Appalachian Mission Experience: Mullens, WV

Duquesne University has a long-standing relationship with the Appalachian communities of West Virginia, and our student groups have been traveling to work in these communities for a number of years.

This year we will be traveling to Mullens, West Virginia with a group of 17 students, 2 student leaders, and a Spiritan Campus Ministry staffer for a five-day trip during the university’s spring break. Mullens is a small coal and mining town in southern West Virginia that struggles with severe poverty. Each year, leaders of this rural community work closely with our group to communicate what projects are most important to the community and what specific resources are needed.

Past projects have included rebuilding a set of stairs, replacing a porch, making roof repairs, and replacing gutters. The winter conditions in this region are harsh, and it is vital to the community that everyone has adequate housing. This year we will focus on projects that foster the strong community spirit of Mullens, like the creation of a community garden and apple orchard and construction of “high tunnels,” which are all season greenhouses for fruits and vegetables. We will also work in the local food pantry as we have in years past.

Our goal is to provide whatever resources are deemed necessary by the community and to connect with the members of the community by spending time with them. We will face the harsh winter with determination, and we are grateful to our hosts for the opportunity to serve and learn about this area of the country.

Please consider donating money to our cause to help provide lumber and supplies for community building projects and food to the food pantry, and share this page with people you think would be interested in our project. Thank you for your support, and check back often for updates!

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New goal: $2,500

Thanks to overwhelming support of our project, we have decided to up our goal to $2,500. The start-up construction and maintenance of the high tunnel greenhouses we are building are relatively high, so we were hoping to raise money for at least 2 fully-built, fully-maintained, fully-stocked greenhouse gardens.

Now that we have surpassed this goal, we are confident that we can raise the money to build additional high tunnels as well as provide the initial funding necessary to plant and sow the fruits and vegetables. All remaining money will be donated to the local food bank, which also serves as a clothing donation site for Mullens, West Virginia and other Wyoming County towns.

We can’t thank our supporters enough and are so excited to report our fundraising efforts to the town organizers in Mullens. They will be blown away by the generosity!