The Mid- Ohio Valley Community is invited to participate in PioPitch Program on Thursday, January 23, at 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm  in Cooper Aditorium-124 Thomas Hall on Marietta College campus.   The theme of the program is Social Profit.  The presenters are William Reynolds and Jann Adams from the Washington County Historical Society and Bea Corra from the Mid-Ohio Valley Multicultural Festival.

William Reynolds is the President of the Washington County Historical Society. He is a graduate of Kent State University with a BA in Art History and a minor in Elementary Art Education. After a short period of employment with the Western Reserve Historical Society, Bill began working for the Ohio Historical Society at the Campus Martius and the Ohio River Museum. Over the years Bill has curated many exhibits including, Fashionable Finery of the 19th Century- Women’s Clothing of Southern Ohio, Decorative Arts of Southeast Ohio-1788 to 1840, Charles Sullivan and Sala Bosworth- Marietta Artists from the Philadelphia Academy, Commodore Posey- African American River Man, Touched by Conflict-Southern Ohio and the Civil War, The Vincent Family of Gunsmiths. Most recently, Bill has worked as a research assistant for David McCullough on the “Pioneers”.  

Jann Adams is on the boards of the Washington County Historical Society.  She holds a BS from West Virginia University and a MA from Marietta College. Following a career as a social studies teacher with Marietta City Schools, Jann pursued her interest in the local history of Marietta. Working with local tourism, Jann is a tour guide for Trolley Tour Incorporated, for the Marietta-Washington County Convention & Visitor Bureau, and the Hidden Marietta Touring Company. As a researcher, she has published the books, Behind The Doors of Historic Marietta and German Marietta and Washington County as well as several articles for The Tallow Light (quarterly magazine of Washington County Historical Society) and for the Hidden Marietta blog site.

As a college student in the late ’60’s, Bea Corra was always concerned about racial equality and favored diversity and inclusion. In 1995, Bea partnered with Eugene Donaway, to start the Mid-Ohio Valley Multi-Cultural Festival organization. The first Festival was held in June 1996. In 2011, Bea, with the MOVMCF, was awarded the Celtic Spirit Award by the Ancient Order of Hibernians and in 2014, WVUP’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Legacy Award. Bea is a retired federal employee. While a federal employee, Bea was a member of the Diversity Committee and assisted in the planning of presentations to employees of various cultural groups during “Awareness” months.

Each PioPitch session functions similar to a large focus group or a brain storming session, with two presenters per session. Each presenter is on stage for 30 minutes, providing an overview of his/her organization/idea for 5-10 minutes, followed by an introduction of a current opportunity or challenge (problem). The remainder of each presenter’s time is devoted to feedback from and dialogue with the audience.

The event is free and open to the public.

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