This coming Monday, America celebrates Labor Day. And it should be a celebration for it recognizes an essential value that has raised this nation from meager beginnings to the most powerful on earth. I’m thankful for parents, siblings, and mentors that taught me the importance of hard work. They instilled…
This Saturday is the great Route 11 Yard Crawl! It will span the length of Shenandoah County and extend into neighboring counties as well. Depending on your zeal for used treasures and your toleration for traffic you either love it or hate this annual event. Thankfully, it does bring commerce…
It’s hard to believe that summer is almost over for many students. With the opening of Shenandoah County Schools in less than two weeks, time is short for that last vacation. As a parent of three graduates from our county schools and as one myself, I’m very grateful for the…
Here we are at the end of July and our gardens are coming into their own, especially if we’ve nursed them along with some supplemental irrigation. One treat that many have been enjoying for a month or more is watermelons! These are perfect summertime refreshers that provide a snack and…
As I write this column, several lottery jackpots promise their winners enormous prizes. The Powerball is at one billion dollars while Mega Millions offers $720 million and the California Super Lotto only proffers a modest $77 million. Many people purchase tickets hoping against hope that theirs will be the one…
Summer days are bearing down upon us once again with their searing heat and high humidity. Thankfully, the Shenandoah Valley has been getting frequent showers to keep our crops, gardens, and lawns watered and our wells and reservoirs relatively full. For those with diminished water supplies, we are fortunate to…
One of the most controversial current political issues involves our southern border. Over the last few years, many individuals have streamed into the US as controls were relaxed and wall construction halted. The influx of aliens into this country has overwhelmed many border towns as well as immigration officials, and…
As our nation celebrates its 247th birthday next week, we should pause to consider what a blessing this country has been and still is. Although we are fraught with scandals and problems, God has also used this country in many ways throughout our nearly two and one half centuries of…
It’s time to make hay while the sun shines! These warm June days are filled with haymaking for farmers all around our valley as evidenced by giant green marshmallows and smaller green cubes peppered throughout the fields. One of the hazards farmers face in mowing hay this time of year…
Between Memorial Day and D-Day In Billy Graham’s devotional, Unto the Hills, there is a reference to the Indian city of Kohima located far up in the Himalayan Mountains. A cemetery near that city holds the bodies of hundreds of Allied soldiers who were killed repulsing the Japanese advance into…