Bath County News-Outlook
Your Hometown Newspaper
Nov. 17, 2010 • 13
Fiscal Court from Page I
over a period of about
five years. Thus far, two
criminal charges have
resulted from a police in-
vestigation into the mat-
ter.
Lyons also asked Coun-
ty Attorney Leslie Rich-
ardson Smith to "prepare
something to make sure
people handling pub-
lic funds are bonded to
avoid the loss of funds."
Smith replied that a stat-
ute exists that addresses
that issue, specifically
KRS 65.067, but that the
county could augment
that law by requiring
employees who handle
money to provide proof
that they are bonded
when they submit their
annual budget.
In other action, the
court helped the rescue
squad avoid forfeiture
of its rescue truck and
some of its equipment
by pledging to pay Citi-
zens Bank a little more
than $3,000 to cover the
squad's delinquent loan
payments. In return,
the bank agreed to re-
new the loan, which
was in default, and let to the court meeting.
the squad keep its truck "We don't want the ve-
and equipment, provid- hicle and we certainly
ing it makes monthly don't want someone to
payments of $450. not be rescued."
The squad's only The court learned
meetings.
"We want to be good
corporate citizens an&
we don't want the citi-
zens to be without a res-
cue squad," said Critt
Murphy, the bank's
marketing manager,
who accompanied Day
lane at Crossroads Ele-
mentary School to ease
the traffic congestion
there.
"It needs a stop light,"
offered Sheriff Tuffy
Snedegar.
Lyons, who leaves of-
fice in January, asked
County Attorney Smith
to contact the Kentucky
Association of Counties
about settling a civil
suit against fiscal court
dropped the politically
motivated part of the.
suit. The procedural
allegation appears to
have merit, courthouse
sources say.
The court also:
Altered the dog war-
den's employment con-
tract from hourly to
salaried, which means
h~'s on call 24/7.
Agreed to the pur-
chase of four new tires
and the county judge, for Sheriff Snedegar's
sources of income are of the delinquent pay- In the suit, two former county vehicle.
fund--raisers and a ments only after b-eingemployees of the coun- Agreed to the pur-
$500-a-month stipend told by Murphy and ty road department, chase of new leg irons
it receives from the fire Day. Rescue squad di- Mitchell Thompson and for use by Jailer Jay-
district. To receive the
stipend, squad members
must attend monthly
fire district meetings.
Loan officer Sandy Day
asked fire district of-
ficials who were at~t~he
court meeting to let the
bank know whether
squad members are at-
tending the required
rector Stephanie Stew- Gordie Staton who bird Crouch and his
art didn't attend the were laid off about a deputies.
meeting. The squad year ago by then-countyGave Crouch permis-
owes $16,000 on the judge Carolyn Belcher, sion to hire as deputy
1998 truck, allege theirterminationjailers Terry Hughes
The court agreed to was politically moti- and Glen Hartley to
partner with the Bath vated and that Belcher~ replace Omer Ever-
County Board of didn't follow proper man and Anthony Ev-
Education and the procedure in letting erman, who resigned.
Bath County Water them go. Thompson Agreed to pave a
District to add a turn and Staton have since portion of Old Slate
Road.
Declined to take
Pond Circle Road into
the county road sys-
tem.
OK'd a request from
911 Director Rickie
Faudier to purchase a
new CAD (computer-
aided 'dispatch) com-
puter to complement
the "new equipment
that will be installed
as part of a system that
will allow communica-
tions with police and
other emergency per-
sonnel by text message
and employ the latest
technology to pinpoint
accident scenes. The
Next Generation 911,
as it's called, is fund-
ed by a $47,500 grant
from the Department
of Homeland Security.
Bath County is among
a handful of Kentucky
counties chosen to test
the new system.
e
e
rum
"This stuff turns you
on?" my young son asked
after listening a minute
to a record I was playing
on our stereo.
"Like gangbusters," I
told him "Real patriotic
salt-of-the-earth sound,
baby."
"No guitars?"
"Nope," I answered.
"Just a fife player and a
couple of drummers, like
the history books show."
I thought this sound
might get to him if [
gave him a little back-
ground fill-in. The re-
cord is something of a
collector's item, a thing
done by the "Spirit of
76" fife and drum band
on July Fourth a num-
ber of years ago in a Sa-
lem, Ind. backyard.
The fifer made his in-
strument from a light-
ning rod. He pipes out
the melody, while three
drummers beat out the
cadence. Their average
age is past 80 and they
play for all picnics and
patriotic functions in
the area.
"No guitars, huh?" he
asked.
"This is the sound
that stirred the heart-
beat of a new nation," I
tried to flag him into my
pit. "And you may read
about the fifer at Ander-
sonville," making it clear
that Andersonville was
a Civil War prison, not a
rock musical festival.
The young boy had
inherited his grandfa-
ther's fife and a neigh-
bor, who had served in
the Revolutionary War,
taught him the tunes.
He learned Eighteen-
Twelve stop March,
Charley Over The Wa-
ter, Cuckoo's Nest, Jay-
bird, Stop March, Old
Seventy Six, Tattered
Jack, Gilderpoy, Adam
Bell's March, Turkey
Gobbler, Haste To The
Wedding, Paul Revere's
Ride and The Gobby O.
Later, when the young
man joined the Con-
federate Army, he also
learned Peas upon a
Trencher, Surgeon's
Call, All Take Tea, The
Squirrel Hunters, Biddy
Oats. On the Road to
Boston, Corn Cob, and
Go To The Devil And
Shake Yourself.
The Spirit of 76 boys
are a little too slow on
the march, so they al-
ways ride on a pickup
truck when playing for a
parade. Once the truck
lurched f~rward and the
little bass drummer cart-
wheeled back over the
tailgate and rolled dov~n
the street. The others
swore he picked himselt
up and raced back to the
truck without missing
a beat of "Charley Over
The Water."
"Jefferson Airplane
and The Tunas are far
out _and they have gui-
tars," he insisted.
"So I've heard tell,"
I dusted off my Spirit
of 76 record, and put it
away in the vault. "And
their music sounds like
they all fell out of a pick-
up truck."
By-George Lewis
News Reporter
george~bathconewsoudook.com
Proving that no good
deed goes unpunished,
port our Troops swea~- their heads.~in bemuse-
shirt. Mr. Penick saw ment: I know the Rev.
his action in the Pacific. Alton Norman spoke
I do wish that Mr. from his heart when he
Penick. had been hon- delivered the main mes-
ored specifically in some sage Thursday. I respect
the committee members
who worked long and way Thursday. He de- him for that.
hard to organize this served to be the center I like any man who
year's Veteran's Day cer- of attention, and for acomes right out and says
emony are drawing some while there, before thewhat he believes, But
mild criticism for a small ceremony started,he Thursday was r/either
portion of the otherwise was. the time nor the piace t6
excellent ceremony. I don't know how the pit the theories of.cre-
By all accounts, Thurs-other veterans in the ationism against evolu-
day's celebration honor- audience felt, but Imust tion against each other.
ing military veterans say I was a bit perplexed A message that should
drew the largest crowd by this year's theme: re- have focused on honor
compared to similar Vet- storing honor to our vet- and bravery and sudden
eran's Day ceremonies in erans, death and sacrifice and
recent years. Reportedly,'Restoring honor im-bad food and homesick-
plies that honor had hess and long marChes
last year's ceremony was
somewhat paltry, insuffi: been lost in some way., and aching feet quickly
cient, so some communi-Now, I don't think became a sermon.
ty-minded citizens decid- that's what the Veteran's That's not what peo-
ed that wouldn't happenDay committee members ple came to hear.
meant when they chose I don't know if we,
again this year.
It didn't. Thursday's the theme. I think they as the Rev. Norman
ceremony was nearly probably meant restoreput it, descended from
flawlessly. Robin Tollehonor to all veterans,monkeys. I know that
rocked the house (actu-since Korean War veter- we often act like mon-
ans often feel left out in keys, but I don't know
ally the courthouse lawn) favor of WWII vets when if we came from them.
with moving renditions
of The National Anthem it comes to being hon- (For the record, and to
and The Battle Hymn of ored on Veteran's Day. play it safe, I believe
the Republic that had At least one member of God created us.) What I
some onlookers singing the committee is a Ko- do know is all veterans
along patriotically, rean War veteran, were cheated a little bit
The talented and well- So, even though I had Thursday. But just a
rehearsed Bath County to thinkon it for a while, little bit. The rest of the
High School Specia! I suppose the theme ceremony was superb
Ensemble roused ev- worked, in its own way.and the Veteran's Day
eryone's patriotic spir- Now on to the portion committee should be
its by playing America of theceremonythatleft applauded. Make that
the Beautiful and the some people scratching saluted.
3 1/2 miles SE of Flemingsburg, Ky. on Rt. 32
Armed Forces March.
Heck, I almost started
marching myself, espe-
cially during the An-
chors Aweigh portion of
the military marching
tune. Go Navy.
As special as those
features were, I knew
we had something really
special this year when
I looked up and saw
decorated World War II
combat veteran Ewell
Penick, replete with rib-
bons and medals and his
Combat Infantry Badge,
being wheeled across
Main Street by his son-
in-law, Vincent Tucker,
who was clad in a Sup-
Photo by George Lewis
A list of World War U veterans from Bath
County stood prominently Thursday during
Bath County's Veteran's Day ceremony.
i
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FURNIT
