One of my favorite scenes from Elf with Will Farrell is when he takes his love interest to Chock Full-a Nuts in New York City to have what is advertised as The World’s Best Coffee—and she does a spit take. I use to live in NYC and admit that I too have been a victim of this false advertising.

However! Right here in Southwest Virginia we’ve got a secret. Are you listening? We’ve got the world’s best coffee. Dark Hollow Micro Roasters in Sugar Grove, VA is owned and operated by a husband and wife team who, after much research and traveling to globe, settled in Southwest Virginia to roast delicious fresh, organic, and fair trade java. I heard John speak at an Entrepreneur Express Workshop in Marion, VA not too long ago, and found his story to be quite compelling. So compelling that I had to try this coffee. I scolded him for not bringing samples after speaking so convincingly about his product! Didn’t catch his last name and their website is still under construction. But I did stop at a store on the way home and bought a pound of the blend Cowboy Up! ($8.65) which I highly recommend. You can purchase the coffee from the website.

Hopefully, John will flesh out the “About Us” section of his website because it’s a great tale of following one’s passion. Virginia’s Great Southwest is fertile ground for entrepreneurships, and there are so many avenues of support in SWVA for small business owners either through the Entrepreneur Express Workshops offered through Virginia Start Up or through the Virginia Department of Business Assistance. The workshops impressed me with how much useful information is offered for free to new business or potential business owners. Southwest Virginia opens its arms to the small business owner and is willing to give a leg up in many ways. Come on down!

-Lucinda McDermott Piro

Southwest Virginian prisons are welcoming imported prisoners from out-of-state and I say this is great. The article talks about how Virginians will need to increase their crime level in order to keep criminals from out of state out of our prisons. My question is, why keep the imported people out? Having these prisoners come into our prisons will not affect us in anyway, except for the better. It will be better to have imported criminals in our prisons because people in the area are not committing enough crimes themselves. We are filling our prisons with out-of state criminals because we are not keeping up with the amount of criminals needed to fill our prisons, great right? Sounds like it to me, not to mention the money coming to the state from Wyoming who will pay close to $19 million to have 300 prisoners imported. The $19 million coming in will save taxpayers money because they are being charged for the newest prison in Tazewell, which opened in September. So a message to Virginians is to keep doing what you’re doing and we will save money and our streets will continue to be safe.

-Jerrid Morelen

My Name is Jerrid Morelen I am currently a junior at Radford University. I am majoring in economics as well as finance. My hometown Is Chesapeake Virginia, I graduated from Great Bridge High School in 2005. I am aspiring to be a financial adviser for Merrill Lynch and maybe someday open up my own firm.

Not until I started going to school at Virginia Tech have I witnessed a town with such an affinity for being “local.” With the new Wal-Mart moving into Blacksburg and additional “big-box” retailers popping up all over Southwest Virginia, is it going to be possible to “Be Local” within the next ten years? Is Southwest Virginia just going to turn into every other town in Northern Virginia, with the same retail chains scattered across a ten mile radius?

In a recent article, The Roanoke Times writes about big-box retailers, such as Dick’s Sporting Goods, that are threatening the existence of local wilderness shops. It is expressed by local shop owners that the only advantage these big-box retailers have over them is size. Local shops have unique product lines and employees with an abundance of knowledge; two qualities that big-box retailers lack. So, if the products and customer service of local vendors both outshine big-box retailers, why do they continue to be built in Southwest Virginia?

My name is Mackenzie Ebling and I am currently a senior at Virginia Tech. In my spare time I enjoy hanging out with my friends and watching the Food Network. I will be graduating from Virginia Tech this May with a major in Marketing Management.

One of my fondest childhood memories is going with my Dad to the hardware store. Actually, in Glasgow, Virginia, the hardware store was also the general store. If you were lucky enough to have lived long enough to have a memory of life before Home Depot and Lowe’s, then you know what I’m talking about.

First, there’s the building. Two or three steps up on worn treads that went the length of the structure. A narrow porch and through two tall windowed doorways into a darkened and deep space that seemed to stretch out to forever with shelves and shelves of everything you would ever possibly need. And ahhhhh! the smell… Sawdust, nails, sweet feed, seeds and tobacco. I remember the bins of nails and screws. They looked so luscious! I wanted to sink my hands into them, cupping the nails as if they were water but OUCH! These stores were tactile. They were sensory-overload potential. They were warm, and people knew your name and offered you an ice cream sandwich or nutty-buddy from the freezer. You could get what you needed to mend the fence and cook dinner all at the same time.

Blue tin cookware and overalls. Painter pants and aprons. Canned goods and saws. Wrenches and ceramic depictions of Jesus. A round of rat cheese next to pickled pigs’ feet and Slim Jims. Old men in rockers on the front porch; “My, my, look at how you’ve grown! Good golly, Billy Mac, she’s a weed!”

Where are those stores now? Where are those places where our beloved senior citizens can rock and keep an eye on the community? Do we honor them with a front row seat in our towns, or do we hide them away in politely titled places like “Senior Centers”?

Do we have stores or community places where it is safe for children to congregate with kids their own age, or to interact meaningfully with other generations? Do we make the children in our community feel welcomed or valued on a daily basis?

In our effort to grow Southwest Virginia, are we making the effort to retain what makes us unique?

-Lucinda McDermott Piro

Recently, Appalachian Power Company has been in the works of planning a new area in Narrows (Giles County) to deposit coal ash. They have found a suitable site and when dumping ends, they plan to sell the land and donate their profits to county schools to benefit vocational learning. The only problem is that their coal ash “dump site” is located adjacent to the New River. This close proximity has created much protests from local community groups who are concerned about the coal ash (which contains arsenic) polluting the New River.

Though the threat of arsenic is an occurrence that community officials should be concerned about, residents need to understand that Appalachian Power has taken all the necessary measures to prevent this from occurring. The land and ash dimensions meet all state regulations (and then some) and a $90,000 irrigation system has been installed as a means of preventing run-off. Not to mention, after the final coal ash has been deposited, the land will be used to construct a building which will generate more jobs for the area. So…this sight will be benefiting county schools, creating jobs, and saving the county of Giles money. What’s the problem again?

–Lucinda McDermott Piro

And check this out—they will provide approximately 150 jobs. Yes indeed! Inorganic Ventures is moving its operations from New Jersey to Christiansburg’s Falling Branch Corporate Park. Virginia Governor Time Kaine’s office sent out a press release citing Montgomery County’s “trained workforce and proximity to research opportunities with Virginia Tech.” The company manufactures custom inorganic chemical blends—not being the most scientifically oriented person, I went to their website, and was rather impressed to see that they tout several “firsts” for their industry. The big news here folks, is that Inorganic Ventures move will create 46 new jobs in the science/chemistry industry. I know there are many Southwest Virginia job seekers out there who will find that refreshing.

Bastian in Bland County will be getting a new 4-wheeler and motorcycle shop if things continue to go well for Mark McKee. Mark’s been operating a small engine repair shop out of his home but just got his permit to move into the old Sky Outdoor location on North Scenic Highway. “We’re trying to target all the groups,” McKee said in an interview with Southwest Virginia Today, “We’ll also carry parts and do repairs.” Mark, Return to Roots wishes you luck, and applauds you for working the dream! Read more about Mark by clicking here.

And boy, I can’t wait for this place to open. New River Valley is getting a brand spanking new and newly built restaurant with a micro-brewery! Those of us living in Radford have been watching the building of The River Company up on the bluff across the New River for roughly the past year, measuring it’s progress with the changing seasons. Clearly visible from downtown Radford, it’s been a pleasure to see the visual progress—kind of like being able to watch the region grow. Mark Hall and his company Hall & Sons Developers will open the doors this spring. The business will cater to locals serving basic American favorites to top-notch cuisine. And don’t forget that micro-brewery. I’m pretty excited about this one folks—best news is that they will be hiring 60 to 100 full and part-time positions. They will be seeking highly trained restaurant personnel.

Chemistry, wheels, and beer. We’ve got it all in SWVA!