The Buffalo Creek Flood killed 125 and scoured away the homes of more than 4,000. The 50th anniversary offers a chance for those who were affected — directly and indirectly — to mourn the loss and celebrate what endures. “… And Father God, we thank you for this occasion. Even […]
Read More
Kids have their own way of judging what’s real, and it’s not necessarily based on the cost of the Santa suit. Here’s a Christmas memory from 1968, when Hazard, Kentucky, had three Santas — but only one would do. (This is a republication of a Daily Yonder holiday favorite). At 17, […]
Read More
Rural “news deserts” are anything but arid. But the steady stream of information that flows into rural America isn’t the kind that waters the roots of democracy. Back in the analog era, I had two newspaper boxes at the end of my driveway, a blue one for the Lexington paper, […]
Read More
I met Rick Bragg once. I’d spoken in a basement at a conference at East Tennessee State where he was the headliner. A buddy asked if I wanted to meet him. I don’t have a lot of heroes. I’d read “It’s All Over but the Shouting,” the book about his […]
Read More
The governor of Kentucky says the Marshall County High School shooting offers a chance for the state to show “how these situations can be handled.” Spoiler alert: We already know. Two dead children in Benton, Kentucky. 16 more shot there. But as we adults say, what are you going to […]
Read More
Rural America is falling further behind. Farms don’t need farmers. Manufacturing moved offshore. And the rate of rural kids living in poverty is worse than it is in the inner cities. Here’s a solution. Let’s take in the Syrian refugees. Make them rural Americans. As many as we can feed. I […]
Read More