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December 27, 2024 - Coal Country Miniature Golf in the city of Fairmont tried something new for the holiday season this year. Caroline Davis, executive director of the Northern Appalachian Coal Mining Heritage Association, said officials created a “winter wonderland mini golf course.”
The decorations serve a purpose. It is to bring in patrons for Christmas at Coal Country, a fundraising event with the proceeds going to support Northern Appalachian Coal Mining Heritage Association.
 Coal Country Miniature Golf decorated for a Christmas themed fundraiser to raise money for its educational efforts on December 12.
Photo: Esteban Fernandez
The organization is a nonprofit dedicated to coal heritage education and preservation. On top of maintaining what museum pieces Northern Appalachian Coal Mining Heritage Association already has, Davis said they’re trying to get some new programs up and going for educational purposes. They’re also trying to get more exhibits to the six surrounding counties.
Devin Richards, an AmeriCorps worker, strung the course with lights and stoked a fire for warmth. He said it took about three days to setup the course for its winter wonderland debut. Richards had to contend with not just the cold, but the rain as well, throughout the process.
“We kind of partnered with the Marion County Convention and Visitors Bureau,” Richards said. “It was kind of a last minute thing.”
Northern Appalachian Coal Mining Heritage Association President Mike Rohaly said the event is something to fill in an event gap with all the holiday-themed celebrations going on. NACMHA’s major event is the Annual Coal Miner Swap Meet.
Rohaly trod around the grounds in a festive Santa hat but worried the cold would keep folks away.
“We had fun decorating the place and getting ready,” he said. “This event pertains to our coal mining heritage. It helps connect our swap main event with Miner’s Day, which was over a week ago.”
Rohaly said there used to be an event on Miner’s Day, which commemorates the Monongah Mine Disaster of 1907, but one hasn’t taken place recently. He wants to see one return.
Davis is adamant about preserving West Virginia’s coal heritage.
“We’ve been able to get so far because of the coal heritage we have here and the work that people have done specifically here in West Virginia,” she said. “You don’t have to go far to find someone who’s been impacted by the coal industry, whether your dad worked, your grandfather, you have a cousin, an uncle, whoever. There’s something that will tie you and your family back to the coal industry here in West Virginia. So we think it’s important to tell those stories.”
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