New River Valley

A group trying to bring passenger trains back to the New River Valley heard Thursday night from lots of folks who want to make it happen: State delegates, a congressman, college officials, even the state transportation secretary.

They also heard that it’s not happening anytime soon.

For the majority of her life, Betsy Haugh has been around sports.  Growing up, she says most family vacations were spent at tournaments instead of the beach.

At age 25, she’s already turned her passion into a budding career in minor league baseball.

Thousands of students flow into Southwest Virginia for college every year.

A new initiative hopes to stop the "brain drain" as they graduate and leave the area for work.

Small towns aren’t what they used to be.  Once the ‘go to’ center of community life, the idea of the ‘town square’ has all but disappeared. But in southwestern Virginia, they’re working to bring back the glory of small towns and new residents with them. This week, they're holding a  two-day workshop in Pulaski they’re calling a "revitalization revival.” 

In a perfect world, all adults would have the literacy skills they need to navigate modern life. But fourteen per cent of us, do not live in that world.  In Virginia’s New River Valley, it’s eleven percent of people who can not read. But there’s free help out there for people who need it. Robbie Harris reports.