What "60 Minutes" Didn't Tell You About Wilmington, Ohio

By Nonpartisan, Section Diaries
Posted on Sun Jan 25, 2009 at 11:45:14 PM EST
Tags: ENERGIZE Clinton County, 60 Minutes, Wilmington, Ohio, Clinton County, economic crisis, economy (all tags)

Share This: Digg!

Tonight, the TV newsmagazine "60 Minutes" did a story on the economic crisis facing Wilmington, Ohio, a town of 12,000 people nearly all of whom are being laid off by freight corporation DHL. If you missed the heartrending segment, you can watch it here.

Here's what Scott Pelley of "60 Minutes" didn't tell you: there's a promising local effort to help the people of Wilmington -- and there are a few things you can do to help their plan become a reality without getting up from your computer.

Last Thanksgiving, I brought you the story of Taylor Stuckert and Mark Rembert, two recent college grads from Wilmington who postponed their Peace Corps tours to return home and help save the town they grew up in. Their project, ENERGIZE Clinton County, has grown since then into a burgeoning local movement, complete with an office, two websites (the other one is here), a passel of media coverage, public meetings in Wilmington and elsewhere, and most recently a weeklong pilgrimage to Washington, where Taylor and Mark presented their case to Sens. Brown and Voinovich. (I covered some of their progress here.)

Their proposal is simple: turn Wilmington and Clinton County into a Green Enterprise Zone, securing federal and state monies to build green industry and provide jobs for the skilled workforce laid off by DHL. They've released a series of specific proposals to achieve this goal. They've held well-attended meetings to raise awareness for their plan across Ohio and in the nation's capital.

And now, they need your help.

In response to the interest generated by the "60 Min