Many small towns across the Rocky Mountain West depend on the sport for an economic boost during an otherwise slow winter, but this year it’s been tricky with unseasonably warm temperatures.

Chinese officials have pushed for young entrepreneurs to return and revitalize the countryside, but the task is complex.

Some city-dwellers are heeding the call of China’s government for people to return and revive the countryside.

Rising costs and slower-growing incomes cut small town households’ discretionary income by 38% in the last year, pressuring a way of life.

R.G. Lamar of Stuckey’s Corp. bought pecan-shelling and candymaking facilities in rural Georgia. There’s demand, but not enough workers.

A view of the strong labor market in a rural Ohio town.

Some businesses in Newman Grove, Nebraska, have been booming as fewer people leave town to shop. Also, the region’s agriculture economy remains healthy.