"Her appreciation and understanding of the importance of having a sense of "place" or commuinity, I believe is grounded in her life experience of having grown up in Appalachia in a family with limited resources and being uprooted and compelled to move as a child. While she does not frame her work and commitment in terms of these experiences and reality, her drive and intensity clearly reflect a profound appreciation of the importance of creating and supporting quality communities as a means of enhancing the lives of all children and families."