June 9, 2006

Haywood Regional Medical Center receives a visit from the Department of Health and Human Services Division of Medicaid and Medicare Services, the state agency responsible for overseeing hospital compliance with standard of care requirements. Inspectors cite the hospital for its lack of adequate and qualified nursing staff after determining there was a failure to provide nursing treatment pursuant to doctors’ orders for six out of seven patients reviewed. Two of six nurses held out-of-date RN licenses, according to inspectors. In two cases, nurses restrained a patient without physician’s orders — one an unconscious victim of alcohol poisoning.

Some are saying Regional Medical Center faces an uncertain future, but we believe it is vitally important for community leaders, the medical community and anyone else who cares to come together and do whatever it takes to help this hospital survive as an independent health care center.

Mountain Neighbors for Needmore Preservation hope to raise about $250,000 to make a family campground on the Needmore tract a reality.

By Chris Cooper

In guitar circles, certain names are spoken in hushed, respectful tones. Players like Mike Stern, Allan Holdsworth and Scott Henderson — among others, of course — represent the best of the best in regards to the modern jazz/rock genre. These musicians absorbed the nuances of the jazz language and married these ideas to rock’s grittiness and attitude. The result is music that, when it’s not leaping over the head of most listeners, can at one moment inspire and the next make you want to take that six-string plank you noodle around on occasionally out back and burn it out of sheer intimidation.

By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer

Jackson County officials say its high-profile tenant at the Green Energy Park is in violation of its lease, and now the county is requiring the biodiesel producer to comply or move elsewhere.

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer

Bryson City Alderman have adopted the town’s first land development plan.

By Timm Muth

My thanks to the editor for giving me the opportunity to respond to the recent allegations about safety at the Green Energy Park. The article in last week’s paper (“Issues flare up at Green Energy Park,” Feb. 27 SMN) contained a number of inaccuracies about our gas piping system in particular. I’ll try here to set the record straight.

The Driscoplex 4100 HDPE (high density polyethylene) piping that we use is the industry standard for use in landfill gas systems. According to Kim Witterman with Lee Supply Company (the East Coast distributor for such piping), “most major landfills on the East Coast use this pipe for gas distribution.” Our pipe was specified and installed by one of the most experienced landfill gas installers in the country, McGee Environmental, which has installed the same pipe at landfills throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Florida.

There are two types of pipe that we could have used for gas distribution: HDPE or stainless steel. Since HDPE pipe connections are thermo-welded together, they all but eliminate the chance of an accidental gas leak. Stainless steel piping, in our application, would have required dozens of fittings and connectors, each connection a potential leak site. The HDPE pipe is rated to withstand a pressure of 150 psi, and our piping arrangement was pressure-tested after installation to 100 psi to check for leaks, even though our gas system actually operates at only 1/2 psi.

Our piping and gas collection system is inspected and monitored monthly by McGee Environmental, while our gas and water sample wells are monitored quarterly by Altamont Environmental. Our blacksmith forges (where we currently burn the landfill gas) are equipped with two separate safety systems to shut off gas flow in case of an emergency. We’ve also installed protective ballard posts (large, concrete-filled pipes) around each pipe or condensate trap that rises above ground to prevent any accidental damage by vehicles or equipment.

I recognize that to laymen, with little or no industry experience, some aspects of our construction may seem odd. Pipe supports must be designed and installed in a way that allow for expansion and contraction of the pipe as the outside temperature changes. Gas pipe is black in color due to the addition of carbon black to its makeup, which protects against damage from the sun’s UV rays. And the thermo-welded joints on our pipes are actually stronger than the original pipe walls and twice as thick. Based on our research, and on the products used at other landfill gas projects across the country, we stand behind our statement that the piping system we’ve used is safe and in compliance with industry standards. Above all else, the safety of our tenants, employees, and members of the public is, and will always be, our chief concern.

To be honest, the insinuation that the gas pipe that runs beneath the access road to the staffed recycling center presents a danger to the public is, quite simply, ridiculous. This is no “time bomb,” as stated in last week’s article. The pipe was installed under a plan approved by the DOT, which meets all applicable DOT and DENR regulations. The pipe is buried roughly five feet underground and placed inside an engineered culvert pipe where it travels beneath the roadway. This situation is no different than the thousands of feet of natural gas pipe buried beneath the streets of Sylva and Dillsboro. No one worries about those pipes on a daily basis, nor should they worry about our pipes.

Landfill reduces toxin releases

I also need to address the comment concerning “the amount of toxic pollution it (the Green Energy Park) produces.” The GEP does not produce toxic pollution; in fact, we prevent 222 tons of methane gas from entering the atmosphere each year. This reduction in pollution provides roughly the same amount of environmental benefits as removing 916 cars off the road or planting 1,300 acres of forests each year. As I mentioned in a previous article, landfills are dirty places, no argument; but our sample testing shows no contamination to groundwater sources, and even samples taken from the body of the landfill fall well below DENR regulatory limits.

In case anyone is wondering, my career in the energy industry began in 1980, working in nuclear power plant construction. Since then, I’ve earned an engineering degree from Virginia Tech and have worked with nuclear plant operations, coal-fired plants, large and small-scale hydroelectric dams, wind turbines, fuel cells, and solar installations. I’ve spent countless hours as an engineer, project manager, and technical writer in paper mills, battery factories, textile mills, printed circuit board plants, tobacco and food-processing facilities. I have also worked for both the N.C State Energy Office and the N.C. Solar Center, overseeing a variety of landfill gas projects and other renewable energy initiatives around the state. And yes, for a few years I enjoyed being a professional, dirt-encrusted mountain biker, leading bike tours through these beautiful mountains of ours, and writing books and magazine articles on the subject.

The Green Energy Park is a county-funded effort, and as such the taxpayers have a vested interest in the outcome of the project. I reluctantly mentioned my background above so that the folks in my community will know a little more about my qualifications and experience level. I took this job because I was honored that County Manager Ken Westmoreland and the county commissioners would entrust me with such an exciting and important project as the Jackson County Green Energy Park. I felt that this project offered me a chance to make something really happen in Jackson County, and to give something valuable and enduring back to my newly-adopted home. I believe in this project because it’s the right thing to do for our community, for our children, and for our environment: to turn trash into treasure, and change a sow’s ear into a silk purse.

So please stay tuned, as we’ve got some exciting things in store. We’ll build a community project that everyone in Jackson County can be proud of, where the public can enjoy watching and learning from artists as they practice their crafts. We’ll help teach kids why a clean environment is so important to all of us. We’ll continue to build bridges between the students and faculty at WCU, and our local community. And we’ll give artists and other entrepreneurs the opportunity to work hard and make their own dreams a reality. Please come and visit us, see what we’re doing, ask all the questions you want, and give us your suggestions. Because this project belongs to you, the people of Jackson County, and we want all of you to come be a part of it.

(Timm Muth can be reached This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..)

A Continual Feast

Evelyn Vitz’s cookbook offers a fine array of rituals and recipes from the Christian calendar. Greek lamb soup, baked Easter ham, and Russian Easter bread, for example, are only a few of the recipes offered for the approaching Easter season. Vitz divides her book into sections honoring the high Christian holidays — Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter — but also includes many entries on saints and their feast days, on the practice of fasting, and on simple day-to-day cooking. Though aimed primarily at a Catholic and Orthodox audience, the recipes of A Continual Feast will also pleasure Protestant palates.

By Julia Merchant • Staff Writer

Donning purple ribbons of support, members of the community came together Monday in a show of encouragement for the embattled Haywood Regional Medical Center, which is facing a financial crisis after losing its Medicare and Medicaid funding.

By David Curtis

Just when you thought you had enough to worry about here comes a news report that’s right out of a bad Hollywood B movie — the giant snakes are coming.

By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer

Musicians will soon be able add another venue to their tour list next year.

By Jennifer Garlesky • Staff Writer

Next year Eastern Band of Cherokee tribal members will be able to watch the latest blockbuster flicks on the big screen, get their weekly groceries at Wal-Mart and enjoy a friendly game of golf on an 18-hole championship course — all without ever leaving the reservation.

Anyone following the saga of Haywood Regional Medical Center has to feel like their head is spinning. So much has happened so fast that keeping it all straight is likely proving difficult, even for those with the most nimble minds.

By Julia Merchant

With its CEO gone and a new consulting group on board, Haywood Regional Medical Center is working around the clock to regain its Medicare and Medicaid funding.

Jackson County residents weighed in on proposed road improvements for N.C. 107 at a citizens informational workshop Feb. 25 at Western Carolina University’s Ramsey Center.

“Keep it clean! We’re downstream!” was the rallying cry for protesters at a demonstration held Saturday (March 1) demanding that Evergreen Packaging clean up the Pigeon River.

You start a band. The band writes material, rehearses, and plays some shows. What’s the next step? Merchandising? A world tour? Possibly a big fat record deal and huge cash advance from the label? Wait a minute; the record industry is currently dying a slow and painful death, so ... maybe not.

By Michael Beadle

Sara Tramper can take you to the powwow at end of the world.

New Zealand — Whitireia Performing Arts

Whitireia Performing Arts is affiliated with New Zealand College of Performing Arts. This school is an energetic setting that prides itself on high-quality performing art programs and performers.

For many teens growing up in Haywood County, becoming a Folkmoot guide is a dream come true. The job means spending two weeks with a group of international dancers and musicians, helping them with everything from getting to performances on time to making trips to Walmart for shopping excursions.

Learn about biological changes afoot in the Tuckasegee River since the removal of the Dillsboro dam two years ago during a program by a fish biologist at 7 p.m. July 23 in Sylva.

Mark Cantrell of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has been monitoring aquatic species in the river before and after demolition of the dam, including how the endangered elk-toe mussel is adapting to the new river ecosystem where the dam once was. The Watershed Association of the Tuckaseigee River will host a talk by Cantrell, as well as provide an update on its own water quality projects.

Learn about mapping of river cane plots, the creation of an interpretive creek-side trail at Monteith Farmstead Park in Dillsboro and volunteer clean-ups of local waterways.

The program will be held at the Jackson County Library. Socializing starts at 6:15 p.m., with the formal program starting at 7 p.m. Watrnc.org.

A guided canoe float trip down the Little Tennessee River will be held on July 19 as part of the Highlands Biological Foundation Think About Thursdays series. 

The fast growing sport of Open Water Swimming has been added to the Lake Logan Multisport Festival held Aug. 4 and 5 at Lake Logan in Haywood County.

The open water event will be held on Sunday. The weekend’s events include a triathlon — with the triple combo of swimming, biking and running — as well as an aquathlon comprised of just swimming and running.

The Lake Logan Triathlon was first launched in 2006. It has grown from 180 participants in its first year to over 700 participants each of the last two years. There is now an international and sprint distance triathlon, the aquathlon, and now an open water swim.

The event organizer, Glory Hound Events, estimates the open water event will bring another 50 to 100 athletes.

The open water race will be 1,500 meters and is sanctioned by US Masters Swimming. www.GloryHoundEvents.com.

Girls on the Run is reaching out to elementary and middle school girls in Franklin to get involved in a group running program designed to build self-esteem and confidence.

An open house for girls, their parents and volunteers will be held from 4:30 to 6 p.m. on July 24 at Franklin Health and Fitness Center.

Nearly 900 girls across 14 counties in WNC participated in Girls on the Run in 2011. The program, which is for girls in third through eighth grade, meets twice a week for 12 weeks, preparing the girls to run a non-competitive 5K.

Girls on the Run is a non-profit that inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident. Girls are empowered with a greater self-awareness, a sense of achievement and a foundation in team building.

www.gotrwnc.org or 828.713.4290.

River cane, a native type of bamboo that once grew in large stands along mountain rivers, has gotten a helping hand from at-risk youth at Oconaluftee Job Corps Center in the Smokies.

A special guided hike to the Ridges of Cedar Knob in the Highlands area will explore a high-elevation granite dome on Friday, July 20.

The hike is part of the Eco Tour series hosted by the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust, designed to share special places that have been conserved but are usually off-limits to the public. The Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust has worked with land owners to protect more than 2,000 acres through conservation easements.

The 117-acre Ridges of Cedar Knob tract is home to a Montana Red Cedar-Hardwood forest as well as several rare and watch-list plant species. The hike will be led by botanist Dr. Gary Wien and herpetologist Kyle Pursel.

Cost is $35 and includes a membership to the land trust, or $10 for existing members. Includes lunch.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.526.1111.

Join a renowned mushroom forager for a guided mushroom hunt from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Sunday July 29.

“Stalking the Wild Mushroom” will be led by Alan Muskat, known as the “Mushroom Man.” Muskat demystifies the art of mushroom hunting in Western North Carolina. Learn how to safely find, identify, appreciate, and savor these forest treats on a short, easy walk through a forest in Buncombe County. The group will cook up any edibles found along the way. The outing is sponsored by WNC Alliance, a regional environmental group.

Muskat supplies nearly 400 pounds of mushrooms a year to more than 30 local clients including Biltmore, The Grove Park Inn and The Richmond Hill Inn. Cost is $45 and includes Muskat’s e-book, Wild Mushrooms: A Taste of Enchantment. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.258.8737.

A scientist fighting to save the dying hemlock forests of the Southern Appalachians will give a talk on ongoing efforts and challenges at 7 p.m. on July 26 at the Highlands Nature Center.

An all-day workshop on July 31 will explore the ethics and ethos behind ecology and conservation in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The workshop is part of the Leopold Education Project, which promotes thoughtful land stewardship by forging a connection with the environment.

“Anyone who wants to educate the next generation about conservation stewardship and land ethics is encouraged to attend this workshop,” said Rob Hawk, director of the Jackson and Swain County Cooperative Extension. “The goal of the program is to create an ecologically literate citizenry by bringing people in direct contact with the land and learning how to read the landscape.”

Held at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center at the N.C. entrance to the Smokies on U.S. 441 outside Cherokee. Cost is $30.

828.488.3848 or 828.586.4009 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The historic cabins, churches, school houses and farmhouses that date back to the times of early Appalachian settlers in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are in need of a little TLC from volunteers.

The Friends of the Haywood Library annual book sale begins at 9 a.m. on July 26 and runs through Saturday, July 28.

This year’s event has the largest collection of nonfiction books ever assembled for this sale. The books are categorized by subject for easy browsing. Biographies are grouped by subject. In the children’s section there is an especially large number of small books for new readers. As always there are hundreds of cookbooks, westerns, light romance. For those with eyesight problems, there are large print books. In the religion section there is a large collection of books for devotionals.

The sale is not limited to books only. There are all forms of music from cd’s, cassettes, LP’s to sheet music and hymnals. In addition there are puzzles, audio books, movies- VHS and DVD’s. There are framed prints, diaries, games, Our State magazines and various odds and ends.  

Hours are: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on July 26; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on July 27; and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on July 28.

Volunteers are needed for this event. 828.627.2370 or 828.452.5169.

Frank Foster will sign copies of his recently published thriller, Catch a Falling Knife, at Shakespeare & Co. Books from 5-7 p.m. on Saturday, July 21.

Foster, a summer resident of Highlands, will speak about his novel and his writing, and refreshments will be served. If you’re a fan of Stuart Kaminsky, Carl Hiaasen or Randy Wayne Wright, then Catch a Falling Knife is for you. It combines Hiaasen’s dark humor and White’s evocative appreciation of Florida’s lush setting and colorful personalities. In fact, White has praised Foster’s “quirky instinct for character that will leave readers looking forward to his next novel.”

828.526.3777.

To the Editor:

OccupyWNC, an affiliate of MovetoAmend.com, along with groups all across the United States, has worked diligently to bring resolutions to the attention of local governments. The resolutions propose, in part, that an amendment should be brought before Congress to negate the Supreme Courts “Citizen United” case which is interpreted to declare that corporations are people.

The towns of Franklin, Bryson City, Webster and Highlands have passed resolutions and other towns are pending. Macon County has yet to put us on their agenda (soon we hope).

We have been turned down by one. We will not be deterred. Resolutions have been presented to both the N.C. House and Senate by some forward-thinking representatives, but they did not get to a vote this session.

These justices gave the wealthiest Americans the power to further control our government. The 0.01 percent are using their financial power to make sure their core agenda in government would be theirs alone. Their number one priority is to protect the wealth and power of the privileged class and in the process, this election cycle, to make sure our President does not serve a second term.

We can fight back. Be involved! Work locally to make sure everyone is aware of the Movement to Amend.

 Joan Palmroos

Otto

To the Editor:

Election time is approaching and we are facing a promise gap.

In 2008 when vice presidential candidate Joe Biden visited Maumee, Ohio, he berated and ridiculed the previous administration for the size of the national debt, and he promised that under an Obama administration the debt would be cut. Now in his re-election year, President Obama spoke to this same town with no shame and said that his administration has produced three consecutive trillion-dollar deficits and added over $5 trillion to the national debt. This is a 70 percent increase in debt over the past 3.5 years so that we now owe more than the entire gross national product.

In defense, the administration will say the economy was worse than we thought. This administration has been in over its head since day one. They made big promises and even with total control of both houses of Congress for two whole years, the only thing they delivered was more debt and a healthcare plan that will increase the debt even more. We have been led by an administration that bases its promises on the expertise of college professors who use theory rather than real-life experience. It’s time to end the on-the-job training and elect people who have experience in the real world.

A. Young

Otto

To the Editor:

Have you heard the latest about our local sportsmen?

Well, it’s been reported that three elk were found shot to death and left to rot in the Cataloochee area. And let’s not forget (or “dis-remember”) those other incidents that have occurred in our county over the last few years: a bear was cornered and slaughtered on the Blue Ridge Parkway; a deer that was feeding routinely with a herd of cattle in the Hyatt Creek vicinity was shot out of season; and in Maggie Valley a wild eagle was killed.

These are the crimes committed that were covered by the local media. Who knows how many other incidents have occurred that we will never know about.

Is it any wonder why so many want a ban on hunting?

In the future, after all the game animals, foxes, coyotes, bobcats and others have been harvested, what will our camo-clad lowlife brethren go after — trophy-sized llamas or domestic goats with nice little racks? Or perhaps they’ll have another option — how about an NRA-approved version of the Hunger Games where all the outdoorsmen are let loose each fall with their noisy ATVs and dogs and can empty their quivers and 30-round magazines at each other.

Now that is something to look forward to.

Tom Barry

Waynesville

By Peggy Manning • Correspondent

Waldo fans take heed. The gauntlet has been thrown down. Are you up to the challenge?

Tiny Where’s Waldo figures have been cleverly hidden on the shelves and racks of stores throughout downtown Sylva, and for the month of July, children are invited to rack up Waldo sightings for a chance at prizes.

More than 40 historic photographs of Canton will be on display at Canton library from July 9 through Aug. 31, and reception of the exhibit will be held at the library from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 9.

The “Images of Historic Canton” exhibition, which features black and white photographs from the 1890s through the 1950s, celebrates schools, churches, industry, culture and the people of Canton. From early images of the Champion paper mill to group photos of state and national champion sports teams to landmark buildings associated with Canton, this exhibit represents months of research and sorting through thousands of old photographs at the Canton Historical Museum.

This exhibit is part of an on-going program known as the Haywood Snapshot Project, an outreach effort of the Haywood County Historical and Genealogical Society.

828.648.2924.

A clothes swap to benefit children of Haywood County will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 21 at Keller Williams Realty’s Waynesville office.

The event, which is sponsored by the real estate company, will allow parents and the general public to drop-off gently used and laundered clothes and new school supplies at the Keller Williams office at 2562 Dellwood Road in Waynesville prior to July 20. Then on July 21, parents come by the office and chose clothing for their children for the upcoming school year.

There is no charge for the clothes swap, and there is also no requirement that garments must be donated to get clothes.

More than 100 Haywood County school children benefited from the last clothing swap, school supplies and backpacks.

828.926.5155 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Haywood Community College has named five finalists for president of the college, and candidate interviews will begin July 23.

A 17-member search committee consisting of people from the community selected the finalists, which include Douglas W. Allen, Barbara Beebe, John D. Gossett, Keith Mackie and Teresa E. Smith.

The public is invited to come meet the different candidates. The community meet-and-greet sessions will take place from 11:20 a.m.-12:15 p.m. and from 12:35-1:30 p.m. on July 23 and July 26 and at 12:35-1:30 p.m. on July 25. These sessions will take place in the HCC Auditorium Lobby.

Allen, current president of Ridgewater College in Minnesota, will visit July 23, as will Smith, vice president for Administration/CFO at Tallahassee Community College. On July 25, community members will have the opportunity to meet Beebe, vice president of Continuing Education and Workforce Development at Allegany College of Maryland.

The final day, July 26, will feature sessions with Gossett, vice president of Student Development Services at Mayland Community College in North Carolina, and Mackie, vice president of Instruction at Catawba Valley Community College, also in North Carolina.

There will be an open house at Full Spectrum Farms, a Jackson County-based farm serving people with autism, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 19.

Full Spectrum Farms features a renovated farmhouse, barn, chicken house and garden. It is located on 34 acres in the Wayehutta community. There will be refreshments, small group tours and a question-and-answer session for families of individuals with autism.

The farm is on Wayahutta Road off of Old Cullowhee Road. Bear left at the fork and Full Spectrum Farms is on the left.

The Public Policy Institute at Western Carolina University will host a meeting to determine community needs and support for a Far West North Carolina Local Food Policy Council at 7 p.m. July 30 in the Cardinal Room of the Western Carolina University Center.

The council would focus on planning and advocating for greater food security and stronger food economies in the seven western counties. Regional economic development agencies, planning personnel, tourism staff, farmers, processors, market directors, community nonprofit representatives, and food security agency representatives are especially encouraged to attend.

The project aims to bring together food providers, distribution networks, policy leaders, food security agencies, and economic advocates to provide vision and structure for food projects in the target region.

Email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 828.227.3898.

By Peggy Manning • Correspondent

Tim Hall relishes in the history and folklore of the mountains but also knows when a little embellishing is in order — especially when it comes to ghost stories.

Jackson County commissioners may have taken a leap of faith to help WRGC radio get back on the air, but it seems to be paying off so far.

Not only has station owner Roy Burnette restored a local AM presence to the cars and homes of thousands of listeners in Jackson and surrounding counties, but he’s also created the equivalent of eight full-time jobs practically overnight.

R.E.A.C.H. of Macon County will host a fundraiser starting at 6 p.m. July 29 at the home of prominent Highlands and Houston interior designer Tony Raffa and his partner Scott Allbee.

R.E.A.C.H. provides counseling, shelter, and life-skills training for victims of domestic and sexual abuse. They have presented programs in Macon County’s schools on anti-bullying and rape prevention.

The gala event will feature cocktails and a live auction (courtesy of Steve Day of radio station WHLC) and silent auction.

The festivities begin at 6 p.m. with an open bar and heavy hors d’ oeuvres. The silent auction items will be displayed on a large dining porch overlooking a waterfall that cascades into a koi pond. The live auction will be downstairs in the multi-level theater.

A few of the auction items are a fresco by Kathleen Macone; design consultation services by Raffa; a raised veggie garden by Tom Tracy and Brian Stiehler; a painting by Atlanta artist Mary Lou Carpenter-Bilbro; private wine tours and tastings in Napa and Sonoma; gift certificates for massages by Aery Chiropractic; a cocktail buffet for 18 in your home; necklaces from Drake’s Diamond Gallery; tickets for Highlands Playhouse; Landscape design services by Deborah Berlin; a painting of a Buck Creek farmhouse by Sarah Sneeden; a gourmet five-course dinner by Barbara Werder and Virginia Parrott; and dinner for six at Wolfgang’s Restaurant & Wine Bistro, among many other items.

Cost is $75 per person, and space is limited to 140 people.

828.369.5544 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The award-winning instructors from Western Carolina University’s summer dulcimer conference will be featured in a concert, “Dulcimers in the Round,” at 7 p.m. Thursday, July 19, in the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center.

The group of 10 instructors who are scheduled to perform includes some who are national champion players, some who are well-known for playing the instruments they build, and others who bring a historical perspective to their performances, said Bobby Hensley, associate director of continuing education at WCU.

The dulcimer conference at WCU, Dulcimer U, is designed for both new and experienced players of the mountain dulcimer. The conference runs Sunday, July 15, through Friday, July 20.

Tickets for the July 19 concert are available at the Bardo Center box office. Ticket prices are $12 for adults and $7 for students and children. Call the box office at 828.227.2479 for tickets or more information.

For more general information about the concert and Dulcimer U, go to dulcimeru.wcu.edu or call WCU’s Office of Continuing Education at 828.227.7397.

MusicWorks! Studio of Performing Arts in Waynesville will offer a new jazz music program on July 26.

The “School of Jazz” will be under the direction of Bonnie Rossa, who has been performing and teaching in South Florida for 20 years. She received her bachelor’s degree in classical flute performance from Florida State University and her master’s degree in teaching from Florida Atlantic University.

The School of Jazz will kick off with two workshops for children and youth. Jazz Kittens (rising second-fifth graders) will meet from 4-5:30 p.m. and Jazz Cats (rising sixth-twelfth graders) will meet from 6:30-8 p.m. on July 26.

The cost of the workshop is $10, which includes the instruction time, all printed materials, and an informal concert by instructors to be held at 5:45 p.m. on July 26. 828.456.2283 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Singer-songwriter Randy Flack will perform from 8-11 p.m. on Thursday, July 19, and Saturday, July 21, at Fontana Village as part of the resort’s Sumer Concert Series.  

Flack covers everything from country, classic rock, Motown, gospel, blue grass, and his own original songs.

Logan Murrell will play from 8-11 p.m. on July 20 at the Wildwood Grill. Murrell is a popular performer at the Summer Concert Series. Upcoming performers for the Summer Concert Series at Fontana Village Resort include My Highway, Rye Holler Bluegrass Band, The Elderly Brothers, and the Caribbean Cowboys Trio.  

fontanavillage.com or 828.498.2211.