The Jessamine Journal
November 4, 2004
Firefighters conduct propane fire drill
Last Sunday several local emergency service agencies, in cooperation with Suburban
Propane of Nicholasville, conducted a training drill on fighting propane fires
and managing liquid petroleum gas-related emergencies.
Participating agencies included the Jessamine County Emergency Management Agency,
Nicholasville Fire Department, Jessamine County Emergency Services, Jessamine
County Fire District and Wilmore Fire Department.
There were 33 local and four out-of-town firefighters and EMTs present.
"The specialized techniques taught in this class allow us to make educated
decisions about flammable liquid and gas tank fires, how to approach and control
propane fires and how to turn off fuel valves to extinguish the fire,"
said Kevin Baker, deputy chief for Nicholasville's fire department.
The class was taught by the Kentucky Community and Technical College System
and State Fire Rescue. The fuel used in the burn was donated by Suburban Propane.
A special training prop was used that allows firefighters to simulate a leaking
tank similar to the ones found behind many residences and to control fire levels.
Flames from the tank prop can reach 40 to 50 feet high, and the temperatures
at the tank can reach 800 degrees.
Somerset Commonwealth Journal
November 20, 2004
SCC’s 2005 Arnow Conference to feature poetry by Diane Gilliam Fisher,
fiction by Crystal Wilkinson, and music by Zoe Speaks
Somerset Community College will be hosting the Third Annual Harriette Simpson
Arnow Conference from March 31 to April 2, 2005 on the SCC Somerset Campus North.
The theme of the 2005 conference will be “Pilgrims and Strangers: The Theme
of Displacement in Appalachian Literature.”
This year’s theme is particularly appropriate because 2005 marks the 50th
anniversary of the publishing of Arnow’s classic novel, The Dollmaker,
which is about a Kentucky family displaced to Detroit.
Belinda Gadd, English Instructor, and chair of the Arnow Conference Committee
this year, and other members of her committee have already put together the
major guests for the 2005 event. Sharon Whitehead, SCC’s McCreary Center
Director, will be presenting a short segment from her role as Gertie Nevels
from SCC English professor Betty Peterson’s adaptation of Arnow’s
The Dollmaker on Thursday, March 31, at 7 p.m.
The conference has added music this year with a special appearance by Zoe Speaks.
The members of the group are Mitch Barrett and Carla Gover.
Somerset Community College is soliciting proposals from academics and scholars
for presentations at the Harriette Simpson Arnow Conference. For more information
on submitting a proposal contact Crabtree at lynn.crabtree@kctcs.edu or call
(606) 679-8501, ext. 3922.
Headlining the conference will be Kentucky writer Crystal Wilkinson. She will
read from her works during the conference Opening Session on Friday, April 1,
2005. Wilkinson was raised in Indian Creek, Kentucky. She is the 2002 recipient
of the Chaffin Award for Appalachian Literature. She is a member of the Lexington-based
writing collective, The Affralachian Poets. Her latest work is Water Street,
which was recently a finalist for the prestigious Orange Prize. Wilkinson will
be conducting a fiction workshop for conference participants on April 1.
Diane Gilliam Fisher, whose latest volume of poetry, Kettle Bottom, focuses
on the 1920’s coal mining wars, will also be a guest speaker at the Arnow
Conference. Fisher holds a PhD in English and a MFA from Warren Wilson College.
She grew up in Columbus, Ohio. Fisher will be hosting a poetry workshop for
participants on April 1.
Jeanne McDonald and Fred Brown will be participating in the conference. McDonald
has published fiction in magazines, journals and anthologies. She had co-written
two books with her husband, Fred Brown. They are Growing up Southern and The
Serpent Handlers. The latter won the Harry Caudill Award for Journalistic Reporting.
McDonald published a novel of her own in 2003 entitled Water Dreams. Brown is
a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellow at the University of Michigan,
a feature writer for the Knoxville News-Sentinel, and editor of Appalachian
Life magazine.
Sidney Saylor Farr, who grew up in Southeastern Kentucky, is the author of
six books and numerous pieces of fiction and poetry. She is the former editor
of Appalachian Heritage, a quarterly published by Berea College. This year she
won the Appalachian Writers Association Award for Outstanding Contributions
to Appalachian Literature. Farr will highlight the Saturday morning sessions.
The registration fee for the entire conference is $75 and includes lunch on
Thursday and Friday, dinner with Zoe Speaks on Saturday. To attend Thursday
only is $10. To attend Friday only is $55. Dinner with Zoe Speaks will be $20.
Saturday with lunch is $30. Payment should be made to Somerset Community College,
808 Monticello St, Somerset, KY 42501. Please register by March 1, 2005. For
more information on registration call Judy Covey at (606) 679-8501, ext. 3920.
Hazard Herald
November 16, 2004
Poetry Blitz Hits HCTC
Campuses Besieged With Poetry and Chili to Raise Awareness, Funds
Students and faculty gathered on all five of Hazard Community and Technical
College campuses Oct. 28 for a chili lunch and simultaneous poetry readings.
The goal was to raise funds for Kudzu, HCTC’s literary magazine.
“Budget cuts hit us pretty hard last year,” explains Donna Sparkman,
English Professor and faculty advisor for Kudzu, “We had support for an
online edition, and we were enthusiastic about increasing the number of ‘virtual
readers.’ But poets want to see their work in print. And we thought we’d
try to raise some funds to see what happened. And we were pleasantly surprised.”
“We thought to get them in with chili,” explains Jenny Williams,
English professor and Hazard Homeplace Reading Camp coordinator,” and get
them to hear some poetry. And it worked out that they came in for the poetry
and then to buy chili. It was a wonderful and enriching experience for everyone
involved.”
Naomi Duff, a student at HCTC and poet, read her work in front of the large
group of listeners on the Hazard Campus, “It’s always special to have
an opportunity to read your work in front of a group. Experiences like this
always edify me and reveal to all of us the inherent beauty that manifests itself
in the support of a group like this; it endeavors to achieve little other than
support and ends up giving great sustenance. Plus the chili is awfully good.”
The simultaneous slam event raised a few hundred dollars. The money can’t
cover all the production costs of a magazine like Kudzu, but it’s a step
in a positive direction.
“We have lots of great ideas,” continues Sparkman, “Chad [Knight,
the student editor] and I have talked about contests and bake sales and bowling
tournaments. Ultimately the most important thing with Thursday’s event
is awareness. We had nearly 100 people attend, all totaled, for poetry in the
middle of the day. This reflects a real interest in the written word here in
the mountains. And we wanted to let people know they have a place where they
can tell their stories.”
“It’s an amazing thing,” admits Ron Reed, the Division Chair
for the Heritage and Humanities Division, “Every year we get a large turn
out for Evening with Poets and the Spring Writers Workshop. But to have such
an incredible turn out for lunch on a Thursday is positively and beautifully
overwhelming.”
“We want people to read the magazine,” Sparkman concludes, “and
we need the support of community to create the magazine—artistically and
monetarily. We’re blessed to be part of a community that values stories
and understands that these stories have to be told.”
Anyone interested in making a donation or submitting their work can call Donna
Sparkman at 606 785-4114 ext 73411, or email her at donnas.sparkman@kctcs.edu.
Lexington Herald-Leader
November 23, 2004
44 FROM LCC HONORED
A record 44 Lexington Community College students were recently inducted into
the Alphi Phi Kappa Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa, a national honor society that
recognizes and encourages the academic achievement of two-year college students.
Full-time students who have a grade-point average of 3.5 are eligible for Phi
Theta Kappa, the largest society in American higher education with more than
1.5 million members. The inductees include:
Lisa Anstine, Josue Arroyo, Brittany Babcock, Christopher Bagwell, Mary Baxter,
Bob Mbaka Botaka, Jackie Centers, Brittany Clark, Kathryn Clark, Winona Cox,
Mary Crawford, Roger Croucher, George Donkor Jr., Jennifer Foltyn, Kenneth Fomundam,
Christinne Gillette, Christian Gilley, Amanda Glass, Stephanie Graves, Annarita
Gresham, Jennifer Haag, Michael Hardman, Lauren Hargreaves, Darisabel Hern‡ndez,
Michael Jones, Angie Jordan, Janet Lindsay, Patrick Belengo Litanga, Josh Maddox,
Lauren Mallory, Tonya Murphy, Cynthia Nichter, Liliane Nguefalk Nkafu, Chinwe
Ogbonna, Heather Powers, Amy Pritchett, Jordan Revlett, Lisa Roseboom, Roba
Rowe, Candace Russell, Amanda Sims, Douglas Turner, Allan Watson, Jr. and Robin
Young.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
November 19, 2004
Private Giving
Madisonville Community College. For the development of new education programs,
for scholarships, and for arts programs: $1.2-million from Brown Badgett Sr.
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