BUCKHANNON – Generation Upshur hosted its first meeting in some time Tuesday after a hiatus.
Regional Manager with Generation West Virginia Brittany Hicks said she hopes to bring the group back to help young people stay in Upshur County and West Virginia as a whole.
“We love the place, we love the mountains, we love the community we find here,” Hicks said during Tuesday’s organizational meet at Las Trancas restaurant. “They’re just things that make it difficult to stay, and a lot of times it has to do with jobs and [other life factors], so our goal is to create pathways and make it possible for people to stay and people to come here who want to come here.”
An affiliate of Generation West Virginia, Generation Upshur is a group for young people ages 18 to 40 who live, work or study in or near Upshur County. Its mission is to attract, retain and advance young people in Upshur County as part of a statewide movement with Generation West Virginia, according to a press release sent out about the meeting.
At the Feb. 26 meeting, Hicks explained how Generation West Virginia encourages younger individuals to stay and come to West Virginia.
“We’re just about to start our first meeting we’ve had in a long time, so we’re kind of getting back together and we’re trying to get the group started again,” Hicks said. “We’re going to talk through our ideas and goals for Generation Upshur, and how we can help young people stay here.”
She said Generation West Virginia organizes events under the motto “Work, Live, Give,” so each event falls under one of those guidelines.
“Work can be anything like career development – mock interviews, resume-building workshops, things like that,” Hicks said. “Live can be just social opportunities. For instance, Generation Randolph has River Day coming up in May, which is a fun time to get together. We have tons of other like things around the state happening like that. We also have under the ‘Give’ category lots of service projects – for instance Generation Mid-Ohio Valley did a picnic for the Boys and Girls Club this fall.”
During the meeting, participants discussed possible future community service projects they could potentially partake in or start. Suggestions included partnering with Create Buckhannon to help them with their tree planting project and collaborating with the Upshur Parish House. Callie Cronin Sams, information coordinator and grant writer for the City of Buckhannon, suggested working with the Buckhannon Volunteer Center.
Hicks said this first meeting was meant for brainstorming and to get members thinking about officers for the group. She also wanted to emphasize that even if someone missed the first meeting, they are welcome to join the club at the next one.
“You can get in touch with us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter or email me, and I’ll get you connected with the group,” Hicks said. “We’re going to try to meet once a month, so you also want to come to our next meeting and share on our social media as well.”
The group decided that the next meeting should take place at 1 p.m. March 11. The location was not set, but Hicks said she would make a Facebook event for the meeting soon.
Generation Upshur has no membership fee, and it’s actively working to reverse the state’s population decline with a vision for Upshur County where challenges are seen as opportunities, young people are drivers in our state’s future, and Upshur County is a destination for young people.
Contact Hicks by emailing her at brittany.h@generationwv.org.
