News from March 4, 2003 issue


Passion selling out local theater
Whether Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ becomes the biggest box office hit in history remains to be seen, but in western Kentucky there is no question about its popularity.
The movie about the last days of Jesus Christ will be the biggest draw Capitol Cinemas at Princeton has ever had, said theater owner Mike Cherry. His auditorium seats 330 people and so far there are a dozen sell-out showings.

Cherry said many people are calling the theater to inquire about advanced ticket sales or whether a particular show is sold out. Several church groups from around the area have bought out the theater for some showings; otherwise, he said there are seldom complete sell-outs.

"We have a very large auditorium and it is very unlikely that we would sell out from people walking in off the street," said Cherry, who lists a dozen shows when church groups have bought out the entire theater.

Two Crittenden groups ­ the Ministerial Association and another five-church group ­ have reserved the theater for March 13 showings at 1:15 p.m., and 4 p.m. The Ministerial Association's 4 p.m., show is sold out and there is a waiting list with 50 names on it. The other five-church group includes Pleasant Grove, New Union, Unity, Marion General Baptist and Glendale.
By watching the expressions and reading the body language of hundreds of people leaving his theater over the last few days, Cherry says it appears to be a very moving experience for those who view it.

"They seem somber and many seem profoundly affected," he said.

Some ministers, like Rev. Darrell Clarke of Marion Baptist Church, are preparing their congregations for the graphic nature of the movie. Clarke suggests that the movie is probably not for children younger than teens.

"It really is based on an historical and factual event," said Clarke, who points to research that details the horrible nature of crucifixion and scourging. "The Romans had a particular way of scourging and a legionnaire was set aside for this purpose. He was trained to inflict a great deal of pain and suffering without causing death."

Those who have seen the movie say that it is very graphic and detailed. It has drawn a great deal of media attention because some think the script is anti-Semitic.

SOLD OUT
The following are dates and show times sold out in advance to area church groups. All other showings are on a first-come, first-served basis. The theater seldom sells completely out for walk-in movie-goers.

AT PRINCETON CAPITOL CINEMAS
MARCH 6 - 1:30 p.m., 4 p.m., & 6 p.m.
MARCH 7 - 4 p.m
MARCH 10 - 7:30 p.m.
MARCH 13 - 1:15, 4 p.m. and 6:30
MARCH 14 - 4 p.m.
MARCH 21 - 1:30 p.m.

No Tickets Are Sold In Advance

SPECIAL SHOWING
This Saturday at 10 a.m., tickets available



Police looking for masked man
Police have charged Michael Korzenborn, 21, of Marion in connection with the beating of 19-year-old Christopher Peek last Wednesday night on a rural county road.

Sheriff Wayne Agent said the investigation indicates that Korzenborn picked up Peek at his Marion home then drove to a gravel road off Ky. 506 about 11 p.m. He stopped the car and when both men got out, a masked man jumped out of the bushes. The man wearing a ski mask and Korzenborn allegedly beat Peek with an object then left together in Korzenborn's vehicle.

Peek was left injured at the scene. Peek identified Korzenborn, who was arrested the next day and charged with first-degree assault. Peek was transported by ambulance to Crittenden Hospital where he was treated for head and hand injuries.

The sheriff said the masked man has not yet been identified and so far authorities do not have a motive for the alleged beating. Korzenborn was still in jail late Tuesday. His bond was $50,000 cash.

Man waiting for new heart
Like a teenage girl pining for a date to the big dance, Bobby Ray rarely strays far from the telephone.

The happily married Ray is not lovelorn, but it is a matter of the heart that keeps the 56-year-old hoping that the phone will ring.
Bobby Ray needs a new heart.

"I just got on a list about three weeks ago," Ray said. "There are two people ahead of me, but they are both big, and I'm a skinny little fella, so I could be next in line. It just depends on who's the best medical match."

When Ray gets the call from the University of Kentucky Medical Center, he will hop in a helicopter that will take him from Crittenden Hospital to where a new heart awaits.

It has been a bumpy road for Ray, who had his first heart attack at the age of 34 in 1982. Three subsequent attacks, a quadruple bypass surgery and the implantation of an internal defibrillator have left Ray's heart, quite literally, worn out.

"It's like somebody pointing a loaded gun at you," Ray said. "You just don't know when they're going to pull the trigger."

His last attack, in December, put him in Crittenden Hospital and left him feeling more tired and weak than he's ever been before. He sleeps much of the time, leaving the house for the occasional service at Emmanuel Baptist Church.

It is the members of Emmanuel to whom Ray is thankful, for they are raising money to help defray his expenses. His medication alone costs $700 a month. And the trip to UK will cost $1,700.

"My church has treated me like I was somebody," said Ray. "We just had a lady from our church pass away the other day and that really bothered me because I considered her a friend of mine. But life is such a short time, and I have eternity to be with her."
Ray hasn't always allowed his faith to serve him.

"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the grace of my God. I used to be a bad guy and God finally smacked me out of it," he said.
Ray is frank about the events that shook his faith.

"What happened was, I was from a Christian family, but I lost a child to crib death, got divorced and just wound up totally miserable. God just kept telling me, 'This is not what I wanted for you.' But I just kept fighting him."

Finally, says Ray, he turned a corner. "I'm not perfect and I don't claim to be. But whatever He wants me to do with the rest of my life, I'll do. I'll go to the jail and tell these kids what I went through and what I did ­ they've got to quit fighting. I know that's why I'm still here. If I can touch one person, that will be good enough. That will save my life. "

Thanks to his wife Barbara, whom Ray calls his "best buddy," and his restored spirituality, "for the first time in my life I'm actually happy. I've had so many opportunities to do something for my Lord."

So, what if the phone never rings; if the call never comes?
Even if his heart gives out, or if he never gets a new one, Ray says he is unafraid.

"I don't want to die," Ray says, matter-of-factly. "Everybody loves life, but I'm not scared of it, either. I'm really not scared. I've always had a real good sense of humor and I know now that you don't worry about the things you can't change, because you can't change them.

"I put my faith in the good Lord. Either way it goes, I'm a winner."
Church members have also set up a fund in Ray's name at Peoples Bank in Marion.