Restitution In Small Town South

The railroad, the river, the town. Kudzu devours the riverbank and the surrounding hollers, stretching its hand towards Main Street.

Slowly, but surely, the street comes alive with footsteps and southern twang. A web of small town characters fade into view, intrinsic connection between every individual.

The mayor of Hazard, Ky., Donald “Happy” Mobelini doesn’t mean to brag, but he’s proud of what this town has grown into, especially in their downtown area.

”The number one goal is, we really try to rebuild our Main Street,” Happy explains with a gravelly, yet soft, timbre as he walks down the warm concrete steps of City Hall.

After just seven years of Happy’s leadership, what used to be lined with vacant buildings full of potential now flourishes with various small businesses and a fresh air of resilience. Of course, this effort wasn’t his alone.

“Sometimes, I can’t tell if I’m working or just living,” says Joey Jones, who was appointed downtown coordinator just two months ago.

His work environment may be new, but his involvement in the community didn’t begin so recently. Joey went to high school in Hazard, with Happy as his principal.

Once he graduated, he moved to Louisville for 10 years to obtain a degree in social work. He moved back to Hazard after the birth of his second son, to be closer to family.

”Don’t just move back here, get involved,” Happy told Joey at his return.

So he did. Joey decided to pursue a dream he and his wife always placed on the back burner establishing an independent toy store.

Joey’s new office sits directly above his toy store, but his responsibilities as downtown coordinator keep him away for the most part.

He mourns this loss of connection, missing the twinkling eyes and excited outstretched hands of the children he used to see almost every day.

But he doesn’t regret this change in position, as he knows his greater purpose still serves those
kids.

Hope for the town’s children is a guiding light for Happy as well, as he balances the stressful responsibility of revitalization with being a new grandfather.

Happy and Joey want Hazard to be a town that kids don’t have to move away from when they grow up