Symbolic, Solve, Secure, Seale, Shield, Safeguard, Strengthen, Strategize, Stubborn (Sue).

Image of Small Town Solutions by David Thornell & From Possibilities to Realities Save Your Small Town by Deb Brown

Excited to investigate the contents of these two books which relate to my hope and purpose for the last 15 years. For a very long time, I've been interested in place-based projects, because of my strong 'sense of place.' In 2010, EKU approached Owsley County schools with the proposition of conducting a place-based project, and I was all in. This was one of the greatest experiences I have ever had as PTSO President for the Owsley County School District.

Several of us from the district attended a weeklong workshop on the campus of EKU, and we learned a lot of important things through the efforts of Dr. Jack Herlihy and Dr. Aaron Thompson. One specific opportunity was a long-distance field trip to Tuskegee, Alabama. A place where we toured a Rosenwald School in restoration, heard the heart wrenching recount of the Tuskegee Airmen and visited the Tuskegee University. For those who may not know, it was a college started by Booker T. Washington, who said that “a race, like an individual, lifts itself up by lifting others up.” That quote resonated with me. Not specifically about a race, per se, but about the commonalities of stereotypes and prejudices against people of Appalachia. We’ve had our share and still suffer as one of the most disparaged populations in the United States. Tragically, I saw many who were internalizing the opinions of outsiders. Pride was replaced with defiance or concession. Hope was replaced by despair everywhere. It could be seen in the buildings, the economy, and most especially, the people.

That’s when I became a believer that we can only lift ourselves up “by lifting others up.” How to do that, though?

When we came back, we were given some things to think through and were asked to decide on a Place-Based Project. So, we, along with the Class of 2012, chose one. The plan was developed, and three separate student-led business plans were created around the topic of reopening a theater in Owsley.

Mr. Brett Burns worked with these students, and they produced amazing presentations. One plan was to determine the feasibility of restoring the old Booneville (Seale) Theater. The second plan was to decide if redeveloping another building in town would be the best option, and the third plan was to determine if it would be better to build an entirely new one. At the end of the process, restoring the Booneville (Seale) Theater seemed the most wanted, doable, and feasible.

The students’ business plans were amazing, but after the school year, some things changed, and the project was abandoned and discarded like edited pieces left on a film maker’s floor. I had never felt so disappointed in all my life. I saw how disappointed the students were as well. Hopes dashed once again. Their graduating class was going to have something in common with my graduating class of '85. Seeing the Seale’s future halted once again. Many of the students had interviewed several people during the process of their business planning, and a lot of folks affirmed to the students that when it was open, Owsley just seemed like a better place. Its closing was “symbolic” of our downward decline.

That’s when my “stubborn” kicked in, and in 2014, I convinced some of my fellow place-based believers to join me in creating the 501(c)(3) nonprofit called Owsley County Alliance for Recreation and Entertainment (OCARE, Inc.). Much of what has taken place since that day has been told already. We worked hard on fundraising until we were about to “secure” the purchase of the Seale. We had to “strategize, solve, and strengthen” our organization and efforts to get to this current point. It’s been a long time coming, but we are closer because we never gave up. “Shielding and safeguarding” our “place” against continual decline has ramped up in our small town.

Cleanup on the Seale began in 2024, and she is closer than ever to opening once again. I don’t get too aggravated with the hiccups. Something worth doing can take a long time. But do you know what else I see in my county since we started cleanup on the Seale? I see work on buildings, hear of new economic opportunities, and I see “hope.” However, there is one burden that still weighs on many of us. It is a community impacted by substance use. When I began my work with Partners for Rural Impact (formerly Partners for Education at Berea College), I made a sobering discovery that in 2010, 21.6% of our children in Owsley were raised by someone other than a parent. That was mostly because of substance use. Thankfully, through a lot of hard work and partnerships, we have seen those numbers decrease quite a bit. But it is still here and still not “solved.”

We’ve come so far in Owsley’s overall recovery. Recovering properties, the economy, and pride—but a few things stand in the way of the final stretch of recovery. Recently, many of our community leaders and organizations have begun working together on a Brushy Fork initiative called People Ready Communities. Owsley’s program is called “Rising Together: Harnessing the Power of Owsley’s Community.” Owsley is currently considered a community that has a lot of resources that will help folks get into recovery, but there are three things that hinder complete recovery. One that gets their lives, their families, their self-esteem, and their community back: a job, a home, and transportation.

During Owsley’s last Rising Together convening, we began the project work to address these three final pieces that will heal individuals, families, and our community. Is it safe to say that I am convinced that there is a light at the end of the tunnel? Yes. Yes, I am. Will it be hard? Yes, it will be, but we have a strong “sense of place.” This is our home, and these are our people, and we have all the pieces to “solve” these issues. Us.