katrencikphoto
One in five of the people who call this small town ‘home’ live below the poverty line. There aren’t as many jobs here as there used to be—the manufacturing jobs have all gone overseas, and the jobs that remain don’t pay as well as the old ones. A lot of the young men and some of the women join the military right out of high school—partly to get away, partly to see the world, partly out of patriotism, partly because there’s no work to be had and no money to go to college.
Kids who used to run the red light on the corner of Cherry and Liberty are now driving deuce and a halfs in Iraq and running PMCS on Humvees in Afghanistan. Kids who used to wear letter jackets in school are now putting on 782 gear; instead of baseball caps they’re wearing kevlar on their heads. Instead of calling their girlfriends and boyfriends, they’re calling in air strikes.
Back home the small businesses are closing their doors. The Wal-Mart Superstore is doing well, selling inexpensive goods manufactured in China and Southeast Asia. On Sundays the pastor in the church will offer a prayer for members of the military. And the television news will report that Lindsay Lohan is back in rehab.
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