January
For the year 2023, the City of Lewisburg named local gardening and beautification clubs as the Volunteers of the Year. The award was announced at the annual Shanghai Parade in downtown Lewisburg on Jan. 1; the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration in Lewisburg is held on Monday, Jan. 15 featuring keynote speaker Mark Hickman; lawyer John H. Bryan purchased a house in Monroe County that the site of on old fort, he documented his restoration and renovation process on X, formerly known as Twitter, in a series of posts with pictures of his findings. Within days it amassed nearly 7 million interactions from users around the globe; Brittany McCulley and Lee Carter open The Dawg House inside The Sportsman Tavern in Ronceverte; in light of recent allegations surrounding the possible misappropriation of state funds by Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) leadership, the WV Legislature’s Joint Committee on Flooding asks for increased investigations into the organization; Greenbrier Valley Sportsman Alliance and award-winning archery team of Alderson Elementary School form alliance to help fund the team; Bella’s in downtown Lewisburg is once again struck by a turning semi truck, despite posted signage from the Department of Highways on both Washington Street and several side streets stating “No Right Turns for Trucks Longer than 50 Feet”; Across the Board Game Café opens in White Sulphur Springs;
February
Several local farms are recognized by the Greenbrier Valley Conservation District as part of their annual awards, including Shawlin Hills Farms of Organ Cave, Hilltop Acres of Smoot, and the Smith Family Farm of Sinks Grove; Shane Lee Dolin, 25, of White Sulphur Springs, is arrested and charged with Child Abuse Causing Death and incarcerated in the Southern Regional Jail; Jane Hughes of Lewisburg nominated by the Greenbrier Historical Society and Alfred “Fred” Ziegler of Greenville nominated by the Monroe County Historical Society are History Heroes; Ronceverte Parks and Recreation committee announce a progress report and projected completion times for two major projects coming to Ronceverte Island Park – the mini-golf course and a disc golf range; Lewisburg Mayor Beverly WhiteWhite is presented with a “Certificate of Achievement” award for her more than 20 years of civic service, and a lifetime of dedication to bettering the communities around her; West Virginia School Building Authority (WVSBA) awards $6.7 million to Greenbrier County Schools through its Needs-Based Funding program to address safety, accessibility, and infrastructure needs at Frankford Elementary School; lawyers for the Justice Companies file a motion for preliminary injunction seeking to stop a planned sale of The Greenbrier Sporting Club properties; Carter Bank & Trust agrees to delay a potential sale of The Greenbrier Sporting Club; the West Virginia Land Trust places the Wooling family farm, Thistle, into a conservation easement;
March
The Town of Alderson and Alderson Main Street announced a new celebration: Lion Days, running from Mar. 18 through Mar. 30 in honor of French, the Alderson lion, and the month of March, the month that “comes in like a lion;” the Greenbrier County Commission approves a payment request in the amount of $290,500 to Thompson & Litton, for “planning and technical services” associated with the Greenbrier County GigReady Broadband project for engineering, pole permits, easements, and encroachment acquisitions; Chief Judge Robert E. Richardson enters an administrative order, staying all civil and criminal jury trials before the Circuit Court of Greenbrier County for the next several months due to renovation work at the Courthouse; the culvert replacement project at the entrance to the Dogwood Heights subdivision in Lewisburg moves towards completion; Lewisburg is honored as one of the Best of West Virginia winners in the New River/Greenbrier Valley region at the Tamarack Marketplace by WV Living Magazine; long time Lewisburg resident Mildred Rutledge turns 106 on Mar. 7, and is paid a birthday visit by Lewisburg Mayor Beverly White and City Manager Misty Hill to celebrate the occasion. Mildred was born in Charleston on Mar. 7, 1918; Monroe County Commission accepts the resignation of Jeff Jones as Sheriff of Monroe County; the WVDE in partnership with the WVACTE) presents agricultural educator Emily Dunkle with the WV CTE New Teacher of the Year award during a ceremony at Greenbrier East High School; First Lady Cathy and Gov. Jim Justice visit Lewisburg Elementary School for an assembly to celebrate the arrival of the state’s next therapy dog through the Friends With Paws program – an apricot-colored Labradoodle named Pixie;
April
The Greenbrier County Commission mourns the passing of Commissioner Blaine Phillips; Lewisburg City Council discusses the wayfinding signage project, downtown parking, and the updated draft Zoning Ordinance; Greenbrier Valley’s newest pop-up kitchen, Smash Pots, spearheaded by Chef Thaddeus Brandon, brings loaded potatoes to several area hotspots this summer; Gov. Jim Justice vetoes HB 5105, which would have removed vaccination requirements for students in virtual public schools and allow private and parochial schools to set their own standards; 16th annual Lewisburg Chocolate Festival is held on Apr. 6 in downtown Lewisburg and attracts a large crowd; Greenbrier County Primary Candidates Debates take place Apr. 8 and Apr. 11 at the Lewis Theatre in downtown Lewisburg; WV Division of Highways rename the Hart’s Run Bridge over Howard’s Creek the “U.S. Army PFC Frank Walker Mosley Memorial Bridge” in honor of long-time Greenbrier Resort employee and U.S. Army Veteran Frank Mosley, who passed away last year; Greenbrier County Commission appoints Nicholas “Nick” Dailey to the Commission following the passing of Commissioner Blaine Phillips; Lewisburg secures the 2024 USA TODAY 10 Best Readers’ Choice for Best Small Town Food Scene for the second year in a row; White Sulphur Springs learns they will receive $2.6 million for the construction of a bike park; many witness the moon reach its 91 percent coverage of the sun in West Virginia during eclipse on Apr. 8; Courthouse Farmers Market returns for the 2024 season; Tasty Bites opens at 201 S Monroe Street in Alderson; tickets for the annual Great Rubber Ducky Race at the Ronceverte River Festival, scheduled for this year on June 14 and 15 go on sale; the Greenbrier Valley Brewing Company hosts a PickleFest; the San Francisco World Spirits Competition has released the list of winners for their 2024 contest, which was held this April. Among the award winners were three West Virginia distilleries, including Greenbrier County’s Smooth Ambler Spirits in Maxwelton. This year, their Old Scout 7 Bourbon Whiskey earned a gold medal;
May
Chef Chad Jones and his wife, Jen, open Flavor Mutt in Ronceverte beside The Sportsman Tavern. They serve prepared food as well as baked items, in addition to providing bread for numerous local restaurants; Ronceverte holds a Food Truck Festival; Shawn Frazier opens a new family business, Clover Billiards, in Hart’s Run; Greenbrier County Schools Accounting Coordinator Wanda Mitchem is honored as the Greenbrier County Schools Service Personnel of the Year; the World Travel Awards releases winners of their 30th competition and the historic General Lewis Inn in downtown Lewisburg was selected as West Virginia’s Leading Boutique Hotel for 2023; the Alderson Archers finish second in a field of 199 other schools at the NASP Eastern National Tournament, in Kentucky; the WV Dandelion Festival, sponsored by White Sulphur Springs Main Street and the City of White Sulphur Springs is held over Memorial Day Weekend;
June
The popular fundraising event for ALS research, the Red Nose River Float, returns to the Greenbrier River on June 1; the 39th annual Greenbrier Valley Home and Garden Tour is held Saturday, June 8 featuring seven homes; the 69th annual Farmer’s Day Celebration is held in Union on June 7 and 8; owners of the Carriage Cafe restaurant in Rainelle, Bob and Sharon Selbe are honored for their dedication to service at the annual Governor’s Service Awards dinner at the Culture Center at the State Capitol; the Greenbrier Historical Society announces that Paul and Mary Lindquist are honored with the esteemed Dr. Emory Kemp Lifetime Achievement Award by the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia; MAX on Main opens in White Sulphur Springs; the 2024 Ronceverte River Festival is held Friday, June 14, and Sunday, June 15; June 13 is named Elder Abuse Awareness Day in Greenbrier County; Lewisburg City Council considers a day for food trucks to set up in two locations downtown. With many restaurants being closed on Mondays in the downtown area, it’s proposed to have a “Monday Mashup” where a select number of food trucks can set up shop in Lewisburg from the hours of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Greenbrier County Schools (GCS) is spending $14 million on a comprehensive energy savings project. They will receive a $2 million credit as part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and will save $500,000 annually on their utility bills; the annual Alderson 4th of July Celebration begins June 29; The area’s newest business, Lewisburg Paintball, holds their grand opening on June 29 with food, target practice, and discount paintball battles;
July
Healing Appalachia announces the lineup for their fifth annual music festival at the West Virginia State Fairgrounds. This year, the festival will run from Sept. 19 through Sept. 21; as of Monday, July 1, Timothy Loehmann resigns his position in the WSS police Department; Greenbrier East High School is ranked No. 39 of 111 schools in West Virginia in U.S. News & World Report’s 2024 Best High Schools rankings. The school was also ranked No. 27 of 111 in the state on the State Assessment Proficiency ranking factor; County Commission reviews bids for FEMA Hazard and Mitigation Grant Program; Deputy Chief Julian R. Byer, Jr. is sworn in as the new WSS Chief of Police; Domino’s Pizza opens for business on Coleman Drive behind Ruby Tuesday in Lewisburg; Rev. Sara Heino-Bissell of Monroe County opens Sara’s Sweet Treats in Union on Farmer’s Day weekend; Alderson Police Department recovers over $74,000 in counterfeit money in denominations of 20, 50, and 100 dollar bills; Ronceverte Food Pantry Board of Directors works through the details of acquiring the former Nazarene Church on Route 219. The current building will be demolished and a new building housing the food pantry will replace it; Greenbrier County Commission opens and discusses bids submitted by qualified contractors for the demolition of dilapidated structures in the county; WV Living magazine announces the opening of the annual Best of West Virginia Awards nomination period; the Greenbrier East High School Spartan Marching Band announces they have been invited to attend the Annual Pearl Harbor Remembrance Parade in December 2025 in Hawaii to represent the state and the battleship USS West Virginia in the parade;
August
The 2024 Lewisburg Literary Festival is held Aug. 3 and 4; Greenbrier County Schools announce the length of the school day will be reduced; Greenbrier County K-9 Officer, Layla, retires from active duty and ownership will be transferred from the Greenbrier County Commission to Lieutenant Steve Hudnall who has been her sole handler during her service to the county, and she’s a member of the Hudnall family. Hudnall agreed to assume full responsibility for Layla’s feedings, housing, and medical care for the remainder of her life at his expense; after living in a local hotel for a month due to a busted water line during a storm, all the residents of Morgan Manor are now back home; the State Fair of West Virginia opens its gates for their 99th season; the Rncvrt Café announces that they will be closing at the end of the month; Acorns To Oaks Recovery Inc., a nonprofit based out of western Greenbrier County, hosts the annual Greenbrier County Overdose Awareness Day Saturday, Aug. 24, at Roadside Park in Charmco; Greenbrier County Schools (GCS) proudly celebrates its 2025 Employees of the Year: Emily Dunkle (Greenbrier East High School), Tim Yunker (Greenbrier West High School), Elizabeth Dills Wood (Ronceverte Elementary), and Wanda Mitchem (Greenbrier County’s School Service Employee of the Year); annual Parade of Lights to honor first responders and others who lost their lives on September 11, 2001, is held in Fairlea; Smash GC Captain Brooks Koepka extends his LIV Golf record by winning LIV Golf Greenbrier for his fifth individual title; Lewisburg once again makes it into Travel + Leisure magazine, this time in a piece titled “10 Best Small Towns in West Virginia; the Justice Companies announce they had reached a deal to repay a delinquent lien to Beltway Capital (also known as McCormick). The lien was the subject of an auction planned for Aug. 27 on the steps of the Greenbrier County Courthouse. Beltway had intended to foreclose on the lien and sell the famed resort to the highest bidder; County Commission discusses Romano Law Office on Court Street as off-site voting location for the 2024 General Election to accommodate early voting for Eastern Greenbrier County due to ongoing renovations at the Greenbrier County Courthouse;
September
The Ronceverte Food Truck Festival returns; one of GHS’s esteemed Board Members, Janice Cooley, is invited to attend a prestigious Congressional Gold Medal Ceremony on Wednesday, Sept. 18, Emancipation Hall at the United States Capitol, to honor Katherine Johnson, Dr. Christine Darden, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson, as well as all the women who played a crucial role in the success of NASA during the Space Race. This recognition follows the passage of the Congressional Gold Medal Act, which seeks to highlight the invaluable contributions of these trailblazing women; a seafood restaurant, Seagull Seafood, opens in Greenbrier Valley Mall; Fall Flea Market returns to the West Virginia State Fairgrounds; County Roads Beer Co. opens in White Sulphur Springs; Chef Paul Smith and Josh Baldwin launch “Taste,” an online food and culture magazine focused on West Virginia; the Greenbrier County Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) brings home the award for Best Print Media for the 2024 Visitors Guide at the Stars of Almost Heaven Awards dinner hosted by the West Virginia Department of Tourism (WVDT); Healing Appalachia is held at the West Virginia State Fairgrounds; Greenbrier County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau announces the CVB will be going by a new name: Experience Greenbrier Valley; the Monroe County Commission announces the purchase of the county’s first 2024 Dodge Ram Truck Cruiser, funded entirely by jail reimbursement money;
October
The Greenbrier Artists celebrate 50 years of art in the Greenbrier Valley with a special anniversary art show; Lewisburg chefs send 500 meals to the North Carolina mountains to help flood survivors; Lewisburg hosts the Carnegie Hall TOOT and the Edgewood Presbyterian Arts & Crafts Show; early voting for the General Election begins in Lewisburg; the Greenbrier Historical Society announces that Board Member Janice Cooley has been selected as a Black Appalachian Storytelling Fellowship Awardee for 2024; 2024 State & Local Forum for the General Election takes place at the Lewis Theatre in downtown Lewisburg; at Greenbrier County Board of Education meeting board members vote to “direct the superintendent to compile the information necessary to make an informed decision about closing Crichton Elementary School”; Early Voting for the General Election begins in Greenbrier County; Rainelle Medical Center (RMC), gathers to celebrate the clinic’s 50th anniversary; the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia (PAWV) visits the HistoriCorps project at the Blue Bend Recreation Area to present an award for the Most Significant Save of a Historic Site for the 2024 West Virginia Historic Preservation Awards;
November
Hosted by the Lewisburg Farmer’s Market committee, the Winter Market is held every Saturday beginning on Nov. 2 and continuing until Dec. 21 at the Greenbrier Valley Brewing Company; in celebration of the opening of the newly renovated Alderson Elementary School, a Community Open House is held at the school; Spartan Marching Band finishes season first in their class in two championship competitions; the Greenbrier County Clerk’s Office releases unofficial election results following a strong voter turnout in the 2024 General Election, which saw 65.17% of eligible voters participate. Of the county’s 23,207 registered voters, 15,125 ballots were cast between early voting and Election Day on Nov. 5. Statewide, 759,815 ballots were cast, marking a turnout of 62.80% of West Virginia’s 1.2 million registered voters. It was a clear victory for former President Donald Trump with every county in the state of WV reporting Trump in the lead. Other statewide winners include Republican Gov. Jim Justice securing the senate seat, and two republicans, Carol Miller and Riley Moore, being elected to the House of Representatives. In the race for Governor, current Attorney General Patrick Morrisey (R) led with 9,039 votes (61.74%), defeating Democrat Steve Williams, who garnered 4,930 votes (33.67%). For Secretary of State, Republican Kris Warner received 10,248 votes (72%), while Democrat Thornton Cooper earned 3,985 votes (28%). In the Auditor’s race, Mark Hunt (R) won with 9,851 votes (70.07%) over Democrat Mary Ann Roebuck Claytor, who received 4,208 votes (29.93%). Larry Pack (R) ran uncontested for Treasurer and received 11,835 votes, while Kent Leonhardt (R) won the Commissioner of Agriculture race with 10,085 votes (71.13%) against Deborah Stiles (D), who earned 4,094 votes (28.87%). In the race for Attorney General, Republican John “JB” McCuskey won with 10,118 votes (71.40%) to defeat Democrat Teresa Toriseva, who garnered 4,053 votes (28.60%). In local elections, Greenbrier County saw a series of unopposed victories, including County Commissioner Tammy Shifflett-Tincher (R), who received 11,798 votes, and Prosecuting Attorney Nicole Graybeal (R), who earned 11,760 votes. Sheriff Bart Baker (R) and Assessor Joseph Darnell (D) also ran unopposed, securing 12,517 votes and 10,871 votes, respectively. For the House of Delegates, District 46 Republican Jeff Campbell received 4,532 votes (71.58%) to defeat Democrat Paul Detch, who earned 1,799 votes (28.42%). In District 47, Ray Canterbury (R) won with 5,485 votes (71.55%) over Democrat Kayla McCoy, who received 2,181 votes (28.45%). In the 48th District, Thomas Clark (R) won with 346 votes (74.41%) over Democrat Devin C. Spinks, who received 119 votes (25.59%). The Greenbrier County Commissioner race saw Ritchie Holliday (R) earn 9,546 votes against Brad Tuckwiller’s (D) 4,864 votes. For Amendment 1: Protection of Persons Against Medically Assisted Suicide, there were 6,091 votes (48.83%) cast for the amendment, and 6,382 votes (51.17%) against. Statewide, there were 335,822 votes for the amendment, or 50.46%, and 329,742 against the amendment, or 49.54%, meaning that Amendment 1 will be adopted into West Virginia’s constitution, making it more difficult for any potential legislative efforts to legalize state-sanctioned medically assisted suicide. The official results were certified by the Greenbrier County Clerk’s Office; Bella the Corner Gourmet has new owners – Ginger Steele-Giggenbach and her husband, Christian Giggenbach – who also own The Little Black Box; after over a year of construction, the City of Lewisburg’s new Public Works building approaches completion; the Greenbrier County Board of Education officially cuts the ribbon on the “new” Alderson Elementary School in the renovated former High School building; Eileen Kramer, who made headlines around the world throughout her impressive dance career, passes away peacefully on Nov. 15 at her home in Australia just one week after her 110th birthday;
December
Newest Commissioner Richie Holliday is sworn in; after a four-year hiatus following the pandemic, the Lewisburg Winter Music Festival returns; after being indicted for one count of murder in February 2023, the charge against Ronald “Ron” Ray McMillion is dismissed without prejudice in Greenbrier County Circuit Court. McMillion, who is now 73, was charged and arrested for the murder of Dee Ann Keene after an arrest warrant was issued by the Circuit Court of Greenbrier County upon the return of the indictment in 2023. He has been held in Southern Regional Jail since the indictment; Emily Calandrelli, a native of Morgantown, becomes the first female astronaut from West Virginia to enter outer space. Calandrelli made the trip to outer space with Blue Origin, the Jeff Bezos space tourism program which has now made nine flights; the Greenbrier West Cavaliers defeated the East Hardy High School Cougars in a narrow 3-1 win, securing the Class A Volleyball title; now in its 14th year, the Greenbrier County Memorial Angel Tree has returned to the Greenbrier Valley Airport Lobby for the holiday season; at the Dec. 10 meeting of the Greenbrier County Board of Education, Superintendent Jeff Bryant announces his recommendation that Crichton Elementary School remain open for the 2025-26 academic year; after nearly 40 years of dedicated service to the state and Greenbrier County, Sheriff Bruce Sloan announces he will retire on Dec. 31; Kram the Kennel is back for its 7th year at the Greenbrier Humane Society; Lewisburg City Council moves forward with Wayfinding kiosk, plans sidewalk for Feamster Road; the WV School Building Authority (WVSBA) awards $14 million in Needs-Based Grant funding to White Sulphur Springs Elementary School (WSSE) for a significant renovation and addition project; the Greenbrier County Commission discloses it is six months into a successful demolition project for dilapidated buildings around the county.