Renaissance
Photo by Corey Zinn.
“I will correct individuals when they say Huntington is on
the verge of a renaissance,” says Williams. “They couldn’t be
more wrong. Huntington is in the midst of a renaissance.”
One element of that renaissance has been the renewed
interest in Huntington’s reputation and narrative. A true collab-
oration, Marshall University, the City of Huntington, the ABC
implementation team and several downtown business owners
had all been working on their own campaigns to highlight the
city’s positive attributes when they decided to pool their re-
sources and work together to develop a platform for sharing
stories and experiences. The final product, the My Hunting-
ton movement, was unveiled in July 2018.
“We developed a path for all of these stories to be told using
a single statement that truly punctuates all of them—‘This is
#MyHuntington,’” says Sara Payne Scarbro, associate vice
president for external engagement for the Marshall University
Research Corporation and member of the My Huntington
committee. “Our goals are simple and pure. We want to em-
power others—residents and visitors alike—to recognize all of
Huntington’s strengths and share what they appreciate about
this special community by submitting their My Huntington
story for our website and using #MyHuntington in their every-
day social media posts about enjoying life in the city.”
Funded by the Foundation for the Tri-State Community,
My Huntington has had a remarkable response. Not only has
the hashtag been used more than 13,000 times across social
media since July, but the initiative also has a large group of
volunteers who serve on the advisory committee and meet
every three weeks to discuss community projects, upcoming
events and future My Huntington profiles and stories.
My Huntington creative partners include Bulldog Creative,
Bullseye Total Media and Ann Green Communications, and
spots for the movement have appeared across a variety of
platforms, including TV, radio, social media and newspapers,
encouraging natives and guests to share stories about Hunting-
ton’s innovation, economic development, beauty, opportunity,
sense of community and kindness.
“It comes back to taking ownership,” says Williams. “The
brilliance of My Huntington is that it is a way for folks to brag
about the town and say, ‘This is why I love my city.’ There is
a strategy involved to let the rest of the state and the region
know what is happening here. It eats at me to my core when
people take shots at what we are doing here. With the opioid
#MyHuntington
“#MyHuntington is our Huntington. The
Jewel City is the sparkling diamond in
the rough, and I wouldn’t have it any
other way!”
– Parry Casto
86
“I’ve never lived anywhere longer than I
have in Huntington. This is where I went
to college, got my first big girl job, bought
a house and had my daughter. I’ve loved
seeing the transition of Huntington through
the past 15 years I’ve lived here, and it
just keeps moving forward.” “I love getting to watch my children
learn and grow in #MyHuntington. This
city is full of inspiring, creative people
and has so many entertaining events
to attend and small businesses to
support. I know Huntington will offer
them amazing opportunities and a real
sense of community.”
– Christine Borders – Ryan McKenzie
WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE