Tow people assigned female at birth who visited the Waynesville Recreation Center and followed the letter of the law but were subsequently the subject of a social media firestorm that included threats of violence are speaking out for the first time about their experience. 

Claims of indecent behavior involving a transgender person at the Waynesville Recreation Center roiled this tight-knight rural community last week, even after a town investigation found no evidence that any crimes were committed and that one of the allegations was completely unsubstantiated.

But if those allegations were meant to divide, deride or dishearten the people of Haywood County, they’ve proven to be a spectacular failure after a recent meeting of the Waynesville Town Council that will be remembered as a watershed moment for LGBTQ+ rights in a small Appalachian town nestled right in the heart of MAGA country.

Social media posts alleging multiple instances of improper activity by a transgender person at the Waynesville Recreation Center last week prompted outrage, violent threats and dehumanizing rhetoric from a number of people — including political candidates — who accepted the unsourced post as unimpeachable fact, but after an investigation including video evidence, it was clear that all they did was enjoy the pool and the sauna.

Citing precedent and historical trends, the town of Waynesville will request that Haywood County government resume its annual financial contribution to the town’s recreation budget. 

In a normal year, this would be the week that parents hoping to get their kids a coveted place in the enormously popular Base Camp Waynesville Summer Camp series would rush to the Waynesville Recreation Center as registration opened, hoping to snag one of the soon-to-vanish spots. 

Since 2001 the Smoky Mountain Aquatic Club has been geared toward having a nationally recognized aquatics program that develops and trains swimmers of all ages and abilities.

As summer approaches, Waynesville’s green spaces are getting greener, but they’re also getting greater — in size. 

The active, outdoorsy lifestyle favored by residents of Western North Carolina has long been fostered by the Town of Waynesville, but if all goes according to recently released plans, it’s about to get much, much better.

Area residents who avail themselves of Waynesville’s recreational facilities and programs have a chance to shape their respective futures — but only for a few more days. 

“Bottom line, this is about what the public would like to have,” said Rhett Langston, director of Waynesville’s Parks and Recreation department. “We have ideas ourselves in Parks and Recreation, but the bottom line is, it has to come from the public.”

While motivating oneself to wake up early and hit the gym may be a constant struggle for some, whenever that nagging desire to roll over and go back to bed strikes, just think of Lewis Langston.