Local man completes naval training

PROCTORVILLE — Navy Seaman Recruit John A. Thomas, son of Angela D. and John C. Thomas of Proctorville, recently completed U.S. Navy basic training at Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Ill.

During the eight-week program, Thomas completed a variety of training which included classroom study and practical instruction on naval customs, first aid, firefighting, water safety and survival, and shipboard and aircraft safety. An emphasis was also placed on physical fitness.

The capstone event of boot camp is “Battle Stations.” This exercise gives recruits the skills and confidence they need to succeed in the fleet.

“Battle Stations” is designed to galvanize the basic warrior attributes of sacrifice, dedication, teamwork and endurance in each recruit through the practical application of basic Navy skills and the core values of Honor, Courage and Commitment.

Its distinctly ‘’Navy’’ flavor was designed to take into account what it means to be a sailor. Thomas is a 2010 graduate of Fairland High School of Proctorville.

Ashland resident named as CMA photo contest submission winner

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Country Music Association asked for photographs to help celebrate the 40th anniversary of CMA Music Festival, and the fans delivered!

During the last few weeks, former attendees of the event (which started as Fan Fair in 1972) submitted hundreds of photographs of themselves posing onsite with their favorite artists for a chance to be included on the tickets for the 2011 Festival. The 2011 CMA Music Festival will be held Thursday-Sunday, June 9-12 in Downtown Nashville, and will once again be filmed for an ABC Television special that will air later this summer.

Six photos were chosen to be used on the Festival tickets, but all submitted photographs will be included in an on-going photo archive documenting the legendary event. All six winning photographs will also be displayed on CMAfest.com, the official Internet home of CMA Music Festival.

The third place winner was Jamie Leslie of Ashland, Ky., for her photo with Jason Aldean from 2010, taken in the Fan Fair Exhibit Hall in the Nashville Convention Center. The photo will be used on the Lower Level tickets for this year’s Festival. Leslie will receive a plaque displaying a ticket containing her winning photograph; and a merchandise prize pack.

Since beginning as Fan Fair in 1972, CMA Music Festival has hosted thousands of visitors from across the globe and celebrated the unique bond between Country Music artists and its fans.

OU announces winter quarter dean’s list

ATHENS — Ohio University has announced the names of 3,647 students from the Athens Campus who have been named to the 2011 winter quarter dean’s list.

Students from Lawrence County that made the list: Zachary Gebhardt, Coal Grove; Jonathan Norris, Ironton; David Theiss, South Point; Anthony Davidson, South Point and Daniel Kelly, South Point.

To be named to the dean’s list, a student must have earned a grade point average of at least a 3.5 for the quarter and have earned a minimum of 16 quarter hours, 12 of which were taken for letter grades.

Ribbon cutting set for new VA mental health complex

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Edward H. Seiler, director of the Huntington VA Medical Center, extends an invitation to veterans, their families and members of the community to attend a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Mental Health Complex on Thursday at 3 p.m. Refreshments and tours will immediately follow the program.

The complex, located on the west end of the hospital campus, includes a three-story, 18,800 square foot Mental Health Clinic, providing expanded outpatient mental health treatment programs for area Veterans. In addition, a three-story, 10,000 square foot building housing a new Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Center will serve as a day treatment facility for Veterans who are seriously mentally ill. Renovation projects on the two buildings were recently completed at a combined cost of $7.4 million.

Dr. Kendra Weaver, mental health services manager for the VA MidSouth Healthcare Network (VISN 9), will be keynote speaker. Weaver oversees the mental health programs for more than 60,000 Veterans who receive care at VA Medical Centers in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Huntington, W.Va.

The Huntington VA Medical Center serves 30,000 Veterans residing in 10 counties in West Virginia, 12 counties in eastern Kentucky, and two counties in southern Ohio. For information about local VA healthcare services, visitwww.huntington.va.gov.