Introduction
I have been professionally ghostwriting for several years and enjoyed the time working on those projects. This past year with the pandemic, like so many others, I have rethought my goals in life. I am tired of writing about other people’s subjects and want to explore my own. A number of the articles in my current writing file are about issues within my county. We moved here over 13 years ago to carve a home out of overgrown old forestry land. The problems we ran into on day one are still here, with county professionals fixing the only minor, not impactful, issues. Before we closed on the land, I called to check on utilities; everyone assumed that city water and internet would be readily available because of the location. We fought for two years to get access to safe drinkable water. There is no access for city sewer or county sewer, so we put in a septic tank. In regards to high-speed internet, that has been a fight that is still ongoing. The county shows little interest in helping the citizens get out of the generational poverty slump surrounding this area. At the end of our little drive, there are two neighbors; both were here before me. One of my neighbors has a good-paying career; he started with a well. After we moved in, the first thing we checked on was a well. We were informed that in the county, a high number of wells are contaminated. The well driller also informed us that my neighbors well would drain into ours so that he would have no water. We went to the city and pushed through to get him and us city water. It was a fight because we are a pocket of the county surrounded by a town.
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The other neighbor lived for years with her mother and zero access to safe drinking water. Her land had a septic system installed, but she could never overcome her poverty to afford water. This year my husband decided we were the only people who could help her. We all had a meeting, mapped out a bit of land from everyone, and started planning. I do not know what the city will say because I have not asked them. I did speak with a state representative his solution was she should move. That is not fair because her property is paid for, and her income is well below poverty. Several other community leaders are attempting to involve in this matter, but so far, there has been little attention.
As I progress through several issues that impact this county and many like it around the country, my goal is to show how our government systems are impacting generational poverty. Initially, I thought about the entire state of Arkansas that seemed too broad to showcase individuals. I do not know where my journey will end. Please join me while we explore local issues that impact many communities.
