New Website & Map Launched with Support from West Virginia Humanities Council

Marshall faculty and students have launched Movable: Narratives of Recovery and Place, an interactive community website that collects narratives about recovery in West Virginia. The project is funded through a West Virginia Humanities Council media grant.

The website has been put together by faculty members from the College of Liberal Arts, including Associate Professor of English Kristen Lillvis; Assistant Professor of Geography Hilton Cordoba; Assistant Professor of English Stefan Schoeberlein; and Visiting Assistant Professor of English Kristin Steele, as well as student Victoria Endres, a literature and creative writing major, and Amy Saunders, managing director of Marshall’s Center of Excellence for Recovery.

“‘Movable: Narratives of Recovery and Place’ is an interactive community website that collects narratives on the topic of recovery in West Virginia and Appalachia at large,” Lillvis said. “The West Virginia Humanities Council media grant supported the creation of the site, which uses text — and, in the future, will use images and videos — to highlight the importance of place in stories of recovery and to foreground West Virginia’s place in the recovery movement.

“The next stage of the project focuses on working more closely with recovery organizations to add content and further develop the site,” she said.

The idea for the project was inspired when Lillvis, Steele, and Saunders collaborated on the “Addiction in Appalachia: Our Stories” event that took place in September of 2016 at Marshall. The website brings stories from that event together with new narratives to show how West Virginia is a center for recovery from substance use disorders.

“We are excited about working with individuals in recovery on this creative, innovative project to give voice and place to the recovery movement,” Saunders said. “It is our hope that Movable is a site that can grow understanding and compassion about addiction, while also encouraging individuals and families to seek help.”

Lillvis said she hopes that the initial release will inspire others to submit their stories to the project. Anyone who would like to reach out to the creators of the site or comment can click the “Contact” button on the website.