“We pray for our community. We pray for our county. We pray for our state. We pray for our nation,” shared Commissioner Roger Dahmer, county commissioner, in the customary invocation. All then recited the Pledge of Allegiance and the meeting got underway.
Rick Gillespie, Pendleton County Emergency Services coordinator, shared work planned for the General Services Building. Efforts starting during the summer will soon come together to revamp the entryway to prevent the general public and other office workers from accessing the GSB through the office of the Public Service District.
A second set of doors serving as a secure pass through will “help the flow of people” through there.
The onset of chilly weather in October also sparked discussion on heating solutions for the building. Gillespie noted that the commission would need to decide if the structure would use the old boiler for another year or install a modern system to heat different areas of the building.
Annie Humes came to the meeting to share that she and Hayley Craig, social studies teacher at Pendleton County Middle/High School, had been working with eighth graders on an America 250 project centered around a time capsule. They were learning about heritage and historical memory before choosing items to place in the capsule. The Pendleton County Commission granted permission to place the time capsule in the ground at the courthouse on Oct. 30 at 12:30 p.m. Humes noted they would have to bury the capsule two feet or more so it escapes the freeze-thaw cycle.
Darren Taylor provided a report on the South Branch Day Report Center, which operates from offices in Pendleton, Hardy, and Hampshire counties, following the three counties’ judicial circuit. Programs create an alternative to incarceration that benefits those trying to pay their debt to society while also taking steps to improve skills, behavioral patterns, communication, and other aspects of life to prevent recidivism. Day Report also helps counties to keep their regional jail bills lower.
“It’s been a very busy year for us,” Taylor shared.
Part of that has come through grants awarded during the past year. A major award came on Dec. 23, 2025, from the West Virginia First Foundation through the Momentum Initiative Grant. This initiative came from the board of directors of WVFF and is described as “a landmark opioid abatement investment” that “reflects a revolutionary, nationally distinctive model for stewarding settlement dollars.”
WVFF directs the distribution of awards from opioid settlement funds that came through a successful lawsuit by Patrick Morrisey during his tenure as West Virginia Attorney General.
Parameters for awards were set after a “structured multi-step approach.” It used input from local and state level experts and stakeholders, as well as “neutral and objective data-driven specialists.” Although the award came through the Hampshire County Commission, it covers programming in all three counties. The $250,000 award will go towards setting up a juvenile services division for the Day Report Center that would serve 12-to-17-year-old offenders. Taylor called it “a new opportunity to serve young people.” Taylor shared that the center held a “soft launch” in July with the program fully underway by Sept. 1.
A total of 15 clients came on to take part in the juvenile program from all three counties in the service area. South Branch Day Report also accepted clients from counties lacking similar juvenile programs, such as Ohio and Mineral. Just as the adult program, offenders have the obligation to take part in accountability-based trainings to build life skills, modify behavior, and help each find a different path in life away from crime.
New staff members have come on to help with case management and other needs while personnel in place, including Taylor, have pursued additional degrees and certifications to offer more services at the center. That “provides a higher level of care that the staff can give,” he added. Taylor also reported that Day Report moved its Pendleton County facility into the General Services Building.
“We appreciate all you do,” said Carl Hevener, Pendleton County Commission president. He added that “it seems like for every dollar you get, you find a dollar and a half.”
Mike Alt, training officer for Pendleton County Emergency Rescue, shared that calls for October had been “busier than normal.” One problem he identified was that “the National Forest is starting to tax our resources.” Turning to another resource question, he noted that the State remains fickle on whether or not it will fund the legally established EMS Salary Enhancement Fund.
The Pendleton County Commission filled in the gap left by the cessation of salary enhancement funding in 2025 and has covered the cost of higher stipends for EMS workers. These have resulted in improved response times. Hevener shared that they had budgeted for it. Alt responded that the need lay “somewhere in the neighborhood of $185,000.” He asked that if the commission could not cover the entire expense that “we need to know before it runs dry.”
Alt noted that this time, the “hold up” seemed to be in the West Virginia Treasurer’s Office.
Josh Dempsey, Pendleton County Sheriff’s Department chief deputy, came to represent his agency and spoke first about parking. At the request of the department, the Town of Franklin allowed for a specified number of feet on Chestnut Street to be marked off as law enforcement parking. This enhances the safety of prisoners and their guards during transfers by parking them by the secured door to the basement. Dempsey said they “won’t be draconian” about enforcement at first as residents got used to the new rules.
Hevener also asked about the progress of the installation of next generation rain gauges. Gillespie explained that these use GPS, as opposed to the older models in place that float on the river surface. The new gauges can provide more information sooner on the rise of rivers and streams in heavy precipitation. One has been installed at Seneca Rocks and is working well, but the rest are still awaiting placement.
