Archived (29788)
Children categories
You have permission to vote Democrat
To the Editor: Recently I have heard folks say things like, “My daddy” or “Momma” would “roll over in their…
Read More
Best choice for school board is Goode
To the Editor: Don’t we all desire what’s best for our kids? The best schools. The best teachers. The best…
Read More
Thanks for coverage of candidates
To the Editor: I would like to applaud The Smoky Mountain News for the articles on the Haywood County Commission…
Read More
We should fear the puppet politicians
To the Editor: In the campaign financial reports from 2012, Rep. Michelle Presnell, R-Yancey, spent $107,039 with $3,611 from individuals…
Read More
Goode is fresh choice for school board
To the Editor: Eleven years ago, I came home from work to find my wife — Wende Goode — holding…
Read More
Keep all school staff in mind when voting
To the Editor: Most of the talk regarding education has been about teacher pay, which is critical such that we…
Read More
Tillis clear over incumbent Sen. Hagan
To the Editor: The Senate race in North Carolina is the most important election in our state this year. Sen.…
Read More
Choose science over a salesman’s snake oil
To the Editor: I’m really impressed with Tom Hill, candidate for District 11 of the U.S. Congress, hoping to unseat…
Read More
This is what GOP legislature did for us
To the Editor: Are you better off now than you were, say, a year ago? For most of us that…
Read More
Hunter Murphy best option for Appeals Court
To the Editor: I would like to take this opportunity to recommend Mr. Hunter Murphy for election to the North…
Read More
A letter to Gov. McCrory and the Legislature
To the Editor: The actions taken in the last few years under Republican leadership have awakened a sleeping giant of…
Read More
Vote for Hill, send Meadows home
To the Editor: I truly believe Tom Hill will stand up for us, the common person. If you haven’t seen many…
Read More
Time for new county commissioners
To the Editor: What have the incumbent county commissioners brought to Haywood County? I am a 55-year resident of Haywood…
Read More
Students will rise – or fall – to our level of expectations
My weekdays begin at 5 a.m. I have time to drink coffee with my husband, thank him for making my…
Read More
‘Remember, the flying itself is the thing’
It is a fine day for a cookout, this Father’s Day. It is hot enough that most of the younger…
Read More
Monarchs to Mexico
Monarch butterflies, like orange autumn leaves filling the skies, have been winging it to Mexico for the last month or…
Read More
Duke Energy Progress to replace mercury vapor lights in N.C.
Duke Energy Progress customers may see some changes in their communities as the utility embarks on a new initiative to…
Read More
Project aims to increase sales, food stamp use at farmers markets
A partnership between the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project and the Rural Advancement Foundation International is aimed at increasing farmer direct…
Read More
WCU gets $436K to protect coastal parks
The National Park Service has awarded a $436,000 grant to the Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines at Western…
Read More
Trout Unlimited looking for photogenic fish
Trout Unlimited is looking for fishy photos to contend for gear prizes in its 2014 photo contest. The contest is…
Read More
Arboretum plans geocaching adventure
Geocaching will be the main topic on the agenda Saturday, Nov. 1, at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville. This…
Read More
Park offers reward for information on theft
Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials are offering a reward for information after artifacts were stolen from a locked display…
Read More
Learn how to keep gardening as temps dip
A workshop on winter gardening and spring garden prep to teach gardeners how to avoid putting growing season to bed…
Read More
The bugle of triumph: Elk herd success spurs tourism, scientific innovation
At 7:30 a.m., darkness is just barely beginning to lift from the pre-dawn fields and forest of Cataloochee Valley. Joe…
Read More
Economic development summit set for Nov. 12
Leaders from government, business and nonprofits across Western North Carolina will gather with economic development experts and others to discuss…
Read More
Ebola panel discussion offered at WCU
A panel discussion and question-and-answer session on the Ebola crises and the risk it poses will take place 4-5:30 p.m.…
Read More
Cherokee fly fishing museum sets opening day, fundraising dinner
It’s been two years since Alen Baker, the self-described “instigator” of the effort to create the Fly Fishing Museum of…
Read More
Jackson TDA laying groundwork for hiring director
The Jackson County Tourism Development Authority is pursuing a leader, someone to act as the organization’s executive director. The workload…
Read More
Haywood looks to start Friends of the Parkway chapter, clear overlooks
With park funding falling and visitation increasing, keeping those iconic views open along the 46 miles of Blue Ridge Parkway…
Read More
Macon approves $1.5 million for landfill expansion
With its landfill nearing capacity, Macon County is taking steps to add a new cell before the existing area fills…
Read More
Swain’s museum offers new attraction, old relics
Inside and out, the Swain County Heritage Museum is an ode to history. The very building that houses the museum…
Read More
Forest Hills hosts workshop, explores planning issues
The Village of Forest Hills is about to go on a vision quest. The quest begins Nov. 3 with a…
Read More
Waynesville Soda Jerks win national award
The Waynesville Soda Jerks, an independent artisan beverage company, recently won first place at the National Association of Community Colleges…
Read More
All OK after bomb threat clears Tuscola
Things are back on track at Tuscola High School after some threatening graffiti found in a boys bathroom last week…
Read More
Election Day countdown
Early voting turnout is outpacing the last statewide, non-presidential election year of 2010. And in the seven western counties, early…
Read More
Dealing with violence: Children the focus of nonprofit’s $1 million grant
Domestic violence in Haywood County — and its effect on children — could take a hit as the Thirtieth Judicial…
Read More
Cullowhee proposals in for a tweaking
They weren’t thrilled about it, but members of the Cullowhee community did show an appetite for possible development standards during…
Read More
Steep slope ordinance rewrite timeline: The inopportune arrival of a slow but steady train
When Jackson County commissioners halted the controversial rewrite of the steep slope development rules earlier this year, critics were both…
Read More
Seven years war for the mountainsides rages on in Jackson
Controlling mountainside development is a universal issue grappled with across Western North Carolina. But Jackson County’s residents have wrestled more…
Read More
Mill town riddle: Bearing the burden and reaping the rewards
Canton exists against the backdrop of the paper mill. Both literally and figuratively. For generations, the paper mill — currently…
Read More
Canton economic initiative strives to hold on to past while looking to the future
Hanging out at the confluence of crossroads that embraces downtown Canton, two young skateboarders while away a lazy afternoon. They’re…
Read More
Take a stroll with Webster’s residents and leaders
The Town of Webster invites the public to attend its Oct. 27 Community Stroll to help identify ways to improves the community's health,…
Read More
Confused about voting procedures? Democracy North Carolina offers these 15 quick tips
By Bob Hall As an independent watchdog group, Democracy North Carolina receives all kinds of reports on our hotline at 888-OUR-VOTE.…
Read More
Early voting has begun
Registered voters who can't wait until Election Day to vote now have the opportunity to vote in person across North…
Read More
Cullowhee community meeting tonight
Tonight will be the last of two public input meetings concerning the proposed Cullowhee Planning Area development standards. Tonight’s meeting…
Read More
Dockie Brendle’s bridge dedication
Vietnam veteran and Purple Heart recipient Dockie Brendle will have a bridge officially named in honor of him this month.…
Read More
Ancient hunters had some mammoth prey
Names of places throughout the Blue Ridge country pay tribute to the familiar wildlife of the region: Bear Wallow Stand…
Read More
Celebrate Halloween and fall at NOC
Nantahala Outdoor Center’s annual NOCtoberfest event will celebrate leaf season in the Smokies from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday,…
Read More
Comment open for boater access trails
An environmental analysis released by the U.S. Forest Service is proposing five boater access trails in national forests in South…
Read More
Photographer presents Blue Ridge vistas guide
Photographer and author Tim Barnwell will present his new book, Blue Ridge Parkway Vistas, at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25,…
Read More
