Fastpitch Highlights: April 4, 2023

James Collier

The Ashland Beacon

64th DISTRICT

ASHLAND 2-7

   Ashland went 1-2 this week with a win over Coal Grove and losses to Spring Valley and East Carter.

   Grace Delaney and Erin Patrick had a pair of hits in the Kittens 12-5 loss to Spring Valley. Grace and Jenna Delaney both doubled in the loss.

   Alauna Troxler went 2 for 3 with a double in Ashland’s 12-5 loss to East Carter. Jenna Delaney added a double in her only hit.

   Addi Laine tossed a complete game shutout for a 6-0 win over Coal Grove. She struck out five and did not walk a batter. Jenna Delaney went 2 for 4 at the plate and drove in two. Troxler doubled.

   Ashland heads to Myrtle Beach for Spring Break.

BOYD COUNTY 7-0

   Boyd County was idle this week. The Lions will also be heading to Myrtle Beach for Spring Break.

FAIRVIEW 6-3

   Fairview went 2-1 this week with a pair of mercy-run-rule wins over Tolsia and a loss to Mor-gan County.

   Annabelle Menshouse allowed only one hit and struck out six as Fairview defeated Tolsia, 15-0 in three innings. Carole Shannon went 4 for 4 with three doubles and three RBI. Madison Loving went 3 for 3 with a triple. Kailyn Adkins had a pair of doubles and drove in three.

   Menshouse went 3 for 3 at the plate in game two and drove in three to lead Fairview to a 13-7 win in five innings. Menshouse worked three innings in relief while allowing only one hit and striking out seven. Shelby Gibson went 3 for 4 with a pair of doubles and 3RBI. Sydney Johnson added a double and drove in a pair.

   Fairview fell to Morgan County, 11-6. Johnson went 2 for 3 with a pair of doubles and 2RBI.

   Fairview is idle until Apr. 10.

63rd DISTRICT

RACELAND 5-2

   Raceland went 3-0 this week with wins over Greenup County, Gallia Academy and Russell.

   Kaitlin Kartchner delivered a walk-off grand slam and drove in six to lead Raceland to a 15-11 win over Greenup County. She also had a pair of doubles. Baylee Burney had three hits includ-ing a long ball and 2RBI. Kali Vance, Bryna Wellman and Reagan Mackie each doubled.

   Wellman led the Rams to a 20-18 win over Gallia Academy. The freshman went 4 for 5 with a double, 2RBI and four runs scored. Burney went 3 for 4 with 4RBI. Makena Francis had two doubles and drove in three. Vance doubled and drove in three.

   Raceland defeated Russell 11-6. No stats were reported.

   Raceland heads to Ft. Walton Beach, FL for Spring Break.

RUSSELL 3-6

   Russell went 0-2 this week with losses to Lewis County and Raceland.

   Russell fell to Lewis County, 11-1 in five innings. Paige Hutchinson recorded the only Russell hit with a two-bagger in the first.

   Russell fell to Raceland, 11-6. Josie Atkins went 3 for 4 and drove in a run. Raegan Osborn and Hutchinson each had a pair of hits. Osborn and Lexi Baker doubled.

   Russell heads to Myrtle Beach for Spring Break.

GREENUP COUNTY 4-4

   Greenup County went 1-3 this week with a 22-0 win over Green, OH, and losses to Raceland (15-11), Portsmouth (3-0) and Portsmouth West (12-0). No stats were reported.

Go Green for Brain Injury Awareness

Grace Phillips

Ashland Beacon

March is designated as Brain Injury Awareness Month and green is the awareness color.  Anyone can suffer a brain injury.  According to the Brain Injury Association of America, at least 2.8 million people sustain injuries every year in the United States. To break it down further there are 15,000 Kentuckians every year who suffer a brain injury…that’s an average of 41 people every day!

There are two basic types of brain injuries, traumatic and non-traumatic.  Traumatic brain injury (TBI) happens when a sudden, external, physical assault damages the brain. The most common causes of a TBI is from a car accident, sports injuries, falls, or domestic violence.  A non-traumatic brain injury occurs because of disease, lack of oxygen, stroke, or a brain tumor. 

Every brain injury is different. The person is not their injury.  They are a person first and each one needs specialized, individual care to help them become the best version of themselves possible.  Nestled in Boyd County is a company that does exactly this. Caring Moore Homes see the individual and work together with many services to help them achieve independence and regain their lives.

Carey Moore has always had a heart for helping those with disabilities.  She and her husband have a 17-year-old son who was born at 28 weeks and is blind, autistic, and non-verbal.  They started Caleb’s, a non-profit organization for kids with blindness in 2008.  They held events where families could bring their children who were blind. They were able to be with other families going through the same thing, build a support system and friendships. Mrs. Moore said, “I noticed some of these kids were graduating high school. Their families were aging, and they had no place to go. After doing a lot of research and finding what would most closely correlate with blindness, we decided to become state certified for brain injuries.” 

Many brain injuries cause vision problems, not always total blindness but, impaired vision, trouble with hand/eye coordination as well as other symptoms. Carey continued, “Instead of our people going into nursing homes, we decided to go residential.  We wanted to give them a home, a real home.  There is such a need for these homes in the community.  We have eight residential homes in Boyd County as well as the main facility here in Cannonsburg.”  The building there is considered the Adult Day Treatment center where Caring Moore Homes provide their clients with physical, speech and occupational therapy, counseling, and many other services.   The facility is open from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m., Monday –Friday.

At the Adult Day Treatment, each person has an individual plan of care based on their need.  “We look at that individual, talk to the team and ask, what are their needs? Do they need to learn how to write a check? Are they getting a bank account, or are they maybe just trying to relearn the alphabet?”  There are different goals for everyone depending on what they hope to achieve.  For many clients, it is exactly as the name implies…they are there for the “day” and then return home with their families. 

However, some clients who require more specialized care, live in one of the residential homes.  These clients have someone with them 24 hours a day to help assist with their needs.  Many are learning to feed themselves, walk, get dressed, shower, go to the grocery store and shop from a list, or cook their food… so many things that the everyday person takes for granted.  The ultimate goal is to help them return to their lives.  Mrs. Moore stated these clients love to help out in the community.  Many of them volunteer at churches and non-profits helping put together boxes and bags for the needy and the homeless.  She said that a part of their recovery is helping other people. 

Nikki Dudley is a speech-language pathologist and commented, “Being at Caring Moore Homes is a lot like coming home.  I get to come here and completely be myself, OT can do the same.  But, what makes it special is we all get to work together with the client. Our clients may not know I’m speech, or someone else is OT, or PT because we all work together as a family.  They become more successful because they pick up that we are all one family.  I often think that our clients are the glue that holds us together.”

Kristy Pennington, a Certified Occupational Therapy assistant told me, “Every day I come here, I leave very inspired because these clients inspire me so much.”  Krista Mullins, Occupational Therapist continued that thought, “We turn hopeless into hope, can’t into can, and impossible to possible.  A lot of them feel defeated, and it’s our job to make them feel undefeated and give them hope.”

Moore went on to say, “About 80% of the clients have been married, had jobs, owned homes, have children and grandchildren…pretty much just like you and I… and one day they just had a horrible day.” 

In closing, Moore reminds us that everyone with a brain injury has hopes and dreams and wants to one day be independent again.  This is not going to happen overnight; it may take years for some of them to accomplish and some may never achieve complete independence.  The support that they receive from friends, family and facilities that provide the needed services will greatly impact their recovery.

Everyone thinks it could never happen to them or their family but that’s not true.  We are each just one fall, one car accident, or one stroke away from our entire world being turned upside down.  By designating March as Brain Injury Awareness Month, it hopefully will help to take away part of the stigma associated with a brain injury. 

So this month when you see the color green…don’t just think of a little leprechaun.  Let it remind you of Brain Injury Awareness Month; learn the causes of TBI and ways to keep our brains healthy. 

Primitive Quartet…50 years of Gospel

Performing Final Area Concert April 1

Grace Phillips

Ashland Beacon

Sometimes wonderful blessings come about in unexpected ways.  Fifty years ago, two sets of brothers, Reagan and Larry Riddle and Furman and Norman Wilson went on a fishing trip.  They took all the things you would take fishing, but they also took something a little unusual… a mandolin and a guitar.  After a long day of fishing, they would sit around the campfire and play music.  They realized they could sing in four-part harmony…this was the trip that would shape all their futures.  After this weekend, they were encouraged by their parents to sing at church on Sunday.  The four friends had no idea that this was the beginning of something very special that over the last 50 years has been a blessing to tens of thousands of people. 

In the beginning, the group was known as the Riddle-Wilson Quartet.  They would sing at area events and local churches.  The Inspirations, an established Southern Gospel group, invited them to sing at some of their concerts and even took them along on their bus to the concerts.   The popularity of the group grew beyond any of their imaginations.  By 1978, the group became known as the Primitive Quartet and began traveling full-time.  They now sing at about 150 concerts and travel more than 50,000 miles a year.

Reagan Riddle said, “We were just normal people…we didn’t think we were special in any way…that’s the thing that amazed us.  We just wanted to see people blessed and lead souls to Jesus.”   However, they were unique and in today’s modern music world, they are extremely unique.  They sing accompanied by acoustical instruments.  Even as technology developed and most groups used studio musicians for recording, they have stayed true to their roots and still play the instruments on their recordings in order to duplicate the same sound as in their personal appearances.  

The group is almost exactly the same today as it was in the beginning.  Furman Wilson was called to preach and stopped traveling with the group.  That’s when Reagan and Larry’s brother Michael stepped in and began singing with them.  Two additional members were added in later years to play instruments and add some vocals, Randy Fox, and Jeff Tolbert. 

One of the hardest times the group faced was on October 15, 2014.  While bear hunting in the woods with a group of friends in North Carolina, Norman Wilson died from an apparent heart attack at the age of 70.  It seemed almost ironic that the Primitive Quartet was formed while on a fishing trip together in the outdoors, and God called Norman to the eternal home he sang about for so many years while in the woods with a group of friends. 

Paul Belcher began his relationship with the Primitive Quartet in Detroit, Michigan in 1977.   He had the Inspirations booked for a concert there, and they asked him to use their friends in the concert also.  This was the first of many concerts to come.   “Through the years I have found the Primitives to be very humble.  They just want to minister from the stage...no joking around…they are there for business.   Their mission is to tell people about Jesus and win souls to him.”  Belcher went on to tell how Reagan would always ask at the end of the concerts if he was okay with ticket sales.  “He would tell me to cut their pay if needed because he didn’t want me losing money on them.”

“That’s what has always made the Primitives so special…when they arrive at a venue, they are there to be a blessing to those who attend and do whatever it takes to help the promoter of the event make it a success,” commented Ellen Keaton.  “I have worked with these guys for about thirty years now, first with my job at WTSF TV and then as the president of the Boyd County Fair.  I still don’t think they have any idea what an anointing and gift God has given them.”

Last April the group made an announcement via Facebook that they would be traveling full-time for one more year to mark their 50^th Anniversary of singing.  With that final year nearing the end, I asked Reagan Riddle how he felt about their impending retirement and what the future looked like for him.  “It’s all been good…so good. God has blessed us so much.  I do kinda wish now we had just cut back to a few dates a month instead of the fifteen or so we do and maybe kept singing some.”  He went on to say, “I’m sure I will continue singing in some way, just not full-time.  I’m just going to wait on the Lord to see His plan.”

Riddle also talked about their first concert in Ashland.  “It was in the late 1970s with Barbara and Sonny Sites at the Paramount.  We have met so many wonderful people along the way.”

On April 1^st, the Primitive Quartet will perform their final concert in the Ashland area at the Paramount Arts Center beginning at 6 p.m. The concert will also feature The Inspirations and Gold City Quartet.  Tickets for the event are $20 and $25.   There are only a few hundred tickets still available for the concert.  You can get your ticket at paulbelcherconcerts.com or at paramountartscenter.com

When asked if Riddle had a final comment he said, “After 50 years of ministry and 55 recordings, my prayer is for the songs.  I pray that the songs are blessings for years to come and that they live on forever.” 

Annie Armstrong’s Legacy Lives on Through Local Churches

Gary Newman

Ashland Beacon

Every March, Southern Baptist churches across the country begin to mobilize to collect an Easter offering named after Annie Armstrong. This offering serves a specific purpose, as it is earmarked for North American Missions. Churches across our region, including the 40+ churches of the Greenup Baptist Association covering Boyd, Greenup, Carter, Lawrence, & Elliott Counties contribute to the cause through a week of prayer for the offering and collection during the weeks leading up to Easter.

Annie Armstrong (1850-1938) supported missions throughout her lifetime through service to the poor and a heart for social justice. Among her many accomplishments, her commitment to mission work led to her influential role in the foundation of the Women’s Missionary Union. The WMU was devised as a way for local churches to gain a greater understanding and motivation to support missionaries. By encouraging local churches to be active participants in learning and raising funds, she grew the cause in financial ability and broader understanding of the needs of missionaries. Southern Baptist women at local churches everywhere gained that understanding and generation to generation have passed on this passion and support for missionaries. She grew this network with her passion and her willingness to reach out by mail, and she wrote on average 8,000 letters a year, to meet the cause. In 1934, the annual Easter offering for Home Missions (later to become the North American Missions Board) was renamed in her honor, just a few years before her death.

AnnieArmstrong.com reported, “Today, more than $2 billion has been donated by Southern Baptist churches and individuals to support thousands of missionaries in church planting and compassion ministries. Because of this sacrificial giving, millions of lives have been and continue to be transformed by the power of the gospel.”  The website, administered by the North American Mission Board continued “The Annie Armstrong Easter Offering is a tremendous way to partner with those who are serving as the hands and feet of Jesus throughout North America.”

“Without this offering and churches’ ongoing commitment to the Cooperative Program, it would be impossible to financially support disaster relief efforts, thousands of military chaplains, and church planters at current levels,” stated Jason Lowe, East Region Consultant for the Kentucky Baptist Convention, “Southern Baptists believe that we can accomplish more when we work together than we can do ourselves, and the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering is one of the finest examples of partnering together to provide help and hope to others in the name of Jesus Christ.”

You may be asking, what is our local impact and what is our local benefit?

In Boyd and Greenup County, there are 35 Southern Baptist churches in the Greenup Baptist Association and each one can send a donation toward the cause Annie held dear for a lifetime over 100 years ago. The churches are Blackburn Avenue Baptist Church,  Burnaugh Baptist Church, Central Baptist Church, Chadwick’s Creek Baptist Church, Christ Covenant Church, Cornerstone Community Church, Crane Creek Baptist Church, Danleyton Missionary Baptist Church, Fairview Baptist Church, Faith Baptist Church of Westwood, Fellowship Baptist Church, First Baptist Church of Cannonsburg, Greenup First Baptist Church, Flatwoods First Baptist Church, First Baptist Church of Russell, Garner Missionary Baptist Church, Grace Baptist Church, Hay Esperanza, Hyland Heights Baptist Church, Kenwood Baptist Church, Liberty Missionary Baptist Church, Lifesong, Lloyd First Baptist Church, New Hope Baptist Church, New Life Bible Church, Oakland Avenue Baptist Church, South Shore First Baptist Church, Rose Hill Baptist Church,  Rush Baptist Chapel, Second Baptist Church of Ashland, Summit Missionary Baptist Church, Unity Baptist Church, Wayside Baptist Church, Wildwood Baptist Church, & Wurtland Missionary Baptist Church.

While the local church aids in the fundraising, our area is also a recipient of some of the funding of the North American Mission Board at the Appalachia Ministry Center. Sendrelief.org pointed to the Cannonsburg center as being, “Committed to strengthening communities, offering mobilization opportunities and protecting children and families.” The center provides literacy and education resources, offers medical and dental care, and resourcing Southern Baptist Disaster Relief teams nationwide.

The WMU is still active today, and within the local church, they play a huge role in receiving the Annie Armstrong Easter offering. You can donate at anniearmstrong.com or at virtually any of the local Southern Baptist Churches.