Letter to Saltville-Rich Valley Lions Club
August
18, 2009
Larry D.
Hogston
P.O. Box
1127
Saltville,
VA 24370
Saltville-Rich Valley Lions Club
P.O. Box
1064
Saltville,
VA 24370
RE: Letter
from Lions Club dated October 24, 2008
Dear Sir:
I would
like to thank the Lions Club for allowing us to use the grounds for the past 11
years for our Saltville Jam. In a time when the local musicians were being
shunned, the Lions Club leadership stood up for us and allowed the Saltville Jam
to thrive.
Although
the Saltville Jam has been a lot of very hard work and expensive at times, it
has truly been a labor of love. It’s still hard for me to understand all of the
opposition we have gotten over these past 12 years from some of the “powers that
be”. The Saltville Jam has been responsible for bringing hundreds if not
thousands of people into town, not to mention all of the great entertainers that
have graced our stages. The Lions Club was always the “rock” that allowed us a
firm foundation in the midst of a town that appeared to not want us. This has
never made any sense to me as we have only tried to add to the Labor Day
Celebration, not take away from it. It has never cost the town one cent to put
on our jam; we did it all ourselves (advertising, setup, musician lineup, etc.).
They should have been praising us and trying to help us the whole time.
The Lions
Club’s decision to deny us the use of the grounds without any explanation has
really shocked the many participants and followers of the Saltville Jam. It says
a lot when your leaders, of whom I have respected so highly over the years,
resorted to sending me a registered letter rather than contacting me in person
to discuss your perceived problem with us. The rumors I’ve heard range from
slanderous to ridiculous, and contain very few facts. As I look at it now, the
Lions Club has had ample time to have offered me an explanation, of which I feel
I deserve. Your local organization has really earned a “black-eye” in the
community and surrounding areas for the way this was handled. Maybe your future
leaders will exercise more wisdom when dealing with people that are trying to do
good for their community.
Since
“every adversity carries with it the seed of an equivalent benefit”, we have
decided to move our jam out of the adversarial environment of Saltville to
Chilhowie. The benefits seem to be plentiful as Chilhowie has welcomed us with
open arms. Our weekly jam has grown tremendously since we moved it from
Saltville to Chilhowie, and I’m sure our annual jam will do the same.
A flyer for the Saltville Jam
Smyth County Jam Festival is
attached.
Sincerely,
Larry D.
Hogston, Organizer