Hometown Stories

When U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine turned 60, he decided to mark the milestone and his 25 years in public life with a Virginia Nature Triathlon: hiking the Appalachian Trail in Virginia, biking the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Skyline Drive in the Commonwealth, and paddling the length of the James River. In this episode of Hometown Stories, we sit down with Kaine to discuss the experience and the new book 'Wa...

Since 2019, volunteers have gathered once a month to reclaim an African American cemetery in the city of Roanoke. The Friends of Old Lick Cemetery have cleared away the brush that has overtaken the property and revealed dozens of headstones. In this episode of Hometown Stories, we hear how they are also shining a light on an important chapter of Roanoke's hidden history.

Along a stretch of the New River in southwest Virginia, you'll find a town nearly unchanged by time. For nearly a century, the people of Fries, Virginia worshiped, played and grew up under the watchful eye and guiding hand of its textile mill. It was an Appalachian mill town centered on community, cotton and country music. But that changed when the mill closed in the 1980s, and Fries became a shel...

The Norfolk and Western Class J No. 611 locomotive has retained celebrity status in her hometown of Roanoke, Virginia and has amassed fans in the rail enthusiast community worldwide. The Queen of Steam recently rode the rails once again, harkening back to its early days in the passenger rail business. Now as the last remaining of its kind, fans flock to see the Spirit of Roanoke run. In this episo...

Since the era of Daniel Boone, sengers have been trying their luck at turning roots into riches. The wild American ginseng created outlaws and bylaws, fact and fiction, in trying to define a people almost as elusive as the plant itself. Fueled by a robust Asian market, the ginseng trade has persevered, though today with conservation top of mind. In this episode of Hometown Stories, a look at the h...

Did you know you can help plant trees in Virginia just by exploring your backyard? Virginia's Department of Forestry wants your acorns! In this episode of Hometown Stories, we speak with nursery manager, Joshua McLaughlin, about how you can get involved.  

Five members of the Green Bank Observatory team in Green Bank, West Virginia have spent the last two weeks dodging polar bears, climbing glaciers and dismantling a giant telescope in one of the world's northernmost human settlements. They're bringing the spare parts, floppy discs and all, back to Green Bank. In this episode of Hometown Stories, we get a look into their epic adventure. 

The journey from the grapevine to the bottle is a journey filled with challenges for wine makers worldwide. Thanks to climate change, those challenges are mounting. In this episode of Hometown Stories, a look at how climate change is forcing Virginia's billion dollar industry to adapt.

Garrett Brumfield has a dream, a dog and a high-tech mobility scooter. Cerebral palsy hasn't stopped him from living his life, it's just made him adapt and overcome. That's the encouraging message he delivers as a disability advocate. But it's not all positive messages and good vibes. Brumfield and others are on a mission to highlight accessibility gaps in rural Virginia. In this episode of Hometo...

School is about to begin for Virginia public school students. In addition to having backpacks, uniforms and new shoes ready to go, public health leaders also want children to be prepared physically. That means getting their annual physical and required vaccinations - as well as checking up on their mental health. We spoke with Dr. Karen Shelton, Virginia State Health Commissioner, about what paren...

A migraine is the cranial nerves around the face being activated- nerves which can be hypersensitive to the senses. Episodic migraines can occur once a week or once a month. Chronic migraine sufferers typically experience more than 14 headache days a month. Migraines are also hormonally triggered, which is why they often affect women. But what can be done to treat and even prevent them? We invited...

The mountains around Eagle Rock, Virginia were the backdrop to the early life of a man you've probably never heard of, but whose name a community hopes you now won't forget. On a July day more than 70 years ago, boxer Norvel Lee made history as Virginia's first Black Olympic gold medalist. Decades later, the community that raised him is recognizing his achievements.  In February 2022, we highlight...

In recent months, a local public school district had to close because of a ransomware attack.  In the spring, Bluefield University also fell victim that ensnared operations there for weeks.  Two years ago, our entire region was dealing with the effects of a cyber-attack against the Colonial Pipeline. As our online networks get more sophisticated, so do the bad guys.  In this episode of Hometown St...

Arlene Davis likes to tell people she went from the tobacco fields of southwest Virginia to the halls of the White House. The Pittsylvania County woman spent almost three decades working under seven presidents. Her mission was to keep the White House clean and it was a duty she performed admirably. Now her hometown is honoring her and the example she's setting for the younger generation.

Roanoke City's Black history is rich and unique. For one Roanoke man, it's also personal. That's why he's taking a unique approach to preserve it. In this episode of Hometown Stories, we meet Jordan Bell, who gives us a tour of the Gainesboro neighborhood as it was and how he hopes it can be.

Sometimes, in the middle of the night, the Wilkinson sisters could hear their father talking in the basement - strangers coming and going under the cover of darkness. It was as President of Roanoke's NAACP that the Reverend R.R. Wilkinson worked on a secret, biracial committee of businessmen and clergy, strategizing integration of Roanoke's schools, lunch counters and water fountains. Decades late...

It's Pride Month! And Roanoke's queer community has a lot to be proud of. Historians, elders and the new generation are coming together to tell stories of back street bars, campfire chats and welcoming front porches - where Roanoke's LGBTQ women have found refuge for decades. In this episode of Hometown Stories: a look at the past and a path forward for queer connections in a southern city.

A mountain midwife is said to have lost more than 20 of her own children, before becoming a midwife to hundreds of local families. That's the life, legacy and lore connected to a woman people called Aunt Orlean Puckett. In this episode of Hometown Stories,  we take a drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway to learn about resilient mountain living a nd the efforts one family is taking to keep a memory aliv...

Joseph McGill Jr. has spent the last 13 years attempting to sleep in every extant slave building still standing. The South Carolinian's travels have even brought him to southwest Virginia. This week he released a book which he wrote with writer Herb Frazier. In this episode of Hometown Stories, we hear from McGill and Frazier about their book, the journey that led them here and the stories of the...

Caring for small farm animals is a tall order. Koressa Malcolm is keeping a nine-generation farm alive with the care of abandoned, neglected and abused miniature horses. In this episode of Hometown Stories, we take a tour of Elegius Mini Equine Sanctuary and meet some of the farm's big personalities. 

The little critters are small but mighty. And a dedicated team at Virginia's Department of Health is intent of tracking not only the prevalence of certain types of ticks - but the diseases that they carry. Dr. David Gaines, a public health entomologist, and Joshua Bertalik - a vector-borne disease epidemiologist, joined us for a discussion on all things tick. Together we help you identify ticks, p...

Technology is evolving faster every day - and so are the means by which bad actors can access and use our personal data. This is the basis of research experts at Virginia Tech are conducting to better protect us when it comes to our online presence. In this episode of Hometown Stories, we discuss  the importance of privacy measures, how bad actors could be using your data and ultimately - how to r...

One rural Virginia county has a robust relationship with all things maple. In fact, they're so sweet on the product there's an entire festival dedicated to it. In this episode of Hometown Stories, let us take you on a sugar camp tour. They teach us how they've come to boil down to a science the art of tradition and innovation to keep producing their precious products even as winters grow shorter a...

The FDA has just approved the lifesaving opioid overdose reversal medication for over-the-counter purchase. What does this mean? How could it help prevent more fatal overdoses? In this episode of Hometown Stories, Danny Clawson with the Virginia Harm Reduction Coalition explains why everyone should carry Narcan and how this approval will help save lives. 

In 2020, Frederick Miller was looking to buy a place in Gretna, Virginia to host family gatherings. He settled on Sharswood, a stately home with gothic architecture and a hidden past. He discovered a beautiful property and a family mystery. In this episode of Hometown Stories, WDBJ7s Makayla Shelton explains how the Millers unknowingly reclaimed the land once home to their enslaved ancestors.