Six Die On Kentucky Roadways Last Week (Apr. 7 through Apr. 13)

KSP Highway Safety Branch

For More Information Contact:
Sherry Bray
KSP Highway Safety Branch Media Coordinator
(502) 695-6353 KSP Highway Safety Branch News Release


Date of News Release: 04/14/08

(FRANKFORT, Ky.) - Preliminary statistics* indicate that six people died in six separate crashes on Kentucky's roadways from Monday, Apr. 7 through Sunday, Apr. 13, 2008.

Five of the fatalities were traveling in motor vehicles. Four of the victims were not wearing seat belts. One fatality was a pedestrian. Two of the fatalities were the result of crashes involving alcohol.

Single-fatality crashes occurred in Garrard, Hopkins, Logan, Muhlenberg and Trimble counties. The pedestrian fatality was in Fayette County.

Through April 13, preliminary statistics* indicate that 195 people have lost their lives on Kentucky roadways during 2008. This is 18 fewer than reported for this time period in 2007. Of the 163 motor vehicle fatalities, 107 victims were not wearing seat belts. Of the 12 motorcycle fatalities, seven were not wearing helmets. Twenty pedestrians have been killed. A total of 43 fatalities have resulted from crashes involving the suspected use of alcohol.

Citizens can contribute to highway safety by reporting erratic drivers to the Kentucky State Police toll-free at 1-800-222-5555. Callers will remain anonymous and should give a description of the vehicle, location, direction of travel and license number if possible.

*These statistics are still preliminary as KSP waits for all local law enforcement agencies throughout the state to report any crashes and fatalities that may have occurred in their areas.

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Charlie Pinson Insurance KY encourages all drivers to drive defensively. Always wear seat belts. It saved my life....and maybe it could save yours too!

Hillbilly Days 2008 April 17-19 Pikeville KY

Bringing the Family Home

Laugh at the name all you want, Pikeville's Hillbilly Days is the second largest festival in the state. (Louisville's Derby Festival being the largest) The festival brings in thousands of dollars for Lexington's Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children ..and our own Pike County Chamber of Commerce.

Hillbilly Days celebrates mountain culture. And culture we do have...before you picture gun toting, illiterate bare foot ruffians consider this. Pikeville is the third-largest banking center in the Commonwealth. We have Pikeville College, Pikeville Osteopathic School of Medicine, and the new Expo Center. We have a Technical School as well. Don't laugh at us; perhaps you need to reconsider us Hillbillies.

So come on down!

We'll have Bluegrass pickin' in the park. They'll be cloggers that put them River dance folks to shame. They'll be more performances over at the courthouse, and a few pesky politicians too. Folks we haven't seen all winter, will come on off the mountaintops and sit and talk, chew, whittle, pick a guitar, pass around baby pictures, and ride around town on their brand new Harleys.

The folks you see in mock Hillbillly garb are Shriners, or a few "brought on" hillbillies dressing up for fun. (Mostly we don't wear bib-overalls to to office down here....but they are handy when there is some weed eating to do on the hillsides. )You'll see some of the darnedest dare I say "cars" that sputter around in our hillbilly parade. (No we don't insure hillbilly jalopies)

If you get hungry, there is always lots of choices. On Main Street, Charlie Pinson will be frying up fish in the Rotary Club booth. They'll be gyros, Greek salads, Mexican tortillas, elephant ears, funnel cakes, and fried oreos throughout the downtown vendor sections. There is a carnival for the kiddies on the river fill.

Charlie and I look forward to Hillbilly Days, as many of the family members who have left here come on home. We'll get to visit with his brother, his nephews and nieces, and even a new great nephew! On Friday, we'll even shut the office down early. It's not so bad to be a Hillbilly. You ought to try it sometime. It can be enlightening!

Charlie Pinson Insurance will close at
12:30 on Friday April 18

Visit www.pinsoninsurance.com
for 24/7 access

Charlie Pinson is a member of the Pikeville Rotary Club and the Independent Insurance Agents of Kentucky. Headquartered in Pikeville, Charlie Pinson Insurance offers a variety of insurance products including Kentucky Auto Insurance, Motorcycle Insurance, Homeowners Insurance, and Business Insurance including Workers Compensation. Through our sister agency, Triple B Insurance, we offer Kentucky health insurance for groups, individuals, and families. If you can't come to see us at Hillbilly Days, visit our website at www.pinsoninsurance.comfor online Kentucky Insurance quotes and information.

Get ready for "The Great Steamboat Race"I love the Delta Queen!

As a small girl growing up along the Ohio river, one of the biggest thrills was to watch the Delta Queen glide by the shores of Warsaw, Ky. To see that red paddle wheel, to hear the calliope, and to dream of trips far on down to bayou country was a grand summertime fantasy. After the Great Steamboat race, we would frantically search for "The Golden Antlers" symbol of a win. I can remember at night, watching the queen go quietly by. Grandma and I would flash the porch lights at the boat's pilot, and he would in turn flash his overhead light in response.

A few year's back, Progressive Insurance used to sponsor one of "the other boats" in the Great Steamboat Race. Charlie and I were fortunate enough to be aboard several times. What a thrill! I am saddened to report this may be the last year "my" Delta Queen is permitted to participate in the Great Steamboat Race. Here's an article that made my heart sing...and my eyes well up with fond memories.

Delta Queen to Receive Silver Horseshoe Award

By: KDF Press Office Posted: 4/10/2008 9:31:51 AM

The Kentucky Derby Festival is pleased to announce that the Silver Horseshoe Award, which is traditionally presented to an organization or individual for community service, will be given to the historic Delta Queen steamboat at the 52nd annual They’re Off! Luncheon on Friday, April 11, at the Galt House East Hotel. Accepting the award on behalf of Ambassadors Cruise Group, owner of the Delta Queen, will be Capt. Nico Corbin, Executive Vice President. The Delta Queen has participated in the Derby Festival’s Great Steamboat Race nearly every year since the event was first held in 1963. Corbin will present the $1,000 award that goes with the Silver Horseshoe to the Howard Steamboat Museum in Jeffersonville, Ind., which is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2008.

The Delta Queen’s first two decks and steam engines were ordered in 1924 from a shipyard in Scotland. The Queen and her sister boat Delta King were shipped in pieces to Stockton, California, in 1926. There the California Transportation Company assembled the two vessels for regular Sacramento River service between San Francisco and Sacramento. At the time, they were the most lavishly appointed and expensive sternwheel passenger boats ever commissioned. During World War Two, both boats were requisitioned by the U.S. Navy for duty in San Francisco Bay. In 1946, the Delta Queen was purchased by Greene Line Steamers of Cincinnati and towed via the Panama Canal and the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to be refurbished in Pittsburgh. In 1948 she entered regular passenger service, plying the waters of the Ohio, Mississippi, Tennessee and Cumberland rivers between Cincinnati, New Orleans, St. Paul, Chattanooga, Nashville and ports in between.

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Charlie Pinson Insurance is an independent insurance agency representing many Kentucky Auto Insurance companies including Progressive Insurance. Kentucky car insurance quotes are available online at www.pinsoninsurance.com  Joyce Pinson, is a native of Boone County, KY and spent many summers on the Ohio River banks in Gallatin County near Warsaw.

Derby Festival Mini Marathon sponsored in part by Bluegrass Family Health Insurance Louisville Ky

Derby Festival Mini-Marathon Full Up

Late Registration will not be accepted at Bluegrass Family Health's Running Wild Expo

Registration CLOSED for Mini and Marathon
By: KDF Press Office
Posted: 4/14/2008 9:42:55 AM

Registration is now CLOSED for the Derby Festival Marathon and miniMarathon to be held on Saturday, April 26. Registration has reached the previously announced cap of 12,000 runners. This means there will NOT be entries available for late registration next week at the Bluegrass Family Health Running Wild Expo at the Kentucky International Convention Center.

“We had a record number of entries in 2007 and we’re thrilled that we set another record this year by reaching the cap of 12,000 entries,” said race director Chad Pickering. “Our goal is to have 12,000 finishers in both races combined. Derby Festival staff members and members of the race committee attended several race expos around the country last fall, and those recruiting efforts seem to have really paid off. We hope be able to open the races to even more numbers next year.”

Registration numbers for the races have steadily increased over the past two years. The 2007 Derby Festival races attracted a record 11,269 registrants, shattering the previous record of 8,651 set in 2006. For 2008, the Festival can only guarantee entry for the first 12,000 entrants to ensure the infrastructure is in place to support the runners in the manner to which they are accustomed. Registration numbers for this year’s races represent a 20-percent increase over the total number of entrants for last year’s event. Runners from 47 U.S. states and at least nine foreign countries have registered for the 2008 races.

The seventh annual Marathon and 35th annual miniMarathon will start simultaneously at 7:30 a.m. near Iroquois Park. The race route will once again include a lap around the infield at Churchill Downs; Marathon runners will complete a short loop in Southern Indiana before returning to downtown Louisville at about Mile 24. More details about the race are available online at www.derbyfestivalmarathon.com.

Contributing sponsors of the 2008 Derby Festival Marathon and miniMarathon are: Bluegrass Family Health, Churchill Downs, The Courier-Journal, Meijer and Powerade; supporting sponsors are Jewish Hospital Sports Medicine, the Louisville Water Company and marathonguide.com.

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Triple B Insurance specializes in Kentucky Health Insurance for large and small group health insurance. Agents for Triple B Insurance do business with several Kentucky Health Insurance Companies including Bluegrass Family Health Insurance Louisville KY.

Travelers Insurance Partners for Teen Driving

Parents and Teens Behind the wheel

Broadcasts air in Connecticut

Videos available for purchase

Parents and Teens Behind the Wheel

Connecticut public television will be airing a compelling documentary about teen driving, and how parents' driving habits influences their teens. Funded by Travelers Insurance, Carmax Foundation, and Stratton Faxon the documentaries "Teens behind the wheel" and "Parents and Teens behind the wheel" has garnered national attention.

The plot centers around clips from video cameras in the family car, that were gathered over a six month period. Not only were the teens filmed, the parents were as well. Dateline NBC and Good Morning America have made mention of the documentary.

CPTV, Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network, airs "Teens Behind the Wheel" at 8 PM on April 15. Check the weblink above for future airings.

For those of us in Kentucky who are interested in the videos, they are available for purchase following the title link above.

Charlie Pinson Insurance, offers Kentucky Auto Insurance through a number of companies including Travelers Insurance. Get a Kentucky Car Insurance Quote. Young drivers and teen driving information are available through several Kentucky insurance companies.

Keeneland Jockeys Visit Young Patients

Riders Up! Stepping Up at Lexington KY
UK Healthcare's Kentucky Children's Hospital

Countdown to Derby May 3 Louisville KY

Media Contact: UK HealthCare News Mary Margaret Colliver, (859) 361-1887

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 10, 2008) – Patients at UK HealthCare’s Kentucky Children’s Hospital today received a special treat. Members of Keeneland’s jockey colony visited the young patients and brought them books and gifts. Dressed in their jockey silks, the riders brightened the day of children who come to Kentucky Children’s Hospital from across Kentucky.

Some of the jockeys visiting the children commented on their visit. “It’s a great opportunity to put a smile on the face of someone going through a tough time,” said Garret Gomez.

John Velazquez said, “I’ve been hospitalized at UK and received lots of good help and support there. I have two kids of my own. It's good to meet many of the children and their families.”

“I’ve been in the hospital and I know how it is; you appreciate visitors," said Robby Albarado. "It’s a small way to give back something to the community.”

Dr. Tim Bricker, professor and chair, Department of Pediatrics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, and physician-in-chief of Kentucky Children’s Hospital, greeted the Keeneland jockeys. “We are so pleased to have the Keeneland Jockey Colony visit our patients at our Kentucky Children’s Hospital,” said Bricker. “After all, Keeneland’s jockeys are as committed to Kentucky as we are, and they are part of our team.”

Keeneland is a combination Thoroughbred race course and sales company located six miles west of Lexington in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass Region. Keeneland was established as a model race track to perpetuate and improve the sport, and to provide a course that is intended to serve as a symbol of the fine traditions of Thoroughbred racing. The philosophy and principles which have characterized Keeneland throughout its history remain unchanged.

Kentucky Children's Hospital was established in 1997. Previously known as UK Children’s Hospital, it was renamed in 2005 to more clearly define its role as the hospital for all children of Kentucky. The renaming reflects UK HealthCare’s new and expanded commitment to provide the best possible care to children throughout the state. The name also represents UK’s commitment to become a leading research center for children’s health and a Top 20 pediatric institution.

For more information about Kentucky Children’s Hospital, call Loralyn Cecil at (859) 257-1106.For more information about Keeneland, call (859) 254-3412.

Joyce Pinson, Kentucky health insurance agent, collects all things Derby including derby glasses, and memorabilia from fellow Boone County native Steve Cauthen.

Life Insurance Fraud

Contact: Ronda Sloan
502-564-6098
502-330-1804 (cell)

NEWS RELEASE Kentucky Office of Insurance

BELL COUNTY WOMAN GUILTY OF INSURANCE FRAUD

Forged niece’s signature to receive $10,000 death benefit

FRANKFORT, Ky. (April 11, 2008) – A Bell County woman pleaded guilty to a felony count of insurance fraud after forging her niece’s signature and claiming to be the child’s guardian in order to receive a $10,000 death benefit from Monumental Life Insurance Company.

After her brother’s death, Robin R. Francisco, 48, who lists her address as Cumberland Gap, Tenn., took the money without the knowledge of the child, who was the beneficiary of the life insurance policy, or the child’s mother, the legal guardian. According to court documents, Francisco admitted that she gave the $10,000 to her own sister.

The case was investigated by KOI’s Insurance Fraud Investigations Division.

By entering the guilty plea, Francisco accepted the commonwealth’s recommendation of five years in prison, probated for five years, and the order to pay restitution of $10,000 to Monumental. In addition, she agreed to cooperate in the ongoing investigation. Final sentencing will be May 5 in Bell Circuit Court.

KOI is an agency of the Department of Public Protection in the Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet.

For Kentucky Insurance Quotes contact independent agent Charlie Pinson.