The Renaissance of McDowell County
By Randi Weingarten When most of the coal companies pulled up stakes and abandoned McDowell County, WV, decades ago, they didn’t leave much behind except pain and poverty. Pride, however, remained. The good people of this part of rural America went from enjoying middle-class livelihoods to enduring sky-high unemployment, some of the nation’s worst health […]
Feast in the Field Follow-Up
By Elizabeth Riffle It’s not often you see bison or buffalo on a menu in Appalachia. It’s even more rare to dine with the beasts surrounding your table. Riffle Farms in Terra Alta, WV, is the proud purveyor of some of the highest quality grass-fed and finished bison in the region. In September, owners Jimmie […]
West Virginia 4-H’ers enhance teamwork, problem-solving skills with the help of cast and crew of Barnwood Builders
Learn by doing. That phrase is deeply engrained in 4-H’ers all over the country. A group of 4-H’ers from Ohio County recently had a chance to put that motto to the test. The crew from Barnwood Builders, led by WVU alumnus Mark Bowe, visited WVU Jackson’s Mill to film an upcoming episode featuring students from […]
WVU researcher to help target victims of rural sex trafficking through new mobile app
A West Virginia University School of Medicine researcher is developing an app to train key personnel in rural areas how to identify and report one of the lesser known elements of the opioid epidemic — child sex trafficking. “Trafficking is often done to fuel someone’s illicit drug habit,” said Amie Ashcraft, director of research for the Department of Family Medicine. “In […]
Clear Mountain Bank Hires Michael Krannich as Chief Credit Officer
Clear Mountain Bank recently named Michael Krannich to the position of Chief Credit Officer. In his role, Krannich will be responsible for overseeing the overall quality and administration of the bank’s lending portfolio including the areas of loan portfolio management, credit analysis, loan processing, collections and lending policies and procedures. “We are fortunate to have […]
Contractors Association OF of West Virginia Elects New Officers
Doug Meeks, president, Brewer & Company of West Virginia, Inc., Charleston, was elected president of the Contractors Association of West Virginia at the association’s Annual Meeting held July 11-14 at The Greenbrier. He replaces Roger Thomas, vice president of Kelly Paving, Inc., Williamstown, who will serve on the Board of Directors as immediate past president. […]