To sum up the past week in a simple journal entry is impossible. Over the course of eight days, I strengthened several friendships, made new friends, met some wonderful West Virginians, and most importantly, was able to help out a depressed, poverty stricken community within the Appalachians where the median income is only $21,000.
The Complete ASB Group
(Front row, left to right) Max, Jess, Chris, Kellyn; (Back row, left to right) Kristina, Eileen, Wendy, Myself, Zach, John
All of us except for two (who we picked up on the drive down) gathered together on Saturday, March 19th to get to know one another and gather snacks for the 13-hour drive in the jitney. At the beginning of the trip, I knew only the three other upperclassmen, with Kellyn and John being EMTs and Chris a member of ITS’ Help@Night. During our first hours together, we made small talk, discussed the upcoming trip, ate pizza, and ended up watching a movie. As was to be expected, most of us were fairly introvert, knowing that the journey the next day would be the real ice-breaker. The evening passed quickly and most of us headed to bed early so that we’d be up for the 6.30 am departure.
The Ride Down
Sunday was a fairly laid back day. Chris and John (who were Jitney certified drivers) drove us down to Pipestem, WV in 13 hours. We headed to West Virginia by first going towards Binghamton, NY, then traversing through Pennsylvania, briefly entering Maryland and West Virginia, before finishing the majority of the driving in Virginia. We arrived in Hinton, WV around seven and immediately headed to the local grocery stores to purchase sandwich supplies and food for the five dinners that we would cook. In retrospect, it turned out that it was a good thing that Walmart was not to be found and that we were able to support the local stores instead of a conglomerate.
After shopping, we headed towards the Appalachian South Folklife Center where we would be staying for the next six nights. Although long, the ride down was surprisingly enjoyable and by the end of the trip, most of us knew a bit about each other that could be used to start and carry on conversations. Sunday ended much like all the rest of the nights, with the ten of us playing various games such as Mafia and just chillin’ in the main den of the folklife center.
Monday was our first workday and instead of heading out to Hinton as the groups from Tulane and West Florida University did, we stayed at the center doing odd jobs that needed to be done. A quick aside here: the folklife center, started by Don West, caters to groups that desire to do community service. Not only do they provide housing and facilities, they welcome the surrounding inhabitants by providing entertainment and other cultural services.
Billy, our leader talking to Chris and Max
The first task that we accomplished was salvaging wood from the outdoor stage that was destroyed during winter winds. We spent the morning taking apart wood, removing rusty nails, and determining what could be saved and what couldn’t be. It was fairly enjoyable work as the weather was both sunny and cool at the same time, providing a breeze that created the ideal working conditions. Lunch soon came around and we spent an hour recouping and enjoying our ‘gourmet’ sandwiches.
Working on a Sink
In the afternoon, we broke up into various groups with some of us working in the garden, others painting, and myself and Chris taking down two bathroom sinks, replacing them, and putting them back up. While we were only able to accomplish one (because one of the sinks had a bolt that wouldn’t budge, no matter how much force was applied), the task was quite rewarding as I learnt a whole lot about plumbing that I never knew before. By 3 pm, the majority of the work was done and it was time to break for the day. Having vastly underestimated the amount of food and cookies that we ate the night before, we headed back to Hinton to go shopping once again. The evening was spent cooking breakfast foods (various different scrambled eggs, pancakes, and cereal), playing our favorite game (Mafia), and listening to Jess playing her guitar.
Tuesday was the first day that we headed into Hinton to do work. We began the morning by visiting a train depot which we would later help fix up, learning about the various roles the train station would be adapted to once Amtrak stopped using it. Sadly, it felt that the loss of Amtrak could be the demise for Hinton and personally, it felt very bittersweet knowing that we would be working in the depot. Afterwards, we headed two blocks away to a house that was in the process of being turned into a museum. Our task here was fairly straightforward: to clean a room, repaint another one, and accomplish some gardening.
Hinton Railroad Sign
By midday, all of the work was done and it was time to break for lunch. We headed towards the center of the town and picnicked in the town square. A quick search for ice cream yielded Hellem’s Cash Shop where a 74 year old West Virginian welcomed us, told us stories about Hinton, and generally charmed us with his Southern accent. It was a wonderful experience to walk into a ‘mom and pop’ store and discovring various treasures hidden on the shelves. Afterwards, the afternoon was spent at the railroad depot, preparing a room to be painted by scraping the walls and cleaning up the floor.
Falling Water
The time before dinner was spent exploring two waterfalls between Hinton and Pipestem. Our guide, Billy, showed us where they were and in all honesty, both falls were superb in their own ways. Dinner was tacos and the evening was spent relaxing in the den of the Folklife Center with various games of Charades being played.
Wednesday, mid week, was quick to arrive and we headed back to the railroad station to continue working. A task that was assigned for three days (painting three rooms) took us just over four hours to complete and by mid-afternoon, we were done for the day.
Blacksmith showing his Skills
The afternoon was spent visiting another waterfall, playing games in the jitney, and traveling back and forth from the Folklife center and Hinton as we attempted to figure out what we needed to do. Food shopping was once again accomplished, this time because of our undeniable craving for cheese. At 6 pm, we met the two other college groups and watched a local blacksmith demo his skills. Without meaning to sound sarcastic here, he showed us how to create a square corner, a hole in a steel pole, and finally, how to create a small figurine. Overall, it was interesting - if not a bit long. After the show, we headed back to Hinton for a meal in a local biker-bar, the Bobcat Den. A fulfilling meal, consisting of appetizers and ten main courses costs us only $83.60 before tax! The evening ended with us relaxing in our own cabin and just chatting.
Thursday was spent once again at the center, this time cleaning out the basement of the chapel, moving furniture to a dumpster, and then painting the basement. It didn’t take too long for the ten of us to make the then-pigsty into an inhabitable room, complete with temporary lighting that was hung from the rafters. The saddest part though was when we needed to throw out hundreds of books. Donated by local libraries, the majority were outdated or infested with ladybugs. However, it still felt odd and Fahrenheit 451-esque to be dumping these books in to a rusted dumpster.
Watch Museum
After our work was done in the afternoon, we headed back towards Hinton to finish exploring the town. A quick stop in the local DQ procured ten different deserts for only $15 as we were able to creatively use the various promotions to pay for only five! Parking in Hinton, we headed to the ‘little junk shop’ that we had passed by earlier, only to find it closed and abandoned - much like the majority of the stores in Hinton. We did though discover a clock museum that featured well over 375 different types of clocks. The owner, who must have been in his late 70s, showed us around and told us various stories about the different clocks. One of the clocks dated back to 1745 and came from France. It was sad knowing that in a couple of years once the owner passes away, much like the owner of the general store, no one would be continuing the museum nor providing amusing anecdotes. It almost felt like during the time we were in Hinton, we were detached from the world. This was pretty much the case in fact as most cell phones didn’t receive service at the center and unfortunately, the ‘Internet’ had yet to reach Hinton.
John eating Saltines
Thursday evening we returned to the center and learnt about the problems of top soil removal. I had no idea the damage it could cause and how big of a problem it was. Perhaps the most important thing is the fact it’s unsustainable development - as after the top is removed, the land becomes unusable to grow food or even to allow nature to develop. After the talk, a pasta night was had by all the three groups and in the end, we even had s’mores. Amusingly, both John and Chris decided it would be interesting to see if the Saltine challenge (eating 5 in 60 seconds) was possible. Apparently it is as both were able to force five down in less than 45 seconds!
Friday was our last work day and we spent it once again at the Folklife center. There were some odd jobs left to be done, such as painting the bathrooms and retiling them. There was also some cleaning up to be done outside and a few other small things. The work day went by fairly quickly and we even had a chance to place some soccer outside. Boys vs girls with the girls winning 7-1. Sun stoke- that has to be the answer to our loss.
Looking Down at Us
In the late afternoon, we headed out to the national park to go hiking. Instead, we found a lookout tower and spent some time enjoying the view and playing random games - read spinning around and trying to catch a granola bar being thrown down from the top. Amusingly, the group split up with four us (myself including) making a run for the jitney and leaving the other six behind. This was done as a joke but in the end it turned out to actually split us up for a few hours as the six remaining refused to come down from their fort. In the end, the four of us headed back to the camp (only a mile or so away), took warm showers, and began to cook for the rogue volunteers.
Music!
The night ended with a live band coming to the center and playing for us. Music from the Beatles to country were played and the night ended in an upbeat way.
We had made plans to leave the center at 5.45 am on Saturday and return to the lookout tower to watch the sunrise but, even though we followed through with our plans, this was not to be. At the top of the tower, all we could see was a mist and it was decided that we’d just return to campus. Ten hours later (with no speeding tickets either), we were back on campus and ready to chill.
A lot has been left unsaid here. This was mostly descriptive as the emotions and feelings felt are both personal and almost impossible to write. Being able to help out those who need it, even if a lot was done on the center we stayed at, was incredibly rewarding. More so was the encounters we had with the town people. Being able to talk to Billy, the shop keeper, and the museum owner opened up our eyes to different perspectives and their reminiscing described worlds far removed from current day.
Relaxing to Jess’ Playing
Oh, and if you’re wondering - the answer is yes. I’ll definitely be doing ASB again next year. Lastly, you can view more photo’s of the trip by taking a look through the Alternative Spring Break ‘05 photos.
Copyright © 2000 - 2007, Aram Kudurshian. All rights reserved.
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Great site. Great trip. Enjoyed the photos and text. Nearly like taking the trip with you. Very glad you took the time to document it all.
John McLeod on April 1st, 2005 at 02:24 pm