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 Local resident Darren Dennison speaks at a fiscal court meeting after being appointed to the Edmonson Co. Water District Board. Madison Doyle, story and photo: Edmonson County Fiscal Court met Monday, February 26, 2024. The meeting was called to order by Judge Executive Scott Lindsey, followed by various county department heads giving standard their standard reports. The first major discussion of the meeting began with Leah Thompson, who spoke on behalf of the Barren County Child Advocacy Center. Thompson first explained to the court that the Child Advocacy Center, (CAC), is an organization that helps children who have experienced sexual abuse, sexual trauma, etc. She said that last year, CAC helped a total of 35 Edmonson County children. Thompson went on to explain the federal government has cut the budget for the next fiscal year (2025), and they will be losing a whopping amount of $350,000. The CAC was provided no explanation for these extreme budget cuts, she said. This will cause crucial jobs to be lost, such as mental health therapists for these children who are in "desperate need", as Thompson put it. Thompson asked the court to donate $6,000 to the organization in the hopes the CAC won't have to terminate important roles. She mentioned that she visited multiple fiscal court meetings in counties that seek help from the CAC, asking them for donations - in an amount tailored to the number of children the CAC helps in that area. Edmonson County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Tim Jackson spoke up and said the Sheriff's office has already looked into this matter, and mentioned a private donor was interested putting up the money. Thompson said anybody can donate any amount at any time, and all donations are "appreciated more than words can say". No action was taken by the court. Following this, the Peoples Bank made a brief presentation. At the previous fiscal court meeting, the court voted to move all county government banking to one single bank, which you can read more about here. Donna Shockley, branch manager of Peoples Bank in Brownsville said the county has banked with them for years, and they would really hate to see them go. She said they could offer the county a fixed rate of 5.05%, for one year, which was a "huge deal". She said they can revisit that offer again after the year was over. Another spokesperson from the Peoples Bank mentioned the county has a loan request in place with them that would refund FEMA dollars, which they could not honor if the court took their banking elsewhere.  Donna Shockley, branch manager of Peoples Bank in Brownsville, speaks to the Fiscal Court on Feb. 26, 2024. Mag. TJ Massey spoke up and asked for clarification on the loan request, to which the Peoples Bank representative responded "the county currently has a loan request for roadway repairs...FEMA dollars. This was under the impression that we would have the deposit accounts. We learned last week that you all decided to move to Bank of Edmonson County. So if that's the case, I assume you'll want them to file that loan." No other questions were asked, no action was taken, and the meeting moved to the next item of business. It was later voted on that the county purchase new checks/deposit books at Bank of Edmonson County for new accounts in the amount of $3,801. Darren Dennison and Josh Brooks were appointed to the Edmonson County Water Board, with Dennison's position being effective immediately and Brooks' position effective March 1st, 2024. Dennison was present at the meeting tonight, and said he had 30 years of experience in this business, and he was "honored and humbled to serve the county he raised his children in, and that he calls home." Dennison’s leadership at the Leitchfield Water Plant has earned several accolades and awards over the years. The court also voted to:
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