The Politician & the Preacher (5 of 16)

You wouldn't want to miss breakfast in the Main Street Diner, where the $3 breakfast bowl gets you eggs, sausage, potatoes, and gravy. Ate with The Politician & The Preacher, as they are known, who hold court and greet everyone who enters. (Think Click & Clack of Appalachia.) Tom, the Politican (left) moved back to McArthur after years away because the area was in decline and he wanted to do something about it. Jim, the Preacher (right), goes “yard saling,” convincing people not to throw away clothes that he can donate to Goodwill in exchange for clothing credit for poor people. This matters because the general budget for the county lost $200,000 this year—almost 10% of its budget—with the same percentage lost in Family Services.