Diana Barnette
Owner & Vice President, Mining Repair
Specialists, Inc., and Owner & Managing
Member, Holy Smoke Coal LLC and
MRS Manufacturing, LLC
JENNIFER JETT PREZKOP
Photo by Leah Vance Photography.
WHILE DIANA BARNETTE refers to herself as an accidental
entrepreneur, the spunk and determination she has exhibited
from an early age are evidence that her success has been
anything but accidental.
Growing up in Logan, WV, Barnette was the stubborn,
independent middle child of a single mother. When asked
what she wanted to be when she grew up, the only thing she
knew for certain was that she wanted to be in charge. At the
age of 16, that same independence pushed Barnette into the
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WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE
working world. As soon as she got her driver’s license, she
started looking for employment because she wanted to make
her own money. Her first job was at Kentucky Fried Chicken,
and her first professional job was in the bookkeeping depart-
ment at Logan Bank & Trust. Both taught her important
lessons about business she still falls back on today.
“At Kentucky Fried Chicken, I learned to work hard and
enjoy my coworkers and customers,” she remembers. “At
Logan Bank & Trust, I learned a lot about banking in general,