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Louisville Orchestra Takes on a Mammoth Musical Project
April 29, 2023 was a monumental day at Mammoth Cave National Park. A years-in-the-making collaboration between Louisville Orchestra Music Director Teddy Abrams, world-renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and the national park staff brought the world premiere of Abrams’ composition, “Mammoth,” to life. Two performances took place in a cave room called Rafinesque Hall, a short descent from the entrance.
Radically Rural: Striking a Sustainable and Profitable Balance in Outdoor Economies
In North Carolina, outdoor recreation adds more than $11.8 billion to the state’s gross domestic product. It also supports 130,000 jobs and results in more than $5.9 billion in compensation for those working in the sector. The numbers show outdoor recreation is a powerful economic driver for the state, which has inspired a new program for Creating Outdoor Recreation Economies (CORE).
Small Maine Towns Say Public Broadband Money Should Go to Public Networks, Not Corporations
This story is part of a series. A Republican, a Libertarian, and a Democrat meet over a beer in the small town of Liberty, Maine. Bob Kurek, Joe Meadows, and Phil Bloomstein, each a selectman from their respective towns, may disagree on many issues, but they unanimously agree when it comes to broadband funding: Public funds should support publicly owned fiber-optic networks.
The Scenic Route: Tenn. Group Urges Drivers to Exit Freeways and Use Back Roads
An organization in Tennessee is encouraging residents and visitors to take secondary routes in an effort to see more scenery and help with heavy traffic loads in some areas. As part of the “100 Years of Road Funding,” the Tennessee Infrastructure Alliance (TIA) is encouraging drivers to take more scenic roads to their destination. It’s part of a celebration and history project wrapped into one that also asks people to write and tell oral histories about the roads and snap photos, said Susie Alcorn, executive director of the TIA and curator of 100 Years of Road Funding.
A Taste of Sicily in the Mountains of Montana
Piccola Cucina has five restaurants: three in New York City, one in Ibiza, Spain, and one in Red Lodge, Montana, population 2,200. Red Lodge anchors one end of the spectacular Beartooth Highway and is a gateway community for Yellowstone National Park. Visiting the park requires driving through Beartooth Pass, which, at over 10,000 feet, closes for the winter. The town is primarily a summer destination, and Piccola Cucina Ox Pasture (the delineation for the Montana location) is seasonal as well.
America’s Pastime in Small-Town Kentucky: Remembering the Tobacco League Baseball Tradition
In the interlude between World War II and the Korean War, American joy and exuberance arrived in the form of organized community baseball in Wildie, College Hill, Ford, Waco, Kirksville, Ravenna, and Bearwallow — all mere wide places on Central Kentucky’s backroads. The Tobacco League, as this predominantly...
Accidental Rancher: The Blessings and Rites of ‘Midsummer’
A missive from the summer solstice when my babies were still babies…. In the garden, giant bumble bees circle the purple sage flowers. They are looking for a sweet sip. My son starts to flap his hands and shoo them away, but I stop him. “No, no!” I say, “Don’t scare them or they will sting you!” He looks at me with a knit brow. What does sting mean? He’s never heard the word before.
Rural SNAP Recipients Will Have Harder Time with Return to Work Requirements
More than 1.7 million rural Americans live in counties where there aren’t enough jobs for people who want them, making it harder for SNAP recipients to meet work requirements that were reinstated when the federal pandemic emergency declaration ended. Able-bodied adults without dependents must work 80 hours or more...
Foster Kids in Casino Hotels? It Happened in Rural Nevada Amid Widespread Foster Home Shortages
This story was originally published by KFF Health News. Brandy Holbrook spent April driving hundreds of miles across four counties in northeastern Nevada to deliver a plea to local leaders about a smoldering crisis in the regional foster care system. A shortage of homes for children and teens in need...
Video: As Wolves Return to Colorado, a Rancher Turns to Man’s Best Friend
During the 2020 general election, Colorado voters approved the reintroduction and management of gray wolves. Since then, you can’t find a more divisive issue. And we hope you don’t. The chasm between rural ranchers and urban voters seems to have plunged deeper than ever before, but beneath the headlines you’ll find people trying to adapt to make things work.
Commentary: Unboxed
EDITOR’S NOTE: Libby Lane published this essay on her personal blog last year on the last day of June, which is Pride Month. Lane is deputy director of the Rural Assembly. The Rural Assembly is a project of the Center for Rural Strategies, which also publishes the Daily Yonder.
Small Town Cafe Years in the Making Opens with Community Support
Kelly Gregory had dreamed of opening a coffee shop for thirty years. After working as a middle school science teacher for over a decade, Gregory took the first step and started Kelly’s Kitchen. She sold packaged food at the summer farmers market in Dolores (Population 904), Colorado, where she’s lived for the past 25 years.
Reality TV Returns to Rural America for ‘Farmer Wants a Wife’
Editor’s Note: A version of this story first appeared in The Good, the Bad, and the Elegy, a newsletter from the Daily Yonder focused on the best, and worst, in rural media, entertainment, and culture. Every other Thursday, it features reviews, retrospectives, recommendations, and more. You can join the mailing list at the bottom of this article to receive future editions in your inbox.
Where the Rubber Hits the (Gravel) Road
A new group in Montezuma County, Colorado, aims to provide an inclusive outdoor space for biking. Queer Byke Brigade, started by Clara Moulton and Kit Jones, was inspired by an LGBTQ+ group ride at Roam Fest, a bike festival for women, marginalized riders, and genderqueer femme people in Sedona, Arizona.
Railway Safety Bills Need to Ensure Rural Areas Get Help, Experts Say
Rail-safety bills that Congress is considering in response to this year’s catastrophic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, need a guarantee that rural communities will get the help they need to deal with their increased risk for derailments, a policy expert says. “If you look at the history of...
Report: Central Appalachia Could Be a Safe Haven for Climate Change Migrants
A new report from Invest Appalachia, a self-described social investment fund, looks at ways to bring economic development to Central Appalachia as climate change increasingly determines where Americans live. The report released in May analyzed emerging climate data from Appalachia. According to its findings, Central Appalachian states like Kentucky and...
A ‘School-to-Prison Pipeline’ Aims to Fill Job Vacancies at Texas’ Prisons and Jails
Kiara Guley wants to be a cosmetologist when she graduates high school. But like many of her classmates at Palestine High School in Southeast Texas, she has a plan B: become a prison guard. In the face of a severe staffing shortage, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has turned...
In an Arizona Coal Mine, One Man Recalls the Retired Navajo Miners Suffering from Black Lung
This story was originally published by KSJD in Cortez, Colorado. Before it closed in 2019, the Kayenta Mine in northeastern Arizona provided high-paying jobs to Navajo coal miners who lived nearby. But some say that working there, and at other coal mines across the Navajo Nation, has given miners lasting...
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