Over the next thirty months, we worked hard to recover. As a community, we mucked homes, grieved lives lost, filled out forms, and donated to mutual aid funds. At Appalshop—the Eastern Kentucky media arts nonprofit I lead — we had to leave our beloved building in Whitesburg, find temporary office space, and continue trying to be an anchor institution while also working through the same trauma. Slowly, folks began moving back into renovated homes. They started new businesses. They returned to the places their ancestors had lived in for generations. All the while, passing storms caused fear.
Unfortunately, the weather didn’t wait another thousand years. It didn’t even wait a thousand days. On Feb. 15, 202 — 935 days after the historic July 2022 flood — Letcher County once again found itself under water.
Natural disasters have become a regular part of the news cycle, from devastating flooding across Central Appalachia and the South to widespread wildfires on our West Coast to record-setting hurricanes on our East Coast. Rather than flukes, these disasters are signs of a much larger troubling trend. Consistently facing existential crises weakens our stability. It forces us into the never-ending cycle of making due instead of offering space for permanent planning. Fortunately, innovation and ingenuity are exactly what Appalachians do best—especially when necessary.
This time, Appalshop was more prepared. In those 935 days, we had settled into a second-story office space in Jenkins, Ky., and built out a studio for our radio station on Whitesburg’s less-flood-prone Main Street. We even bought a building high on a hill, though it needs a lot of TLC.
Our archive, which flooded in 2022, is now safely stored in our new spaces or is with restoration experts across the country. Our staff are safe—though some were once again displaced. We are doing our best to connect community resources to those in need, especially as this time around we are not facing summer heat but, instead, freezing temperatures and snow.
Yet for all the preparation, it’s hard not to ask why? Why must Appalachia continue to accept unprecedented as the new normal? With each devastating turn, we are celebrated for our resilience.
I’ll let you in on a little secret: to me, resilience is not something to be celebrated. I cringe when I hear this word used to describe our region. We should be allowed to strengthen as a community without being knocked down every thousand days. We should be allowed to celebrate the importance of rest and stability. Appalachia has been in the national spotlight for our economic woes (according to the US Census Bureau, 23.8% of folks in Letcher County, Ky., live in poverty), but we also know that we are rich in community, family, and history. Rural life can be challenging, but it is also a blessing.
So, as we once again face the trauma and challenges of unprecedented weather disasters, I call on Appalachia to not just survive but to thrive. As a region, we must work with our legislators to support infrastructure that can withstand floods, fires, and mudslides. We must shift our priorities to ensure everyone has reliable access to power, water, and internet. We must innovate a new economy that champions local businesses and celebrates the beautiful mountains we call home. We must create opportunities that allow us to reinvest in ourselves.
Appalshop is built on the foundation of collecting and sharing stories to celebrate and preserve the history of all Appalachians. We are but one small branch of the creative tree that is rooted in this region. Together, let’s grieve our losses, muck out our houses, and then put our heads together with our local and state legislators to create a new vision for Appalachia that rejects resilience as the only path forward.
Tiffany Sturdivant is Executive Director of Appalshop, a media arts nonprofit in Letcher County, Ky.
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