Published: September 30, 2009 10:13 pm      

Manchin mulls all the ‘take a seat’ ideas from Beckley meeting

Southern West Virginians certainly weren’t shy about unloading ideas on Gov. Joe Manchin last week in Beckley for ways to make this state better.

And word from Manchin’s staff is that the governor is taking every idea seriously.

“All Vision Shared ‘Take a Seat at the Table’ meetings have been very beneficial, and (last) Tuesday’s in southern West Virginia was particularly constructive,” communications director Matt Turner said Wednesday.

Manchin was peppered with ideas and questions on a wide range of subjects, among them the future of Tamarack, community involvement and pride, rising natural gas prices, health care for seniors, coal, foraging deer and highway needs.

One suggestion struck a strong chord with the governor — Heather Griffin’s plea for a Future Farmers of America chapter at Iaeger High School, an activity she has missed since transferring to McDowell County from her former home in Bedford County, Va.

At the time, Manchin pledged to get with Agriculture Commissioner Gus Douglass on the prospects of adding an FFA chapter at Iaeger, and elsewhere in West Virginia, if one is desired.

“That may be something we see some action on,” Turner said.

“Here was this very bright, young student from Iaeger High School, hopeful to put together an FFA program, so the governor is going to work with Commissioner Douglass to see if that can be done. I think everybody was very impressed with her. The governor sees the importance of agriculture in the state’s economy and future. We’re going to do what we can to facilitate that.”

Turner said the governor likewise was touched by the opening speaker, Brenda Milam, in recounting how she and fellow residents of Helen pitched in to make the onetime coal mine boom town a brighter place to live, with a number of community improvement activities.

Nothing that was suggested in the audience of some 200 will be dismissed, Turner emphasized.

“The governor agrees that people came there with really solid ideas and information that they wanted to move southern West Virginia forward,” Turner said of the town hall-style meeting.

“He was just delighted with the participation. Everyone seemed to have something very constructive. They were very good ideas. We’ll look at every one of those. We’re still compiling some of those ideas and putting them together. We’ll consider every one of them.”

— E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com