West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Dalton Hass stands in front of church sign at Our Lady of Lebanon, the only Maronite church in West Virginia.
Throughout Appalachia, many communities share a common concern: As the young people leave and the older generations pass on, who will carry on the traditions?
But in Wheeling, West Virginia, one young man, Dalton Haas, is determined to reverse this trend. He’s committed to bringing his community home, to the sound of church bells and the smells of homemade cooking.
It was the annual church fundraiser and volunteers gathered in the basement kitchen, serving food and sharing fellowship. The volunteers were mostly women, but alongside them was Haas, dressed in a black t-shirt with a tree printed on it: a cedar of Lebanon.