Edition: March 7th, 2015

St. Peters church

undergoing renovation,
renewal

"(The sanctuary) will get new lighting, a new sound system

and hopefully a new roof," Walburn said.

Since the late 1960s, St. Peters Catholic Church has been a
staple on Fifth Street in East Parkersburg, but recently the
church's doors have been closed to worshippers.

"It's had new carpet and the seats recovered three to four
years ago," he said. "It's all new in here even some of the
walls."

Dennis Walburn, 72, of Beverly has attended the church

since 1968. He said the church is undergoing some
improvements, some of which are cosmetic to the building.

Not only will the church get a facelift, so will the

congregation. Walburn said Holy Mary is planning on
working alongside St. Peters to bring in new members,
young and old.

"We actually closed the building in February," he said.

"We're undergoing reconstruction, revitalization and then a
relaunch from the first of July to October. Holy Mary
Church in Parkersburg has partnered with us (to improve
the church)."
Article Photos

Longtime church member Charles Newberger, 74, of

Lowell said the auditorium housing the sanctuary has been
recently renovated.

The church building was constructed in the 1800s and

served as a residence before the church was formed,
Walburn said.
Walburn said the pastor of the church originally stayed in
the upstairs, while the lower two levels were used for
church activities and worship.
Currently, there are church offices in the basement and
classrooms on the main level and upper story.
Walburn said despite the church closing, services are still
taking place in homes around the neighborhood.
"Hopefully (we'll be open) the first Sunday in October," he
said. "We're scared and we're excited...That's our goal; to
relaunch and reopen the building as soon as possible.

Bank robbery suspects

sought
Dennis Walburn, 72, of Beverly and Charles Newberger,
74, of Lowell stand outside the St. Peters Church. The
church is temporarily closed.
The church site is actually composed of two buildings, the
home built in the 1800s and the addition, built in 1981, said
Walburn, and both will have work done.

Authorities have asked the public to help identify a several

individuals being sought in connection with a bank robbery
in West Parkersburg on Wednesday, March 4th. A Capital
Bank branch at 4420 N. Federal Highway was robbed at
about 9:30 a.m. The FBI did not disclose how much money
was stolen. Customers were in the bank during the incident,

but no one was injured, the FBI said. The FBI released
images of several individuals disguised with masks wearing
a multicolored baseball hats. Also being sought is a
possible getaway car, a 2013 gray or silver custom van that
could be a Dodge or a Chrysler that has a Georgia license
plate.
Witness descriptions of the suspects indicate that they are
most likely female indicated by their small frames and
feminine voices. If any of the public has information on
the incident or the suspects, please contact the Parkersburg
Police.

Newell calls for

investigations
PARKERSBURG - Mayor Bob Newell sent letters to
the Wood County prosecutor and U.S. attorney Friday
asking them to look into allegations against attorney
Bill Merriman and former County Commissioner
Rick Modesitt.
The letters, provided to The Parkersburg News and
Sentinel by Newell, allege Modesitt is involved in the
dissemination of flash drives containing files that
were the basis of an ethics complaint filed against
Newell over a reported affair with city Finance
Director Ashley Flowers and that Merriman has
engaged in "extortion" related to a lawsuit filed by
five employees of the Finance Department.
"I just felt that this thing was a little bit unsavory,"
Newell said.
Addressed to Wood County Prosecutor Jason
Wharton and U.S. Attorney for the Southern District
of West Virginia Booth Goodwin, the letters refer to
"material illegally obtained, possibly altered and then
disseminated widely" online.
"The material was clearly obtained through deception
by Mr. Rick Modesitt, a former opponent I defeated
in an election," Newell says in the letter.
Modesitt and Newell faced each other in the 2005
mayoral race.
With the letters, Newell attached copies of a
complaint he submitted against Merriman Thursday
to the West Virginia Office of Disciplinary Counsel,
which deals with discipline of attorneys. That
complaint alleged Merriman violated portions of the
state Rules of Professional Conduct for attorneys in

representing both Flowers' estranged husband,

Harold, and the five employees who are suing the
city on claims of sexual harassment and hostile
working environment related to the alleged affair.
In the complaint, Newell says Harold Flowers
assembled the material on the drives from
information belonging to Ashley Flowers, as well as
city emails, and provided them to Modesitt. He also
attached a copy of a similar complaint filed by
Harold Flowers.
The complaint to the Office of Disciplinary Counsel
notes Modesitt reportedly told Harold Flowers he had
only given the information to his attorney, who is not
named in Newell's complaint.
Modesitt, who also served in the West Virginia House
of Delegates and was a chief of the Parkersburg
Police Department, did not return a call seeking
comment Friday. Neither did Merriman.
Newell notes in the complaint that the lawsuits
against the city have not been served. Merriman said
earlier this week that he had 120 days from when he
filed them to do so and has been busy with other
matters.
In the letters, Newell suggests another motive and
points to a conversation he said Merriman had with
John McCuskey, a Charleston attorney retained by
the city's insurance company for the lawsuits.
Newell said that didn't seem unusual until he learned
about Harold Flowers' complaint, which he said he
received through an intermediary unconnected to the
matter.
Wharton did not return an email seeking comment
Friday afternoon.
The letter to Goodwin asks "that your office review
this matter to determine if any Federal Violations
(sic) have occurred, including the use of the U.S.
Mail, telephone, or other methods involving interstate
commerce."
Goodwin's office confirmed Friday that they had
received the letter from Newell. Goodwin said
usually he would not confirm or deny the receipt of a

complaint, but did so in this case since the document

had already been released by Newell.