Cooperative Living January 2017 - 3

InsideStory
JANUARY 2017
As we worked on
this issue of your
electric cooperative
publication, the
world marked the
75th anniversary of
the Japanese attack at
Pearl Harbor.
Dec. 7, the date that FDR famously
proclaimed would " live in infamy, "
arrived and, across the nation, an
increasingly small number of surviving
Pearl Harbor vets were honored.
An 18-year-old in December 1941
would be 93 today. It won't be long
before military vets who saw the bombs
fall at Pearl Harbor are all gone.
The day after the 75th-anniversary
observance, Dec. 8, the pre-Christmas
rush resumed.
It almost seemed disrespectful. But
if you really thought about it, it became
clear that freedom - including the
freedom to engage all-out in the preChristmas
rush - is what those vets
and legions of military vets before and
since the attack at Pearl Harbor,
protected with their service.
We're blessed today in that active
military personnel and veterans enjoy
gratitude from those of us in the
civilian ranks. It's become almost cliché
to offer thanks to active and retired
military folks for their service. But it's
good that these words are spoken,
because it hasn't always been so. There
was a time when veterans returning
home from Vietnam were treated very
poorly. That was then and is still today
a shame.
Our cover story features a program
for military veterans and their families.
It's called the Mighty Pen Project, and
its foundation principles are that the
pen is mightier than the sword and selfexpression
through the written word
can help repair and restore the psyche.
We hope you enjoy reading about
the Mighty Pen Project and its work to
benefit veterans and their families.
And if you're a vet, thank you for
your service. 
- Bill Sherrod, Editor
www.co-opliving.com
Reader Photo: Jessa Howdyshell
OUR MISSION
To inform you about your cooperative and its efforts to serve your energy needs; how to
use electricity safely and efficiently; and the people who define and enhance the quality
of life in communities served by electric co-ops.
CONTENTS
14 Cover Story
A broad spectrum of military veterans and family
benefit from a Richmond-based program teaching
creative writing as a cathartic means of self-expression.
Cover photo by Laura Emery.
18 Crossroads
Just east of Swift Run Gap, the idyllic community of
Stanardsville is a quaint mix of old and new that
continues to thrive in an era hard on small towns.
34 Co-op People
Jim Kvach took off a business suit and put on coveralls
more than a decade ago, and his passion for growing
things has bolstered his adopted community since.
DEPARTMENTS
2 Viewpoint
4 Mailbag
4 Whatzit
5 History Mystery
8 Say Cheese
10 Happenings
11 Wanted: Youth Art
12 Garden Muse
22 Your Co-op News
30 Energy Sense
32 Kids' Korner
36 Commonwealth Kitchen
38 Classified Ads
40 Rural Living
Visit us online at: www.co-opliving.com | Find us on:
Please recycle this magazine.
AAM audited
January 2017 | Cooperative Living | 1
Check Out
the Joy and
Magic of Shoes
on pg. 32
See our Annual Legislative
Guide, inserted between
pages 20 & 21.
http://www.co-opliving.com http://www.co-opliving.com
Cooperative Living January 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Cooperative Living January 2017
