Without immediate action from the General Assembly, Pandemic-era federal grants to child care providers will run out on July 1 — plunging the state into a child care crisis that will hamper economic and workforce development, make child care more difficult to find and further burden North Carolina’s working parents already feeling the pinch from unaffordable housing and the relentless corporate greed that’s driving inflation. 

Stakeholders around Western North Carolina recognize the end of COVID-era child care stabilization funding and the broader lack of available child care resources as a multilayered impediment to economic development.

A delighted crowd of more than 350 people responded with a standing ovation at the season’s opening concert of the Haywood Community Band (HCB).

Hoping to build on the momentum of a successful off-year election cycle, even amid violent threats, members of Western North Carolina’s LGBTQ+ community are wary of what might happen in the General Election and are calling for the codification of rights already enjoyed by other Americans. 

Commissioners voted unanimously June 3 to accept Haywood County Manager Bryant Morehead’s proposed annual budget which, in spite of inflation, forthcoming debt for a jail expansion and the loss of a major employer last year, contains no tax increase.

Established more than 20 years ago, the Haywood County Farm Bureau scholarship program assists graduating seniors who have a financial need as well as a demonstrated history of community service with the cost of obtaining a college education.

On Thursday, June 13, 2024, David Crane, author, scholar and international prosecutor, will provide insights on the implications of the war in Ukraine on our national security and world safety.

After Covid, Haywood Meals on Wheels lost volunteers and was forced to drop meal deliveries to three days per week. The goal is to return to a five-day delivery schedule. 

The Town of Waynesville, in collaboration with NCWorks Career Center, will host a youth hiring event from 2-5 p.m. Friday, June 14, at the Waynesville Recreation Center. 

Administrators for the Town of Canton have presented a conservative fiscal year 2024-25 budget that seeks some sense of sustainability after last year’s closing of the Pactiv Evergreen paper mill, which created a substantial revenue deficit and has now forced the small town to plan for a huge new expense it’s never had to worry about before.