BLOUNTVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — A newly-published book explores the lessons one local woman learned while working in community relations on the Boone Dam Project.
Fill the Dam Thing Up! dives into Mary Ellen Miller’s experience working with the concerned public throughout the process of repairing and reopening Boone Dam. The $400 million project took seven years of work and leadership from around the globe, according to Miller, who served as the project’s head of public relations.
Miller told News Channel 11 that neighboring residents who were initially skeptical, scared and what she called “adversarial” ended up being passionate volunteers for the project.
“I write about that in the book, how we tried to turn something that was a negative into a positive,” she said. “We ended up even working with some of the neighbors who had initially been adversarial and they actually would work with us in a volunteer capacity.”
Miller hosted a book launch at The Moon Coffee and Tea House on Saturday. She told audience members about how she uses her experience leading the PR side of the Boone Dam Project to build a guide in her book for taking on public crises. She said she uses that as a jumping point to discuss lessons far beyond a project like Boone Dam.
Fill the Dam Thing Up! is available for purchase on Amazon.
