Grayson City Council heard a presentation by April Frazier at their regularly scheduled January meeting. The presentation was a follow-up to her presentation to the Grayson Tourism Commission, seeking funding for a proposed project. Offering context to the request, Mayor Troy Combs said he had spoken with Frazier earlier and told her that her proposed project (mentoring and enrichment for area youth) might have a broader application than funding covered by tourism.

“Her program is about youth enrichment and mentoring, and might have applications for substance abuse prevention,” Combs explained to the council. “We obviously have a budget where we can expend resources for programs like this, so I invited her here to speak to the council.”

Frazier then gave the council greater detail.

“It would be an after-school program,” Frazier told the council. “We have a great need in Carter County to do something with our youth. We do not have a lot of childcare and we do not have a lot of options for our families.”

The result, Frazier told the council, was that Carter County families have to choose to either work or take care of their children.

“And that does not help us as a community,” Frazier said.

“The average population (living in) poverty in the state of Kentucky is 16 percent,” she told the council. “Carter County’s percentage is 26.”

Frazier told the council that children who participate in after school programs, such as the one she proposed, have a higher success rate. It also helps those children connect with the community where they live, she said.

“What I am asking for is a letter of support from the city so that we can begin the process of applying for grants and other funding,” Frazier told the council. “We would like to start a pilot program. And we would like it to run the hours from about 3 to 6 p.m.”

Frazier added that she has already spoken with several local teachers who said they would help tutor those students in the program who needed help.

“We also have people who can come and speak,” Frazier said. “We can have classes on things like how you budget and teaching kids life skills. A lot of kids know how to use Cash App, but they don’t know anything about banks and bank accounts.”  

Council Members discussed the program with Frazier, encouraging her to streamline the proposal and included a budget, a scope of impact – including whether it was just in city limits or beyond, and then come back to discuss the proposal again at a future meeting.

In other business, FIVCO Director Lance Hanshaw addressed the council and presented them with a plaque in appreciation for their close work with the regional development agency.

“I just wanted to take a moment to appreciate the City of Grayson for the work that you do,” Hanshaw told the council. “I wanted to present you with this plaque to recognize your partnership and collaboration in advancing our region forward.”

The council also heard department reports from department heads. This included McClain Dyer reporting that he was in the process of compiling a list of all commercial properties available for sale in the city, and that the list would be completed soon. Roger Dunfee reported that emergency management was in the process of updating all of their procedures for winter weather emergencies. Dunfee said that emergency management had been communicating with other related agencies and was as prepared as possible.

Contact the writer at charles@cartercountytimes.com

Grayson Chamber of Commerce President Jill York welcomed chamber members back for a brand-new year at the January 2026 chamber meeting. Chamber Director Mike Nelson said the chamber was starting the year off well with 232 current members. Nelson pointed out that a current chamber member business, Collins and Company, will be rebranding, becoming a children’s clothing store and changing their name to Tiny Blessings.

Nelson also gave an update on the Mistletoe Market; a promotion the chamber held during the Christmas season to encourage people to shop in Grayson. Local member businesses were given punch cards that they punched for each ten dollars a customer spent in their store. Customers could then present the card at any other participating store where they also spent at least ten dollars for another punch, until they filled up the card. Once the punch card was filled – ten punches representing $100 spent in local businesses – they could be filled out and dropped into a box in whatever store was convenient. The chamber then held weekly drawings for shop local gift cards, ranging from $50 to $500 in value. Those cards, which work exactly like debit cards, could be used at any chamber member business.

“We did really well with the Mistletoe Market,” Nelson told the chamber. “We distributed all of the punch cards, except maybe a couple of hundred.”

That meant well over 2,000 of those cards were distributed, he said, highlighting just how substantial customer response had been.

“It exceeded our expectations,” Nelson said. “So, we are going to have another promotion, probably in the Spring, probably around Easter.”

President York said the success of the punch cards yielded a lot of useful information as well as revenue. By examining the data on the cards that were entered into the drawings the chamber could determine what percentages of purchases were made by local consumers and what percentage were from out-of-town shoppers.

“We will be digging into that more,” York told the chamber. “And we want to thank all the local merchants who participated in that.”

In other chamber reports, the Grayson Chamber of Commerce reported they had raised $5,000 for Project Merry Christmas.

Ashley Traylor from Grace and Gray Social Media Marketing was the guest speaker at the meeting and discussed numerous ways for businesses to grow their presence on social media platforms while maintaining security.

“Social media gives you the opportunity to showcase your brand globally,” Traylor told the chamber. “It’s not something that is just in Grayson, or Olive Hill, or Kentucky. What you put out there can be found by anyone. As of early 2025, 5.41 billion people use social media globally. And the average user spends just under two and a half hours daily on social media.”

Traylor pointed out the top four social media platforms (Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok), with Facebook being the platform with the most consistent traffic. Using a business she personally does the social media for, Traylor pointed out how traffic to a particular post changes, and can be enhanced. One way to enhance this traffic, she said, was with emblems used in the post that help keep your branding consistent. Another is to post surveys to increase interaction, regardless of whether or not the survey itself has anything to do with the business.

Traylor provided a few basic ‘Dos and Don’ts’ in her presentation to the chamber. Among the ‘Don’ts’ were things like not downloading an image to use without permission, don’t expect instant results for each social media interaction, and don’t ignore comments on your posts.

 “If someone takes the time to comment on one of your posts, take the time to respond, even if it is just a simple thank you,” Traylor said.

On the list of ‘Dos,’ Traylor said to be ready to try new things. Also included are creating content for your ideal customer, and being consistent and posting regularly. This, she said, increases customer confidence.

Traylor can be found, of course, on various social media platforms and is in the business of helping both new and established businesses enhance their social media presence and grow their individual brands.

Contact the writer at charles@cartercountytimes.com

By Jeremy D. Wells

Carter County Times

The El Hasa Shriners have issued their year-end report for hospital fundraising in 2025, showing that the fraternal organization raised more than a quarter million dollars – a total of $268,240.06 – for the two Shriners Children’s Hospitals in our region. This included significant contributions from Shriner affiliated groups, like the Hillbilly Clan and Order of the Quetzalcoatl, and from Shriner sponsored events.

The Carter County Shrine Club contributed $15,000 to that total from their horse show and other events, with $10,000 going to Shriners Children’s Lexington, and $5,000 to Shriners Children’s Lexington. But that isn’t all the local club raised. Their paper sale raised an additional $5,700 for the hospitals, for a total contribution of $20,700 from Carter County, according to club treasurer Gary Justice.

Outgoing president of the Carter County Shrine Club, Harry Justice, noted how much these contributions meant to the families who benefit from the Shriners Hospitals, and how rewarding it is for the Shriners who work these fundraising events.

“I know to the kids that the Shrines help, it means a place they can go that they don’t need to be afraid, or worry about a burden to their family,” Justice explained. “They know that this is a place of people who want the best for them. And who love and care about them. The Shrines organization, it’s all about the children. And, from the parents’ side, I’ve talked to so many from where I work that come in here and mention their children have been helped by the Shriners. And it didn’t cost them a dime. They always mention how thankful they are.”

He said the community echoes that support when they contribute at fundraising events.

“I know when you collect money, like on paper sales, people say they love the Shriners. And they’re happy to donate to the Shriners, because of all the good work they do.”

Incoming 2026 President Donny Owens, Jr. noted that visiting the hospital, and seeing firsthand the work being done to help the children, is one of the more humbling things he’s experienced.

“It’s amazing, to see the things they do, and the difference they can make in these families’ lives,” Owens said.

Contact the writer at editor@cartercountytimes.com

The nonprofit organization Trail Town is working to open up the natural beauty of Olive Hill and promote tourism. Trail Town President Jesse Oney said Trail Town was started in 2012 after major flooding in the area.

“We started looking at Olive Hill as a place we could have a major trail system,” Oney said. “We got a task force together and mapped the Red Trail out really well.”

And after that first step to establish non-motorized trails, the project grew.

Oney said the next to be mapped was the Blue Trail that follows waterways from Olive Hill to Carter Caves.

“It begins at the Depot in Olive Hill,” he said of the Blue Trail.

The Red Trail, he said, goes to what was the old city lake but is now called Firebrick Lake.

“We changed the name of it to Firebrick Family Recreational Park,” Oney said. “And we are making it into a park for everyone to use whether it be horseback riding, walking, or bicycle riding. If you want to bring a kayak to the lake, you can do that.”

“We have plans for a shelter house up there too,” he said of upcoming improvements. “We will be putting in restrooms there, and will be making the park bigger and easier for people to get into and out of.”

“Right now, there are three access points to the lake we can use,” Oney said. “One is on Perry Branch, there is the Ranch Road access, and the Garvin Ridge entrance.”

“We use Garvin Ridge as more of a maintenance entrance right now,” he said. “But anyone that wants to access it can use all three entrances.”

Everything the group does is to state specifications, Oney said. Even the prohibition of motorized vehicles is designed to prevent any kind of contamination to the land, and to ensure that the water system is not polluted.

“Any trail that crosses a stream, we have to treat that stream as a crucial natural resource because it is. Everything we do is EPA compliant.”

The group’s goal is to protect the lake while utilizing the land around it. The walking trails, bike trails, and horse trails will allow both local residents and tourists alike to enjoy the land while protecting it, Oney said.

“Right now, we have a minimal amount completed,” Max Hammond, who is affiliated with both Trail Town and the Warrior’s Path said of the project’s progress. “We are working through a volunteer effort, and we are going up there and building the trails properly in compliance with the Kentucky Office of Nature Preserves. And we are building them to the International Mountain Bike Association standards.”

The trails that Trail Town are building will be all earth trails, both Oney and Hammond said.

“There will be no necessity of bringing in any material that doesn’t already exist at the city lake,” Hammond said. “The only exception would be some gravel for expanded parking.”

“And that’s one thing that makes the project unique,” Hammond said. “According to the International Mountain Bike Association, this has the potential to be the finest mountain bike park east of the Mississippi.”

“The reason for that is our soil,” he explained. “It is primarily clay; the same clay that was used at our brick yard. That soil is moldable into almost any shape you could imagine.”

“Anything we build is going to stay the way we build it,” Oney said of the clay’s inherent value.

Currently Trail Town is working on building a bridge so that they will be able to open another trail. One bridge has been built already, but another is still needed. This trail, he said, will be designated the Purple Trail, and will be dedicated to one of the group’s volunteers who has gone above and beyond during the process. He predicts that trail opening will be near the end of February, Oney said.

The design of this Trail Town project was the result of a grant written to the International Mountain Bike Association.

“We were one of ten communities picked nationwide who received a grant to design the park,” Hammond said. “Once we had the design of the park, we went to the Department of Local Government and wrote a Recreational Trails Program grant. We were awarded $159,000 in funding for that.”

Both Oney and Hammond said that there had been a lot of work done on the trails in 2025, and they hope to make an equal amount of progress in the coming year. Anyone interested in learning more about the project and how they can volunteer should visit the Trail Town Facebook page. Oney said they are grateful for the community support they have received, and said the project would not be able to be completed without the residents of Olive Hill and beyond.

Contact the writer at charles@cartercountytimes.com