BLACKSBURG, Va., March 27 -- Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University issued the following news release:
In the mountains of Southwest Virginia, coal is more than history. It's culture. And Zoe Brooks was built by it.
Growing up in Wise County, Virginia, Brooks didn't have to search for history. It surrounded her. Her paternal grandfather spent years of his life mining in Appalachia, while her maternal grandfather helped deliver house coal across Eastern Kentucky.
"Even a generation removed from coal mining in my family, it was always clear to me how much coal mining influenced the culture of Appalachia," Brooks said.
Old equipment sat scattered around town. A coal preparation plant and a towering tipple lined the road to her...