Studer

ELKINS — Quint Studer, author of “Building a Vibrant Community,” is returning to Randolph County as the guest speaker for the Elkins-Randolph County Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Dinner and Awards on Wednesday.

The Chamber’s Dinner and Awards, known this year as “A Vibrant Celebration 2.0,” will take place at the Myles Center for the Arts at 100 College Drive in Elkins. The social part of the evening will get underway at 5:30 p.m. and the dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m.

Studer, who visited the county in 2020, is returning as part of the Chamber’s “Building a Vibrant Community 2.0” initiative.

Inspired by Studer’s book, which emphasizes making your community a better place to live, work, play and stay, the Chamber began the initial “Building a Vibrant Community” initiative in 2020. Former executive director of the Chamber Lisa Wood said the Chamber distributed 450 copies of Studer’s book throughout the community.

“This book was written on (Studer’s) experience, mostly through his revitalization efforts as a community leader in Pensacola, Florida,” Wood told guests during the “Building a Vibrant Community 2.0” kick-off event in January.

The Chamber also created 10 different task forces in the community regarding creating a “vibrant community” and had Studer come to Randolph County to speak and offer his advice.

In 2020, Studer suggested that the area would benefit from maximizing college and community interaction with Davis & Elkins College, as well as trying to expand on ventures such as quilting done by the Elkins Sewing Center and various guilds. Wood, in a previous interview with The Inter-Mountain, called Studer’s previous visit to Elkins “very successful.”

“There’s been a lot of revitalization downtown,” Wood said in the interview. “Building’s purchased. New shops and restaurants opened. Lots of different things have happened.”

Studer will also be taking part in “A Vibrant Conversation 2.0,” a conversation and workshop being held by the Chamber the day after the awards.

The workshop will be on Thursday, March 13 at the Myles Center for the Arts from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.