The Moundsville Economic Development Council consists of all tours, events, haunted house, and programs involving the penitentiary. It also is involved with partnering with Moundsville Convention and Visitors Bureau. These organizations keep tourism around Moundsville to a very high standard.
I have lived in Moundsville my whole life and have tried to be actively involved in school and community events. With having the opportunity to intern with MEDC, I was amazed by how much my community tries to keep everyone involved. There is so much to do around my town, but locals somehow don’t know. Being able to work so close with these people, I was able to see how much these organizations try to involve the community.
My supervisor, Suzanne Park, allowed me to take part in many board meetings. I sat in meetings that had to deal with board issues, the combination of two festivals, budgeting, thoughts and ideas for festivals, new position elections and many more. Being a part of these meetings helped me view the ideas behind the scenes. I was able to experience real life ideas and conventions being put into place.
Every year Moundsville hosts two separate fall festivals, UMAC Fall Festival and Elizabethtown Festival. This year MEDC & Uptown Moundsville Activities Committee (UMAC) decided to have the festivals on the same day, allowing more people to experience Moundsville and bring both crowds on the same day. During the summer, I spent time working on contacting vendors, historical demonstrators, and other members of the community to join Moundsville at the festival.
September 16, Moundsville’s first Annual Fall Festival was underway. I was able to make it home for the weekend to see how it all turned out. The festival’s numbers were high as always. There were historical demonstrators ever few hours, entertainment, dozens of food and craft vendors, and a car and motorcycle show. Moundsville’s streets were packed with children, teen, couples, parents, grand-parents, and so much more. Many were local, but there were others seeing Moundsville for the first time!
Other than working on the festival, I had many other tasks to handle through the summer. I teamed up with the Cockayne Farmstead and did website work. I learned so much about communicating with other organizations. Beyond that, I learned about different types of media and its effects as well as technical issues/electronics.
Being behind the scenes watching my community grow, is a feeling I cannot describe. I have been able to focus on my long-term goals from working with this organization. Working with a nonprofit allows you to see your or another community grow in a way you don’t realize that is happening. If you ever have a chance to work with a small town based organization, I highly suggest it. I hope to return next summer or even work with a less local foundation or organization.