It’s been exciting to see how Southeastern WV counties (Region 1 Workforce West Virginia area) have embraced the opportunities ahead in the new economy and are taking serious steps to turn community dreams into reality.
A lot of activity was sparked by the great work being done in the 4C Economic Development Authority (Nicholas, Fayette, Raleigh and Summers Counties) area lead by Judy Radford. From the dynamic young people moving into Fayetteville to the technology and education centers in Beckley to the high-tech incubator building in Hinton, this area promises to be one of West Virginia’s growth regions in the coming years.
What’s even more exciting is how the Entrepreneurship Alliance lead by Deana Keener has worked to equip leaders and community teams in all 11 Southeastern WV counties to build their own “new economy growth plan”. The Alliance has funded 11 individual new economy training sessions – one for each county. This is a significant investment that will spark serious vision development and planning over the next six months.
The first training session was held in Sophia, WV, in Raleigh County. The group was a wonderful mix of local leaders (Mayor Harry Taylor, State Representative Linda Summers, etc.) and passionate citizens.
Sophia and the surrounding area have a compelling story to build from with its coal heritage createwv.typepad.com(Sophia is the “smokeless coal capital of the world”). Phyllis Rose, a highly energetic local lady with a passion for her community, has been leading the charge to develop economic growth opportunities around coal heritage tourism. And being the hometown of legendary Senator Robert C. Byrd doesn’t hurt as a draw.
The training and discussion in Sophia centered around entrepreneurship – how can they grow their own entrepreneurs and attract others to the opportunities in the area? How can they leverage the new Burning Rock ATV trail opening July 4? How can they use their fantastic community center (owned by a local church) to train people on the skills they’ll need to thrive in this new wave of Sophia’s economic history?
We commend the energy, passion and vision of this area and can’t wait to see what great things begin to happen!
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