HIDDEN GEMS: Inner Sanctums of Peace, History and Beauty Nora Edinger February 18, 2020 Editor’s note: This is the second in an ongoing series of stories about beautiful spaces in Wheeling that are rarely seen. Today’s post features two tiny chapels, one located inside the city’s oldest standing c...
‘Suspended Aggravation’: Chapter 3 Nora Edinger February 16, 2020 Editor's note: Suspended Aggravation is an original, Wheeling-centric novel by Nora Edinger and is published exclusively through Weelunk. While some of the places mentioned in Suspended Aggravation are real (or...
Census 2020: City of Wheeling Counting on You Nora Edinger February 14, 2020 The following questions will not appear on the 2020 U.S. Census that is heading to your mailbox in March: • Have you tripped over broken sidewalk concrete near your home recently? • How is the playground equi...
It’s a Workers’ Market in Wheeling Nora Edinger February 12, 2020 A growing economy plus a 5 percent unemployment rate equals something Wheeling hasn’t seen for some time — a workers’ market. Here’s a quick look at what is going on in this new decade, according to business...
‘Suspended Aggravation’: Chapter 2 Nora Edinger February 9, 2020 Editor's note: Suspended Aggravation is an original, Wheeling-centric novel by Nora Edinger and is published exclusively through Weelunk. While some of the places mentioned in Suspended Aggravation are real (or...
CULTIVATED IN WHEELING, W.VA.: High-Flying, Sea-Sailing Duo Brings Show Home Nora Edinger February 5, 2020 If the aerial acrobatics in the video and slide show below seem like something you shouldn’t try at home, that would be a wise assumption. Yet, that’s just what Wheeling native Megan Wilson and her Londoner hus...
‘Suspended Aggravation’: Chapter 1 Nora Edinger February 2, 2020 Editor's note: Suspended Aggravation is an original, Wheeling-centric novel by Nora Edinger and is published exclusively through Weelunk. While some of the places mentioned in Suspended Aggravation are real (or...
Here’s How to Navigate Wheeling’s Road Construction Nora Edinger January 17, 2020 A good map and a few country roads may soon be required to take Ohio County drivers home. Or, to work. Or, pretty much anywhere else. The replacement of the westbound Fulton Bridge will entirely cut off a se...
2020 Vision: Wheeling Leaders Looking Ahead Nora Edinger January 1, 2020 Weelunk doesn’t have a crystal ball to foresee how Wheeling’s future will unfold in 2020, but today’s post is the next best thing. Leaders from all over the city and county share their top goals for the coming ...
Birds of a Feather Count Together Nora Edinger December 27, 2019 On the day of Christmas Bird Count, nature gave to meeeee: 125 Canada geese a-grazing, eight mallard ducks a-swimming, five American crows a-mobbing (a raptor) … and a downy woodpecker drumming in a treeeee. ...
HIDDEN GEMS: A Tale of Two Chapels Nora Edinger December 23, 2019 Editor’s note: Today’s post on two gem-like chapels launches a new occasional series on lovely but lesser-known facets of Wheeling’s architectural heritage. You’ve driven past them. One tiny chapel on Nation...
Cold Hands, Warm Heart: Park Manager Loves His Work Nora Edinger December 20, 2019 Sometimes it takes a village. Other times, one guy will pretty much do. The latter seems to be the case with Nat Goudy, manager of Wheeling Park. Sure, he has plenty of staff as back up. But having started h...
Wrapping Up Ho-Ho-Home for the Holidays Nora Edinger December 16, 2019 Editor's note: Weelunk updates a story we shared four years ago about a business that ships various tastes of Wheeling that are near and dear to natives' hearts (and stomachs). Some traditions never grow old, a...
Soul Is the Goal for Church Christmas Programs Nora Edinger December 4, 2019 Did you ever wear angel wings constructed out of wire coat hangers and tinsel? Or was it a shepherd’s costume that involved the most discreetly patterned bathrobe in the house, a pillowcase, and some rope? ...
Shop Small on Saturday and Carry a Big Bag Nora Edinger November 29, 2019 Sometimes you just want to shop in your jammies. Sometimes you need everything from an ice scraper to almond butter, and only a big box will do. Other times, you want to smell those coffee beans grinding, ru...
At Rest: OVMC Nurse-Training Skeleton Memorialized Nora Edinger November 20, 2019 Editor’s note: In late October, Weelunk posted a story by Kelly Strautmann that gave an in-depth look at how this community-sponsored burial came to be. Click here for the back story. No one knows her name, ...
Little Library Kiosk Whisks You Away to Story Land Nora Edinger November 19, 2019 There are LIBRARIES. And, there are libraries One of the latter — a wee kiosk of books and stripey art — popped up in recent days in the Woodsdale neighborhood of Wheeling. The work of middle schooler Jayma ...
Long Haul: Police, Mental Health Pros Grapple With OVMC Closure Nora Edinger November 12, 2019 Editor’s note: As part of ongoing coverage of the fallout from regional hospital closures, Weelunk looks today at what is happening to some of the most vulnerable patients who used to come through the doors at ...
Planning Is Key to Making Headway on the Highways for the Holidays Nora Edinger November 4, 2019 If the coming holiday season will have you literally traveling over the river and through the woods — even if it’s only to the mall you go — you may want to spend a few minutes planning your route before you le...
Hide and Seek: OV Docs, Patients Trying to Find New Normal Nora Edinger October 23, 2019 Editor’s note: Following the sudden closures of Ohio Valley Medical Center and East Ohio Regional Hospital in recent weeks, more than 1,200 health care workers are on the move. From dietary staff to surgeons, t...
TIME TO GREEN UP: They’re Back! Recycling Bins to Hit The Highlands Nora Edinger October 11, 2019 Editor’s note: Part of a continuing series on the environment, today’s post checks out how area recycling programs are faring a year after China’s sudden pullback from a role as the global buyer of recyclable c...
Cultural Food Tour Offers Tasty View of History Nora Edinger September 20, 2019 The waves of immigration that fueled Wheeling’s industrial era didn’t disappear with the factory jobs. Kibbeh. Pierogi. Schnitzel. Marinara. They’re all still here. Sometimes in restaurants and at festivals,...
TIME TO GREEN UP: Solar — ‘Go Big or Go Home’ Need Not Apply Nora Edinger September 9, 2019 Editor’s note: If going solar sounds intriguing, but you are worried it’s too pricey, too “panelly,” or just, well, too much, today’s Greening Up post shares the stories of two area residents who are living and...
Bishop Mark E. Brennan: ‘The Only Way to Overcome Evil Is With Good’ Nora Edinger September 3, 2019 Editor’s note: Today’s post — part of an ongoing Weelunk series on Spirituality in the Ohio Valley — features a candid interview with Bishop Mark E. Brennan, newly installed leader of the Wheeling-Charleston Di...
Vineyard at 40: Still a ‘Rock and Roll Church’ Nora Edinger August 23, 2019 The naked ladies were a bit of a stretch, but if there were ever a church that could cope with Art Nouveau statues in its “sanctuary,” the Vineyard would be it. “We Photoshopped Hawaiian shirts on them,” lea...
Javersak: Job Sea Change the Historic Rule for Wheeling Nora Edinger August 14, 2019 Editor’s note: In continuing coverage of Wheeling employment and business, Weelunk asked local historian David Javersak to put recent job losses in long-time perspective. For a specific examination of health ca...
Getting Along Swimmingly With ‘Miss Pudgie’ Nora Edinger August 5, 2019 You may be 5 and full of the moxie only a fine pair of water wings can bring, but don’t think you’ll be getting away with anything at Grandview Pool. Miss Pudgie is watching and can act faster than the fitte...
Rice, Beef, Tomatoes, Love and Prayers Go Into Greek Grape Leaves Nora Edinger July 16, 2019 There’s a practical reason Lesa Tustin wears her apron inside out. It’s one of perhaps a million tweaks in the city’s ever-unfolding presence of Greek immigrants and food inspired by sea and sun. “It this ri...
Will Charter Schools Land in Ohio County? Nora Edinger July 12, 2019 Editor's note: As this story was in final production, the West Virginia Education Association (teachers union) launched a lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of the new state law that authorizes chart...
Looking to the Past and to the Future, Wheeling Heritage Celebrates 25 Years Nora Edinger June 11, 2019 Most city residents probably don’t realize that every trip to the grocery store, every school bus run and all those drive-thrus for coffee are all taking place within a national park of sorts. And, they have...
Industry Check-Up: Hospitals Battling for Turf Nora Edinger June 3, 2019 A spanking-new Buck Rogers façade or a hospital acquisition here. A federal lawsuit alleging doctor kickbacks there. Full-blown for-profit status or intense marketing pretty much everywhere. Sorting out what...
DOWNTOWN DO-OVER: Bringing Buildings Back From the Brink Nora Edinger May 22, 2019 Editor’s note: The Downtown Do-Over series is taking a close look at the ongoing revival of Wheeling’s city center. In today’s story, Weelunk looks at what it actually takes to restore historic structures. View...
Palms Herald Holy Week Nora Edinger April 12, 2019 Editor’s note: In a continuing series on how the Ohio Valley expresses its spirituality, today’s post is the story behind area churches’ celebration of the start to the Christian Holy Week. Palm Sunday commemor...
DOWNTOWN DO-OVER: The Big Pieces in Place Nora Edinger April 9, 2019 Editor’s note: A national redevelopment award here, a new building there, millions of dollars of renovations still somewhere else. What’s happening in downtown Wheeling can be hard to track, whether your city c...
#ChooseWV: Campaign Focus Is Pride of Place Nora Edinger March 27, 2019 If you film it, they will come. Calling stray Mountaineers home and attracting prospective ones here might not be quite that simple, but the team behind #ChooseWV figures an inspiring video sure can’t hurt. ...
WHEELING@WORK: The Mayor’s Hopes, Plans and Worries Nora Edinger March 19, 2019 Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of Weelunk stories looking at the inner workings of the city. "Wheeling@Work" is an effort to provide our readers with insight and information into our city governme...
Lent: A Time for Renewal Nora Edinger March 6, 2019 Editor’s note: The Lenten/Easter season looms large in the Christian calendar. In today’s feature on Spirituality in the Ohio Valley, the rector of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church shares his thoughts on getting ...
A Romance Writer’s Guide to Creating Hallmark-Movie Moments in the Friendly City Nora Edinger February 9, 2019 A warning to guys: Valentine’s Day is Thursday. You’re welcome. There’s still plenty of time to get that dozen red roses, sparkly jewelry or chocolate. You have literally days to plan for a dinner out or a c...
In With the Old: Ancient Liturgy Key to Orthodox Worship Nora Edinger February 6, 2019 Editor’s note: As part of a continuing series on how Wheeling residents express spirituality, today’s post features Orthodoxy, an ancient form of Christianity whose worship has remained virtually unchanged sinc...
Wheeling Park Students Bound for Creativity Nora Edinger February 4, 2019 Shadows run in faint diagonal lines across the carpet in one corner of Wheeling Park High School’s sprawling media center. They show where book stacks used to be. Now, work benches with vice clamps located h...
Driven to Action: Fighting Addiction and More Through Prayer Nora Edinger January 23, 2019 Editor’s note: In a continuing series about how valley residents express their spirituality, Weelunk hit the road with a trio of New Martinsville residents who consider the opioid epidemic a soul battle worthy ...
Cogan, Gross To Be Honored for Social Justice Work Nora Edinger January 18, 2019 Editor’s note: Among the events in this weekend’s observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Wheeling residents Tim Cogan and Elissa Gross will be honored for decades of commitment to social justice. Here is the...
A Fishy Family Feast Is Christmas Eve Tradition Nora Edinger December 21, 2018 Buying salted cod (baccala) from Coleman’s Fish Market is a decades-old tradition for the Cerra family. Debbie Cerra Cresap used to shop for such food with her father. Now, she takes her own adult daughter, Li...
Couple Trades Big Pay for Big Blessings Nora Edinger December 11, 2018 Editor’s note: As part of a continuing series on how Wheeling residents express their spirituality, today’s post features a young couple who are going against the cultural flow. Matt and Amanda Cummins are trad...
“Moundsville” — the Happy, the Sad, the Past, the Future Summed Up in Documentary Nora Edinger December 5, 2018 The odds are good you’ll see someone you know on screen if you attend the Friday premiere of a feature documentary focused on Moundsville. Marc Harshman, state poet laureate, is among those interviewed. So is E...
Iafrate Fighting for a Better Church Nora Edinger November 29, 2018 Editor’s note: As part of a continuing series on how Ohio Valley residents express their spirituality, Weelunk recently visited with a Wheeling man whose spiritual/social-justice calling includes bringing even ...
Comfort Keeps Pouring In for Jewish Community Nora Edinger November 3, 2018 “It’s been something,” said Rabbi Joshua Lief. He was actually sitting down for a brief moment at the end of a week that included the shock of a deadly shooting at a nearby synagogue, an interfaith memorial for...
Hogan’s Spirituality Meanders Along an Eclectic Path Nora Edinger October 26, 2018 Editor’s note: As part of a continuing series on how Wheeling residents express spirituality, today’s post features an area man who — like a growing number of Americans — embraces a mix of faith traditions. ...
Safety Is the Issue for Building Levy Nora Edinger October 19, 2018 Whatever voters decide come Nov. 6 on $22 million of potential new and upgraded digs for city fire and police departments, one thing is indisputable. Facilities to be potentially replaced — launched in the 1950...
TIME TO GREEN UP: Recycling Is Tough All Over Nora Edinger October 9, 2018 Editor’s note: As part of a continuing series, Wheeling officials recently shared the city’s recycling/garbage program may be up for changes both small and large in order to cope with a global crisis in the rec...