Council Cast | May 27, 2022

Music: "What If" by Low Light

Transcript

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Welcome to CouncilCast, a podcast from Coalfield Development, where we highlight moments from our monthly gathering, Coalfield Council Day. It's a time for reflection, team building, and celebrating the personal and professional developments of our Crew Members.

This is episode 1, highlighting our Council Day on May 27, 2022.

NAT SOUND:

Crew talking at intro

Kelli Crabtree:

Welcome to Council Day!

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

That’s Kelli Crabtree, senior director of employee development.  

Kelli Crabtree:

How many people have not been to Heritage Farm before? Awesome. Just super excited that we get to spend the day here because I think it’s going to be an incredible experience for all of us that haven’t been here and reinforces our theme for the year: History, resiliency, and our Appalachian heritage. So, I’m excited to spend some time here today. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Kelli kicks off with a schedule of the day’s events and lists out the exhibits, noting that there’s a little something for everyone here at Heritage Farm. 

Kelli Crabtree:

There’s animals you can touch in the Petting Zoo area. There’s a wagon ride where you can see some larger animals. There are museums. I just encourage you to use your time and engage with what is here.  

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

There’s a lot to celebrate this Council Day, including the participation of a special guest, Ric MacDowell, a member of Coalfields board of directors. 

Kelli Crabtree:

I also want to do a special introduction of… Ric MacDowell is on our board and has been on our board for a while. He’s very supportive of Coalfield Development and our growth and is on the finance committee within the board. So Ric joined us today and I’m so glad you’re here today to spend time with us. So, Ric MacDowell...

(cheers)

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Next, CEO Brandon Dennison joins Kelli to hand out Coalfield hats to our newest team members. The hats, which vary in color, each represent the individual’s role in our workplace. Trainees receive brown hats, crew receive red hats, staff receive blue hats, and those who demonstrate great leadership skills on the job receive green hats. 

Kelli Crabtree:

We also have a couple of folks who weren’t here to get hats in previous months. So we have two interns, Olivia has been here for a couple months now and Helena is our new intern, as in just started. Olivia and Helena, here are your brown hats.  

(cheers)

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

The crew also formally welcomed Zack, the new crew chief for West Edge construction. Zack will be overseeing the black box theater project. 

Kelli Crabtree:

And then this past month, we were able to onboard a new crew chief. So, for the West Edge construction crew chief, Zack. 

(cheers)

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia:  

Next up, we celebrated personal and professional developments, from sobriety anniversaries to graduations to the start of our kids’ summer breaks.

Kelli Crabtree:

Alright, so any personal or team celebrations? 

Marilyn Wrenn:

QuickBooks told me yesterday that it is Casey’s one-year anniversary. 

(cheers)

Jacob Hannah:

I want to shout out to our decomp crew. It’s the first project of its kind for a while and they’ve got it down to where it’ll be finished and ready in the next two weeks. That’s an exciting milestone. 

Kelli Crabtree:

So, I really just got pictures in the midst of this happening, but so Golden got to walk across the stage because he got his GED. He had a robe on and looked amazing in a graduation robe. It was awesome to be able to see that. 

(cheers)

Kelli Crabtree:

It’s good to be able to celebrate our accomplishments.

Danny:

I’ve got 10 months now in my recovery.

(cheers)

Danny: 

It is awesome that we can be in a place where people actually believe in you, because  it’s so easy for people to give up on you even though we made mistakes, we’re not mistakes. And even though we screwed up, we’re not screw ups. I’m just thankful that I’ve got my instructors and stuff in the woodshop and all these girls in the print shop. I’ve actually got friends I’m developing a relationship with. It’s good to be part of something that’s actually advancing my life, and for that I am eternally grateful. 

(cheers)

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Following team announcements, Brandon hosted a Mission Moment, tying in our 2022 theme of history with our visit to the farm. 

Brandon Dennison:

So I want to reflect a little bit. This one’s particularly good for history, our theme for the year, our intention for the year being history. We created a little acronym for that out of the H-I-S-T-O-R-Y: Healing Into Sustainable Transformational Opportunities and Reclaiming Yourself. I was so excited at Highwall just to be at Highwall I did not emphasize the reclaiming part. We did talk a lot about the healing part and the landscape that our crew is healing and regenerating, but it’s part of a long-term reclamation process. Last month, being at a mine land site, I really connected with the reclamation process. I think a lot of us have continued to connect with the healing - the emphasis on healing and sustainability. We’ve really upped our game in sustainability. Our deconstruction crew is keeping materials out of the landfill. Mountain Mindful is using reclaimed materials. Refresh is making the food system to be local again. We’re continuing to promote solar energy. I would love to hear from you all just so far this year what all aspects of that theme are you connecting with or maybe struggling with? Liking or not liking? Is it resonating?

Kaleb Hanshaw:

I think the history part is really cool, especially in Appalachia.

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

This is Kaleb Hanshaw, project manager of Coalfields Highwall agricultural site in Mingo County. 

Kaleb Hanshaw:

Because you know, growing up as a kid, you kind of get embarrassed with where you’re from in a way. Because you feel like you’ve been left out and you’re behind compared to other places. The history of where we’re from is actually [we’re] very, very proud of. Its stories that are worth cherishing and leaning into and telling. Yeah, it definitely resonates with that. 

Brandon Dennison:

There are a lot of layers to it. There’s our own. Our history as a person, the history of our life, our family history, our community's history. Yeah, there’s layers to it. It’s been neat to sort of peel back those layers together month by month and get a deeper understanding.  

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Heritage Farm holds a special significance for those who were involved in Coalfield's early beginnings. Initially a crew of three, including Revitalize Appalachia’s Crew Chief Andy Endicott, Brandon recalls visiting Heritage Farm with the founder, Mike Perry, during one of the crew’s first team-building experiences.   

Brandon Dennison:

Council Day didn’t exist back then. But once a month, we wanted to do something fun and come together as a team. So we came to Heritage Farm. Mike, who was the founder of Heritage Farm, was really excited about what we were doing for Coalfield, so he personally gave us a tour, which was more than the normal tour. He took us down the road and up the mountain to a quarry where the rocks that would be the foundation for a home had been chiseled. And he shared with us his connection to Appalachian grit and resilience and what it has taken for Appalachia communities just to persist and survive over the generations. 

I think too, you know, that history is a little bit complicated. So I love to hear the history of Appalachia. I think we do have to be cognizant of the fact that there were other human beings already in Appalachia when mostly white ancestors came. We do have to acknowledge that some Black ancestors were brought here not of their own choosing, and that’s a very different history. So when we look at history and peel the layers back, it gets complicated. So a question I’d have for you all is “Can we change history? Is it possible to change history?”

Yeah, we can’t change what happened, and whether we’re talking about our own life, sometimes we all have regrets. We say, “no regrets,” but realistically, most of us as human beings, we’re going to look back and say, “if I could do that over, I might’ve done that differently.” But we can’t. But we can learn from that, and that can make history for a better future. We can’t change history, but our understanding can deepen. We can add texture to it. We can add context to it. And that gives us a chance to affect the future in a better way. 

You know, talking about rebuilding the Appalachian economy from the ground up sounds a little bit ridiculous to make a statement like that, but think about the statements we just heard: a building getting revitalized, three at the same time; a mine site being reclaimed; a new local agriculture project being introduced. We are building a new economy. We get to do it with our own hands. We really are making a new Appalachian history. That’s what you all are part of, and I hope you feel very proud about that and I also hope you feel that that’s a big responsibility and that’s why we have to keep committing to learning and growing to give our very best. Those are my thoughts on history today. There’s no better place that I know of in all of Appalachia to reflect on history than here at Heritage Farm. Part of why I want to emphasize history this year is that it's not just for politicians and famous people to make history. That’s another thing I love about Heritage Farm is a lot of the exhibits are about families persisting and existing and sometimes even thriving, and I love that community lens of history that Heritage Farm has. 

We have so much to be proud of as Appalachians. We have so much to be proud of and such great foundations to build off of. So I hope you all will all relish that and be fully present to that today. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

With Brandon’s remarks in mind, the Coalfield crew set out to explore Heritage Farm. Many head straight toward the Petting Zoo.

(walking in gravel)

(laughing)

(pig sounds, turkey sounds)

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Allison, a zoo employee, welcomed us into the space as she hand-fed a duck. 

Allison:

I’m Allison, I work in the zoo here at Heritage Farms. Right now I have a young Peking duck here that we’re just getting socialized and comfortable with. We want to inspire particularly our younger visitors here to have a passion for farmlife and the wildlife here in Appalachia. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

At the zoo, we found pigs, peacocks, rabbits, tortoises, turkeys, a dog, and, of course, several sleepy barn cats. Allison introduced us to each of the zoo’s rabbits. 

Allison:

We have Bon Bon, she is a French Angora. We have Simba, a Lion’s Head rabbit. (Continues)

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Each of the animals, she explained, came to us under different circumstances. 

Allison:

Some of them are just farm animals. We’ve had friends of the farm drop off extra chicks from one of their lays, and some of them are rescues. Some of which are rescue animals that weren't able to be re-released into the wild. We have an opossum who’s about one-year-old. Let me get her out here.

(fence opening)

Allison: 

This is Pocket the opossum. She’s just about one year old. Her mom was unfortunately the victim of a car accident. Because they are marsupials, they carry their young in a pouch. She and all 12 of her siblings were found in the pouch. They were able to be syringe fed by a wildlife rehabilitator who works here named Rebecca Perry, and she was able to syringe feed them, and all twelve, except for the 13th here, were able to be rereleased into the wild. And we’ve kept her as an ambassador animal for her species. THe opossum kind of gets a bad reputation, so we’re able to show the locals that they’re not big and scary and that they can do a lot of nice things for our environment. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Two crew members from the finance team, intern Olivia Layne and Carrie Sias, said they thoroughly enjoyed their time at Heritage Farm. Seeing the animals was a major highlight of their visit.

Olivia Layne:

We’re here at Heritage Farm and we’re to learn about Appalachian history and walk around and look at the exhibits. My personal favorite has been the animals because they’re adorable and they’ve all been sleeping all day, and I can relate to that. 

Carrie Sias:

This is my first time here, and so it’s interesting to see that all of this is literally 10 minutes from my home and I did not realize there was so much here to do. It’s a great experience. I’m so happy to see all the animals and just see some of the old Fords and train cars. I've got some really great pictures from today and I’m just thrilled to be here. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Reflecting on her internship so far, Olivia said she felt acclimated and grateful to be working in such a welcoming environment. Carrie, who’s been with Coalfield since April, said the two of them have had a blast collaborating.   

Olivia Layne:

I feel like it’s been going really well. Everyone’s just really easy to work with and so easy to talk to. And if you need something, everyone’s willing to help out to get things done. If you ever have any questions, everyone’s willing to answer them. It’s kind of been a breeze honestly, even though I’ve only been here a couple months. No issues, it’s just been wonderful. 

Carrie Sias:

It’s been great. I started here April 16th or 18th and I walked in one day and there’s Olivia in the office. We started sharing an office and we’ve developed a nice friendship, and we’ve spent a lot of time here just talking and looking at things and getting to know each other a little bit better. It’s just been a fun, great experience working with everyone on our team, but I’ve really enjoyed having Olivia as my office partner. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Seated on the porch, Jeremiah Hannah brings out his guitar.  

(tuning and music)

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

That’s Jerome. He’s a member of the West Edge construction crew. Council Days like this, he said, are his favorite.    

Jerome:

Today, we’ve got a work break. We get to learn, it’s interactive. Today we’re here at Heritage Farm and they got a lot of little sites going on. That’s nice. We went through the trails. The rope course. It’s cool. It’s nice. I don’t know, Coalfield is like a family. You go to jobs, and you think it’s just going to be work, and I’m going to have to duck and dodge coworkers. That’s not it. We’re like magnets to each other. Like, everybody is drawn or gravitates toward each other freely. There’s no friction. So we’ve got days like this, you get to unwind and it’s still educational with an educational purpose. There's a meaning behind it, but at the same time, it’s fun. So it’s just like, let’s god. So you start anticipating it the days and weeks before these events take place. So you’ll be waiting on that, and that’s okay. I like it. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

As of today, Casey McCann has officially been part of the Coalfield crew for a year. As director of Revitalize, Casey oversaw many recent projects, including the restoration of the historic Nenni buildings in Matewan, West Virginia.  

Casey McCann:

Today so happened to be, we’re at council day, but it coincides with my one-year anniversary of being employed with Coalfield. There has been a lot of - to sum it up - growth. Personal growth and also career. Just looking at the growth and development, not only internally with the organization, but also since I’ve been here for one year seeing the extensive impact that this organization has made not only with the communities and the projects, but also with individuals. Individuals are growing as well. That’s sort of the common theme this past year: A lot of reflection and seeing inward and outward growth. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

After lunch, the crew checked out the exhibits they hadn’t seen so far, including the blacksmithing area. 

(clinks) 

Despite the rain, we pulled out our ponchos and enjoyed the serene and stunning sights and sounds. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Coalfield board member Ric MacDowell, who joined us for today’s events, has been with the Coalfield team for five years. Though much has changed, he said, it’s all been for the better, and he’s proud to be involved with the team. 

Ric MacDowell:

Well, there’s certainly a huge change in the number of people who work for Coalfield and the number of people whose lives Coalfield touches that don’t even work for Coalfield. That’s a big change. I think another thing is the recognition Coalfield is getting for the good work that they’re doing. Just from the meeting today, it was so obvious from an emotional level how we touch people’s lives and how we give them hope. That’s one of the things that drew me to Coalfield. That kind of stuff is just great, and the fact that Coalfield is recognized for that, we’re able to get funding to take those things to a broader level. It’s amazing, and it’s emotional. I’m about to start tearing up. It’s like today, at the very beginning, when people started sharing things, they could say things that were in their hearts. That doesn't happen very often, I don’t think. So, it’s obvious you’ve created a support organization where people feel valued and they have gained skills to share their feelings with others. If you can help people learn how to do that, to share their inner feelings and explain them, boy, it goes an awfully long way to solving an awfully lot of social problems that we’ve got in our world. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

To close out the day, Heritage Farm’s Executive Director Audy Perry, whose parents founded the farm, joined us to talk about the importance of preserving our Appalachian history, as well as our HISTORY theme. 

Audy Perry: 

You guys are like the acronym king! I’ve bever seen a more creative acronym than HISTORY - that is AMAZING! Healing Into Sustainable Transformational Opportunities and Reclaiming Yourself. I don’t know if you’ve been covering that throughout the year, but reclaiming yourself… man, that’s just like the bell ringing on the top of that chapel. That’s good. 

How have you all come to understand that phrase in your HISTORY acronym? How would you talk about reclaiming yourself? What does that mean to you? To start over. Fresh start, nice. Recovery, yep. Reclamation, recovery. I like that. Reminded me. So, there’s this awesome book written thousands of years ago. There’s a guy in it who tells good stories. Awesome phrase. Says, “For hope, look to the rock from which you were chiseled from the quarry from which you were dug.Then, the author sets out recounting all these incredible people who overcame incredible obstacles and made the world a better place, or at least the world around them, because they overcame. Very cool. When you start floundering, one way to reclaim yourself is to go back to your roots. We had Hamlin Elementary, and one of the primary things - yeah, we have fun on the wagon ride - but I like to remind them because you get their attention while they're having fun that you’re going to see lots of things from the old days. By the way, I got a thank you card from a first grader. She said she loved the one-room schoolhouse. She loved school. And she loved how people lived in the [19]90s. 

(laughs)

It hurt just a little! Oh man. Way back in the 1900s. I’m thinking Little House on the Prairie and she’s thinking the 1990s. You know, we focus on that individually and that’s appropriate. But I think it applies to Appalachia as well. It is time for us to reclaim ourselves because we got lost! We got lost because we were careless. We got lost because somebody did us wrong. We got lost because we made bad decisions. But the joy that comes with being reclaimed, with being found, with being reunited, recovered is powerful. Powerful! And if some of you have felt that in your life, you know what that looks like. 

I used to say that Appalachia’s time is coming. I think that’s a wrong statement. Appalachia’s time is now. The last couple years of goofiness have expedited the beauty that is to be celebrated in our mountains. We are our own enemies. We’re the ones who lost our way. Time to be reclaimed. Due to the actions of others, Appalachia has been harmed, left behind. It’s time to be reclaimed back to its roots, its owners. Then there’s those of us, probably all of us, who’ve made bad decisions to purposefully get lost for a time in our lives. It’s time to be reclaimed. Appalachia is worthy of celebration. Worthy of inviting the outside in to celebrate with us. And part of what you guys are a part of is a celebration of what is best about Appalachia. The mountains are amazing. The wildlife is beautiful. But it’s the people who make the difference. 

Everybody comes out and they’re amazed at all the stuff in the museums, and that’s cool. I love all the ways people have expressed their ingenuity and creativity and perseverance. Stuff is nice. But it’s the people who make it amazing. Kudos to you for spending time every month to remind yourselves of that. Not only is the person beside you an amazing creation, but so are you. Sometimes we don’t feel like sharing what’s going on in our lives with other people, but they need to know about you as much as you need to know about them. We believe the lie sometimes that it’s best to keep it all inside and nobody needs to know. The fact is, nobody’s perfect, and nobody has it all together. We all need to be reclaimed. I just wanted to come and thank you for coming, say thank you for what you do, thank you for pouring your hearts and your passion into Appalachia. I think you’re going to see some amazing things happen in the next two to three years and you’re going to be proud that you were here and you were part of it; watching the transition from lost to found. 

Narrator Lindsay, JJN Multimedia: 

Thanks for listening to CouncilCast, a monthly podcast from Coalfield Development. This series is hosted and produced by JJN Multimedia. 

Subscribe to CouncilCast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to leave us a review. 

To support or learn more about our work creating resilient Appalachian communities and helping people unlock their full potential, power, and purpose, find us on social media or visit www dot coalfield hyphen development dot O R G. 

Thanks for joining us today. We’ll see you next month.