Heritage Hall Names New Administrator

        Bill Taylor has joined Heritage Hall-Grundy as the Slate Creek area nursing home’s new administrator.
         Taylor assumed the post upon the retirement of Kyle Baker.
       He came to Buchanan County from western Kentucky and has been a nursing home administrator for about 15 years. He has worked in Kentucky and in Ohio and the post in Grundy is his first in Virginia.
      Taylor, a Pike County, Ky., native, is a 1984 graduate of Transylvania University in Lexington, Ky., where he earned a bachelors degree in business administration. He also attended the University of Kentucky for one year where he served as a basketball manager.
        He said he was pleased to join the Grundy Heritage Hall staff, noting that he enjoyed the similarities between Buchanan and Pike counties.
         The bottom line, anywhere he said, "is you get out of it what you put into it."
        He is the son of Ernestine Taylor of Pikeville, Ky., and the late Aubrey Taylor. He has two children, Nathan, eight; and Shelby, five.

Kindergarten Registration Planned in April

by Cathy St. Clair
News Editor
        Seven dates in April have been set for kindergarten and pre-kindergarten registration in the Buchanan County Public School System for the 2006-07 school year.
          Registration hours at all schools will be from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
         All children entering school for the first time must enroll in kindergarten.
          Any child who is the age of five by September 30, 2006 is eligible to enroll in the kindergarten program. A child who is four yeas of age by September 30,2006, is eligible to enroll in the pre-kindergarten program.
      All children registering for kindergarten or pre-kindergarten must be accompanied by a parent or guardian on the registration date.
         Parents should bring a state birth certificate, the child’s immunization (shot) record, social security number and a physical in order to complete the registration process. Physicals must be dated after August 18, 2006.
        Children registering for the pre-K program will not need a physical until parents have been notified the child has been accepted into the program.
          Registration dates for kindergarten and pre-kindergarten will be as follows:
           • April 19: Twin Valley Elementary-Middle School;
           • April 20: Council Elementary-Middle School;
           • April 21: Russell Prater Elementary School;
           • April 24: J.M. Bevins Elementary School;
           • April 25 and 26: River-view Elementary-Middle School; and
           • April 27: Hurley Elementary-Middle School.
        All children entering a pre-kindergarten program are required to have a chicken pox immunization. A doctor’s certification of the immunization is required.
        All children are also required to have a second dose of measles (rubella) vaccine prior to entering kindergarten or first grade.
        Children enrolling for the first time in kindergarten must have documented proof of having received two doses of measles vaccine -- usually administered in combination with a mumps vaccine and documented on the immunization record as "MMR."

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Formal Resolution Seeks Traffic Light at Food City

by Cathy St. Clair
News Editor
         A formal resolution seeking the placement of a traffic control light at the intersection of Vansant Food City with Rt. 460 was agreed to last week during a meeting of the Buchanan County Board of Supervisors.
          For several months now, the board has discussed the idea, but it wasn’t until Monday that a resolution was adopted formally asking the Virginia Department of Transportation to consider the measure.
          Garden Supervisor Buddy Fuller made the motion to adopt the resolution and Knox Supervisor Pat Justus made the second. The vote was unanimous.
        In other road-related matters, Fuller asked VDOT Resident Engineer Conrad Hill when a traffic light now under construction at the intersection of Rt. 460 and Rt. 680 at the mouth of Contrary was likely to be operational. Hill said it would likely be within the next month.
         The lights are flashing now in an attempt to familiarize motorists with the coming intersection change.
        Fuller also asked about planned improvements to Rt. 680, Bill Young Mountain.
         Hill said right of way issues were being resolved and he said assuming the department is able to secure a waiver on the moving of utilities, the project might be moved back to its original time frame.
          "Right now, we are showing a February 2007 ad on the project and we have no official word it’s been moved back to an August 2006 ad," Hill said.
          In other road-related discussion, Justus made Hill aware of several ditch lines or drainpipes in his district which he said were stopped up.
           He also asked whether it would be possible to place a speed limit on Race Fork and if the 25 mph speed limit through Hurley could be extended to the mouth of Guesses Fork.
          Hill said he doubted the speed limit change could be made based on traffic division studies.

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