This week on Inside Appalachia, a look back at some of the stories that shaped the show in 2024, like the story of an abandoned Fairmont Brine site in Marion County, West Virginia. It was a common hangout spot, but there’s a hidden danger. Also, food deserts are places where it’s hard to find nutritious food. Like disenfranchised neighborhoods in East Knoxville, TN. And, not all bamboo is invasive. In fact, there’s a species native to Appalachia.
Randy Blake Thomas (a Creeker) and Trey Kay (a Hiller).Joni Deutsch
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Our cultural divides start early in America – some even in childhood.
As kids, we learn where we come from and where we belong. Those divisions can really run deep. When Us & Them host Trey Kay was a kid at George Washington High School in Charleston, West Virginia, you were either a ‘hiller’ or a ‘creeker.’ The sorting followed class lines and separated kids based on their family’s income.
Trey goes back to his old neighborhood to see if others remember it the way he does. Some of their differences were subtle while others were as basic as the clothes they could afford. But what he learned from these adult conversations is that they had a lot in common. They were all self-conscious and knew that even their shoes could define them.
Another thing they all share? The pain of those 40-year-old wounds can sometimes still sting.
This episode of Us & Them is presented with support from the CRC Foundation and the West Virginia Humanities Council.
Subscribe to Us & Them on Apple Podcasts, NPR One, RadioPublic, Spotify, Stitcher and beyond. You also can listen to Us & Them on WVPB Radio — tune in every fourth Thursday at 8 p.m., or listen to the encore presentation on the following Saturday at 3 p.m.
George Washington High School Yearbook
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Randy Blake Thomas in 1977 as a sophomore at George Washington High School in Charleston, W.Va.
George Washington High School Yearbook
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Joey Minardi in 1977 as a sophomore at George Washington High School in Charleston, W.Va.
George Washington High School Yearbook.
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Trey Kay in 1977 as a sophomore at George Washington High School in Charleston, W.Va.
Joni Deutsch
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Randy Thomas sporting a pair of his coveted Nike Cortez sneakers.
On Christmas Eve 1822, Clement Clarke Moore was hosting a holiday gathering, and at some point in the evening he cleared his throat and began reading a lighthearted poem titled “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” which he had jotted down as a Christmas gift for his six children.
In this year end episode of “Us & Them,” Host Trey Kay dives into the complex challenges that have defined 2024. He sets out to understand those who celebrate recent victories and those who fear what lies ahead. In a world divided, listening becomes a bridge to clarity and connection.
This week on Inside Appalachia, we go a-wassailing in Asheville, North Carolina. It’s kind of like Christmas caroling, with a kick. Also, family recipes bring generations together. But what happens when you’ve got grandma’s potato candy recipe, and it doesn’t have exact measurements? And a new book explores the magical dark side of nature.
