By Rosemary Ketchum
For HDMedia
Across our state, there’s an invisible team hard at work.
It’s the driver who rises before dawn to make sure his truck of food makes it to the food pantry on time. And the worker who won’t stop calling until a treatment bed becomes available. And the nonprofit director who leaves her meeting early to ensure a senior makes it to his doctor’s appointment on time because she can’t find enough volunteers.
Every day, more than 80,000 people employed by West Virginia’s nonprofits show up to work driven by something greater than themselves. But it isn’t just the mission that fuels them – It’s a work ethic. A deep dedication and drive to keep going even when they can’t see the finish line.
As the Executive Director of West Virginia’s Nonprofit Association, I’ve witnessed it in every corner of the state. From the large organizations with more than 100 staff to the smaller ones of only two or three, nonprofit workers are the invisible backbone holding so many of our communities together.
But that drive to keep going, and to maintain hope, is being especially tested right now.
Federal funding cuts and government instability have created a perfect storm for West Virginia nonprofits. We hear from organizations across the state that are struggling to fundraise while simultaneously facing growing community needs. Some have already had to let staff go, but the people those workers served don’t disappear – their needs just go unmet.
We can’t afford to have these organizations saddled with any more of the work and expected to do it with even less financial support.
Now that the 2026 legislative session has concluded, we have to take a hard look at recent state budget decisions that have only added to the pressure, and we must honestly reckon with how those choices will impact the nonprofit sector that makes up 15% of West Virginia’s workforce.
Because so much of this work goes unnoticed, we created Work Ethic – an online space where nonprofit workers across WV can share what this work really looks like, in their own words. We know there are many more stories to tell. You can share your story by uploading a video to https://bit.ly/WEShare.
When asked what it would mean if his organization went away, Jacob Hannah, CEO of Coalfield Development, said, “Without this work, empty buildings would stay empty in Appalachia. Folks looking for opportunities would keep looking. And the jobs that we hoped would come to the region, don’t come.
“We have to build our own destiny.”
Sure, this work can feel invisible at times. But we would all notice pretty quickly, if it went away.
West Virginia needs its nonprofits. These organizations exist out of necessity and if they go away, there’s no one at the ready to replace them.
From the times when people gathered in church basements and coal camps to pool their resources, to today’s nonprofit workers making sure people are fed, housed, and not alone, looking out for your neighbor is something West Virginians already know how to do.
It’s etched into our DNA and passed down from generation to generation. Because we know, too well, that if we don’t look out for one another, no one else will.
If you care about your community, show it. Donate to a local nonprofit. Volunteer your time. Advocate for the organizations doing the work that holds this state together. And if you are part of this sector – tell your story. We are listening, and West Virginia is ready to hear it.
