Preserve WV Members

Preserve WV AmeriCorps Members

Preserve WV Members' service emphasizes community development and revitalization through projects focused on historic preservation, volunteer management, and cultural heritage tourism development. Learn more about our new class of Members below and visit Preserve WV Stories to read about the service they are providing to revitalize our Mountain State.

Alanna Natanson

West Virginia & Regional History Center
Morgantown, Monongalia County
2018-2019 Service Term

Alanna Natanson is from the suburbs of Washington D.C. and has experience in processing collections at various research institutions including the Stetten Museum of Medical Research at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, the Forsyth County Public Library’s North Carolina Room in Winston Salem, the Salem College Library and Archives also in Winston Salem, and the Kentucky Historical Society in Frankfort.

During her service year, she'll help to process the Dr. Emory Kemp Collection and develop educational materials related to the collection.

Brian Stroinski

WVU Jackson's Mill
Weston, Lewis County
2017-2018 & 2018-2019 Service Terms
Brian Stroinski is a graduate from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN. He has a B.A. in social studies education and history. During his time at St. Olaf he was able to have the opportunity to work on two archaeology digs in Turkey. He worked as a 6th grade teacher at Minnesota International Middle School and joined Preserve WV to share his passion for history and gain valuable experience at Jackson’s Mill. This is his second year serving with PAWV.

Brian was the educational intern at Scott County Historical Society in Shakopee, MN. At Jackson’s Mill, Brian runs Blakers Mill, a 1794 operational gristmill. In addition to running the mill, he also gives tours of the historical site and works with the artifacts.

Brooke Thomson

Main Street Fairmont
Fairmont, Marion County
2017- 2018 & 2018-2019 Service Terms

Brooke Thomson is currently serving in her second Preserve WV AmeriCorps term at Main Street Fairmont under Nikki Lewis. Brooke grew up in Charles Town, West Virginia, and currently attends West Virginia University where she is enrolled in the Occupational Therapy program. She is also earning a minor in Communication Studies. Brooke says that "Being in the OT program and organizations on campus, they have given me the chance to get out and be involved in the community which I think goes hand and hand with my placement at Main Street Fairmont. I am very excited for another year as AmeriCorps member serving at Main Street Fairmont and all it has to offer."

Carrie Kidd

Fayette County Resource Coordinator's Office
Fayette County
2018-2019 Service Term

Carrie Kidd is a Mount Hope, WV native. In the fall of 2013, with the help of area residents, she founded Harmony for Hope, a nonprofit organization working to unite Southern West Virginia communities through music and art projects. Working with that organization propelled her own career aspirations to enroll at Marshall University as a graduate student where she will graduate December 2018 with a master’s degree as a Leadership Specialist in Nonprofit and Public Agency. By becoming involved with PAWV, she will be able to help revitalize our community by adding area attractions through the creation of the historic walking trail as well as finding opportunities for the preservation of the buildings and culture of the Mount Hope area.

Carrie's project area is in Mount Hope, WV and she is currently helping with the promotion and creation of the Mount Hope Historic Walking Tour. The project began with the installation of a large-scale mural with the commissioning of public art from four Appalachian Artists. Each piece was designed to incorporate an aspect of Mount Hope’s rich heritage and are prominently displayed in the Main Street windows along Mount Hope’s Downtown Historic District with a full-color brochure highlighting the public arts project along with 18 historic structures. Her role will be to expand downtown signage throughout the area to showcase the historic structures chosen for the brochure. Additionally, she will be utilizing Clio as a resource to guide tourists along the route. Currently, Carrie is collaborating with Michael and Carrie Kline, oral historians, to organize oral histories previously recorded in the Mount Hope area to incorporate an audio component to the route. It is Carrie's intention to document the structures along the route to encourage tourism into the area and promote interest in the current preservation efforts being made throughout the town.

Kalen Martin-Gross

Clio Foundation
2018-2019 Service Term

Kalen will be serving with the Clio Foundation this year. She grew up in a tight-knit community in rural Southwest Virginia where she developed an intimate relationship with history and the built environment. Being an only child allowed her to spend countless hours with all four of my grandparents and a great-grandmother, absorbing stories and histories from their own pasts and even beyond the Civil War. As a result of her upbringing, Kalen pursued an education in history, first receiving a B.S. in history from Lees-McRae College then a M.A. in history/historic preservation from Appalachian State University.

Kalen explains: "It was from this connection to my grandparents and education that I discovered the power of history. History is far more than a notch on a timeline or a date in a textbook. History is that ever-present force that drives us into the future. History contributes to the formulation our individual and collective identities through emotion, memory, and place." Kalen was drawn to the Clio Foundation because the organization provides free scholarly information about our nation’s history to everyone. She says she jumped at the opportunity to serve in this capacity, utilizing her skills to help strengthen West Virginia’s historical narrative and communities.

Kara Gordon

Cockayne Farmstead
Glen Dale, Marshall County
2018-2019 Service Term

Kara Gordon is a West Virginia native. She holds a Bachelor's degree in History from Wheeling Jesuit University. While in school, Kara also worked, volunteered, or interned at several museums and archives, including the Archives of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, the Mansion Museum at Oglebay Institute, and the West Virginia and Regional History Center. She loves studying everyday history in many forms but is especially interested in material culture, and most especially, clothing and textiles. In the summer of 2017, she interned at Colonial Williamsburg in the Margaret Hunter Millinery Shop.

Kara is looking forward to taking on the greater challenges and responsibilities that come with serving in a place where her ideas and actions can truly make a difference, instead of being lost in the crowd. She believes the Cockayne Farmstead is a place and a story you can truly become attached to, and she looks forward to serving here for the coming year.

Katherine Bowers

Heritage Farm
Cabell County
2018-2019 Service Term

Originally from Wisconsin, Katherine Bowers received her B.A in History with a Hospitality Management minor at the University of Central Florida in 2015. She continued her education and received her M.A. in Public History at North Carolina State University in 2017.
She recently relocated from Colorado to West Virginia to begin as a 2018-2019 AmeriCorps member serving at the Heritage Farm Museum and Village. This move has made West Virginia the eighth state she has lived in.
Katherine will be accessioning artifacts collected over the past 20 years at the Heritage Farm Museum and Village. This project will be the first time all the artifacts at the Heritage Farm Museum and Village will be completely cataloged. Once completed, the project will allow for a greater understanding of the wealth of Appalachian material culture preserved at the site. The collection is housed in seven museums totaling over 25,000 square feet. By serving through AmeriCorps, Katherine is provided with the amazing opportunity to help craft the archiving program from the ground up, positioning the Heritage Farm Museum and Village to become a primary source for researchers of Appalachian life.

Kellie White

West Virginia Association of Museums
Statewide
2018-2019 Service Term

Kellie White is the Preserve WV AmeriCorps member serving with the West Virginia Association of Museums. Kellie is originally from Virginia Beach, VA. In 2012, she moved to Fairfax, VA to pursue her undergraduate degree at George Mason University where she earned a BA in Art History and Anthropology with a minor in Women and Gender Studies in 2016. Since then, she has been living in Wheeling and attending Belmont Technical College where she is learning hands-on skills in historic preservation.

Kyle Bailey

Preservation Alliance of West Virginia
Southern West Virginia
2017-2018 & 2018-2019 Service Terms

Kyle Bailey has lived in Raleigh County his entire life. He is a graduate of Concord University and has experience with completing and submitting historic property inventory forms for a rural district in Helen, WV.

Having returned for a second year of service with PAWV, he served as the volunteer coordinator for the 2018 West Virginia Historic Preservation Conference. He operates from a home office in Raleigh county where he is able to lead and coordinate preservation projects throughout southern West Virginia. Kyle will continue to serve with organizations such as the National Coal Heritage Area and assist PAWV’s Endangered Properties sites during the 2018-2019 service year.

Kyle Warmack

Clio Foundation
Statewide
2017-2018 & 2018-2019 Service Terms

After graduating from UCLA School of Film & Television, Kyle Warmack spent ten years as a Chief Lighting Technician in Los Angeles before choosing to pursue an AmeriCorps opportunity with the Clio Foundation through PAWV. Packing up his life and cat, he spent the 2017-18 service year accomplishing a wide range of goals for Clio, including the production of five tutorial videos and presentations at various conferences and workshops around the state.

Kyle’s service with Clio also introduced him to the South Charleston Interpretive Center, where he soon took on the researcher/designer role for a large-scale exhibit about that city’s hundred year-old Naval Ordnance Plant--a massive factory that has produced military ordnance ranging from warship armor and gun barrels to armored personnel carriers. The resulting exhibit, “Century Strong,” opened in September 2018 and included a naval antiaircraft gun transported from Ohio and a M106 armored vehicle from Illinois, along with several hundred never-before-published photographs of the Plant’s rich history, sourced from the National Archives for the experience.

In the coming year, Kyle looks forward to growing Clio’s outreach and capacity--he’s a firm believer in the platform’s ability to transform America’s historical landscape. Inspired by Clio’s mission, his work with the Interpretive Center will continue as “Century Strong” is transitioned into the first major digital database of Naval Ordnance Plant archival materials, so that its legacy is no longer at risk of fading and new generations of West Virginians can learn about their unique Navy heritage.

Meaghan Papeika

Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission & Main Street Martinsburg
2018-2019 Service Term

Meaghan Papeika is the full-time Preserve WV AmeriCorps member serving with the Jefferson County Historical Society (JCHLC) and Main Street Martinsburg (MSM). She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Historic Preservation/Public History and English Literature from Shepherd University in 2017. This is Meaghan’s second year serving as an AmeriCorps member. For the 2017-18 service year she served with AFHA AmeriCorps in Elkins, WV.
During her time at the JCHLC Meaghan will assist with the stabilization and preservation of historic sites throughout Jefferson County and maintain an updated inventory of historic preservation resources for the convenience of county residents. She will also be the main point of contact with the public online and respond to information requests. This year, Meaghan will have the opportunity to write the nomination for the Jefferson County Courthouse to be named a National Historic Landmark.
This is Main Street Martinsburg’s first year hosting an AmeriCorps member. In addition to assisting MSM with special events and festivals, Meaghan will develop a new inventory of historic buildings in the downtown area and advertise any building vacancies in the hopes of leading to increased use of those properties. She will also write entries for Clio and create a walking tour that will highlight downtown Martinsburg’s history and architectural features.

SaraH Hanna

WVU History Department & Wiles Hill Alumni Association
Morgantown, Monongalia County
2018-2019 Service Term

Sarah Hanna is an AmeriCorps member serving at Wiles Hill School in Morgantown, West Virginia. Born and raised in Morgantown, Sarah graduated from University High School in 2013. Since then, she has graduated from West Virginia University with a degree in History and a minor in Political Science. She is currently in her second year of West Virginia University’s Public History MA program, and will graduate in Spring of 2019.

Sarah is excited to serve at Wiles Hill over the next year. Originally a small neighborhood school, Wiles Hill is now an active community center and home to BOPARC’s Senior Recreation Center. While serving at Wiles Hill, Sarah hopes to work with the Wiles Hill Alumni Association to promote their new exhibit, develop their website, and create a searchable database of photos and artifacts.

Sharell Harmon

Preservation Alliance of West Virginia
Statewide
2017 - 2018 & 2018-2019 Service Terms

Sharell Harmon, a young mother of three- moved from Northern Virginia to North Central West Virginia in November of 2014. By January 2015, she was a full-time student at Youth Build North Central WV, serving as a Youth Build AmeriCorps Member on the national level and by August a graduate. AmeriCorps Lifebridge offered Ms. Harmon a year term to serve at Catholic Charities WV, that she accepted immediately after graduating from Youth Build. Since then, Ms. Harmon continues to serve a leadership role in her community as she entered into her 4th contract with AmeriCorps as a Preserve WV AmeriCorps Member.

Currently, Sharell is in her second year with Preserve WV AmeriCorps, serving in Elkins. Enjoying her many roles from a liaison to facilitating work days for organizations like the Tygart Valley Homestead Association and the Cass State Park. She is also working with folks around the state to lower the amount of decommissioned schools in the state of West Virginia. Along with preservation, Sharell is a newly accepted student at West Virginia University and plans to obtain her master’s degree in public administration.

SUMMER PHILLIPS

Northern WV Brownfields Assistance Center
Morgantown, Monongalia County
2018-2019 Service Term

Summer Phillips is the 2018-2019 Preserve WV AmeriCorps member serving with the WVU BAD Buildings Program. Born and raised in Morgantown, Summer graduated from University High School in 2015. She then went on to study English Literary and Cultural Studies and Women and Gender Studies at WVU. During the course of her time in the university, she studied Appalachian culture and worked at a research lab to study West Virginian dialects.

After graduating in May 2018, she began looking for a way to serve her home state and help West Virginian communities. This mission lead her to Preserve WV AmeriCorps program and to the WVU BAD Buildings service site. While there, Summer is excited to help provide rural communities the resources, assistance, and advice they need to address abandoned and dilapidated properties.