Visitors can gain insights into living conditions in mining communities through a new photography exhibit, "Our Future in Retrospect? Coal Miner Health in Appalachia,” currently on display at the Blessed John XXIII Pastoral Center in Charleston.

The exhibit, sponsored by the Wheeling Jesuit University Appalachian Institute, will remain at the Pastoral Center until early March.

“We hope this exhibit and our guest speakers will help spark more interest and reflection on health and safety in mining communities,” says Dr. Jill Kriesky, executive director of the Appalachian Institute at Wheeling Jesuit University, WV.

The exhibit includes photographs taken by Russell Lee in 1946 and photojournalist Earl Dotter, who recently photographed health conditions in today's southern West Virginia and eastern Kentucky coalfield region. Thanks to this treasure trove of photographs, the exhibit documents the progress and regress in health practices and conditions in Appalachia.

The University plans to display the exhibit in the future at other locations in Charleston, the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, and Washington, DC.

John XXIII Pastoral Center is located at 100 Hodges Road, Charleston. Its hours are 7 a.m. – 10:30 p.m. daily. For directions, contact the Center at 304-342-0507.

For more information on the Appalachian Institute, or to view a preview of the photo exhibit, please visit the webpage at http://www3.cet.edu/appalachianinstitute/.

This online version of the Appalachian Institute exhibit allows people all over the world to compare life in coal communities in 1946 with today's conditions, captured by Dotter.

The exhibit is part of Wheeling Jesuit University’s Jesuit Jubilee Celebration, which marks the memory of the founders of the Society of Jesus: Francis Xavier and Peter Faber, both born in 1506; and Ignatius Loyola, who died in 1556. The Jubilee Year officially began December 3, 2005 and will last through December 2006, across the world. Wheeling Jesuit University will have a number of public events to mark the Jubilee.

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