Reidy observes that there is sometimes almost too much news coverage. “Every little new suggestion gets equal weight because it’s new — every drug that might work or something that might work. With new treatments, it takes time to find out what really does work — things like antibody testing and how long people are immune. It’s hard because we want answers now. Read the Full Story >>
Claire Stuart
A Panhandle Adventure and So Much More
While some people enjoy exploring new places on their own, they can sometimes miss the special things that locals know about. On the other hand, many people just dislike the hassle of making schedules and itineraries, preferring to let someone else do the work. And some locals are so busy with their daily routines that they miss things that are right in their own back yards. To that end, Hike Adventures is a new business headquartered in Harpers Ferry (WV) offering locals and visitors alike something beyond a hike. Read the Full Story >>
Holiday Blessing: Shepherdstown Boasts Tour of Historic Churches
Bells will be ringing in Shepherdstown on the day after Christmas. Jerry Bock and Bruce Massey of the Historic Shepherdstown Commission announce the Second-Annual “Shepherdstown Tour of Historic Churches.” Read the Full Story >>
Shepherdstown CBD Shop Lands at Right Time, Right Place
“Hemp isn’t a scary plant—it’s just a plant!” declared Samantha Savoca. She’s spreading the word of the benefits of cannabidiol oil, or CBD, a product derived from hemp, through her shop, Meditative Medicinals (123 W. German St., Shepherdstown). Read the Full Story >>
Fit after Fifty (and Beyond!)
Dorothy Davenport celebrated her 95th birthday in May and received 145 birthday cards—many from her Silver Sneakers friends at Gold’s Gym in Charles Town where she has worked out for the past ten years. Silver Sneakers is a fitness program for older adults. Dorothy participates to the best of her ability. Read the Full Story >>
We Went Back to School and Asked: What’s for Lunch?
Ask random adults what school lunches were like when they were kids, and the answers can range from great to awful, depending on when and where they went to school. Schools are required to provide healthy lunches, but children must want to eat them. The Observer decided to see and taste-test some of today’s lunches in Jefferson County schools. Read the Full Story >>
This Time of Year, Charity Begins at Home
At this time of year, mailboxes are full of solicitations for charities—and for good reason. If you’re looking to get involved locally on whatever level you can manage, we’re spotlighting below a handful of the many worthy local organizations in the Panhandle doing great work to help those in need year-round, and especially throughout the winter months. Read the Full Story >>
American Conservation Film Festival Observes, Examines, and Confronts in 2018
Polluted air and water, mass extinctions, depleted fisheries, shrinking forests, rising temperatures—humans are making a mess of the planet. But all is not lost (at least yet): “Solutions” is the theme of this year’s American Conservation Film Festival. Read the Full Story >>
Rick Taylor: on Cemeteries, Battlefields, and Tragic Lovers
Rick Taylor’s poems can’t be pigeonholed. In his first book, Never Alone in a Cemetery, his words burst out in multiple directions, although the general theme could probably be defined as endings. There are cemeteries, bloody battlefields, suicides, massacres, lovers’ tragic deaths, and musings on aging. But he also looks at life—family, relationships, animals, birds, and even insects. Read the Full Story >>
Harpers Ferry Flip-Flop Festival Grows Beyond the Hike
The fourth-annual Flip-Flop Festival is coming to Harpers Ferry and Bolivar on April 28-29, and it’s not about summer shoes! It’s a celebration of the Appalachian Trail (AT) and the outdoor activities and historic sites the area is known for. Read the Full Story >>
Welcome to the Seed Library—Harpers Ferry’s Newest Community Resource
Master Gardner Angie Faulkner has a passion for saving seeds, so it isn’t surprising that she was the driving force behind the founding of the Bolivar-Harpers Ferry Seed Library—a community-sustained resource where gardeners can share their successes, skills, and, of course, seeds. Read the Full Story >>
Briggs Animal Adoption Center Provides More Than Just Shelter
Anna Reynolds was born in D.C. in 1909; her father died when she was three. Her mother was too poor to care for her children, so Anna was placed in an orphanage for four years, then farmed out to an aunt, and finally returned home at 13. She considered her life a parallel to the way animals in a shelter feel. And during those early years, she longed for an animal companion, eventually finding one in an abused dog that she nursed back to health. Read the Full Story >>
Smithsonian to Honor Local Filmmaker, John Grabowska, with Retrospective
Scientists propose naming a new epoch in time the Anthropocene—the Age of Man—dating from the time human activities began having global impacts on Earth. A mini-retrospective of films on that theme by local environmental filmmaker John Grabowska screened at the National Park Service Centennial Film Festival at the National Conservation Training Center (NCTC) in Shepherdstown on February 25. Read the Full Story >>