Ten Questions with Jeremile Alexander: Building East Wheeling From the Inside Out

The first installment of the EBSHF Meet Our Strategic Partners series

History is not preserved by working alone.

The Eugene and Beverly Stradwick Heritage Foundation believes meaningful preservation depends upon relationships—with residents, educators, historians, community organizations and people actively shaping the future of the places whose stories we seek to protect.

In this new series, Meet Our Strategic Partners, we will introduce the organizations and leaders working alongside EBSHF to preserve African American history, strengthen communities and ensure that the experiences of Wheeling and the Upper Ohio Valley are carried into the future.

Our first conversation is with Jeremile Alexander, Executive Director of the East Wheeling Cooperative.

The relationship between EBSHF and the East Wheeling Cooperative is especially meaningful. East Wheeling has long been central to Wheeling’s African American history. Its streets have been home to families, churches, schools, businesses, civic organizations and generations of residents whose experiences form an indispensable part of the city’s story.

It is also a neighborhood whose future is being written now.

The East Wheeling Cooperative approaches that future with a clear philosophy: lasting community development must grow from the knowledge, participation and aspirations of the people who live there. Its work connects housing, workforce development, entrepreneurship, historic preservation, technology and neighborhood engagement.

In this conversation, Jeremile discusses his personal relationship with East Wheeling, the Cooperative’s “Built by Us, For Us” model, the danger of revitalization without residents and the powerful possibilities created when history, education and economic opportunity work together.

Please introduce yourself and tell our readers about your personal connection to East Wheeling and the experiences that prepared you to lead the East Wheeling Cooperative.

I’m Jeremile Alexander, Executive Director of the East Wheeling Cooperative. I grew up in East Wheeling and have spent the majority of my life here.

This community has been a family to me—a family I did not necessarily have growing up, especially because I’m not originally from the area and do not have family here.

East Wheeling became my community. The people, relationships and experiences I had here shaped who I am.

My professional background has taken me through the trades, construction, property services, real estate, entrepreneurship, food service and community development. I’ve had the opportunity to learn how to build things in many different ways—sometimes literally and sometimes figuratively.

Those experiences prepared me for EWC, but my connection to the community is what drives me.

I understand the challenges because I’ve lived here. But I have also experienced the strength, creativity and resilience of the Black community here firsthand.

I do not see East Wheeling as a project that needs to be fixed by outsiders. I see a community with people, history, talent and assets that need to be recognized, organized and invested in.

What inspired the creation of the East Wheeling Cooperative, and what needs or possibilities did you see in the neighborhood that others may have overlooked?

The idea really came from seeing the gap between what East Wheeling has and what people assume it has.

There are challenges—vacant properties, housing conditions, poverty and disinvestment—but if that is all you see, you miss the bigger picture.

You miss the people who have stayed. You miss the entrepreneurs. You miss the history. You miss the buildings. You miss the young people. You miss the skills and relationships that already exist here.

I wanted to create an organization that could bring those pieces together.

EWC is about creating a structure where community development, entrepreneurship, housing, workforce development, history and neighborhood engagement are not treated as separate issues. They are connected.

Our philosophy is simple: We Don’t Just Build. We Heal.

We want to do that one person, one block and one building at a time.

EWC speaks about building communities “from the inside out.” What does that philosophy mean in practice, and why must residents have a leading voice in determining the neighborhood’s future?

“From the inside out” means the people who live here are not an afterthought.

Too often, communities have plans developed for them rather than with them. Someone comes in, identifies a problem, develops a solution, secures funding and then tells the community what is going to happen.

We are trying to approach that differently.

Residents have lived experience that no consultant can replicate. They know which buildings matter, which stories have been forgotten, where people gather, what young people need and what has or has not worked before.

That does not mean every idea automatically becomes the plan. It means residents have a legitimate seat at the table.

Our job is to listen, organize, bring resources and help turn good ideas into action.

East Wheeling has frequently been described in terms of its challenges. What do you wish more people understood about its strengths, culture, resilience and people?

I wish people would stop looking at East Wheeling through a deficit lens.

Yes, there are challenges. We should not pretend otherwise. But a neighborhood is more than its statistics.

East Wheeling has a deep history, particularly within Wheeling’s Black community. It has churches, families, entrepreneurs, tradespeople, artists, educators and people who have continued to invest their lives here despite decades of disinvestment.

There is also a tremendous amount of pride here.

When you start talking to people who have roots in East Wheeling, you realize quickly that there are stories and relationships that do not appear in a census report.

That is one of the things I want EWC to help change. The narrative should not be, “Look at what is wrong with East Wheeling.”

It should be:

How can East Wheeling attract investment, improve housing and restore neglected properties without displacing residents or erasing the neighborhood’s identity?

We have to be intentional about what kind of investment we attract and who benefits from it.

Investment itself is not the enemy. Disinvestment is not good for anyone. We need housing, businesses, renovated properties and new economic activity.

But revitalization should not mean that the people who endured the difficult years are eventually priced out when conditions improve.

That means looking at affordable and attainable housing, local ownership, responsible redevelopment and opportunities for existing residents to participate economically.

It also means respecting the neighborhood’s architecture and history.

We do not need to turn East Wheeling into something it is not. We need to help East Wheeling become a stronger version of itself.

EWC champions a “Built by Us, For Us” model. How does investing in local workers, entrepreneurs and young people create benefits that extend beyond an individual building project?

A building project should not end when the ribbon is cut.

If we are renovating a property and all the money leaves the neighborhood, we have missed an opportunity.

But imagine that project creates opportunities for a local contractor, a young person learning a trade, a local business supplying materials, an entrepreneur providing a service and eventually someone from the neighborhood owning the property or business.

Now the project has created an ecosystem.

That is what “Built by Us, For Us” means to me. It is not about excluding people from outside the community. It is about making sure local people have a real opportunity to participate.

A building can improve a block.

Ownership, skills and opportunity can change a generation.

East Wheeling holds an especially important place in Wheeling’s African American history. How can knowledge of that history inform the neighborhood’s present-day revitalization?

History gives us context.

If we do not understand who lived here, what they built, what they overcame and what institutions they created, we are going to make decisions about the future without understanding the foundation upon which we are standing.

East Wheeling has stories that deserve to be preserved and shared—not simply because they are Black community stories, but because they are Wheeling stories.

Places such as Laughlin Chapel, Clay School and the broader history of Black life and business in East Wheeling are part of that story.

That history can also be an economic and educational asset. Historic interpretation, walking tours, oral histories, preservation and youth education can create ways for people to engage with the neighborhood while strengthening its identity.

We are not trying to live in the past.

We are trying to make sure the past is not lost while we build the future.

What made a partnership with the Eugene and Beverly Stradwick Heritage Foundation meaningful to EWC, and where do you see the missions of our two organizations intersecting?

What makes the partnership meaningful is a shared understanding that preserving history and building the future are not competing priorities.

The Eugene and Beverly Stradwick Heritage Foundation is focused on preserving and elevating Black history and heritage. EWC is focused on community development and creating opportunity in East Wheeling.

Those things naturally intersect.

You cannot fully understand where a community is going if you do not understand where it came from.

From EWC’s perspective, we are interested in making sure history is not simply something displayed in a museum or mentioned in a book. We want it connected to the people who live here today—especially young people.

That is where I see a great deal of potential.

What could EWC and EBSHF accomplish together—through oral histories, educational programs, historic interpretation, youth engagement or the preservation of important places—that neither organization could accomplish as effectively alone?

There is a great deal we could do together.

I would love to see us develop opportunities for young people to learn directly from elders and longtime residents through oral histories, while also teaching them about the places, businesses, churches, schools and people that shaped East Wheeling and the Black community.

But I also believe we have an opportunity to connect that history to where the economy is going.

Preparing young people for the new workforce and economy must be part of community development. Technology and artificial intelligence are creating opportunities for high-paying careers and businesses that are not limited by geography. It is one of the areas I believe remains vastly underused—even by some of the largest companies.

We have technology experts who are already partnering with EWC, and I want us to expose young people to those possibilities early. They should not simply learn how to use technology; they should learn how to build with it, create businesses around it and use it to solve problems.

Imagine combining the history of East Wheeling with technology, entrepreneurship and workforce development.

A young person could learn the history of the neighborhood from someone who lived it, acquire a trade or technology skill, develop a business idea and ultimately use those abilities to help build the community’s next chapter.

We could also work together on historic interpretation—markers, walking tours, digital storytelling, exhibits and community events.

The larger opportunity is to create a living connection between history, education, workforce development, technology and neighborhood revitalization.

That is how we make history relevant to the next generation—not simply by telling young people where we have been, but by giving them the tools to help determine where we are going.

Looking five or ten years ahead, what do you hope residents will see, feel and experience when they walk through East Wheeling—and what can people do today to help make that vision a reality?

I want people to walk through East Wheeling and see a neighborhood that feels alive, cared for and full of possibility.

I want to see more occupied and well-maintained homes, restored historic buildings, locally owned businesses, young people learning and working, entrepreneurs growing, and residents having real opportunities to build wealth.

But I also want something that is harder to measure.

I want people to feel proud.

I want a young person growing up in East Wheeling to look around and think, “I can build something here.”

And I want someone who grew up here, moved away and returns years later to recognize the neighborhood—but also be amazed by what has changed.

People do not have to wait for EWC to do something. They can tell their stories. Support local businesses. Mentor young people. Volunteer. Invest. Preserve buildings. Share information. Attend community meetings. Partner with organizations doing the work.

There is a role for everybody.

Ultimately, East Wheeling is not something we are rebuilding for someone else. We are building it for the people who are here, the people who came before us and the people who will come after us.

One person. One block. One building at a time.

Preservation and Revitalization Belong Together

Jeremile’s answers capture the reason EBSHF values this partnership.

Preservation cannot be limited to saving names, dates and photographs after a community has changed beyond recognition. It should help residents understand the inheritance beneath their feet while they still have an opportunity to shape what comes next.

Likewise, revitalization cannot be measured only by property values, construction totals or ribbon-cutting ceremonies. It must also be measured by who participates, who acquires skills, who gains ownership, who remains in the neighborhood and whether longtime residents can recognize themselves in its future.

East Wheeling’s history is not incidental to its redevelopment. It is one of the neighborhood’s most important assets.

The stories of its residents, schools, churches, businesses and civic institutions can support education, historic interpretation and cultural tourism. More importantly, those stories can give young people evidence that people from their neighborhood have built institutions, overcome barriers, led movements and contributed to Wheeling for generations.

EBSHF brings historical research, preservation and interpretation to this partnership. EWC brings community development, workforce preparation, entrepreneurship and sustained neighborhood engagement.

Working together, the two organizations can help ensure that East Wheeling’s future does not require the erasure of its past.

-T

About the East Wheeling Cooperative

The East Wheeling Cooperative is a community-centered organization working to strengthen East Wheeling through housing, property revitalization, entrepreneurship, workforce development, technology, historic preservation and resident engagement.

Its work is grounded in the belief that communities should be developed from the inside out, with residents helping determine the future of the places they call home.

To learn more, visit EastWheelingCo.org.

About This Series

Meet Our Strategic Partners introduces the organizations and leaders collaborating with the Eugene and Beverly Stradwick Heritage Foundation to preserve history, strengthen communities and create educational opportunities throughout Wheeling and the Upper Ohio Valley.

Through these conversations, we hope readers will learn not only what our partners do, but also what motivates them, how our missions intersect and what becomes possible when organizations work together with shared purpose and mutual respect.