Berkeley Springs Chamber of Commerce President Jeanne Mozier took to the airwaves yesterday morning to promote the first annual Morgan County Job Fair.
Mozier appeared on the WRNR radio show Eastern Panhandle Talk with Rob Mario and Dave Welch.
Mario said Mozier is one of the show’s favorite guests and introduced her as “Ivy League educated, CIA indoctrinated, Morgan County marinated Jeanne Mozier” to the theme song of the television show “I Dream of Jeannie.”
The Job Fair will be held on Thursday January 25 from 2 pm to 5 pm at Cacapon State Park.
Over thirty local employers will be interviewing job seekers. Mozier said the employers at Cacapon State Park will include the Country Inn, Gat Creek, Reed’s Pharmacy, the Morgan County Government, McDonald’s, Food Lion, CNB Bank.
“What we have learned is that even though lots of politicos talk about jobs, jobs, jobs, the reality is that lots of employers who have those jobs can’t find people to fill them,” Mozier said.
“Is that because the population is not large enough or because the population isn’t sober enough?” Mario asked.
“This is not just a Morgan County phenomenon,” Mozier said. “The issues are – not having the technical capacity for the job, not having the desire to work, and then you are right – not being able to pass a drug test.”
“As a result, there are a lot of jobs out there that simply are not being filled. We want to bring together the job seekers and the people with the jobs to hopefully employ more people locally.”
“Over here on this side of the mountain, the economy appears to be pretty strong in Berkeley and Jefferson County. How is it doing in Morgan County?” Welch asked.
“I think it’s doing great,” Mozier said. “Gat Creek is getting great publicity. Coolfont is going to be opening sometime in the spring. They are going to break ground for the expansion of Cacapon State Park sometime in the spring. We have a couple of new restaurants opening up. And we had no trouble getting thirty employers who wanted to come and look at job seekers. That’s a great sign.”
“How is the new Coolfont going to look – like the old one?” Welch asked.
“Probably a little different,” Mozier said. “One of the exciting things is that the Berkeley Springs Brewing Company has already moved out to Coolfont. They are going to have their brewery and their brew pub right where the laundry building used to be. The lodge, which was right across the street from the main Treetop House – that’s all done and ready for people to come and stay. And they are working on the Treetop House and they are working on the spa. They are looking to add more camping. It’s going to be a surprise for all of us.”
On the proposed 522 bypass, Mozier says she’s still opposed.
“I still oppose the bypass,” Mozier said. “I’ve been opposed for the last twenty some years. And nothing changes my mind. The bypass would be a death knell for the town.”
“I was in Winchester yesterday, sitting at one of those weird intersections they have down there. And I thought – people complain about traffic in Berkeley Springs? Look at what we have to do in Winchester. There are better ways to use the money in this state. And I would happily vote to give our bypass allocation to somebody else.”