“We Are the Keepers of the Mountains, Love Them or Leave Them, Just Don’t Destroy Them.
Larry Gibson, 1946-2012
This is what Larry fought against
Thank you Larry…
FAREWELL TO A FRIEND OF THE MOUNTAINS- Longtime environmental activist Larry Gibson died this past weekend while working on his cabin on Kayford Mountain, West Virginia, where he spent the last two decades doggedly fighting mountaintop removal coal mining (MTR). Kayford Mountain was the site of Larry’s birth, the final resting place of some 300 of his ancestors stretching back to the 18th century, and the site of Larry’s annual July 4 festival celebrating life in the mountains. His impassioned, relentless opposition to MTR caused Larry to be followed, harassed, have his phone tapped, get run off the road, and targeted by drive-by shootings at his home. Larry traveled tirelessly around the country to talk at schools, churches, and any public gathering where he could spread his gospel about the mountains: “Love ‘em or leave ‘em; just don’t destroy ‘em.”
