MTD 091626

Candidates make their case to voters during a Floyd County Chamber of Commerce forum and six people face federal charges related to Wise and other area counties. I'm Robin Tilman and this is the Mountaintop Daily. Election day is now less than two months away, meaning candidates are in the thick of campaign season. Last night, the Floyd County Chamber of Commerce invited candidates to get on stage alongside their opponents and make their pitch to voters. I went to the forum and spoke with a few of the candidates afterwards. Hey everyone, Robin Tilman here with Mountaintop News and I am at the Big Sandy Community and Technical College campus here in Prestonburg where the Floyd County Chamber of Commerce is about to hold a candidate forum. It starts here in just a few minutes at 5:30, goes till about 8:10, and we are going to see everyone from the Kentucky House District 95 to the Wheelwright mayoral race, uh, Prestonburg mayoral race, Floyd County Judge Executive, and even the Allen mayoral race. So, all of those candidates are going to be up on stage sharing their point of view. So, let's go inside and check it out. Candidates were asked questions by college president Todd Brand and given a set amount of time to answer. The total allotted time for each set of candidates was 20 minutes and topics covered infrastructure, schools, budgets, jobs, tourism, accountability, and transparency. >> All right, I'm here with Tanner Hesterberg, who is running for state representative. How did it feel to be on stage? >> Well, I'm really grateful for this opportunity tonight. I'm grateful to the Floyd County Chamber of Commerce and Big Sandy Community and Technical College for having this forum and giving people a chance to hear from the candidates. And it was an opportunity for me to share my vision for Floyd and Pike counties and show people why this is an an election that's not about the past, it's about the future. >> Okay. Now, I'm here with Johnny Ray Turner who is running against Tanner Hesterberg, who I just talked to. Why do you feel it's important to get out here with your constituents and talk to them? >> Well, it's always good to see people get out and get involved in politics because I believe that people aren't involved enough in politics. I believe that uh uh I I know I know a few a few young people that like 26 27 years old they're not even registered to vote. But people need to be more involved in politics. I think it's important that people get out and see see uh and try to vote for the people that that's what that they think is going to do the best job for them. I think voters deserve a chance to hear from all the candidates for office, hear about the ideas, hear about the accomplishments, how they can make things better for the people here in our community. So this is great. We just have to basically go through and talk about what we've been doing for the last seven years. And uh I think that's what people want to hear. They want to hear that, you know, have we been have we been successful and how are we going to continue to be successful? And I think that's what folks want to hear at these debates. And that gives them an opportunity to to get opposing views from me and my opponent and uh to to make a decision on on who they want to vote for in November. I'm here with Mike Khan who's running for mayor of Prestonburg. You have quite the posi behind you. >> Oh yeah. This is all fam. This is all family. They've backed me from from the get-go even when they thought I was crazy to actually want to do this. >> So are you making this party here pass out flyers and do all the hard work? >> Well, actually actually that I'm pretty much the one that's done the boots on the ground and going and talking with people and handing out stuff. But they have definitely reached out and helped me. But uh my wife Debbie here, she she tends to drive me around. She calls it driving Miss Daisy, but that's [laughter] okay. >> Get out of the boat. >> A federal drug investigation involving six defendants in Southwest Virginia and southern West Virginia has been unsealed this week after all of the suspects were taken into custody. The investigation began in November and centers on an alleged conspiracy to distribute meth and other controlled substances. The defendants are Zachariah and Dakota Thomas, Joyce Clower, Jeffrey Wells, Jonathan Hamilton, and James Hill. According to a federal affidavit, investigators alleged the group was involved in distributing large quantities of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine. Each is charged with conspiracy to distribute meth and fentanyl and possession of meth with the intent to distribute. The affidavit was initially sealed while authorities work to apprehend the suspects. All six defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. Coming up after the break, last night was a great opportunity to sample international flavors without leaving Pikeville. We'll take you to the Taste of the World dinner when the Mountaintop Daily continues. But first, sports and weather. >> What's up everybody? I'm Jackson Lucas and this is your Mountaintop sports recap. Last night, Paintsville submitted themselves as the best volleyball team in the region with a 3 to1 victory over Shelby Valley. Betsy Lane also picked up a 3 to1 win over Pikeville. [music] Looking ahead to this Friday, we will have live coverage of the longest running rivalry in the mountains. Belelfrey [music] will travel to Pikeville to take on the Panthers. The Pirates have won the past two matchups to bring the series lead to 41 [music] and 39 with two ties. Kickoff is set for 7:30. That's your Mountain Top Sports recap. [music] For the latest in sports, be sure to follow Mountaintop Sports on Facebook, Instagram, and X, or visit mountain-hopsports.com. [music] [music] Ned Pillarsdorf fights for the underdog in courtrooms where he advocates [music] for the most vulnerable and in classrooms where atrisisk kids get a second chance. Ned doesn't just [music] talk about things. Ned shows up and people notice. He's the best pro bono attorney in the nation. Now he's bringing his fight [music] to Washington. >> I'm Ned Pillarsdorf and I approve this message. Us hillbillies, we have a lot of sayings and there's one that sure holds true in wireless. If it sounds too good to be true, well, it probably is. And our other competitors, well, [music] bless their hearts. So, why put up with a carrier that surprises you with fees, confusing bills, and promises that don't add [music] up? At Appalachin Wireless, we believe in telling you like it is. No runaround, no big city sales pitch, just local people, dependable service, and a network [music] built for where we live. You know, the Kentucky way. So, keep it simple, keep it local, and keep it connected because we are you. We are Appalachin Wireless. Pikeville Rotary Club held their largest fundraiser of the year with the Taste of the World dinner. The annual event gives attendees the chance to sample foods from all around the globe, such as Irish, German, Japanese, Ukrainian, and more. There was even a hillbilly table. Nick went to the dinner, and while he didn't bring me any food, he does bring us a look. >> On Tuesday, September 15th, Pikeville Rotary Club hosted its 19th annual Taste of the World fundraiser at the Appalachin Wireless Arena. area residents could purchase a ticket to support Rotary and enjoy a wide variety of global cuisine. Rotary President Shelley Justice FA tells us about the evening. >> So, this is our 19th annual Taste of the World event. Um, it's it's going great so far. We had the the opening rush, [snorts] which is exciting. Um, but it all comes together tonight. You know, we've spent a couple months planning. Um, so we work in partnership internally with our Rotarians. Um, and we have friends and family who volunteer to provide food, but we also look to the community. We have sponsors from the community who provide meals for us. Um, and so we all come together, Rotarians, um, our Interact students, which is high school Rotary students, our Rotarak students, which is our college level Rotary students. We're here with a bunch of other volunteers, and we're serving. Um, I would love to be able to tell you a total of how many have come through the door right now. U, but I next year we need to do the clicker because I just we didn't get a count. Um, but it's a great crowd. Um, it's a really great time. >> The tradition began when Rotary members noticed another Kentucky Rotary Club organizing a similar event. All of Pikeville Rotary's other projects are funded by Taste of the World. >> So, approximately 2006, we had some internal Rotarians visit another club in the state of Kentucky. Um, and that club was doing a similar event, an international dinner, and they saw the benefit of bringing the community together, letting them have the different types of cuisine, uh, but also the benefit of the fundraiser. And so this is our largest fundraiser of the year. So all of our projects that we are able to do in the community comes from this event. And then we have our pancake day event that's in December as well. And it also helps. Um but uh yeah, approximately 2006 they saw it, they saw the benefit and they've brought it and we have grown and grown and grown. Um if I recall correctly, I think we just started with seven tables. Um and today we have 14 different tables plus desserts represented. >> Reporting for Mountaintop News, I'm Nick Colum. That will do it for this edition of the Mountaintop Daily. Be sure to check us out at 6 PM every weekday on Mountaintop TV, the Mountaintop TV app, and the Mountaintop News Facebook page. With your Mountaintop Daily, I'm Robin Tilman for Mountaintop News.