The service that Greenup Countians rendered during World War II encouraged several young women from the next generation to pursue a career in government service. For Leona Sparks, Mildred Veach, Jerry Potter, and Mattie Lois Ferguson, the adventure began in March of 1951 when Willard [...]
James Still’s novel, “River of Earth,” continues to please old readers and to find new ones. Set in Appalachian Kentucky, it is a genuine classic. Told from the viewpoint of a small boy, the story encompasses about three years in the life of his [...]
In 1987, Jesse Stuart’s youngest sister, Glennis Stuart Liles, called me at home one Sunday afternoon and announced that she had an idea for a new money-making project for the Jesse Stuart Foundation. “I want to do a cookbook. I’ve wanted to do one [...]
Ernie West was a Greenup County man who received the Medal of Honor during the Korean War. Ernie was born in Russell, Kentucky, on September 2, 1931. He grew up in the Methodist Children’s Home orphanage in Versailles and dropped out of high school [...]
Rick Bragg, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “All Over but the Shoutin’,” continues his personal history of the South with an evocation of his mother’s childhood in the Appalachian foothills during the Great Depression. The book is “Ava’s Man,” the powerful story of Charlie [...]
When you read this book, you will not find stories about Joe Bates, Terry McBrayer, Billy Ray Cyrus, Jesse Stuart, Don Gullett or dozens of other Greenup Countians who have achieved fame and prominence. The thirty essays in this book are about the county’s [...]
“True Christmas Stories From the Heart of Appalachia,” is a book that captures the spirit of Christmas in 43 stories by 39 authors. Thirty-five of the stories are from Kentucky and the others are from neighboring states. This book was sponsored by JSF Board [...]
In the 1940s and 1950s, books opened my mind to the big world beyond my poor Appalachian home. When I was a little boy, my grandmother, Clara Moore Clark, would walk to town with me so that I could check out books from the [...]
I moved to Ashland in 1985, and I have provided executive leadership for the Jesse Stuart Foundation for the past 40 years. During that time, the JSF has received dozens of state, regional, and national awards. For example, on Saturday June 2, 2007, I [...]
Jesse Stuart’s mother, Martha Hilton Stuart, died May 11, 1951. Three years later, on December 23, 1954, Jesse’s father Mitchell (Mick) died. As Mick lay on his death bed, he reflected: “I’ve been lonesome without Sal for nearly three years and I’d like to [...]
