Youth Voices Rising: Naomi Carter and Zoey Gray Share What Makes West Virginia Home

This story is part of Youth Voices Rising, a Black By God narrative-change project supported by The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation and produced in partnership with the Norman Jordan African American Arts and Heritage Academy at West Virginia State University.

People, pepperoni rolls and mountain views. When Zoey Gray talks about West Virginia, the things she appreciates are part of everyday life.

During Black By God’s Youth Voices Rising journalism workshop, Gray and Naomi Carter, both South Charleston High School students, took turns interviewing each other about the communities they call home.

Carter interviewed Gray, about what she values in her surroundings. Gray pointed to the people, local gatherings and a familiar West Virginia food: pepperoni rolls.

She also described the natural beauty around her.

“The mountains we got, the trees we got is beautiful,” Gray said.

Her answer connected community life with the landscape—both the places where people gather and the scenery they see around them.

When Gray interviewed Carter, Carter described pride in the condition of the place she calls home. She appreciates that “it’s clean and it’s neat.”

For Carter, those everyday qualities are part of what makes her community a place she values. Her response adds another perspective to the conversation: the appearance and care of familiar surroundings can shape how a young person feels about home.

Gray also offered encouragement for making connections with others.

“Don’t be so shy,” she said. “Talk to people.”

The students put that advice into practice through their interviews. Each had an opportunity to ask questions, listen and share something about herself.

Together, their answers offer a view of West Virginia through details that matter to them: community gatherings, familiar food, trees, mountains and pride in where they live. Their conversation gives those everyday experiences a place in the story of their state.