(THIS IS A DESCRIPTION OF THE CORRESPONDING CONTENT PILLAR + THE IMAGE ON THE BACKGROUND IS WHAT WE’LL USE IN THE COLLAGE OF ALL PILLARS, FOR ASSOCIATION & RECOGNITION/MAKING A CONNECTION vs JUST A BLOG CATEGORY DESIGNATION:) Features on Appalachian culture, Bluegrass music, Bourbon history, etc. Spotlighting Kentucky authors, filmmakers, and other storytellers. Showcasing oral histories or little-known historical figures with modern relevance.
Evelyn R. Gregory is a Cinematography and Video Production educator based in Louisville, KY. She earned her undergraduate film degree from the historic Alabama A&M University and holds both a Master of Fine Arts and a Master of Science while residing and teaching in Kentucky. She describes herself as “just a kid from Cleveland with a passion for storytelling.”
Appalachia is not a monolith.
It’s a sentiment shared time and time again, from news organizations centered on the Black experience in West Virginia to works of fiction based in the reality of growing up Indigenous in North Carolina. Over 20% of the Appalachian population is nonwhite - including Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous folks, as well as many other races and ethnicities - and the region has become increasingly diverse since 2010. And yet, mainstream representations of the region almost always look the same: white.
Allen Sarven ran away with the circus at age 18 and never looked back. At least, that’s how he sees it.
Born in northwestern Ohio, Al was captivated from a young age by the idea of becoming a professional wrestler. As a teenager, he maintained a monthly ritual of calling up every major wrestling promotion he could find and asking for a shot at training with them. Each month, they said no. And each month, he called them again.
Professional Wrestler, WWF/WWE superstar; Head Trainer at OVW; Writer, Director and Producer of OVW’s TV show
