Ron Short inducted into the Southwest Virginia Walk of Fame

David McGee

BIG STONE GAP, Va. — The Southwest Virginia Walk of Fame added 12 new members at the 15th Annual “Gathering in the Gap” Music Festival on May 27.

The Walk of Fame was founded to provide a showcase for the heritage of Southwest Virginia and to advance the knowledge, awareness and appreciation of great Southwest Virginians — past and present — who have made significant contributions to our state, nation and world, according to a written statement.

New inductees include:

Ron Short, musician, playwright, composer, and performer, is a native of Dickenson County. For more than 35 years, he traveled locally, nationally and internationally with other members of Roadside Theater, telling the stories, performing in the plays and singing the songs of his Appalachian heritage, always with the goal of teaching others to value and share their own stories. His original plays and other work from Roadside Theater have been recently published in a two-volume collection entitled Art in a Democracy for which he also served as an editor. In April of 2023, Ron won the Tennessee Songwriters Competition out of over 1,000 entries. After residing in Big Stone Gap for 38 years, Ron now lives in Duffield, and enjoys playing in his band, Ron Short and the Possum Playboys.

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