Megan McConachie knows a lot of good things about Missouri, as she should – she’s the strategic communications manager for the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau.
McConachie spoke with the Missouri on Mic team at the Columbia Farmer’s Market and reflected on her favorite aspects of her home state – while acknowledging some of its flaw.
Missouri on Mic is an oral history and journalism project documenting stories from around the state in its 200th year.
Megan McConachie: When we think about Missouri as a whole, there's so much outdoor activity. We also have two huge metropolitan areas, and then we also have, you know, college towns like Columbia.
So, most travelers can find an area of the state that they really connect to or that really is home to the type of activities that they like to enjoy, and so it's finding those people and pinning that down.
And it's a place that has... I feel like it's changed a lot, you know, over the course of my life, I'm 38 now, and so I've lived here for a very long time and been fortunate enough to live and visit lots of different places.
"I'm friends with a lot of people who feel like they are often others or thought of as less than because of who they are, because of who they love, because of the color of their skin, and I think we need to do better at that."Megan McConachie
And so, I do think that Missouri has so many different types of towns and cities. So, you know, I have family who is from southeast Missouri, which is vastly different from the family that I have, say, in Kansas City or St. Louis.
And so it's kind of... people say, the United States is a melting pot from kind of around the world, and I really think that Missouri kind of feels like that. But for other states, I think that there's a little pocket of everywhere else here in Missouri.
When I think about Missouri, I definitely — I'm going to go St Louis direction and be like toasted ravioli and gooey butter cake. Those are definitely two of my favorites. But I also love, like, just some Missouri Sweet Corn in the summer.
I really do think that Missouri has a lot of natural beauty to celebrate, and I think that we've had a lot of really fantastic higher education standards that we've set, you know, with Mizzou here, you know, being the first land grant university west of the Mississippi.
I think that celebrating — you know, worth celebrating, and I think that having two really great metropolitan areas that are home to a lot of really vibrant cultures from around the world is worth celebrating.
And just, you know, making it 200 years! I feel like that's kind of worth celebrating too.
I think we need to get better at caring about each other. I really hope for the future that we understand that there's a place for everyone here in our state.
I'm friends with a lot of people who feel like they are often others or thought of as less than because of who they are, because of who they love, because of the color of their skin, and I think we need to do better at that.
Everyone deserves dignity and respect and opportunities, and I hope that we can get to a place where not just our leaders, but also our residents feel that same way, and so that is a really huge hope that I have for our future – I really hope that we can get there because the people who live here are incredible, and they deserve that.