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The Arts and Cultural Events Series at Western Carolina University will host The Poetry Revival, a spoken-word theater experience, at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 25, in the Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center on the WCU campus.
The Poetry Revival includes three writers: Derrick Brown, Anis Mojgani and Buddy Wakefield. Brown has performed as opening act for the Flaming Lips and Cold War Kids. Mojgani is a two-time National Poetry Slam champion, and Wakefield is a two-time Individual World Poetry Slam champ who has been featured on NPR, the BBC and HBO’s “Def Poetry.”
Following The Poetry Revival, WCU will next host La Pasion Flamenca, a showcase of the passion and excitement of Spanish music and dancing, Feb. 13, in the Bardo Arts Center.
Tickets for The Poetry Revival cost $5.
828.227.2479 or www.bardoartscenter.wcu.edu.
Rathskeller Coffee Haus & Pub will host a Select Red Wine Tasting at 6 p.m. on Feb. 8.
Jeremy Sims from Mutual Distributing will run the event, which is free of charge. However, pre-registration is required as seating is limited.
To reserve a space call 828.349.0598.
Rathskeller Coffee Haus & Pub is located at 58 Stewart St. in Franklin.
The Haywood Arts Regional Theater will feature five short plays by Sylva playwright Gary Carden on Jan. 27 thru 29.
The Friday and Saturday shows begin at 7:30 p.m., and the Sunday performance starts at 3 p.m. The plays include: “Land’s End and Beyond,” “Jesse Racer,” “Coy,” “Philoctetes,” “Jimmy Du” and “Signs and Wonders.”
All five are directed by Tom Dewees, with performances by John Winfield, Jack Ross, James Bradley, Holly Ann Harmon and Jeremy Bridges.
Carden is best known for his play “Nance Dude,” which HART put on a few season ago. Carden, a Jackson County resident, is a chronicler of stories with a local spin and resonance. Carden is also an accomplished storyteller.
Tickets are available now. Adults $10, students $6.
828.456.6322 or www.harttheater.com.
Western Carolina University’s Office of Continuing Education will be offering workshops on digital camera basics and processing digital images in the coming weeks.
The first workshop, “Mastering Your Digital Camera,” is designed for the novice digital photographer and will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Jan. 27, in Room 143 of the Cordelia Camp Building. Instructor Gordon Pike will show participants how to take photographs by covering topics such as composition basics, memory cards, camera settings, exposure, resolution, compression, file formats, and color adjustments and white balance. The workshop cost is $59, with lunch included.
The second workshop, “Digital Workflow with Adobe Lightroom,” will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Feb. 3 and Feb. 4. Designed for beginner and intermediate photographers, the workshop will provide information on topics such as setting up folders on a hard drive, importing and cataloging images, and sharpening and printing images. Instructor Les Saucier is a nature photographer with more than 30 years of teaching experience. The workshop will be held in Room 137 of Camp Building and the cost is $229.
Local crafter James Stewart-Payne will offer a free one-hour paper collage class for adults at 7 p.m. on Feb. 7 at the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva.
Class participants will create their own birds, using simple papers collected from home, recycling bins and art stashes. “We will build small paper birds layer upon layer in a collective art environment,” said Stewart-Payne. “These winged harbingers of hope (and spring!) make great inspirational pieces, embellishments for cards, scrapbooks and mixed media art, mobiles, or as gifts.”
Supplies will be provided, but participants are also encouraged to bring the following: scissors, paper (including rice paper, meaningful words/texts and/or images, cardstock, decorative and/or linen papers, homemade paper) and embellishments.
Pre-registration is required as the class size is limited to 12 people.
828.586.2016.
The Jackson County Public Library in Sylva will host a daytime music program on the first Friday of every month featuring the “The Lady and the Old Timers Band.”
The February performance will be held from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 3 in the community room of the Jackson County Public Library Complex.
The monthly performance by the band enables people who may not want to venture out at night to hear live music from local musicians. The Lady and the Old Timers Band is composed of one lady and seven self—described old timers — five of whom are over the age of 80. They play gospel and traditional country tunes. Members include vocalist Delia Sears along with Fred Kirkland, Jim Hite, and Jim Brown on guitar; Carl Sears on bass; “Wild Bill” Jackson on harmonica; Robert Bradley on mandolin; and Roy Ramsey on dobro.
828.586.2016.
Haywood Community College and Champion Credit Union are once again joining forces to help people in Haywood County with heating assistance.
Hominy Valley Boys and several other local groups will host a Share the Warmth benefit concert from 2 to 5 p.m. on Feb. 12 in the HCC Auditorium. There will be designated rooms for playing with the bands for those who want to bring their own instruments.
“This year presents a bigger challenge for supplying heating aid to those who request it. Not only are there more requests and less money, there are also more first time requests than ever before,” said Patsy Dowling, executive director of Mountain Projects.
Admission is a minimum donation of $10 — 100 percent of which will go to Mountain Projects. Donations are tax deductible and checks should be made payable to Mountain Projects. Tickets available at the credit union and the HCC Bookstore.
There will also be drawings for two televisions and a confetti quilt.
828.627.4522 or 828.648.1515.
Southwestern Community College will offer four arts classes beginning Feb. 4.
• “Instant piano for hopelessly busy people” is open to anyone. The class will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Feb. 4 on the Jackson campus. The $75 registration fee includes workbook, handouts and 60-minute practice CD.
• Intermediate spinning is for those wishing to improve upon their basic spinning skills and learn new techniques for single/double-plied yarns. It will be held Thursdays from 6 to 8 p.m., Feb. 9 thru 23, on the Jackson campus. A spinning wheel will be provided for use during the three weeks. The cost is $100, which includes materials.
• Fine woodworking - Handtools I will be taught by Brian Bartel, a master woodcrafter from Sylva. The first scheduled class is Hand Tools I, which will start Feb. 13 on the Jackson campus. It will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. on subsequent Tuesdays through March 5. Participants will learn to identify, sharpen and use a variety of chisels, planes, scrapers and handsaws. The cost is $40.
• Modern quilting techniques will review the basics for modern quilting. The class will be held 2 to 4 p.m. on Wednesdays, Feb. 15 thru 22, at the Cashiers Center. Local fabric artist Valerie Halvorson will demonstrate paper piecing with fabric, tubing, making points for stars, fancy patterns and continuous pleats and more. The cost is $25.
828.339.4497.
Cherokee has bears; another town has painted pigs. Harold Sims, who runs the Catman2 shelter, wants cats.
Sims has found life-size, unpainted cat statues and is looking for people to sponsor a cat. The cost per cat depends on how many statutes are ordered at a time, and with enough sponsors, the cost could be less than $100.
“I’d like to have no less than 50 cats,” Sims said. “When we reach the goal we ask sponsors for payment, order cats and let the paint begin. We will advertise sponsors and artists in many ways.”
Once decorated, the painted cats will be on display in shop windows all over Western North Carolina. And in the fall, the shelter will hold an auction to sell the cats, and other fine art items. All proceeds will support the cats at the shelter.
Needed are: people to sponsor a cat, artists to paint it, an auction house (in Asheville) to sponsor the auction, donations of fine art and people to bid on the donated items.
828.293.0892 or www.catman2.org.
The Haywood County Public Library will hold its second annual Lego Extravaganza Contest on Jan. 28 at the Haywood County Cooperative Extension Office.
Registration is free and open to children ages 5-17, with registration forms available at all library branches. People interested in participating in the contest should register by 5:00 p.m., Jan. 18.
“Last year’s contest was extremely popular and Lego enthusiasts have been asking about a repeat contest for months,” said Carole Dennis, youth services librarian at the Waynesville branch library.
Participants will be able to enter as individuals or duos and will compete within their age group. Divisions are “L” for ages 5-6, “E” for ages 7-8, “G” for ages 9-10, “O” for ages 11-12, and division “S” for ages 13 and up. Contestants will have two hours to build their entry on the day of the competition.
Sign-in will begin at 9 a.m. and construction will take place from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Judges will be evaluating entries based on a written presentation, which may include drawings or sketches of the design, creativity of the overall design, attention to detail, and construction techniques.
“Last year, we required an oral presentation,” Dennis said, “but that proved to be problematic in several ways. This year, I am asking for a written presentation, which can be prepared ahead of time and can include drawings of the design.”
828.452.5169 ext. 2511 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
A viticulture conference focused on how to grow grapes in a sustainable manner in Western North Carolina will be held all-day Wednesday, Feb. 22, at Warren Wilson College.
The conference is being put on in conjunction with Sustainable Appalachian Viticulture Institute and Jewel of the Blue Ridge Vineyard in Marshall.
The all-day conference will feature speakers sharing information on how to grow grapes organically and biodynamically, which grapes are best for our steep mountain slopes and climate conditions, how to market a vineyard and winery, practical aspects of using various cover crops between rows of grapes, some of the many ways to generate value-added products from grapes including neutraceuticals and how to make wines from organically/biodynamically grown grapes.
The featured speaker will be Phillip Hart, owner/winemaker of AmByth Estates in California. He will talk about growing grapes bio-dynamically and making wines from his bio-dynamically grown grapes.
Fee is $40 in advance, or $50 walk-in registration. Includes lunch, coffee break refreshments, handouts and free parking. www.JeweloftheBlueRidge.com.
Wet those lines, anglers, and you could get your hooks into $10,000 in prize money during Shiver in the River Feb. 3-5.
The tournament will take place on a 2.2-mile stretch of trophy, catch-and-release stream on the Cherokee Indian Reservation. The format is for two-man teams, using “Fips Mouche” rules. There is a separate casting competition, too.
The tournament is limited to 30 teams. There will be 15 teams competing on Saturday morning and 15 on Saturday afternoon. The top seven teams from each session move on to fish Sunday morning. Those who make the cut from Sunday morning’s competition will move, in turn, to fish Sunday afternoon for cash prizes.
Registration is $225 per team.
“Books and Boots,” a two-day event celebrating the beauty and bounty of the natural world will be held at the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville on Saturday and Sunday, February 18 and 19.
There will be family programs focusing on indoor and outdoor winter activities, including: guided geo-caching, nature journaling for children and winter bird bingo.
Author presentations by Peter Loewer, nature writer, botanical illustrator and garden photographer; George Ellison, writer and naturalist; James Farmer, a writer and garden and interior designer; and Patricia Moore-Pastides, writer, cook and public-health professional.
The event is free, with the standard parking fee of $8.
828.665.2492 or www.ncarboretum.org.
Mary Bennett has been chosen to serve as the volunteer ambassador for the designated Appalachian Trail Community of Franklin.
Bennett will serve as a community liaison to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and the local volunteer hiking club that maintains in the A.T. in and around Franklin. She’s charged with bolstering volunteerism and stewardship of the trail at the local level.
“The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is excited about building off its volunteer base … (to) help increase local stewardship of public lands and support healthy lifestyles for community citizens,” said Julie Judkins, community program manager.
Bennett has lived in the Franklin community for nearly 20 years. She is an educator, horticulturalist and hiker; she has section hiked much of the A.T.
A grant from Healthy Haywood has helped launch an Outdoor Mission Camp for court-involved kids.
Positive Community Connections is designed to help keep kids off the streets and out of the courtrooms.
The directors are Ruffin and Jamie Shackelford, who operate Outdoor Mission Camp based in Maggie Valley.
The program began this past summer, with court-involved kids given the option to attend camp at OMC. Those who agreed spent a week climbing a challenge course, backpacking the Smoky Mountains, whitewater rafting the Nantahala and discovering God’s love through relationship.
The goal is to connect youth with caring adult mentors who will help involve them in a local youth group and give them a positive community connection to help them navigate towards adulthood. They will also meet as a larger group on a monthly basis for encouragement, adventure and to learn from Dr. Patricia Gorman Berry’s book “BrainWise,” a tool for learning how to manage emotions, control impulsive behavior and curb destructive behaviors.
OMC is looking for adult mentors in local church communities.
828.926.3253 or 828.456.7265.
Farmers, want-to-be farmers and anyone willing to pitch in at local farms are forming “mobs” to help farmers.
These mobs are helping with tasks such as mulching, planting, moving dirt, inoculating mushroom logs, creating low-tech water distribution systems and so on. In the old-time spirit of “barn raisings,” tasks that could take months for a typical farmer working alone can be completed in a day or less with crop mobs.
The idea was presented Zev Friedman of Living Systems Design of Asheville in a recent two-day, “Hands-on Forest Farming” workshop in Sylva at Vegenui Farm, owned by Cathy and Ron Arps. This workshop was sponsored by Mountain BizWorks, Southwestern Community College Small Business Center and Vegenui Farms.
The 15 participants in the workshop were put to work for hands-on experience in sustainable agriculture techniques and were amazed at the volume of work accomplished. They were inspired to form an online network to facilitate future crop mobs.
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The Watershed Association of the Tuckasegee River will hold a public planning meeting from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 23, at Southwestern Community College’s Sylva campus.
Anyone with an interest in protecting and improving the quality of the Tuckasegee River is invited to attend.
“It is an opportunity for our members and all who are interested in safeguarding our creeks and rivers to sign up for tasks and offer their input. We also want people who are just curious about WATR and about our activities,” said Roger Clapp, WATR executive director.
Clapp said the group will discuss its “ambitious calendar of community events and field work” for the year.
WATR needs volunteers for several projects and activities, including: water monitoring and sampling, mud-source identification, creek cleanups, stream-bank repair, youth programs, public outreach and developing nature trails, including construction of the Scotts Creek Trail at Monteith Farmstead Park. Refreshments will be served starting at 5:30 p.m. Held in room 133 of Founders Hall. 828.488.8418.
A discussion about the Clean Water Act, which environmentalists assert is under assault as industries attempt to rollback federal protections, will be discussed at Green Drinks from 5:30 to 7 p.m on Wednesday, Jan. 18, at Posana Café in Asheville.
Launched in 2006 as part of the international grassroots movement, Asheville Green Drinks is coordinated by the Western North Carolina Alliance and attempts to connect environmental ideas, media and action each week.
Robin Whitley will be at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva at 7 p.m. on Jan. 21 to read from her book, In a Southern Closet.
She will also discuss the importance of journaling as a means of thinking about a person’s life and being able to tell that story. In a Southern Closet is a collection of poetry, reflections and essays about the challenges a lesbian Christian faces in living an open life while seeking to live a life of faith.
828.586.9499.
The Marianna Black Library in Bryson City presents Pixar’s “Cars 2” at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 24.
Owen Wilson once again voices speedy race car Lightning McQueen in the sequel to the animated hit “Cars.” When he heads off to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix, Lightning also rolls straight into a case of international intrigue.
Popcorn will be served in the library auditorium starting at 3:20 p.m.
The library shows family movies each Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. The movies are free to the public and projected onto an 8-by-10-foot screen, with a theater sound system. The library will also be giving away one free movie check out voucher to each patron who attends the movie.
828.488.3030
Broadway comes to Cullowhee for one night when composer and lyricist Neil Berg’s “100 Years of Broadway” hits the stage of Western Carolina University’s Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 27.
The performance, part of WCU’s Galaxy of Stars Series, features five stars of Broadway, backed by a live band, re-creating moments from the greatest musicals of the century.
In the lineup are shows including “Phantom of the Opera,” “Les Misérables,” “Jersey Boys,” “Chicago,” “Mamma Mia!” and “Jekyll & Hyde.”
Taking the stage at WCU will be Rita Harvey (“Phantom of the Opera,” “Fiddler on the Roof”), Bob DuSold (“The Producers, Les Misérables”), Lawrence Clayton (“Dreamgirls,” “The Civil War,” “Les Misérables”) and Andrea Rivette (“Jekyll & Hyde,” “Les Misérables”).
WCU debuted the Galaxy of Stars Series in 2005 with the opening of its Fine and Performing Arts Center. Renamed for former WCU Chancellor John W. Bardo in 2011, the center has marked more than 100,000 visitors and has earned a position as a premier arts and entertainment venue in Western North Carolina.
Ticket prices for Neil Berg’s “100 Years of Broadway” are $20 for adults and seniors; $15 for faculty and staff; $10 for groups of 20 or more; and $5 for children and students.
bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or 828.227.2479.
Western Carolina University’s original radio broadcast adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel “Dracula” will be staged at the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 24.
The “Dracula” cast features students, faculty, staff and professional actors from the university and the region. WCU music faculty and students and strings from the Asheville Symphony Orchestra make up the production’s orchestra.
“‘Dracula’ was a challenge from the standpoint that there are 27 chapters in the book to cook down into a 60-minute radio program,” said producer Don Connelly, who wrote the script. “Unlike a play that can run as long or short as the author wishes, a radio broadcast is timed to the second.”
WCU English literature students received an early draft of the script and began comparing it to the original work. The students are preparing a number of papers on Stoker, and some will be published in the program for the show and presented in a poster session in the lobby of the Bardo Arts Center before the performance.
The show starts promptly at 7:30 p.m. and no one will be admitted after it has started.
All seats are $10, and proceeds benefit student scholarship funds. The show is not appropriate for small children.
Advance tickets can be purchased at the box office of the Bardo Arts Center.
bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or 828.227.2479.
WCU to host workshops for men ...
Western Carolina University will host three workshops titled “Experienced Men Begin Re-Examining Reality” beginning Jan. 24.
The series is intended to help participants redefine men and the world view of masculinity and manhood and to address topics such as media, body image, family and sexual assault.
• The workshop “Chivalry: Dead or Alive?” will be held at 5 p.m. on Jan. 24 and focus on relationships from a male perspective and how men feel about the role of chivalry in dating.
• Luke Heller, a graduate student in the social work department, will discuss men’s roles in ending violence against women in the 6 p.m. workshop “V-Men: Taking a Stand Against Violence.” The Feb. 7 event will kick off “V-week,” which is the week preceding WCU’s annual production of “The Vagina Monologues.”
• The group will examine how men view women as sexualized objects in the workshop “Gazing Dreamworlds: Men and the Media Part 2” at 5 p.m., March 13.
All workshops are free and open to the public and will be held in Multipurpose Room A of A.K. Hinds University Center.
828.227.2617 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
... and workshops for women
Western Carolina University is sponsoring a series of “Growth and Learning Opportunities for Women” workshops beginning Jan. 25.
The series, which is free and open to the public, seeks to enhance knowledge of key women’s issues and topics ranging from communication and red flags in romantic relationships, a healthy mind and body and media stereotypes.
• Jan. 25 – “How Perfect Is Perfect?” The workshop will feature discussion on the pressure society puts on women to be perfect, and how those pressures affect them.
• Feb. 22 – “Mall Madness: The Curse of the Fitting Room Mirror.” Held as part of Love Your Body Week, the workshop will empower women to love their bodies and not be afraid of what they see in the mirror.
• March 21 – “Designing Your Own Superhero.” Scheduled to take place during Women’s History Month, the workshop will prompt participants to look at the power within themselves and learn how to be superheroes using their own voices.
Workshops will be held at 5 p.m. in Multipurpose Room A in A.K. Hinds University Center.
828.227.2617 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The next community music jam at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City will be from 6 to 7:30 p.m., Jan. 19, in the library auditorium.
Anyone with a guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle, dulcimer — anything acoustic — is invited to join. Singers are also welcome.
The jam is facilitated by Larry Barnett of Grampa’s Music in Bryson City. Barnett starts by calling out a tune and its key signature, and the group plays it together. Then, everyone in the circle can choose a song for the group to play. The community jams are open to all ages and levels of ability.
The music jams are offered each first and third Thursday of the month.
828.488.3030.
Fiddler Ian Moore will perform at the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva at 7 p.m. on Jan. 26.
Moore, who lives in Sylva, is originally from New York City and is a classically trained violinist. Since moving to Jackson County in the 1990s, he has immersed himself in traditional Appalachian music, as well as more eclectic jazz, Celtic and folk mixes.
“In the time I’ve lived in Sylva, I’ve explored a wide range of acoustic music styles: old timey ballads, blues, bluegrass, rags and reels, hornpipes and hoedowns, polkas, waltzes, gospel, swing jazz, Cajun and Irish tunes, old honkeytonk numbers, jugband pieces, and rockabilly,” Moore said.
Moore performs around the region with several different groups and as a solo act. For his library performance, he will play songs and fiddle tunes associated with the traveling string band from North Carolina’s Piedmont region, Charlie Poole and His North Carolina Ramblers.
The show is free and open to the public.
www.fontanalib.org or 828.586.2016.
In a career spanning more than 40 years, Diana Ross has proven herself to be one of the most iconic female singers of all time.
Ross will perform at 7:30 p.m. on March 3 at the event center in Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Hotel. Tickets for the show are on sale now, and attendees must be 21 years of age or older.
Beginning in the 1960s as lead singer of The Supremes and later as a solo performer, Ross has had 12 No. 1 singles.
www.ticketmaster.com or 800.745.3000.
The Liars Bench presents “Wild Mountain Music” at 7 p.m. on Jan. 19 at WCU’s Mountain Heritage Center auditorium.
Member artists Gary Carden, Lloyd Arneach, Barbara Duncan, Paul Iarussi; guest artists Laurence Jordan, Ken Beck, Brent Martin, Jill Gottesman and Liz Nance will perform Southern Appalachian story, song, and poetry on one stage.
Regular cast members include Gary Carden, Lloyd Arneach, Paul Iarussi, Barbara Duncan, Dave Waldrop, and the show’s mascot Bodine. The Liars Bench recognizes established regional artists and performers and encourages new talent also.
“The Liars Bench is a unique blend of culturally accurate mountain Americana with traditional Southern Appalachian entertainment for everyone,” said Carden. “We attempt to treat Appalachian culture with integrity and authenticity and to be an accurate reflection of the Southern Highlanders and their ways. No matter how successful the show becomes I want people to know that The Liars Bench is an honest rendering of Appalachian culture and tradition.”
The next presentation of The Liars Bench at WCUs Mountain Heritage Center will be at 7 p.m. on Thursday February.
828.227.7129.
In spite of Scott McLeod’s assertion that “it would be hard to argue otherwise” in his column (“Vote on NCAE dues a slap in the face to teachers,” The Smoky Mountain News, Jan 11 edition), I am going to give it a try.
I am not an apologist for the N.C. House of Representatives, but their leadership determines their agenda, not the governor. The legislature was called back into session to consider the veto override of S9, No Discriminatory Purpose in Death Penalty. The Senate overrode the veto in a 31-19 partisan vote. The House did not have the votes but instead referred it to the House Committee on Judiciary for future consideration.
Speaker Thom Tillis has been very candid from the start in telling members that the governor’s vetoes could be considered at any time when the legislature is in session. Consequently, since they were in session they brought up the governor's veto of S727, “No Dues Checkoff for School Employees.” The Senate overrode the veto on July 13, 2011. The House overrode the veto in the early morning hours of Jan. 5. Two Democratic House members were absent due to illness and one Republican member is deployed in Afghanistan. The speaker had the votes to override two other vetoes but chose not to do so at that time.
There has been much misinformation put forward about S727. It is not an assault on teachers or education, merely an end to the practice of the state being the dues collection agency for the NCAE. The citizens of North Carolina should not be forced to bear the cost for collecting NCAE dues. That should be the responsibility of the NCAE. I am sure the teachers that choose to be NCAE members can find an alternative to the automatic dues checkoff, e.g., electronic funds transfer from their personal checking account.
Considering the NCAE is a thinly veiled lobbying group for Democrats, it should be no surprise that it does not have many sympathizers in the Republican ranks. More than 98 percent of the NCAE campaign donations go to Democrats.
During my 10 year service as a Macon County commissioner, I voted for every capital facilities improvement in Macon County Schools since 1997, investments of more than $50 million. For the first time in more than 35 years there will be no mobile classrooms at the start of the 2012-13 school year. That is a record I’m proud of and a testimony to the value Macon citizens place on their public schools. In spite of that record, the NCAE chose to spend thousands of dollars on mailers that contained misleading information and/or outright lies about my record. So, is the NCAE for education or is the NCAE for the Democrat Party? My personal experience makes me wonder.
I have met no person in the Legislature who is interested in an “orchestrated evisceration of the state’s public schools,” as was stated in the column. I have met many who are interested in improving public education so that students are better prepared to compete in a global economy. Our results are not adequate at this time and it will take more than money to improve them.
Your readers should be reminded that H200, the bipartisan budget passed for this biennium, cut K-12 education budget 0.5 percent more than the governor's recommended budget. Hardly the draconian cuts described by some. That does not include the $60 to $100 million the governor wanted to pass on to local governments for school bus purchases. Ask your county commissioners what they thought of that idea. The legislature worked diligently to craft a budget so that our state was fiscally sound. We have begun that journey but there is still much work to do.
The present legislature inherited a $2.5 billion deficit, a $2.6 billion debt to the federal government for unemployment compensation, $7 billion in tax supported debt, a $2.8 billion underfunded state employee retirement system, a $40 million underfunded consolidated judicial retirement system, a $40 million underfunded National Guard retirement system, and a $32.8 billion unfunded liability for retiree health insurance benefits. The legislature would prefer to dedicate more to education programs that work and reward good teachers with merit pay, but those efforts will not reach full fruition until we have our fiscal house in order.
We do agree that teachers should not be held accountable for society’s ills. We cannot continue to dump our problems at the schoolhouse door and expect our teachers, our educational system, to make it all better. To use Mr. McLeod’s own words, “Student achievement still has ground to make up with counterparts around the nation. Many counties have put together quality programs that send students on to college prepared for what lies ahead, but others are lacking.”
We need to invest in finding out what works and need to stop doing what clearly does not. As we move forward to provide our students with the very best we can offer, we must infuse integrity into our stewardship of funds for education so that those same students will not be shackled with state and nationally imposed debt they will not live long enough to repay. That, sir, is a burden they do not deserve and one against which I will continue to hold my guard.
(Sen. Davis, a Republican, lives in Franklin. His 50th District, after the recent redistricting, covers all of Haywood, Jackson, Swain, Macon, Clay, Cherokee and Graham counties. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..)
To the Editor:
It’s unclear where Justin Conley (“Vindictive measure should send message,” The Smoky Mountain News, Jan. 11 issue) gets his information about the John Locke Foundation’s reaction to last week’s controversial session of the N.C. General Assembly.
Lumping our organization with others and with state House Speaker Thom Tillis, Conley writes that JLF “came out against the coverage of the midnight session,” implying that we were “condemning journalists” for their articles.
On the contrary, the John Locke Foundation publicly criticized Republican House leaders, not reporters. President John Hood wrote in a Jan. 9 column, “I don’t think holding a sudden veto-override vote in the middle of the night was a good idea. I think it set a bad precedent, one that might well come back to bite future governors and legislators, and further damaged the prospects for trust and collegiality on Jones Street.”
Think I’m taking the comment out of context? Please feel free to read the entire column here: http://ow.ly/8mAIT.
Mr. Conley says that his grandmother always told him “nothing good happens after midnight.” One wonders what she told him about getting his facts straight.
Mitch Kokai
Director of Communications
John Locke Foundation
The Jackson County Republican Party will hold an open house at its new office in Sylva from 3 p.m. until 5: 30 p.m. Monday, Jan 23, located at Sunrise Park Drive
This office is the second GOP office opened in Jackson County for the 2012 election cycle. The other is in Cashiers.
828.743.6491.
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Altrusa Club of Waynesville will hold its 15th annual Soup and Cornbread Benefit Scholarship Fundraiser from 11 a.m. until 7 p.m on Tuesday, Jan. 24, at the First United Methodist Church in Waynesville. The lunch or dinner will include: homemade soup (vegetable or potato), fresh cornbread, a beverage and dessert. $7 for adults and $4 for children 12 and under. The meals are available for take out or to eat in.
•••
WCU UNITY! and Equality North Carolina will hold a daylong event Jan. 27 intended to educate people about the proposed anti-gay marriage amendment to the state constitution, plus register them to vote.
The event will be at the University Center at Western Carolina University. Speakers include Jen Jones from Equality NC.
“The Rainbow Ball Dance Party,” beginning at 8 p.m., will consist of a surprise celebrity guest appearance, and a statewide drag show with contestants from across North Carolina, and of course lots of music and dancing.
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N.C. Sen. Jim Davis, R-Franklin, is holding a town hall meeting to hear from constituents in Haywood County from 7-9 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 26, at the Haywood County Courthouse in the courtroom. Davis is seeking reelection to represent the seven western counties against former Democratic state Sen. John Snow, D-Murphy.
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U.S. Congressional candidate Cecil Bothwell will make two upcoming political stops in this area, one on Thursday, Jan. 26, at the Haywood County Public Library from 5:30 to 7 p.m. and another Saturday, Feb. 11, at 9:30 a.m. at LuLu’s restaurant in Sylva.
Bothwell is challenging U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler for the 11th Congressional District in the 2012 Democratic primary.
Members of Move to Amend, a grassroots coalition, will be in front of the Federal Courthouse on Main Street in Bryson City, from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20 to mark the second anniversary of the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission Supreme Court ruling.
The occupation is part of a national event to heighten public awareness regarding the Citizens United decision related to “corporate personhood.”
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Confused about what corporate personhood is, and why it even matters? A group of Haywood County residents will hold a teach-in from 10:30 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Jan. 21, in the historic courthouse in downtown Waynesville.
“We want to get people on board, and we realized the only way to do that is to have a teach-in,” said Stan Smith, a retired Methodist minister who lives in Haywood County.
Smith said corporate influence over the political process is the single biggest problem facing the country.
“If it is possible to essentially shut down the voice of the people and buy your congressmen and senators then the game is up — all the other issues will never be addressed,” Smith said. “When I saw what this could lead to, I said ‘I am getting involved. I can’t sit by the sidelines any more.’”
828.452.3149.
Alumni football is coming to Waynesville via Gridiron Alumni, which is planning several full-contact alumni football games.
Players are needed; the first 40 on each team get to play. The team that gets 30 people registered first gains home field advantage.
Teams from Tuscola, Pisgah, Smoky Mountain, Cherokee, Asheville and other area teams are forming now. Games are scheduled for March and April.
Brian Anthony Edwards, a junior a Western Carolina University, was convicted of robbery and sentenced to a maximum of 21 months in a North Carolina prison on Jan. 3.
Edwards, a 21-year-old Hendersonville native, pleaded guilty to “common law robbery” after holding up the North Carolina State Employee’s Credit Union on the morning of Dec. 14.
The WCU student attempted to conceal his identity and carried a toy gun into the credit union, demanding money. Less than two hours later, Edwards was arrested and the money and evidence was recovered from his car.
The WCU officials locked down the campus following the robbery.
The executive director of the Western North Carolina Alliance has been appointed to the state’s influential Mountain Resources Commission (MRC).
Julie V. Mayfield was appointed by Gov. Beverly Perdue. MRC members provide recommendations to local, state, and federal legislative and administrative entities regarding resource protection.
“I’m very grateful for the opportunity to serve on the MRC, whose mission of environmental stewardship perfectly aligns with our vision and daily work at the Alliance,” Mayfield said.
The MRC was created in mid-2009 when the General Assembly passed the Mountain Resources Planning Act with bipartisan support. The bill stipulates that the MRC should “encourage quality growth and development while preserving the natural resources, open spaces, and farmland of the mountain region of Western North Carolina.”
Retired Western Carolina University professor and well-known regional fall color prognosticator Dan Pittillo will be the speaker at 2 p.m. on Jan. 17 at a meeting of the Southern Appalachian Plant Society.
The meeting will take place in the Franklin Library.
Pittillo taught plant science at WCU for more than three decades, directing the WCU Herbarium from 1970 until his retirement in 2005.
Tickets to the event are $10 and will benefit the WCU Herbarium. RSVP to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Mountain Valleys Resource Conservation and Development is accepting applications from Western North Carolina farmers interested in generating renewable energy on their farms.
The NC Tobacco Trust Fund Commission is providing 40 percent cost-share funding for approved projects. The maximum grant amount is $8,000. The goal is to reduce energy expenses and increases farm income by selling generated power to the electric grid.
Twenty-one systems have already been installed through the “Renewable Energy for Farms” project. Most systems are photovoltaic (solar), but wind and micro-hydroelectric projects are also accepted.
To be eligible for the program, applicants must be engaged in agricultural businesses; current or former tobacco farmers will be given priority. Applications are available online at www.mountainvalleysrcd.org/7or call 828.649.3313, ext. 5.
Moving mountains is no easy task, but volunteers and trail crews hauling boulders, digging waterbars and otherwise rehabilitating trails in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will have an easier time with their new Trails Forever equipment trailer, thanks to a $10,000 grant from REI.
The Friends of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park celebrated the donation from REI, the nation’s leading outdoor gear store, amongst Park supporters at the Wine Studio of Asheville.
“We love the Smokies, and we want to encourage volunteer stewardship of the park’s amazing system of trails,” said Ching Fu, outreach director for REI. “It’s a great fit for us, our customers, and everyone who enjoys the great outdoors.”
“Even before this donation, REI has been a great partner in encouraging people to enjoy the Smokies on foot,” said Holly Demuth, North Carolina director of Friends of the Smokies. “Their support for the seasonal trail crew will help us utilize a lot of great volunteers, and the mobile tool shed will help immediately and for many years to come.”
The Trails Forever campaign is an effort by Friends of the Smokies to create a permanent fund to support major trail improvements each year on the park’s 800 miles of trails. To donate to Trails Forever or to learn more about volunteer opportunities, go online to www.smokiestrailsforever.org or call Friends of the Smokies at 800.845.5665.
The Nantahala Outdoor Center has been bestowed with the 2012 Outdoor Industry Association Outdoor Inspiration Award. It is the outdoor industry’s top honor for businesses contributing to the future of outdoor recreation, voted on by an expert panel of peers from the outdoor industry.
The awards are given to companies and individuals that “are breaking new ground and getting people outdoors.”
“There is no better validation for our mission to get people outside and offer the very best programs in outdoor recreation and education. This is a wonderful and unexpected honor,” said NOC President and CEO Sutton Bacon.
NOC’s nomination highlighted the following initiatives:
• Starting the Canoe Club Challenge, an annual series of free paddling races based on participation instead of competition, clocking over 1,500 starts to make it the largest whitewater slalom event in the country.
• Supporting the Nantahala Kids Club, a local outreach program offering free paddling lessons and outings to over 40 local schoolchildren.
• Launching and growing the NOC Youth Paddling Team.
• Sponsoring and hosting the Camp Cup Challenge, an event for over 150 youth paddlers at North Carolina’s large summer camp community.
• Opening an experiential retail environment at the Gatlinburg entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park that educates visitors on easy guided and do-it-yourself recreational opportunities in the park.
• Winning a bid to host the 2013 ICF Canoe Freestyle World Championships on the Nantahala River to promote regional paddlesports opportunities to a worldwide audience.
• Contributing to the successful effort to build a permanent world-class kayaking wave on the Nantahala River for free public use.
• Hosting 12 additional outdoor events including a large AT thru-hiker festival, the USA Canoe and Kayak Team Slalom National Championships, the national Wildwater Team’s training camp, and an Olympic Day Festival where kids were invited to paddle with NOC’s very own Olympic athletes.
• The company’s commitment to sustainable building practices, demonstrated by three US Green Building Council LEED certified projects in the last year.
A volunteer work day to work on campsites for the French Broad River Paddle Trail will take place from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Jan. 13 in Transylvania County.
The French Broad River Paddle Trail will be a world-class paddle trail for canoes and kayaks on more than 140 miles of the French Broad River, with spots to pull off and camp while paddling the trails from Rosman, N.C., to Newport, Tenn. It is expected to open in summer 2012.
Additional work days are planned for Jan. 27, Feb. 10, and Feb. 24. The trail is being constructed by the French Broad Riverkeeper and the WNC Alliance.
RSVP to Nick Rose at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The Macon County League of Women Voters of Macon County will host a program on a newly completed study on the county’s watershed, its condition, and its needs.
The study, conducted as part of the N.C. Ecosystem Enhancement Program (NCEEP), includes a Local Watershed Plan for the area from Franklin to Fontana Lake.
The program will be held at Tartan Hall in Franklin on Jan. 12. Lunch is available at noon for $5, by reservation. The program will begin at 12:15. 828.371.0527 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The public is invited.
Suzanne Raether will read from and sign her novel, Judaculla, at 7 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 13, at City Lights Bookstore.
Set in Jackson County, Judaculla tells the story of Timothy Fletcher, a 19-year-old WCU student athlete and his discovery that he is actually the manifestation of an ancient mountain god.
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City Lights Bookstore will host author Art Ramsay for a reading and signing of his book, The Tibetan Wisdom Code, at 2 p.m. on Jan 14.
The Tibetan Wisdom Code is the second book by Art Ramsay in the Wisdom Stone Trilogy. This volume picks up where Seven Stones of Wisdom left off. From monasteries in Tibet to the vortices in Sedona and ancient streets of Rome, a spiritual adventure unfolds as the world faces destruction.
For more information please call the bookstore at 828.586.9499.
Bob Plott will discuss his newest book, Colorful Characters of the Great Smoky Mountains, at 3 p.m. on Jan. 14 at Blue Ridge Books.
Plott is a North Carolina native who can trace his family roots in the Old North State back to 1750, when his great-great-great-grandfather Johannes Plott arrived here with five of the family hunting dogs. These dogs would later become renowned as the premier big game hunting dog breed in America — the Plott bear hound.
Blue Ridge Books is located at 152 South Main Street in Waynesville. For more information call 828.456.6000.
The Jackson County Public Library in Sylva will host Sylva resident Curtis Blanton for an evening of storytelling and tall tales at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan.17, in the Community Room.
Always a careful listener to the tales told by friends as well as the old-timers of his parents’ and grandparents’ generation, Blanton teamed up with his boyhood friend, Jim Sellers of Sylva, to create a book of the stories they remembered from the old days. Tales from the Porch was published in 2006 and features illustrations by Sellers, with Blanton as author. Two other books followed: Fireside Tales is another collection of stories, and My Mountains, My Home, is a novel.
Blanton will tell stories and take questions from the audience. His books, which are available at the Library, will also be available for purchase at the event via City Lights Bookstore.
For more information, please call the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva at 828.586.2016.
Prayer breakfast and activities to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Three events celebrating the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be held in Haywood County, organized by the Haywood County MLK Committee.
• 22nd annual Prayer Breakfast at 8 a.m. Jan. 16 in the Lambuth Inn Dining Room at Lake Junaluska. Hilliard Gibbs Jr. of the U.S. Department of Agriculture will be the featured speaker. Music will be provided by the Dellwood Baptist Church Youth Choir. Tickets for the prayer breakfast are $15 for adults and $7 for children and students.
• Pride March at 11 a.m. on Jan. 14. Starts at the Haywood County Justice Center and ends at the Pigeon Multicultural Development Center in Waynesville.
• Commemorative Service at 3 p.m. on Jan. 15 at Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Waynesville. Rev. Marion Crite of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Canton will preach.
828.215.0296.
WCU to host Martin Luther King Jr. celebration Jan. 16-21
Emmy Award-winning broadcaster Ed Gordon will be the keynote speaker for Western Carolina University’s annual celebration in honor of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
Gordon, a veteran journalist who hosts the public affairs program “Weekly with Ed Gordon” on Black Entertainment Television, will speak at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 18, in the Grandroom of A.K. Hinds University Center as part of a program sponsored by the Division of Student Affairs. The address and all King celebration events at WCU are free and open to the public.
Gordon’s experience includes serving as news anchor at BET News, host of “News and Notes with Ed Gordon” on National Public Radio, and contributor to “Dateline NBC,” “Today” and “60 Minutes II.” His awards include the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s Image Award and the Journalist of the Year Award from the National Association of Black Journalists.
Then on Tuesday, Jan. 17, students will re-enact King’s 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech from the UC balcony at 12:30 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to gather on the UC lawn. At 3:30 p.m., Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity members will share personal stories and discuss issues of social justice in the workforce in the UC multipurpose room. At 6 p.m., the Student Government Association Diversity Council will screen the documentary “Freedom Riders,” which chronicles the experience of a group of civil rights activists in segregated communities in 1961, followed by a discussion in the UC theater.
For more information about service activities contact the Center for Service Learning at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.227.7184. For more information about the celebration, visit www.wcu.edu/26376.asp.
Anime, or Japanese animation, returns to its regular schedule at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City with two shows a month starting this Saturday, Jan. 14.
The morning session, from 11 a.m. to 1:10 p.m., features several popular Japanese TV programs. Then, after a brief intermission, a movie will begin at 1:20 p.m. The program ends at 3 p.m.
This week’s movie combines a strong environmental message with gorgeous visuals and spectacular battle scenes. If you’ve ever been curious about Japanese animation, this is a good place to start.
The Bryson City anime club meets at the library from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the second and fourth Saturday of each month. The next program will be Jan. 28.
The Arts Council of Macon County will sponsor a one-day basket-weaving class from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 21, in the Macon County Cooperative Extension Building.
Participants will construct a functional and decorative tote basket, with open top and distinctive sea grass accents and handles. No experience is needed. $30 fee covers all materials and instruction. Pre-register by Jan. 17 with the Arts Council.
828.524.7683 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts will feature an exhibition of photographs by author Anna Fariello during the month of January.
The photographs explore four different native cultures — the Maya, the Kuna, the Emberá and the Cherokee — and their persistence into modern times.
“Few recognize that today’s Maya still live in Central America or that the Cherokee live close to us on a fraction of their homeland,” said Fariello. The exhibition runs through Jan. 31 and is free and open to the public. A reception will be held from 5-7p.m. on Jan. 12.
Southwestern Community College offers an Associate of Fine Arts degree program at The Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts. The Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts is located on Highway 19 North, behind Tribal Bingo at 70 Bingo Loop in Cherokee.
828.497.3945 or on the web at southwesterncc.edu/finearts/.
Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center is offering several classes this winter. Interested participants can register online at stecoahvalleycenter.com or call the Stecoah Gallery 828.479.3364.
• Wool Rug Braiding — Saturdays, Jan. 14, 21, and 28, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. $63. Perfect class for beginners.
• Pansy Wall Hanging — Saturday, Jan. 21, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. $30.
• Knitting for Beginners — Saturdays, Feb.4, Feb. 11, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. $40.
• Quilting for Beginners — Saturdays, Feb. 11, 18, 25, 1-4 p.m. $45.
Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center is located in a restored 1926 schoolhouse at 121 Schoolhouse Road off Hwy 28 between Bryson City and Fontana Dam 828.479.3364 or visit www.stecoahvalleycenter.com.
Each winter the theater scene in Waynesville takes off with the opening of the Feichter Studio at Haywood Arts Regional Theater. Area actors mount six shows in 12 weeks in the intimate backstage space at the Performing Arts Center at the Shelton House.
HART has won state, regional and national awards for some of those productions. For many HART supporters, it is their favorite place to see theater. With only 65 seats and the actors within reach, it is impossible not to get involved. The shows regularly sell out, so patrons are able to make reservations any time by simply leaving a message on the box office phone.
This season the Studio kicks off with “The Oxymorons,” an improvisational comedy troupe made up of many HART veterans. The group has been in existence for a number of years and has become quite well known in Asheville. This will be their second appearance at HART, and they will open the season and close it when they return in April.
Original members Graham and Forest Livengood are joined by Strother Stingley, Sarah Felmet and others. For those not familiar with improvisational comedy, the group takes titles, words and ideas from the audience then builds a comic sketch on the spot. It requires actors with quick minds and a great sense of humor. Every performance is different.
“The Oxymorons” will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 20 and 21, and at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan 22. Tickets are $10 for all adults and $6 for students, general admission. For reservations call the HART Box Office at 828.456.6322. All performances are in the Feichter Studio Theatre, 250 Pigeon Street, Waynesville.
The rest of the season will include, “Land’s End and Beyond” by area playwright Gary Carden, beginning Jan. 27; “Collected Stories” by Donald Margueles, beginning Feb. 10; “The Pillowman” by Martin McDonagh opens Feb. 24; a two-character musical titled “The Story of My Life” opens March 9; “The Guys” by Anne Nelson begins March 24; and the Oxymorons close it all out the weekend of April 6.
