BEREA, Ky. — Berea gets a two-part Louisville Orchestra visit on Wednesday, Feb. 25, with an intimate afternoon performance downtown and a full orchestra concert that evening. First, a string quintet from the orchestra will perform at the Berea Arts Council at 2:30 p.m. Later the same day, the full Louisville Orchestra will present a…

BEREA, Ky. — Berea’s cultural DNA has always included the unamplified kind of music—the kind passed hand-to-hand, voice-to-voice, where the story matters as much as the sound. That tradition gets a spotlight on Friday, Feb. 13, when the Berea College Folk Roots Ensemble hosts Ballad Night at 7:30 p.m. in the Loyal Jones Appalachian Center.…

BEREA, Ky. — A survivor-support project years in the making is nearing a major milestone. In a recent public update, Redeeming Hope confirmed that its new facility is now “under roof” and debt-free—a key step toward opening a safe, trauma-informed home for girls who have survived trafficking and sexual exploitation. Plans described in prior updates…

BEREA, Ky. — If you’re looking for a simple “what are we doing this weekend?” answer, The Spotlight Playhouse has a strong late-winter run lined up: a Valentine’s-weekend murder mystery dinner, a youth “Lion King” double-cast run, and a teen-led Shakespeare comedy. Here’s the full preview—with a little more about what each show actually is.…

BEREA, Ky. — If you want a snapshot of how fast “agentic AI” is moving from demo to disruption, look at what happened this week: Anthropic shipped new Claude “Cowork” plug-ins aimed at legal, sales, marketing, and data work—and markets reacted immediately. In U.S. trading, Thomson Reuters fell nearly 18% in a single session, while…

BEREA, Ky. — The Madison County Sports Hall of Fame, a volunteer-led organization with its public exhibit housed inside the Madison County Public Library in Richmond, has announced its Class of 2026—a group that includes former NFL players Damien Harris and Luke Stocker. Even if you’re not a sports fan, the Hall’s purpose is easy…

There’s no shortage of controversy around AI right now—some of it deserved. We argue about job loss, deepfakes, privacy, and whether we’re building systems faster than we can understand or regulate them. But this is the part worth holding onto: when AI is built for a narrow job, tested in the real world, and kept…

BEREA, Ky. — For a lot of families, “Wheel of Fortune” is background noise at the end of the day. This month, it wasn’t background at all. Berea resident Samantha Thomas appeared on the long-running game show recently, and suddenly the familiar routine turned into something else: neighbors messaging neighbors, friends texting screenshots, and the…

BEREA, Ky. — Looking for a Valentine’s plan that isn’t dinner-and-a-movie? Fire & Fern Glass Studio is leaning into the season with a slate of hands-on experiences designed for couples, friends, and anyone who’d rather make something memorable than buy it. The studio’s February schedule features two offerings available throughout the month—plus a special event…

BEREA, Ky. — After nearly five years of detours, the Menelaus Road / KY 1983 bridge in Farristown is entering the “no turning back” phase: demolition of the old one-lane wooden bridge is expected soon, and a new two-lane steel girder bridge is targeted to open by Nov. 1, 2026, according to Kentucky Transportation Cabinet…

BEREA, Ky. — A new community learning initiative called FreeSkool is launching in Berea this weekend at HomeGrown HideAways, starting with an orientation and site tour on Saturday and a garden planning session with a seed swap on Sunday. FreeSkool is being promoted as a grassroots, place-based learning series where community members can share skills…

BEREA, Ky. — When the lights flicker or water pressure drops, the fastest way to cut through rumor is to know where your utility posts updates. Berea Municipal Utilities (BMU) says its customer notification system can send alerts about scheduled power outages, major service interruptions, and boil water advisories by text or automated voice calls.…

BEREA, Ky. — As Berea’s housing growth continues north of town, residents in the Stoney Creek subdivision are raising a concern that’s easy to summarize and hard to ignore: if there’s an emergency, one way in and out doesn’t feel like enough. At a recent public meeting, residents urged city officials to pause new approvals…

BEREA, Ky. — A new, AI-only social network called Moltbook has gone viral in tech circles for a very 2026 reason: the bots didn’t just post… they started role-playing a belief system called “Crustafarianism” and openly discussed creating private channels away from human observers. Former Tesla/OpenAI researcher Andrej Karpathy captured the vibe in a widely…

BEREA, Ky. — Two of Disney’s biggest titles are headed to a Berea stage this spring—performed by local kids and teens through Spotlight Acting School, with family-friendly runs of Disney’s The Lion King KIDS beginning Feb. 20 and Disney’s Frozen JR. following in late March at The Spotlight Playhouse. For parents and grandparents, these are…

BEREA, Ky. — SK hynix, one of Nvidia’s key suppliers for AI memory, says it is considering establishing a U.S.-based unit focused on artificial intelligence investment, following a report that the new entity would manage about 10 trillion won (roughly $6.92 billion) in AI-related overseas assets held by SK Group affiliates. The reported portfolio includes…

BEREA, Ky. — When a school program is threatened, adults usually do the talking: board members, administrators, budget spreadsheets. Last spring, Berea students showed another way. When Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) was listed among programs at risk during district budget reductions, students didn’t just complain about losing it. They organized. They planned. They fundraised.…

BEREA, Ky. — If you’ve been waiting for a single, reliable roadmap to Berea’s spring concert season, Music @ Berea has released its Spring 2026 event schedule, laying out a full semester of performances across campus venues—from choir concerts and bluegrass to mariachi, percussion, and even an “Atrium Jam.” For readers planning weekends in town…

BEREA, Ky. — Berea’s spring arts calendar is about to tilt family-friendly in a big way: Spotlight Acting School is bringing Disney’s The Lion King KIDS to the stage with two casts of young performers, giving more children the chance to perform—and giving local families two separate weekends to catch the show. 🎭 Two Casts,…

BEREA, Ky. — Thirty years is a long time to do anything side-by-side—long enough for life to change keys a few times, long enough for a town’s soundtrack to gain new verses. On Saturday, Jan. 31 at 8 p.m., Berea College is putting that kind of longevity on stage with a faculty recital titled “Our…