A look at the lineup for the August 2021 issue of WestVirginiaVille, ranging from global bodhisattvas from the West Virginia hills, to painters, artists, actresses, and memoirists delving into their lived experiences in the Mountain State.
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HERO OF THE OPEN HEART: The Long, Strange Trip of Dave Evans’ Notable Life
He was a West Virginia coal miner’s son who lost his legs below the knees in a deadly ambush in Vietnam at age 18. What happened next sounds like a movie script. Dave Evans went on to work across the planet, building and fitting prosthetic legs, hands, and arm for thousands of adults and children in conflict zones worldwide. A look back at a remarkable life.
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BACK/THEN: On the Bad Streets of Ann Magnuson’s Charleston Upbringing
West Virginia native Ann Magnuson is an American actress and performance artist who was also once a girl growing up on the streets of Charleston, WV. Here's a short recollection of the the city's "bad" street from her girlhood.
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VIDEOS: The Pillars of the WV Climate Alliance
The West Virginia Climate Alliance is a coalition of nearly 20 West Virginia-based environmental organizations, faith-based, civil rights and civic groups with a focus on climate change. This short video describes the three pillars that drive Climate Alliance efforts to address "the most important and essential work of these times."
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MEMOIR: ‘The Garden and the Grief’ by Connie Kinsey
Gardens usually signify growth and the boundless, restorative invention of Nature. Yet what happens when they fall into tangles as life's misfortunes overwhelm and distract us from turning their soil? Connie Kinsey's short memoir on on the dance between her garden and her grief.
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ART/WORK: Sharon Lynn and the Path Taken
How do the paths we choose affect the choices in our lives? And where do begin the path? A new series of works by West Virginia artist Sharon Lyn looks at the first steps take on the paths in our lives.
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PHOTOSHOW: A high-up visit to Robert Singleton’s West Virginia studio
A portrait of the artist at age 84 in his sunlit West Virginia mountaintop studio. Robert Singleton is on a roll, adding another chapter to a remarkable life. Here's what he looks like at work.
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EDITORS/NOTE: Elephant Ankles, a Dad’s love, Natural Sonatas, CROWN Act-ing & More
Welcome to the June 2021 issue of WestVirginiaVille. This edition covers lots of ground. It helps to have good people as guides, leading the way.
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ELEPHANT ANKLES: Life with Long COVID
"This is a good day. I have been sick for months, but I did not die. I am happy to be here. I can do this, but I reserve the right to whine. I also reserve the right to be angry.'
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IN/PROGRESS: From “The Air My Flowers Breathe: A Love Story”
"It is a life-long struggle for all of us to stave off the disruptive, destructive forces of chaos and try to maintain order. The struggle is especially grueling for a person with autism."
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PICTURE/SHOW: Kyle Vass on taking his best shot
A little over a year into his work doing audio journalism, Kyle Vass realized every story, regardless of what medium it's being told through, needs pictures. Here's what happened next.
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MUSIC/VIDEO: “Sonata for Piano & West Virginia, No. 1”
We invite you to take five minutes from feeling harassed by the news or our own hectic heads for "Sonata for Piano & West Virginia No. 1." It offers another way of looking at West Virginia and those parts that remain uncorrupted, fresh, and true.
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RE/PRINT: Only 7 states have passed the CROWN Act. Could West Virginia be next?
While advocates of the CROWN Act promise they'll be back for the 2022 Legislative session, they're also looking beyond the WV Capitol to make change to confront white beauty standards in West Virginia.
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EDITORS/NOTE: The Art of Speaking Up
The May 2021 issue of WestVirginiaVille.com features a lot of folks speaking up, singing out, and asking, if not demanding to be heard. Here's an overview of the issue's content.
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COVERSTORY: Lady D, In Her Own Unfiltered Words
You might say Doris A. Fields, better known as Lady D, is having a well-deserved moment. Several, actually. We check in with one of West Virginia's finest singer-songwriters on the occasion of the release of her new CD, the heat-seeking "Disturbing My Peace."
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ART/WORK: A video gaze at new work by Sharon Lyn
You wouldn't think Twitter would be a place to watch an artist's development. But that would be the case with West Virginia artist Sharon Lyn. Here's a video of some of her striking newest work.
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RE/PRINT: Consuming Blackness in ‘progressive’ West Virginia
"White women were laughing and grabbing for bites of sushi off a human body. That imagery doesn't fade. Instead, it continues to enrage me. It stands as both a metaphor and real evidence of oppression and silence."
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SHORT/STORY: ‘I can see clearly now’
What happened one day out near the Beautiful River while I was pondering whether my father's was right when he got angry and said: 'People are no damn good!'
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RE/PRINT: Community Seeks Police Reform After Shooting On Charleston’s West Side
On April 30, Charleston Police officers shot a 33-year-old Black man, while attempting to make an arrest on Charleston’s West Side. The incident has left many in the community wondering why police resorted to shooting the man who had brandished a knife.
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ARTIFACTS
In the debut of 'ARTIFACTS,' an occasional, fluffy feature showcasing oddball ephemera with a West Virginia connection, we explore the intersections of David Bowie. "I Dream of Jeannie" and Chuck Yeager.
