Chip Minemyer: Working side by side to elevate our region

Feb. 23—Brad Hindman personifies the spirit behind twin special reports this weekend in The Cumberland (Maryland) Times-News and The Tribune-Democrat in Johnstown.

Hindman is a Wells Fargo financial adviser with offices in both of those cities, and quenches his thirst for out-door recreation across the multi-state region — especial- ly at Ohiopyle State Park in Pennsylvania's Fayette County.

Hindman told reporter Joshua Byers that he is a Boy Scout leader and an outdoors enthusiast who loves hiking, skiing, kayaking and backpacking.

And he believes recreation could be a key to attracting and retaining residents to bolster the work force and elevate the economy — all across the tri-state region.

"I'd love to see more stuff and more infrastructure around our area," he said.

Hindman was interviewed for "Progress" reports in both newspapers — dubbed "Focus" for The Times-News and "Vision" for The Tribune-Democrat. Those CNHI-owned newspapers that share a publisher (me).

They also share a multi- state and -county area that stretches from Petersburg, West Virginia, and Oakland, Maryland, north through Cumberland into Somerset and Bedford counties in Pennsylvania, and all the way to the northern border of Cambria County.

Much of that territory is also the purview of The Greater Cumberland Com- mittee (TGCC) — whose primary focus has been the completion of four-lane Route 219 from Somerset (done) and Meyersdale (in the works) southward to connect with east-west Interstate 69 in Maryland.

That highway project has been called a crucial economic bloodline to connect Johnstown and western Pennsylvania with Morgantown and Fairmont to the west in West Virginia, and Cumberland and Hagerstown eastward in Maryland — and all the way to Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

Of late, the TGCC has embarked on a broader mission to help communities in five counties — Allegany and Garrett in Maryland, Mineral in West Virginia and Bedford and Somerset in Pennsylvania — find answers to common questions concerning health and wellness, workforce housing, population decline, transportation, education and, yes, outdoor recreation.

"It's bringing people out of their silos and integrating the work that is being done," said Jennifer Walsh, the group's executive director, who doubles as an administrator at Frostburg State University.

She serves as associate vice president with the Division of Regional Development & Engagement at the university, which recently launched an outdoor recreation entrepreneurship program to support that area of economic development.

Inspired by TGCC's work and what we saw as growing enthusiasm across the area for partnerships that benefit all, the two newspapers knocked down a few of their own silos and collaborated on those two special reports.

Reporters, photographers and even advertising sales consultants worked cooperatively — sharing sources and information, and crossing over to provide important content for their collective readership and elevating the work beyond what either would have accomplished separately.

Together, they began to realize that there are considerably more similarities than differences between Fort Ashby, W.Va., and Berlin, Pa.; between Fishertown in Bedford County, and Grantsville in Garrett County.

To properly cover that five- county area, the journalists had to plan and work together — much like their counterparts in local government and economic development are doing more and more.

The world is getting smaller and the opportunities for collaboration are multiplying.

A new business in Cumberland is a spinoff from a longstanding and successful enterprise in Somerset — crossing the Mason-Dixon Line to expand its customer reach and provide jobs.

J&J Truck Bodies & Trailers was founded in 1958 and is a division of Riggs Industries, as you can read in today's editions. In March, the company will cut the ribbon on its new Cumberland facility.

"This is really going to be an opportunity for us to reach new employees because of the distance between (Somerset) and Cumberland," J&J President Emily Korns said.

That distance is shorter every day, thanks to enhanced transportation and technology.

State and county borders become just thin lines on the map — but are not the hurdles we once perceived them to be when it comes to addressing the drivers of our regional economy.

Enjoy reading today's special report — whether it's called "Focus" or "Vision" in your community. Both titles seem apt to me.

Our team looks forward to working with our neighbors and business partners across this great region — moving toward a more prosperous shared future.

Chip Minemyer is the publisher of The Tribune-Democrat and The Times-News of Cumberland, Md. He can be reached at 814-532-5111. Follow him on Twitter @MinemyerChip.