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Southern Heroes

Special Issue

Making a Southern Stand

The best of the most distinctive region in the country could be vanishing before our eyes

G&G PRESENTS:

30 Southern Heroes

From conservationists to cultural champions to preservationists to storytellers, these groundbreakers are making the South a better place

Southern Heroes

Rhiannon Giddens: The Storyteller

With her innovative albums, a ballet, and now an opera, the musical genius elevates neglected pieces of Southern history to works of art

Southern Heroes

Ronald Kendall: The Quail Doctor

The Texan is helping bring back the bobwhite, icon of Southern game birds

SOUTHERN HEROES

Sarah Ross: The Seed Restorer

The Georgian works to perpetuate the South’s heirloom crops

Southern Heroes

Eric S. Martin : The Lighthouse Keeper

The preservationist relighting the way in the Florida Keys

Southern Heroes

Cindy Ayers Elliott: The Agrarian Evangelist

The upstart Mississippi farmer brings a new mindset to tending the land

Southern Heroes

Wendell Berry: The Poet of Place

A conversation, in letters, with one of the South’s most vital voices

Southern Heroes

Walt Wolfram: The Accent Advocate

The professor of sociolinguistics tracks the distinctive speech of the South

Southern Heroes

Hub City Writers Project: The Literary Lights

A South Carolina trio elevates the work of Southern storytellers

Southern Heroes

Craig LeHoullier: The Tomato King

This propagator of the Cherokee Purple preserves and protects the South’s favored summertime crop

Southern Heroes

Fawn Weaver: The Whiskey Benefactor

The co-founder of Uncle Nearest, the most-awarded new whiskey brand in the country, keeps an undersung distiller’s legacy alive

Southern Heroes

Liz McCartney & Zack Rosenburg: The Rebuilders

This couple sprang into action constructing houses after Katrina—and haven’t stopped since

Arts & Culture

Franklin D. Vagnone: The Firebrand

The Winston-Salem director is revolutionizing how house museums embrace a hands-on approach to history

SOUTHERN HEROES

Amir Touré, BJ Dennis, and Sallie Ann Robinson: The Torchbearers

Three guardians of Gullah Geechee culture work to help their Lowcountry traditions not only survive, but thrive

SOUTHERN HEROES

The Cajun Navy: The Rescuers

Through hell and high water, the Louisiana groups form a river of relief

Southern Heroes

Darius Rucker: The Music Maker

The country star turns his gaze on history with the new National Museum of African American Music in Nashville

Southern Heroes

Karen Amspacher: The Maritime Defender

The North Carolina native advocates for the culture of the Down East region

Southern Heroes

Doug Naselroad: The Teacher

The Kentucky luthier helps addicts in recovery by teaching them how to make musical instruments

Southern Heroes

Rudy Reyes: The Coral Commando

The Marine sergeant and his fellow Force Blue veterans find peace while diving to preserve vital coral tracts off Florida