'Hillbilly Elegy' author exhorts Republicans at Boardman dinner to save middle class

BOARDMAN

Far from his “hillbilly” roots, J.D. Vance, author of the New York Times best-seller “Hillbilly Elegy,” dined under chandeliers at The Georgetown alongside a who’s-who assembly of district Republicans during the Mahoning County Republican Party’s annual Lincoln Day Dinner tonight.

Party Chairman Mark Munroe hosted the event, and was joined by several elected Republicans from the region, including County Auditor Ralph Meacham, state Sen. Keith Faber, R- 84th, and state Auditor Dave Yost.

Attendees were eager to meet Vance, whose popularity exploded last year when his book became a favorite of pundits and politicians eager to gain insight into the “white-working class.”

The book tells the true story of Vance’s upbringing between Middletown, Ohio, and Breathitt County, Ky., focusing on his “hillbilly” family and how changes in job availability and drug abuse tied to economic issues impacted his life.

Vance was the dinner’s keynote speaker, telling stories from his book as well as exhorting the gathered Republicans to bear the responsibility of “keeping the American Dream alive” by offering solutions to the shrinking middle class.

Read more about the event in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.