There are people whose influence is measured not by headlines or titles, but by the quiet, lasting changes they leave in their wake. In Scott County, few names better fit that description than Larry West, founder and long-time executive director of Scott Appalachian Industries Inc.
When Scott County advertised for a director for its program for persons of disabilities in the 1970s, one of the applicants for the job was Larry West. After being hired by the county, West started Scott Appalachian Industries, a Huntsville-based non-profit, to grow the services offered to persons with disability, as well as the number of people who could be served. And SAI has only continued to grow and expand since that time.
West also started Housing Opportunities & People Enterprises (HOPE), a separate company that provides housing for persons with disabilities who have mobility needs.
The 2025 Independent Herald/Scott County Chamber of Commerce Person of the Year award honors Larry West for his dedication to the community and its people. It isn’t so much for what he did during the 2025 calendar year; West is retired and his declining health no longer permits him to be involved in the day-to-day operations of the company he led for nearly 40 years.
But West’s impact was still being felt this year — and will for many years yet to come. In October, with West and his wife, Bonnie, on hand, SAI handed over the keys to a brand-new ambulance that it donated to the Scott County Ambulance Service. Kaprecia Babb, one of West’s five daughters who is carrying on her father’s legacy as SAI’s administrative director, pointed out that the donation of the ambulance was a tribute to her father’s lifetime of work, saying: “As long as we have existed he has said, ‘I want to give back to my community; I don’t want to be a burden.’ He always said that if we couldn’t afford it, we didn’t need it. He’s retired now but this is the time we can give back and it’s only because of what he has done all these years.”
Any recognition offered to West is recognition that is long overdue for a man who has done more than perhaps anyone else to expand opportunity, dignity, and independence for residents with disabilities in this community.
For decades, West devoted his professional life to a mission that most never fully see: ensuring that people with disabilities are not sidelined, overlooked, or forgotten, but instead supported, empowered, and included. Through Scott Appalachian Industries, he helped build a comprehensive network of services that addressed real needs — employment opportunities, daily living support, vocational training, community integration— at a time when such resources were scarce, especially in rural Appalachia.
What set West apart was not just vision, but persistence. Establishing and sustaining services for disabled individuals in a small county is never easy. There have been funding challenges, staffing shortages, and regulatory hurdles. But under West’s leadership, SAI grew from an idea into a lifeline — one that families could depend on and participants could trust.
It might be impossible to count exactly how many families SAI has provided hope for since it was founded more than 40 years ago. For those families, it has meant knowing that their loved one would be treated with respect, encouraged to develop skills, and given the chance to contribute meaningfully to the community. It has meant dignity— something that West always believed wasn’t optional but essential.
Despite the scope of his work, West has never sought recognition. He built programs, not portfolios. He focused on outcomes, not accolades. In a county full of hard workers who do good quietly, even by those standards, his humility stands out.
And that is precisely why this recognition matters.
Scott County’s Person of the Year is not always the loudest voice or the most visible figure. Sometimes it is the person who shows up day after day, year after year, doing the work that changes lives in ways that statistics can’t fully capture.
Larry West is that person. His legacy will live on in the services that SAI will continue to provide, the individuals who gained confidence and independence, and the families whose burdens were lightened because someone cared enough to build something lasting.
For improving the quality of life for disabled residents, for strengthening the social fabric of Scott County, and for doing it all without fanfare, Larry West is a worthy and deserving choice as the Independent Herald/Scott County Chamber of Commerce Person of the Year.
Note: The Scott County Person of the Year is presented annually by the Independent Herald and the Scott County Chamber of Commerce. The award is formally presented at the Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting in January. It will be held this year on Jan. 22, 2026.
Past person of the year recipients
2024: Linda Byrge
2023: Wayne King
2022: Jerry Slaven
2021: Kellie Walker
2020: Randy Byrge
2019: Dan & Michelle King
2018: Kaidence Lewallen
2017: Joe Cross
2016: Tony Taylor
2015: Jerry Slaven
2014: Stacey Swann
2013: Amy Martin