The New River Gorge Regional Development Authority has a plan to get people acquainted with the community. With its new community service initiative, it’s all about having a hands-on approach to be more aware of the area they will serve.

Endorsed by the Beckley-Raleigh County Chamber of Commerce and assisted by the Raleigh County Commission, the program aims to provide community awareness and involvement. In order to build this awareness, members go through specialized sessions covering aspects such as history, economics, health care and coal mining. Sessions started in May and will conclude in October.

Fifteen members were selected last month, all of whom have an enthusiasm to serve the community. Most of them live in the area part-time, but some of the volunteers are year around, explained Bill Baker, president of the 4-C Economic Development Authority.

“We want to inform them about the community so they can have a good idea of where they will fit in,” Baker said. “The last few sessions have gone really well and we’re hoping to continue that momentum.

“In this way, we really can introduce these members to the community because in order to be aware, they need to know our history and even how important coal mining is to the community and for economics,” Baker said. “This will make them well-rounded and make them better to serve our community and state.”

Not only do members get to know aspects of the community through the sessions, but they also get a hands-on approach through tours.

“We’re taking a tour in a few weeks to see the surface mine in Cowen,” Baker said. “This will give them a good idea of what we are talking about in our sessions and they will actually get to see it first-hand.”

Inspired by three residents of Glade Springs, the community involvement initiative was merely a discussion until this year.

“We had residents who were moving here from out-of-state into Glade Springs who had work experience that could be very beneficial to the community,” Baker said. “I, along with three others, discussed this for three years and then decided to put it in action.”

One organization that helped the inspiration was Greater Naples Leadership, a program to educate leaders who want to do community service. Inspired by this concept, they created their own community initiative and tailored it to the area.

“One of the people who had mentioned the initial idea had a friend who lived in Naples who had heard about this and it was a great concept,” Baker said. “We created a program more to fit our area and what we wanted to accomplish.”

The base of volunteers built from this initiative will also help assist the Boy Scouts when the National Jamboree comes to town in 2013. Challenges, Baker says, stem from obtaining infrastructure needed to transport scouts to and from camp.

“Right now, we are building a nucleus of volunteers to help out the community and get ready for the Boy Scouts of America coming in 2013.”

Dubbed “The Summit: Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve,” the Boy Scouts of America have also purchased a 10,000-acre plot in the Mount Hope/Glen Jean area in Fayette County. Part of Gov. Joe Manchin’s Project Arrow Task Force, The Summit will be built to have a high adventure base in the eastern U.S.

“The opportunity gives us a chance to showcase the beauty of our state and region and the competence and friendliness of our people,” Baker said. “In southern West Virginia we have much to offer and if we handle this project properly, we will be able to entice people to move to our area and entice businesses to relocate here. This will mean more jobs and a chance to grow our local businesses.”

To take advantage of these opportunities, the 4-C Economic Development Authority appointed a steering committee — Baker is the chair — to organize and oversee this planning process.

Baker said in the next few years, he would like to see the initiative expand.

“Next year, we hope to get up to 25 people and to be more regional,” he said. “Right now the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority encompasses four counties and we would like to see them involved as well.”

By:  Andrea Lannom, Register-Herald Reporter

June 13, 2010