All Writing

Four years ago, somewhere in Virginia along the Appalachian Trail, I became Mudfoot, my trail name and traveling alter ego. But my wanderlust and habit of having muddy feet got their start more than 30 years ago further south in the same mountain rage. My parents are really to... Read More →

The Independent |September 19, 2013 There is always a heron to guide us when we paddle the waters of Lake Vesuvius. As we begin to guide our canoe from the wide expanse of water through a narrowing path of floating plants, I strain against the horizon to spot him. The long-legged... Read More →

The Independent | Posted: Thursday, August 22, 2013 11:05 am AK Steel Corp. will pay a $1.65 million civil penalty to resolve alleged violations of air pollution laws that occurred at its now-closed coke plant in Ashland, the Department of Justice and Environmental Protection... Read More →


The Independent | Posted: Thursday, August 15, 2013 12:02 am ASHLAND U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is asking the federal Environmental Protection Agency to shift enforcement and oversight of the AK Steel Coke Plant cleanup to Kentucky environmental officials. McConnell... Read More →

My French adventure begins The Independent | Posted: Friday, March 15, 2013 12:33 am ASHLAND Bonjour! By the time some of you read this, I’ll be on my way to France! For the next four weeks, I am traveling with a team of Kentuckians representing Rotary International District 6740... Read More →

The Independent | Posted: Friday, December 7, 2012 12:46 am The new normal. It’s a phrase you’ve been hearing over and over again to describe the electorate that has twice now voted President Obama into office. In a culture that has become all about branding, the new normal is... Read More →

The Art of Heirloom Seeds The Independent / Posted: Wednesday, October 3, 2012 12:19 am GREENUP, Ky. – Seed saving is a tradition as old as agriculture in the southern Appalachians. Families have preserved and passed down their own cherished varieties of beans, squash and... Read More →

The Hunt family is close. Four households, comprised of four generations, live side-by-side at the end of Tygarts Bend in the Sunshine community of Greenup County. They mingle every day on the more than 100-acre farm the family has cultivated for more than 100 years. The youngest... Read More →

The Independent | Posted: Thursday, August 16, 2012 11:48 pm There are a lot of job skills that simply can’t be learned in a classroom, they have to be perfected in the field. Journalism is no exception as I’ve learned during the course of my short career. I got an... Read More →

Raymond “Ray” McKinley Dupuy died more than a decade ago but his memory is alive and strong at the farm where he grew up, moved his bride, built a home and raised his two daughters. His memory permeates everything on the 78-acre farm nestled between Ky. 7 and Beechy Fork. His... Read More →