In 1985 when College second-year Grant Woolard was born, his hometown of Martinsville, Virginia was the "Sweatshirt Capital of the World." A town where bluegrass plays on the radio and NASCAR is the sport of choice, Martinsville had a thriving industry in furniture and textile manufacturing.
Today, though, Martinsville is better known for its unemployment and economic difficulties.
"It's really just a lot of warehouses that are empty," Woolard said. "They're like the empty souls of the town. There's no sign of growth anywhere right now."
Southside, the area in southern Virginia encompassing Martinsville, Danville, South Boston and the counties of Henry, Pittsylvania, Patrick and Franklin, has been experiencing significant economic difficulties in recent years. In Danville, the unemployment rate reached 8.9 percent this year, compared to the overall unemployment rate for the state, which did not exceeded 3.5 percent in 2005, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
While some area chambers of commerce have been focusing on developing new industries, other organizations are looking to another potential source for economic development
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