The 7th Annual Friends of Coal Auto Fair is set for July 16 – 18 at the YMCA Paul Cline Memorial Youth Sports Complex in Beckley, WV.  Friday, July 16 will begin the Fair with the Cruise-In to uptown Beckley for the Renaissance Car Show and live entertainment by former American Idol contestant and Beckley native, Robbie Carrico. 

Saturday will have the Live in Concert by The Charlie Daniels Band and Taylor Made, with special appearances by The Gold Knights Army Parachute Team and FOC spokesmen Coach Nehlen, Coach Pruett and Bass Master Jeremy Starks.  Tickets ($15.00 advance & $20.00 day of show) for the Concert will go on sale May 1st at select WV & VA Marquee Cinemas and the Beckley-Raleigh County YMCA.  

The Kanawha Valley Mining Institute’s 21st Hatfield Scramble will be held Tuesday, September 21, 2010 at the Brier Patch Golf Course in Beckley, WV.    

Hole Sponsorships and golf registration can be obtained by the web site:  http://www.kvmi.org/Registration.html            

This is the primary means for the KVMI to continue to sponsor its scholarship program for deserving students and is the most important reason for sponsorship of this golfing event.

To view the latest video from FACES of Coal. The video features stream biologist Ben Faulkner who explains why conductivity is a faulty standard for measuring stream health and breaks down the science of conductivity in easy-to-understand terms.
 
To watch the video, go to www.facesofcoal.org/facts/conductivity

News Release Courtesy of the MTM Coaltion

CHARLESTON – Thursday’s announcement by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers of its decision to suspend the use of Nationwide Permit 21 (NWP 21) in the Appalachian region of six states is discriminatory and threatens the economy of the region. In a June 17 announcement, the Corps said they will immediately suspend the issuance of mining permits under the NWP 21 standards for the mining industry in West Virginia as well as Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Virginia.

The Corps said in a release that the suspension “will remain in effect until the Corps takes further action on NWP 21 or until the program expires on March 18, 2012.”

Stephen G. Young, long-time vice president of government affairs at Consol Energy, died Tuesday in Pittsburgh.

Young was a native of Buckhannon and earned a bachelor's degree from Duke University in 1958 and a law degree from West Virginia University in 1964. He also served for three years in the U.S. Navy.           

In 1974, Young joined Consolidation Coal Co., a Consol Energy subsidiary, as director of state government relations after serving for six years as president of the West Virginia Coal Association.

Bill Raney, president of the West Virginia Coal Association, said, "Steve was one of the most exquisite minds in the industry over the years. He was a mentor of mine. He clearly was a shining light in terms of public policy and how to deal with Congress and the Legislature. I learned so much from him.

"He was a great American, a patriot, a Navy SEAL. He was devoted to the industry and the people who work in it and wanted to see it progress, particularly the industry in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Virginia, where Consol had such a presence.

"He's one of those persons whose credibility and integrity was always unquestioned," Raney said. "He was a dear friend."