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An Outsiders View of the KRADD Region Through the Lens of Entrepreneurship
- 1. Summary of EPG Summer Institute Experience By Taylor Sabo 7/8/2014 Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 1
- 2. Purpose 1. Reveal the effectiveness of my social media presence this summer 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 2fiveforfatting.tumblr.com
- 3. Purpose 2. Describe the issue confronting Central Appalachian Economic Development 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 3
- 4. Purpose 3. Summarize my personal responses to the content elements in the EPG Summer 2014 A) Academic content elements B) Civic content elements C) Personal growth content elements 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 4 www.selfmadesavvy.com
- 5. 1. Social Media Effectiveness 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 5
- 6. Klout score: 45/100 Total Social Media reviews: 72 Total Tripadvisor User Views: 1395 Total Helpful Votes: 12 1 response from Heartwood Artisan center 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 6
- 7. 2. The Issue A. Geographical 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 7 Leslie county, Kentucky
- 8. The Geographical Issue 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 8 Geography is Destiny - Chad Berry Strip mining in Leslie County, Kentucky
- 9. The Issue B. Cultural 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 9 100+ year old barn in White Oak Hollow, Leslie County Re-claimed strip mining site off Leeco rd. Leslie County
- 10. 3. My personal response to the content Key academic insight: The Appalachian people recognized opportunities and capitalized on them to improve their current state of life. They were merely the first to run out of resources. 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 10 Source: Salstrom, Paul. “Appalachia’s Path to Dependency”. University Press of Kentucky: Lexington, 1994. 61.
- 11. 1. Expansion of the population 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 11 Appalachian family-1933 www.homestead.orgSource: Salstrom, Paul. “Appalachia’s Path to Dependency”. University Press of Kentucky: Lexington, 1994. 61.
- 12. 2. Depletion of the resource base 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 12 Source: Salstrom, Paul. “Appalachia’s Path to Dependency”. University Press of Kentucky: Lexington, 1994. 61.
- 13. Ten Key Concepts 1. Geography is destiny 2. Find people who care 3. Customer recognition 4. Barters and Creepers 5. Pull yourself up by your bootstraps 6. External vs. internal locus of control 7. Find the bright spots 8. Subsistence barter-and-borrow system vs. capitalism 9. Collaboration vs. Competition 10. Get out of the collective mindset 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 13
- 14. Find people who care 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 14
- 15. 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 15 Find people who care
- 16. Customer Recognition 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 16
- 17. 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 17
- 18. Key insights of the EPG abilities 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 18
- 19. Key insights of the EPG abilities 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 19
- 20. Key insights of the EPG abilities 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 20
- 21. Learning Style/Personal Hunch 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 21
- 22. Civic Leadership Learning 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 22 1.Find the progress 2.Advance the project
- 23. Atlas of Rural Small-Town America 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 23
- 24. Population of Leslie: 11, 388 Population of Perry: 28, 722 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 24 Rural Atlas of Small Towns America 2014
- 25. Unemployment rate Leslie County 07: 12.4 Unemployment rate Perry County 07: 10.7 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 25
- 26. Under 18 poverty rate Leslie County: 33.9 Under 18 poverty rate Perry County: 32.3 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 26
- 27. Median Household income Leslie County: 29,645 Median Household income Perry County: 31,623 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 27
- 28. How Civic leaders can focus on Causes 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 28
- 29. Advocates for Change 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 29
- 30. Advocates for Change 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 30
- 31. 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 31
- 32. Most significant Appalachian Civic insight is… 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 32
- 33. Personal Growth 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 33
- 34. 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 34
- 35. 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 35
- 36. 36 Hours in Perry and Leslie county 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 36
- 37. Meet the persona’s 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 37 Robert (Bobby) Sizemore Age: 51 Married White Computer Systems Analyst Salary: $68,138 Looking into a job at HCTC to be closer to family in Leslie County
- 38. Meet the persona’s 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 38 Debby Sizemore Age: 48 Married White Salary: $52,515 Looking into job at Hazard highschool to be closer to Bobby’s family in Leslie County
- 39. The Trip Traveling in late September when the leaves are changing color Begin in Lexington on Friday afternoon and return from Wendover B&B Sunday morning Complete Trip length = 36 hours, 284 miles, 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 39
- 40. The Strategy Bobby is a native of Leslie 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 40
- 41. Friday Coal River Grill Expenses: $24 ”Fresh and Delicious Salad” 4 of 5 stars Reviewed by Nicoleta Dvornicov June 11, 2014 It was my first experience at the Coal River Grille and, from the moment I walked in, I was amazed by the beautiful interior design of the restaurant. I had a delicious House salad with fresh vegetables, and two sides, rice and a baked potato. The dinner was appetizing. Also, the staff member was very polite, but not quite prepared to serve a large group of people (20 students). Overall, an excellent place to have dinner. 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 41
- 42. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 42 Expenses: $135.00
- 43. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 43 Expenses = $40.00
- 44. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 44
- 45. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 45 Excellent food and atmosphere” Reviewed by Vincent Tembo June 29, 2014 The service in the restaurant was amazing. The attendants made sure that we felt comfortable and did not lack anything. I really enjoyed the cozy and artsy atmosphere of the place. We did not have to wait long to be served but the quality of the food was not sacrificed for speed. Expenses = $68.00
- 46. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 46 Expenses = $20.00
- 47. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 47
- 48. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 48 Expenses = $32.00
- 49. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 49
- 50. Saturday 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 50 “Beautiful and Peaceful” 4 of 5 stars Reviewed by Ngoc Anh-Cao 2 weeks ago I felt like I was visiting an old house of someone I know when I got here. This is a place full of historical stories. It is very cozy and the price is affordable too. The surroundings are beautiful and so peaceful. Reviewed 2 weeks ago Expenses = $100.00
- 51. Total expenses • Lodging = $235.00 • Travel = $60.00 • Food = $124.00 • Souvenirs = $60.00 • Total = $479.00 7/8/2014Taylor Sabo- An Outsideers view of the KRADD region 51
Editor's Notes
- My name is Taylor Sabo I am from Gloucester County, Virginia and I am a rising junior studying Agriculture and Natural resources
- The purpose of this presentation is threefold. I would like to reveal the effectiveness of my Social Media Presence through Klout score, social media reviews, and user views, comments, and votes of helpfulness.
- Secondly, I would like to describe what I believe to be the issue confronting central Appalachian Economic Development.
- Finally, I will Summarize my personal responses to the academic, civic, and personal growth content elements in the EPG Summer 2014 Institute.
- To begin, the value of social media rests in its ability for users to influence others and drive action. Klout is a company that measures your ability to drive action by taking into account a number of factors such as, how many people see your posts, how many different social media venues you use, how many people respond to your posts, etc.
- To summarize my social media presence this summer, I have a Klout score of 45, 72 SM reviews across facebook, yelp, and Tripadvisor, 1395 people have viewed my Tripadvisor contributions, 12 helpful votes across all platforms, and The Heartwood Artisan Center was the only Business that responded to my review of their establishment.
- Secondly, I would like to describe the issue confronting Central Appalachian Economic Development in two parts. The first part of the issue that I would like to draw out is the issue that Appalachian geography presents to the region.
- “Geography Is Destiny” said Dr. Chad Berry. The various mountain ranges of the Appalachian region that insulate the communities nestled within its hills and hollows have made contact and exchange difficult. This natural insulation has caused the people of Appalachia to take on a form of life much different from the rest of the Country.
- This geography is the primary factor in the influence of the culture of the region. There are elements of the Appalachian culture that make it foreign to outsiders, and therefore, difficult for outsiders to understand their way of life, such as the unique subsistence barter and borrow system mentioned in Appalachia’s Path to Dependency by Paul Salstrom. When confronted with the ideals of the capitalist system, those within the subsistence barter-and –borrow system lose out in the transfer. Pictured above is a barn in Leslie County from that subsistence barter-and borrow system era. The re-claimed strip mining site pictured above also gave me a unique look into the culture of the region. Along the trail we saw two different groups of horses that have been turned loose by their owners on the site. When asked about who owns the land and the horses, our guides informed us that the horses’ owners let them free range across the site and no one bothers them. The site is also freely ridden on by anyone who wants to utilize the old mine roads. This idea of an unorganized shared use land was foreign to me and spoke about a cultural understanding dwelling within these people that is unique. These are just a couple examples of a culture that is very foreign to outsiders and hard for them to understand. Even through industrialization, the geography of Appalachia has still managed to shape its people in a unique way and we cannot afford to continue to marginalize Appalachian’s as “others” and treat their unique way of life as inferior to our own. More attempts to make them like us will only end in more destruction to the region and people.
- The most significant Academic insight that I gained about the Appalachian Region is that The Appalachian people recognized and capitalized on opportunities presented to them like the rest of the capitalist economy around them. The problem was that they were the first to run out of natural resources to support the population and it resulted in decreased quality of life and eventually people left the region looking for better wages and opportunities. I will explain this insight in the four main causes for Appalachia’s path to Dependency laid out by Paul Salstrom. (xv) . (Salstrom, Paul. “Appalachia’s Path to Dependency”. University Press of Kentucky: Lexington, 1994. xv.)
- The first cause for Dependency Salstrom explains is titled the subsistence reproduction of labor power. (Salstrom 61) “The subsistence reproduction of labor power refers to raising children on home-grown food and other supplies” that pervaded the Appalachian region and helped hasten the regions industrialization, but Industrialization helped perpetuate large families. Farm life of the Appalachian region was very labor intensive therefore, large families were characteristic of the Appalachian people to provide a source of labor to tend the farm. As the people transitioned from the subsistence farming economy to supplement the farming income with industrial wages from mining and timber, the family size remained the same to keep the farm and made Appalachian Plateau enterprises boom from 1880-1920. The Appalachian people saw that large families improved their quality of life so they had large families. The problem came when they ran out of land to support the population so population growth became detrimental to the quality of life. (Salstrom, Paul. “Appalachia’s Path to Dependency”. University Press of Kentucky: Lexington, 1994. 62.)
- As I mentioned earlier, the Appalachian people saw the opportunity to improve their quality of life with their rich resource base. An entrepreneurial mindset pervaded plateau Appalachia but as the frontier disappeared, this option lost its allure. Trapped frontier entrepreneurs then turned from exploiting mainly resources (and their future potential) to exploiting their fellows as well. (Salstrom 44-45) The Appalachian people were actually bright people who, like the rest of the Country, did not or chose not to realize that eventually resources and land would run out and their ability to maintain and improve their quality of life with them. (Salstrom, Paul. “Appalachia’s Path to Dependency”. University Press of Kentucky: Lexington, 1994. xv.)
- Geography is destiny, Find people who care, Customer recognition, Barters and Creepers, Pull yourself up by your bootstraps, External vs. Internal Locus of control, Find the bright spots, Subsistence barter and barrow system, Collaboration vs. competition, Get out of the collective mindset.
- Sarah from the Idea village in New Orleans talked to us at Mingo Diabetes Coalition in Williamson, West Virginia. One of the concepts that she conveyed to us that really stuck with our team and influenced the way we worked in our Counties was the concept of finding people who care. She told us the story of how the idea village was started with a few guys in a bar who cared about New Orleans and now the Idea Village is helping re-shape New Orleans and the rest of the Country. We took this concept with us and immediately began looking for the people in our Counties who cared. Pictured above with the Kayaks is Derek Lewis who is a local business owner in Leslie County, member of the small chamber of commerce, and a kayaking enthusiast. In the other picture are members of the Leslie Saddle club who have an exciting passion and intimate knowledge of the trails aroung Leeco Rd..
- Through these people who cared that we found, we were able to map out 27 miles of horse/ATV trails around Leeco Rd. and 7.5 miles of the middle fork of the Kentucky river. When civic leaders failed to show enough interest to act, we found people who cared in order to get the job done. Whenever action needs to happen, it is always easier to find the people who are already passionate about the action and then collaborate with them rather than trying to muster up some motivation in people who don’t want to move.
- Understanding the need that you are fulfilling for the customer through the customer recognition exercise is critical. This is an example of a human centered approach and is also one of my personal growth discoveries. Customer Recognition was very clear to me when we went zip lining in the Red River Gorge. Rock climbing was infinitely more appealing to me personally because it was more of a challenge to myself than simply jumping off of a high platform and zipping to the next location to wait. Rock climbing was a more involved process for me and created a better experience for me overall. Understanding the need that zip lining fulfills is essential to understanding the demographic that zip lining would appeal to. I believe that zip lining would appeal more to the retired people who are still looking for a thrill they can physically do and are able to spend a little more budget wise. With this understanding of the need that a zip lining business is fulfilling, they can become more efficient with their marketing budget and not waste time, money, and energy trying to recruit customers who don’t want or need that service.
- Lisa Vaughn Stated to us the concept of collaboration vs. competition. Collaboration within the context of small businesses and social media is far more beneficial to the small businesses than competition. If small businesses can promote other businesses that are related to their own, they can increase the amount of traffic to their own as well as other businesses. This example is seen in the advertising of State Bicycle Company who advertised with musicians who’s customers had liked other biking company pages. By promoting the artists, they brought recognition to themselves and created collaboration between small businesses. For a photography business, an example of collaboration might be promoting a local cake decorator, or fine clothing department store specializing in wedding attire.
- Anyone can operate when they are told what they need to do, when they need to do it, and how they’re going to get it done. I believe that this is one of the greatest crutches our educational system hands us. We become dependent upon the structure within the system, and when the structure is taken out, many people are not able to be productive. One of the key insights that I took away from this Summer Institute was dealing with ambiguity and uncertainty. We were told to go into our Counties, find out where they were at in the Trail Town process, if started at all. And move them closer to the goal. We were sent into our counties without any idea of how we were going to accomplish those tasks. The scariest part was not that we had no options, or that we had only one option. That would have made our decision easy. The hardest part about uncertainty and ambiguity is that one has to decide where, when, and how to allocate their time and resources. As a result of the Institute this summer, I learned that the worst thing to do in dealing with uncertainty and ambiguity is to do nothing. The best thing to do when you hit a wall is to get in the car and go somewhere and talk to someone. There were countless times when our team randomly had a conversation with someone in an unusual place that gave us a break we needed. For example in Hyden, when the Mayor’s secretary wouldn’t let us in to see the Mayor during our scheduled appointment, we went and talked to the County extension agent who with one text message, got us into the Mayor’s office. We could have pouted and languished in our uncertainty but instead we took decisive action and got a meeting.
- Opportunity recognition is my second EPG insight and was one of the skills I gained this summer. It is also something I would like to improve upon. Oftentimes opportunities are not placed into our laps, in fact, we actually have to work in order to get them. I think I tend to wait for opportunities to fall into my lap when I should be more proactive in seeking them out. Our opportunity recognition came in utilizing the networks that we were able to construct to get things accomplished. Like getting into meetings with interest groups like Pathfinders or Chamber of commerce meetings, or finding resources like the Vaughn and Melton study done in Buckhorn. I only wish we had drawn on people more and I wish I hadn’t been as afraid to ask people to help us.
- One can have all the energy in the world, but without resources nothing can get accomplished. I gained an intimate knowledge of my third and final EPG ability this summer which was assembling resources. One of the biggest challenges that faced out team was mapping our trails. We were able to assemble the necessary resources in Leslie such as GPS, guides, and transportation just by finding people who cared and asking them to help us. We have great stories of Cliff who loaned us his GPS for the horse trails that we took on the river as well. Thanks Cliff!
- My newfound learning style is the same as my Entrepreneurial hunch. This year more than anything else taught me that it is ok to ask for help. There were countless times that maps, GPS, tourism brochures, and tips failed us and we simply had to ask people for help. We discovered a good place to eat in the Blue Castle Restaurant that we would not have known about if we didn’t ask where we should eat. I am usually a very independent person and I hate asking for help, but this summer I discovered that asking for help from a local places dignity and value in them and their knowledge and people usually love helping and are very eager to help others, especially outsiders. I learned this when we asked Angie at Perry County Tourism to help us and she gave us a tour around downtown Hazard and we were able to gain knowledge and insights about the area that we would have missed out on if we didn’t ever ask for help.
- This Summer, the goals of our team was to discover the progress, if any, that our Counties had made in the Kentucky Trail Town Program and then advance it. We assumed that the best use of our time and theirs was to become free energy and initiative and to make people aware of the benefits of the Trail Town Project and give them any kind of kick-start they needed. We are hoping this Trail Town Project will begin a process of re-vitalizing the dying communities in Eastern Kentucky. It will not solve the problem but it is a first step in a process of diversifying a struggling economy and using resources already available. In other words, low hanging fruit. This gave us direction and vision for our set of tasks that we gave ourselves each day. Without a clear vision, we would not have been able to accomplish all that we did. Our assumptions were different for each County but in Leslie County, we assumed that because it was so small, the civic leaders would have the time and energy to invest in the trail Town Program. What we discovered was that neither the Judge nor the Mayor had either time or energy to invest so we had to look for people who cared. That is what led us to Derek Lewis and the Saddle Club. We carried the assumption that Civic leaders had neither time nor energy to invest in the Trail Town Program and ended up trying to find people who cared. We found Pathfinders but found that they couldn’t assemble the resources we needed.
- Both Perry and Leslie Counties are coal mining based economies according to the atlas of Rural and Small Town America so we assumed that the economies would be pretty depressed considering the recent crackdown on Appalachian coal by the EPA. We found this very evident as it was never hard to find someone who was negatively affected by the coal legislation
- We saw in the atlas that Perry County population is more than double that of Leslie so we assumed that Perry would be more developed than Leslie and have more cultural assets than Leslie. This assumption proved correct as Leslie had far less to offer in the way of cultural assets than Perry.
- The unemployment rates of Leslie County compared to Perry was higher but not significantly which told us that both Counties were in a similar position economically despite the vast population differences.
- I was shocked by the poverty rate for those living in these Counties under 18 years of age. I believed that I wouldn’t find many young people in these Counties because growing up in poverty, the kids would probably want to leave for better economic opportunities and these were confirmed as most of the people we encountered were an older demographic.
- According to the Department of Health and Human Services, both median household incomes for our Counties were above the poverty line which is 27,910 for a family of five. This data told us to expect to go into an economically depressed region that was losing jobs and population.
- One of the biggest causes of the problem, especially in coal counties, is the regions dependence upon coal. Because they did not have a diverse economy, when the EPA passed regulations on coal mining, the counties suffered tremendously. What the civic leaders should focus on is diversifying their economy. I believe that this Trail Town project is a good start to bringing consumers into the region to enjoy its natural beauty and resources and let businesses pop up around serving the needs of the consumers. The hard thing that will have to be done is get the people to change their mindset. Shad Baker told us that we should not hate people for their fears but that we should put their fears to rest. After all change comes from within according to Switch so the local people must want to change or else it will never happen.
- Leslie County Chamber of commerce became involved in the EPG summer Institute when our group attended their chamber of commerce meeting and presented the Trail Town Project to them. They recognized the value of their local assets and diversifying their economy and were willing to become the task force for Leslie. That is where we met Derek Lewis and began taking steps to map out the Middle Fork. The interests of the Chamber of Commerce line up well with our interests as they want to increase the amount of traffic and cash-flow of our economy as well. The possibilities where we might differ is on the coal issue because a lot of their revenue is linked to coal mining in the area and when that leaves, so does their revenue.
- Tawny Hogg and John Epperson were advocates for change in Perry County as they are preparing to send the official letter of their Trail Town Application in September. With their help assembling resources, we are going to finish mapping the North Fork of the Kentucky river. They realize the need to diversify the economy and the Trail Town project is just one of the steps they are taking to move Hazard to a better position economically. As Tawny Hogg is the Tourism Director, our interests line up well but both her and John Epperson revealed to us ties to the current administrationthat is on its way out so we didn’t know how they would respond.
- At this point, I believe that the greatest common good is for these civic leaders to continue to seek to diversify their economy instead of try to get coal back. The trade-off here is that coal mining jobs are good paying jobs and to take them out extracts money from the local economies. This is where we have seen pushback from the local communities. The transition period will be hard but once it is complete, I believe it will be worth the temporary losses. This obviously makes me sound like a heartless and utilitarian but the fact is that the situation can only get worse by doing nothing.
- Ideas of civic work expectations can be much different than in other areas. We heard stories of people not showing up for work or always being sick and saw it a little bit in our interactions with the civic governments. But in the people who cared, we found a great work ethic and sometimes they just needed to see the situation from a fresh pair of eyes. I remember getting a list of local attractions from the Leslie Mayor with one entry and when talking to Judge Executive sizemore, he said there’s nothing in Leslie. After spending some time there though, we went back and started mentioning places that started them thinking.
- I expected to grow in both entrepreneurial skills and abilities, mindest. These assumptions positively affected my experience as I expected to be placed into situations where I would have to change my mindset and improve existing or develop new Entrepreneurial skills and abilities. What I didn’t expect was the amount of growth in teamwork that I did personally. Learning how to not only look out for myself but how to work in a team was a great experience for me and I learned a lot about listening and how to work with different personalities. As a member of my team, I felt like I could take the lead in areas where I was strong and take a step back in areas where I am weak and the team didn’t suffer when I took a step back because someone else stepped up and our team really got the opportunity to play to our strengths.
- If I could do something over I would have drawn upon Tawny Hogg and John Epperson more and I believe we would have gotten a lot of the North Fork of the Kentucky River mapped. Instead we kept trying a different resource who couldn’t get the necessary resources assembled for us and we never got into the North Fork. I would have tried harder to get into contact with incoming administration in Perry County. I would have taken more advantage of my social media presence across all servers. I would have found my Moby Dick who stole three hours of my time driving through endless Hills and hollers looking for a direct route to Hyden from Buckhorn. Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me, but next time, I’ll find that White Whale.
- The most significant event for me was realizing what I can get accomplished with the help of my team. I realized for the first time in my life that a lot more can get accomplished with collaboration and relying the strengths of team members instead of trying to do everything myself. This was never more real to me than when I was simply the chauffer on our presentation day and I didn’t present a single time but my team got all of the letters signed.
- Meet Robert (Bobby) Sizemore. He is a white male, 51 years young and happily married to his bride Debby. He is currently a Computer systems analyst at Lexmark International in Lexington, Kentucky making $68,138 dollars a year and is looking into a job at Hazard Community Technical College so that he can be closer to his ailing mother and other family in Leslie County. He knows how difficult it is for his wife to consider leaving her job and Lexington so he wants to make sure Perry and Leslie leave a great impression on her. Bobby loves the outdoors and misses the beauty of Leslie County quite a bit. He has fond memories of riding ATV’s up Leeco Rd. or even to go run errands for Mom in town. Bobby would often take his sons (and even his wife sometimes) out to a dirtbike track outside of Lexington but ever since they have both left for College, the weekends of riding have not been nearly as frequent as he would like. Not to mention, he realized more every time that it was getting harder and harder for him to keep up with his sons. Money is no object when trying to convince your wife that she wants to move to a more remote area so Bobby is planning on pulling out all of the stops in order to impress upon his beautiful wife that the natural beauty found in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains is unparalleled anywhere else.
- Meet Debby sizemore. She is a white female, a vibrant 48 years old and happily married to her husband Bobby. She currently teaches AP Highschool English and is looking into an English teaching position at Hazard Highschool so that her and Bobby can be closer to his mother and family. She is not happy about the thought of moving this late in her career, especially to Perry or Leslie County, but she knows how much Bobby wants to be nearer to his mother so she agreed to at least have a look. Debby is a brilliant creative writer and loves inspiring high school students to dream big. One of her hobbies is writing poetry but lately she has been lacking in the inspiration department and is looking for some fresh perspective. Her youngest of two sons is a sophomore at UK but she is still getting used to having it be just her and Bob around. Debby knows how much Bobby wants to impress her from the amount of time and energy he has spent planning this getaway and she is determined to give Perry and Leslie County an honest chance, not to mention she is very excited to see how her husband attempts to spoil her this weekend. She is spontaneous, fearless, driven, and very determined. She has her own dirt bike and has on a few occasions driven out with her husband and sons but it seemed that every time the her bike seemed to get bigger and heavier. She loves the thrill of riding, but she gets worn out much quicker nowadays.
- Bobby chooses late September for the favorable weather and beautiful colors on the trees.
- Bobby is a native of Leslie County and knows a lot about Perry as well, but it has been a while since he has been down and he wants Debby to have a great impression of the places they visit so he bases a lot of his destination choices on Tripadvisor and other SM platforms. He is a computer guy and very skilled with SM so he knows about the effectiveness of it. He has also been in contact with his cousin Jimmy sizemore and other family members about good places to see and show Debby. Bobby has reserved Friday night at Wendover B&B, A meeting with Invision Hazard at the Treehouse café on Saturday along with tours of the HCTC for himself and Hazard High school for Debby Saturday afternoon. Finally he has reserved the Beethoven room at the Harmony House B&B Saturday night.
- Bobby and Debby climb into the car around 4 p.m. and drive two hours to Hazard. They roll into Hazard a little after 6 p.m. after one stop for a bathroom break. They head straight to The Coal River Grill. Where Debby gets the House Salad and Bobby gets the barbecue with apple slaw. They head straight for the Harmony House B&B after dinner where the Beethoven room is waiting for them.
- They wake up and have fresh coffee and a home made breakfast on the porch of the Harmony House at 9 a.m.
- Debby gets a good view of the mountains as they drive up the hill to the bobby Davis Museum. They arrive at Bobby Davis a little after 10:30 a.m. and get a tour of the museum and grounds. They leave around 11:30 and drive to North main Street to see the Mother Goode house. Debby loved the hand made quiltsed placemats so she ended up buying a set of four that had a mountain theme woven into its pattern.
- Bobby and Debbie take a photo of the Mother Goose House and head back into town to eat at the Treehouse Café.
- They arrive at Treehouse café and Bakery at 12:00 p.m. for lunch with members of Invision Hazard. Debby and bobby are both very interested in the passion and vision of the people who are involved in Invision Hazard. They have great plans for Hazard. Bobby gets the BLT and Debby tried the Reuben sandwhich. They were both extremely satisfied with the food and the service. They even bought the group specialty cupcakes for dessert.
- Saturday afternoon takes them to the Challenger learning center at HCTC and Bobby’s interview at 1:15 p.m. While Bobby does his interview, Debby is given a tour of the Challenger Learning Center. She is very impressed with the layout and amount of detail that was put into the Learning Center. Bob returns and they drive to Debby’s interview at Hazard High school at 2:00 p.m.
- They drive to Leslie County and meet up with Bobby’s Cousin and some of his friends at 3:00 p.m. and ride their rhino’s up on Leeco rd. Both Bobby and Debby thoroughly enjoyed the experience for the thrill and the natural beauty that the ride presented them. Debby got a wonderful glimpse of the true beauty of the Appalachian Mountains and Bobby’s nostalgia at riding with the guys again almost brought him to tears.
- After the ride they head over to Goofy’s game room and grill for dinner. Bobby, Debbie, his cousin Bid daddy, and Johnny all get some of Goofy’s classic burgers with fries and a soda. Bobby decides to treat the whole party for taking them out riding and really letting Him and Debbie enjoy themselves. Afterwards they head over to Bobby’s mother’s house to spend time with her and other family members.
- They arrive at bobby’s Mothers’ house at 7:00 p.m. and have fun catching up with all of the relatives. Practically the whole town shows up to the get-together and the boys whip out the banjo’s and the bottles making sure there’s plenty of bluegrass and moonshine to go around. Bobby and Debby Leave his mother’s House and Debby drives to Wendover B&B.
- Bobby and Debbie retreat to the soft bed after after their exciting but exhausting day. In the morning they are greeted by the brewing coffee and warm breakfast waiting for them. They enjoy the family style breakfast where they meet a couple from Canada. They are very impressed with the coziness of Wendover and are very pleased with their experience and both agree they would like to come back. Whether or not Debby wants to move here will be another question but She is very impressed with the romance that the Appalachian Mountains present and she love the warmth of the Appalachian culture. Bobby hopes that Debby enjoyed the trip as much as he did even though it would be very difficult considering all of the fond memories that were unburied from their weekend getaway. They stop in Hyden to fill up for gas and officially leave town by 10:30 a.m. Sunday morning