Martin County Judge Executive Lon Lafferty and his staff deserve a huge congratulations for securing nearly $26 million in funding for water and sewer improvements in this rural eastern Kentucky county.

For years, Martin County residents have suffered through terrible and outdated infrastructure – brown, murky water coming from faucets. And sometimes there is little to no water pressure at the spigots.

As reported in the Mountain Citizen last week, the state’s Water and Wastewater Assistance for Troubled or Economically Restrained Systems (WWATERS) program will help fund eight projects involving the Martin County Water District and Martin County Sanitation District.

Lafferty praised Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and state lawmakers for approving the much-needed funds.

Then, the smelly, outdated sewage system in parts of the county has been a nightmare.

Safe, potable water is the life source for everything living on this planet.

For human survival, we require clean, reliable water supported by sustainable infrastructure. Most people in the United States communities are blessed with water resources that don’t even need to be thought about when the tap is turned on.

However, in many rural areas, such as eastern Kentucky and southern West Virginia, this is not the case.

In many rural communities, like Martin County, there has been a lack of sufficient water.

Many locals have frequently lived with inadequate water resources. Hopefully that will now change in Martin County.

At times, this has been as bad as in a third-world country. It was just unacceptable.

It will take some time to get the funding, advertise for the projects to get started and for completion.

But things are headed in the right direction for the county.

Short stuff

My column last week discussed missing or deceased scientists and researchers associated with certain classified programs. I received a lot of comments from our readers about this story.

A wave of deaths and disappearances of U.S. scientists with ties to nuclear, space, and classified defense projects has prompted major congressional and FBI investigations. As of April 2026, at least 12 scientists have gone missing or died since 2022, all linked to sensitive research.

A couple were also linked to the study on UFOs and the secrecy surrounding that controversial subject.

There were 10 linked together and now it is 12. There may be others. Stay tuned.

… The Kentucky Primary Election is scheduled for Tuesday, May 19. Don’t forget to get out and vote.

In West Virginia, the May Primary Election is Tuesday, May 12.

Even though this is an “off” year election, there are still some important races in both states. The local ballots also have some important offices up for grabs.

Do not complain if you do not get out and vote.

… A sports thought: Nearly 5,000 basketball players entered the transfer portal this spring. It is hard to keep up with your favorite team when rosters change so much from season to season.

If you have a great player, he may be one-and-done and head to the NBA. Others may be unhappy with their playing time and decide to transfer to another school.

Then others are now just looking for more money with NIL funds available. If a player is at a mid-major college, he will likely transfer to a bigger school for more money and a chance to play in a larger conference.

Things sure have changed over the past couple of years.

Until next time.

(Kyle Lovern is a longtime journalist in the Tug Valley. He is now a retired freelance writer and columnist for the Mountain Citizen.)