Todd County Standard
12
Feb. 6 to Feb. 12, 2013
AGRIBUSINESS/BUSINESS
DO
THE
WATERMELON CALL
(with apologies to those who never heard the old country song)
BY TONYA S. GRACE
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
T
odd Countian Scott
Shackelford spent his
growing-up years on a
farm that produced corn,
wheat and beans and raised its
own beef and dairy cattle.
As an adult he’s made a living growing corn and running
his own construction business.
Now he’s taken a turn into
the business end of farming,
and his efforts have been successful.
“We’re hoping for 250
acres this year of locallywatermelons,”
grown
observed Shackelford, whose
Grower’s Pride Produce
began operation in 2011 after
neighbors said they needed a
market for their melons.
He and wife Deni are coowners in the new venture,
which helps connect farmers
with buyers and shipped
750,000 pounds of produce
its first year, 4 ½ million its
second. Shackelford anticipates 10 million pounds
shipped in 2013 from Todd,
Christian and Logan counties.
Todd’s neighbor to the east
has recently been invited to
join Todd and Christian counties in Grower’s Pride
Produce.
Shackelford met on Jan.
25 with farmers in the area to
see how many acres they
were interested in producing
this year and to discuss food
safety — an important aspect
of getting their produce — primarily watermelons — to buyers.
Also on hand for the meeting were representatives of
Global Produce Sales, the
Lakeland, Fla., company that
Shackelford says acts as his
broker and so much more,
tracking inventory and shipments for Grower’s Pride,
providing labor, technology
and the much-needed attention to food safety.
“Global’s main focus is
food safety,” Shackelford
noted. “If we can’t meet food
safety (requirements), we can’t
ship melons with Global or
anybody.”
Shackelford said Walmart
and Publix are his two biggest
customers.
His
Grower’s
Pride
Produce has most of the
Walmart business in Kentucky
within the London, Ky., distribution center service area.
The
company
provides
90,000 pounds of melons a
day to the department store
during its growing season
from July 8 to Labor Day, and
after Labor Day, all of
Shackelford’s large melons
are shipped to Florida and
placed in Publix grocery
stores.
Grower’s Pride also sells to
chains in Canada and New
York.
The company got its start
two
years
ago
when
Shackelford’s neighbors, and
one neighbor and close friend
in particular, approached him
about starting a business so
they could ship their produce
to other places
Shackelford lives in north
Todd County among the
Miller Valley Mennonites, and
the Mennonite farmers were
needing a place to ship their
melons; the average price
they were getting at auction
for their produce was below
production for the most part,
and they were also limited in
how many melons they could
grow for the market.
Shackelford’s friend real-
ized it would be easier for him
to tap the market than it
would be for the farmers
whose religion prohibits them
from having the technology to
aid in their agriculture efforts.
But Shackelford knew nothing about growing watermelons and was reluctant to
agree to their request.
“They get the credit for
Grower’s
Pride Produce
seeking to add
farmers, acres
to local melon
production
twisting my arm to do this,’
he said of the “maybe four
Mennonite families” who
came on board with Grower’s
Pride that first year. There
were 22 families in 2012,
including a few English, or
non-Mennonite, families in
Todd and Christian counties
who also were growing the
melons that would be shipped
elsewhere.
This year saw an invitation
to Logan County farmers,
and Shackelford said he and
the others are hoping to see
250 acres of melons being
grown in the three counties in
2013.
Their venture has not been
without its struggles, however,
including an inexperienced
labor force that made the 4
½ million pounds of melons
shipped last year difficult to
handle and an overexpansion
that has left the business outgrowing its facilities in the
county’s Pea Ridge area.
But
Shackelford
said
Grower’s Pride is a good idea.
“It has helped a lot of people earn a decent income off
their farm,”’ he said, noting
that Global will be helping to
relieve some of the stress by
taking over the receiving,
packing and shipping with
their own people.
Additionally, Shackelford
said Grower’s Pride will be
adding on to its buildings this
year for more storage.
The company previously
received grants from the
Kentucky
Agricultural
Development Fund to help
SEE WATERMELONS, PAGE 11
Officials: Hemlock layoffs will impact Todd County
BY MELONY SHEMBERGER, ED.D.
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
The recent news that Hemlock
Semiconductor in Clarksville, Tenn.,
is laying off most of its work force
before production was to begin this
year surprised local officials.
“I was actually working at the EMS
(Montgomery County) that day and
found out via the news media,”
Guthrie Mayor Scott Marshall said.
Mitch Robinson, director of the
Todd County Industrial Foundation,
said “everybody was shocked.”
“I don’t think any of our local officials were notified. We learned it all
in the media,” he said. “The impact
is going to be huge.”
Marshall said the local impact
already could be felt in construction.
“We had been seeing a gradual
decline as construction had reached
its peak and was coming to a close,”
he said. “We had anticipated this and
were prepared. We are still seeing
positive influences in our community,
due to local investment in new businesses such as Guthrie Auto Parts,
Depot and Corn Silk Liquors, and
our senior housing project is under
way.”
Hemlock officials announced in
early January that approximately
300 of the 400 employees would be
laid off, beginning March 18. The
$1.2 billion plant — now almost constructed in northeast Montgomery
County near the Kentucky border —
was slated to begin production of
polycrystalline silicon in support of
the solar power industry.
It is unknown whether the plant
will open for business this year,
Hemlock
President
Andrew
Tometich said in news reports. The
layoffs were in response to what the
company called a “significant oversupply in the polysilicon industry and
the threat of protective tariffs on its
product sold into China,” according
to reports.
Company officials also said if the
global market conditions remain
firm, the layoffs could become permanent.
Robinson said efforts now include
finding out how many of the soon-tobe dislocated workers are Kentucky
residents so that options such as
training programs and other assistance can be planned.
In addition, he said the
Southwestern Kentucky Economic
Development Council — a new partnership between the HopkinsvilleChristian
County
Economic
Development and the Todd County
Industrial Foundation — would look
at corporate and industrial recruitment more aggressively.
“We are trying to catch up on
activities now. The Hemlock news
has thrown everyone a bad curve,”
Robinson said. “Anytime you have a
project this size, you expect everything to go right.”
Marshall said the city of Guthrie
would work closely with Robinson
and the Southwestern Kentucky
EDC.
“We will continue to partner with
them and work to support our existing business while seeking other
opportunities for the future,” he said.
Todd County Standard
Volume 81 • Number 40 • Elkton, Kentucky 42220
Oct. 3 to Oct. 9, 2012
14 Pages • 75¢
INSIDE TODAY:
WEATHER
WOES
Classifieds, Page 12
Obituaries, Page 3
Religion, Page 11
Society, Page 5
Take Note, Page 13
Opinion, Page 4
Strange weather hurt some
grain crops this season, Page 8.
Vo-tech center grant sought
HCC, schools partner for $2M in funding
BY MELONY SHEMBERGER, ED.D.
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
A federal $2 million grant will be
sought to build a new vocational
technology center in Todd County.
Todd
County
Schools
Wayne
Superintendent
Benningfield said he met with
Hopkinsville Community College
President Dr. Jim Selbe and others
Monday to discuss the grant appli-
cation and related issues on the new
center.
Benningfield shared a progress
report with school board members
during their monthly work session
Monday night.
Building the new vocational center with a federal grant would be
less expensive than if the school district were to construct it,
Benningfield said. Due to various
state regulations that school sys-
tems must follow, the district would
have paid approximately $6.5 million to build the center, he said.
HCC, the local school system
and Todd County government are
among the many community partners working to build the new center, which will offer dual-credit
courses, specific industry certifications and adult education programs.
The center would house three
SEE VO-TECH, PAGE 2
School district awarded large
literacy grant to boost skills
BY MELONY SHEMBERGER, ED.D.
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
Over the next two years, Todd
County Schools will receive
$206,938
from
the
U.S.
Department of Education to boost
literacy skills for students at North
and South Todd elementary
schools, especially among the
GIVE (OR SHOP)
A HOOT
Hispanic population.
The district is among 46 schools
and foundations awarded the federal grant, funded under the
Innovative Approaches to Literacy
Program, for the first time. A total
of $28 million was awarded.
Schools receiving the grant
have at least 25 percent of families
SEE LITERACY, PAGE 2
State working
on broadband
development
BY TONYA S. GRACE
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
Commonwealth
The
Office
of
Broadband
Outreach and Development
has been working to
increase internet access for
the state’s low-income resiand
Executive
dents,
Director Brad Kiser says his
agency is also talking with
legislators about the need to
increase people’s awareness of the benefits of
broadband.
“We have just had one
initial meeting with the legislature,” said Kiser, noting
that his office made its presentation to state lawmakers
during a meeting with a
group called the Committee
on Student Access to
Technology.
“This was a meeting discussing the status of broadband in the state and the
status of broadband in the
schools,” he explained.
“During this meeting it was
discussed how to reach
Kentuckians on the benefits
SEE BROADBAND, PAGE 7
Relay for Life looking
for local volunteers
BY TONYA S. GRACE
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
JENNI OSBORNE CRAIG/STANDARD
Tiffany Bouldin poses in her new boutique, “hoot,” which is now open on the square in Elkton.
Apparel and home
décor boutique
opens on
Elkton square
BY MEGAN SISCO
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
A new business has nested in Elkton
hoping to get a “hoot” of approval from
the women of Todd County.
Tiffany Bouldin’s brainchild, hoot, is
a contemporary women’s apparel and
Gov. Beshear announces
68/80 speed limit increase
BY MEGAN SISCO
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
Gov. Steve Beshear journeyed to Russellville and
later
Hopkinsville
on
Tuesday to announce the
increased speed limit on
U.S 68/80.
Government
officials
from various parts of
Kentucky convened at the
Logan County Cooperative
Extension Ofice for the
unveiling of the new highway signs stating the
increase of speed from 55
mph to 65 mph.
Transportation Cabinet
crews plan to begin
installing the new speed
limit
signs
Wednesday, if
the rain will
cooperate long
enough
for
installation.
Since planning
began in
Beshear
January 2011,
the unveiling of the project
to raise the speed on 58
miles of 68/80 stretching
SEE SPEED, PAGE 6
home décor boutique. The unique store
carries cozy, cute clothing, accessories
and interior designs reminiscent of Free
People or Anthropologie, Bouldin’s
own favorite stores.
hoot offers many well-known and
established lines in addition to indie
SEE HOOT, PAGE 2
Todd County contributed
$80,000 to the American
Cancer
Society’s
fight
against cancer during its best
year in 2005, and new ACS
Community Representative
Terrie Lawson would like to
see some of the same energy and enthusiasm as she
looks ahead to next year’s
Todd County Relay for Life.
“You need people who
feel like they’ve made a difference,” said Lawson,
who has scheduled a committee meeting to begin
planning for the 2013
relay and is hoping to
attract the attention of
local residents with an
interest in working on the
event.
The committee meeting
is slated for 5:30 p.m.
Tuesday at the Todd
County Welcome Center.
SEE RELAY, PAGE 7
Health official: Now is time to get flu shot
BY TONYA S. GRACE
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
The Todd County Health Department still
has flu shots available, and officials are urging
those interested to call and make an appointment for the vaccines.
“Getting the flu vaccine may help prevent
you from getting sick,” said Sherry Moody, a
registered nurse with the department.
Moody said the vaccine addresses three different strands of the flu and works well most
of the time, although she acknowledged that
there are other numerous strands that could
cause someone to succumb to the illness.
She noted that folks need to get a shot this
year even if they got one last year.
Moody said the shots cost $23 per vaccine
SEE FLU, PAGE 3
Todd County Standard
Volume 82 • Number 6 • Elkton, Kentucky 42220
Feb. 6 to Feb. 12, 2013
12 Pages • 75¢
WATERMELON
CALL
LADY REBS
GET HEART
Local businessman looking for
more growers, Page 12.
Player’s return sparks big
win, Page 10.
INSIDE TODAY:
Classifieds, Page 7
Obituaries, Page 3
Society, Page 9
Take Note, Page 8
Opinion, Page 4
Sports, Page 10
Whitfield campaigned on Topix
Spokesman: Advertisements on gossip site were inadvertent part of digital buy
BY RYAN CRAIG
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
An Internet site which has become
notorious (and especially popular in
Kentucky) for gossip and libelous
statements by anonymous posters
was supported by advertising for the
most recent campaign of U.S. Rep
Ed Whitfield (R-Hopkinsville).
If the pairing of the controversial
Web site and a conservative
Officials:
Storm
damage
caused by
microburst
Republican congressman seems strange,
Whitfield’s Hopkinsville
Field Director Michael
Pape said it was downright shocking to him.
Pape and Whitfield
first learned of the Whitfield
advertisements in an
inquiry by the Standard following
research for an editorial on Topix
that ran in last week’s newspaper. It
was discovered that in the weeks
leading up to Whitfield’s re-election
last November his campaign ran
what is known as “banner” advertising across the top of the Topix Web
page.
Pape asked the Standard “for
time” last Wednesday to verify the
advertising was indeed from Whitfield
and not an outside group, but later in
the day Pape confirmed the advertising was paid for by Whitfield’s cam-
paign.
“The advertising agency that
placed our ads bought banner ads
with Google and from there it went
to high-traffic sites on the Internet,”
Pape said. “For some reason Topix
wasn’t filtered out along with other
sites we wouldn’t want to be a part
of. I was not happy to find that out.”
Pape said he was “pretty disgusted” that (Whitfield’s advertising) was
on Topix.
Man arrested
after police
called to health
inspection
FROM STAFF REPORTS
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
An Allensville man was
arrested for disorderly conduct
Jan. 25 after getting in an argument with the Todd County
health inspector, according a
release from the Todd County
Sheriff’s Department.
Todd
County
Environmentalist
Robbie
McLellan, who works for the
county health department,
was at the home of Mike
Reeves, former owner of
Mike’s BBQ in Guthrie, to
investigate a claim that
Reeves was selling barbecue
out of his home, according to
a report from the Todd
County Sheriff’s Department.
Police said McLellan was
SEE ARREST, PAGE 9
School board
considers hiring
resource officer
BY MELONY
SHEMBERGER, ED.D.
TODD COUNTY STANADARD
BY TONYA S. GRACE
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
Officials with the National
Weather Service in Paducah
have identified the storms that
plagued north Todd County
and southern Muhlenberg
County last week as primarily
a microburst, or strong winds
that are similar to a tornado
but with damage that spreads
out in different directions.
Representatives from the
Paducah office visited the area
on Wednesday in the aftermath of the storm, which hit
at about 2 a.m. on Jan. 30,
beginning two miles northwest of Clifty and ending one
mile northeast of Penrod in
Muhlenberg County.
A summary of the damage
remains on the weather station’s
Web
site
at
nwschat.weather.gov, describing the peak winds as 110
miles per hour and the average
SEE MICROBURST, PAGE 6
“We will make sure this doesn’t
happen again,” he said. “Topix is
not a site we would even care to ever
be on.”
Whitfield easily won his re-election
last November over Democratic challenger Charles Hatchett.
Topix is a Web site that was created in 2002 to be a news aggregator
and community forum but has been
heavily criticized for being more of a
place for unsubstantiated gossip.
PHOTOS BY JASON DOSSETT
Scott Shackelford, representing the Elkton Volunteer Fire Department, holds the
trophy for winning the Relay for Life Celebrity Chili Cook Off. Below, Mark Power
serves some chili.
Chili cook-off raises
money tastefully
BY CATHERINE DARNELL
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
The tables were turned last
Saturday night when the
Elkton Fire Department was
smokin’ at the American
Cancer Society Relay for Life
Chili Cook-off benefit at the
Senior Citizens Center. With
Scott Shackelford as chef and
Chief Darrin Cole as booth
decorator, the group was the
winner of the whole shebang
with its Fire House Chili.
“If you don’t have a hose
handy, you’d better not try
it,” warned Shackelford. Cole
pulled out his inner interior
decorator, using all manner
of fire department equipment
in the booth’s small space.
Shackelford’s mother was a
cancer survivor in the ‘80s.
Turnout for the first-time
event was high. Exactly 127
people paid $5 a ticket for all
the chili they wanted to eat,
along with the fixings, something to drink and desserts,
most of them homemade.
Committee member Carolyn
Farmer’s oatmeal cookies
were particularly special.
Farmer is always on hand at
SEE CHILI, PAGE 9
Recent school shootings
in the United States are forcing Todd County Schools to
consider contracting with
Elkton city police to have a
school resource officer.
Superintendent Wayne
Benningfield told members
of the Todd County Board of
Education during the monthly work session that a school
resource officer is needed.
“We have the funding
where we can start with one
officer,” he said.
School
systems
in
Kentucky may use their Safe
Schools funding for a number of efforts to protect the
safety of students and teachers. This includes resource
officers, security equipments, special programs and
other ideas.
In the past, the local
school district had used its
Safe Schools funding to
improve the alternative
school, Benningfield said.
“Most of the money in
the past has been used for
the alternative program, but
there is funding now for
that,” he said.
Police
Chief
Bruce
Marklin told the board he
contacted school officials in
Christian County to learn
how the staffing of school
resource officers operates
there.
SEE OFFICER, PAGE 2
Schools to find new
workmen’s comp, pay
down KSBIT fund
BY MELONY
SHEMBERGER, ED.D.
TODD COUNTY STANDARD
Todd County is among
many school districts recently learning they will have to
share in paying off $50 to
$60 million to the dissolving
Kentucky School Board
Insurance Trust, commonly
referred to as KSBIT.
In addition, with KSBIT
soon to fold effective June
30, school districts quickly
will have to sign on with a
new insurance carrier to
cover their workmen’s compensation, property and liability insurance.
All of this comes at a time
when schools already are
struggling with shrinking
education funding.
“We are not in dire
straights, but we have to find
somebody to help us with
our
insurance,”
S u p e r i n t e n d e n t Wa y n e
SEE KSBIT, PAGE 2
Warren in first round
of Writers Hall of Fame
BY IVY BRASHEAR
INSTITUTE FOR RURAL JOURNALISM
AND COMMUNITY ISSUES,
UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY
LEXINGTON, Ky. —
Acclaimed poet and author
Robert Penn Warren, who
was born in Guthrie, was
among six writers into The
Carnegie Center for Literacy
Kentucky Writers Hall of
Fame during its inaugural
ceremony
recently.
The
other
authors inducted
were Harriette
S i m p s o n
Arnow, William
Warren
Wells Brown,
Harry Caudill,
Elizabeth Madox Roberts, and
James Still.
The Kentucky Writers
SEE WARREN, PAGE 2