Calvin James Pynn

General Assignment Reporter

Radford, Virginia

Storyteller. Photographer. Professional listener and conveyor of truth. Musician. Lover of heavy metal, craft beer, and culture that stands the test of time. I graduated from Radford University in May 2012 with a Bachelor's in English and Media Studies with a focus on journalism. The mountains are my sanctuary.

Calvin James Pynn

General Assignment Reporter

Radford, Virginia

RU administrator is advocate for veterans
When Tracey Mattson was advising a veteran who came to her for help at Radford University’s Learning Assistance and Resource Center (LARC) a few years ago, she came to a realization. As students who served in the military transfer from their service into higher education, they are faced with circumstantial factors that make the process a little more difficult for them than the average citizen.
The Southwest Times
Board president ‘disrespected,’ moving on to ‘give new life to the museum’
Tye Kirkner, who, along with his mother Betty Lou Kirkner have been key figures in running the Raymond F. Ratcliffe Memorial Transportation Museum, will resign their positions from the museum’s nonprofit organization, The Friends of the Ratcliffe. Kirkner made the announcement on his and his mother’s behalf in a statement Tuesday night to the Pulaski Town Council, citing recent comments received from the town staff regarding concerns about the direction of the museum.
The Southwest Times
Potential flooding could have town in deep water
James Steele has seen many floods over the course of his life living in Kersey Bottom. “Every time it rains down here, I’ve seen things get washed away,” he says. Oftentimes, those things could be homes, vehicles and, unfortunately, even pets. He says that in the “bowl” shaped valley in which Kersey Bottom sits, the rain accumulates just from falling.
The Southwest Times
Shelor co-owner concerned with tax structure for Calfee Park, JPI
Baseball season is a go in Pulaski. The Pulaski Yankees are a few games into their new stadium at Calfee Park, and they’re settled in at their new home in the Jackson Park Inn and Conference Center. For the most part, everything seems to be falling into place as Pulaski’s reputation as a baseball town has been restored after potentially falling into obscurity.
The Southwest Times
Noah Thomas’ mother charged with felony homicide
Ashley White has been charged with felony murder in connection with the death of her son, Noah Thomas. White, 31, was charged on Wednesday, according to records from the New River Valley Regional Jail, where she is currently being held. She faces five years imprisonment and a maximum of 40 years on the charge.
The Southwest Times
Veteran travels country by horse-drawn wagon
When Rodger Howell embarked on a cross-country trip with no end in sight, he was prepared to live for only another few weeks. That was in 2013, when Howell, a Vietnam veteran, was told by doctors he was dying from exposure to Agent Orange during his time in the military. It prompted him to pack up a wagon with his bare essentials, and then set off into the unknown with his border collie, Banjo, by his side, and his horses, Sunny and Dancer, leading the way.
The Southwest Times
NRRA sets up clean energy facility at landfill
The gases that sit in the landfill at the New River Resource Authority (NRRA) will now be used as a clean energy source. The NRRA has partnered with Appalachian Electric Power (AEP) and energy distributor Ingenco to develop a landfill gas energy project using the waste material that accumulates at the site, located on Cloyd’s Mountain in Pulaski County.
The Southwest Times
Inmate sentenced to 20 years for malicious wounding
A Dublin man incarcerated at the New River Valley Regional Jail was sentenced Thursday to spend 20 more years behind bars for severely injuring another inmate in a brawl last spring. Michael Harvey, 45, was being held at the jail on a firearms possession after felony charge when he and the other inmate became involved in a dispute on April 3, 2014.
The Southwest Times
All-male dance class making moves
RADFORD – What happens when you get 15 guys together in a room and then have them all move to the same beat? “Mancing” happens – or, at least, it’s happening at the Elite School of Dance and Performance Art in Radford. The dance studio, which opened last summer, has been home to the New River Valley’s only all-male dance class since it started last fall.
The Southwest Times
Hoover Color, state partners to develop trail
The yellow sienna and earth-toned walls of Hoover Color Corporation’s iron oxide pigment mines in Hiwassee will soon be a sight to behold for hikers and mountain bikers. Hoover Color has partnered with the Virginia’s Department of Conservation & Recreation (VDCR) and Department of Mines, Minerals & Energy (DMME) to transform the 241-acre site into a recreation area complete with a hiking and biking trail.
The Southwest Times
Plan in progress for new Floyd housing community
The project, called Jubilee Cohousing, has been in the making since 2011, with anticipation to start construction in the next two years. Although the project is still in gestation, future residents are putting their minds together to make the community vision a reality. Once complete, this experimental concept will materialize as a modernly-designed neighborhood that encourages old-fashioned community values.
The Roanoke Times
Blacksburg woman goes bald for cause
It is the saying Erika Henry uses to describe her fight against cancer. Henry, a stay-at-home mom and former elementary school teacher, is neither a cancer patient nor victim. For the past three years, however, she has focused her efforts on helping to eliminate childhood and breast cancer. After collecting thousands of dollars to donate to cancer research, Henry decided it was time to give something that money can’t buy.
The Roanoke Times

About

Calvin James Pynn

News Writing

Social Media

Photography

Interviewing

Audio Production

Copy Editing

Multimedia Reporting

Radio Broadcasting

Hello there!

Just to give you all a bit of background, I was born in Richmond, VA, but then shortly moved to the New River Valley in Southwest Virginia, where I grew up and have been living ever since. I received my Bachelor's in English and Media Studies from Radford University in 2012.

My career in journalism first started when I was a sophomore at Auburn High School, writing for our news magazine the Winged Messenger. Although I enjoyed writing for the magazine, it left a bad taste in my mouth (because we had to sell ads in addition to writing, which I learned later is fortunately not a part of actual journalism), and I took a hiatus from news writing until about my junior year of college.

At that time, I had been working with WVRU 89.9 FM, the campus radio station, throughout my entire college career, which I continued until graduation. I hosted several shows throughout the week, and interviewed local musicians occasionally on my Sunday night show. While at the station I was a remote engineer responsible for recording recitals in RU's Music Department and editing them for later broadcast, and then was later promoted as the station's Operations Manager. I had also interned at Cumulus Media during that time with the local rock station 105.3, The Bear. Although my mind was pretty much set on pursuing radio as a career, I had a moment of clarity and remembered that my original purpose entering college was to write (which, disappointingly, I didn't really have a chance to do often in RU's English Department), and then deduced that journalism was perhaps my best path as a combination of my writing talents and my experience working in broadcast media.

I started writing for Radford University's newspaper, The Tartan, and shortly after became the paper's Arts & Entertainment editor during my senior year. During that time, I also wrote artist biographies for the guitar tutorial website AllAxess, and contributed articles to the music website BandQuote.

After graduating, I practiced journalism in my spare time to keep the momentum going in my career, including reading the Tuesday newscast on WUVT 90.7 FM, and working as a freelance reporter for The Roanoke Times.

Since November 2013, I have been working as a general assignment reporter for The Southwest Times, a small daily in Pulaski, VA. I have worked to cover a variety of beats, including education, town and county government, local business and industry, public safety, courts, and community features. I also supplement my reporting with multimedia including photography, video, and breaking social media updates in real time.

When I'm not diving face first in the news, I'm usually playing guitar, whether it be noodling around by myself or jamming with my friends, reading, creating space landscapes with spray paint, riding my bicycle, or frequenting a watering hole with a fine craft brew.

More of my work can be found on Contently, linked here.