Maria here from Williamson, WV. Our site, and many local and regional partners met together on Friday and received some great news. The official announcement was “WILLIAMSON, W.Va. – U.S. Representative Evan Jenkins, R-W.Va., joined state and federal officials at the Williamson Health and Wellness Center on Friday to announce more than $1.5 million in grants for southern West Virginia communities hurt by the downturn in coal, according to a press release.
A $600,000 grant from the United States Economic Development Administration was awarded to the Coalfield Development Corporation in Wayne for its Regional Economic Diversification Project, which supports increased agricultural production on surface mine sites.
It will also provide job training and mentorship for farmers to help develop a local food economy and promote healthy diets and lifestyles.”
This will have a huge impact on local food systems in Williamson, and will support The most exciting part though, was that our Growing Warriors Veterans made the news, and it made us super super proud. Steven Varney has taken a new leadership role this fall and has been doing great things on behalf of growing warriors. They can be found here:
Growing Warriors sell some of their fresh produce at a mobile market in Matewan, WV
Also in September, we had our last food preservation workshop Canning of the season. Kathy Wellman of “Kat’s Kitchen” shared some fall canning ideas including beans and apple conserves. Apple conserves are made with dried fruits and nuts and are cooked. They have a very thick and chunky texture. I have included a picture of the recipe below workshop:
Additionally, we made green beans. Kat’s recipe can be found here
Now we are back into the planning stages for next year, and are looking forward to several upcoming regional and local planning meetings and training’s.
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