Making Connections News: Recent Episodes
Making Connections News
A Story Bank Sharing New Ideas, Opportunities & Challenges For Diversifying Appalachia's Economy & Renewing Her Communities, from WMMT-FM & Appalshop Community Media Initiative
Even if diabetes runs in your family, if you find out that your own A1C, or blood sugar level, is in the diabetes range, that doesn’t mean your future with diabetes is set in stone. Fannie Callahan, of Lee County, KY, is living proof. Despite having a family history of diabetes, when Fannie found out her A1C had crossed over into the diabetes zone, she jumped into action, changing what she ate every day and starting to go out walking as often as she could. Before long, her A1C had fallen back down into a safer range, and, she says, she just felt better in general. In this episode we visit with Fannie, as part of our ongoing storytelling series Prevent Diabetes EKY, and hear about her diabetes journey— including how, even if she’s exercising more, she still makes time to watch basketball.
On March 9, 1976, the Scotia mine in Eolia in Letcher County, KY, exploded killing fifteen coal miners. On March 11, the mine blew up again, killing eight miners and three federal inspectors. The Scotia mine was owned by Blue Diamond Coal Company in Knoxville, TNThis Making Connections News episode features a discussion on April 5th, 2025, with some of the members of the Westmoreland Mine Rescue Team who were the first to enter the mine to attempt rescue and recovery. They were then called back to enter the mine after the second explosion.Brian McKnight, professor of history at the University of Virginia at Clinch Valley, led the panel at the Harry M. Caudill Library in Whitesburg. Rescue team members David Breedlove, Gerald Tate, Allen Wolfe and J.R. Kimberlin share vivid and at times painful details of their experiences. At the time of the disaster they worked at Westmoreland mines located in Wise County, VA.
Diabetes is a very serious disease that can lead to loss of limbs, heart disease, kidney failure, stroke, blindness, and death. Kentucky has the 9th highest death rate from diabetes in the nation. The good news is that Type 2 diabetes can be prevented or managed. Individuals with prediabetes can cut their risk of getting type 2 diabetes IN HALF by losing weight, eating healthy food and being more active. People with diabetes can get help from health care providers and take these same steps to manage their diabetes and even put it in remission. Individuals with prediabetes can cut their risk of getting type 2 diabetes IN HALF by losing weight, eating healthy food and being more active. People with diabetes can get help from health care providers and take these same steps to manage their diabetes and even put it in remission. Listen in to hear some inspiring stories from East Kentucky folks who are doing just that, and the programs that are helping them.
Delving into the WMMT archive to hear from two amazing Appalachian women artists, poet Nikki Giovanni and folk singer/songwriter Jean Ritchie.Nikki Giovanni died on December 9th, 2024, at age 81. A native of Knoxville, TN, she is a celebrated African American poet, writer, and activist who gained prominence in the 1960s during the Civil Rights and Black Arts Movements. Since 1987 Giovanni has taught at Virginia Tech and lived in Blacksburg, VA. She came to see herself as one of the Affrilachian poets and her writing on race, love and justice have significantly influenced Appalachian poetry. Giovanni is the narrator and the subject of one of the 15 interviews included in “Tell It On The Mountain: Appalachian Women Writers,” a series created by WMMT producer Maxine Kenny that first aired in 2015. That interview is shared in this episode.The program concludes with a feature on internationally recognized folk singer and songwriter Jean Ritchie, who was born in Viper, KY in 1922. This story comes from “Southern Songbirds: Women Pioneers of Country and Old Time Music,” a series produced by Rachel Goodman and WMMT and originally aired in 2001.Photo credit - U.S. Air Force photo/ Airman 1st Class Stephany Miller, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
This program features a special selection of conversations with Appalachian African Americans. There's no Appalachian history without Black history. Despite so many of the stereotypes about this region, African Americans have long been a vital part of the fabric of mountain communities. As part of a project called AppalHealth, we've been conducting oral history interviews with Black East Kentuckians, talking to people both about their lives and experiences in general, and also asking folks in particular about their experiences with healthcare. The interviews were led by Appalshop's Tiffany Sturdivant, and Tiffany will take things from here.
This Making Connections News edition of WMMT's Mountain Talk shares some good news from the Boys and Girls Clubs of Appalachia for Letcher County kids and their parents. Then Conan Cao, summer intern at Appalachian Citizens Law Center, describes the prevalence of black lung disease in his native China and the US, and offers some thoughts on the hopes of local folks in both countries. The episode ends with Hazel Dickens’ powerful rendition of her song “Black Lung.” Listen to Mountain Talk on WMMT on Thursday at 6 pm, with encore broadcasts Mon at 10 am and Tuesday at 11 am.
Harm Reduction specialists, law enforcement, business people, faith leaders and directly impacted Kentuckians relayed personal experiences and offered policy advice during Dream.org‘s first event in their Public Health Is Public Safety campaign. The event took place April 19, 2023 at Jenny Wiley State Resort Park in eastern Kentucky. The campaign goals are to bring together communities across Kentucky to work for more effective drug policies, substance abuse recovery programs and harm reduction efforts. About 75 people attended this kickoff meeting. It was organized by John Bowman, who lives in eastern Kentucky and is Dream.org’s Kentucky Campaign Coordinator. Dream.org is a national organization working for criminal justice reform, climate solutions, and job opportunities for people in places that are often overlooked.Substance abuse continues as a serious public health crisis in Kentucky. In fact, 2021 saw a 14.5% rise in drug overdose deaths. Harsh penalties for drug-related felony offenses enacted during the War on Drugs are a major reason Kentucky has very high rates of incarceration Research clearly shows that criminal drug laws neither prevent substance use nor address substance use disorder and overdoses. Advocates hope that members of the Kentucky Legislature will take steps to reduce incarceration and increase recovery opportunities in the 2024 General AssemlyA Production of Appalshop Community Media Initiative and WMMT.org.
Feb. 26, 2023 was the 51rst anniversary of the Buffalo Creek Flood, a coal mining disaster that killed 125 people and left 4000 homeless in this Logan County, WV community. This episode features audio from "Buffalo Creek Revisited," a 1985 documentary film produced by Mimi Pickering that looks at the impact of the disaster ten years after the flood, a story that is particularly relevant as many are questioning how, or if, Eastern Kentucky will recover after the devastating floods of July 2022. That is followed by a powerful remembrance of the disaster by survivor Billy Jack Dickerson from the 50th anniversary event held at Man High School on Feb 26, 2022.
In September 2022, the Bureau of Prisons announced that it was reviving a plan to build and operate a federal correctional institution and prison camp in Letcher County, KY. This episode shares the comments, both pro and con, that members of the public delivered to Bureau of Prisons representatives regarding bringing a prison to the county. Plans for a prison originated in 2006 when Congress authorized a study for a high security facility which was eventually approved for a site in Roxanna in 2018. However, in 2019 that plan was withdrawn. Now the Bureau of Prisons is proposing a medium security prison and work camp and began the process of creating a Draft Environmental Impact Statement with a public meeting on November 17 at Letcher County Central High School. 150 people signed in and another 54 were attending by way of the internet. Comments have been lightly edited. It should be noted that all speakers received applause from the audience but that has been edited out for time’s sake.
November is National Diabetes Month and our Making Connections News show at 6 pm tonight is sharing stories of eastern Kentuckians who are making lifestyle changes to prevent or slow down type 2 diabetes. Many are participating in Diabetes Prevention Programs that are supporting their efforts, even during COVID! One in seven Kentuckians have been diagnosed with diabetes. It is estimated that 1 in 3 have elevated blood sugar levels that could lead to diabetes and may not know it! Listen up and find more stories and information at www.preventdiabeteseky.org, a project of Appalshop CMI and the Kentucky Department for Public Health.
This episode is looking to the future with interviews with Diane Wilson about her book “The Seed Keeper,” and Brian Anderson, the leader of the Biden Administration effort to make sure coal communities are not left behind in the transition to cleaner energy. Thanks to Everywhere Radio from the Rural Assembly and AppalachAmerica for sharing these interviews.
Diane Wilson (Dakota) sat down with Rural Assembly Program Associate Tyler Owens during Rural Women Everywhere to talk about Wilson’s most recent book "The Seed Keeper," which follows a Dakota family's struggle to preserve their way of life, and their sacrifices to protect what matters most. During this conversation Wilson and Owens explore where Wilson finds her inspiration, the importance of continuing a tradition of storytelling, and the importance of connection to the earth. Diane Wilson is a writer, speaker, and editor, who has published two award-winning books, as well as essays in numerous publications.
Next AppalachAmerica host Jeff Young asks what Appalachia without coal might become and talks with two individuals who are leading efforts to support a transition to cleaner energy that also rebuilds the region’s green economy. These interviews took place in the spring of 2021 not long after the Biden Administration took office.
Brian Anderson comes from a family that has a generations-long connection to West Virginia coal and fossil fuel development. Jeff Young talks with Anderson about the multi-agency federal working group he’s leading to support a sustainable transition to clean energy, and about his role as director of the Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory. Also, what might a Green New Deal look like in Appalachia? Jeff talks with design professor Billy Fleming about a project to give form to Appalachian people’s ideas about a more sustainable future.
A potpourri of topics on this episode, beginning with a look at the federal government’s Affordable Connectivity Program which has the potential to increase broadband access for millions of Americans. From there environmental reporter James Brugger talks with Tom Martin, from WEKU's Eastern Standard, about his research on lagging strip mine reclamation, and Diabetes Prevention Educator Mary Beth Castle shares her own journey towards better health. The program ends with an interview with Kentucky musician Naomi Judd originally broadcast on KET.
On this episode Whitney Kimball Coe from the Rural Assembly shares a conversation with Anthony Flaccavento, a farmer in southwestern VA, as well as an author, political candidate, and most recently co-founder of the Rural Urban Bridge Initiative. This interview comes from the Everywhere Radio podcast produced by the Rural Assembly. Following that are remembrances from three folks who spoke at a memorial for bell hooks held at Berea College on April 14th. bell, who was born Gloria Jean Watkins in Hopkinsville KY, died dec 15, 2021. She came back to Kentucky to serve as Distinguished Professor in Residence in Appalachian Studies at Berea College in 2004 and from that point on made her home there. The international outpouring of grief and love for bell hooks that came with her passing may have surprised many in this region and state who were unaware that such a renowned figure lived amongst us. Linda Strong Leek who was Berea College Provost before becoming provost at Haverford College in Philadelphia, introduces Paige Melman, and Beverly Guy Sheftall, and then concludes the program.
Kentucky has the 4th highest death rate from diabetes in the US. In recognition of March 22nd's Diabetes Alert Day, stories from eastern Kentuckians who have reduced their risk of diabetes through participation in National Diabetes Prevention Programs or through lifestyle changes made on their own are shared. One in 7 Kentuckians has diabetes, that’s over 13% of adults, and 17% in Appalachian Kentucky. Another 11% of Kentuckians have prediabetes, a condition that is often unrecognized but which can be prevented or slowed with diet and exercise. These stories come from Prevent Diabetes EKY, an online source of information and resources to assist in preventing or slowing down diabetes.
Feb. 26, 2022 is the 50th anniversary of the Buffalo Creek Flood in Logan County, WV. 125 people were killed and left 4000 homeless when a poorly constructed coal waste dam collapsed at the head of Buffalo Creek. This program features the soundtrack of Mimi Pickering’s film about what happened and why, and a follow up focusing on the efforts to rebuild the communities after the disaster. Both films, The Buffalo Creek Flood: An Act of Man and Buffalo Creek Revisited, are available for rent or purchase from Appalshop.
The Black Lung Benefits Disability Trust Fund has lost $22,400,000 since the excise fee supporting the fund was slashed at the end of 2021. At a January 14 press conference, leaders from the National Black Lung Association, Appalachian Voices and the Appalachian Citizens Law Center call on Congress to take immediate action to restore the fee supporting the Fund. The Fund provides benefits and life-prolonging health care coverage for miners disabled by this deadly disease. The excise fee supporting the Fund was cut by more than half when the Build Back Better bill failed to pass at the end of 2021. At the press conference regional representatives presented a letter signed by over 65 organizations calling on Congress to take action to restore the excise fee.
On January 20th, Rep Bobby Scott (VA) and Rep. Alma Adams (NC) introduced the Black Lung Benefits Disability Trust Fund Solvency Act of 2022 to extend the Coal Excise Tax for 10 years. They were joined by original cosponsors Rep. John Yarmuth (KY) and Rep. Matt Cartwright (PA). However the bill has not moved in Congress and the Fund is quickly moving towards insolvency.
In this episode, Daily Yonder producer Xandr Brown celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for the disruptor that he was; Appalachian advocates call for Congress to quickly restore the excise fee supporting the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund and miners’ health care; speakers at a ReImagine Appalachia Summit see potential for job creation, sustainable economic growth, and clean energy with an influx of federal funding targeted towards the region.
This episode begins with a first-hand account of the economic challenges facing towns and counties in Central Appalachia, but then celebrates the positive impact the recently passed Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is going to have on the region. Also included is a report on Build Back Better, a bill, that if passed by Congress, would invest in our human infrastructure – that is children, students, families, health care, community wellbeing and more. Featured are Marley Green from Appalshop, Dustin Pugel who is Senior Policy Analyst with the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, and Rebecca Shelton, Research Director at Appalachian Citizens Law Center.
Three amazing Appalachians talk about their efforts to make their communities – be they local, regional or statewide – better places to live and thrive. Attorney John Rosenberg, who just turned 90, is the founding director of the Kentucky office of Appalachian Research & Defense Fund – AppalRed – and a founder of the Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center. He spoke with Tom Martin of WEKU’s Eastern Standard as part of AppalRed’s 50th anniversary. Jerry Fultz is the mayor of Wayland, KY. Fultz and other community leaders are doing big things to keep this small town going. Lou Wallace describes her community improvement efforts as a concerned citizen and then local official in Virginia’s Wise and Russell Counties. Hard work, persistence, and cooperative spirit has resulted in many projects that are successfully revitalizing St. Paul and neighboring communities along the Clinch River in southwestern Virginia.
WV’s Battle of Blair Mountain happened 100 years ago, but what’s it’s significance for working people today? That’s the topic explored in this Making Connections News episode by historians, authors, artists, activists who make the case that understanding what the miners and their families were fighting for will help us all understand the challenges that working people are facing today. This Aug. 19 webinar was presented by the Battle of Homestead Foundation as part of the Battle of Blair Mountain Centennial. #Blair100
This month Making Connections News features an August 13th webinar, Black Lung: People, Power and Policy. At this virtual event, Gary Hairston, President of the National Black Lung Assoc., says the disease is diminishing his life while Debbie Wills, who helps miners at one of West Virginia's Black Lung Clinics, describes the long and difficult process for applying for and receiving benefits. Rebecca Shelton from Appalachian Citizens' Law Center describes the shocking increase in the disease, especially among younger miners, and calls on the government to enact regulations that would reduce dust and silica in the mines, and thus Black Lung disease. Willie Dodson with Appalachia Voices encourages listeners to join current grassroots efforts to ensure Congress adequately funds the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund. As more and more coal companies declare bankruptcy, sick miners are dependent on this fund for life extending health care, but without an increase in the excise tax that supports it, the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund could be severely cut back. For more information on the problem and how you can help, go to www.BlackLungKills.com.
This episode focuses on the June 18th launch of the Black Appalachian Coalition in partnership with the NAACP. The launch featured a discussion of black invisibility in the Appalachian region and an urgent call to include African Americans and their communities in regional redevelopment efforts being considered by President Biden and congress. Frank X Walker, Kentucky writer, educator and co-founder of the Affrilachian poets, speaks about the many contributions African American writers, artists and activists have made to the history and culture of Appalachia. Dr. Mustafa Santiago Ali describes his family's deep roots in West Virginia and the need to bring forward Black people in the region as leaders, credible messengers, and experts. The Coalition believes their very presence in public conversations can begin to shift fundamental narratives about Appalachia.
Central Appalachia includes some of the poorest communities in the nation. Although the region has long provided raw materials to fuel American prosperity elsewhere, it has suffered economically and, in many places, working people have experienced downward mobility since the early 1980s. Absentee corporations and extractive industries have left the land scarred and the people in the region sick.
Among those hit hardest by the losses are Black Appalachians. Not only have Black residents of the region suffered tremendous economic and cultural losses in the past decades, but they are often simply ignored, despite the rich cultural history of Black Appalachians and their many contributions to the region. This is why the organizers of the Black Appalachian Coalition (BLAC) believe this new effort is critical for our region.
This episode looks at the future for coal miners, former mine lands and efforts to rebuild coalfield communities. UMWA President Cecil Roberts speaks about the future he believes his members deserve. At the Reclaim Act Town Hall, Pennsylvania Rep. Matt Cartwright describes the importance of two bills he has introduced that are crucial to the cleanup of abandoned mine lands and economic transition across the country. Mary Cromer, Deputy Director of Appalachian Citizens' Law Center, details the dangers unreclaimed mine lands pose. And Tom Martin from WEKU’s Eastern Standard interviews Clifford Smith and Chris Barton on current efforts in Kentucky to make former mine lands productive.
On Wednesday, April 14, the Ohio River Valley Institute and ReImagine Appalachia held a press conference and released a timely set of reports titled "Repairing the Damage from Orphan Wells and Abandoned Mine Lands." The reports describe an extraordinary opportunity to develop pathways to address the environmental and public health issues of abandoned mine lands and orphan wells, creating over 30,000 well-paying, local jobs in the process. The reports show that solving the climate crisis can be a reemployment plan for the Ohio River Valley and an investment in the region’s future. The public investments we make today to stem climate change can protect our communities and ensure the health of future generations to come.
Eula Hall, health care leader and self described “hillbilly activist,” spent a lifetime assisting her Eastern Kentucky neighbors and encouraging poor people to fight for their rights. After passing away on May 8 at age 93, she was lauded in her native Floyd County, by a Kentucky Congressman and Senator, and in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal. Longtime friends Steve Brooks and Maxine Kenny recall experiences with Eula that began when they came to Eastern Kentucky in the late 1960s and early 70s and worked with her to get the Mud Creek Clinic started, and to address other injustices that poor people were facing at that time. That's followed by a 2013 interview with Eula at an Appalshop book signing event for "Mud Creek Clinic: The Life of Eula Hall and the Fight for Appalachia" by Kiran Bhatraju. Also featured is an interview with labor historian Chuck Keeney, the author of a new history on West Virginia’s Battle of Blair Mountain, now in its centennial year. This story comes to us from Appalach-America, a new podcast produced by the Ohio Valley ReSource and Louisville Public Media.
While local health professionals encourage all eastern Kentuckians to get vaccinated against COVID-19, it's even more important for those with underlying health issues including those with diabetes and prediabetes. Reporting for our WMMT series "Prevent Diabetes EKY," Parker Hobson speaks to several eastern Kentucky folks who have diabetes, some in health care and some not, on why they think it made sense to get the shot.
If you have type 2 diabetes, and you’re looking to get your a1c under control, health departments and clinics across the region offer Diabetes Self-Management Support and Education classes. And if you think you might be at risk for type 2, there are also Diabetes Prevention Program classes that support stopping diabetes before it starts. You can find out more about these programs—and hear local stories about preventing and dealing with type 2—at preventdiabeteseky.org.
In this edition of Making Connections News, eastern Kentuckians dealing with diabetes and prediabetes describe the benefits of getting the COVID 19 vaccine, White House National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy talks about President Biden’s plans for investment in coal-dependent communities, and two newly-released studies show the positive environmental impact and job growth associated with capping orphan gas wells and cleaning up abandoned mine lands. And finally, a story from Letcher County, KY where some residents are fearful of increased landslides and flooding from mine damaged lands.
This show features Rep. Matt Cartwright and Rep. Glenn Thompson, both from Pennsylvania coal mining districts, introducing the RECLAIM Act and legislation to reauthorize the Abandoned Mine Lands Fund at a March 10 Press Conference. Sponsors describe these bills as bipartisan, and state they could create 13,000 jobs immediately, while helping to ensure coal country is a part of the economic recovery. Following that, members of the RECLAIM Working Group describe the dire need for this legislation and the impact it could have in the Appalachian coalfields, including stories of reclamation projects that are already putting people to work and creating new businesses.
Speakers at the January 12th ReImagine Appalachia Strategy Summit describe their policy blueprint for creating a New Deal - a green economy with good paying jobs in Appalachia, followed by comments from the mayors of Pittsburgh and Huntington who support a "Marshall Plan for Middle America" to redevelop the Ohio River Valley region. Several of the proposals in these plans have now been included or proposed in new federal legislation, an exciting sign of hoped for investment in Appalachia.
This Black History Month episode focuses on current black lives and why they matter for all of us. First, an interview with KY State Rep. Attica Scott who talks about Breonna's Law, legislation she has filed in response to the police killing of Breonna Taylor in Louisville last March, as well as her hopes for building a movement of Kentuckians across the state who are working for racial justice and policies that build thriving communities everywhere. Then an interview from the archive with Affrilachian author and educator Crystal Wilkinson recorded just as Wilkinson’s novel "The Birds of Opulence" was coming out. Finally Pastor Edward Palmer calls on us to overcome racism through policy actions, a presentation from the January Kentucky Policy virtual conference.
Pastor Edward L. Palmer addresses the issue of racism, which he describes as a policy failure, equity, and the differing impact that Kentucky state policies often have on African Americans and other People of Color. He also identifies proposed legislation that would improve the juvenile justice system in Kentucky. Palmer pastors The Sign of the Dove Church International, is a certified diversity trainer, state juvenile justice advisory board member, Radcliffe City councilman, and currently National Chair of the Coalition for Juvenile Justice. His presentation was delivered January 15 at the annual conference of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy.
"Here in our area, nobody’s alone with diabetes. Any street corner you turn down, every grocery store aisle, every church pew— you know, you’ve probably got somebody sitting right there with you who is battling it, or a close family member who is," says Tiffany Scott. But, she adds, the Appalachians in Control (AIC) diabetes research and outreach project she coordinates in Letcher County, KY has demonstrated that people can delay, or even prevent type 2 diabetes, simply with diet and exercise plans. Listen to Tiffany's story to find out more.
As 2020 was coming to an end, Kentuckians were experiencing unemployment, food insecurity, and housing evictions due to the coronavirus, and frightened about the looming cut off of many aid programs that were passed as part of the CARES Act last spring. At this Dec. 3 press conference they shared their stories. The show concludes with an interview with Jessica Wilkerson and Tom Martin of WEKU’s “Eastern Standard” about her book "To Live Here You Have To Fight: How Women Led Appalachian Movements for Social Justice." Photo: Martha Soukup / Flickr, CC
One in seven Kentuckians have been diagnosed with diabetes, and it is estimated that 1 in 3 have elevated blood sugar levels that could lead to diabetes. Prevent Diabetes EKY shares stories of folks in our region who are showing a way forward by making lifestyle changes to improve their health and the National Diabetes Prevention Programs that are supporting their efforts. On this show we are bringing together stories produced over the past year and a half and celebrating the launch of a new website, www.preventdiabeteseky.org, where stories and resources can be found. Prevent Diabetes EKY is a project of Appalshop, WMMT and the KY Department for Public Health, with support from the Centers for Disease Control.
Brandon Dennison, CEO of the Coalfield Development Corporation in southern West Virginia, contributed his organization's successful model of a wholistic worker training program to the National Economic Transition or (NET) platform, which was released by the Just Transition Fund in June of 2020. In this report, the Just Transition Fund's Heidi Binko describes the goals of the NET Platform while Denison shares the training, education and job creation approach his organization is using to put people to work in central Appalachia.
The population of Appalachia, like most of rural America, is more diverse than many people realize. And the recent support for racial justice has been larger than many expected. When Joseph Palumbo signed on to help organize a Black Lives Matter march in his Eastern Kentucky hometown of Hazard, he figured 50 people would show up. The peaceful event drew about 10 times that amount. The unexpectedly strong response to this and similar events across Appalachia is changing attitudes, including Palumbo's, about what’s possible in small towns across rural America. Tim Marema from The Daily Yonder interviewed Palumbo, who is 33 years old, about the march in June and civic activities that are growing out of it.
Whitney Kimball Coe provides a preview of the Rural Assembly Everywhere, the first time the gathering will be online beginning Monday October 26 and wrapping up Friday October 30. The Rural Assembly is a nationwide movement of people and organizations building a smarter, greener, more inclusive rural America. Coe is the Director of National Programs at the Center for Rural Strategies, the home base of the Rural Assembly. For more information or to register (it's free!) go to www.ruralassembly.org.
Avoiding type 2 diabetes is always a good thing for your health. But health professionals say that diabetes is one of several underlying conditions that could make the symptoms of COVID-19 more severe and potentially deadly. In this story we meet Marilyn Morgan, of Johnson County, and Connie Godsey Duvall, of Cumberland County, two eastern Kentuckians who, despite the difficulties posed by the pandemic, are meeting the challenge of preventing type 2 diabetes head-on. Both have been participating in their local version of the National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), and both say the program has helped them not just lose weight, but also keep it off. Also featured is Mary Beth Castle, DPP Lifestyle Coach at the Johnson Co. Health Department, who speaks about her efforts to guide participants through the DPP process amidst the unique circumstances of a worldwide pandemic.
Over 80 local, regional and national leaders worked together for several years to develop the National Economic Transition, or NET, Platform which was released to the public this summer. Built on community driven solutions, it is a framework for large scale investments to assist communities hardest hit by the changing coal economy. Heidi Binko, executive director of the Just Transition Fund, kicks off this press conference which includes comments from the directors of MACED and Coalfield Development Corporation in Appalachia, Tribal leaders from out West, and representatives from the Utility Workers Union. The NET Platform is available to view or download at https://nationaleconomictransition.org/
Members of ReImagine Appalachia, a coalition of policy organizations, grassroots groups, individuals and activists from West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Ohio, offer ideas at a March convening for building a 21rst century sustainable regional economy. That is followed by a July 21rst press conference announcing the ReImagine Appalachia policy blueprint and calling for large scale federal investment in the region. The blueprint outlines a vision for vibrant Appalachian communities where everyone is paid enough to support themselves and their family, future generations can put down roots, and everyone has clean air to breathe and water to drink.
The Kentucky Labor Day Town Hall was held virtually on September 7 because of COVID 19, the virus that has now infected 58,000 Kentuckians and killed more than 1,000 of our friends and neighbors. COVID 19 is also devastating our economy. Nearly 40% of KY workers have applied for unemployment, the highest rate in the country. Meanwhile The US Senate has failed to act on additional relief, instead letting emergency unemployment payments and other COVID relief benefits expire. At the Town Hall we hear from Kentucky workers, union leaders, experts and policy makers who call on Congress to provide the federal aid that workers, their families and their communities need during this crisis. McKenzie Cantrell, KY State Representative from Louisville is the host of the Labor Day Town Hall.
We end this show with Elaine Purkey singing her song "America, Our Union" from the Appalshop film "Justice in the Coalfields, which covered the Pittston coal strike. Elaine, a singer, songwriter, and community organizer from Logan County, WV died on Sept. 2 at the age of 71 from COVID 19.
FederalAid4KY #Savethe600
Young people sometimes think that prediabetes and type 2 diabetes are health issues that younger people don't really need to worry about. But Taylor Pratt found out in high school that she was in danger of developing the disease, despite the fact that it did not run in her family. On a visit to her eye doctor, Pratt, of Letcher County, KY, got the surprising news that her right optic nerve was swollen. An A1C test (a measure of how much glucose, or sugar, is in your bloodstream) came back just shy of being officially in the prediabetes range, but still high enough that Taylor would need to make some lifestyle changes before it got worse, or even turned into full-blown type 2. "It was kind of like a shock," Taylor said.
In this story, Taylor discusses her diagnosis; her eating habits, old and new; how much better she began to feel after she started to eat differently and exercise more; and how she wishes that more young people were taught about diabetes in school, so that maybe she could've stopped her own issue before it ever started.
Anna Baumann, Deputy Director of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, talks about the impact federal stimulus funding has had to date and the urgent need for more. According to census data, half of Kentucky adults say they or someone in their household have lost employment income since the COVID-19 crisis began. The sources they’re relying on to make ends meet include enhanced unemployment insurance, stimulus payments and more personal debt, At the same time that COIVD 19 cases are rising and further threatening our health and our economy, these sources of financial support are either limited or running out this week. The House has passed several bills but the Senate, led by Kentucky's Mitch McConnell, has yet to put forth any proposals to support individuals, businesses, or state and local governments.
Despite roadblocks presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Census count is continuing. Michelle Elison, Portfolio Manager at the National Partnership Program of the US Census Bureau, provides an update on response rates in Kentucky and the Census Bureau plans for the next phase of data collection. She also reminds us of how important getting a complete count is for our political representation and securing funding for vital community services like health care, education, and emergency response. Although most households have been contacted, eastern Kentucky response rates are low. However you can still get counted at 2020census.gov or by calling 844-330-2020.
Dr. Brandon Crum from United Medical Group and Rebecca Shelton from Appalachian Citizens' Law Center describe the efforts underway in eastern Kentucky to help protect miners with black lung and other respiratory diseases who are especially vulnerable to COVID-19. Speaking at the June 10th meeting of the WV Association of Black Lung Clinics, Dr. Crum and Ms. Shelton hoped that conference participants, including health care providers and staff at black lung clinics, would be able to use activities they described to support patients in their clinics. They ended their presentation expressing concerns about the continuing spread of COVID 19 in the coalfields, especially as things open up.
On June 12, Cecil Roberts, President of the United Mine Workers of America, was the final speaker at the 2020 West Virginia Association of Black Lung Clinics annual conference. Roberts began his remarks with a video clip of former miners testifying before the House Education and Labor Committee in June 2019 about contracting black lung at an early age and the urgent need for Congress to pass silica dust standards. His comments addressed concerns about COVID-19 and the well being of working miners and those with black lung, hailed the miners' ten year fight that won pension and health care benefits for retired miners last December, and encouraged everyone to continue to put the pressure on Congress to pass silica dust standards to lower the kinds of cases of serious lung disease now seen with many miners. The participants at this online event included health care providers and staff at black lung clinics, public health officials, researchers , lawyers and others calling in from the coalfields and beyond. On Tuesday, June 16, the UMWA filed a petition in federal appeals court asking the court to force the Mine Safety and Health Administration, or MSHA, to issue an emergency standard to protect vulnerable coal miners from the infectious COVID 19 disease.
On this Making Connections News episode, we are covering COVID-19 and the continuing health danger it poses for coal miners and those with black lung, about precautions to take to prevent exposure, and efforts to pass a silica dust standard to lower rates of black lung disease. We hear from Dr. James Brandon Crum from Pikeville and Rebecca Shelton from the Appalachian Citizens Law Center; Dr. Connie White, Deputy Director of the Kentucky Department for Public Health; a report from the Ohio Valley ReSource's Sydney Boles on the health challenges miners working underground are facing; and Cecil Roberts, President of the United Mine Workers of America.
2020 Census count is underway and the data will determine how much money and power comes to each community. Yet eastern Kentuckians have been slow to respond. Rachelle Seger from the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, KY State Rep. Angie Hatton, and the US Census Bureau's Michelle Elison talk about why it is so important to fill out those forms and be counted, especially those of us living in Central Appalachia. The data collected through the census determines funding for things like school lunches, educational programs, and improvements to roads and bridges. Census data is used to determine federal disaster relief, hospital funding, Medicare, Medicaid, and support for medical clinics like Mountain Comprehensive Health Corporation in eastern Kentucky. It is used for planning and preparation for natural disasters and epidemics such as COVID-19. The Census Bureau has delayed in-person outreach efforts making it more important than ever to self report. The 2020 census can be completed online at my2020census.gov, or by calling 844-330-2020. For Spanish call 844-468-2020. And of course you can fill out the paper form and return it post paid in the mail. It is not too late to be counted.
A story from our archive on the importance of the US Postal Service to rural people and their communities. Dateline: 12/15/2011: As the U.S. Postal Service faces financial crisis, Central Appalachia and much of rural America may be hard hit by pending closures of post offices and mail processing centers. To avoid bankruptcy, the Postal Service had announced plans to make reductions amounting to approximately $3 billion. Such drastic cuts would result in slower first class delivery and close hundreds of mail facilities nationwide. After public and Congressional outcry, USPS announced a moratorium on closures until May 15, 2012. In this expanded WMMT report customers at the Burdine and Premium post offices, two of the nine in Letcher County, KY on the closure list, describe what the service means to their communities while officials from the USPS and the American Postal Workers Union offer differing solutions to the Postal Service financial crisis.
Dr. Connie White describes the coronavirus, its symptoms, and the precautions we need to take, including testing and staying at home, to prevent its spread. She notes that eastern Kentucky residents are very vulnerable due to high rates of lung disease, heart disease, diabetes, obesity and other chronic illnesses. Dr. White is an MD and Deputy Director for Clinical Affairs at the Kentucky Department for Public Health.
Another story in our series, Preventing Diabetes in EKY, this report focuses on an innovative health improvement program happening in connection with the Letcher County Farmers’ Market. We hear from participants, some diagnosed with diabetes or prediabetes, who walk one mile on Whitesburg's public walking track every week and, in return, get a free $10 voucher to use on fresh fruits & vegetables at the market. The program has shown demonstrable results, including lowering participants’ average A1C levels and reducing waist circumference & BMI. It could serve as a model for other communities in the region struggling with increases in diabetes among residents.
This episode of Making Connections News is a recording from the Create Your State Tour, a musical, multimedia performance that inspires and empowers creative community revitalization and development. The presentation tells the inspiring story of arts-driven community transformation in Princeton, West Virginia, through the eyes of artists and cultural entrepreneurs Lori McKinney and Robert Blankenship, and features the original music of Option 22. Over the past several years support from the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation enabled towns across West Virginia to bring the Create Your State performance and workshop to their communities to kick off conversations about how the arts, creativity and an out-of-the-box approach can establish a creative scene that redefines and reinvigorates a community. This presentation was recorded in Philippi, WV on May 5, 2019.
Willa Johnson, a single mom from McRoberts, KY, has long struggled with health problems but didn't realize she was prediabetic until she found out her glucose levels were rising. She spoke with reporter Parker Hobson about her efforts to change her diet to one based on healthy foods, some of the obstacles she faces living in a rural area, and the rewards that come from persistence and picking yourself back up when you fall.
As we think about ways to diversify our economy and improve our quality of life, our health is an essential part of the picture. This story is part of Prevent Diabetes EKY, a new series sharing eastern Kentuckians’ experiences living with diabetes and prediabetes, while showcasing current efforts to slow down or prevent Type 2 Diabetes in the region. This series is supported by the Kentucky Department for Public Health.
As the nation grapples with climate change, the need for a fair transition for workers and communities that have depended upon coal jobs and revenue has also gained traction. Even in West Virginia such discussions are starting to get attention despite strong political support for the coal industry. Ohio Valley ReSource reporter Brittany Patterson covers a recent conference in Charleston where speakers facilitated a conversation about what constitutes a “just transition” as well as how West Virginia and other regions that depend on coal could actually get there.
Most folks working to revive our region's economy agree that it is increasingly difficult to do if the state of Kentucky is not providing the basic investments we need in education, health, human services and infrastructure. So in this episode we are doing a deep dive into Kentucky’s budget and revenue options as the governor and General Assembly plan for 2021-2022.
Our reporting comes from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy’s annual conference, titled "What does Kentucky Value?," which was held Jan 31, 2020 in Lexington, KY. KCEP Executive DIrector Jason Bailey kicked off the event with the notion that the Kentucky state budget is the primary policy document of the Commonwealth and thus should reflect our priorities and shared values. He is followed by Ashley Spaulding and Pam Thomas from the KCEP staff who describe recent budget cuts and revenue sources. We end with comments from the keynote address by Dr. Jared Bernstein, Economist and Senior Fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
Letcher County's Patsy Adams grew up surrounded by family members who suffered from diabetes, but she didn't realize she had it until it was almost too late. In this profile, she talks about the hard road she has traveled since and encourages listeners to get their A1C levels checked so they can take action to prevent or slow down the disease.
As we think about ways to diversify our economy and improve our quality of life, our health is an essential part of the picture. Disease and mortality rates are considerably higher in central Appalachia than in the rest of the nation and in many ways limit our potential to work and live happily.
Prevent Diabetes EKY is a new series produced by Making Connections News to share eastern Kentuckians’ experiences living with diabetes and prediabetes, while showcasing current efforts to slow down or prevent Type 2 Diabetes in the region.
This series is supported by the Kentucky Department for Public Health.
If you live in Appalachian Kentucky, the odds are that you know somebody--maybe even a family member--that has type 2 diabetes: eastern Kentucky suffers from higher rates of Type 2 Diabetes than the rest of the state, and the rest of the country. But something you might not know is that, in many cases, Type 2 Diabetes can be prevented, even if it runs in your family. This report focuses in on a lifestyle change program that’s being offered all across the region, the Diabetes Prevention Program, that is trying to help people do just that.
Because the symptoms are often hidden, it's possible to have Prediabetes--or sometimes even Type 2 Diabetes--without even knowing it. For a short quiz to see if you might be at risk, check out doihaveprediabetes.org. The Diabetes Prevention Program is currently offered at the Kentucky River District Health Departments, Juniper Health, the Johnson County Health Department, the Clay County Health Department, and the Clover Fork Clinic in Harlan County. You can contact any of those organizations for more information or to sign up.
Pictured here are the Diabetes Prevention Program Facilitators and Participants at Juniper Health in Breathitt County, Ky. L-R: Bridget Turner, Rebecca Smith, Karen Kerr, Kathy Gay
A former Harlan County, KY, coal mine that had produced more than 120 million tons of coal before closing in 1962 was reopened several years ago and now serves as a heritage tourism site drawing over 5,000 visitors a year, according to this report from the Ohio Valley ReSource. In 2018, the attraction was awarded a $2.55 million Abandoned Mine Land Pilot grant to update the 35 minute tour inside the mine as well as nearby historic buildings for use as retail and office space. The AML Program chiefly provides funding for polluted land and water reclamation, but over the last five years, federal support has grown to include projects that could grow local economies. This effort could increase dramatically with passage of the Federal RECLAIM Act currently introduced in Congress.
In this report the “Firestarters,” six women from around rural America, share stories of personal struggles and community victories as they work to build up and strengthen their home regions. The Firestarters spoke at the closing session of the Rural Women’s Summit, where over 200 women from throughout the nation came together in Greenville, SC, on October 27-29. The summit was designed to encourage and support rural women leaders, who often are on the front lines of community action but may not have the traditional titles, respect and resources of community leaders. Anna Claussen, a Minnesota farm girl and founder of Voices for Rural Resilience, introduces the Firestarters, and Diana Oestrich, Iraq War veteran and key relationships officer for the Preemptive Love Coalition, provides closing remarks. The Rural Women’s Summit was produced by the National Rural Assembly, part of the Center for Rural Strategies, which also publishes the Daily Yonder. #RuralWomenLead
Could hemp become a crop that can keep small farms in business? Many Ohio Valley farmers believe so but worry that the sort of corporate consolidation they’ve seen in other agriculture sectors will soon come to the new hemp industry. To address this fear and keep their operations viable, many Ohio Valley hemp growers are choosing to join cooperatives to share supplies, learn from one another, and give small growers a better shot in an increasingly competitive marketplace.
Tourists attracted to verdant mountain views, an abundance of nature and outdoor recreation opportunities, and a local legend are what city managers and others in Norton, VA are hoping will usher in the next chapter in the economic history of this region that has depended on coal mining for the past 100 years. Tourism in this area of southwestern Virginia received a boost which local leaders worked to capitalize on when a 2011 Animal Planet episode of its program “Finding Bigfoot” included a search for "Woodbooger," a bigfoot-style creature believed by some to live in the surrounding mountains. Read the full story from the Ohio Valley ReSource here.
This Making Connections News episode includes the October 13, 2019 service dedicating a memorial to 280 black lung victims in Letcher and surrounding Kentucky counties. It begins with interviews with disabled miners and widows who recount the working conditions giving rise to the disease as well as the horror of living, and dying, with it.
In the midst of the region’s declining industries, politicians are betting big on job training, with millions directed at those who lost jobs in coal mining and power plants. The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced nearly $5 million for worker training programs in Appalachia. Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky announced more than $2 million in funding from the National Dislocated Workers fund, and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia announced more than $1 million in funding from the same program. But critics say worker training alone is no solution and that such retraining programs have a poor record in actually connecting dislocated workers with local employment that pays a comparative wage. Ted Boettner, an economist and executive director of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy, argues that a more broad-based approach to jobs, public investment, and wages will be necessary for coal country. Becca Schimmel from the Ohio Valley ReSource reports.
Scott Shoupe is interviewed by WMMT reporter Sydney Boles about his experience mining coal in Harlan County, Kentucky and in Alabama, and the transition he believes miners will have to make to other kinds of work if they and the region are going to stay afloat. Shoupe quit work in mines he felt were unsafe, came home, and recently completed training that has enabled him to start an energy efficiency business. "People can sit and argue all they like about liking coal, disliking coal, but anybody that has true knowledge of the industry knows it's not profitable long-term — and all that started years ago with all the technology and advances in the industry...We needed new industries here yesterday."
Appalachia's coal country is struggling to diversity its economy amidst the collapse of the coal industry. SOAR, or Shaping Our Appalachian Future, is an effort begun 6 years ago by Rep. Hal Rogers and then Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear to rebuild the regional economy. The Ohio Valley ReSource's Sydney Boles attended the annual meeting and reports that SOAR's big bets on high speed internet and industrial development are experiencing challenges on the ground.
Becca Holmes and Joe Gorman run Pollinator Produce Partners in Duffield, Virginia. There they grow different vegetables than some other farms might, and they do it at a smaller scale, on purpose. In this episode reporter Sydney Boles visits Becca and Joe who discuss their farming philosophy, and how climate change has shifted how they think about their work.
One of the biggest challenges affecting efforts to rebuild eastern Kentucky's economy is the failure of the state to properly invest in the region and its people due to an inadequate tax system that has led to repeated budget cuts to education, health care, social services, infrastructure and more. In this episode, Jason Bailey, Executive Director of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, describes state tax and budget issues that are holding us back, and offers solutions to move Kentucky forward.
More than 600,000 Kentuckians, many of them children, are going hungry, according to a new "Map the Meal Gap" report by the group Feeding America. The situation could become worse due to changes in the SNAP program that are being implemented at the state and proposed by the Trump Administration on the federal level. Dustin Pugel is a policy analyst at the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy where he focuses on health policy and safety net programs. He speaks about the impact these changes could have on families and our economy.
One of the biggest challenges to rebuilding the economy of Appalachian Kentucky is the state's inability to properly invest in the people and the place. The state's political leaders have repeatedly failed to raise adequate tax revenue, instead giving away corporate tax breaks and continually cutting the budget for education, public health, infrastructure and other critical services. In this episode, Jason Bailey and Dustin Pugel from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy comment on these state tax and budget issues, as well as proposed changes to health and safety net programs that impact low- and moderate-income families.
Most folks living in central Appalachia would agree that we need to create a new economy to counter the coal industry’s decline. But the question becomes how? Coalfields residents came together several years ago to propose the RECLAIM Act, federal legislation that would more rapidly release money from the $2.5 billion Abandoned Mine Lands Trust Fund for regional reclamation and redevelopment projects. In this story we hear from Eric Dixon, policy coordinator at Appalachian Citizens Law Center, and Adam Wells who directs Appalachian Voices’ New Economy Program from Norton VA. Both helped write a report that shares concrete examples and ideas for projects in four Appalachian states that could create new economic opportunities using AML pilot project funds and those from the RECLAIM Act if it is passed by Congress.
Sarah Smarsh, author of the bestseller "Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth," and Ken Ward, Jr., investigative journalist for the Charleston Gazette-Mail and recipient of the 2018 MacArthur “Genius” Award, share a conversation about media misrepresentations of rural people, and what they see as the real concerns of those living in the country. They were keynote speakers at the Life in Rural America Symposium held in Charleston WV on May 21, and organized by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, NPR, and Harvard School of Public Health.
The Levitt AMP Whitesburg Music Series is underway. Two wonderful shows have already warmed up Letcher COunty, but there is plenty more in store over the next 8 weeks. Listen in as series producer Steve Ruth describes the musically diverse acts and samples some of their tunes.
Excitement is building for the second Levitt AMP Whitesburg Music Series, which is set to take place on the Mountain Heritage Festival Stage beginning with rising country star and Pound, VA native Kaitlyn Baker on Thursday, May 30. Organizers Steve Ruth, Valerie Horn and Marley Green describe the goals of the Levitt AMP Foundation, the unusual selection process, and the diverse musical acts performing over the 10 week series. They also talk about the value of what some call "creative placemaking." In this case, it's using inclusive, high-quality arts experiences to fuel the continued revitalization of Whitesburg’s downtown core. They describe the goals of Levitt AMP Whitesburg to include bringing people of all ages and backgrounds together to enjoy free, live music while strengthening the social and economic fabric of the community.
This edition of Making Connections News features three interviews that David Butler, host of the Clean Power Planet podcast, did with folks from the New Energy internship program for eastern Kentuckians. MACED, the Mountain Association for Community Economic Development, has developed the program with support from the Appalachian Regional Commission. These are paid positions that help participants move into energy efficiency jobs or start their own businesses. First we learn about the program from Rachel Norton, a residential energy specialist at MACED. Then we will hear from Frank Morris who interned in Hazard and now has a job as an energy auditor at the Housing Development Alliance, and John Craft who is finishing up an internship that is focusing on commercial energy efficiency. Find out more from MACED about internships that are currently available -- https://maced.org/jobs/new-energy-internships/
Over the past 6 years residents of coal-impacted communities and supporters across the country have urged Congress to pass the RECLAIM Act. which would invest $1 billion on an accelerated clean up of land and water harmed by abandoned mines, and provide a catalyst for economic development on those sites. This report includes Congressional testimony in support of the RECLAIM Act from Eric Dixon, Appalachian Citizens' Law Center in Kentucky, and Pennsylvania Rep. Matt Cartwright just prior to the bill's reintroduction in the U.S. House of Representatives on April 9, 2019.
Could maple syrup become an income generating crop in the hills of Appalachia? Seth Long, who operates a small farm in Letcher County, KY, thinks so as do others in the region. OVR/WMMT reporter Sydney Boles details the economic potential of maple syrup, a non-timber forest product found in hilly regions like eastern Kentucky and West Virginia.
Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative Executive Director Jeff Hawkins and staff members Dessie Bowling and Bernadette Carpenter describe proposals put forth by KVEC school districts to better serve disadvantaged rural students and improve the economy in Appalachian Kentucky. Recommendations come from "A Region's Way Forward," a call to action for achieving learner equity and school centered community reinvention in economically distressed eastern Kentucky. Mimi Pickering host, and along the way, you'll hear some stories from the Ohio Valley ReSource about innovative KVEC initiatives over the past couple years.
"Many Voices, Many Solutions: Innovative Mine Reclamation in Central Appalachia" is a new report that highlights 20 projects across five Appalachian states that would create new economic opportunities in areas with abandoned mine lands. These case studies and similar efforts could be funded by the Abandoned Mine Land Pilot Program, and if passed by Congress, the RECLAIM ACT. Together they have the potential to jump start a "New Deal" in Appalachia. In this episode of WMMT's Mountain Talk two of the report organizers, Eric Dixon from Appalachian Citizens Law Center in Whitesburg KY and Adam Wells with Appalachian Voices' New Economy program in southwestern Virginia, describe the ways in which Abandoned Mine Lands funds could be used for innovative and sustainable development in the region. Also featured are projects in VA, KY and WV that are case studies in the report as examples of innovative reclamation and economic development opportunities.
In early November, over 100 people, most of them women, came together in downtown Harlan. KY, for "Mountain Women Mean Business." The gathering was organized by local businesswomen and community leaders who recognized that, despite the downturn in the coal economy, new businesses were popping up in Harlan and across the region, and many were led by women. The conference was their way of highlighting the work of these entrepreneurs and connecting, empowering, and uplifting entrepreneurial women throughout the region. WMMT's Mimi Pickering reports on what the organizers called an "uprising of women in Appalachia."
Citizens from six states traveled to Washington D.C. in late November 2018, to urge their legislators to uphold the fees supporting the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund, and to pass the Reclaim Act. One in 5 miners in our region have Black Lung, and that rate has doubled in the past decade. And yet, as rates of the disease rapidly increase, the Trust Fund that provides benefits and health care is under threat. This Mountain Talk episode features the DC press conference with miners and their families, as well as an interview with retired east Kentucky miner Kenny Fleming and organizer Eric Dixon from Appalachian Citizens' Law Center.
In Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio weak or nonexistent state policies make it harder for residents and businesses to afford to install a solar system and make it less likely that the region will attract jobs and economic benefits associated with this fast-growing industry. And as electricity bills continue to shoot up, boosting the ability of individuals, businesses and municipalities to invest in solar could help them control their energy costs. Ohio Valley ReSource reporter Brittany Patterson explores the opportunities being lost in a region sorely in need of jobs and lower electric bills.
Across Appalachia, communities are experimenting with ways to develop sustainable agriculture as a business sector and to increase access to nutritious foods. WMMT recently reported on the opening of the CANE (Community Agriculture and Nutritional Enterprises) industrial kitchen in Letcher County which is designed to do just that. In the months since its opening, CANE has provided local farmers with the tools they need to grow their businesses. WMMT’s Sydney Boles has this update.
Individuals and organizations in Eastern Kentucky's Letcher County came together to develop the former Whitesburg High School cafeteria into a community kitchen. Calling the project Community Agricultural and Nutritional Enterprises (CANE), they see the commercial kitchen providing an avenue for farmers to take the necessary risks involved with scaling up the area food system to meet both local, and eventually, regional demand for fresh, healthy, Appalachian-grown food. WMMT reports on the well attended grand opening of the kitchen, which CANE organizers believe could serve as a model for other Eastern Kentucky counties struggling to build the economy and health of their communities.
One in five veteran coal miners in Central Appalachia now has black lung disease. But the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund which provides critical support to miners and their families is at risk of disappearing. In this episode of WMMT's Mountain Talk, retired miners Bethel Brock and Jimmy Moore, Patty Amburgey who lost her husband to black lung, and Appalachian Citizens' Law Center attorney Evan Smith describe the disease and the working conditions that caused it, the struggle for benefits for miners and their families, and the organizing effort now going on to save the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund. To take action or get more information visit www.blacklungkills.org #blacklungkills
What makes a town or small community a place where people want to live? Where strangers want to move to? WMMT reports on the Great Mountain Mural Mega Fest organized by the Southeast Kentucky Revitalization Project, which is coordinated by the Appalachian Studies Program at Harlan County's Southeast Community and Technical College. The goal of the Fest was to train artists and community development personnel in the art and business of mural making as public arts projects that can bring residents together, beautify communities, and visibly demonstrate that these are places people care about -- something the organizers believe is essential to revitalizing our coalfield communities.
Could increasing agricultural production be part of the solution to Appalachia's economic woes? WMMT DJ Jim Webb interviews Jonathan Webb, founder and CEO of App Harvest which has announced plans to build and operate a large scale, high tech solar greenhouse on a reclaimed stripmine in Pike County, KY. Webb wants to build lots of greenhouses which he says are environmentally sound and could provide jobs and a major source of produce for the whole region. But first, project engineers must address the challenges of building massive greenhouses on the unstable soil left by mining.
Student teams from across the eastern Kentucky coalfields came together at the Knott County Sportsplex, bringing with them drones that they themselves had built. It was time for the climax of this year-long project supported by the Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative (KVEC).
The Ohio Valley has been a leader in aerospace engineering. Now there’s a growing possibility that the skill set of building drones could prepare students not just for college, but also for finding a good job close to home, and helping to grow a new industry in this region. WMMT's Benny Becker reports for the Ohio Valley ReSource.
Derek Akal, 22, grew up in the famed coalfields of Harlan County, Kentucky. He’s a bit over six feet tall, he’s black, and he has an athlete’s build. Like many young people in central Appalachia, he is torn between a desire to find work at home where he can be close to family and the community he knows, or whether to venture out to other parts where there might be more opportunities for a young man. WMMT Reporter Benny Becker followed Derek for over a year as he explored his options for his future.
Can a boutique hotel and restaurant in a former downtown department store spark an economic revival in and around St. Paul, a coalfields town located on the Clinch River in southwestern Virginia? The newly opened Western Front Hotel and Milton's Restaurant grew from community-wide efforts begun over 15 years ago to plan the place residents wanted to be part of, and then to work the plan. WMMT's Rich Kirby reports on this partnership between local, state, and federal agencies with a private developer that hopes to be a catalyst for growing tourism and related businesses in the tri-state region.
The success of efforts to rebuild the Appalachian economy may well depend on getting access to land for development. This episode of WMMT's Mountain Talk includes discussion from a September 2016 meeting at which Shauna Scott, Joe Childers, and Susan Williams shared memories of their involvement in the 1981 Appalachian Land Ownership Study. The study was produced from a two year community research project covering 80 counties across six states: Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, and Alabama. The findings showed that in many Central Appalachian counties absentee mining corporations owned more than half of the land, and up to 70% of the mineral rights. The study also found that major mining corporations owned 50-70% of the land but paid only 4% of county property taxes. The results of the study spurred community organizing efforts that brought about tax reform in several states.
It’s been over 25 years since the report was published, and there’s now a growing effort to conduct another study to explore current land ownership realities in Central Appalachia. This episode concludes with interviews with three people involved in the modern day study: Jacob Meadows, a graduate student at Appalachian State University; Lindsey Shade, a lecturer in the Department of Community and Leadership Development at the University of Kentucky; and Terran Young, who as an Appalachian Transition Fellow worked on updating the Land Ownership Study in southwestern Virginia.
Since 2015 the Appalachian Regional Commission has awarded $94 million for Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) projects to help coal impacted communities diversify and grow their economies. The ARC is now requesting proposals for an additional $20 million in funding to support worker training and economic development activities in the region. But a new study commissioned by the ARC shows that it will be difficult for the region to fully recover from coal’s collapse. The researchers said Appalachia needs to supplement and diversify its economy with a broad range of industries from manufacturing to tourism and food. But despite the challenges, researcher Mark Burton said Appalachians have some things going for them. “Appalachians in general are very stubborn, they want what they want and will work for it and wait for it more than almost any other segment of the population,” Burton said. Becca Shimmel reports from the Ohio Valley ReSource.
Sometimes rebuilding an economy, and lives, means adding one or two jobs at a time. A new bakery established by folks at the Hemphill Community Center in hard pressed coal country aims to provide Letcher County residents with healthy, locally sourced breads and baked goods while supporting Drug Court participants in their journeys to recovery. Rachel Garringer reports for WMMT.
In this episode of WMMT’s Mountain Talk we explore the idea of social haunting, or how the troubles of the past might be playing a role in community problems of today. We hear from Dr. Geoff Bright who is leading a participatory research project based around the theory of social haunting in formerly industrialized areas in the north of England, and Max Munday shares his documentary, Songlines and Social Haunting, which further details the project’s arts-based process used in "Ghost Labs" in former coal mining communities. We are joined by Dr. Wayne Coombs, recently retired as director of the West Virginia Prevention Resource Center, who speaks about the role that social haunting or historical trauma may be playing in the growing substance abuse crisis in central Appalachia. Take a listen and tell us what you think about this concept of "social haunting." You can send your comments to wmmt@appalshop.org with "Social Haunting" in the subject line and we will share them as part of an international conversation with Max Munday and colleagues in Manchester, U.K.
Three years ago, the Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative won a $30 million federal grant to support innovation and personalized learning in classrooms throughout eastern Kentucky. “One of the groups that may not have benefited right away was the vocational school students,” KVEC Associate Director Dessie Bowling explained. To remedy that, in 2016 the cooperative funded three eastern Kentucky vocational schools to design and build tiny movable homes.
The "Building It Forward" project gives students experience with a wide range of construction skills such as plumbing, wiring, carpentry, design, budgeting, heating and cooling to name a few. Bowling described the tiny house project as a way of making sure that the cooperative’s schools offer classes that are interesting and valuable to students, and provide them marketable skills whether or not they plan on going to college. The program is designed to be financially self-sustaining. Money from the sales of each house covers the costs of materials it takes to “build it forward” again the next year.
WMMT's Benny Becker filed this report as part of the Ohio Valley Resource's Changing Course series on innovative practices in eastern Kentucky schools. The series is supported by the Solutions Journalism Network.
Many people would be surprised to hear that Bill and Melinda Gates and Facebook's Mark Zuckerburg visited eastern KY schools in 2017, but they came to learn about the innovative and wholistic educational approaches in use at 22 school districts that are members of the Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative. KVEC schools emphasize personalized learning, team projects, and an entrepreneurial attitude that Executive Director Jeff Hawkins thinks can make a difference in a region in need of change. This report is the first in a series from the Ohio Valley Resource that is looking into how these school districts are working together to to find ways to address some of the country’s most profound economic and public health problems.
As efforts continue to rebuild the economy of eastern Kentucky, the quality of the educational system, so dependent on the excellence and commitment of the region's educators, is a critical part of the solution, as is adequate state support for health care, social services, public protection, and economic development. WMMT aired this report on a Dec. 2, 2017 rally by Letcher County teachers and other state workers who opposed a plan put forth by Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin and GOP leaders that would drastically overhaul the public pension system, and, the educators say, make it much more difficult to attract and retain the most qualified teachers and other public servants. At the rally, speakers called on the legislature to keep its promise to provide a livable pension after years of public service, and to address the real issue facing the state - the need for tax reform that raises the revenue necessary to support a high quality educational system and the public services that benefit all Kentuckians. Gov. Bevin did not succeed in calling a special session in 2017, but the issue of pension reform is high on the agenda as the 2018 General Assembly begins. For further information, the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy (kypolicy.org)has outlined possible revenue options to fund the Kentucky pension system, education, and other essential services.
If you use the Internet, or are one of the many rural residents who hope to get the Internet, December 14 was a big day. Under a plan proposed by Anjit Pai, President Trump’s choice for chairman, the Federal Communications Commission voted 3 to 2 to dismantle Net Neutrality, the open Internet principles that more than 80 percent of Americans support. FCC commissioners also voted along party lines to eliminate Internet as a utility, or Title II service. That will result in a loss in universal service requirements and consumer protections. What does this mean for rural parts of the country that are still struggling to get high speed Internet services?
What does this mean for rural parts of the country that are still struggling to get high speed Internet services? We asked Whitney Kimball Coe, a young woman raising a family in Athens, TN, a small town south of Knoxville. She also coordinates the National Rural Assembly and is director of national programs for the Center for Rural Strategies. For our report, she adapted an editorial she wrote for the Daily Post Athenian in which she relates her concerns about the impact the FCC changes will have on rural communities such as those in our WMMT listening area.
On this edition of WMMT's Mtn. Talk concerned residents of eastern Kentucky speak out about Kentucky Power Company’s proposed double-digit rate increase at the Public Service Commission meeting in Hazard on Nov 6. Over 40 people - state officials, elected representatives, business owners, nonprofit directors, senior citizens, and everyday citizens - voiced opposition to the rate increases and other changes that would impact 168,000 customers in 20 counties that are already suffering economically from the downturn in the coal industry.
In June 2017, Kentucky Power filed a request to the Public Service Commission for a 16.8% increase, which would mean an increase of about 80 cents a day, or $24 a month for the average customer. Kentucky Power’s stated reason for the increase is to make up for the the loss of nearly 2,000 residential customers and 450 industrial customers in eastern Kentucky, since 2014.
You can submit comments to the Public Service Commission about the proposed rate hikes up until Dec. 6th when the PSC will hold a formal hearing in Frankfort on the case. Include Case# 2017-00179 in your comments. Mail comments to: P.O. Box 615 Frankfort, KY 40602, or FAX to 502-564-3460, or email psc.info@ky.gov with Case# 2017-00179 in the subject line.
Farming opportunities are plentiful in the Appalachian mountains if you look to the herbs and edible plants found in our abundant forests. Appalachian Harvest, a rural food hub run by Appalachian Sustainable Development, recently launched an Herb Hub in Duffield, VA, designed to help forest farmers earn more money on their herbs. The Hub offers equipment for processing herbs and will help farmers connect to national markets where they can receive higher pay for their product. WMMT's Rachel Garringer visited the Hub soon after it opened in October.
It’s been a big year for Internet in the coalfields, and across rural Appalachia, with citizens demanding better Internet access and high speed Broadband, and some policy makers in DC saying rural America doesn't need it. In this episode of WMMT's Mountain News & World Report, Benny Becker brings us stories of people who have Internet access and others who don’t, communities organizing to get better service, and training projects that help people use the Internet to create new jobs.
The 4th SOAR - Shaping Our Appalachian Region - Summit was held in Pikeville on August 4 and over 1,200 listened to Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, Rep. Hal Rogers, and featured speaker UK Basketball Coach John Calipari as they each laid out their visions for eastern Kentucky's future and how to get there. WMMT reports with highlights from their comments.
Germany is well-known for its historical reliance on coal for energy, but most recently is recognized for its transition to cleaner energy sources, such as renewables. In this Mountain Talk, Dr. Timon Wehnert, an energy expert and researcher based at the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment, and Energy in Berlin shared insights on Germany’s energy transition in general, and specifically about the phase-out of coal, structural change, and transformation in German coal communities. Dr. Wehnert was joined by leaders working on economic transition in Central Appalachia, including: MACED (Mountain Association for Community Economic Development) Vice President Betsy Whaley and Eric Dixon with Appalachian Citizens Law Center.
The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) move to repeal Net Neutrality and classification of Broadband Internet as a Title II Telecommunications Service could have significant impact on rural America, where the digital divide is already the largest. In this edition of Mountain Talk, host Mimi Pickering explores potential impacts with economist Roberto Gallardo from Mississippi State University Extension Services and Christopher Mitchell, Director of Community Broadband Networks at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. We also hear from a 2015 interview with Edyael Casaperalta, representing the Rural Broadband Working Group of the National Rural Assembly, on the 2015 reclassification of broadband as a Title II Telecommunications Service and its potential to reduce the digital divide, increase competition, and protect consumers. Finally, FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn talks about her work on the FCC to increase access and affordability for people of color, low income, and rural communities. Her term at the FCC will soon end but she promises to continue to speak for those who are not typically represented and calls on all individuals and organizations to make their voices heard at the FCC at every opportunity.
Could Whitesburg, long an east Kentucky coal town, become a "Green Healthy Town?" Five University of Virginia students in the Master’s of Urban and Environmental Planning Program presented their assessment of existing conditions within a roughly one-mile corridor of downtown at a recent Whitesburg community meeting. The students' report includes an inventory of assets and challenges, highlights resources, and offers a palette of design opportunities, and strategies for community directed corridor revitalization. The assessment lays out a foundation for Whitesburg to participate in the Environmental Law Institute’s BRIGHT program, and is a model for what other rural and coalfield communities could do.
The East Kentucky Leadership Conference celebrated its 30th anniversary with a keynote speech from Earl Gohl, federal co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission(ARC)for the past 7 years. Since 2015 ARC has awarded $92 million through the POWER Initiative to help coal-impacted communities in 250 Appalachian counties diversify and grow their economies. Gohl said that because people have overcome differences and come together to revitalize the region, Appalachia is the next great investment opportunity. Peter Hille, Executive Director of the Mountain Association of Community Economic Development (MACED), introduced Gohl and praised the ARC as partners sharing the vision of a bright future for Appalachia.
Despite a slight uptick in coal mining activity, most analysts do not forecast a large-scale reversal of the long, downward trend in coal production or employment. Many in the Appalachian coalfields believe we must continue efforts to diversify the region's economy. The Ohio Valley Resource reports on three bipartisan proposals now before Congress that could help miners and mining communities address economic, environmental, and health challenges.
Our region has incredible cultural assets, especially our music and dance, as well as traditional arts, crafts and foodways. In this episode of Mountain Talk Monday, we learn about the Mountains of Music Homecoming happening throughout Southwest Virginia June 9-17. Its a project of the The Crooked Road: Virginia’s Heritage Music Trail, which came into being to provide economic opportunities locally through showcasing the region's distinctive music, venues and musicians. Host Kelli Haywood and guest host Rich Kirby from WMMT’s Deep in Tradition speak with the MOMH assistant coordinator and professor of Appalachian Studies at ETSU, Ted Olsen on the upcoming 9 days filled with wonderful traditional music and cultural events. Find out more at www.mtnsofmusic.com!
Once the largest coal producing county in the nation, Pike County in far eastern Kentucky may be embracing a whole new kind of energy. Erica Peterson from WFPL in Louisville reports on a proposal to build a massive solar farm on a former strip mine.
Tim Sanders and his wife Becky came back to his family's land on Indian Creek in Letcher County, KY, from Arizona to retire and live a self sufficient lifestyle. It wasn’t long, though, before neighbors and passersby were stopping and asking about the animals they were tending. And naturally, seeing the heritage breeds of pigs, cows, goats, chickens, and a single turkey, folks began to ask if there was meat for sale. So, the Sanders family became part of a growing number of coalfields Appalachians who are creating a burgeoning local food economy. WMMT's Kelli Haywood reports.
Lack of reliable broadband in this small Kentucky community costs people a lot, residents say: jobs, educational opportunities, real estate sales, and even time with their kids. WMMT reports on a meeting at the Campbells Branch Community Center where the Letcher County Broadband Committee came to gather information and gauge interest in a plan to lessen this community's digital divide.
Hope Hart is part of the new cohort of Appalachian Transition Fellows, a group of emerging leaders working with organizations and agencies in Appalachia to accelerate the transition to a diversified and resilient economy. For Valentine's Day, Hope asked Fellows to describe what love in the context of working in a community means to them. Here is their Valentine. After listening check out this playlist of songs Fellows chose to accompany their thoughts: https://youtu.be/CiGPbHnpQks?list=PL_mZuv_Pw1_MBJsk3KMpjDV31RMkv2XRH
A story from May 2016 about the impact of the ACA in Appalachia's eastern Kentucky and concerns at that time for its future --- Did you know that newly covered Medicaid recipients were responsible for bringing in an additional $22.8 million in health care spending in Letcher County, KY, over a 20 month period? And over $257 million in the ten hardest hit eastern Kentucky coal mining counties? In this story we visit with staff at Mountain Comprehensive Health Corporation headquarters in Whitesburg to talk about the impact that the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare” as some call it) and Kentucky’s Medicaid expansion has had on patients, health care providers, and the community as a whole. We also hear from Jason Bailey from the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy and Emily Beauregard, director of Kentucky Voices for Health, regarding concerns about Gov. Bevin’s pledge to dismantle KYnect and change Medicaid eligibility.
Appalachian Sustainable Development and Appalachian Beginning Forest Farmers’ Coalition members talk about the income generating potential of forest farming in the region, and describe the whys, hows, and whens of cultivating medicinal herbs, edible mushrooms, and more that is found under the forest canopy. They also discuss the development of the Appalachian Harvest Herb Hub in Duffield, VA that will allow forest farmers to clean, dry, package, and potentially sell their product to a worldwide market. Find out how to become involved at www.appalachianforestfarmers.org.
What is it going to take to revitalize our once thriving coal towns? In this edition of WMMT's Mountain News & World Report we take an in depth look at community efforts to revitalize downtown Hazard, in the heart of Perry County, KY. The entire half hour is devoted to the voices of Hazard folks sharing their dreams, disappointments, bumps in the road, and successes as they try to rebuild a livable community through food, arts, culture, and more.
What does it take to successfully build the economy of a small community once dependent on coal? Economic diversity. But why are some residents wary of business diversification and the entrepreneurial spirit? Can arts and cultural heritage play a critical role in that economic diversification? WMMT Mountain Talk host Kelli Haywood discusses small town economics with a group of folks reflecting a range of experiences and political opinions: Harry Collins, educator and CANE (Community Agriculture & Nutrition Enterprises) leader; Betsy Whaley from the regional economic development organization MACED; and Ben Fink of Appalshop and the Letcher County Culture Hub.
If you are a fan of cooking, music, and culture, listen in as noted writer Ronni Lundy reads and discusses her latest, "Victuals," a gorgeous book exploring Appalachia's intertwined foodways and heritage. This edition of WMMT's Mountain Talk Monday features her December reading at Appalshop, and an appearance on WMMT’s Honky Tonk Jukebox with hosts Elizabeth Sanders and Mimi Pickering. If you are interested in the role farming and/or artisan foods could play in our local economy, Lundy has plenty to say.
WMMT's Mountain Talk Monday brings you Anthony Flaccavento’s recent book talk held at the University of Virginia at Wise. Flaccavento is a small-scale commercial organic farmer and widely respected community development consultant from southwestern Virginia. His book "Building a Healthy Economy from the Bottom Up: Harnessing Real-World Experience for Transformative Change" features six components to building a sustainable economy in regions going through economic hardship, including central Appalachia. Flaccavento highlights those six components in his talk and gives real world examples of effective development practices in communities across the country.
What role can a community center play in increasing residents’ well being and encouraging efforts to reimagine and revitalize the local economy? That’s the question WMMT Reporter Kelli Haywood was asking when she visited Hemphill, KY, a former coal company town, where a group of volunteers are working to bring people together and add some liveliness into their community. Keeping its doors open in order to serve its mission of providing low cost, family friendly entertainment and educational opportunities to the community has not been easy. But through its participation in the Letcher County Culture Hub, a collaboration led by Appalshop, Hemphill and other community centers, public and private organizations, and local businesses are coming together to strengthen Letcher County’s cultural assets and identify ways to use them to grow the economy.
In this episode of Mountain Talk Monday learn more about the EPIC Program – Enhancing Programs for IT Certification that is being offered through the KCTCS community colleges in our area! Guest host Mimi Pickering speaks with Tracie Davis, David C. Dixon, and students Heather Smith and Mary Wilson who describe the many opportunities available to get job training and further your education.
Keynote speaker Jay Williams, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director of the Economic Development Administration, compared similar efforts to rebuild his hometown - Youngstown, OH, where the steel industry cratered in the 1970s - with the exciting developments he sees throughout central Appalachia. "You have convened the stakeholders that are essential. The solutions are on the ground, right here in east Kentucky," he told the crowd of over 200 people attending the first “Big Ideas Fest: Education, Workforce, and Economic Development” in Hazard, KY. on September 16, 2016. Another 250 persons from eight states watched the broadcast live. The KY Valley Educational cooperative (KVEC) and the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) sponsored the conference which can be viewed in its entirety in early October on www.theholler.org.
Can artists, dancers, actors, musicians and creative thinkers of all varieties contribute to the economic rebuilding of our Appalachian communities? WMMT’s Kelli Haywood looked for answers to that question as she visited the 15th annual Cowan Creek Mountain Music School at the Cowan Community Center. The Center is one partner in a creative placemaking effort led by Appalshop called the Letcher County Culture Hub. Organizations and individuals throughout the county are bringing together arts, culture, and business enterprise to establish a more diversified economy and communities that are healthy, happy, and whole.
Over 30 people spoke out about KY Governor Matt Bevin’s proposed changes to the state’s Medicaid system that through its expansion has seen almost 500,000 low income Kentuckians find health care coverage. WMMT covered the July 7 Public Hearing in Hazard on the Section 11-15 Medicaid waiver that the Bevin Administration is seeking. This Mountain Talk features comments from health care providers, mental health advocates, policy analysts, and regular works who work with those on Medicaid or are themselves beneficiaries of the program.
Kentucky Voices for Health and the Kentucky Center for Budget Policy and Kentucky Voices for Health are also good sources of information.
WMMT visits the Letcher County Farmers’ Market in Whitesburg, KY where an innovative program called Farmacy is improving health and getting nationwide attention. Formed through an unusual partnership between medical providers – area medical clinics, Medicaid insurance companies, doctors and nurses – and local farmers, the Farmers’ Market, and nonprofits such as Community Farm Alliance, the Farmacy program is offering locally grown fruits and vegetables as alternatives to medical prescriptions. Now in its second year, the Farmacy has already made an impact on the health of the community as well as begun to expand economic opportunity for area farmers.
The 2016 Appalachian Media Institute interns speak with WMMT about their experiences in this year’s Summer Documentary Institute and thoughts about the region and their futures within it. Since 1988, Appalshop’s Appalachian Media Institute (AMI) has provided opportunities for young people from central Appalachia to explore their communities and develop their creative skills through the arts and media. This is a pivotal time for central Appalachia as we work for a transition to a more diversified regional economy, and this year AMI focused on Envisioning Our Future. Six youth from eastern Kentucky participated in this 8-week program providing training in documentary storytelling and a chance to explore, produce and share youth-led visions for the region’s future.
Teresa Tice works for a physican in private practice who does not offer health insurance. At age 63, Ms. Tice would have no insurance if not for Kentucky's Medicaid expansion. She stated that she raised two sons as a divorced mother, has worked all her life, and "I certainly would hope that may state would not decide that I am too lazy, too poor, and too inconsequential to have health care." Send your comments on the Medicaid waiver by Friday 7/22 to kyhealth@ky.gov
In her testimony about the Medicaid waiver, Elizabeth Hensley from Clay County said the Bevin Administration was out of touch with the realities of being poor and living near the poverty level. "Poor people don't need more red tape or hoops to jump through, but this is a bureaucratic nightmare that seeks to force out or block as many people as possible."
Send your comments on the Medicaid waiver by Friday 7/22 to kyhealth@ky.gov
Heather Wehrheim, representing the American Lung Association, was critical of Gov. Bevin's Medicaid proposal for increasing barriers to health care and stated that the ALA was especially alarmed with plans to limit access to tobacco cessation treatments in a state with the highest smoking and lung cancer rates.
Send your comments on the Medicaid waiver by Friday 7/22 to kyhealth@ky.gov
Dr. Schuster is executive director of the Advocacy Action Network which advocates for Kentuckians with disabilities, particularly regarding behavioral disabilities and access to health care. She called on the Bevin Administration to treat the 500,000 additional Kentuckians now receiving Medicaid as valuable members of our state, even though they may be poor.
Send your comments on the Medicaid waiver by Friday 7/22 to kyhealth@ky.gov
Jason Bailey, Director of the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, at the July 6 Hazard, KY Public Hearing stated that Governor Bevin's proposed changes to Kentucky's Medicaid expansion would move Kentucky backwards instead of building on the health and economic gains the state has experienced. For more on KCEP's analysis of the plan -http://kypolicy.org/summary-governors-proposed-medicaid-changes/ Send your comments on the Medicaid waiver by Friday 7/22 to kyhealth@ky.gov