By Lisa Johnson

Reporter

Nobel Vernon Sellars 99 years old who was born in Micro, North Carolina 1918 can be seen every morning at the Powell County Senior citizens Center here in Stanton. Vernon was 12 in 1930 so he remembers the Hover administration and the Great Depression well, living on his fathers farm they raised their own food ,hunted and made money by cutting and selling firewood for 35 cents a cord.  He finished the sixth grade and spent his youth fishing and swimming in the creek while working the farm were they raised cotton and tobacco. As a child we all had the itch, so once a week we had to use scalding water to scrub the house to combat bed bugs. I often remember riding to church in a two seat buggy with no roof so when It rained we all had to stay home. He and his family lost 7 brothers and sisters before they reached their second birthdays. He remembers times when It was so cold mother would wipe down the dinner table while leaving a layer of fresh frost upon it ,all the while being observed from below through the floorboards by the many chicken living beneath.

In 1940 he married Mini Alberta Wooder  and eventually moved to Delaware were he worked for Air Design General Contractor. They had  five children and eventual moved to Baltimore, were he states( I got the best job ever working for General electric) were he worked on the line meeting so many people who did lots of different things. Once he came up with a new way to improve production and gave it to his boss who was quick to take credit for the idea, next time I put my name on first. Later he got to go outside were he loved  doing the landscaping and being outdoors.

After all of his children had grown up and moved to five different states , he retired from GE 1988, he and Mini to move to Stanton, Kentucky to live near their daughter Sue at a home on 69 Lisa Lane were he made children’s doll furniture . In 1999 Mini passed away and he remarried in 2001 to Jo Self who died October of 2016. He now lives with his daughter Sue. What makes him so amazing is his daily routine, he does 15 toe touches every morning and as seen in the photo does 200 ab roll’s daily then dresses, makes his bed and goes to the senior center were he walks three miles on the treadmill every day, later enjoying friends at the center and loves playing games. Earlier years, (I thank the lord I never knew anyone I wanted to harm in any way, but there was one guy who found out I had three daughters living at home and wanted to visit and informed with a smile I have a gun.) You are blessed to still have your father, Golda, Kenneth, Barb, Maria, and Sue.

Thank you for your time, it is my pleasure for the knowledge, and for sharing your life with our readers.

Powell County’s Patrick Graham wins overall individual championship

JACKSON, KY – It took an extra day to complete the competition, but after the storm clouds cleared, the crew from the Morgan County Kentucky Department of Highways maintenance garage won the overall team championship in District 10’s annual Equipment Roadeo. Patrick Graham, an equipment operator from the Powell County crew, won the overall individual championship on the strength of victories in two of the individual events.

 

Individual event winners hailed from Estill, Morgan and Powell counties.

 

This year’s Roadeo began on Wednesday, June 14, but strong thunderstorms late in the afternoon delayed completion of the event until the next morning. Participants who had not finished the competition Wednesday afternoon were given the opportunity to complete the Roadeo on Thursday morning.

 

The annual Roadeo brings equipment operators from the district’s county garages together for a day of friendly competition and fellowship. The event allows equipment operators from the district’s crews to show their skills in operating the equipment they use to maintain state highways in the district. The obstacle courses simulate actual situations equipment operators may encounter in the performance of their duties.

Individual event winners were:

 

·        Backhoe: Patrick Graham, Powell County, first place; Scott Prater, Morgan County, second place.

·        Snowplow obstacle course: Matt Howard, Morgan County, first place; Josh Howard, Magoffin County, second place. (This event ended in a tie, and a tiebreaker was used to determine the champion).

·        Tractor with mower: Algin Moreland, Estill County/District 10 Equipment Garage, first place; John Rose, Wolfe County, second place.

·        Grader: Patrick Graham, Powell County, first place; Reed Graham, Wolfe County, second place.

The individual contest winners and runners-up will advance to a statewide competition against participants from the other 11 highway districts across Kentucky, to be held at the Kentucky Horse Park June 26-28. State winners will be eligible to participate in the annual Southeastern Regional Equipment Operators Safety Training Conference competition, to be held in the Sevierville/Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg, Tenn. area later this year.

 

“Our county maintenance crew members have to work in all sorts of weather conditions and are subject to being called out at any time of the day or night,” said Corbett Caudill, chief district engineer. “Our personnel do an excellent job maintaining our state highways and responding to emergency situations caused by the weather or other issues. Operating the equipment necessary to maintain our highways year-round, and to keep them clear of snow and ice in the winter, takes a lot of skill and knowledge. The Roadeo gives our employees a chance to show off their abilities. It also gives our employees from our county garages, who don’t get to have much interaction with other crews on a regular basis, a chance to know that they are all part of one team and that we appreciate all of them for their effort and hard work.”

 

District 10 encompasses the counties of Breathitt, Estill, Lee, Magoffin, Menifee, Morgan, Owsley, Perry, Powell and Wolfe in east-central and southeastern Kentucky.

By Dave Fraley

PCHS Basketball Coach

Amazingly our summer basketball schedule has been completed.  I saw improvements in several of our players. Now it is important for them to spend some of their time continuing to refine their skills.

My observations tell me that our young men do now know how hungry our community is for success in basketball.  Whether or we are successful does matter to our fans and that serves as motivation for us.

Rebuilding Powell County Basketball is a process. Last year’s seniors helped us take a major step with twenty wins. But now the reality is our team must do better in post season tournament play. Our community and school deserves a deep tournament run as a reward for the support they have shown us.This is now a point of emphasis.  The coaching staff is and must remain dedicated to this goal.

Being the head coach at Powell County is an honor. It is also a huge responsibility that I take very seriously. I am committed to putting the best team on the floor that we possibly can.

Our schedule has changed some and I think our fans will enjoy seeing us play Montgomery, Bourbon, Tates Creek and Rowan County.

Just last week we finished the Future Pirates Camp. I hope you will enjoy the picture of our campers.

I look forward to the excitement of basketball next fall. I hope to see huge numbers of fans in our gym. We will make every effort to deserve your support.

By Cecil Pergram

Times Editor

A local Powell County man, Keith Hall, was selected to be participating as an umpire at this years Kentucky High School Athletic Association Baseball Tournament at Whitaker Bank Ballpark in Lexington.

Hall is the first person from the county to ever make it to the State Tournament as an official so far at this years tournament he’s called games from behind home plate, third base and second base in his three appearances.

Hall says that he wont find out until after the deadline for this story if he will be selected to work either of the tournament semifinals games or the championship game but he hopes to be behind home plate for the finale.

“Hopefully I get to go back but I’ll have to wait and see.” Hall said. “The catch is you want the last game of the year to be home plate but there are thousands of umpires in the state but only one guy gets it, hopefully that will be me but I don’t know.

Each region has an assigner who designates the officials to work certain games throughout the week and at the end of the year the assigner will designate the best official from the region to be sent to the State Tournament. Hall was chosen by the regions assigner this year to represent the district at this seasons KHSAA Kentucky Baseball Tournament.

“Its a big accomplishment its something that you work for all summer long for to get you name picked and you get to umpire with the best guys from around the state from Louisville to Owensboro and your in a nice ballpark,” Hall said.

Hall says that one of things that allows him to be a great umpire it to maintain control of the field regarding the coaches, players and parents.

“You can’t go out there and be shy, if a coach gets on to you, you have to respect him but he has to respect you back, you’ve got to let him talk but when enough is enough you put him back in the dugout.” Hall said. “If you get a rowdy parent you put them in the parking lot, if a kid gets out of hand you try to work with them but if that don’t work you toss them. If you got a command voice or demeanor everything stays in check but if your easy going they’ll run over top of you and you’ll call whatever they want you to call.”

Hall says that when he first started getting involved in officiating he was the only the one from the county that was involved with officiating and that now they’re six guys in the county who are now officiating.

“I won’t say they all took after me but they’ve seen what I’ve done and the money I’ve made its a little extra income.” Hall said. “Its a stress reliever and its something that I enjoy.”

Eric Briscoe Board Member with the Powell County Little League says that Hall started working with Powell County Little League baseball when he was around 20 years old and coached many teams.

“I know that he started right after he graduated high school but he coached many teams, he coached a lot of the boys in little league that was part of the first high school baseball team in about 30 years to go to the state tournament.” Briscoe said. “He been involved in every aspect of Powell County Little League from fundraising to working on the fields and helping kids who might not been able to afford to play he’s got his hands on all of it.”

Briscoe says that Hall making it to the State Tournament as an umpire is a major deal for Powell County.

“You got 16 regions across the state of Kentucky, to be selected to go means your one of the best of the best, thats the pinnacle of your career if your a high school official,” said Briscoe.

Briscoe says that because Hall has been so involved with little league baseball within the county that a lot of the times that when he has a question or is frustrated about something that he turns to Hall for advice.

“The one thing that he always stressed at the end of the day is to remember that its all about the kids.” Briscoe said. “Keith has been dedicated to the program for many years, he done it for so long that he decided to start umpiring and took a liking to it and is known as very good official because he dedicated himself a long time ago.”

Anthony Molihan who has umpired games with Hall during the Powell County Little League games says the he takes his job seriously and is very professional to work with. Molihan says he is proud to see somebody from the area get to umpire during the state tournament.

“Its not very often that somebody from Powell County get the opportunity to do and we’re very proud to see Keith get to go its a big achievement,” said Molihan.

Molihan says that Hall helped him get started  when he started umpiring games eight years ago.

“He would always give pointers to the newer officials to try and get them started on their own way.” Molihan said. “It might be a way to make things easier or look better or be more professional doing it but he was always there to lend a hand to help you.”

Molihan says that Hall was the only one officiating in Powell County for a long time that there was a few people who did it before him but it had been a while since they had umpired or refereed.

“Keith was the only one at the time when I got started and he really opened it up for us and made a way for all of us,” said Molihan.

The KHSAA Baseball Tournament started on June 8 and will continue until June 17.

Currently there are four teams left in the tournament. Semifinal action is scheduled for June 16 with Simon Kenton facing Marion County in one semifinal and McCracken County taking on Pleasure Ridge Park in the other.

The winners of both games will face one another in the KHSAA Baseball Championship Game on June 17.

Tim Slone, director of the Information and Education Division of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, holds a nearly 5-pound largemouth bass caught from a Shelby County farm pond in early June. June is a fantastic month for largemouth bass in farm ponds and channel catfish in lakes and creeks.

 

FRANKFORT, Ky. (June 1, 2017) – June is one of the best months for outside activities such as fishing. However, many predator species, such as largemouth bass, have already completed their annual reproductive ritual and kind of sulk through June.

It can be a tough month for fishing in lakes and reservoirs, but two options will produce fishing that compares to the marvelous weather.

Largemouth bass in farm ponds:

June is a transitional month for largemouth bass in our larger lakes, but the confined nature of a farm pond ups the odds in the angler’s favor.

“You can catch largemouth bass all summer in a farm pond,” said Jeff Ross, assistant director of fisheries for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.

Successful summer largemouth bass fishing in farm ponds is all about timing and changing approaches as the day progresses. Wake up early enough that dew soaks your shoes as you walk to the pond.

Old school topwater lures such as the Hula Popper or a Jitterbug in the bullfrog color draw vicious strikes when slowly worked along the edge of vegetation in the low light of early morning.

As the sun rises, switch to fishing a weightless 7-inch ribbon-tailed worm in the junebug color. “Bass hold tight to cover during the middle of the day on a farm pond,” Ross said. “Fish the shady side of the pond if there is one.”

The weightless ribbon-tailed worm slowly falls through the cover attracting largemouth bass snuggled deeply in it. If the pond has no cover, fish the worm slowly along any weedlines or under any floating vegetation.

As day fades into night, the topwater bite again comes into play. Anglers also catch many farm pond bass in the dark on a 1/4-ounce black spinnerbait with a round Colorado blade.

Fish the spinnerbait just above bottom and let the Colorado blade thump. Hold on tight as largemouth bass often savage this presentation.

Channel catfish:

Channel catfish spawn in Kentucky mainly in June. “They are cavity spawners,” Ross said. “You often find them near riprap or chunk rock.”

Riprap consists of cantaloupe-sized rock used to protect the face of dams, bridge abutments and marinas from erosion caused by the pounding of waves. A 3/8-ounce slip-sinker rig with a 4/0 circle hook is a good choice for catfish when fished on or near riprap or areas of chunk rock lining the banks.

A slip-sinker rig consists of an 18-inch fluorocarbon or monofilament leader with the circle hook on one end. Tie the other end of the leader to a barrel swivel. After threading the main line coming from your rod through an egg sinker followed by a glass bead, tie the main line to the open loop of the barrel swivel.

A circle hook prevents gut hooking catfish. Resist the temptation to set the hook, simply reel in slack line until you feel the catfish swimming and keep your rod tip high. The catfish will hook itself in the side of the mouth with a circle hook.

“Hot dogs, shrimp, chicken liver or beef liver, channel catfish will eat practically anything,” Ross said. “I like chicken liver best for channels.”

Ross also said any cavity near a root wad or stump also holds channel catfish in June on our lakes and reservoirs.

The many creeks coursing through Kentucky hold surprising numbers of channel catfish. Those with rocky bottoms and water at least chest deep are best.

Undercut banks are key to finding channel catfish in streams. Use a slip-sinker rig with enough weight to hold it in place in current. Use a 3/0 circle hook with a piece of cleaning sponge impaled on it.

Drop the sponge into a tub of commercially made stink bait, also called dip bait, and push it to the bottom with a stick. Hold it there to soak up as much of the smelly dip bait as the sponge can hold and cast it to an undercut bank. The sponge emits a plume of funk downstream that channel catfish follow back to the sponge and eat it.

You can also use chicken livers, nightcrawlers or rancid cheese for this presentation, but the dip bait sponge is hard to beat in a stream. You will catch many 16- to 21-inch long channel catfish in streams, perfect size for a dinner. Channel catfish from a cool stream offer fantastic table fare.

June is a wonderful month weather wise, but a transition time as predator fish move into their summer locations. Farm pond largemouth bass and channel catfish provide excellent sport during this unpredictable month.

 

Author Lee McClellan is a nationally award-winning associate editor for Kentucky Afield magazine, the official publication of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. He is a life-long hunter and angler, with a passion for smallmouth bass fishing.

The Powell County Lady Pirates endured a season unlike any other. Six players who started several games were lost for various reasons. Middle school students answered the call, but experience outweighed their excitement. The season came to an end in a bizarre fashion during the first round of the 56th District Tournament last week. Powell took on Lee County and looked to be enroute to their tenth straight championship matchup with Estill County. But stranger things have and did happen.

Powell jumped out to an early lead as the three captains seemed to love Lee’s pitching. The younger Lady Pirates caught fire too. As the bottom of the fifth inning started Powell grabbed a 12-3 lead and was poised to mercy rule the Lady Kats. With one out and Erika Howard at first, just one run was needed to end the game. But Howard was thrown out trying to steal second. An out later McKayla  Rucker singled, but she was thrown out at third on a questionable call trying to advance on a single by Star Brewer. The threat died and apparently so did Powell’s bats. Lee used the defensive stop and Powell’s lack of sustainable pitching to turn the momentum. Lee picked up six runs in the sixth inning and 15 runs in the seventh to pick up the 24-12 win. Powell was led by Howard who was 5-for-5 and drove in three runs. Olivia Nickell was 1-for-3 and had two RBI’s. Rucker was 3-for-3 and picked up four RBI’s. All three made the All-District Team. Powell finished the year 8-17. But they return everyone next season and hope the lessons learned this year will make them hungrier next season.

The Powell County Lady Pirates have endured what can only be described as a bizarre and rare season. Following the loss of six players, all of which had been starters at one point in the season, the team is now playing with some reinforcements. The young squad now consists of seven high school players, no seniors and only two juniors, as well as seven eighth graders.

That youth has been quite evident as the middle schoolers try to adjust to high school ball and the high schoolers try to assist their new teammates, while trying to regroup. Last week was an example of that.

Powell dropped three games and were mercy ruled in each game. But the experience may help the young team work harder before the district tournament.

Last Monday the Lady Pirates traveled to Wolfe County for a Senior Night game. The Lady Wolves enjoyed the contest, despite Powell staying fairly close early on. The Lady Wolves picked up a 12-2 win in five innings.

Powell was led by junior Erika Howard, as well as eighth graders Macy Howell and Star Brewer. Each went 1-for-3, with Howell and Brewer scoring.

On Thursday Powell hosted a triangle with Breathitt County and Bath County. The Lady Pirates took on Breathitt in the first game. Powell had fallen to the Lady Kats 5-4 in Jackson earlier and beat them 9-4 last weekend at Perry Central. The rubber match became a game that some may want to forget.

Powell took a 6-2 lead in the third inning. It became more like a slow-pitch game after that as both teams hit well and scored on the others miscues. The game was a see-saw battle until the top of the seventh inning.

Powell took a 13-12 lead in the bottom of the sixth and was only three outs away from a much needed win. But several hits, walks, errors and 14 runs later, Breathitt took a commanding 26-13 lead. That would also be the final score in a bewildering game for Powell fans and players.

Bath was Powell’s next opponent, after topping Breathitt 20-3. The Lady Wildcats were just too much for Powell, despite a few bright spots for the Lady Pirates as the young team seemed to be catching on to a few things. However, Bath won easily 16-0.

Powell finished the regular season with an 8-16 record and the 56th District’s second seed. The 56th District Softball Tournament was set to be played this past Monday and Tuesday in Stanton. The Lady Pirates were slated to play Lee County in the opening round. Powell beat the Lady Kats 16-5 in Beattyville, but fell 11-10 in Stanton. Both games were played before the team’s shakeup.

Estill, the top seed and regional favorite, was to open with Owsley County. Both winners were to have played on Tuesday for the title. The champion and runner-up will advance to the 14th Region Tournament in Knott County. The first round for that tournament is set to begin on Memorial Day.

he PCHS Track & Field Team competed at their last meet of the season, at the Class AA Region 7 Meet at Harlan County High School on Thursday, May  11th   in Baxter, KY.  The team endured a long bus trip to Harlan and had to contend with an hour plus rain delay but completed several team bests, personal bests, medals and two moving on to state competition.  The Girl’s Final Results:  Maddie Ovington finished 16th and 14th in the Girl’s 100 Meter Dash and the Girl’s 200 Meter Dash with Avery Fulks finishing 18th.  In the Girl’s 1600 Meter Run, Molly Cornet had a team and personal best, by completing it in 7:26.29 for 7th place.  Moriah Turner was 9th in the Girl’s 1600 Meter Run.  Kelsey Turner jump the Girl’s Long Jump, 11ft 8in for a team best for 12th place and Avery Fulks completed a team best in the Girl’s Discus, throwing 64ft 9in for 7th and Sierra Mc Kinney finished in 9th.  In the Girl’s Shotput, Sierra McKinney finished in 11th place with Caitlin Brewer in 12th.   The Boy’s Final Results:   In the Boy’s 100 Meter Dash, Ryan Vanover finished with a medal for 6th place, running it in 12.20 seconds with Dionte Strange in 7th place.  Dionte was also 7th in the Boy’s 200 Meter Dash running it in 25.74 seconds.  Dionte Strange, did win the 5th place medal in the Boy’s Long Jump by jumping  17ft and 5.5 in. In the Boy’s 400 Meter Dash, Caleb Williams did a team and personal best, running it in 1:01.05 for 12th place and Kaden Guyot was in 16th place.  In the Boy’s 1600 Meter Run, Evan Kinser and Kelby Rose finished in 12th and 13th place.  The Boy’s 4×100 Meter Relay finished in 8th.  In the Boy’s 110 Meter Hurdles and in the 300 Meter Hurdles Kayden Guyot finished in 12th and 11th place.   In the Boy’s 800 Meter Run, Brandon Baker did a personal best, team best and a new school record.  He finished with the 1st place medal by running it in 2:10.42.  Brandon also won the 1st place medal in the 3200 Meter Run by finishing it in a team best 11 minutes flat. Brandon will represent Powell County at State in these two events.  Finally, Gary Asch, won the 5th place medal in the Boy’s Shotput by throwing it 41ft 1in. and will represent Powell County at State in this event. Gary Asch and Brandon Baker will participate next at the KHSAA State Track & Field Championships at the University of Kentucky Outdoor Track Complex on Friday, May 19th.   The team is coached by Brandon Taulbee and James Clapp. The Team would also like to thank the parents that came to support the team, and to Diane Patrick the bus driver.

The Powell County Lady Pirates softball team had a pretty good week. After falling to Lee County in a close game last Monday, the girls ended up winning two of their next three games.

Powell hosted Montgomery last Tuesday night and looked strong early on. After the Lady Indians scored three times in the second inning to take a 3-0 lead, Powell answered swiftly. The Lady Pirates scored five runs after one out to capture the lead, 5-3 in their half of the second.

Montgomery added a run in the third inning and the score stayed 5-4 until the fifth. Montgomery tacked on four runs in the inning. The visitors then added two more in the sixth and added another three runs in the top of the seventh.

Powell did manage to score another run, but Montgomery held on for the 13-6 win. Nellie Noble led Powell as she went 2-for-3 at the plate and scored two runs. Olivia Nickell was 2-for-4 and Nallie Marcum was 1-for-3, picking up three RBI’s.

That was the only loss in the three game run.

Last Thursday Powell traveled to Jackson to play the Jackson City Lady Tigers. Jackson City tagged Powell in the opening game of the season, 12-5. Powell was looking for a much better outcome and found one.

Both teams traded runs early, as the game was tied at 2-2 as it entered the top of the fifth inning. The Lady Pirates sent 13 batters to the plate in the inning, scoring nine runs. Powell gathered seven hits, including Olivia Nickell picking up two of those, while Erika Howard and MaKayla Rucker each drilled the top of the left field fence for easy doubles. Powell held what seemed to be a commanding 11-2 lead.

But that one “bad inning” reared its ugly head in he bottom of the fifth. Jackson City roughed up Lady Pirates pitcher Chloe Billings for six runs to get back into the game, 11-8. Billings looked a little shaky in the bottom of the sixth as the Lady Tigers score another run. The threat continued as Jackson City had two base runners and no outs. But Billings refocused and shut down the threat, getting a pop fly to the shortstop, bookended by two strikeouts to hold on.

Billings then shut down the home team with what appeared to be a second wind for her. She gave up a walk, then got two ground outs and caught a pop up for the last out. Powell won and felt avenged with the 11-9 victory.

Howard went 2-for-5, scored twice, hit two doubles and had two RBI’s in the game. Nickell was 2-for-4 with an RBI and scored twice. Eight of the nine Lady rites had at least one hit in the game, including Rylei Mays who picked up her first high school varsity hit and and drove in two runs.

Powell planned on hosting a triangle last Saturday, but it ended up being a quad as Harrison County joined in. Grant County and Western Hills were also present. Powell played Grant County to open the day’s action.

Grant scored first the top of the third, but Powell answered in their half of the inning. Rylei Mays reached base on an error. One out later Howard signed to left and Nickell singled to center to load the bases. Rucker then slapped a hard hit single down the third base line, scoring Mays and Howard. Powell led 2-1. The Lady Pirates added another run in the fourth as Lexie Crabtree scored to make it 3-1.

Grant took the lead in the sixth, scoring three runs. The Lady Braves lead was short lived. Powell’s Kelly Bloom, Crabtree and Mays picked up three straight singles with one out in the bottom of the sixth. A two out single by Howard scored courtesy runner Brooklynn Smith and Crabtree. The Lady Pirates grabbed the 5-4 lead.

Eighth grader, Kelly Bloom, in her first varsity starting pitcher role, shut down the Lady Braves to insure her first high school victory. Bloom gave up six hits, struck out one, hit two batters and walked one. She also went 2-for-3 at the plate to help her cause. Nickell and Howard were both 2-for-4 in the game.

Powell was playing Harrison County in the last game of the day, but a severe thunderstorm stopped play before the game was official.

Powell improved to 6-10 on the season. They were slated to play Estill County this past Monday at home. Then the Lady Pirates ship out for a while. Powell was scheduled to play Nichols County this past Tuesday before playing Hazard on Thursday.

The Lady Pirates will play at Owsley County on Friday. If Powell wins they will hold on to the number two seed in the district tournament, but a loss would make them number three.

Powell will cap off the week playing in the Mountain Softball Classic at Hazard on Saturday. Next week the Lady Pirates set sail for Montgomery County on Monday, Clark County on Tuesday and Rowan County on Thursday.