PARKERSBURG, W.Va. -- The West Virginia Convention of Southern Baptists has passed a resolution calling for an amendment to the state constitution defining marriage as between a man and a woman.

The resolution was passed at the group's recent meeting in Parkersburg, where members of the convention unanimously approved language calling on Christians in the state to ban the possibility of gay marriage here.

There are roughly 200 Southern Baptist churches in West Virginia.

The call was supported by the Family Policy Council of West Virginia. That group called on Gov. Joe Manchin last month to convene a special legislative session to put the amendment on the ballot.

Manchin's office says a 2000 state law already defines marriage that way, and rules out recognizing same-sex unions performed in other states.

W.Va. not worried about salt shortage

FAIRMONT, W.Va. -- A nationwide shortage of road salt has some states scrambling as winter arrives, but West Virginia should be in good shape.

Greg Phillips, Division of Highways manager for District 4 in Fairmont, says the state saved thousands of dollars by stocking up on the supply during the warm weather months.

Since then, the price of salt has gone from $44 a ton to roughly $125 per ton.

West Virginia's District 4 is the largest east of the Mississippi River, responsible for clearing snow and ice on about 6,000 road miles.

Despite that task, Phillips says the state's salt sheds are full, and supplies should last through the winter.

W.Va. delegation to offer tix to Obama inaugural

CHARLESTON -- West Virginians who want to be on hand for the swearing-in of President-elect Barack Obama in Washington, D.C., can get tickets from only one source: the state's congressional delegation.

The state's U.S. Senate and House members will distribute the free tickets for the Jan. 20 inauguration ceremonies.

Their offices will receive the passes about a week before the event, but they must be picked up in person.

Officials organizing the swearing-in warn that no Web site or other outlet will have tickets, or can offer them for sale.

There will be 240,000 free tickets handed out but there will only be 30,000 seats.

Current and former members of Congress automatically get tickets, as do the U.S. Supreme Court justices and Medal of Honor winners.

Veterans, military can camp free in W.Va. forest

ELKINS, W.Va. -- All U.S. veterans and active members of the U.S. Armed Forces can camp for free in parts of the Monongahela National Forest on Tuesday.

Forest Supervisor Clyde Thomas says the invitation is in honor of Veterans Day. Free camping will be offered at Laurel Fork, Bishop Knob, Summit, Cranberry, Big Rock, Blue Meadow, Pocahontas, Tea Creek, Day Run and non-reservation sites at Lake Sherwood.

Sites available through the national reservation system and those that have already closed for the season are not included.

Admittance will be based on the honor system and documentation is not required.

W.Va. project aims to link students, veterans

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. -- On the eve of Veterans Day, students at Robert C. Byrd High School got a lesson in how those who served in the military helped shape the country's history.

Even more, they learned about a project that recruits students around the country to record the histories of veterans in their communities for preservation at the Library of Congress.

The Clarksburg school is one of 12 that have so far signed on to the initiative for the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress, said U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, who visited students at the school Monday.

Along with veteran Randy Pleva, national president of Paralyzed Veterans of America, Rockefeller talked with the students about the value of preserving veterans' individual stories.

"Veterans don't talk easily about their experiences, but I think they talk more easily to younger people, because they're passing something on," said Rockefeller, a member of the Senate Committee of Veterans' Affairs.

There are nearly 178,000 veterans in West Virginia, accounting for 9.7 percent of the population, the eighth largest percentage in the country. Every year, the federal Department of Veterans Affairs spends about $1 billion on health care and other benefits for West Virginia veterans.

AP Video