“Celebration!” the annual fundraiser for the Bascom center for the visual arts, will be held on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, at the Bascom in Highlands.

On Friday, the main event will be a Motown in the Mountains party, including live music by the Sensational Sounds of Motown, barbecue from Cashiers Farmers Market, wine selections and more. Tickets are $35 for adults, $5 for children ages 5 to 12. Children under 5 are free.

Saturday will feature a dinner gala and auction, offering fine dining and spirits, silent auction and the exciting live auction Also during the live auction will be “Touching a Heart Through Art,” a paddle raise to support The Bascom. Tickets are $225.

828.787.2896 or www.TheBascom.org/celebration.

A pastel workshop is being offered from 2 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1, at Nature’s Home Preserve in Tuckasegee by Catch the Spirit of Appalachia.

Participants will paint with pastels the nature around them by learning how to create a quick composition through placement of dark and light colors. The basics in use of pastels, color, composition and detail will be emphasized.

The fee is $36 with all materials furnished.

828.293.2239.

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians hosts the 99th annual Cherokee Indian Fair Oct. 4 through 8 at the Cherokee Indian Fair Grounds in Cherokee.

The fair offers nightly entertainment, fireworks, a carnival midway full of rides and games, craft vendors, food vendors — including some featuring traditional Cherokee food — and an exhibit hall displaying the Eastern Band’s traditional and contemporary arts and crafts. Visitors will also have a chance to see family-friendly competitions such as Cherokee Idol, blowgun, longbow and compound bow archery contests and wood chopping.

This year’s concert line-up packs a blues, beach, country, rap, bluegrass, funk and rock punch with the ever-popular Charlie Daniels Band headlining Saturday night. Atlanta favorite Mother’s Finest will feature on Friday night.

A parade on Oct. 4 kicks off the annual five-day fete, and the festivities include the Cherokee Idol Elimination Round. Oct. 5 is Children’s Day and features fun games and activities for the little ones. On Oct. 6, the Elders are honored, and Oct. 7 is dedicated to veterans and concludes with the highly anticipated Cherokee Idol competition. Community Day on Oct. 8 features traditional Cherokee competition and games.

The fair opens at 10 a.m. each day and daily general admission is $10, which includes nightly concerts. Children 6 and younger are admitted free.

www.cherokee-nc.com.

Staff from the Franklin Gem and Mineral Museum will present a program on local geology and gemstone identification at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 4, at The Jackson County Public Library.

Diane Aiello and Fred Plesner will display and discuss local specimens and also demonstrate geode splitting. Attendees are encouraged to bring samples they’d like identified.

The Franklin Gem and Mineral Museum is located in the old Franklin jail building. It is open to the public, hosts educational programs, and has specimens of fossils as well as rocks and gemstones on display.

For more information call 828.586.2016.

A Canine Good Citizen Test will be offered on Sunday, Oct. 2, at the Jackson County Recreation Complex by the Western Carolina Dog Fanciers Association in conjunction with this year’s Bark in the Park.

The Canine Good Citizen Program is a two-part program that stresses responsible pet ownership for owners and basic good manners for dogs. Started in 1989, CGC is a certification program that is designed to reward dogs who have good manners at home and in the community. All dogs who pass the 10-step CGC test may receive a certificate from the American Kennel Club.

Those wishing to test must pre-register, and will then be given an assigned time for their test. Testing will end by 12 p.m. and will be given on a first-come basis. The cost is $10 per dog/handler team.

For more information call 828.293.7415 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. For more information about the test, visit www.akc.org.

“I Hate Hamlet,” the story of an actor in career limbo, will hit the stage at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday to Saturday, Oct. 5 to 8, in Western Carolina University’s Hoey Auditorium.

The show will kick off the 2011-12 University Theatre Mainstage season at WCU.

“I Hate Hamlet” is the story of young television star Andrew Rally, who finds his career derailed when his series is canceled. After relocating to New York, Rally is offered the role of Hamlet on stage. His life gets more complicated after meeting his roommate, the drunken ghost of John Barrymore, the legendary actor known for his groundbreaking portrayal of Hamlet. The New York Times described the play as “unapologetically silly and at times hilarious.”

Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for faculty, staff and seniors and $10 for students or $7 if purchased in advance.

For more information call 828.227.2479 or visit bardoartscenter.wcu.edu.

The Wilderness Society will host a three-day nature writer’s intensive with author Janisse Ray at The Mountain Retreat & Learning Center from Sept. 29-Oct. 2.

The workshop is for writers committed to communicating the importance of place — where you live, where you hike, where your drinking water comes from — and what matters about its present and future state.

Participants will spend their time engaged in both dialogue and writing exercises in a spectacular natural setting with one of the south’s most eloquent voices on this subject.

Janisse Ray is the award winning author of Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, of which the New York Times said, “the South has found its Rachel Carson.”

The retreat is located near Highlands and borders the Overflow Wilderness Study Area. Included in the workshop agenda will be hikes into Overflow as well as evenings with special guests such as regional authors Thomas Rain Crowe, John Lane, and Barbara Duncan.

Early registration fee for this workshop is $450 per person, and includes three nights of double-occupancy lodging as well as all meals and workshop materials.

Jill Gottesman at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.587.9453.

•••

This year’s annual N.C. Bartram Trail Society meeting features Janisse Ray, award-winning author of Ecology of a Cracker Childhood.

The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 28, at the Albert Carlton Library in Cashiers. The BTS membership meeting (including trail updates and board elections) will precede the lecture, from 6 p.m. until 6:45 p.m.

Any one is welcome to attend.

Janisse Ray is author of three books of literary nonfiction. Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, a memoir about growing up on a junkyard in the ruined longleaf pine ecosystem of the Southeast, was published by Milkweed Editions in 1999. Besides being a plea to protect and restore the glorious pine flatwoods of the South, the book looks hard at family, mental illness, poverty, and fundamentalist religion.

Farmer, writer and activist Wendell Berry called the book “well done and deeply moving.”

www.ncbartramtrail.org

Looking for a way to celebrate national hunting and fishing day with your kids? Head to The Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education on Sept. 24 from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., where a full schedule of events have been lined up.

These include fishing, outdoor cooking, archery, pellet rifle range and an interactive kids’ hunt camp. There are indoor exhibits, too, such as an award-winning documentary on natural history and wildlife diversity of the mountains. and five aquatic habitats with live fish, frogs, salamanders and snakes.

828.877.4423

Need a rain barrel? You can buy one through Haywood Waterways Association, the Haywood County Chamber of Commerce and the N.C. Cooperative Extension Service.

These Haywood County groups are selling rain barrels to raise awareness of water conservation. They will be available at the Agricultural Service Center (589 Raccoon Road) on Thursday, Sept. 22 and 29, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The 55-gallon barrels are made from recycled pickle containers. They are fitted with connections for a garden hose, overflow pipes, or to connect multiple barrels in series. The barrels also have a drain and bug screen. The tops can be removed for easy cleaning and maintenance. Display models are at the Chamber of Commerce office (28 Walnut Street, Waynesville) and Cooperative Extension office (589 Raccoon Road) where they can be purchased.

The cost for one barrel is $75 plus tax with proceeds benefiting each organization.

Rain barrels are good for water, and they are a great investment for maintaining healthy gardens and landscaping. During drought they provide a source of water for irrigation and reduce the strain on rivers and wells. By capturing and retaining rainwater they help reduce stormwater impacts when it does rain.

828.631.2823 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

 Catch the first glimpses of autumn color, explore old cabins and cemeteries, and even ring the bell of a picture-perfect mountain chapel during a guided hike along Little Cataloochee Trail with the Friends of the Smokies.

Tuesday, Oct. 4, hiking enthusiast and author Danny Bernstein (author of Hiking North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Heritage), will lead this 6.5-mile hike. The hike is moderate in difficulty and has a total elevation gain/descent of 1,500 feet, and features new improvements from the Trails Forever program. Time permitting, hikers will also visit the elk herd in Cataloochee Valley.

Participants gather to depart from Asheville at 8:30 a.m., or off Interstate 40 exit 24 at 9 a.m. Exact meeting locations specified upon registration. Hikers should come prepared with food, water and appropriate hiking clothes, and should expect to spend all day on the trail.

A donation of $25 is requested, and includes a complimentary membership to Friends of the Smokies. Donations will benefit Trails Forever, a program dedicated to trail improvement projects in the Smokies. There is no cost to current Friends of the Smokies members.

Space is limited. Contact Friends of the Smokies to register for the Little Cataloochee Trail hike.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.452.0720.

Nantahala Outdoor Center’s popular Guest Appreciation Festival begins Friday, Sept. 23, and continues through the weekend, offering free attractions, live music and entertainment.

The festival, NOC’s way of thanking the company’s guests at the end of the primary paddlesports season, is one of the most popular outdoor lifestyle gatherings in the

Southeast, attracting more than 5,000 visitors.

The 2011 show will feature a new headlining act on Saturday: the King BMX stunt show — a high-flying, dynamic performance. Show performers will use ramps to perform aerial tricks as well as impressive ground-based maneuvers.

This year’s event also features live music performances from five different musical acts appealing to varied musical tastes. Traditionalists will enjoy the old-time Appalachian sounds of Blue Eyed Girl and the hard-driving string music of the Freighthoppers. Modern music fans will hear “high country reggae” from Chalwa, R&B and Soul from the Secret B-Sides and bluegrass, jazz and jam fusion from Brushfire Stankgrass.

Free attractions include rock climbing, storytelling, an interactive mountain bike pump track, educational live animal exhibitions, paddling competitions, outdoor skill demonstrations, face painting, and craft workshops.

The annual Used Gear Sale, where the company sells off its rafting, kayaking and canoeing supplies from the season also is scheduled. Adjacent to this, the Used Gear Sale is a used gear marketplace where enthusiasts buy, sell and trade their gear with other enthusiasts.

NOC’s Outfitter’s Store will also be liquidating its 2011 demo fleet of whitewater and flatwater kayaks, as well as rental mountain bikes.

www.noc.com/gaf.

Road races by three area hospitals this month shine the spotlight directly on breast-cancer awareness. You don’t have to be a runner to participate in these important efforts; walkers are welcome, too.

The first of the races is the popular, annual 5K and 10K runs in Sylva along the Tuckasegee River on Oct. 1. The 13th annual Smoky Streak is a joint effort of the Jackson County Health Department, MedWest Harris/Swain hospitals and the MedWest Harris/Swain Foundation.

New for this year is that both the 5K and 10K will start and finish at Webster Baptist Church, meaning no more shuttle buses. The 5K will begin at 9 a.m. and the 10K will begin at 9:30 a.m. The proceeds will provide mammograms for underserved women in the MedWest Health System.

www.medwesthealth.org/smoky_streak.aspx.

The next race, Pour le Pink, is a 3.2-mile walk/run to support local breast health and women’s services, will be held on Saturday, Oct. 15 at Highlands-Cashiers Hospital. The funds raised will go toward maintaining the hospital’s spectrum of breast health and women’s services as well as financial aid for patients.

Early entry fee is $20 for adults, if received on or before Sept. 30. Late entries received after that date will cost $30. Child rate is $5. The 5k race is open to male/female runners and walkers of all ages will begin at 8 a.m.; the fun walk/run at 8:15 a.m.  www.highlandscashiershospital.org or 828.526.1313.  

Finally, to complete the hat trick, the Power of Pink race will be held in Haywood County on Saturday, Oct. 29, to raise money for mammograms for women who otherwise can’t afford them. There is a five-woman relay race, a four-mile individual run, and a fun run/walk as part of the event. The Haywood Regional Medical Center Foundation and the Haywood County Health Department sponsor this annual event.

The relay start time is 8 a.m.; the four-miler starts at 9:30 a.m. The fun run/walk starts at 11 a.m.

www.medwesthealth.org/power_of_pink.aspx

Want an excuse to get some great hiking in and take photographs? The Outdoor Provision Co. is recognizing Mountains to Sea Trail month with a photography competition.

The trail spans the state from the Outer Banks to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Photos will be judged in three categories:

• The view from the trail.

• People on the trail.

• Youth photographer, ages 17 and younger.

The deadline for submitting photos is Oct. 31 at midnight. Awards include cash prizes, gift cards for outdoor gear and the opportunity to have your photos published.

For complete entry guidelines, check out www.ncmst.org/get-involved/photo-contest.

Muddy Sneakers, an innovative program that brings the joy of learning outside to fifth-grade students, has been named the Conservation Organization of the Year for 2010 by the Governor’s Conservation Achievement Awards program.

The North Carolina Wildlife Federation and the National Wildlife Federation sponsor this award, which highlights individuals and organizations that have exemplified conservation activism across the state.

Muddy Sneakers is entering its fourth year, and is a proven effective program that brings public school educators and students into outdoor learning experiences. So much so, the Western North Carolina-initiated program will expand this year into South Carolina.

Field instructors work with fifth-grade students and teachers to create a lifelong love of nature, a commitment to stewardship, improved academic performance, an enthusiasm for health and fitness and an understanding of the interconnectedness within the natural world.

www.muddysneakers.org or 828.862.5560.

Bryson City Bicycles will take young riders on a free youth mountain-biking event on Saturday, Oct. 1, beginning at 9 a.m. at Deep Creek.

The ride is for kids ages 6 to 16. It is part of the nationwide celebration, Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day, supported by the International Mountain Bicycling Association.

There is a maximum of 25 spaces available; participation will be on a first-come, first-serve basis. Pre-registration is required. Bikers should assemble at the Deep Creek Picnic area in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park outside of Bryson City.

Bryson City Bicycles has kids’ bikes (in limited quantities) to rent for $20 for the event. Helmets are required.

All participants get snacks, beverages and a goody bag. The ride will be led on Deep Creek Trail and Indian Creek Trail by Andy Zivinsky, co-owner of Bryson City Bicycles, along with other adult volunteers.

Register in advance at Bryson City Bicycles at 157 Everett St., Bryson City, or by calling 828.488.1988

BicycleHaywoodNC has donated 15 bicycles and 15 helmets to Haywood County

Schools this month to use in physical education classes. The idea is to teach elementary students how to be safe cyclists. BicycleHaywoodNC purchased the bicycles through a grant received from Healthy Haywood. Goals are to fight childhood obesity, improve overall health and set the tone for a lifetime of active living.

Additionally, students will learn how bicycles can be used as alternative forms of transportation.

The bicycles will make the rounds of each elementary school in the Haywood County School system. They were purchased through John Mudge, owner of Rolls

Rite Bicycles in Waynesville, and a BicycleHaywoodNC council member. Mudge and fellow council member Don Lux assembled the bikes.

www.bicyclehaywoodnc.org.

Janisse Ray will read from two of her most recent books at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 28, at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva.

Drifting into Darien: A Personal and Natural History of the Altamaha River is a memoir and as in her book Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, Ray writes an account of her beloved river that is both social history and natural history, understanding the two as inseparable, particularly in the rural corner of Georgia she knows best.

A House of Branches is her most recent poetry collection, about waking up, looking around at the world, and discovering how to live within it.

To reserve copies call 828.586.9499.

The original members of Creedence Clearwater Revival will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 27, at Harrah’s Cherokee Event Center.

They will be joined by former Cars lead guitarist Elliot Easton as well as John Tristao, formerly with the band People, and Steve Gunner for old songs with a new twist with the newly formed band Creedence Clearwater Revisited.

The ensemble has been entertaining audiences for generations and will perform hits from the new Creedence Clearwater Revised “Recollection” album with classic favorites including “Born on the Bayou,” “Run Through the Jungle,” “Bad Moon Rising,” and “Who’ll Stop the Rain.”  

For tickets, call 800.745.3000 or visit  www.ticketmaster.com. Must be 21 years of age or older to attend.

Inspired Art Ministry’s fall term begins the week of Sept. 27, offering classes for adults in drawing and painting, photography  (Photoshop Elements) and art classes for children. Classes are held at First Baptist Church on Main Street in Waynesville.   

In addition to class work, the students have an annual Student Show and take field trips to places such as Bob Jones University Museum and Gallery. All income from tuition is tithed and a library of books is maintained to help students with drawing and painting techniques. Classes run for six weeks and are ongoing throughout the year.

Both drawing and painting classes are for beginning through advanced students who want to work at their own pace.

• Drawing classes will be held Mondays from 1 to 4 p.m., Sept. 26 through Oct. 31. $55.

• Painting classes will be held Tuesdays from 1 to 4 p.m., Sept. 27 through Nov. 1. $55.

• Photography classes will be on Tuesdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Sept. 27 through Nov. 1. $75.

• Children’s art classes will be on Mondays from 4 to 5 p.m., Sept. 26 through Oct. 31. $72, supplies included

For more information call 828.456.9197 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for the adult drawing and paintings classes and 828.246.8123 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for the photography and children’s art classes.

Some of the areas most talented citizens will be featured in Haywood Arts Regional Theater’s first Haywood’s Got Talent event which culminates with the final round on Friday, Sept. 23. The finalists have made it through auditions and a voting round last week, where three judges and audience members picked their favorite performers. The top prize winner will receive a check for $1,000.

Tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for children and students. Reservations may be made in advance by visiting www.harttheatre.com. Tickets will also be available at the door. A schedule of who is performing is also available on the HART web site and from the Box Office.

The event is being presented as a fundraiser for HART, one of the region’s most active theater companies. HART, located in Waynesville, is now in its 26th season and presents a year round schedule of plays and musicals. www.harttheatre.com.

A traditional Chinese orchestra and famed sketch comedy troupe will both perform in September at Western Carolina University’s Fine and Performing Arts Center.

The Chinese Opera Orchestra of Shanghai, an ensemble that plays traditional and contemporary Chinese music on traditional instruments, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 27.

The Second City, known for its trademark improvisation and launching talented actors and comedians from Alan Arkin to Gilda Radner and Stephen Colbert to Tina Fey, will present its “Laugh Out Loud Tour” at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 29.

Tickets for each event are $10 and $5 for students.

Boasting musicians from top conservatories and art institutions, the Chinese Opera Orchestra of Shanghai strives to preserve and renew centuries-old traditions of Chinese musical culture. Led by Maestro Wang Yongji, the orchestra specializes in richly crafted arrangements that include Chinese folk music and the best of traditional Chinese opera.

The Second City, launched as a cabaret in 1959 in Chicago and since expanding to venues in Toronto and Los Angeles, developed an experimental and unconventional approach to creating and performing comedy and theatre. Its “Laugh Out Loud Tour” features sketches, songs and improvisation from Second City history and encourages audience participation.  

For tickets call 828.227.2479 or visit bardoartscenter.wcu.edu.

Grace Church in the Mountains will present Barbara Bates Smith in “The C Word: Her Own Cancer Story,” at 3 p.m. on Sept. 24.

“The C Word” is the frank, humorous and poignant story of her own diagnosis while playing the role of the cancer patient in Margaret Edson's Pulitzer-Prize winning drama “Wit.” Edson, who encouraged and helped Smith develop “The C Word,” will also attend the production.

A Southeastern Theatre “Best Actress” award winner, Barbara has recently played featured roles in regional productions of “Wit,” “Hamlet,” and “Doubt.”

The 45-minute presentation will be followed by an informal question-and-answer session with the performer and Margaret Edson. Hammer dulcimer accompaniment is provided by Jeff Sebens. Admission is free and open to the public.

The Friends of Panthertown will host a picnic and concert from 5 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 22, on the lawn of The Village Green in Cashiers. The picnic and jazz concert are free and will feature Maggie and the Romantics. Music begins at 6 p.m.

Maggie and the Romantics are a jazz trio with roots in Cullowhee and Sylva. They bring jazz, soul and R&B together in concert with influences including Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Corinne Bailey Rae, Duke Ellington and Herbie Hancock. The group plays jazz standards and original tunes, ranging from familiar hits of the 40s, 50s and 60s like “Blue Moon” and “The Girl From Ipanema” to modern R&B and original tunes in styles from funk to blues.

828.269.4453, or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit www.panthertown.org.

Grammy-award winner Laurie Lewis will give an after-dinner performance on Sunday evening, Sept. 25, at Cataloochee Ranch. The cost of the evening event, which includes dinner with beverage and dessert, is $40 per person, or $20 per person without dinner. The performance is expected to be a sellout, so advance reservations are strongly recommended.

Lewis has twice been named Female Vocalist of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association. She will be performing with mandolinist-singer Tom Rozum, fiddle player Chad Manning and string bass player Todd Philips.

A singer-songwriter, fiddler and guitar player, Lewis has established herself as one of the finest artists in traditional American music today.

For reservations call 828.926.1401.

The Haywood Arts Regional Theatre will hold auditions for its production of Eugene O’Neil’s comedy “Ah Wilderness!” at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday and Monday, Sept. 25 and 26, in the Feichter Studio of the HART Theatre in Waynesville. The production is being directed by Wanda Taylor and opens on Nov. 11.

“Ah Wilderness!” is the only comedy by Eugene O’Neil, best known for his epic and deep dramas. Beginning in the 1920s, his work spanned three decades and ended with “Long Days Journey into Night.” “Ah Wilderness!” is a coming-of-age tale that is filled with sweetness and warmth and many colorful characters of all ages.  

Actors will be given scenes to read from the script. Anyone interested in working backstage on the production is also encouraged to come by during auditions to sign up.

Painter-sculptor M.L. Carpenter will present a demonstration in sculpture on Monday, Sept. 26, for the Art League of Highlands at the Highlands Performing Arts Center. A social begins at 5 p.m. where participants will have a chance to meet the artist, followed by the demonstration at 6 p.m.

After studying sculpture in Italy in the 1980s, Carpenter brought home a love of seeing the clay or marble come to life in her hands. She is known for her vibrant abstracts and also works in three-dimensional mediums. Shown and collected nationally and internationally, her work is featured in collections including Emory University, University of Alabama, the JFK Plaza lobby in New York and the University of Kentucky Hospital in Lexington.

The musicians of Country Memories will play at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 27, in the Jackson County Public Library in downtown Sylva.

Country Memories is a sextet consisting of guitar, banjo, fiddle, and autoharp. The group, made up of musicians from Franklin and the North Georgia communities of Mountain City and Clayton, share music, stories and fellowship with their audiences. They play contemporary and traditional country, gospel and bluegrass, throwing in a little humor and even a bit of country rap.

For more information, call 828.586.2016.

Contemporary Native American Life is the theme of an art competition sponsored by Western Carolina University, Southwestern Community College and the Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts in Cherokee.

The contest is meant to encourage emerging artists as well as to generate poster art for the 2011 Native American Heritage Expo, planned for Nov. 7 to 9 at Western Carolina. Robert Conley, the WCU Sequoyah Distinguished Professor in Cherokee Studies, will serve as a contest judge, along with two community members. The six winning contest entries will be incorporated into expo posters and also featured in a 2012 wall calendar from WCU and the Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts, which partners with WCU and SCC to help students progress from an associate degree to bachelor’s degree in fine arts.

Competition is open to kindergarten through high school students of Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties and the Qualla Boundary, and to students of WCU and SCC. Entries are limited to one per person, with cash prizes of $200, $150 and $100 awarded to the top three entries in each of two categories: photography and two-dimensional art (not including photography).

Winners will be announced in early October, and an exhibit of the top 20 submissions is planned at OICA beginning Oct. 10.

Entry submissions are due by Friday, Sept. 30. Artwork should be at least 8 inches by 10 inches but no larger than 11 inches by 17 inches. Entry forms are available online at https://media.wcu.edu/groups/natam/. For more information, call 828.227.2303 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

A series of historic Haywood County photographs will be on display at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre (HART) gallery from Sept. 22 -Nov. 20.  

The exhibit, which is free and open to the public, is called “Haywood County Works:  Historic Photographs from the 1890s – 1950s.” The Haywood SnapShot Project, a program of the Historical and Genealogical Society of Haywood County, developed these works. The Project aims to gather, preserve and present unique, black-and-white photographs to the public as a tangible reminder of the county’s rich cultural history.

For this exhibit, more than two dozen photographs were chosen from local private collections, the Haywood County Public Library, the Canton Historical Museum and the Historical and Genealogical Society of Haywood County. Thanks to the work of Canton photographer Roland Osborne, many of the images have been restored and enlarged to 16-by-20-inch dimensions, which will allow viewers to see the images in larger detail.

The exhibit includes photographs from communities all over Haywood County, including Crabtree, Hazelwood, Maggie Valley, Bethel and Canton. Some of these images date back to the late 1800s and early 1900s, and some have not been seen for 60 years or more. They offer insights into aspects of daily life, hard work and much loved traditions of the people and communities that shaped the county’s legacy. Each photograph includes accompanying information on its historical context. The Project is seeking the assistance of the public in identifying more information about some of the locations and individuals captured in the photographs.

The exhibition will be available for viewing during HART performances and during the hours the HART box office is open. The theatre is located at 250 Pigeon Street (U.S. 276 South) in Waynesville.

For more information, contact Peter Sterling at 828.454.9267 or call the HART box office at 828.456.6322 for hours of operation.

Want to go?

There are also events on Tuesday, Sept. 27, to kick off the exhibit:

• 6-7:15 p.m. at the HART gallery — A public viewing of the “Haywood County Works” exhibit.

• 7:30-8:30 p.m. at the Haywood County Public Library's Waynesville branch in the downstairs auditorium — A presentation on the Sherrill Studio photo collection.

The article about the Western Carolina University Strategic Planning Commission caught the attention of the Cullowhee Revitalization Endeavor (CuRvE), a community organization whose mission is to “facilitate the beautification and revitalization of the downtown Cullowhee area extending along Old Cullowhee Road and leading up to the former main entrance to the campus of Western Carolina University.”

The article refers to a 2008 WCU strategic planning document called SWOT — Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats — that identifies, among other things, geography, location and culture as both strengths and threats.  

Location is a strength, in that WNC is known for its scenic beauty. At the same time, “Limited off-campus social opportunities/venues decreases satisfaction with college experience and impedes integration of students into the community” is identified as a threat.

CuRvE believes downtown Cullowhee has the potential to be a beautiful and vibrant destination that could expand off-campus social opportunities appealing to students, community members and visitors alike. Several forces may coalesce in the near future to make the winding road framed by the Tuckaseegee River an appealing entrance to Cullowhee and WCU. There are discussions about sidewalks and streetlamps from campus to downtown Cullowhee, the Jackson County Greenway will be adjacent and connected to the area, and the River Park Committee of CuRvE has developed a conceptual drawing of a river park that could be a focal point (http://gocullowhee.org/photos/cullowhee-river-park-concep.html). Such changes can attract local businesses, pedestrian and bicycle traffic, and recreation.

CuRvE’s mission explicitly builds on a recognition of the value of the natural, cultural and human attributes of Cullowhee and the surrounding area. Thus, CuRvE encourages the new Commission to take a different perspective on the final threat identified in the 2008 SWOT document, which reads, “Regional location/culture inhibits recruitment of an ethnically and racially diverse staff and faculty.”    

Painting the entire region as one that inhibits the potential for diversity ignores the rich variation in human, economic, religious, cultural and bio-diversity and feeds the old stereotypes. The region where Western Carolina University has its home has a long history of Cherokee and Appalachian mountain culture as well as integration with those from other regions who have chosen western North Carolina as their home.

CuRvE encourages WCU’s Strategic Planning Commission to consider the region’s natural and cultural resources not as a liability but as a framework for developing an authentic identity that will attract students, faculty and staff and contribute significantly to the community and region.

The WCU SWOT document from 2008 can be found on the WCU website at this link: www.wcu.edu/WebFiles/PDFs/oipe_SWOT_2007-08.pdf.

By Mary Jean Herzog • Guest Columnist

Mary Jean Ronan Herzog is co-Chair of the Cullowhee Revitalization Endeavor (CuRvE).

To the Editor:

The gangland-style, fist pounding threat to “take out the sons of b_____s shouted by union leader Jimmy Hoffa Jr.  is just the latest in a string of name-calling aimed at the Tea Party by Democrat leaders. Mind you not citizens but leaders! Democrat Vice President Joe Biden has called tea partiers “terrorists” and “the barbarians at the door.”

Congresswoman Maxine Waters told her audience that the Tea Party can “go to hell.” Democrat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid makes an amazing claim that Tea Partiers are, “not American people.” In other recent speeches Democrats have claimed Tea Partiers are racists and slave masters. This offensive language, the threats and totally untrue accusations should be condemned by all ordinary citizens.

The Tea Party is not a political party but rather a growing number of mainstream citizens — the silent majority, silent no more — who believe in and are working for the following: a smaller less intrusive government, lower taxes, reduced spending, a continued free enterprise system, state sovereignty and adherence to the U.S. Constitution. These tenets are Tea Party goals for local and the federal government. More and more people agree with these objectives and as a result the Tea Party is attracting countless citizens who enthusiastically support these principles.

The Tea Party was founded as a Taxed Enough Already movement. From those beginnings the movement has grown to include multiple Tea Party groups in every state in the country. My husband and I are active in the Tea Party Patriots of Jackson County group. We attend the monthly meetings and have attended the two massive rallies in Washington, D.C., in 2009 and 2010. At these meetings and rallies actions, statements or speeches were exceptionally civil and in no way terrorizing, barbaric, racist or something that should be sent to hell …. certainly the events are not un-American.

What is the purpose of the Democrat leaders’ disgraceful outbursts and angry rhetoric? Last I heard is that free speech is a standard in the USA, so they are entitled to their opinion albeit inaccurate stated in offensive language. However, it is obvious the impetus for such words is that Democrats loathe not just the Tea Party but more importantly their influence on elections. By the same token, the Tea Party is at liberty to speak, meet and increase in numbers. Anyone who wishes to experience this extraordinary movement is welcome to attend the Tea Party Patriots of Jackson County meetings on the third Thursday each month at Ryan’s in Sylva.

Carol Adams

Glenville

To the Editor:

At the Republican presidential debate on Sept. 12, the moderator posed a hypothetical question to Representative Ron Paul. “What do you tell a guy who is sick, goes into a coma and doesn’t have health insurance? Who pays for his coverage?  Are you saying society should just let him die?”  

Several audience members enthusiastically yelled out, “Yeah!”

Do we really want the politicians selected by these Republicans to run our national, state, county, or town governments? Please remember this on Election Day.

Carole Larivee

Waynesville

To the Editor:

Last March, I realized everyone’s worst nightmare when a doctor diagnosed my 44-year-old husband, Ben, with a rectal tumor. Ben had no risk factors. We were stunned and heartbroken. Within two weeks of treatment, we had met our $10,000 per year insurance deductible. This could happen to anyone. What if we didn’t have insurance? What will the insurance company do to our already exorbitant insurance rates? The last question keeps us both awake at night.

The Republicans are a heartless bunch when it comes to giving Americans access to universal healthcare. As they fall over themselves giving tax breaks to the very wealthy, the middle class and poor are putting off healthcare, sometimes until it’s too late. Yet our incumbent Congressman, Heath Shuler, so-called Democrat, voted against the health care bill too. He also extended tax cuts to the rich.  

Cecil Bothwell is running against Heath Shuler, and he supports a single-payer, universal health insurance, via extension of the Medicare system. He’s good people and will do everything it takes to make sure that we can all afford quality health care.

Heather Rayburn

Asheville

To the Editor:

Last week I had the great misfortune of seeing first-hand the results of wanton destruction of acres of formerly pristine Macon County woodlands all in the name of the Super Wal-Mart now under construction.  If this is what bodes for the future of Franklin, our community is indeed the poorer for it.

Shame on the majority of the town’s leaders for allowing this grotesque eyesore to ever see the light of day. Their lack of vision and reverence for Franklin is clearly on display at the construction site.

Ask any full or part-time resident of Macon County if they choose to live here because they want a Super Wal-Mart in their backyard. Ask any tourist if they travel to Macon County for the mountain or the Super Wal-Mart views. Is it big-box Bentonville architecture they want to see or the pastoral vistas and (increasingly compromised) Little Tennessee River?

Instead of town leaders coming up with creative and insightful ways to bring more jobs and tourists to the county, they fell in line with the same banal approaches that have blighted unique communities like ours all across America.

But don’t take my word for it. Instead, take a drive. See for yourself how the town of Franklin is further distancing itself from the real reasons that brought us here in the first place.

Carol Ramsey

Cowee

To the Editor:

It was exciting last week to read of Western Carolina University’s move to re-open its strategic planning process under its new chancellor. The university and the region certainly have an opportunity here. Beginning with an assessment of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) is always a good starting point, and I am glad that SMN included some of the details from this document in Quintin Ellison’s recent article, “WCU task force gets marching orders for strategic plan.”

I was, however, shocked to read that, under the previous university administration, “geographic location” was listed as a “threat” to the university’s prosperity.

Our western Carolina mountains and rivers are some of the most prized and visited landscapes in America. Cherokee has been named “Travel Attraction of the Year” and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park attracts more visitors than any other park in the country. Do these millions of visitors see something we are missing? I have talked to many students who are pleasantly surprised to find unsurpassed beauty and recreation to be a part of their university experience.

This was an unexpected find for them, since the university did not promote the region as an asset to residential life. I hope that with new leadership, the strategic planning commission can begin to think more positively about the strengths of the region. There are not too many universities in the county that are situated in such a place. With new thinking, our “sense of place” can play a positive role in attracting students, rather than being a “threat” to recruitment and retention.

Anna Fariello

Cullowhee

To the Editor:

Recently my office received more than 125 written requests from Haywood, Jackson and Swain counties requesting that I oppose SB 514, the Defense of Marriage Bill. Because of this large number, it would not be feasible to reply to each person individually so please accept this public notice of acknowledgement of the receipt of your interest and a thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with me.  

Since North Carolina’s General Statute 51.1 legislates the status of marriage, to place this issue on the ballot in the form of a Constitutional Amendment is a gross waste of your time and state funds. This is especially true when the papers have articles everyday reporting the loss of state and local jobs.  

The sole purpose of bringing this amendment forward at this time was to incite political passion and further lead to more societal division in the state and nation. This we do not need. Without discussing the other negative aspects of the bill, but considering all the three hours of argument on the House floor and my own understanding the consequences, I voted against it.

• “Thou shall not avenge nor bear grudge against the children of thy people but thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself.” – Leviticus 19:18

• “Honor thy father and thy mother and thou shall love thy neighbor as thyself.” — Matthew 19:18

Rep. Phil Haire

D-Sylva

Interested in saving money? The Waynesville Parks and Recreation Department is offering a coupon class.

Nicole Chouinard will teach the class, which will take place at the Old Armory Recreation Center at 44 Boundary St. in Waynesville. The classes will take place from 7 to 8 p.m. on Sept. 27, Oct. 4, Oct. 11 and Nov. 21. Classes will also be offered from 5 - 6 p.m. on Oct. 24 and Nov. 7.

The cost is $10 per person. Bring someone with you and the cost is $5. 407.810.2749, email her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or 828.456.9207.

Work on a the exit 33 bridge in Canton on Interstate 40 will cause night lane closures next week from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 26, to Wednesday, Sept. 28 for westbound lanes.

To follow the alternate route, motorists should get off at Exit 31 and go through Canton on U.S. 19/23 and get back on I-40 at Exit 37.

There are night closures of eastbound lanes for the remainder of this week.

The bridges on I-40 over Beaverdam Road near Exit 33 are being rehabilitated.

A public hearing to discuss the White Oak Landfill’s future In Haywood County was little more than a formality this week, with only one person standing up to question the plan.

Haywood County has been in talks with Tennessee company Santek Environmental for months now, negotiating a contract for the company to take over operations at the landfill.

Opposition to the idea has surfaced in the past, but at Monday’s public hearing, Monroe Miller, a regular critic of county officials, was the only citizen to speak. He provided commissioners with an 18-point question list.  

Tax Administrator David Francis, who heads the project, and the vice president of Santek’s marketing department addressed some concerns voiced by commissioners.

Commissioner Michael Sorrells had questioned how the county can be assured the landfill will last 30 years if Santek sells space in the landfill to trash from out of the area. Santek and Francis assured him that, should the landfill appear to be filling too quickly, it would stop taking out-of-county trash.

Commissioner Kirk Kirkpatrick pointed out that the rising cost of operating the landfill prompted the commissioners to look for cost savings.

A vote on the contract won’t happen until the board’s Oct. 3 meeting, but no commissioner has voiced any opposition.

— By Colby Dunn

The annual Bark in the Park will be held Sunday, Oct. 2, from 1-5 p.m. at the Jackson County Recreation Complex in Cullowhee.

Western Carolina Dog Fanciers Association and the Jackson County Parks and Recreation Department are sponsoring this event in conjunction with the American Kennel Club’s Responsible Dog Ownership Day.

The event will include demos in agility, obedience, freestyle dance and disc (frisbee) dogs. Carting and gun dog demonstrations are also on the agenda.

The first 75 kids attending will receive free gift bags and all kids will have a chance to sign up to run the agility course with no dog — best time and accuracy will win.

New this year: representatives from the National Canine Cancer Foundation will be present with a great selection of doggie items for sale, all for a good cause.  

To encourage all dog owners to clean up after their pets, there will again be a “Poop Bag Raffle.” Sign the pledge to be a “responsible dog owner” and to “Leave Nothing But Paw Prints,” get free poop bags (donated by poopbags.com) and you will be eligible to win a raffle basket.

Admission is free. Bleacher seating is available, or bring a chair.

A motorcycle ride and concert to help benefit Haywood Regional Medical Center Foundation and the Power of Pink is set for Saturday, Oct. 1, at the Festival Grounds in Maggie Valley.

The ride will depart from the Festival Grounds at 10 a.m., and money raised will be used to provide free mammograms and screenings to qualifying underserved women in Haywood County. The cost for riders is $25 per bike and $5 per passenger, and includes a T-shirt entry into the Festival Ground activities.  

The Festival Ground gates will open to the public at 10 a.m. at a cost of $10 per. The concert begins at 3 p.m. The Festival Ground will close at 11 p.m.

www.rideforpink.com

If you have pets that need a rabies vaccination, mark your calendars for the week of Sept. 26-30.

This has been a busy year for rabies in Haywood County. In June and July, four cases of rabies were reported in the same area of the county, two in skunks and two in raccoons. Prior to this year, there had only been five cases of rabies confirmed in Haywood County since 2006. The outbreak prompted the health department and Haywood County Animal Services to hold special rabies vaccination clinics in early July.

The clinics will be held at the following locations:

• Monday, Sept. 26 - Canton Middle School and Fines Creek Community Center.

• Tuesday, Sept. 27 - Jonathan Valley School bus parking lot.

• Wednesday, Sept. 28 - Hazelwood Elementary School.

• Thursday, Sept. 29 - Bethel Middle School.

• Friday, Sept. 30 - Riverbend School.

The cost per vaccine is $6. The clinics will be held from 5 to 6:30 p.m.

828.456.5338 or 828.452.6682.

A new tri-county Republican’s women’s organization will hold its first meeting at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24, at the Iron Skillet Restaurant in Bryson City.

Brunch will be at 10 a.m., and the meeting will begin at 10:30 a.m.

Dodie Allen, vice-chairman of the Swain County Republican Party, and a former candidate for the North Carolina House of Representatives, District 119, is an organizer of the group. The new group will be made up of conservative women from Swain, Jackson and Graham Counties.  

828.226.3921.

Developing empathy and understanding what it’s like for someone to have Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia prompted “the virtual dementia tour.”

The tour is for family caregivers and others interested; the multi-sensory experience is free of charge, available by appointment Tuesday, Sept. 27, from 9:30 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. at Haywood Community Connections.

828.586.5501 ext. 1248.

A $250,000 gift from Mission Health System will provide financial assistance to students from Western North Carolina who want to study in health-related programs at Western Carolina University.

Mission Health System will provide $50,000 annually over the next five years to WCU, with the gifts to be used for scholarships for students in WCU’s College of Health and Human Sciences.

Mission Health System previously has contributed significant financial support to help establish WCU’s physical therapy program and its program in certified registered nurse anesthesiology, joining other regional hospitals, medical centers and health care organizations comprising the WNC Health Network in efforts to address a shortage in those health care professions.

Raise Your Hand 2011, a fundraiser for the Western North Carolina Aids Project, will begin at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24, at the Doubletree Hotel in Biltmore.

From 6 to 8 p.m., a silent and live auction will be accompanied by a cocktail reception. Dinner begins at 8 p.m., while the live auction continues.

Works of Heart, the theme for this year’s auction, pays tribute to those who donate their time, talents, and resources to help those living with HIV/AIDS. This being the 30th anniversary of what we now know as HIV/AIDS, the theme also recognizes the healthcare professionals, and caregivers, who have touched the lives of so many.

WNCAP has a tradition of holding a juried competition each year to select its signature piece of art. This year, the honor goes to Hope Rising, by Constance Vlahoulis. The striking oil on canvas piece will be up for live auction. Bids for 20 pieces of art can also be made online until Sept. 18 at www.wncap.org/ryh.

The cocktail reception will feature food stations offering the specialties of four Asheville chefs. Each chef will also donate a unique food service offering as part of the live auction.

Tickets are $125. For more information, call 828.335.6680 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Care about what new roads should be built or which existing ones should be widened or redesigned? Or perhaps the bigger question when it comes to some of the region’s controversial roads, which ones should be nixed?

Here’s your chance to be heard: A public hearing on road building priorities in the six far western counties will be held 5 p.m. Monday, Sept. 26, at the Chestnut Tree Inn, 37 Tsalagi Road, in Cherokee.

The hearing will help determine which roads land a spot on a bigger to-do list: A Top 25 for the entire 10-county division of the state Department of Transportation. These projects, in turn, eventually vie for funding statewide.

The list is likely to figure heavily in whether the Southern Loop moves forward. The Southern Loop would be a new major highway bisecting Jackson County with the intention of diverting traffic from N.C. 107.

At 9:30 a.m. on Sept. 26, the Technical Coordinating Committee, comprised of local government staff, meets at Southwestern Community College in Franklin. The road-list public hearing takes place before a Transportation Advisory Committee, made up of elected regional leaders. Both meetings are open to the public.

828.586.1962 ext 212, or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Editor’s note: North Carolina legislators have voted to place a proposed constitutional amendment banning same sex marriage on the ballot in the May 2012 primary (see related story). The Smoky Mountain News asked Marilyn Jody, a professor emeritus at Western Carolina University and the author of a memoir dealing with her experiences as a lesbian and as a teacher, to write about her feelings on the action by legislators.

By Marilyn Jody

This week I wrote a letter to all the members of my family, telling them that once again it would be necessary for me to speak out in public. And Joanne called her children to ask if they had any reservations about being exposed, once again, as children of a lesbian mother.  

We were referring to the simple fact that we had been asked to write a response to the decision of the North Carolina legislature to place an anti-gay amendment on the ballot. Once again we were reminded what it means to live your life in fear. Would our family suffer? Would we suffer because we were speaking out against discrimination, because some people still don’t understand?

It is difficult to say to people I know and respect, people of conscience and good will, that voting to deny the civil rights of any group of people is wrong. The Constitution was written to protect those rights. Most people in this state and in this country already believe that. But when convictions about same-sex marriage, a matter of personal belief, come into conflict with belief in “liberty and justice” for all, the result is a painful conflict of conscience. We have freedom of the press; we have freedom of religion and freedom of speech; we have the right to privacy. We don’t have the right to deny others those same rights. Not in America.

SEE ALSO: Same-sex marriage heads to the ballot

Same-sex orientation is not a choice, anymore than being left handed is a choice. I know that as I know I have brown eyes. But that isn’t the question. How to live within that reality is a choice that Joanne and I have had to make over and over again in our more than 70 years of life. We have chosen to live in a sacred, committed relationship, one that began more than 50 years ago.

We were married in Massachusetts three weeks after same-sex marriage first became legal in this country, a civil contract that is only symbolic, since we still have none of the rights and protections for our family that heterosexual couples have. We live with the reality that North Carolina law already excludes us from legal protections that are given to other parents and step-parents. As a mother and grandmother, Joanne continues to live with the fear that her children and their families could be hurt because of who she is, who we are.

That should not be so in America.

For most of my life, I lived in silence, in fear that my family would reject me, that my friends would desert me, that I would lose my job, even that I might be accused of criminal behavior or be physically assaulted. It was not until I taught a class on gay and lesbian literature at Western Carolina University that I was emboldened to write a book about that fear, the same one my students were still forced to endure as Joanne and I had done our whole lives.

In that book, Letter to Emily: A Memoir, I wrote about the hurtful experiences my students encountered simply because they had enrolled in the class — the young man, now homeless, whose mother had rejected him when he told her he was gay, who told him she prayed to God to let him die rather than live in such sin. I wrote about the students I had known who committed suicide because they had been taught to hate themselves, taught by their families, their churches, their schools, and their government.

That should not be so in America

In writing and publishing a book about my life, I hoped to save others from some of the injury done to me and others by prejudice and misguided conviction. That is still my hope in writing this article. Given the choice, most people of faith would never choose to allow their beliefs to harm or hurt others.  

But this proposed amendment to the Constitution does do harm — to our state, to our families, to all our lives.  Same-sex marriage is already prohibited in North Carolina by state statute. What the proposed amendment does is further the political cause of a limited few and mislead fair-minded people into voting to rob ordinary people of the dignity and respect accorded to every other law-abiding citizen of this state. Millions of dollars will be spent on political ads in North Carolina over the next few months, promoting discrimination against people whose sexual orientation is different from that of the majority. Many young people will be reading and listening, feeling despair, not hope for their future. This amendment will do nothing to protect our families; it can destroy them.      

I wrote a letter to my representative in Raleigh this week, thanking him for voting against placing the anti-gay amendment on the ballot. And I wrote to the Bishop of this Diocese of the Episcopal Church, the church I belong to, thanking him for signing the statement of church leaders in North Carolina opposing this effort to violate the civil rights of North Carolina citizens. I was truly grateful that I could actually speak freely to both state and church on the subject of my rights as a citizen and as a person of faith. That had not always been possible. But that could change if the ballot box is used as a weapon against a minority whose rights are at stake.

That should not be so in America.

(Dr. Marilyn Jody, professor emeritus at Western Carolina University, has taught literature and writing in multiple university settings that range from Ohio, Indiana, and New York to Alaska and the People’s Republic of China. She is a speaker on gay and lesbian issues in a variety of venues, including national conferences, schools, colleges, and churches. In recent months she has done signings of her book, Letter to Emily: A Memoir, at City Lights Book Store in Sylva and Malaprop’s Book Store in Asheville as fundraisers in support of equality for the LGBT community. Her partner, Joanne Cleary, is a retired teacher and coach, the mother of two children and grandmother of four. She has been an activist in support of LGBT rights both in North Carolina and New York for more than 40 years.  Marilyn and Joanne were married in Massachusetts in 2004, three weeks after same-sex marriage became legal in any state, 48 years after they first met.)

A 12-acre empty tract beside Super Wal-Mart in Waynesville has sold for $3.5 million, slated for a Michael’s craft store, Pet Smart and new location for Belk department store.

Belk will move from beside Ingle’s grocery store to the, much larger, 85,000-square-foot spot in the high traffic Wal-Mart shopping complex.

The site was original slated for a Home Depot. When the economy tanked, Home Depot changed its mind about opening a new store and has been trying to off-load the tract. Home Depot did well for itself, selling the site for more than it bought it for, according to property transactions.