Meet the People of Prosperity
by Mike Davenport, ex-Mayor of Prosperity, PA
So, there’s this book that’s about to come out (November, I think) that’s about what happened when my tumbledown Rust Belt hometown of Pulver Forge, Pennsylvania turned itself around and became “Prosperity, Pennsylvania.” It started when some well-intentioned folks talked me into running for Mayor. The incumbent’s plan to save the town was to sell us out to a sociopathic Vegas casino nabob who wanted to build a casino where the steel mill used to be. This would gift the town with two hundred minimum wage, no benefit jobs along with the attendant rise in bankruptcy, prostitution, drug addiction, and crime. My platform was different. I said that everybody who wanted a job could have one, everybody who needed a healthy meal would get one, and everyone who needed to see a Doctor would see one.
Crazy, huh? Well, we did it. Yeah, we did. Really. It’s in the book. And you’ll be reading the words of the people who made it happen right here in this Substack. So let’s meet them:
REVEREND LUKE BRAMLETT—Pastor of “The First Church of Jesus Christ, Troublemaker.” Second-generation Evangelical promoter of the Prosperity Gospel™ who lost everything in a sordid front-page scandal. Born again with a new mission: “Be the hands, feet, eyes and body of Christ, and bless the world every day. Do the work that’s right in front of me. And believe in miracles, because one happened to me.” He’s my cheerful, witty, unpretentious compatriot. He recruited me, along with…
BETTY CHAPEL—She’s got “I Feed People” tattooed on her arm. A throw-away kid rescued by the Reverend Luke, this brilliant, dynamic vegan runs our mid-day meal program. She’s probably trained up a hundred young Prosperians in her kitchens. Her “Smokey Squash Chili with Quinoa, Pinto, and Black Beans” is sublime, just like everything she cooks.
YANDY LOPEZ—Yandy’s in charge of our ambitious Prosperity Gardens (including our new greenhouses, so we can have fresh produce in the winter.) He lived through the “Special Period” in Cuba, when the people faced starvation when the Soviets stopped sending seven million dollars a day in aid. Yandy’s lived experience of people coming together to save themselves saved us. He’s also Corporal Yandy Lopez, Scout sniper, Second Battalion, 1st Marines. Silver Star earned during Operation Vigilant Resolve, first battle of Fallujah (29 confirmed kills). He’s the guy you want in your foxhole.
MAKAYLA NICHOLS—Ex-Emmy Award-winning news reporter for WPTT-TV news in Pittsburgh. She got sick of the racism, sexism, and moral bankruptcy of local news to became Prosperity’s “Minister of Ballyhoo.” She’s our resident media genius, telling our story to the world. She’s also my wingman, most trusted advisor, and sounding board.
DR. KATE WALTHER—My high school love (and prom date). Became a Doctor, got enmeshed in the “profits first” Medical-Industrial Complex. As my best and longest friend, she convinced me to run for Mayor by agreeing to…well, let’s see, how did she put it? “Let’s hold hands and jump off this cliff together.” She runs our “see everybody, pay what you can” medical clinic.
NICK BARLOW—Ah, Nick. A stocky, skeptical Vietnam Vet and Libertarian grump who is also a wizard of automotive repair. He called me “Trotsky” when I met him. Took me quite a while to prove to him that what we were doing was, in fact, inspired by “communitarian anarchists” like him more than Marxist ideologues. One of the great joys of my life is arguing with Nick because he’s got an original take on everything and always plays fair. Plus he’s just a great, great guy.
CALVIN MASON MCCOY—Our venerable town historian. Calvin’s in his mid-90s now. He has lived through an astonishing amount of Pulver Forge/Prosperity history. He came of age during the golden age of the Pulver Forge Steel Works. He witnessed the closing of the mill and the shocking decline of the town. He’s the one who told us about the “Curse of Pulver Forge,” and helped show us how we could redeem the town.
RAVEN WASHBURN—Raven’s a chiropractor. And also a hairdresser/barber. Also a green-thumb gardener, and an auto mechanic. First and foremost, she’s a fierce and forceful community advocate for Prosperity. She fixed up our town finances. Did I mention this radiant African-American force of nature is also the granddaughter of Enoch Cornelius Pulver, our town founder? Long story (that’s in the book).
Couldn’t ask for a better crew. They’ll be posting here 2-3 times a week. I think they’d all agree with me: we didn’t do a single thing you can’t do in your community. Just do what we did: stop reading the “news,” find some folks who are as sick of “they way things are” as you are, and do what you can with what you’ve got from where you are.
BONUS QUOTE: Our lives are not our own. From womb to tomb, we are bound to others, past and present. And by each crime and every kindness, we birth our future. I believe there is another world waiting for us, a better one. And I’ll be waiting for you there. Robert Frobisher, from Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell