McCoys
SHEPHERDSTOWN — The Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History & Education, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in the 2022-2023 academic year, is developing plans for another successful 20 years of community service and education.
On Aug. 24 at 6 p.m., the Byrd Center’s annual summer fundraiser will be held at the historic Thomas Shepherd Mill in Shepherdstown. This year’s theme, “Mountain Music at the Mill,” will be highlighted by Appalachian fare catered by MJ’s on German Deli Cafe and a performance by Grammy award-winning artist and composer Chance McCoy and five-time West Virginia state fiddle champion Tessa McCoy.
Chance and Tessa McCoy are today’s torchbearers of West Virginia traditional music. Both West Virginia natives, they have been awarded the highest honors in traditional music–a Grammy for best folk album through Chance’s work with Old Crow Medicine Show and an exhaustive list of blue ribbon wins for Tessa, including five-time record as West Virginia State Fiddle Champion.
Chance was raised in a musical family in Harpers Ferry and has recorded and performed with such diverse artists as Willie Nelson, Tyler Childers, Mumford and Sons, Kesha and The Lumineers. Mentored by some of the greatest players in Appalachia, Tessa and Chance are part of an unbroken chain of traditional music and culture.
James J. Broomall, associate professor of history at Shepherd University and director of the Byrd Center, envisions this event as an opportunity to highlight the organization’s connections to Shepherdstown and showcase regional music and fare.
“We are a 501(c)(3) that does not get funding from the state of West Virginia or from Shepherd University,” Broomall said. “It is imperative for us to raise money through grants and donations, from corporations and individuals, to keep us going into the future. It is both an opportunity and a challenge.”
With an increase in funding, the Byrd Center will be able to more easily proceed into the future, as it seeks to pay for technological improvements, such as improved access to the archival collections through digital media and to support staffing positions. An increase in donations and grant funding will also allow the center to expand its programming. Recently, for example, renowned storyteller Adam Booth delivered a wildly successful event, “The Fiddlin’ Bobby Byrd, Mountain Musician,” and the Byrd Center has recently concluded a grant-funded teacher institute, “People Powered: Civic Action, Community Engagement and American Representative Democracy.”
“‘Mountain Music at the Mill’ promises an evening of excellent music, great food and warm company. And, importantly, all of the proceeds go to the Byrd Center,” Broomall said of the event. “It’s a big help to us.”
In addition to its programming, the Robert C. Byrd Center for Congressional History & Education regularly gives back to the community by donating its auditorium, meetings rooms and multi-purpose room for use by organizations like Lifelong Learning and the West Virginia Rivers Coalition, Broomall said.
To buy tickets to the “Mountain Music at the Mill,” visit https://www.byrdcenter.org/events.html.
