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LEWIS COUNTY COMMUNITY GUIDE Serving all of Lewis County, West Virginia
Copyright 2020
Justice announces Week 4 guidelines
Wednesday, May 13, 2020
Extend your sincere congratulations and best wishes to your Graduate of 2020. For more info call Allison at
(304) 449-4931 (304) 472-2800
Lewis Co. Park closes pool, cancels reservations
Governor Jim Justice holds a daily press briefing Tuesday afternoon. By Kari Conaway Staff Writer CHARLESTON — Governor Jim Justice resumed his daily press briefings via YouTube this week, providing continual updates on the state’s response efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Week 3 of WV Strong: The Comeback plan began Monday, permitting wellness facilities supervised by licensed professionals and drive-in movie theaters to reopen. The governor announced Monday that Week 4 will officially begin on Thursday, May 21, the start of Memorial Day weekend, and explained the guidelines and expectations for the Mountain State. Justice said he will permit indoor restaurants to open at 50 percent capacity, along with large or specialty retail stores, the Hatfield-McCoy Trail System, outdoor motorsport and powersport racing without spectators, outdoor recreation rentals for kayaks, bikes and similar equipment, and State Park campgrounds to in-state residents only. On Tuesday, May 26, State Park cabins and lodges will also be permitted to open to in-state residents only. Additional guidance for these businesses is available at governor.wv.org. Lastly, the governor announced that on Thursday, May 21, he will lift the 14-day self-quarantine period for out-of-state travelers, and additional guidance for hotels, cabins and other properties will also be posted on his website. Justice gave an update on the current state statistics Monday. “I want you, West Virginia, to know just how proud you should be of what you’ve done,” he explained. Justice also listed the bordering states’ death tolls in comparison, as Ohio with 1,341 deaths, Pennsylvania with 3,811, Virginia with 850, Maryland with 1,683 and Kentucky with 304, while West Virginia had 57 as of Tuesday. The state’s Fatality Rate currently stands at 4.16 percent. Justice showed that the WV Positive Growth Rate for Sunday was 0.4 percent for two days in a row. The WV Cumulative Percent of Tests Positive was 2.11 percent. The 813 recovered cases exceed the number of active cases at 515. West Virginia has tested 3.66 percent of the state’s population, higher than See Justice on Page 5
BOE congratulates winners By Kari Conaway Staff Writer
WESTON — The Lewis County Board of Education met Monday evening to discuss business. Members of the public were able to attend the virtual meeting telephonically. Board member Paul Derico was not in attendance. The board recognized and congratulated Robert L. Bland Middle School’s Cook Amanda Wimer, who was recognized with the School Amanda Wimer – Winner Nutrition Association’s Na- of the National School tional School Lunch Hero Lunch Hero Award and Award and also as 2019-20 Employee of the Year for Employee of the Year for the the Mideast Region. Mideast Region. Wimer will be honored again at the national conference this July in Nashville, Tennessee. The board also recognized and congratulated the following Fred Eberle Technical Center’s local Skills Competition winners from Lewis County for the 2019-2020 year: See BOE on Page 5
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The pool will remain closed for the summer at Lewis County Park. By Kari Conaway Staff Writer WESTON — The Lewis County Park announced that the pool will not open this season, cancelled all reservations and restricted park use for the summer. Park Director Josh Hinchman explained that the park is following guidelines set by Governor Justice, health experts and the Lewis County Health Department. As of now, parks are limited to foot traffic only for picnics and walking. Hinchman explained most people are already cancelling
anyway, since the pavilions are usually used along with the pool. For now, the playgrounds and courts in the park will not be available, as they would need to be cleaned properly after each use. Hinchman explained that pavilions wouldn’t be able to be used until late June in the best-case scenario. He also hopes to open playgrounds and courts after restrictions are further lifted. Even by the end of June, the maximum number of people gathering in a group is still predicted to be limited to 25
GSC expands Home Grown Initiative statewide By Karli Hamrick Staff Writer
recruit high school students interested in teaching, particularly those interested in high-demand subject areas such as math, science, special education and early childhood. Overall, the goal is to encourage the youth of West Virginia to become highly qualified teachers for the communities in our state, according to GSC Dean of Education Dr. Jeff Hunter. This initiative reportedly allows high school seniors interested in the education program at GSC the opportunity to receive annual competitive scholarships, take part in peer and professional mentoring, advising, and
GLENVILLE — Glenville State College is continuing its legacy of training teachers through the Home Grown Initiative (HGI) and is excited to announce the program’s expansion to serve students statewide. To address the issue of teacher shortages in West Virginia, Glenville State College came up with a creative solution that aims to benefit all concerned. Through extensive collaboration and discussions, the HGI program has now expanded this unique opportunity to all 55 counties in the state. The desired outcome for the program is to identify and See GSC on Page 6
KARLI HAMRICK/Lewis County Community Guide
Clark Hall
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KARLI HAMRICK/Lewis County Community Guide
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people or less. “I think the original plan that they were doing was the three to six weeks plan for the opening, but now it seems that everything is slowing down on opening, so that’s why we’re not sure. We just know it’s going to be pretty late in the summer before we’ll really be able to be open to the public. It’s just going to be best just to cancel,” Hinchman said. In the meantime, the park will be working on maintenance and adding new amenities. The new park lighting will be installed throughout the area,
as well as a disk golf course. They will also be extending walking and hiking trails, according to Hinchman. Lewis County Commission released the following statement: “The County Commission has much regret about this decision, but it would be impossible to follow all of the social distancing, sanitation and maximum occupancy requirements. Each piece of play equipment in the park and every chair, slide, etc. See Pool on Page 5
There’s a new Judge in town
By Kari Conaway Staff Writer
WESTON — Jim Terango was recently appointed as Weston’s new Municipal Judge. Mr. Terango resides in Stonewood. Along with his duties in Weston, Terango remains the Municipal Judge for Stonewood, Nutter Fort and Salem, in addition to serving as the Chief Tax Deputy for the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department. Weston Municipal Judge Terango brings with him Jim Terango many years of experience. He served as Director of Field Services for the State Auditor’s office for 12 years, Magistrate of Harrison County for six years, Shinnston’s Chief of Police for two years, a Correctional Officer for the Harrison County Sheriff for two years and worked four years in the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department in the Legal Process Division. “I’m looking forward to serving the City of Weston and being the Jurist for their Municipal Court. The decisions rendered will be based on ordinances and the rules of civil and criminal procedure. Municipal Court has current jurisdiction and follows the rules of the West Virginia Magistrates, and they will be adhered to,” Terango assured. City Council voted to appoint Municipal Judge Jim Terango during the April 6 regular meeting, replacing interim Kristen Donaldson. “Mr. Terango brings several years of experience to the job. I’m sure that will benefit the citizens of Weston greatly,” Mayor Kim Harrison said. “He comes across very professional and he develops a good rapport in his interactions with people.” Mayor Harrison also explained that the timing of hiring the new Judge was important because of the recent hire of a new Building Inspector Zoning Officer. Mr. Terango’s services will be needed more as the other employees are able to carry out their duties. She explained that the timing is all about putting proper structure in place and all the employees working in tandem. “We’re building a strong team,” Mayor Harrison stated. Welcome to Weston, Judge Terango! SATURDAY Partly Sunny 80/61
SUNDAY Partly Sunny 82/61