looting, we’ll start shooting.”

Rep. Gene Snyder (R) praised Chicago mayor Richard Daley (D) who had issued a shoot to kill order for arsonists and a shoot to maim order for looters.

Much of the emphasis in stories was placed on the fact that liquor sales had been restrained.

“Our curbing of liquor sales is not aimed at the Negro population, but at anyone who might want to start trouble,” one official said.

But in the days following King’s death, life in Northern Kentucky was not all fear of violence and looting. A light shone through for some. Many Northern Kentuckians –black and white – were coming together in the name of racial harmony.

“If all men shall recognize that the abrupt

and abhorrent manner by which Dr. King was removed from the crusade to which he dedicated all his talent and physical energy is the fruit of prejudice, then his death shall not have been in vain,” Covington bishop Richard Ackerman said, “His struggle for social justice is now baptized in his blood and it shall be strengthened by it.”

Interfaith memorial services and marches across Northern Kentucky were held. At one such event, over 200 marchers were separated from hecklers by police. State Senator Clyde Middleton (R) attended the march with his young sons.

“I came to join in dedication to Mr. King,” Middleton is quoted as saying. “If we don’t join with them, we’ll have many difficult years ahead.”

Local civil rights activist Alice Shimfessel feared that the younger marchers in

the crowd would not follow King’s lead of non-violence. “I’m afraid to think what will happen if things don’t get better,” she said.

Rev. Richard Fowler, who currently serves on LINK nky’s editorial board, was raised in Covington, where he graduated from a segregated high school. He and his wife were in Los Angeles visiting family when he learned of King’s assassination and remembers being in a blur disconnected from time and reality.

“Many people can tell you exactly where they were at the time they learned,” he said. “I can’t.”

He does recall experiencing a wide range of emotions from anger to anguish and the “strange feeling of being attached and detached all at the same time.”

A final pronouncement from The Kentucky

Post and Times Star on King’s killing and its aftermath came in a tone deaf editorial entitled “Count Our Blessings” wherein the newspaper stated we should be grateful for the blessing of racial peace. The premise of the editorial was racial violence in our region did not happen because:

“The races live in mutual friendship and respect here in the upper Bluegrass – as indeed they do throughout the commonwealth.” The remaining language of the editorial is chillingly patronizing and refers to the area’s minority population as “responsible, industrious, intelligent and law-abiding” and lacking the “hoodlum element” present in other cities.

And while all this was happening in Northern Kentucky, the war in Southeast Asia continued.

Another soldier being followed by the Kentucky Post and Times Star, Army Specialist 4th Class Charles Crowder from Campbell County received a shrapnel wound to his head. In a letter to his parents, he said it was a booby trap along a road that was set off by a dog. A more sobering account of the war was told by Lance Corporal Max Wharton of Lakeside Park. The sniper recounted his days in the jungles of Vietnam. “Every time you get shot at is a new experience and every time you see somebody get killed it changes you.

In the final week of April, a tragic tornado hit Falmouth. The Kentucky Post and Times Star brought the storm to its readers with pictures and first-hand accounts of the devastation. Also, the newspaper did an extensive series on the state of Catholic education in the Dioceses. These articles capture the newspaper at its finest.

An interfaith memorial service for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at Mother of God Church in Covington.

Photo provided | Kenton County Public Library photo archives

Vandals destroy Devou Park disc golf baskets – for a third time

BY MEGHAN GOTH AND KENTON HORNBECK | LINK nky

Kenton County conducting feasibility study for potential parking structure near government center

BY KENTON HORNBECK | LINK nky REPORTER

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is funding a feasibility study in Kenton County as work on the Brent Spence Bridge has led to a need for more parking.

Kenton County is using the funds to conduct a study on the property at 1840 Simon Kenton Way in Covington to see whether it’s a viable place to build a new parking structure.

derneath Interstate 75 will be displaced by the bridge’s construction, which is why the county wants to consolidate its parking.

Gresham Smith submitted its pre-development proposal, which mentioned an idea to construct a new parking structure that can accommodate up to 250 vehicles. In addition, the proposal considers a weather-protected connector between the structure and the government center.

Avandal damaged disc golf baskets at Devou Park — again — on March 31, according to the City of Covington.

On April 1, Covington’s Parks & Recreation staff discovered that the chains attached to the frames of 14 of the course’s 18 disc golf baskets were cut. This is the third time the baskets have been vandalized since they were installed last October.

“It’s hard to have any logical explanation for it, but it’s going to be a compelling story once we get to the bottom of it,” course architect Ryan Freibert told LINK nky. “Even though it’s not resolved, people continued to keep playing and enjoying disc golf.”

Freibert said fundraising efforts are continuing to fix the damage, which has totaled $20,000 over the course of the three incidents.

On Oct. 12, thieves stole 12 of the 18 disc golf baskets overnight and left another severely damaged. The disc golf course had been open for only three days before the incident.

Three months later, in January, it happened again. An article posted on the Devou Good Foundation website said the majority of the disc golf baskets were “crushed, bent, or ripped out of the ground.”

The Covington Police Department confirmed 14 of the 18 baskets were damaged beyond repair on that occasion.

In a statement to LINK nky, Covington officials said the city is working to fix the damage and track down those responsible. The city and Devou Park are also going to make further security enhancements.

Gresham Smith, an architectural design firm in Blue Ash, was awarded the bid for the project’s feasibility survey at the Kenton County Fiscal Court meeting on March 28.

A reimbursement agreement between the court and the cabinet for the study and pre-development services of a potential parking structure was also approved at the meeting. As per the agreement, KYTC will reimburse the county for up to $100,000 in pre-development expenses.

“This is the actual agreement and it will be how we get paid from the state,” Kenton County Administrator Joe Shriver said at the meeting.

Government officials are looking for more parking opportunities as they prepare for construction on the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor. Once construction begins, county employees who use the parking lots un-

The proposal outlines that Gresham Smith will head the coordination of the consultant team responsible for providing basic and supplemental services. The firm would oversee the project’s architecture, structural engineering, landscape architecture, and cost estimating.

Meanwhile, Brandstetter Carroll would handle civil engineering services, and Elevar Design Group would provide mechanical, plumbing, and electrical engineering services as external contractors. Both firms are based in Cincinnati.

A disc golf basket rests on its side after taking damage from vandals. Photo provided | Devou Good Foundation

Kenton County Government building in Covington. Photo provided | Kenton County Government

kenton county news briefs

Lt. Gov. Coleman presents Kenton County organizations with state funding awards

“This is a pretty big deal today with all of the investments that are coming right here to this community,” Coleman said. “We had to actually condense a few of them into categories because we have 37 projects that are going to be funded to the tune of $22.5 million coming in right here to this community.”

the best

The first group honored were law enforcement agencies from within the county – specifically, the Elsmere, Park Hills and Taylor Mill police departments, who were collectively awarded just over $13 million from the state’s Office of Homeland Security.

Two payouts went to meetNKY, the region’s conventions and visitors bureau.

The first payout was for $5 million, which will help the bureau attract conventions and other large meetings to the area. The other payout was for just over $4.5 million, which will go to marketing attractions to individual tourists and families.

MeetNKY’s product development director, Josh Quinn, said the money awarded was “once in a lifetime recovery funds that will help the hardest hit industries during the pandemic.”

in the state recover from the pandemic.

The award collectively issued about $2.3 million to about 30 Kenton County nonprofits, each receiving $100,000. Awarded organizations include Samaritan Car Care Clinic, Northern Kentucky Legal Aid Society, The Ion Center of Violence Prevention and Life Learning Center among others.

Kentucky’s lieutenant governor, Jacqueline Coleman, presented state funding awards to a variety of Kenton County organizations at a special event at the Kenton County courthouse in Covington Monday, April 3.

The money will serve to augment the region with additional investment in the hopes that the selected organizations can better build out their programs, services and, in some cases, staff.

The second group to receive funding were tourist organizations, which received their money from the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, a federal program to help cities and states make up for the financial shortfall caused by the COVID pandemic lockdowns. Coleman said that the money awarded to meetNKY was drawn from a $75 million allocation to help tourist industries within Kentucky.

The final tourist organization to receive an award was the Kentucky Faith Trail, a trail of religious sites across several counties that’s still in development. The trail’s structure will resemble that of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail, and the amount of money awarded to the trail was $305,000.

The next award came from the Team Kentucky Nonprofit Assistance Fund, an initiative established by the governor’s office in 2022 to help nonprofit organizations with-

The final award went to Sanitation District 1 and amounted to just over $10 million. The money will help fund the agency’s efforts to bring the state’s sewer systems up to date. Kenton County Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann accepted the award on SD1’s behalf.

Cody Road in Independence reopens

As of Sunday, April 2, Cody Road in Independence has been reopened to traffic. Mayor Chris Reinersman announced the re-opening on the city’s Facebook page.

The road runs alongside a creek, which is

Pictured from left to right: Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman and Kenton County Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky

prone to flooding. The city closed the road in February to repair its poorly maintained culvert, which had proved inadequate to channeling water away from the road during flooding events.

The city had applied for grant funding to address the problem in 2015, but numerous delays, some related to the pandemic, pushed the project back until this year.

Concluding his statement, Mayor Reinserman said that the number of closures on the road should decrease.

To learn more about the project, contact Independence City Hall.

Louisville-area car thefts possibly tied to recent string of NKY crimes

Surveillance video showing a group of young people breaking into unlocked cars outside Louisville has caught the attention of Erlanger detectives.

They say it’s very similar to a string of car thefts in Erlanger, Florence and Elsmere last month.

The lead detective in the local investigation said nearly a dozen teens and young adults are involved and it’s likely they could be the same ones seen in the new video captured in one Nelson County neighborhood.

The sheriff’s office shared footage of the crimes on its Facebook page. The teens spent roughly an hour rifling through cars. In the footage, you can see at least one of the thieves holding a handgun as he gains access into a pickup truck.

The group was able to walk away with several items.

Det. Tom Loos in Erlanger said that’s almost exactly how a group of nearly a dozen teens burglarized cars in his community in the early morning of March 15. That spree ended in a carjacking at an Erlanger home. A brother and sister tried to stop the teens, but they were able to get away, shooting at the siblings as they sped off.

The group made it to a gas station in Carroll County before leading authorities on a pursuit into Louisville. Kentucky State Police were able to take one girl into custody.

“The gun theme is something that I wouldn’t expect to be a common theme,” Loos said. “That gives me great pause. Obviously, the danger level is so accelerated because of that.”

Loos said while car thefts are common, they’re not typically as aggressive.

So when he saw the Nelson County footage, he suspected it could be the same thieves.

“We just don’t know whether there is a central controllance sending these groups out or if they are simply just emulating each other because they seem to have some degree of success,” Loos said.

While it’s not a positive ID, Loos said one of the thieves seen in the Nelson County video is dressed very similarly to one caught on a Florence doorbell camera on March 15, Loos said since then, his team has been able to identify a second suspect believed to be involved in the thefts. The search for others continues.

He said he is working on contacting Louisville police as well as the Nelson County Sheriff’s Office to determine if the crimes are in fact connected.

Independence considers raising building permit fees

The Independence City Council completed the first reading of a proposed ordinance this week that would raise the fees for building permits throughout the city. This is the first time the city has considered changing its permitting fees since 2015.

Kentucky statute prevents cities from making profits on building permits, so rates are set to match costs.

Michael Carpenter, Independence’s building inspector, produced the new rates by comparing costs and rate increases from other polities in the region. He claimed that even with the rate adjustments, Independence’s permit fee schedule is, on average, about 20% lower than other polities in the area.

The council will vote on the ordinance at the next city council meeting on May 1 at 7 p.m. at the Independence City Building on Madison Pike.

news from other places

Kentucky high school football player dies after head injury

SOMERSET, Ky. (AP) — A Kentucky high school football player who suffered a head injury during a scrimmage last week has died. The Kentucky High School Athletic Association said Monday, April 3, in a statement on Facebook that it joined family, friends and teammates in mourning the loss of Pulaski County High School varsity football player Andrew Dodson.

The teen’s father, Alan Dodson, told the Lexington Herald-Leader that his son was running the ball during a scrimmage on Friday, March 31, when a teammate tackled him. He said his son was wearing a helmet but his head hit the turf and caused a brain injury.

Kentucky bourbonmakers toast bill phasing out barrel tax

evaporation and pay a tax on the containers. Now they’re going to get relief from one of them.

Kentucky’s legislature voted to completely phase out the property tax on the value of barrels of aging spirits. The action came at the end of this year’s session, and Gov. Andy Beshear signed the measure. It was toasted by distillers but left a bitter taste among local leaders whose communities rely on the tax money from distilling operations.

Flight data recorders found after deadly Black Hawk crash

FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. (AP) — The military says “black boxes” have been recovered from two U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopters that crashed last week in Kentucky, killing all nine soldiers aboard. Officials said Tuesday, April 4 that a U.S. Army aviation safety team found the flight data recorders from the HH-60 Black Hawk helicopters.

The aircrafts crashed March 29 near Fort Campbell during a nighttime training exercise. Brig. Gen. John Lubas, the 101st Airborne deputy commander, has said the accident occurred while the helicopters were flying.

The recorders were sent to Fort Rucker in Alabama for further analysis. Officials say the soldiers’ remains have been taken to Dover Air Force Base.

Governor signs bill to protect domestic violence victims

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has signed a bill to expand an address confidentiality program aimed at protecting domestic violence victims from their abusers.

It builds on a program shielding victims’ home addresses from voter rolls. The program will now expand to mask their addresses on other publicly available government records.

It’s among several bills signed by the governor on Tuesday to bolster public safety by supporting law enforcement and better protecting crime victims.

Another signed bill gives law enforcement agencies the ability to create their own wellness programs to support the mental health and wellbeing of sworn and civilian personnel.

Honda recalls CR-Vs in cold states to fix frame rust problem

DETROIT (AP) — Honda is recalling nearly 564,000 older small SUVs in the U.S. because road salt can cause the frame to rust and rear suspension parts to come loose. The recall covers certain CR-Vs from 2007 through 2011.

They were sold or registered in 22 states and Washington, D.C., where salt is used to clear roads in the winter. U.S. safety regulators say in documents Thursday, April 6, that salt can accumulate and cause corrosion, and the rear trailing arm can detach.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — In the years it takes Kentucky bourbon to mature in new oak barrels, producers face two certainties: They lose a portion of the aging whiskey to

That can cause drivers to lose control. Rear trailing arms connect the rear axle to the chassis. Dealers will inspect the SUVs and install a support brace or repair the frame. If the frame is badly damaged, Honda may offer to buy the vehicle. Owners will be notified starting May 8.

Military officials hold a news conference in Fort Campbell, KY, on Thursday, March 30, 2023, to discuss a fatal helicopter crash. Nine people were killed in a crash involving two Army Black Hawk helicopters conducting a nighttime training exercise in Kentucky, a military spokesperson said.

Photo by Sharon Johnson | Associated Press

Green River Distilling Co. employee Coleman Savage looks over the 300,000th barrel of bourbon filled at the distillery inside the new-fill warehouse at the plant on April 20, 2021, in Owensboro, Ky.

Photo by Greg Eans | Associated Press

Bark Park & Patio invites pet owners to cornhole league

NewCath drama club to present ‘Something Rotten’

The Newport Central Catholic Drama Club will present the musical comedy “Something Rotten” on April 21, 22, 23 and April 28 and 29.

Local construction firm celebrates promotions

Florence’s Bark Park & Patio has launched a cornhole league, open to players of all skill levels. The Patio opened in 2022 as an outdoor bar and dog park combo. They encourage potential players to join as an individual or team while competing in weekly games, petting dogs and enjoying cold drinks. League play runs through June 14. Bark Park and Patio is located at 7544 Burlington Pike in Florence.

“Something Rotten” is the tale of two brothers who are trying to make a living as playwrights – the only problem is their rival is the one and only William Shakespeare. Nick Bottom takes it upon himself to hire a soothsayer to look into the future and find out what Shakespeare’s greatest hit will be so that he can write it first … unfortunately the soothsayer doesn’t get it quite right and Nick and Nigel set out to write a musical hit called Omelette.

Directed by Ms. Kelly Lorenz, the student cast and crew will premiere Friday, April 21 at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday showtimes will be at 7 p.m., and Sunday matinee performances will begin at 2 p.m. Details are available at NCCGala23.givesmart.com. Tickets can be purchased online or at the door.

Paul Hemmer Company, a construction group based in Fort Mitchell, announced a series of promotions and one new member on its staff.

Senior Vice President of Business Development John Curtin has been promoted to President of Hemmer Construction Company. Roebling Development’s Vice President of Real Estate & Development Adam Hemmer has been promoted to President

of Roebling Development Company. Ryan Kennedy joined the company as CFO last year with Barry Kienzle remaining in a part-time role as a Senior Vice President. Current President and CEO, Paul Hemmer Jr., will retain the role of CEO of Paul Hemmer Company. Curtin will continue his duties as head of Business Development and will add responsibilities of Construction Operations for the firm’s construction arm. In his new role, Curtin will oversee the company’s activities in new sales, pre-construction estimating and project management.

‘Folk hero’ coming to Southgate Revival House

Folk singer Ben Stalets is returning to Southgate House Revival Lounge on Friday, April 28, with his unique Midwestern, Rust Belt brand of “talking sh*t and singing songs,” according to his show announcement. Stalets is self-described as a dark, blue-collar folk singer. In an early-March tweet announcing his visit to Northern Kentucky, Stalets warned residents to “keep your doors locked 4/28! I’m coming to steal y’all’s hearts.” Doors open at 9 p.m.

From left is Ryan Kennedy, CFO, Paul Hemmer Company; John Curtin, President, Hemmer Construction Company; Paul Hemmer, Jr., CEO, Paul Hemmer Company; Adam Hemmer, President, Roebling Development. Photo provided | Paul Hemmer Company

Florence’s Bark Park and Patio. Photo by Maria Hehman | LINK nky contributor

This Covington home is perfect for entertaining

Address: 1182 Westport Way, Covington

Price: $699,900

Beds: Four

Bath: Four full, one half bath

Square feet: 1,726

School district: Covington Independent Public Schools

County: Kenton

Special features:

This historic home features four levels of living with river and city views. Perfect for entertaining, the home boasts original 12-foot ceilings, a kitchen with luxury appliances, new wood flooring throughout and a wine room in the lower level. Three of the bedrooms have en suite bathrooms. The two-car garage is heated and has a deck that provides beautiful views of the river – and fireworks on Fridays while the Reds are playing.

Recent NKY Home Sale Data

WHO YOU’RE WITH MATTERS

The home features balconies and outdoor space that overlooks the Ohio River. Photo provided | Michele Mamo

The lower-level wine bar. Photo provided | Michele Mamo

The view from one of the home’s balconies. Photo provided | Michele Mamo

On Your Street: Generations of friends, families call Mustang Drive home

BY ANN MORT | LINK nky CONTRIBUTOR

On Your Street is a regular feature in which contributor Ann Mort takes readers on a tour of one street in Northern Kentucky to tell the story of the people who live there.

On the outside, those big suburban homes appear very quiet and serene. On the inside, some are a hotbed of family activities spanning three generations.

Mustang Drive in Walton is a part of the Heritage Trails subdivision known for the life-sized model of a horse at the entrance. Mustang Drive runs from Appaloosa, where one can see the traffic on Interstate 75, to a cul-de-sac about half a mile downhill. Some of the Mustang Drive homes back up to the Triple Crown area, and as Alain Tourikian explains, “The Triple Crown value seeps into the Mustang Drive area,” driving up the value of their homes too.

Sue and Alain Tourikian found their forever home 23 years ago when a house under construction became available. The Tourikians both grew up in the Cincinnati area, and both spent seven years prior in Charleston, West Virginia. They moved to the region from Alain’s job in banking.

Rick and Mary Jo Stiene were their neighbors in Erlanger before the Tourikians moved to West Virginia, and they encouraged them to join them on Mustang Drive where the Stienes had recently moved. Un-

beknownst to the Tourikians, they would find another familiar face in their new neighborhood.

Sue Tourikian and Tom Hopkins had grown up on the same street. So there were immediately three family connections.

When the Hopkins discovered their old/ new neighbors had young girls, Tracy asked right away, “How old are you?” When she found the Tourikian daughter was indeed old enough, Tracy blurted out “Thank God, Do you babysit?”

Apparently both families had found what they were looking for.

“When we moved in, everybody had young kids, then they all grew up,” Alain said.

“Things got too quiet but in the last few years, more young kids are back in the neighborhood. Those grown-up kids now are bringing back their own kids.”

Sue, now retired, also worked in banking, and their daughter Nicole is carrying on the family business as a mortgage banker. Another daughter, Lisa, lives in Anderson Township, Ohio, and is an investment advisor.

Daughter Mollie, who lives in Cold Spring, is a college student currently a server at Smoke Justis in Covington.

Daughter Caitlin and son-in-law Patrick Behne were living temporarily with the Tourikians when another neighbor mentioned a house for sale across the street.

The house had been used as temporary housing for a local church.

Families would live in the home for extended periods of time until they found permanent housing in the area. One family came from the Czech Republic and demonstrated to their new neighbors their prowess on unicycles.

Another family came from California. The church was willing to sell the house at just the time the Behne’s wanted to buy a house. They did some repairs and upgrades and recently moved in just across the street. Caitlin is an Interior Designer with Best Furniture Gallery in Fort Thomas. Patrick does Signal Maintenance for CSX Railroad. They have two children, ages 2 and 5.

Nicole said she enjoys just hanging out with the family and going on group vacations, most recently to Disney World.

Sue and Alain both agree that “being grandparents” is a great way to spend their spare time. Their home seems to be a center for family activities with many passing through every day. With such a lively household, only Oliver the oversized cat seems oblivious to all the happenings.

Just up the street is the Hodge family home, the fourth home built on Mustang.

There are now four generations of the

Continues on page 16

The Hodge family cousins. From left are Owen Knox, age 8, Preston Knox, age 13, Marley Hodge, age 4, Eli Hodge, age 7, and Morgan Hodge, age 5. Photo by Ann Mort | LINK nky contributor

Legislative Recap Breakfast

Hodge family living on Mustang Drive. Shirley and Dave Hodge found the perfect house in the school system they wanted – Boone County Schools – and near I-75. They moved into their home Feb. 6, 1999. The builder did the basic things: foundation, walls, roof, plumbing. But the Hodge family finished the job and have continued using their skills to adapt and change as their needs changed.

They are also all working on rehabbing a rental property owned by Shirley’s mother and step-father, Langda and Bill Sullivan, who now also live just up the street. Another former rehab project was a house in Elsmere that Dave II and brother Daniel bought together several years ago. Daniel lives there still.

The Hodge household is a marvel in organization and loving, structured living.

There are three distinct families under one roof, each with their own “house,” as they call it, with sleeping and small private living quarters. Everybody shares the dinner, the prayers and general living areas. A playroom holds communal toys used by anyone. All together, there are the two grandparent Hodges, two adult children, five grandchildren ages 4 to 13, two dogs and five cats – currently. At one time there were 11 humans in the house.

At one point, daughter Danielle Knox and her two children were living with her parents and were almost ready to try home ownership of their own, when brother Dave II appeared on the doorstep with his three children – so everybody just stayed and made it work for all. As Shirley said, “God does have a sense of humor.”

It’s all about respecting others’ personal space. Everybody knows to knock before entering another family’s “house.” Everybody has their assigned chores. Adults have worked out how they get the kids off to school and who is on kid duty when parents are busy or away.

The five cousins each have their chores. Preston and Owen do trash and dishes, the girls do laundry, Eli handles the sweeper and things rotate around the group. Everybody cleans up after themselves. Shirley is the designated “Fun Police.”

Outside, the neighborhood group moves among five yards. The Hodge backyard

has the pool and room for soccer games in the front. Next door neighbors adopted the portable basketball court when it appeared there would never be enough room in the Hodge driveway with four cars and five bikes. The Tourikians have the trampoline and others have space for other activities.

Grandkids were glad to share the advantages of such a large, lively and loving home.

“There is always somebody to play with,” one said. “There is always somebody to blame.”

The Hodge family business seems to be firefighting and paramedic service with a side of construction.

The three men are all firefighters. Danielle works for a company that retrieves tissue and bone for transplant purposes. David Sr. has been a firefighter since age 17, retiring in 2022. He worked at the Florence Fire Department for 22 years, City of Covington Fire Department for 20 years, Ludlow’s department part-time for six years and has been retired one year. Some of those assignments overlapped.

David II volunteered at Union, worked part-time at Ludlow and has now been a paramedic/firefighter for five years at Bellevue/Dayton Fire Department.

At one point both David Sr. and David II were assigned to the same firehouse. As it turns out, David II outranked David Sr. because he was a paramedic and his dad was an EMT.

Daniel began as a volunteer at the Union FD and is now a paramedic at the Covington FD. The work schedules mean firefighter/paramedics are on duty a full 24 hours and then off 48 hours. David II tells of the stresses of paramedic schools, two part-time jobs, a newborn baby and clinical training all at once.

The family tells of David Sr.’s cooking abilities that moved from the firehouse, where he cooked for eight grown men, to home where the group was smaller and younger. Today, he is back to the larger portions and rapidly mixing up a meatloaf for dinner.

Shirley is proud to point out that, during

the pandemic, “with everybody in the family as a first responder, they were at high risk but, by taking precautions, nobody got sick.”

Also, during that time, Shirley acted as the family classroom teacher and kept the classes moving along like a one-room school teacher, being able to send them all back to the classrooms in their schools without anyone falling behind. Even the little ones had pre-school lessons alongside their older cousins and siblings.

Just when they might get really tired of each other, there is that every-other-weekend reprieve when all the kids go to their other parents for the weekend. As Shirley puts it, ”With any luck their resident parents are gone, too.” Shirley also says that when things get too hectic, she goes outside and works in the yard.

Dave II says the most stressful issue in the household is the parking. Juggling the four cars in the driveway involves always coordinating who has to leave first in the morning.

Somehow, the guys in the family have also appeared in two different films. David, David II, Daniel, and cousin Tim all appeared in “Dark Water.” Daniel and David II were in the Ted Bundy movie that premiered on Netflix in 2022.

Mustang Drive at one time was home to the former Bengal player, Andrew Whitworth. These days, the claim to fame is a large model train display one of the neighbors has installed in his backyard. On Fridays in December, it is open to the public and according to Sue, “People come from all over to see it. The hosting neighbor even serves hot chocolate and distributes candy canes.”

The Tourikian family, including daughter Nicole, mother Sue, daughter Caitlin and father Alain. Photo by Ann Mort | LINK nky contributor

NKU ends losing streak with win over Wright State

gether, then we win a lot of games.

Wakeham’s contribution was the main reason NKU improved to 14-12 and 5-4 in the Horizon League and is tied for second with Purdue University-Fort Wayne. (Wright State fell to 15-12 and 7-2.) His three-run double off Chris Gallagher in the seventh helped send 11 Norse batters to the plate.

Simon Kenton softball wins twice on windy day

much as I can. But I still have to remember you’re not going to be perfect all the time. I try to be the best leader I can be.”

Junior first baseman Emilie Young and eighth grade catcher Jayden Jones both went 2 for 3 for Simon Kenton. Emilie Young batted in two and Jones scored twice. Junior right fielder Kayden Porter drove in two and scored twice with eighth grade shortstop Taylor Jones batting in two.

Welch’s grand slam leads Beechwood to All ‘A’ region title

Carson Welch heard his Beechwood baseball teammates screaming.

Northern Kentucky University’s baseball team was streaky on Sunday, April 2, but in the best possible way.

The Norse rode a six-run seventh inning and held off a late Wright State rally to claim Sunday’s 9-5 win at Bill Aker Baseball Complex at Friendship Field.

Two streaks against the Raiders ended: NKU’s consecutive losses on March 31 and April 1, and 21 straight painful games since April 7, 2019.

“As a team, we were looking for that spark,” Norse catcher Jayden Wakeham said. “We had a couple opportunities we couldn’t cash in … Last time we beat them was four years ago, my freshman year.”

Norse head coach Dizzy Peyton didn’t say anything different before Sunday’s game.

“We just always work the same process,” Peyton said. “Nothing changes whether we win or lose. We’re always going to work our same process and try to get quality at-bats, quality innings. String enough of those to-

High winds could not stop the tripleheader from taking place at Simon Kenton on Saturday, April 1.

The Simon Kenton Pioneers (7-2 overall) and Cooper Jaguars (6-3) run-ruled the West Chester (Ohio) Lakota East Thunderhawks (2-2) before facing each other trying for two wins on the day. Simon Kenton earned it with a 12-1 five-inning run-ruling taking control in the second inning.

Eighth grade pitcher Lauren McIntosh (1-1) pitched a complete game for the win. She struck out four, walked no one and allowed no runs as the Pioneers made one error behind her. McIntosh retired the side in the top of the first and fifth innings.

Simon Kenton saw three players put up multi-hit games batting .588 (10 for 17) overall, starting with sophomore center fielder Larkin Mitchell. Mitchell went 3 for 4 with a double, two runs batted in and scored all three times she reached.

“I definitely take that responsibility very seriously,” Mitchell said of leading off the game. “My approach is to try to get on as

“We’ve consistently been good at the plate all year long,” said Chris Young, Simon Kenton’s head coach. “Our defense is starting to catch up, which is where I feel we should be strong in the first half. It’s nice to have a young girl like Lauren McIntosh come out against a really good Cooper team and do what she did. That’s exciting to see longterm. I’m hoping we keep swinging the bats like we are. If we do, then we have a chance.”

The Pioneers scored five runs in the bottom of the second to break a 1-1 tie. They added five in the bottom of the fourth to make the final score 12-1.

He wasn’t immediately sure why until he realized he had hit a grand slam home run. His shot off St. Henry’s pitcher Nick Browning was the marquee blow in a ninerun seventh inning, which gave the Tigers a 10-4 win in the Ninth Region All “A” final at Thomas More Stadium on April 3.

“It felt like a dream, honestly,” Welch said. “It’s like, ‘When are you going to wake yourself up from it?’ You’re just so locked in the game, you couldn’t hear anything when the ball was hit.

“I thought I popped out at first.”

Beechwood coach Kevin Gray was screaming, too.

“When the ball left the bat, ‘Please get out of here!’ is what I was screaming,” Gray said. “But I knew it was going to at least tie the game ‘cause I knew it was at least a double.

“But when it left the bat, I knew he hit it good; I didn’t know he hit it that good.”

Welch wasn’t swinging for the left field fence. But when he got the inside fastball from Browning, “I was just trying to put the ball in the gap,” Welch said. “I wanted to make something happen.”

Beechwood meets the 10th Region winner in the first round of the state small-school tournament at 10 a.m. April 29 at Campbellsville High School.

NKU second baseman Cleary Simpson prepares to bunt in the sixth inning against Wright State. Photo provided | Sally Schaefer

Simon Kenton eighth grade pitcher Lauren McIntosh fires to the plate in the game against Cooper. McIntosh struck out four in the Pioneer win. Photo by G. Michael Graham | LINK nky

Horn agrees to contract extension for Norse

BY G. MICHAEL GRAHAM | LINK nky CONTRIBUTOR

Northern Kentucky University Director of Athletics Christina Roybal announced an agreement to a contract extension to head men’s basketball coach Darrin Horn on March 31.

The new agreement extends the 50-yearold’s contract by two years and keeps him as the leader of the Norse for four full seasons. Earning more than $400,000 prior to his extension, this makes Horn the highest paid coach in the Horizon League through June 30, 2027, with an additional year extension taking place after the 2023-24 school year.

“I’d like to thank Interim President Bonita Brown and VP of Athletics Christina Roybal for their belief and continued support of NKU Men’s basketball,” Horn said. “There is great tradition here and I am excited about the shared vision with administration to continue to grow our program together as we serve our student-athletes and the NKU and Northern Kentucky communities.”

Horn is 79-45 after four seasons guiding the Norse. NKU has won two Horizon League Tournament titles to automatically qualify for the NCAA Tournament. The Norse are 52-24 in Horizon League play during his tenure and have made it to the league championship game three out of his four seasons.

The Norse finished 22-13 this past season including 14-6 in league play. They beat Cleveland State to win the tournament championship then put a scare into the

top-seeded Houston Cougars in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Birmingham (Alabama) in a 63-52 defeat.

“Coach Horn has done a tremendous job leading our men’s basketball program and we want him to continue to do so for many years to come,” Roybal said. “He and his staff have lifted the program back to national prominence and the exposure the

men’s basketball program brings is not only important for our department, but also for the University and the entire region.”

Before coming to Northern Kentucky, Horn had head coaching stops at the University of South Carolina and his alma mater of Western Kentucky University. Horn led the Hilltoppers to the Sweet 16 in 2008 and posted an overall record of 111-48 during

his time there before going 60-63 in Southeast Conference play with the Gamecocks. He is 250-156 overall as a head coach.

Horn has also served as an assistant at both Marquette University and the University of Texas. He was a four-year standout at Western Kentucky helping the Hilltoppers to three NCAA Tournament appearances including a run to the Sweet 16 in 1993.

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As a reminder, our honor is available to any athletics team from any sport at any level – from high school and collegiate to youth to recreational and beyond. Readers can scan the QR code to head to linknky.com to vote for the next Team of the Week.

Thomas More girls basketball team

Photo provided | Evan Dennison

Northern Kentucky University head men’s basketball coach Darrin Horn (left) goes over some things in a practice with junior guard Marques Warrick (3). Horn agreed to a contract extension on Friday. File photo | LINK nky