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* Local and regional economic development officials have done an excellent job cultivating relationships that bring new interest from those who might one day consider building (and employing) here. Last week, Keith Burdette, president of the West Virginia Polymer Alliance Zone and Lindsey Piersol, executive director of Wood County Economic Development, helped host a delegation of Japanese corporate executives who had been encouraged to tour local sites and facilities by Futoshi Sotani, president of SOMAR, which opened a facility in Davisville earlier this year. Burdette was right to be proud of the contacts and relationship that helped bring the visit to fruition. "Hopefully when the time comes when they are ready to do business here, they choose West Virginia and hopefully Wood County specifically," Piersol said. There would be little cause for such hope if officials were not diligently working to make such visits a reality. Keep up the good work, folks.
* If you're looking to get into the holiday spirit, the Mid-Ohio Valley offers something for everyone this season. Though our beautiful annual Christmas parades have marched past, there are still lights tours, home tours, community meals, special productions and concerts aplenty. From the mall to the park to our many stages, it's easy to find a little extra Christmas cheer. We are truly fortunate to have so many willing to organize these annual traditions for the rest of us.
* For some nearing the end of this chapter in their academic careers, December graduations are to be celebrated this season, too. Congratulations to those who have achieved their goals and are looking forward to next steps. Surely all that hard work will mean -- whatever the next step -- you're setting off on the right foot.