Waynesville cattleman Tony McGaha was honored recently by the WNC Beef Cattle Commission with the Happy Hollow Award for his efforts to promote and support the beef cattle industry.

The winner is selected by past recipients based on the person’s involvement with the WNC Beef Cattle Commission activities over the years. 

“We are pleased to be presenting this award to Tony McGaha in appreciation for his dedication to the beef industry. Over the past 30 years, Tony has worked diligently to improve the agriculture for the future and farm families not only in Haywood County but many other parts of N.C.,” said Neal Stamey, a cattleman from Haywood who nominated McGaha.

About 200,000 gallons of untreated wastewater spilled from a manhole and made its way into a small tributary that feeds Richland Creek outside Waynesville last week. 

The sewer overflow began during a period of intense rainfall at about 1 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 22, and lasted about 28 hours, ending when the rain and stream flows subsided. The overflow emanated from a sewer manhole at the county fairgrounds off N.C. 209.   

The affected areas were cleaned and limed, according to a notice sent out by the town as required by state statute in the event of untreated sewer spills.

The rainfall total for the period was 4.3 inches. Waynesville Public Works Director Fred Baker said maintenance activities and sewer system rehabilitation are being performed to identify and correct infiltration and inflow sources connected to the sewer system to prevent overflows in the event of future heavy rains.  

828.456.4410.

A $30,000 grant to repair failing septic systems in Haywood County will help reduce bacteria contamination in local waterways.

A landslide in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was recently discovered along Newfound Gap Road, but is not blocking the road and is not considered a safety threat.

To the Editor:

This move by the state to “reward” 25 percent of the state’s teachers (and I’m not even focusing here on all of the far-from-minimal strings attached to those “rewards”) while at the same time dismissing 75 percent of the state’s teachers as unworthy of even a scintilla of recognition is probably the single most underhanded and potentially devastating action ever designed and implemented by anyone in this state who claims the title of elected representative. Make no mistake, this is a finely choreographed divide and conquer strategy intended to strike at the heart of education — the teachers, the administrators, the support personnel, the parents — by creating a system of “incentives” that will literally force the stakeholders to take sides, so to speak, and disregard and dismiss past efforts at teamwork, collaboration, and consensus.

I firmly believe that it is the unstated but very genuine goal of some of our so-called “education reformers” in Raleigh to dismantle our constitutionally mandated public education system and replace it with a taxpayer subsidized, privatized mishmash of unstandardized and unaccountable educational services that will absolutely ensure ongoing inequity and inequality of opportunity for North Carolina’s youth (but that will, at the same time, provide a wonderful investment opportunity for corporate educational profiteers who will gladly offer their services to our “failing” school systems).

This is a formula for educational disaster ... but such a great opportunity for the profiteers. Those who dreamed up this scheme knew that, though, and they still know it. The public now needs to do its part and call them out on what they are trying to do. 

Our “representatives” need to be shamed for supporting such a willfully divisive and potentially harmful scheme — a scheme, by the way, that is nothing less than a slap in the face to professional educators in this state (i.e., “75 percent of you are unworthy”) — and then disingenuously boasting that this is part of their effort to “reform” and “strengthen” education in North Carolina. I urge everyone to contact your legislators and let them know what you think of this “reform effort.” 

John Sanderson

retired principal, Waynesville

Painter and paper maker Elizabeth Ellison will demonstrate the use of collage in a landscape painting at the Art League of the Smokies meeting at 6:15 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 9, at the Swain County Center for the Arts in Bryson City.

Folkmoot USA had a $9.2 million impact on Western North Carolina in 2013, according to an economic impact study conducted by Tom Tveidt of SYNEVA Economics.

Dulcimer fans and aficionados will gather for the annual Mountain Dulcimer Weekend held Jan. 9 through 12 at Lake Junaluska, put on by Western Carolina University’s continuing education program.

The conference will offer more than 50 hours of instruction on the mountain dulcimer, hammered dulcimer, guitar and autoharp. Participants may take classes that focus on multiple instruments and a variety of topics will be presented, including music theory, tab reading/writing skills, improvisation and advanced dulcimer ensemble skills.

Winter Weekend instructors will include Tennessee natives Larry and Elaine Conger, Butch Ross, Sarah Morgan and Jim Miller, along with North Carolinians Steve and Ruth Smith and Anne Lough. Evening activities will include staff performances and a music-sharing session. Miller will lead jam sessions throughout the conference.

Registration for the conference is $159 and does not include meals or accommodations.

www.dulcimeru.wcu.edu or 828.227.7397.

Balsam Range’s annual “Winter Concert Series” will continue with John Driskell Hopkins at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 4, at the historic Colonial Theatre in Canton. Hopkins is a multi-award winner and founding member of the Zac Brown Band. 

Christmas is a time to recycle many things: bows, wrapping paper, gifts . . . and cooking oil.

The Haywood County Solid Waste Department accepts used cooking oil at all 10 convenience centers around the county and at the Materials Recovery Facility in Clyde. Used cooking oil is collected and sold to Blue Ridge Biofuels, which produces and distributes biodiesel fuel.

In fiscal year 2012-2013, Haywood County collected 1,068 gallons of used cooking oil, up from 900 gallons during the previous fiscal year.

Solid Waste Director Stephen King said that recycling cooking oil helps extend the life of sewer systems and landfills. To recycle used cooking oil, pour it into a clean plastic container with a lid, such as an empty cooking oil bottle or milk jug. King said the best containers to use are ones with a handle and a tight-fitting lid, such as a clean, empty cat litter bucket.

The cooking oil container should be kept separate from other recyclables and handed to an attendant at the convenience centers. For optimal use in converting to diesel fuel, King recommends that citizens bring in their used cooking oil frequently instead of letting it collect for a long time.

“For health and safety reasons, it’s better to bring in used cooking oil about once a month,” King said.

828.627.8042 or www.haywoodnc.net.

A new taekwondo school had opened in Clyde offering classes for preschoolers through adults.

Kids can hitch a ride to and from Cataloochee Ski Area after school with the Waynesville Recreation Center.

Western Carolina University’s new Health and Human Sciences Building has received gold LEED-certification for its comprehensive energy-efficient and environmentally friendly features.

To the Editor:

I love this time of year. Cold, crisp days remind me of the days I spent with my dad and our beagles chasing rabbits. Now it means it’s time to share a blind with a wet retriever or float a river when no one else is on it to see if any wood ducks are still here or if mallards have come down from up north. Now my 40-year-old son hunts and fishes with me. I love the time I get to spend with my son afield. We hunt and fish on the public lands and public waters that we are blessed to own with other Americans.  

Unfortunately these resources and all wildlife habitats are under attack. In recent years our duck hunting has suffered because ducks are just not coming down from the north like they use too. We are finding trout streams that are warming to a point that cold water fish can’t survive. We have witnessed damage from salt water incursion in national wildlife refuges that kills fresh water marshes as sea levels rise.  

The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) just completed four reports on the impact of a warming world on wildlife habitats:

• “Swimming Upstream: Freshwater Fish in a Warming World.”

• “Shifting Skies: Migratory Birds in a Warming World.”

• “Nowhere to Run: Big Game in a Warming World.”

• “Wildlife in a Warming World.”

You can find all four reports at the on the NWF web site at: www.nwf.org/Sportsmen-/Climate-Change.aspx

Whether you are a hunter, fisherman, birder, or simply enjoy kicking around outdoors, I believe you will find these reports compelling.

G. Richard Mode

Morganton

To the Editor:

No doubt 2013 was a much better year for Western North Carolina than was the previous year. 

The unemployment rate has dropped down to 7.4 percent in November from 8.9 percent when the year started.  Every county in North Carolina had lower unemployment rates. Financially the state is slowly recovering from where it was. 

Every major group in the state — from colleges to the DOT to the public and private schools — all need more money to operate. Jobs are the key to adding revenue to the state, and Gov. Pat McCrory is doing his best to make that happen. Nationally, North Carolina’s unemployment rate has dropped us down to number 35 from Number 49 just 11 months ago. 

With New Year approaching, I would like to suggest a New Year’s resolution to everyone for the coming year. Buying products that are made in the USA or at least in North America would be a big help. Working people in the USA are the people who spend their money here.  Buying stuff made in China or other Asian countries does not do a lot for our economy or North Carolina. 

I saw where the chicken from China is coming to the USA. I think we all can get along fine without buying chicken from China for a lot of reasons. Supporting local businesses is a great way to help improve the economy in our state. People who work here spend their money here.

Too many of our people have been out of work for more than a year. Supporting our local businesses will do more to help the poor and unemployed people than anything else. Income inequality will never be solved with welfare checks and foods stamp cards. I hope we can agree that jobs are the best way to overcome income inequality. 

Let us make 2014 the year we get our unemployment rate down to 6 percent or below. 

Jim Mueller

Glenville

To the Editor:

After the Clinton administrations’ efforts to get a universal health care bill passed back in the 90s, guess what group was next to propose sweeping health care legislation? No, not the Obama administration. It was the Heritage Foundation, the arch-conservative think tank in Washington. In those days, the Heritage Foundation believed that health care for everyone was important, and authored the bill in Massachusetts for then-governor Mitt Romney. When Romney signed it into law in 2006, members of the Heritage Foundation were right there for the signing, alongside liberal Sen. Ted Kennedy.  

That Massachusetts law eventually became the model for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that has been the subject of national debate for the better part of Obama’s term of office.  

Here’s the first twist in the story: It has been the Heritage Foundation that has turned on their own concept and led the fight against the ACA. They have made the wildest claims imaginable about it … that there will be “death panels” to advise people on Medicare how to end their lives … that the ACA will cut Medicare benefits, causing elderly people to die … that there is a secret White House security force that are being taught to use syringes as weapons. Whew.

Unfortunately, the rollout of ACA was an act of falling down stairs, and did a lot to make the ACA look more like an Edsel than a Jeep. But poor business management of the rollout doesn’t make the concept of everyone in the country having affordable health care a bad idea. With it, doctors are more accessible to everyone, regardless of income. Low-income people no longer have to get health care from emergency rooms, care for which they can’t pay. All at once, the how-am-I-going-to-pay-for-medical-care panic is lifted.  

Opponents say it won’t work, but it already is working in our biggest state. That’s the second twist in the story. Jerry Brown, the then-and-once-again governor of California, has latched onto the ACA concept and is using Medi-Cal (the state’s Medicaid program) to enroll low-income Californians. Through this venue, more than 107,000 Californians are already enrolled in the program through November alone — 23 percent of the total U.S. sign-ups.

So, what does this do for us in North Carolina? What help has Gov. Pat McCrory offered Tar Heels to get signed up? Nothing. He wants nothing to do with the Affordable Care Act and has taken the state out of participation in it. So Tar Heels are left to sort their way through the federal website to get this health coverage. So far, only 9,000 had done it through November, according to the Charlotte Business Journal.        

There were those who used to think of Jerry Brown as a quirky sort of guy. One writer even nicknamed him “Governor Moonbeam.” But Jerry Brown has chosen to be a help to the people of his state. By contrast, Pat McCrory has chosen to be an obstructionist for the people of North Carolina.

Rick Bryson

Bryson City

To the Editor:

I do not understand why so many Republican congressmen support voter I.D. laws when it has been proven over and over that voter fraud is extremely negligible and does not warrant the cost to implement and make voting more difficult. But then on the other hand they strongly oppose requiring background checks on all gun purchases. Too many gun purchases are made by people that would never have passed a background check and so many innocent people are being murdered daily.

Oh by the way, my Republican friends have been telling me repeatedly that Medicare B premiums would go up well over $200 monthly starting in 2014. Well, I just read monthly premiums will not go up in 2014 but will remain the same as 2013 at $104. 

Up until five years ago I was a staunch Republican, but have since changed my affiliation to Independent. I now read the issues, impacts, ignore the scare tactics and vote for who I think will be best for the 95 percent.

Ron Rokstool

Maggie Valley

By Paul Clark • Correspondent

Harvesting poplar bark to make bark shingles is never easy, but this summer Danny Heatherly and his crew had a short season shortened even further by all the rain that fell.

When the clock strikes midnight and Dec. 31 gives way to Jan. 1, the tolling of the bell won’t symbolize the start of just another typical new year at Western Carolina University. Instead, the first day of 2014 will mark the beginning of WCU’s 125th year of existence, and university faculty, staff and students are planning a yearlong celebration to mark the milestone.

Western Carolina University has received a $500,000 grant from the Golden LEAF Foundation to help expand engineering education across Western North Carolina through a partnership with regional community colleges.

The funding will support WCU’s efforts to ensure a seamless transition for community college students who want to earn four-year degrees in engineering through the implementation of engineering pathway courses at community colleges and the recruitment of qualified students into the program.

Asheville-Buncombe Technical, Blue Ridge and Isothermal community colleges are initial partners in the effort, which will eventually include WNC community colleges from Rutherfordton in the east to Murphy in the west.

The grant, awarded out of the foundation’s Essential Skills in Advanced Manufacturing Initiative, will help produce qualified workers for manufacturers, including some of the region’s largest private-sector employers, said Dan Gerlach, Golden LEAF president.

The funding will provide support for Western Carolina’s recently announced undergraduate program in engineering at its instructional site at Biltmore Park Town Square, and will supplement advanced manufacturing engineering education on the campus in Cullowhee, said James Zhang, dean of WCU’s Kimmel School of Construction Management and Technology.

For more information about engineering at WCU, visit engineering.wcu.edu.

By Colby Dunn • Correspondent

For residents of Highlands, the list of things to do in town, depending on the season, can be pretty short and “go to the movies” has never been on it. But the town is filmless no more, thanks to a new program at the Highlands Playhouse that’s bringing in the blockbusters four nights a week. 

The Haywood County Tourism Development Authority has officially revived the Haywood County Film Commission. 

Becky Seymour, video marketing manager of the Haywood TDA, is committed to draw more TV and film production to Haywood County. The TDA is currently working with Advantage West in Asheville and supplying information on Haywood County when presented with location requests for film and television.  

Since 2010, the NC Film Tax Incentive has fueled three strong years for film and television production in the state. In 2013 North Carolina as a whole had 5,700 production days, $254 million in spending and 25,000 job opportunities from film and television production.  

Production companies commonly request information on location, support services and crew. Many locations can be considered as long as the property/business owners are willing to accommodate the crew and their needs, Seymour said. Support services needed by production crews would be local caterers, environmental services, accounting and hair and makeup experts. 

The directory forms and categories are provided at www.haywoodcountytourismdevelopment.com/haywood-county-film-commission - under the “Haywood County Film Commission” tab. 

Submit the completed form by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by fax at 828.452.0153.

Funk group Kool & The Gang and rock band ZZ Top will perform at Harrah’s Cherokee Event Center.

Kool & The Gang performs at 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 29. The group has sold over 70 million albums worldwide and influenced the music of three generations. Thanks to songs like “Celebration,” “Cherish,” and “Jungle Boogie,” they’ve earned two Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, and 31 gold and platinum albums. Their bulletproof funk and tough, jazzy arrangements have also made them the most sampled band of all time. Tickets are $32, $42 and $53.

Longtime rockers ZZ Top bring 2013 to a close with a concert at 9 p.m. on New Year’s Eve. The group lays an undisputed claim to being the longest running major rock band with original personnel intact. In 2004, the Texas trio was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, with more than 40 years of rock, blues, and boogie on the road and in the studio. Their hits include “Tush,” “Sharp Dressed Man,” “Legs” and “Cheap Sunglasses.” Tickets are $65, $75 and $100.

www.harrahscherokee.com or www.ticketmaster.com.

The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad is ringing in the New Year at 7:45 p.m. Dec. 31 in Bryson City. The train leaves the Bryson City depot at 9 p.m. and returns after midnight.

The Franklin Chamber of Commerce hosted its inaugural “Gingerbread House Competition” at Franklin’s Town Hall during this year’s Winter Wonderland.

Renowned bluegrass/gospel group Balsam Range’s 4th annual “Winter Concert Series” will continue with John Driskell Hopkins at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 4 at the historic Colonial Theatre in Canton. Hopkins is a multi-award winner and founding member of the Zac Brown Band. 

Haywood Waterways Association passed out its annual awards this month to water quality heroes.

• The Big Creek Award for Partner of the Year went to the Haywood County Environmental Health Department for helping to repair 75 failing septic systems, which were leaching raw sewage, household chemicals, soap, medicines and anything else that people pour down the drain into Richland Creek. Bacteria levels dropped significantly following the septic repairs.

• The Lake Junaluska Award for Volunteer of the Year was given to Richard T. Alexander, one of Haywood Waterways’ founders and longtime board member. He volunteers as a water quality sampler and monitor, with litter pickup efforts and other civic projects.

• The Pigeon River Award was given to the Bethel Rural Community Organization for its significant contribution to protecting land and water resources — including assisting private landowners with eight conservation easements totaling 268 acres, promoting the Voluntary Agricultural District, and hosting public workshops to promote rural land and water conservation. Accepting the award for the Bethel Community Organization were Bill Holbrook, Ted and Pat Carr, Evelyn and Dick Coltman, Steve Sorrels and George Ivey.  

The National Park Service has selected Pedro Ramos to serve as the acting superintendent of Great Smoky Mountains National Park for 90 days, effective Jan. 12. Ramos has been the superintendent at Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida since 2009.

Conservation groups reached a compromise with the U.S. Forest Service over a controversial logging project in the Courthouse Creek area, which is visible to the south of the Blue Ridge Parkway from Devil’s Courthouse.

The new documentary “Cataloochee” will be shown in a special preview at 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 20, in the Charles M. Beal Auditorium at Haywood Community College in Clyde.

Cataloochee Valley in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is well known for its elk and scenic beauty and its rich history.  A new two-hour documentary — three years in the making — tells the story. Produced by the Haywood County Historical and Genealogical Society, in cooperation with Western Carolina University and under the direction of Katherine Bartel, the film documents the valley’s rich heritage spanning centuries, from the time the Cherokee hunted there to the coming of the park. The documentary shares the stories told by the last remaining people who were born there and tells how this remote valley became part of a national park. Beautiful footage, family photos and rare audio recordings are woven together with historical research and interviews to produce a film that is both informative and entertaining.

Free.

Western Carolina University has unveiled its third annual holiday video greeting card, “Moments to Remember” and hosted at the website www.seasonsgreetings2013.wcu.edu. 

Created by WCU’s Office of Communications and Public Relations, this year’s greeting card is patterned after the popular “Good Morning America” segment “Your Three Words,” in which viewers submit videos expressing themselves in three words.

The concept for the video is to share highlights from 2013, both personal and university-wide in scope, while also looking toward the year ahead and the celebration of the 125th anniversary of WCU’s founding, said staff writer and editor Teresa Killian Tate, who proposed the idea for this year’s holiday greeting.

The video was shot and edited by staff videographer Joseph Hader, who also enlisted the assistance of students from WCU’s Film and Television Production Program. The website housing the video was designed by Zack Keys of the Office of Creative Services.

The Smoky Mountain Quilters Guild of Franklin, together with members of Misty Mountain Quilters Guild from Blairsville, Ga. and the Cashiers Guild, presented Quilts of Valor on Dec. 8 to members of the North Carolina National Guard’s 210th Military Police Company during their company’s Christmas party in Sylva.  

Work by painter Edith Neff will be on exhibit through Jan. 31 in the Fine Arts Museum at Western Carolina University.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park will host a Holiday Homecoming from 10 a.m. to noon and 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 21, at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center.

The Ambassadors of Jackson County recently elected new officers: Chairman Tommy Dennison, Business Counselor with the Small Business and Technology Development Center at Western Carolina University; Vice Chairman John Hagdorn of Highlander Self Storage; and Secretary Karen Walston, the Bug Lady of WNC.

Known for their red jackets, the Ambassadors are the outreach and goodwill arm of the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce.

“While all the Ambassadors work and have their own careers and businesses, they graciously give of their time to assist others in the business community. Our Ambassadors warmly greet new business owners and offer to help in any way they can,” said Julie Spiro, executive director of the Jackson County Chamber.

Other members of the Ambassadors Committee are Carroll Smith from Smith Insurance; Ina Ustich from Smoky Mountain Getaways; Amy Ammons Garza, Catch the Spirit of Appalachia and Fun Things to do in the Mountains; Michele D. Smith, attorney; Dana Smith of Jack the Dipper; Beth Bell of Morris Broadband;  and Sande Hagdorn of Highlander Self Storage.

828.243.9318.

Chris Cooper, associate professor and head of the Department of Political Science and Public Affairs at Western Carolina University, has been named the 2013 “Professor of the Year” in the state of North Carolina by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

“This award simply confirms what his students and colleagues already know — Chris Cooper is a gifted teacher who fires his students’ imaginations and love of learning through his infectious passion for political science and his sincere dedication to their success,” said Richard Starnes, dean of WCU’s College of Arts and Sciences. 

Cooper is among faculty members from 36 states who were selected from more than 350 top professors nationally for this year’s awards.

Cooper earlier this year was named one of the best teachers in the UNC system by the UNC Board of Governors, was the 2011 winner of WCU’s Distinguished Scholar Award and a 2007 winner of WCU’s Chancellor’s Award for Engaged Teaching.  

For Carroll Brown, an associate professor in the hospitality and tourism program at Western Carolina University, there’s nothing like taking her classroom to the streets. For the past five years, she and her students have helped decorate the town for Dillsboro’s Lights and Luminaries Festival. 

“There’s no better teacher than experience,” said Elizabeth Kilmer, a junior from Concord majoring in hospitality and tourism and marketing. “Taking part in setting up the Lights and Luminaries festival taught me more than any textbook could have. Helping out Dillsboro when they needed a few extra hands was so rewarding.”

The students aren’t the only ones who benefit from the experience. “Having the students help out during our Lights and Luminaries festival has been a great blessing for the town of Dillsboro,” said Susan Leveille, co-owner of Dillsboro business Oaks Gallery.

www.visitdillsboro.org/specialevents.html.

By Jake Flannick • SMN Correspondent

Since she started spreading the word about the new health care law, Cynthia Solesbee has encountered many questions — and opinionated remarks — about a sweeping change affecting tens of thousands of people without insurance across the far western part of the state.

Citing a desire to maximize their donation through a federal challenge grant, representatives of the Community Services of Swain County (CSSC) recently gave $2,500 to Southwestern Community College’s Student Success Campaign.

An effort to bridge the gap between scholarship need and availability, the Student Success Campaign is the most ambitious fundraising effort to date by the SCC Foundation. Mary Otto Selzer, director of the SCC Foundation, said the campaign aims to raise more than $1 million before Sept. 30, 2014.

The challenge grant, through the U.S. Department of Education, matches every dollar (up to $300,000) given to the campaign.

“The leverage of the federal matching program is the main incentive for us,” said Ken Mills, president of CSSC. “When we give $2,500 toward student scholarships, it instantly doubles and does that much more good. That’s exciting for us. Our organization was formed with the purpose of doing everything we can to make our communities better. We are thrilled about the growing partnership between our communities and SCC.”

For more information about the Student Success Campaign and the SCC Foundation, visit southwesterncc.edu or contact Selzer at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.339.4241.

Jackson County volunteers who provide free basic tax forms preparation and counseling for individuals are looking for others to join their team.   

Volunteers must be willing to assist taxpayers at least one day a week during tax season. Training will take place during the month of January. No previous tax preparation experience is required.  You will be trained and certified by local mentors using IRS and AARP Foundation training materials and guidelines. Experience with computers, accounting, tax preparation, or just being good with numbers is helpful but not a requirement. 

 This effort is partially supported by the Jackson County Senior Center and the Jackson County Public Library Complex. Last year the group of volunteers prepared over 326 tax returns for local residents of all ages at these locations. 

For more information contact learning coordinator Donald Selzer at 828.293.0074.

The last day of federal court in Bryson City will be Dec. 31. 

By Colby Dunn • Correspondent

When it comes to Vegas-style gaming, Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Resort has hedged its bets on being the only game in town … in the region … in the state … in the surrounding five-state area.