Laurie Lin Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Gaza and West Virginia Have More in Common Than You May Think

A deep love of their homeplace, resourcefulness, and deep faith – West Virginians and people in Gaza, the West Bank and Israel share a lot.

Front Porch contributor Rick Wilson just returned from a visit to Gaza, the West Bank and Israel, and he says he’s struck by both the obvious differences and the similarities in culture.

“In West Virginia, we have space. We have green…We have this love of the open road,” Wilson said. “For a lot of people there, it’s borders and checkpoints. That feeling of being confined, it really struck me.”

The population of Gaza and West Virginia is roughly the same – 1.8 million people. But in Gaza, they live in just 140 sq. miles, compared to 24,000 sq. miles in West Virginia.

But hillbillies and Palestinians share one trait, Wilson said.

“A big word for Palestinians is ‘Steadfastness’ — this effort to try to hold onto the land and try not to be displaced.”

Wilson says Israelis are rightfully afraid for their security and there is no easy path to peace. He says it starts with more personal connections between people on both sides of the fence.

Rick literally extends the olive branch to Laurie.

Read more from Rick’s blog, The Goat Rope, here: http://goatrope.blogspot.com/

Subscribe to “The Front Porch” podcast on iTunes or however you listen to podcasts.

An edited version of “The Front Porch” airs Fridays at 4:50 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s radio network, and the full version is available above.

Share your opinions with us about these issues, and let us know what you’d like us to discuss in the future. Send a tweet to @radiofinn or @wvpublicnews, or e-mail Scott at sfinn @ wvpublic.org

From the Superdome to Her W.Va. Home: A Katrina Odyssey

Ten years ago, Jennifer Hill was trying to figure out how she, her mother and brother could survive Hurricane Katrina.

On this week’s The Front Porch podcast, Hill tells the fascinating story of how her family fled her New Orleans apartment to find fear and chaos inside the Superdome.

But Hill also talks about the amazing camaraderie of her “Katrina family” – the people who found and supported each other as they escaped.

And she speaks about her random flight to West Virginia, and why she’s stayed here ever since.

Outside the Superdome and walkway to Convention Center during Katrina

These photos come from her “Katrina family” member Linda Veches’ Facebook profile,, Hill says: “These are the pics we took with her camera phone (back when the technology was a bit iffy). Linda was a part of the amazing survival group we formed in the later days of that week.”

And here is an email Hill sent Veches days following their landing and separating in Huntington:

There is not a day that goes by that you do not enter my thoughts, conversations and prayers. I am so fortunate to have met you and it is still hard to put into actual words what you each mean to me.

Linda, your courage, humor and extreme survival skills gave me strength.

Stephanie, your calm and serene demeanor kept me still while chaos reigned around us.

Francette, your spunk, tenacity, wit and charm made our time together bearable and can I dare say enjoyable.

It is strange to some and even sometimes to me that I look a back and smile at our stay at the ‘camp.’ My best memory is Friday night, we had all cleaned up to some degree and we sitting, campfire style, discussing our future day of steak and wine and relaxation. I pray that through all the trials and tribulations this past year that at some point you were able to enjoy that dinner.

My sincerest hope is that at some point in the future we can all be together again and I will be the first to lift my glass and toast to the most courageous, brilliant and beautiful women I know.

Forgive me my lapses in communication. I was never the best pen pal but I do love you all!!!

Jennifer

Subscribe to “The Front Porch” podcast on iTunes or however you listen to podcasts.

An edited version of “The Front Porch” airs Fridays at 4:50 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s radio network, and the full version is available above.

Share your opinions with us about these issues, and let us know what you’d like us to discuss in the future. Send a tweet to @radiofinn or @wvpublicnews, or e-mail Scott at sfinn @ wvpublic.org

King Coal is Dead! Long Live King Coal!

Hard times have come yet again to the coalfields of West Virginia — massive layoffs, big cuts in production. The coal severance tax is down by about half in many coal counties.

That’s what we’re talking about this week on “The Front Porch”, our podcast where we bring together people with diverse views and backgrounds to see where we can find common ground.

This week, we debate two responses to these facts our state can take:

1. We need to double down on the War on Coal. It’s the state’s most important industry and will continue to be so for a long time. State leaders must do everything in their power to protect and preserve the industry, because in southern West Virginia, it’s the best bet we’ve got for prosperity.

2. Coal is dying in West Virginia. We should stop trying to save it. State leaders should stop fighting the war on coal and focus on trying to help individuals and communities make the transition to something else.

On “The Front Porch” with us this week are Laurie Lin, columnist for the Charleston Daily Mail, and Rick Wilson of the American Friends Service Committee.

We also discuss this hypothetical: What would West Virginia have looked like if coal wasn’t here? Would we be worse or better off?

And, do you really think this is a permanent, irreversible decline? Or has the death of the coal industry been greatly exaggerated?

It’s all part of our new project, “The Front Porch,” where I will serve as host and provocateur, tackling the tough issues facing West Virginia and Appalachia with some of the region’s most interesting thinkers.

An edited version of “The Front Porch” airs Fridays at 5:44 p.m. on West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s radio network, and the full version is available at wvpublic.org and as a podcast as well.

Share your opinions with us about these issues, and let us know what you’d like us to discuss in the future. Send a tweet to @radiofinn or @wvpublicnews, or e-mail sfinn @ wvpublic.org