Last year, when my son was 9, he presented me with a drawing he made in art class. Filled with stories of my travels to Appalachia to help organize against mountaintop removal coal mining, Brooks explained that his picture is how mountains should always remain: not blown up.
I liked this picture so much that I put it in a frame and placed it on a shelf in my office. I look at it often throughout the day and am always inspired by it. I'm working to save mountains today...for tomorrow.
"Mountains" by Brooks Perks
Imagine my delight at learning about a new website about mountaintop removal created by a little girl named Ana Humphrey. The site -- www.kidslovemountains.org -- is filled with facts about the world's most extreme strip mining and includes drawings Ana made to depict every stage of the mining process.
I don't know Ana but I'm so proud of her. And I'm grateful that she's doing what she can to inspire others to save America's oldest mountains. Thanks, Ana!