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Columnists

FRED FIRST: Approaching the Longest Night

Yes, you’re right—if you’ve even noticed—that this space has been neglected for some weeks now, and it has been hard to figure out where and how to jump back...

A Life Well-Lived: Shirley Padgett Lester (1947-2025)

Shirley Padgett Lester of Vinton went to her heavenly reward October 4. Below is the...

BOB BROWN: How the White House Functioned With a Diminished Biden “Presidency”

Permit me to think out loud as an old-fashioned person who respects authority, history, and...

JOHNNY ROBINSON: The Gratitude Perch

On the old road up Mill Mountain, part of Roanoke’s fabulous greenway system, there’s a...

ROBERT L. MARONIC: Sometimes President Trump Needs To Think Before He Speaks – Part II

Contrary to what President Trump believes, I think that Lakanwal was adequately vetted before September 2021,...

It’s The Holidays When All Thoughts Turn To South American Polo Players, Bathing Beauties, Xavier Cugat And Mistaken Identities

How's that?  Here's how:  It starts with all-American beauty Esther Williams and Latin lover Ricardo Montalban.  In the 1940's Hollywood paired them in...

“Until One Has Loved an Animal . . .”

I was using my lathe in my outdoor wood shop when McChesney came to call. He sat first here, then there, I fed him...

Recognizing God’s Grace

God’s grace often comes in unexpected, unrecognized ways, and, truth be told, is sometimes unwelcome. Such was my experience when I learned that...

Deep Fried Black Eyed Peas

Luck, luck, luck! Some days just seem to come together right before your very eyes and you know that you’ve had very little...

Nothing Puts the Fear of God in You Like . . . by Stuart Revercomb

Quick! What two words strike the most fear into both Christian believers and non-believers alike? That’s right! Everybody knows the answer to that...

Christmas Surf and Turf “Schtake and Yobster”

The stories of a Christmas past are so fun to hear; it is like stepping into someone else’s life when a friend shares...