Some families, no matter how much they struggle, manage to stick together. Blanche Gates, a widowed Kentucky mother of 15, led one such family. In the 1960s, when coal jobs in Kentucky got scarce, Blanche and some of her sons joined a growing diaspora of Appalachians headed to Chicago. There, in a neighborhood nicknamed Hillbilly Heaven, Blanche made sure her children knew her deepest values: Work and family. One of Blanche’s children later returned to Kentucky, where we met some family members who remained in coal mining. Others spread far and wide, still holding on to the values Blanche had held so dear.

Executive Producers: Melissa Harris and Mary Schmich

Writer/Host: Mary Schmich

Producer: Bill Healy

Editors: Cate Cahan and Mark Jacob

Sound Designer/Audio Engineer: Libby Lussenhop

Associate Producer/Dialogue Editor: Chijioke Williams

Music Director/Composer: Chris Walz

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