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Shinto Garden In Southwest Virginia And A Healing Mosaic In Kentucky, Inside Appalachia

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Bill Lynch, Mason Adams, Irina Zhorov, Abby Neff, Wendy Welch, Nicole Musgrave, Roxy Todd
A landscape image of a mosaic on a green wall. There's a dragonfly, sunflowers and a body of water.

The mosaic was commissioned by Cowan Community Action Group in Letcher County. It is part of their annual Growing Home event which honors the anniversary of the flood of 2022.

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A Japanese Shinto Garden took root in southwestern Virginia because of family connections spanning geography and generations. 

Also, in Whitesburg, Kentucky, a new mosaic uses recovered objects to honor the town’s people after the flood of 2022. 

And, the young adult novel Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire mixes historical fact with spooky Appalachian folklore.

You’ll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Japanese Shinto Garden Roots In Southwest Virginia

A black-and-white landscape portait of a Japanese family. There are 13 people in the photo.
Gerald Bland visited Hime Yamuchi Bland’s family several times. Amelia Bland Waller met many of those pictured here when she traveled to Japan in 2024 to execute the behests in Hime’s will.

Courtesy

Elk Creek, Virginia, is a small, unincorporated community located in Grayson County, about a half hour from the North Carolina border. Many people in Elk Creek have deep ties to their land, and for one family taking care of their land and honoring their ancestors meant creating a traditional Japanese Shinto Garden.

From Elk Creek, Folkways Reporter Wendy Welch brings us the story. 

Mosaic In Whitesburg, KY, Honors Community After Flooding

Lacy Hale (left) and Julian Holt (right) take a break from grouting the mosaic. Holt is a painter and printmaker from Letcher County, Kentucky, and is currently a student at Eastern Kentucky University. They were Hale’s intern for the mosaic project.

Photo Credit: Nik Lee/Appalshop

Letcher County, Kentucky, artist Lacy Hale is known across Appalachia for her enduring screen print that reads, “No Hate in My Holler.” But Lacy does a lot of public art projects.

And so, four years after the devastating Kentucky floods, she was hired to make a public mosaic that incorporates material contributions from community members. The artwork protects memories, shares stories and helps the community to heal.

The Whitesburg mosaic was completed and unveiled at the end of July. This story was produced by Nicole Musgrave and was a collaboration between Mimi Pickering of Appalshop and Teresa Collins of the Center for Rural Strategies and originally aired on the Rural Remix podcast.

Designing Dignity For Aging Pennsylvanians

Alana Gibbs and Darah Thompson walk their father Lloyd Richardson down a hallway at Arden Courts in Pittsburgh’s North Hills.

Photo Credit: Kiley Koscinski/90.5 WESA

WESA’s Designing Dignity series is exploring possible solutions for healthcare challenges created by Pennsylvania’s —and Appalachia’s — aging population. Some of these ideas come from Japan, where one-third of the population is 65 or older. 

Japan has implemented a program to keep medical costs down through a taxpayer-funded insurance program specifically for long-term care. Several U.S. states are exploring their own version of universal long-term care insurance. 

WESA’s Kiley Koscinski reports. 

Rare “Peters Mountain Mallow” Plant Threatened By Droughts In Virginia

Ryan Klopf, mountain region supervisor with Virginia Natural Heritage Program, hunts for any sign of Peters Mountain Mallow on a mountainside in Giles County.

Photo Credit: Roxy Todd/Radio IQ

One of Virginia’s rarest plants, the Peters Mountain Mallow, lives on only one mountainside in the world, in the New River Valley along the West Virginia line. Last year, scientists counted just five plants that are still alive, and the ongoing drought means protecting it from extinction is getting tougher.

Radio IQ’s Roxy Todd reports. 

Scenic Natural Wonders of Pennsylvania

Tory Mather holds her book, Scenic Natural Wonders of Pennsylvania, in Frick Park in Pittsburgh.

Photo Credit: Savannah Colberg/The Allegheny Front

Tori Mather is the author of Scenic Natural Wonders of Pennsylvania, a new book that introduces readers to some of the state’s treasures.

The Alleghany Front’s Savannah Colberg met up with Mather in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park to learn more.  

Mountain Biking’s Long Path To Racing In Roanoke

Roanoke mountain biker Mark Boyer drops down a trail at Carvins Cove Natural Reserve.

Photo Credit: Mason Adams/WVTF

In July, Roanoke, Virginia, hosted USA Cycling’s Endurance Mountain Bike National Championships. For local mountain bikers, it was just the latest summit in a decades-long, uphill grind for respectability.

Host Mason Adams reports from Roanoke.

New YA Fiction Explores Witches In A Mountain Coal Town

The cover of Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire.

Courtesy of Don Martin/Page Street Publishing

The young adult novel Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire tells the story of a witch-in-training who uses her magic to help a forgotten mountain coal town. The book blends fantasy and Appalachian social history, with a touch of queer romance. It’s the debut novel by Don Martin, and it was an instant New York Times bestseller.

Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Martin about the book and his podcast Head on Fire.

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Blue Dot Sessions, Jeff Ellis, Dinosaur Burps, and Hello June. 

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editor Allison Silverstein. 

You can send us an email: InsideAppalachia@wvpublic.org.

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

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