Several volunteer firefighters with the Tyler Mountain Volunteer Fire Department staged a walkout Monday. Other county agencies are now working to pick up the slack.
Several members of the Tyler Mountain Volunteer Fire Department (VFD) resigned during a departmental training session Monday.
The fire department said Monday that seven of its 25 volunteer firefighters left their positions. But other mediaoutlets have since reported that 10 or more firefighters staged a joint walkout, allegedly due to concerns with the fire department’s leadership.
The sudden departure has left the community of Cross Lanes, which is serviced by the Tyler Mountain VFD, with fewer first responders on standby. The fire department is now reviewing applications for new recruits.
Meanwhile, officials within the fire department and Kanawha County at large are working to ensure that Tyler Mountain VFD’s coverage areas remain protected.
Preexisting mutual aid agreements allow neighboring fire departments to contribute to emergency response efforts in Cross Lanes, the Kanawha County Commission said in a Monday statement.
Kanawha County officials and 911 dispatchers will help coordinate response efforts in the Tyler Mountain VFD’s coverage area, the statement said. This could include contacting fire departments based in the communities of Dunbar, Institute, Nitro, Sissonville and St. Albans to respond to some emergencies in Cross Lanes.
Dunbar Fire Chief Jason Burger said mutual aid agreements between the Tyler Mountain VFD and surrounding fire departments are long standing, and have helped first responders access additional support as needed during emergency response efforts.
“We have had a mutual aid agreement with the Tyler Mountain Fire Department for quite a while,” he said. “If they need help on a call, they ask for us and we respond.”
The Tyler Mountain Volunteer Fire Department has helmed emergency response efforts for the Kanawha County community of Cross Lanes since 1951.
Photo Credit: Tyler Mountain Volunteer Fire Department
Joe Stevens, public information officer for the Nitro Fire Department, said that the agreements make responding to emergencies in Cross Lanes familiar territory, and that the resignations do not pose an added burden to first responders in Nitro.
“This is nothing new,” he said.
Still, Burger said his department has minimal information on the nature of the walkout in Cross Lanes. He received word of the walkout Monday afternoon, but was not informed of the motivations behind it.
“I don’t have any insider information about what’s going on out there,” he said. “Hopefully whatever’s going on, cooler heads can prevail … because ultimately it’s the citizens that will suffer.”
The Tyler Mountain VFD did not respond directly to a request for an interview, but referred West Virginia Public Broadcasting to a departmental statement written Monday.
In that statement, James McDougle, president of the Tyler Mountain VFD board of directors, said that the fire department remains prepared to respond to local emergencies.
Likewise, Tyler Mountain Fire Chief Louie Robinson said his department is committed to continuing to serve the Cross Lanes community. He also thanked neighboring fire departments for their support.
The Tyler Mountain VFD will discuss the walkout during its regularly scheduled public meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday, held at 5380 Big Tyler Road in Cross Lanes.
For more information, visit the Tyler Mountain VFD’s Facebook page.
Pop into just about any coffee shop in Appalachia and you’ll find locally inspired stickers for sale. Folkways Reporter Maddie Miller got curious about the stickers at her neighborhood coffee shop — ones with phrases like, “Worn plumb out” or “Fiddle Fart.” They’re designed by Elizabeth Elswick, who’s built a merchandising business in St. Albans, West Virginia, called Hippie’s Daughter.
This conversation originally aired in the June 2, 2024 episode of Inside Appalachia.
Pop into just about any coffee shop in Appalachia and you’ll find locally inspired stickers for sale. Folkways Reporter Maddie Miller got curious about the stickers at her neighborhood coffee shop — ones with phrases like, “Worn plumb out” or “Fiddle Fart.”
They’re designed by Elizabeth Elswick, who’s built a merchandising business in St. Albans, West Virginia, called Hippie’s Daughter.
This interview has been edited for clarity.
Miller: Hippie’s Daughter — where’s the name come from for the shop?
Elswick: It’s actually pretty funny. The name was born before the business was ever born. Probably a couple years before. My dad — both of my parents, actually — were hippies. My dad’s hair is probably almost down to his butt now, but my husband always called him a hippie. So one day, my husband’s like, “You’re the hippie’s daughter.”
Like, “Okay, we’re gonna keep that. We’re gonna put it in our pocket.” Then when I started the business a few years later, that was the only option.
Miller: Do you remember seeing a lot of West Virginia merch (merchandise) and memorabilia when you were growing up?
Elswick: Not really growing up. I mean, it would be at huge events like the old regatta before they brought it back. But most of the time, it would just be little buttons or T-shirts or the big bumper stickers.
Elizabeth Elswick, owner of Hippie’s Daughter, stands in her new store room in St. Alban’s, West Virginia. Her non-sticker merchandise is on full display around her.
Photo Credit: Maddie Miller/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Miller: Is that some of your inspiration for making West Virginia-related merchandising?
Elswick: Yeah, it’s kind of a niche — which, there’s a lot of people that do it now. So I focus more on Appalachia now. But there was kind of a void in stickers in general. And it’s — if you’re a millennial, or Gen Z — then you grew up with Lisa Frank, you probably had stickers all the time and put them on everything. And when we turned into adults, we didn’t really have any.
Miller: I totally agree. I was one of those kids. I didn’t stick my stickers on anything. I kept them all in a folder because I was too scared. And I do that with stickers I buy now. I hang them on my wall, but I’m very scared to commit to sticking them anywhere. What do you see people doing with your stickers when they buy them?
Elswick: I think the most common is putting them on your laptops or water bottles. I’ve seen them on cars here and there. And then there are also people like us who just kind of save them forever because you don’t know what to do with them.
Miller: What do you think, then, with people putting them in such public places? Do you think that’s part of the appeal for West Virginia stickers, that it’s a signifier like, “Hey, look, I’m from West Virginia, too?”
Elswick: Yeah, West Virginia, in general, the residents here, they’re very proud. So they always have West Virginia merch. So it’s like another way for everybody to express themselves.
Miller: You had said, inspiration-wise, you used sayings from different family members.
Elswick: Yeah, most everything that I use are things that my family always said like, “Come hell or high water.” A newer one that I did was one that my dad says a lot, which is, you’ll say, “Whatcha doing?” and he’ll say, “Ohh, just mildewin.” And my mom says “fiddle fart” all the time.
They’re all just things that we’ve all heard growing up here in West Virginia or in Appalachia.
Miller: I noticed a lot of them have skeletons and that kind of thing. The Gothic inspiration — is that just your personal interest? Or is that something that you think also aligns with some of the West Virginia vibes?
Elswick: It’s more so me. I’m an “elder Emo.” But there is that Appalachian Gothic-type — we’ve always had kind of weird customs where, you know, your family’s buried in the yard or the casket’s in the house when they die. Appalachia is kind of Gothic.
The most popular is probably, “Well, s— fire.” Everybody stops when they see that one. Locally, it’s the coal miner ones. They’ll buy it because their dad or grandpa was in the mines.
Sticker stock at Hippie’s Daughter’s headquarters. The store offers more than 100 sticker designs featuring the imagery and sayings of Appalachia.
Photo Credit: Maddie Miller/West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Miller: Will you describe your new shop?
Elswick: I think it was built in 1950. It’s just a cinder block building literally split in half. So right now I’m working in the back half, which is like a warehouse. It has a big garage door on it where we remodeled the front half so that I can put retail in the front.
Miller: Why make West Virginia-related stickers versus just like any kind of art stickers?
Elswick: When I started, I did a lot of “West Virginia” plus nature-related things and dabbled in some other things. After a few years of that, I realized I just need to “niche” it down because it’s already out of control with how many stickers I have.
So I just “niched” it down to West Virginia and Appalachia things with a few other random things, too, in there that I just love. Like aliens. Skeletons.
Definitely a lot of black and white. It’s my favorite.
Let’s see, we got a snake. We’ve got a devil hand. “Fixing” and “y’all” are really popular. “Bless your heart” is classic. “Lollygag.” Everybody should lollygag.
“It is what it is.” I mean, because it is.
“Lord willing and the creek don’t rise,” — another classic.
My grandpa always says, “Watch for deer.”
Miller: The Appalachian “I love you,” — classic. You’re out the door, “Watch for deer. Drive safe.”
Elswick: All of these sayings hit very close to home for me. And I know they do for other people as well. So I kind of just wanted to keep those nostalgic sayings going. My mom and my aunt — actually, their favorite is “Well, s— fire.”
My aunt was actually buried in a “Well, s— fire” hat last year. She wore it all throughout chemo. It was her absolute favorite. She was my number one fan. Yeah, obviously, it hits very close to home for me. So I do like to use these nostalgic sayings to kind of hit close to home for others as well.
And it’s really cool when I do events. People will come up and tell me a lot of those stories. Or I’ll even get an email or message online about why they bought this and this because of this person. So it’s really sweet.
Miller: We talked a lot about nostalgia. Why are we always missing something?
Elswick: I think it goes back to — West Virginia is unique in that we’re all very prideful to be from West Virginia. We literally would die for this state. A lot of us grew up with very close families, like some of my cousins are like my siblings — a lot of people grew up with that, like, going to my mamaw’s, getting the good country food and everything. So I think it’s very ingrained in us to want to reminisce on all of that, because we spend a lot of time with our families.
Miller: Do you think not only are we constantly missing and being very close-knit families, but very close-knit to the land? Do you see that melding with missing the environment?
Elswick: Absolutely. In 1957, my grandpa bought 35-ish acres in the Monongahela National Forest. So I got to go there multiple times a year and grow up there with no neighbors, no electricity, just the land. So that also inspired me a lot, but it’s really just part of growing up in West Virginia. But yeah, it is kind of like a badge of like, “Hey, I’m from West Virginia,” or “I’m from somewhere else in Appalachia, and I’m proud of it.”
The Folkways Reporting Project is made possible in part with support from Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies to the West Virginia Public Broadcasting Foundation. Subscribe to the podcast to hear more stories of Appalachian folklife, arts and culture.
West Virginia’s annual book festival celebrating national and regional authors will come to the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center this October.
West Virginia’s annual book festival celebrating national and regional authors will come to the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center this October.
The 2024 West Virginia Book Festival’s featured speakers are New York Times bestselling author Gregg Hurwitz, novelist Sadeqa Johnson, cartoonist and graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang, author of historical fiction Joy Callaway and award-winning writer Mia Manansala.
About The Authors
Gregg Hurwitz
Gregg Hurwitz is the New York Times #1 bestselling author of 24 thrillers including the Orphan X series. Critically acclaimed, his novels have been international bestsellers, graced top ten lists and have been published in 32 languages.
Sadeqa Johnson
Sadeqa Johnson is a New York Times bestselling author of five novels. Her most recent novel, The House of Eve, was an instant New York Times Best Seller, Target book club pick, Reese’s Book Club selection and nominated for a NAACP Image Award. Her previous novel, Yellow Wife, was named by Oprah Magazine as “27 of 2021 Most Anticipated Winter Historical Fiction books.”
Gene Luen Yang
Gene Luen Yang writes, and sometimes draws, comic books and graphic novels. He was named a National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature by the Library of Congress in 2016, and advocates for the importance of reading, especially reading diversely. His graphic novel, American Born Chinese, is a National Book Award finalist and Printz Award winner. It has also been adapted into an original series on Disney+.
Joy Callaway
Joy Callaway is an international bestselling author of six works of historical fiction, including The Grand Design, set at The Greenbrier in 1908 and 1946, and the recently released, What The Mountains Remember, set during the building of Grove Park Inn in 1913. She holds a B.A. in Public Relations from Marshall University and a master’s degree in Mass Communication from the University of South Carolina.
Mia Manansala
Mia Manansala is a writer and book coach from Chicago who loves books, baking and “bad-ass women.” She uses humor (and murder) to explore aspects of the Filipino diaspora, queerness and her millennial love for pop culture. She is the winner of the 2022 Anthony Award for Best First Novel, 2022 Macavity Award for Best First Novel, 2022 RUSA Reading List for Mystery, 2021 Agatha Award for Best First Novel and the 2018 Hugh Holton Award.
What To Expect
Leading up to the book festival, on Oct. 17, the West Virginia Humanities Council will present the 41st annual McCreight Lecture in the Humanities. Novelist and poet Percival Everett is this year’s speaker. Everett is the author of more than 30 books of fiction and poetry. He is a Pulitzer Prize finalist and his novel Erasure was recently adapted into the Oscar-winning film American Fiction.
In addition to the five national bestselling authors, the event will also feature local and regional authors, writing workshops, family activities, a literary marketplace and the annual Used Book Sale. The 2024 West Virginia Book Festival will be held Oct. 19.
All events and programs are free and open to the public.
The West Virginia Book Festival is made possible by its charter presenters, The Kanawha County Public Library, The Library Foundation of Kanawha County, Inc., The West Virginia Humanities Council and The Charleston Gazette-Mail.
Sponsors for this year’s festival include West Virginia Public Broadcasting, The West Virginia Library Commission, The West Virginia Center for the Book, The Marshall University Foundation, The Friends of The Library, Truist West Virginia Foundation, H.B. Wehrle Foundation, and the Nelle Ratrie Chilton Charitable Trust.
Thursday marks the 50th anniversary of a Kanawha County Board of Education meeting that became inundated with controversy over new, multicultural textbooks.
On April 11, 1974 — 50 years ago Thursday — a meeting of the Kanawha County Board of Education quickly became mired in controversy.
During the meeting, members of the board adopted a new slate of language arts textbooks, in part to promote multiculturalism in the classroom.
But after reviewing the books that had been approved for the new curriculum, board member Alice Moore and several local residents alleged some of them were antithetical to Christian values.
As proponents of the new curriculum stood firm in the board’s decision, others began to stage protests over the books’ inclusion.
Things escalated in the months following the meeting, and even turned toward violence. Some protesters threw dynamite and Molotov cocktails at local school buildings, and even targeted buses with firearms.
Ultimately, a contingent of residents and board members pushed the curriculum through. But some say the incident has parallels to today, as libraries and schools across the country face increased scrutiny over the books they provide youth.
Trey Kay, host of the West Virginia Public Broadcasting podcast Us & Them, produced a documentary on the textbook controversy in 2013.
On the heels of the Civil Rights Movement, Kay said 1974 was a year when the country was experiencing “one of its more progressive phases,” which brought forth new, often clashing ideas.
“A lot of things that would have been considered multicultural were society reacting to the changing role of women. Society was reacting to how we were making a correction with regard to civil rights,” he said. “The textbooks were reflecting how it was we thought about our government and how we conducted war.”
Debates seemingly over textbook content were also debates on what place these new values and ideas would have in American society, Kay said.
Five decades later, Kay said that the incident remains an influential memory for West Virginia residents. Perhaps most notably, Kay said a through-line over the years has been parents’ focus on what curricula their children are exposed to.
“The constant is that parents really have a great deal of care over what it is that their children learn,” Kay said. “They’re highly suspicious and vigilant about what the schools are teaching.”
The deadline to file a federal aid claim over personal property damaged in August 2023 flooding incidents is April 1. West Virginia residents of several counties can receive grants for damages not covered by insurance.
West Virginia residents have until April 1 to claim federal aid for property damages or losses resulting from flash flooding in August 2023.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced the deadline for filing claims Wednesday. It applies to residents of Boone, Calhoun, Clay, Harrison and Kanawha counties.
Last summer, flash flooding ravaged homes and businesses across southern and central West Virginia. In January, President Joe Biden declared the incident a major disaster, which allowed residents to claim federal disaster recovery funds through FEMA.
FEMA grants do not need to be repaid, and the organization encourages residents to apply for aid even if they have insurance. FEMA does not provide grants for damages covered by insurance, but will subsidize costs not covered through insurance claims.
Although most aid claims focus on structural damages, FEMA can also help cover some specific damages not included in insurance plans. This can include wells, furnaces, private roads, private bridges and septic systems.
For more information on how to file a claim, residents can contact FEMA’s Disaster Assistance Helpline at 1 (800) 621-3362, or visit disaster recovery centers in Boone, Clay, Harrison or Kanawha counties.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has provided guidance to residents seeking federal aid after floods ravaged several counties in southern and central West Virginia in August.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has distributed letters to some residents of Boone, Calhoun, Clay, Harrison and Kanawha counties affected by flooding in August 2023.
These letters were distributed to residents who applied for federal relief funds. They outline applicants’ eligibility for funds, and next steps to claim them.
Last summer, flash floods swept southern and central West Virginia, damaging homes and businesses across the counties.
On Jan. 30, President Joe Biden officially declared the flooding incident a major disaster, opening the region and its residents to federal recovery funds. The funds can be applied to home repairs, property loans and more.
Since the disaster declaration, FEMA has allocated more than $1 million to the West Virginia counties. FEMA supplied residents an additional $72,000 cumulatively for other disaster costs like childcare and medical expenses.
FEMA has encouraged individuals affected by the flooding to file insurance claims immediately. Costs not covered by insurance can be covered through FEMA funds, and an end date for the application period has not yet been announced.
For residents who have already submitted their applications, letters from FEMA regarding next steps should have already come, or soon be on their way.
The letters will state if residents need to submit supplemental information to complete their claims, like proof of insurance, proof of occupancy in a house affected by the flooding and proof of ownership of said property.
FEMA encouraged residents to promptly submit necessary supplemental materials and to follow guidance provided in the letters. FEMA also encouraged residents who have not yet filed a claim to do so as soon as possible.
For more information on the eligibility letters, residents can contact FEMA’s Disaster Assistance Helpline at (800) 621-3362, or visit disaster recovery centers in Boone, Clay, Harrison or Kanawha counties.
For more information on the disaster declaration and submitting a federal aid claim, residents can visit fema.gov/disaster/4756.
