Appalachian School of Law Awards Degrees to 99 During Commencement

by Brandon Dye
Staff Reporter
      A total of 99 students, which made up the Class of 2008, received their Juris Doctor degrees at the Appalachian School of Law Commencement ceremony at Riverview Elementary/Middle School this past Saturday morning.
      "For three years, the faculty has challenged you to be lawyers," ASL Dean Wes Shinn told the graduating class during the ceremony. "Hopefully at the end of that journey, you have become students of law for life."
      The ninth graduating class of ASL was led in by the Appalachian Highlanders Pipes and Drums group, which played bagpipes for the march into the gymnasium.
       Reverend Jeff Porter of the Buchanan First Presbyterian Church gave the invocation for the commencement.
       During the commencement ceremony, Shinn asked the students to stand to give an ovation to the audience members in attendance, which included spouses, family members, and friends.
       "Without you, this would not have been possible," Shinn said. "In too short of time for us, these students are ready to leave the ASL."
       The graduates then crossed the stage for the hooding ceremony assisted by Associate Dean Sandra McGlothin and received their degrees which were presented by Shinn.

For more of the story, see the print edition of the Mountaineer, on sale at newsstands now.  To subscribe to the Mountaineer, call 276-935-2123 today.

Resident Concerned Airport Construction Would Displace Families

by Scotty Wampler
News Editor     
      Plans to build a proposed regional airport at the site of the current Grundy Municipal Airport were criticized Monday as claims were made that 13 families would be displaced from their homes by the project.
      The concept of a new airport to benefit Buchanan County and the surrounding region has circulated in the community for some time, the idea for which can be traced to 2003 when the Virginia Department of Aviation published an update to the Virginia Air Transportation System Plan, recommending a new general aviation airport be planned and developed to replace the current facility.
      After a study was completed three years ago to analyze the best location for a new airport in the area, it was determined the current site was best suited, with additional construction and property acquisition. Since that time, a tentative plan has been outlined that would allow Paramont Coal Company to mine the coal under the existing airport, providing funds necessary to construct a new, larger facility.
      But resident Sue Yates questioned during Monday's board of supervisors meeting what the town planned to do with money secured by the mining process, voicing concerns about the displacement of several families if the project moves forward.
      "Where will this money go?" she asked, admitting she was not a land owner near the airport site, but adding eight members of her family would be affected by the project. "Will it be used to build Grundy back? There are 13 families whose lives will be profoundly affected by [this project]."
      The Town of Grundy has sought different means of funding in recent months to allow it to acquire property surrounding the current site, which must be done in order to submit mining permits to the coal company.

For more of the story, see the print edition of the Mountaineer, on sale at newsstands now.  To subscribe to the Mountaineer, call 276-935-2123 today.