TBAI and RSVP Collaborate to Establish
Neighborhood Watch Committee in Ashland, WV

Travel Beautiful Appalachia, Inc. (TBAI) and The Council of the Southern Mountains’ Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) came together and helped establish a Neighborhood Watch Committee in the Ashland WV area.
Neighborhood Watch committees are formed by community residents working toward the common goal of making their neighborhoods a better and safer place to live. Approximately 15 residents in the Ashland community are now dedicated to becoming the “eyes and ears” of local law enforcement, thanks to the RSVP representatives Barbara Careres, Lyvonne Dyer, and Deborah Powell. Increasingly, citizens and law enforcement professionals realize that neither one can eradicate crime working separately. Working cooperatively can and will have a positive effect on the community.
From the very first meeting in June to date, the Ashland Neighborhood Watch Committee has done nothing but grow. It is rewarding to see the residents of the Ashland area concerned with their neighborhood and its safety, said Debbie Bailey, Business Development Manager, TBAI.
TBAI is a non-profit organization promoting economic development opportunities to the people of McDowell, Wyoming, and Mercer Counties.  Programs, such as the Neighborhood Watch Committee, are made possible by TBAI through the West Virginia Development Office Flex-E-Grant.