UACC Community Engagement

Community Engagement takes the form of a number of overlapping initiatives designed to bring people together to discuss, celebrate and participate in Appalachian cultural education and advocacy.

Neighborhood Based Events

Through the work of its Stewards, the Urban Appalachian Community Coalition continues to lend support to community-driven activities in neighborhoods once served by the Urban Appalachian Council. Coordinated by Nancy Laird ([email protected]), these include:

Ringin’ in an Appalachian New Year, an annual celebration held noon- five pm the Sunday of the Martin Luther King Day Weekend, Ringin’ includes a potluck dinner, music, square dancing and more.

Lower Price Hill Community Festival is an annual celebration of Appalachian Music held in Lower Price Hill the weekend before the larger Appalachian Festival at Coney Island. 2017 marks its 40th year.

Activities sponsored by community partners and supported by UACC in various ways have included the Lower Price Hill Women’s Group, The Back to School Fair, the Bend in the River Festival, Women’s Health Fair, Hope Over Heroin, the Northside Square Dance, and many more.

UACC Story Gathering project

This project launched September 2021 with the purpose of engaging with members of our community and documenting the stories of urban Appalachians in Cincinnati, Ohio through informal interviews.

The interview archive can be found at https://uacvoice.org/story-gathering-project-interviews/. In addition to individual interviews, we created “Video Quilts” in which we compiled interview clips based on reoccurring themes like identity, nature, music and food! Those can be found at https://uacvoice.org/story-gathering-project-video-quilts/.

Place Keepers

UACC has teamed up with the Originary Arts Initiative to bring the community a variety of arts-based and environmental events that explore the question: How can creative expression help us to preserve our cherished home places and landscapes?

Place Keepers Wide Open Mic series is a virtual open mic opportunity for young artists to share original works of poetry, prose, visual art and music.

Place Keepers events also include in-person events like the Upper Mill Creek Clean-Up and Wide Open Mic at Roebling Point Books & Coffee.

In addition to the open mic events, Core Member Sherry Cook Stanforth ([email protected]) plans on adding other creative showcases, workshops, and writing contests. She also has plans to schedule live Place Keepers Open Mic events at other unique venues around Greater Cincinnati.

Eastern Kentucky Flood Relief Efforts

UACC served as the fiscal sponsor for the EKY Flood Relief Benefit that featured several urban Appalachian writers and organizers. All proceeds supported the Hindman Settlement School‘s Flood Relief Fund.

UACC recognizes that the work is not over. We are discussing additional opportunities that continue to raise monetary funds and social support for communities affected by the 2022 floods.

Story Circles

Pauletta Hansel ([email protected]) is available to lead this community development practice for identifying the assets, needs, and goals of our Urban Appalachian community. Story Circles emphasize deep listening as a process for groups to explore and engage with their own histories and current concerns in meaningful ways. This community story gathering process connects people with each other through stories and uses those stories to help identify the assets, needs and goals of our urban Appalachian community. Through story circles, we engage people in the work of the Urban Appalachian Community Coalition, and assure that the wisdom and knowledge of all community members can be incorporated into our activities. Read some more about Story Circles on our blog.