Beckley, WV-The COH Spring Gathering will be held Monday, March 20, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Fruits of Labor, 313 Neville Street, Beckley, W.Va. Cohort business participants (past and current),
grant partners, community supporters, and existing companies that are hiring workers in
recovery will be participating. The seventh Gathering since inception of the Communities of
Healing program will kick off the new Investment Lab training and participants will be
announced.
Full details of the in-person and virtual event can be found at:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/spring-2023-gathering-virtual-and-in-person-tickets-
519676976827
Tammy Jordan, president of Fruits of Labor, said “At Fruits of Labor, we are celebrating two
more students graduating Empowered Employment this month and starting their next
position advancement as Station Supervisor. We currently have six employed as Station
Supervisors. And we have one student that graduated to location manager.”
Opportune times for interviews include: 9:30 – 9:55 a.m., or during breaks at 10:45 -11:00 a.m.,
lunch 12:00 -1:00 p.m., and at the end of the program at 3:00 p.m.
Judy Moore of the West Virginia Hive Network (contact information above) will be the on-site
event point of contact.
Spring Gathering Agenda
9:30 – 10:00 a.m. Registration and Light Breakfast
10:00 a.m. Welcome and Introduction of Partners
10:15 a.m. Best Interview Practices Surrounding Recovery-to-Work Hires with Barbara Dawes,
Region 1 Workforce Board Executive Director
10:45 a.m. Break and Networking Time
11:00 a.m. Raising Capital to Fund Impact & Growth by Paul Wright, Owner of Wright Venture
Services
11:30 a.m. Stigma Reduction Presentation by Jay Phillips, Executive Director of Seed Sower, Inc.
11:50 a.m. Celebration of Fruits of Labor Workforce Graduates and Testimonials from Student
Station Supervisors
12:00 p.m. Lunch and Networking
1:00 p.m. Workshop: Implementing Recovery Friendly Work Culture – From Policy to Practice to
Culture through Role Play in Real World Workplace Situations and Discussion Groups
3:00 p.m. Closing Remarks
The Communities of Healing program was funded in 2020 by the Appalachian Regional
Commission. The innovative program is designed on the success of Fruits of Labor, a culinary
program that has worked for 11 years with those in recovery and 22 years in business. The
successful Communities of Healing program includes a partnership group consisting of Fruits of
Labor, Region 4 Planning and Development Council, Seed Sower, Inc., Wright Venture Services,
Region 1 Workforce Development Board, and West Virginia Hive. More information about the
Communities of Healing program can be found at http://www.communitiesofhealing.com.
The WV Hive is the entrepreneurship program of the New River Gorge Regional Development
Authority, the administrator of the Country Roads Angel Network, and a Communities of
Healing program partner. More information about the WV Hive can be found at
https://wvhive.com/.
