First Day Exploration!

Our group at the site of a salt mine demolished during the Civil War.

At the original KFC in Corbin, KY.

Quick update about last night: we got in late around 10, after a very long car ride. Nothing like some curvy roads and some dense fog to welcome us to the wonderful state of Kentucky. Kentucky Mountain Housing, where we're staying, is absolutely beautiful and spacious. Donna, the executive director, was nice enough to come meet with us despite the late hour.

Today we got to sleep in a little, and after breakfast we took off on an adventure exploring Clay County. The landscape is breathtaking, but its clear that there's a disparity between here and where we've come from. However, the people here have been extremely warm and welcoming (Shout out to the Baptist pastor of Manchester and the Hardee's cashier in some unknown town in VA!). We also explored the town of London in nearby Laurel County, and we visited the original KFC in Corbin, which was awesome. As we traveled, we noticed the difference in availability of stores, the sizes of the houses and maintenance of roads, which changed greatly between the two counties. It was surprising how uneven resources are distributed in the state.

The rest of the day was more difficult. The sink started backing up during lunch. Then during lunch time reflection we heard a noise and thought nothing of it. Then someone went to the bathroom to find the toilet tank had cracked and water spilling everywhere. This was promptly followed by the security alarm going off which even the property owners didn't know how to turn off. While this was unsettling, it was a great bonding experience.

Donna came to speak with us, and gave us an idea of what we would be doing. Kentucky Mountain Housing is working with three families, two are headed by widows suffering from physical disabilities and one headed by a middle-age couple, to either repair their existing houses or build anew. We shall see how helpful we are tomorrow either making repairs or building a shed. Hopefully we will have a less eventful time than today.

We finished the night by watching "Harlan County, USA" which told the story of coal miners in nearby Harlan Country in the 1970's. It detailed the struggle of union coal miners to achieve better pay and safer conditions. It was useful in teaching us the local history and the struggle for economic improvement. Sadly, there is still work to be done.