I’ll start by saying that I am a millennial, and I’ve always heard stories passed down that shed light on my own family’s Appalachian roots and contributions to Appalachian society, even Appalachian catchphrases from some of my older relatives, like ‘over and down yonder.’ But interestingly enough, you know, I always grew up thinking, you know, I live here, but I don’t consider myself an Appalachian because of those images—growing up—of Appalachia.

I’m a jack-of-all-trades.I always had a compassionate heart to help. When I got involved with CCC, and they were doing all kinds of community stuff, it’s like wow.

The more I discovered history, the more I understood that Black people in West Virginia had had a powerful presence. But that history is not always front and center in our textbooks. It’s not front and center in the way that the media frames West Virginia. And, you know, when I say West Virginia, I mean the greater Appalachia, too, right?

Why should we have to wait any longer for clean air when we deserve clean air now? We deserved it yesterday. Our children deserve it.

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and things have changed. And I might be all over the place, but as things come to my heart and mind, I just want to be able to share them, and I’m sure a lot of people can relate to them.

So many things were going on that intrigued me about the Triangle District. They only became enriched by coming to awareness of the story of that district and the impact in terms of how it destroyed the spirit. But how, in situations like that, there is a spirit that cannot be denied. That cannot be defied but often become resurrected. And succeeding situations where the legacy of that story has a fresh impact.

There are countless stories of contributions from Black Kentuckians and Black Appalachians in Kentucky. And the notion is that the victor always gets to tell the story, right. And we know many times in many communities where Black individuals have not been the victor. And they have not had control of the narrative or the telling of their story.

I think it’s important to remember that it’s not just about allocating capital resources in the form of currency. Still, it’s about the allocation of human capital and the resources that are there and finding a way to retain high-quality individuals who are interested in doing community development.