Fed stimulus money paying youth for Summer Works
A federal program designed to provide America’s young adults with summer employment will soon be putting people to work in Crittenden County.
Amanda Wicker, on break from her psychology studies at Murray State University, is one of the first in the county to make herself available to employers through the Summer Works program. And she’s not picky about who writes the paycheck.
“I just want something that will pay,” the 19-year-old said Tuesday while filling out necessary paperwork at the Ed-Tech Center in Marion.
The federal Summer Works program is a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, passed by Congress earlier this year. It allows certain individuals between the ages of 18 and 24 to apply for work with employers who may otherwise not be hiring, because the six-week work term costs that employer nothing.
“The only requirement is to supervise the youth,” said Juliet Allen, one of the West Kentucky Workforce Investment Board representatives on hand Tuesday to assist applicants.
All costs associated with paying individuals hired through the program are paid through the $1.7 million in federal money awarded the 17-county WKWIB. Entry-level jobs with government, non-profits, small business and industry, even community service projects are eligible.
Employers can also take advantage of more than one Summer Works participant during the course of the program from June 1 to Sept. 15, though each applicant can work only one six-week term.
Applicants, though, must meet certain requirements to be eligible for assistance through the program. Besides being 18 to 24, prospective particpants must meet low-income guidelines and have limited work experience or qualifications.
“A lot of jobs are going to higher skill sets,” said Robin Tabor-Harper of WKWIB. “This is going to help get them some experience to put on a resume.”
While on campus at Murray, Wicker worked at a university grill, cooking meals for fellow students. The 2007 Crittenden County High School graduate is hoping to gain additional experience that may help her find a job next summer, or when she finishes college.
Tabor-Harper said that is important, especially during the current recession.
“These youth are actually competing with Mom and Dad for these jobs,” she said.
Wicker found out she may also qualify for additional, non-Summer Works assistance through WKWIB. Tabor-Harper said that is often the case when people find out all that WKWIB offers disadavantaged or dislocated workers.
Interested youth who missed Tuesday’s Summer Works career center program in Marion can also take advantage of other Summer Works sign-ups. On Friday, applications can be completed from 9 to 11 a.m., in Smithland at Dyer Hill Baptist Church or from 1 to 3 p.m., in Eddyville at the old courthouse.
Employers hoping to qualify for a Summer Works employee should call Becki Wells at 1-800-928-7233.
Information for both job applicants and employers can be found on Pennyrile Area Development District’s Web site at www.peadd.org/employ.

Safetran news offers hope for 400-plus out of work
The addition of 100 new jobs in Crittenden County is like 10,000 in a larger city, said Judge-Executive Fred Brown.
Brown and other local officials are hailing the news about Safetran's expansion which will include the retention and addition of a total of 150 jobs in the South Industrial Park.
The Safetran expansion project was reported in last week's newspaper, but details of the plan were not made public until late last week when the Kentucky Economic Development Cabinet posted information on its Web site.
Safetran, which has been operating in Marion since 2002, employs 50 full-time workers right now, but it received preliminary approval on April 30 for $2.2 million in state-tax incentives for a $2.8 million expansion project. That would bring its payroll to 150 employees.
According to public records on the Internet, the state has approved Kentucky Rural Economic Development Grant funds to help aid Safetran's expansion. It will be among the most significant state tax incentives ever granted to a Crittenden County manufacturer. Par 4 Plastics, another local manufacturer, received a $2.5 million state tax incentive for an expansion in 2007. That was the largest expansion project in the county in more than two decades.
The Safetran jobs are expected to pay an average hourly wage of $13, according to Safetran's KREDA application.
"It appears to me that one of the main reasons Safetran chose to expand in Marion is because of the hard-working, dedicated employees they have found here," said Brown, who once worked with many of those people at the former Siemens and Tyco plants.
"It's the biggest economic stimulus for this county since Par 4 Plastics increased its production," Brown said. "One hundred jobs for Marion is like 10,000 jobs for a larger city like Louisville. This is like having our own UPS hub or something equivalent. It's a major announcement."
Mayor Mickey Alexander said the news comes at a great time as other area plants are closing or laying off workers.
"In previous recessions, and we've had many, it seems like Marion is the caboose and when the economy is ready to take off again, we're the last to go. But this time it seems like we're going to get through this without any sudden halt in the local economy," the mayor said.
Alexander explained that the city's income tax revenue – a good barometer of the local economy – has been stable throughout the nationwide slowdown. Although there has been no growth over the last several quarters, there has been no major decline.
Alexander said city officials are optimistic that things will not get any worse here because the national economy seems to be improving slowly and Safetran will be adding these new jobs.
A few dozen Crittenden Countians lost their jobs last fall when Morganfield's Rayloc plant closed. Ronnie Moss was one of the workers left without a job and he's already applied at Safetran.
"I turned in my resume this morning," he said late last week. "It's good news for me, and I am sure it is for everyone else. Jobs are hard to come by these days and when they're right here in town that makes it all the better."
Moss said the average pay at Rayloc was around $17 an hour, but when time and travel expenses are figured in, the average pay expected at Safetran would mean about the same at the bottom line.
Moss, who is still drawing unemployment, worked at Rayloc for 14 years. He said not having to drive 30 minutes each way will be a big plus. It would give him more time to spend his with wife and three daughters.
Allen Crider, another laid off Rayloc worker, says he's interested in the news about the jobs being created, but he's going to take advantage of the free tuition being offered before he rejoins the workforce. Crider, 36, has enrolled in the two-year advance integrated industrial technology program at Madisonville Community College. His tuition and other incentives are being paid by federal and state programs for displaced workers.
"We're going to get training for welding, electrical, power generation, robotics, pneumatics and hydraulics. It's going to include the basics for about everything factories are looking for," Crider said.
After he completes that training, Crider said he'd hope to hire in at a better wage somewhere, and he is excited about the potential for new job opportunities in Crittenden County.
It's not clear when Safetran's new jobs will be available or if its current facility off South Main Street will have to be expanded. Those questions will likely be answered later this month when Gov. Steve Beshear and Safetran executives make a formal announcement.

Memorial Day events honor local veterans
The annual Memorial Day ceremony at the Blackford Walking Trail and Veterans Memorial has been cancelled this year, but several opportunties remain for people to pay their respects to America’s servicemen and women.
Brent Witherspoon, organizer of the Blackford services, said spring rains, coupled with delays in preparation due to prolonged clean-up from January’s ice storm, have made a mess of the area where the service is held, particularly the parking lot.
“I hate to do it, because I love doing this,” Witherspoon said Friday. “I'd rather not get people over there and get them in a mess.”
The Memorial Day service was initially planned for Saturday at the Walk of Honor, an area dedicated to local veterans of all wars. Witherspoon said the spring rains that have already fallen just made it too risky to ensure adequate parking.
Instead, Witherspoon is encouraging usual visitors to the ceremony to attend a barbecue dinner Saturday scheduled as a benefit for injured Iraq War veteran Chase Matthews of Dycusburg. The organizer of the Blackford services, who himself was injured in the Vietnam War, plans to attend the fund-raiser in Marion.
Funds raised from the benefit dinner for Matthews will go toward building the injured Iraq War veteran a home designed around his disabilities.
A former sergeant in the Kentucky Army National Guard, Mathews lost both legs and significant use of his left arm in a 2007 roadside bomb attack on the military transport he was driving in Iraq. Homes for Our Troops (HFOT), a national organization, has undertaken an effort to build Matthews and his family a new home in Eddyville designed specifically for his limitations.
This weekend’s dinner will raise money for the project through the cost of the meal – $7 for adults and $4 for children under 10. The dinner, organized by local volunteers, will be served at Crittenden County High School multi-purpose room from 5 to 8 p.m. The meal includes barbecue chicken, potato salad, baked beans, dessert and drink. Hamburgers and hot dogs are also available.
Matthews, a Crittenden County native who now lives in Eddyville, plans to attend the event.
Currently, donations of desserts – pies, cakes, etc. – are being sought for the meal and silent cake auction. Anyone wishing to donate a dessert should contact Crittenden County Extension Service at 965-5236. Pies and cakes will also be taken from noon until 3 p.m., at the multi-purpose room the day of the dinner.
Other Memorial Day-related services include:
American Legion Post 217 at Burna will be placing crosses to honor fallen heroes, in front of Livingston Middle School on U.S. 60 Saturday. A service will be held at 8 a.m., Sunday at the site. For additional information call 965-3940.
Memorial Day Services will be held Sunday at Tyner's Chapel in Salem with Bro. Clarence Cooper as the speaker. A potluck dinner will be served after volunteer gospel services and singing in the afternoon will follow meal.
The Shady Grove Cemetery Association will have its annual Memorial Service at 11 a.m., Monday with guest speaker and Crittenden County resident Capt. Barkley Hughes. Music will be provided by Sharon and Ben Herran. A meal will be served afterwards at the fire department.
Annual Memorial Day services at Mapleview Cemetery in Marion will be at 10 a.m., Monday at the war memorial. The American Legion event will feature Tommy L. Waldrop, Kentucky’s District 1 commander.