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Submissions being accepted for Kentucky MLK contests

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The Kentucky Martin Luther King Jr. State Commission is now accepting entries for the 2026 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Essay, Visual Arts, and Poetry contests.

According to a release from the Kentucky Heritage Council, the contests are “an exciting opportunity for students to express their creativity and honor Dr. King’s legacy by promoting unity, equality, and justice for all people in Kentucky, the United States, and the world.”

The contest is open to students enrolled in a Kentucky school or home-schooled in Kentucky. Each entry should be inspired by this year’s theme: “Equality for all, hope for tomorrow”. The entry deadline is December 12.

The visual arts contest is open to all K through 12 students. Visual arts entries will be judged based on creativity and originality, and how they address the theme of the contest.

The essay contest is open to students in fourth through 12th grade. The essay must be 500 words or less, and will be judged based on purpose, awareness of audience, idea development, organization, language, and correctness.

The poetry contest is for students in sixth through 12th grade. Entries must be 200 words or less.

Learn more about the contest on the Martin Luther King Jr. State Commission’s website.

Radcliff council hosts second public hearing on rezoning request

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The Radcliff City Council met for a special called meeting and work session Tuesday.

A second public hearing was held on a rezoning application for 238 Cedar Oak Drive in Vine Grove to rezone that property from Commercial to Residential-4, which would accommodate the development of about 80 single-family homes by Silver Gate Properties. The council tabled a rezoning ordinance for the property after Fort Knox raised concerns with the development’s proximity to the post.

The Radcliff Planning Commission previously recommended the rezoning be approved with some required remediations.

“Staff analysis is that the proposed rezone would permit the use of land for high-density single family and duplex development,” said Radcliff Planning Director Murray Wanner, reading from the staff report on the zoning change. “The area proposed for rezoning is not in close proximity to areas of commerce.”

Glenn Turner with Silver Gate Properties said no objection was made when a rezoning request for another section of the property went through earlier in the year, and the company was willing to accommodate Fort Knox’s previous request for downward-facing lighting and security fencing. He said further restrictions have the potential to hurt growth in the city.

“When I see people looking to put a mission, a government mission, in, and I think of Fort Knox, and I look around, one of the big attractions we have is our cost of housing and the affordability, and this would be a part of that,” Turner said.

Fort Knox Deputy Garrison Commander Jim Bradford said the post is not against housing developments, but they have concerns with impacts to operations that adjusting to nearby housing would force. He noted the Fort Knox area near the property is frequently in use.

“Last year, this area here next to the property in question had 195 days of training use,” Bradford said. “In addition to that, this area had 145 days of hunting use.”

During the work session, Radcliff Mayor JJ Duvall said the city would be recommending the council approve a $46,850 bid from Air Temp of Radcliff for an HVAC unit for the Colvin Community Center’s basement, and a $63,604.63 bid from Shed ‘N Carport Pro for a storage building for Radcliff Parks and Rec.

The Radcliff City Council will take up the zoning issue again, as well as the bids, at their next meeting, which will be held October 21.

Hardin County Fiscal Court hosts first October meeting

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The Hardin County Fiscal Court met for their first meeting of the month Tuesday.

The court approved three ordinances on their second readings. The first approved a budget amendment to accommodate ambulance upgrades and bridge and road repair money. The second amends the county’s standing order to pre-approve recurring expenses to include lease payments on ambulance equipment. The third updates definitions in the county’s flood damage prevention ordinance to match state definitions.

The court approved two resolutions which awarded FEMA contracts to GSI for work on roads damaged in storms and flooding earlier this year. The first was for Stovall Road.

“The total cost is around $353,000 that we need for the contractor to do this work,” said Hardin County Judge/Executive Keith Taul. “The county has the obligation of the county portion which is 13 percent for a FEMA contract like this. That’s about $46,000.”

The second contract was for work on Hall Road for about $229,000.

The court tabled two resolutions, one of which was an occupancy agreement with West Hardin Fire and Rescue which would allow Hardin County EMS to house an ambulance at their building in White Mills, and the other of which was an agreement with the Lincoln Trail Area Development District for engineering and GIS services. The measures were tabled in order to allow for the county attorney to review them.

Hardin County Animal Care and Control Director Mike McNutt said the shelter has adopted out 151 dogs year to date, which is down from 172 to this point last year. He said the shelter’s 10 percent rescue rate is up, and the live release rate is currently over 90 percent for the fiscal year.

“The (no-kill shelter) award is done by calendar, so I’m hoping that it continues and we can actually start chipping away,” McNutt said. “We’re at like 86 percent right now for the calendar year. I’m hoping to make it go back the other way.”

The Hardin County Fiscal Court will next meet October 28. The next county town hall forum will be held in the fiscal courtroom at 5:30 p.m. on October 27.

Registration open for Helping Hand of Hope Christmas program

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Registration is open for Helping Hand of Hope’s annual Christmas assistance.

“This is just a program that’s very dear to all of our hearts here at Helping Hand of Hope, and we couldn’t do it without the love of the community, and we just want to do ‘for good’ in the community and have this available for our neighbors that are really struggling this holiday season,” said Helping Hand of Hope Executive Director Hope Burke.

The affordable Christmas program is a partnership with area churches and schools that allows struggling families to come in and pick presents for their children.

Registration must be completed in October.

“In conjunction with the Salvation Army, we do (registration) on the Tuesdays and Thursdays in October so that people can decide if they want to do our program or if they want to do the Angel Tree program, and we have sites like on Tuesdays we are at the Colvin Community Center and on Thursdays we are at 200 College Street Road, and then on October 25 we will be here at Helping Hand of Hope doing sign-ups,” Burke said.

Area residents interested in supporting the Christmas program can visit www.helpinghandofhope.org to access the Christmas program’s wish list.

“We did over 600 kiddos last year, and we expect with everything that’s going on that we will probably have more this year, and so we are just relying on our neighbors that want to do a little good in the community to help us with that,” Burke said.

Applicants should bring a photo ID, proof of income, pay stub or Social Security letter from the last 30 days, and a Social Security card for each member of the household. Visit Helping Hand of Hope’s website or Facebook page for more information.

United Way of Central Kentucky hosting free movie Friday

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The United Way of Central Kentucky has not one but two community events happening this Friday. 

The United Way invites the community to come out to their Movie on the Lawn Series this Friday, October 17, where they will be hosting a free outdoor screening at their headquarters, located at 604 North Main Street in Elizabethtown.

This Friday’s movie is 1991’s The Addams Family. The movie will begin at dusk. Guests can enjoy free refreshments, face painting, lawn games, and a surprise character appearance. Featured nonprofit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kentuckiana will also be on hand to share information about their organization. Attendees are encouraged to bring blankets or lawn chairs.

The United Way is also hosting an American Red Cross blood drive at their headquarters this Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Red Cross says somebody in the U.S. needs blood every two seconds. Approximately 29,000 units of red blood cells, 5,000 units of platelets, and 6,500 units of plasma are needed daily.

As an added incentive, all donors from now through October 19 will receive a $10 Amazon gift card. Schedule your appointment by visiting www.redcrossblood.org and entering sponsor code “UWCKY” or by calling 1-800-RED-CROSS.