West Virginia
Reaction to plans to close West Virginia Children’s Home – WV MetroNews
ELKINS, W.Va. — The West Virginia Children’s Home in Elkins will close at the end of the year.
The state Department of Human Services announced the closing in recent days.
The 25-bed facility for foster children was built in 1909 and serves children from 12 to 18 years old and, in recent months, has consistently housed 10 or fewer children.
The facility also has the number of maintenance concerns any structure more than 110 years old would have.
Kylee Hassan, the marketing director for Mission West Virginia Adoption Resource Exchange, said the move away from an institutional setting will encourage more growth and development that could lead to better outcomes.
“We see the benefits when a child is with a family that has supports in place versus growing up in a facility that puts them at a disadvantage,” Hassan said.
The state already has more than 6,000 children in the foster care system and a shortage of families to care for them. The need for foster families of all types has been dire in recent years, and the need for families to work with older children is currently high.
While organizations continue working to get more families qualified, the Foster Care and Adoption Services program operated by Genesis will be expanded with state resources.
“The real pressure is on us to find families for those children,” Hassan said. “We are always in need of foster families to help, especially teenagers.”
Leaving the institutional care model behind will put more kids in the foster system in actual families where they learn the importance of relationships. The family setting is a full-time environment where children learn the importance of the family unit, building relationships, learning how to follow rules, and how to handle disappointment.
“The one that comes most to my mind is reduced trauma,” Hassan said. “So, children placed with a family are less likely to experience additional trauma from being separated from siblings or other things.”
The “home” setting comes with the same people guiding young people through experience, different than the sterile institutional environment where different shifts of people may manage the populations in homes. Homes also give foster kids an opportunity to build trust with others and learn the importance of responsibility and respect.
“What friendships look like, what healthy relationships with family or friends look like,” Hassan said. “Even learning basic skills like how to get your driver’s license.”
Hassan contends children growing up in homes are more resilient and have a better chance to succeed when they age out of the foster system. The children not only learn from adults in a family setting, but they also see the family unit in action, giving them practical knowledge needed to be successful in the world of work.
“When children grow up in the facility type setting, they don’t know how to be on their own when they age out,” Hassan said. “And it’s harder for them to establish relationships and connections, which puts them at a higher risk.”
West Virginia
West Virginia Lottery results: See winning numbers for Mega Millions, Daily 3 on Dec. 16, 2025
Are you looking to win big? The West Virginia Lottery offers a variety of games if you think it’s your lucky day.
Lottery players in West Virginia can choose from popular national games like the Powerball and Mega Millions, which are available in the vast majority of states. Other games include Lotto America, Daily 3, Daily 4 and Cash 25.
Big lottery wins around the U.S. include a lucky lottery ticketholder in California who won a $1.27 billion Mega Millions jackpot in December 2024. See more big winners here. And if you do end up cashing a jackpot, here’s what experts say to do first.
Here’s a look at Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025 results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from Dec. 16 drawing
20-24-46-59-65, Mega Ball: 07
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Daily 3 numbers from Dec. 16 drawing
0-7-5
Check Daily 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Daily 4 numbers from Dec. 16 drawing
3-0-0-1
Check Daily 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 25 numbers from Dec. 16 drawing
02-05-06-08-23-24
Check Cash 25 payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the West Virginia Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 11 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10:59 p.m. ET Tuesday and Friday.
- Lotto America: 10:15 p.m. ET on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Daily 3, 4: 6:59 p.m. ET Monday through Saturday.
- Cash 25: 6:59 p.m. ET Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.
Winning lottery numbers are sponsored by Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network.
Where can you buy lottery tickets?
Tickets can be purchased in person at gas stations, convenience stores and grocery stores. Some airport terminals may also sell lottery tickets.
You can also order tickets online through Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network, in these U.S. states and territories: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Washington D.C., and West Virginia. The Jackpocket app allows you to pick your lottery game and numbers, place your order, see your ticket and collect your winnings all using your phone or home computer.
Jackpocket is the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network. Gannett may earn revenue for audience referrals to Jackpocket services. GAMBLING PROBLEM? CALL 1-800-GAMBLER, Call 877-8-HOPENY/text HOPENY (467369) (NY). 18+ (19+ in NE, 21+ in AZ). Physically present where Jackpocket operates. Jackpocket is not affiliated with any State Lottery. Eligibility Restrictions apply. Void where prohibited. Terms: jackpocket.com/tos.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a USA Today editor. You can send feedback using this form.
West Virginia
State officials look to limit number of W.Va. youth in out-of-state placement facilities
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — West Virginia is trying to bring home more than 300 children placed in expensive out-of-state treatment by the child welfare system.
Tuesday Gov. Patrick Morrisey revealed plans to create what the state is calling a home base initiative fund. It would allow for renovations and repairs to existing state buildings if it helps keep from sending troubled children to out-of-state placement facilities.
Out-of-state placements – now serving about 380 youth – cost about $156,000 per child and are undesirable due to separating families.
“We want to create a new revolving investment fund in order to make sure we’re building our existing state-owned facilities,” Morrisey said. “Those dollars are going to be used to renovate and repair existing state property by providing high acute psychiatric, neural-developmental and trauma services for kids in West Virginia.”
Morrisey said the details still have to be worked out with the Legislature on this program which is aimed at limiting the number of West Virginia youth kept out-of-state. The governor appears ready to commit $6 million in surplus money toward the effort.
“It’s a huge problem, an expensive problem,” Sen. T. Kevan Bartlett, R-Kanawha, said. “It’s a problem that’s not reflective of our values to send kids away. We’ve got to come up with better answers to take care of kids. It’s the best that we can do. Then we’ve got to come up with something much better. I think that’s what the governor wants to do and I support that completely.”
Morrisey noted children in foster care have at least dropped a little below 6,000. While that number still seems high, Child Protective Services’ backlog has been cut by 50%. Numbers show children removed from a home for substance abuse is down 37%.
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“These are the statistics but we shouldn’t be beating our chests,” Morrisey said. “We have a lot more work to do.”
West Virginia
As expected, buck harvest down significantly for 2025 – WV MetroNews
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia deer hunters killed 33,775 bucks during the recently completed two week buck firearms season.
According to information released Tuesday by the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, Greenbrier County was the top county in the state for bucks in 2025 with 1,730 killed during the gun season. Second was Preston County with 1,349, Randolph County 1,198, Hardy County 1,165 and Pendleton at 1,135. The rest of the top ten counties in order were Pocahontas, Monroe, Grant, Fayette, and Hampshire Counties.’
Click here to see county-by-county buck firearms season harvests for the last five seasons.
As predicted by the DNR prior to the season, the total harvest was 18.5 percent below 2024. All of the DNR’s districts registered a decrease in harvest, with the exception of District 4 which experienced a 7.5 percent increase compared to last year. The DNR predicted the lower harvest because of a major abundance of mast in the state. The conditions were such that deer didn’t have to travel far to find adequate food and therefore were not as exposed to hunters.
The agency acknowledged several counties along the Ohio River and central West Virginia experienced an outbreak of hemorrhagic disease in the early fall which also impacted hunter success especially in western counties of the state.
Several deer hunting opportunities remain for 2025. The state’s archery and crossbow season runs through Dec. 31, the traditional Class N/NN antlerless deer season will be open in select areas on public and private land Dec. 11-14 and Dec. 28-31, the muzzleloader deer season will be open Dec. 15-21 and the youth, Class Q and Class XS season for antlerless deer will be open Dec. 26-27 in any county with a firearms deer season.
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