New faces to write columns in the N-D

Carrollton may be a small town, but it is full of talented, knowledgeable individuals, and there is always something happening somewhere.

As your community newspaper, The News-Democrat strives to report on the many goings-on in Carroll County, local news that you cannot find in the daily metros.

To continue this commitment, the newspaper will begin featuring five new local columnists beginning in next week’s Sept. 5 edition.

If you turn the page, you will see that this is the last week Lonnie Sundermeyer’s recipe column “Lonnie’s Lagniappe” will be appearing in the paper. She and her husband, Bob, will be moving back to Georgia to spend more time with their four grandchildren.

Lonnie’s column has been appearing in The News-Democrat since 2004, first as a bi-weekly, before expanding to a weekly mainstay on first the Lifestyles and then on the Community page.

I would like to extend my gratitude to Lonnie for sharing her knowledge, stories and yummy recipes with all of our readers for the past nine years. It takes a lot of time to write a column, and I’m sure even more time to create her delicious recipes. Her dishes have made appearances at dinner tables and gatherings across the community, including some functions held in our office, and I want to thank her for her contributions over the years.

We felt that maintaining the recipe column presence in the paper was important to readers, so we have asked Jeffery Dailey to fill this role on a bi-monthly basis. Formerly of Carrollton, he now lives in Louisville and is a chef at Corbett’s. His column will begin appearing on the Community page in the Sept. 12 issue.

The other four columnists will appear once a month for four months – September through December – on the Forum page.

Starting things off on the first week of the month will be fitness trainer Beau Arney, who will be writing a health and exercise column. He is the former strength and conditioning coach at Carroll County High School.

The second columnist will be Ben Collett, president of the Port William Historical Society.

During the third week of the month, a Carroll County High School student will give his or her perspective on education and life as a teenager. They may write about the goings-on at school or any other topic they choose. I have spoken to Principal Tom Stephens about the monthly column, but individual students have not yet been selected.

The last column of the month will be from Misty Wheeler, the new coordinator for Champions for a Drug Free Carroll County. She will write educational pieces on the drug abuse problem and activities planned by the organization.

Former intern invades England

Also new to our website – www.mycarrollnews.com - is a blog from former intern and Ghent resident Sarah Beach. Titled the “Belle in Britain,” she will be sharing her semester experience in England as

a part of the Harlaxton program through the University of Evansville. A Western Kentucky University student, Beach will be taking two English courses, one on Shakespeare and one on Jane Austen, as well as a British history course.

Each of her blog posts will appear on our website and in The News-Democrat paper-edition as space allows.

Beach arrived in England last Thursday, Aug. 23, and her second blog post can be found on page 15.

I hope you will enjoy reading these columns from our new writers. I want to go ahead and extend my thanks to each of them for accepting this new challenge and giving of their time and talent to all of us.
I also would like to hear from you, the readers. What do you think about the new columnists? After their four-month stint, who would you like to see write for us in January? What topics are you interested in? You can e-mail your feedback to me anytime at ksherrard@mycarrollnews.com.

Kristin Sherrard is news editor of The News-Democrat and resides in Carrollton, Ky.