VARIETY OF EXPERTS ON HAND FOR DRUG FORUM

HUNTINGTON -- Panel members for a community forum on drug abuse
prevention are bringing to the table a vast array of experience and expertise.

The forum, which will be conducted at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 27, in
the Rhododendron/Dogwood Room at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena in
downtown Huntington, is sponsored by The Herald-Dispatch. The public
is encouraged to attend.

"At the root of the drug and violence problem in our community is the
demand -- the drug abuse," said Ed Dawson, executive editor of The
Herald-Dispatch. "But residents often feel helpless to do anything about that."

"There are people and groups working on the front lines of this
problem, and we hope this forum will help the public understand the
issues and what the community can do to help."

Here is a look at the panelists:

Raymond Byrd is the father of Karen Stultz, 39, who was shot to death
in April 2004 along Hal Greer Boulevard in Huntington. Last year, a
jury convicted Huntington teenager DeAaron Fields of killing Stultz.
Prosecutors maintained during the trial that she was killed because
of a $40 crack cocaine debt.

Since then, Byrd has helped create a court-ordered drug treatment
program in Lawrence County, Ky., called Stopping Addiction through
Values and Education, or S.A.V.E.

The program contains a mentor component and includes group sessions
in which participants talk about drug education and faith.

Anne McGee is a project director with United Way of the River Cities.
She is responsible for building and coordinating the newly formed
Cabell County Substance Abuse Prevention Partnership.

The partnership was birthed from a 2003 survey that identified
substance abuse issues as a major concern among local residents. To
help address the problem, the United Way and other community partners
applied for and received a yearlong prevention planning grant that
will help develop a broad base of prevention programming.

Kim Miller is manager of Renaissance for Women through Prestera. The
program helps women overcome drug addiction and allows their children
to remain with them at the center.

Bill O'Dell is a community development specialist who works with the
West Virginia Prevention Resource Center and the Marshall University
Research Corporation. He is certified through the West Virginia
Certification Board for Addiction and Prevention Professionals as a
certified prevention specialist.

He has a long history of working on topics such as youth development
and leadership, alcohol, tobacco and drug prevention and community
mobilization.

Carol Richard is a recovering drug addict. She began abusing
marijuana and became addicted to methamphetamine several years ago.

In 2005, Richard, a mother of two, completed a six-month stay at the
Renaissance Program for women. The program helps women overcome
addiction while allowing them to remain with their children.

Bennie Thomas has been a part of the Cabell County school system for 35 years.

A retired teacher and later director of attendance, Thomas is now a
member of the Cabell County Board of Education.

Thomas said he enjoyed the time working with students who were often
at risk of not graduating and "on the lower end of the totem pole."

Brent Walters has been an assistant prosecuting attorney in Cabell
County for more than five years. His primary assignment is to handle
all juvenile prosecutions. Walters also represents the prosecutor's
office in the Juvenile Drug Court in Cabell County, which is the only
juvenile drug court operating in West Virginia.

He also has had special training in and spoken on gang violence and
prosecution of gang members.