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2025: A year defined by water, weather and resolve
BY ROGER SMITH MOUNTAIN CITIZEN INEZ — If 2025 had a shape in Martin County, it was uneven ground. The year rose with moments of promise and dropped without warning into loss and disruption, forcing people to find their footing again and again. Water told much of the story. It fell as snow and ice,…
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Whitt wins newspaper search contest
CITIZEN STAFF REPORT INEZ — Martin County resident Curtis Whitt is the winner of the Mountain Citizen Christmas Nativity Search Contest and a $100 prize. Over the course of 10 weeks, Whitt successfully found each of the hidden Christmas Nativity figures placed throughout the pages of the Mountain Citizen, recording the correct page numbers on…
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Christmas: The light the darkness could not hold
Christmas arrives again with its familiar quiet magic, but at its heart this is more than a season of lights and gatherings. It is the celebration of the birth of Christ, the moment when God stepped into the world in humility and love. The Gospel of John proclaims this truth: “The light shines in the…
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Martin County Water cannot afford another miss in Frankfort
Kentucky’s new WWATERS program was created for communities like Martin County—places where decades-old infrastructure, chronic underinvestment and limited local resources make safe, reliable water and wastewater service an everyday challenge. Yet last year, when Kentucky lawmakers awarded more $75 million to distressed utilities across the state, Martin County received nothing. Not one project. Not one…
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Thanksgiving reflection: 35 years of community and gratitude
Thanksgiving offers a moment for communities to pause, reflect and take stock of the blessings that shape our lives. For us at the Mountain Citizen, this week carries special meaning. It marks 35 years since this newspaper came under its current ownership and management. Three and a half decades of service, struggle, growth and commitment…
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Sunshine only stings when it lands on something never meant to be seen
Public officials carry many responsibilities, but one of the most essential is accepting scrutiny. When decisions are made with public money, on public time and in public office, the people deserve clear, truthful answers. That is not persecution. That is democracy. To suggest that accurate reporting is an attack is to undermine the public’s right…
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Mountain Citizen wins Tom and Pat Gish Award for courage, integrity and tenacity
BY AL CROSS A scrappy little newspaper that has fought for more than 30 years for clean water and open government in its Appalachian county is the winner of the 2025 Tom and Pat Gish Award for courage, integrity and tenacity in rural journalism. The Mountain Citizen is a weekly paper serving the 11,000 people…
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KHSAA needs to get a rule—and fast
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association is charged with upholding the integrity of high school sports. Yet, when faced with a clear breach of competitive ethics, its response was silence cloaked in technicality. During Friday’s district championship between Martin County and Prestonsburg, a Blackcats player picked up a wristband containing Martin County’s offensive play calls…
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Tragedy of losing a communication lifeline in rural Martin County
Another 400 feet of copper cable may not sound like much. But on North Wolf Road in Lovely and on Rockhouse in Tomahawk it represents the steady unraveling of rural infrastructure that once connected Martin County people to each other and to the outside world. When copper thieves cut AT&T’s telephone line Saturday morning near…
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Good to see you, Dr. Robbie Fletcher
It was good to see Dr. Robbie Fletcher back home in Martin County last week. His visit to Martin County High School was a heartfelt homecoming for someone who has never forgotten where he came from. Dr. Fletcher’s story is one of perseverance, humility and purpose. From Little Peter Cave to Frankfort, his journey is…
