This week, we’re celebrating The Hub’s current and former VISTAs who are dedicating a year (or more!) to serving their communities. Our current sponsored VISTAs are doing important on-the-ground work in advancing community development opportunities at organizations throughout West Virginia. We caught up with four VISTAs about the efforts they’re making in their communities.
Olivia McConnell loves the history, culture, and beauty of her home state of West Virginia, and having the opportunity to serve as an AmeriCorps VISTA in the place she cherishes most made her a perfect fit to serve in The Hub’s HubCAP IV program. She hopes to bring what she learned from her time away back to West Virginia. Prior to joining us in January, Olivia spent time in Vermont, and then in Washington DC, where she completed her first term of AmeriCorps VISTA service at a national anti-hunger organization.
Reflecting on her service, Olivia said that her service has taught her the importance of collaboration. It’s not easy to break out of silos, but she has seen firsthand that going through the difficulties of bringing new voices to the table creates the most impactful systemic change.
One thing that has surprised Olivia about her time is how much she has been able to learn. “Job hunting is quite a daunting experience and the seemingly never-ending lists of necessary qualifications can be intimidating,” she said, “ but I have been able to learn valuable skills on the job in both of my AmeriCorps VISTA positions that make me feel more prepared to continue my career after service.” Both on-the-job learning and opportunities for professional development have been an important part of Olivia’s service.
“When you bring people together for a good cause, good things happen.” This is a lesson that Jon Olsen has learned in his service as an AmeriCorps VISTA with The Hub that he will take forward with him.
Jon knew when he was looking for his next move that he wanted to be somewhere close (but not too close) to his native Virginia. The natural beauty of West Virginia made the opportunity to serve as a VISTA with The Hub in the City of Shinnston much more appealing.
Since beginning his service in October 2020, Jon has been hard at work making new connections to help centralize volunteer opportunities for the Shinnston community. Jon says that one thing that has surprised him about his service so far is the “freedom to influence the course of events related to my service.” He has utilized that freedom to develop new partnerships to benefit the whole community, like the food drive he helped plan back in December (read more about that here). He has also started leading a series of community forums to determine future community-sponsored volunteer opportunities and assist in planning for a community garden.
We are appreciative of all Jon has accomplished during his year of service so far, and can’t wait to see what else he accomplishes!
Catherine Schnur has seen Grow Ohio Valley’s Public Market through an incredible period of transportation since she started her service with The Hub’s AmeriCorpsVISTA program in July of 2019. After serving in an AmeriCorps State program, Catherine was looking for an opportunity to serve an organization with a commitment to revitalizing the community. Grow Ohio Valley’s Public Market commitment to creating new opportunities in a designated food desert in Downtown Wheeling filled that desire.
Since she started, the Public Market has opened to the community and has seen tremendous demand. The pandemic has put a new focus on and interest in local foods, which has given Catherine opportunity to expand the local vendors who also benefit from the market.
Catherine says that she was pleasantly surprised by how many people have genuinely cared and are interested in what her service site is doing, as well as how many people wanted to be involved in some way. She has developed lasting relationships for herself, and for the Public Market, that will last for years to come. Catherine reflected that her service has been “a great lesson in the importance of clear, straight-forward communication.” Her site has shared that Catherine has continued to grow her communication skills exceptionally through her time, and everyone has benefited as a result.
Catherine is finishing up the Public Market’s project with Grow Ohio Valley in July. While she still is figuring out her next step, she knows that she wants to continue to grow on the skills she has developed over the last year and a half.
Dara Vance has been working in nonprofit and service organizations for most of her career. Before joining our VISTA program in February, Dara was working in a company that helped place people in employment.
She found her way to AmeriCorps through a friend, who is currently serving in AmeriCorps in West Virginia. Dara wanted to be in an environment where she could solve problems, and solve them for the benefit of others who may not have the resources to broker solutions. Seeing her friend have that opportunity through service motivated her to apply. Dara is now serving at the MARVEL Center, the Meadow River Valley Association’s community center project that is part of its Blueprint Communities anchor grant.
Though she’s only been with her site for a few weeks, Dara says that she has already learned a lot. One thing that has surprised her is how the MRVA team has addressed common issues in the community and found a way to move forward. Because of this, they have been able to make great progress in a short amount of time. She says, “There are always problems to be solved, however building the capacity for communities to address solutions themselves has much greater potential for longevity than directly solving the issue for them.”
We are excited to see what Dara will accomplish in her year of service!
Erin Susman is The Hub’s Operations and VISTA Program Manager. You can reach her at e.susman@wvhub.org.
Stephanie Tyree shares 5 powerful lessons from 13 years of leading WV’s community development movement and building lasting change across small towns.
People often get involved with community development due to a desire to make their community better. This desire is rooted in bringing
Community development is a group effort, and knowledge sharing is crucial in moving projects forward. Peter Buttler, a professor and extension specialist
Our work is made possible thanks to incredible partnerships with other community development organizations across the state. From local economic development authorities (EDAs) to state level nonprofits working to uplift communities, all of our partners are crucial in making West Virginia the best it can possibly be by working together.One partner that made our work truly profound this year is Coalfield Development. For years, Coalfield Development has worked to rebuild Appalachian communities by inspiring the courage to grow, activating the creativity to innovate, and cultivating communities of opportunity in central Appalachia.We are proud to be part of Coalfield Development’s ACT Now Coalition, a broad network of organizations working hand-in-hand to uplift communities throughout Southern West Virginia. The ACT Now Coalition is infusing more than $63 million into programs to help communities using business development, building revitalization, and so much more.The Hub is leading the Community and Business Resilience Initiative as part of the larger ACT Now Coalition to bring other partners with us to build up community and business resilience in the Coalition’s footprint.“For decades, we’ve known the economy of southern West Virginia needs diversification. Some progress has been made on this goal, but not nearly enough,” Brandon Dennison, CEO of Coalfield Development, said about the ACT Now Coalition. “ACT Now constitutes a tangible opportunity to take a major leap forward in this generational challenge to become a vibrant, growing, diversified economy. In the wake of continued coal-job losses, nothing could be more important for our region.”Our partnership with Coalfield Development is giving us a chance to take our work to new communities and to build upon our years of experience. Working alongside Coalfield Development in this large undertaking to bring $63.8 million to communities in Southern West Virginia is validation that the work happening to uplift West Virginia communities continues to grow.
The Hub works alongside communities across West Virginia coaching community teams as they come together to make transformative changes in their towns. In 2022, one town stands out for its continued work and unwavering commitment to making its community a place where people want to live, work, play, and visit.Petersburg, located in Grant County at the northernmost point of the Mon Forest, is filled with community members who want to make their town a destination. Not only have businesses opened, and stayed open, the town has transformed the way they present to the world through rebranding and outdoor recreational development.As part of the HubCAP IV program, Petersburg utilized its technical assistance to push forward with projects to bring transformative change to its community. Part of the work Petersburg worked towards was creating plans to pave a hike and bike trail that runs along the Petersburg dike. The proposed trail will run approximately three miles along the Petersburg dike and will include multiple entrances for walkers and bikers. The group secured a $25,000 grant from Senator Hamilton, which was matched locally by the City of Petersburg, the County Commission, and the Board of Education, each adding an equal share to bring the total to $50,000.This year, Petersburg witnessed a major upgrade to one of the town’s most iconic and historic structures: The Hermitage Inn. The hotel, which dates back to 1841, has been renovated and once again welcomes guests to stay the night and have a nice dinner in the restaurant.The Hermitage Inn is the first project initiated and completed as part of the Downtown Appalachia: Revitalizing Recreational Economies (DARRE) program. Seeing the old hotel returned to its majesty has been an incredible development for Petersburg adding another jewel to the downtown area.Seeing Hub communities come together to create transformative change thrills us. Community members are the subject matter experts on what their towns need. Our commitment to accompaniment and walking alongside communities as they do the hard work guides us in our work. Celebrating their victories with them gives us a moment to uplift those making the work happen.
Since 2018, The Hub has been working diligently to bring Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion into our work. For years, the organization has been working internally to expand on one of our core values: “We believe diversity creates strength.”We believe that now is a time when we must work from the ground up to commit to long-term efforts to build power through leadership development, programmatic strategies, and partnerships that commit to building power and advancing racial equity.Looking back at our organizational history, we acknowledge that our work in rural communities with populations of less than 15,000 has not reached a diverse cross-section of people in West Virginia. Because of this, we began to ask, “Who isn’t here?” when examining our involvement in communities. The social unrest in 2020 led us to examine our role in white supremacy, ableism, classism, and gender discrimination, and the ways we have perpetuated unjust systems in our communities and across West Virginia.Since 2020, our equity journey has included a staff racial equity learning series, making internal commitments to increasing our hiring and retainment of diverse staff including creating full-time Racial Equity Fellowship and VISTA positions, committing to increased coaching for rural communities of color across the state, and tackling the inherent challenges of advancing equity across the community development field within a highly rural, majority white state where Black and brown leadership has been historically marginalized and under-invested.Our belief in the power of local people to see the value and the potential of their place, and of each other, is at the core of our belief in the potential we have to build power in West Virginia to advance racial equity, inclusion, and accessibility while disrupting systems that have historically excluded some communities.We are committed to engaging in conversations to uplift communities and leaders of color to move from talk to action on why race matters in West Virginia as we work to disrupt these systems. We will support investment in Black-led organizations and rural Black leadership. And we are committed to driving public and private investments into these spaces, both organizational and geographic.
A core team led by Unleash Tygart, Inc participated in Opportunity Appalachia, receiving technical assistance to support a community development project located in an Opportunity Zone.
Core teams led by Thundercloud, Inc. and the City of Huntington participated in Opportunity Appalachia, receiving technical assistance to support community development projects located in Opportunity Zones.
A core team led by Crawford Holdings, LLC participated in Opportunity Appalachia, receiving technical assistance to support a community development project located in an Opportunity Zone.
Residents participated in round 4 of The Hub’s capstone Communities of Achievement program with a focus on building local recreational economies.
Residents participated in round 4 of The Hub’s capstone Communities of Achievement program with a focus on building local recreational economies.
Residents participated in round 4 of The Hub’s capstone Communities of Achievement program with a focus on building local recreational economies.
Residents participated in round 4 of The Hub’s capstone Communities of Achievement program with a focus on building local recreational economies.
Residents participated in round 4 of The Hub’s capstone Communities of Achievement program with a focus on building local recreational economies.
A core team led by Woodlands Development Group also participated in Opportunity Appalachia, receiving technical assistance to support a community development project located in an Opportunity Zone.
Residents participated in round 4 of The Hub’s capstone Communities of Achievement program with a focus on building local recreational economies. Read their community case study.
Residents participated in the Blueprint Communities* program to engage their neighbors and co-create strategic plans for their future.
Residents participated in the Blueprint Communities* program to engage their neighbors and co-create strategic plans for their future. Read their community case study.
Residents participated in the Blueprint Communities* program to engage their neighbors and co-create strategic plans for their future. Watch their community documentary.
Residents participated in the Blueprint Communities* program to engage their neighbors and co-create strategic plans for their future. Read their community case study.
Residents participated in the Blueprint Communities* program to engage their neighbors and co-create strategic plans for their future.
Residents participated in the Blueprint Communities* program to engage their neighbors and co-create strategic plans for their future.
Residents participated in the Cultivate WV program to kickstart community and economy building. Read their community case study.
Residents participated in the Cultivate WV program to kickstart community and economy building. Read their community case study.
It has been a year of abundant opportunities and partnerships across the state, and a year that has pushed all of us to work harder, faster, and smarter – together.At The Hub, we say that “the work works when you put in the work.” This means that our approach to community-based development, and individual leadership development, really does transform local communities, especially when we all work together for the same goal, and stay committed to working together for the long haul.In 2023, we continued to be amazed at the local leadership, drive and innovation we saw in communities throughout the state that are building locally-driven development from the ground up. Our network of community leaders, partners and opportunities keeps growing and shows no signs of slowing in 2024!
We extend our deepest gratitude to everyone for being part of the larger Hub community as we reflect on this year’s deep impact in West Virginia communities through our work. We are thrilled to have champions who believe in our mission that every community in West Virginia can achieve economic growth when they are supported with the tools and training they need to lead and spark positive change.
We believe strongly in the fact that putting in the work yourself to improve your neighborhood, your town, and our state is where true transformational change happens. With strategic partners and thought leaders like you in the work with us, we continue to be able to walk alongside community teams as they do the work to uplift their communities.Thank you to all of the community teams and leaders who are brave enough to keep showing up every day, and putting in thousands of hours of volunteer time to support your communities and the entire state. Your determination in the face of difficult work and far-off successes is something to applaud yourself for – and to celebrate.Whether you’re volunteering on the ground in your community, sharing our stories of hope with your friends and neighbors, or attending a virtual event with The Hub, your participation in our work is what keeps it going. Thank you for all your work and support this past year, and we are excited to continue in the work with you in 2024!In Continued Accompaniment,