A special stage production of “Honk! Kids” will be held at 6:30 p.m. March 6 and 13 and 2 p.m. March 7-8 and 14-15 at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.

Featuring book and lyrics by Anthony Drewe and music by George Stiles, “Honk! Kids” is a charming 30-minute adaptation of “Honk! Jr.,” specially designed for young performers and family audiences. 

The latest exhibit, “Little Hands, Big Imagination,” will be showcased through April 13 in the Haywood Handmade Gallery at the Haywood County Arts Council in downtown Waynesville.

Join the HCAC for a joyful exhibit of large-scale collaborative artwork created by elementary students across Haywood County. Each school contributes one piece, made with many little hands and big imaginations. All works will be auctioned off to support each school’s art program. 

The Haywood Community College Foundation will hold its annual gala event, the “Lavender Ball,” at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 12, in the HCC Library on campus in Clyde.

Each year, the event supports the area in the most need for HCC. This year, support for the event will benefit the Lavender Fund. These funds are available for HCC students who face an unexpected financial hardship during their time at the college. 

In 1996, the Volunteer Water Information Network (VWIN) program was established as a water quality monitoring program for many Western North Carolina counties. In Haywood County, Haywood Waterways Association manages 25 sites on 19 streams. The program’s purpose is to provide long term water quality monitoring information to help leverage grant funding for water quality improvement projects.

More than 17 months after Hurricane Helene carved a path of destruction through Western North Carolina, the floodwaters have long since receded — but Waynesville officials say the federal reimbursement process remains mired in uncertainty, denials, reversals and what several described as mounting roadblocks. 

The Shining Rock Classical Academy board at its Feb. 25 meeting voted unanimously to end grades 9-11 instruction effective June 30, 2026, and to close grade 12 after the fall 2026 semester, in front of an audience of more than 100 people.  The high school had been consistently running a deficit, and the board argued that it has a fiduciary responsibility to move the organization in the right direction. 

At a Feb. 27 budget retreat, Waynesville aldermen confronted a familiar tension — how to keep municipal salaries competitive in a tightening labor market while staring down mounting infrastructure demands and lingering financial uncertainty tied to Hurricane Helene. 

Two presentations from Human Resources Director Page McCurry outlined the first steps in an overhaul of pay classifications, beginning with public works positions and moving next to police and fire. 

The Human Resources Department at Lake Junaluska will host a recruitment event from noon to 5 p.m. Thursday, March 5; 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, March 19; and noon to 5 p.m. Thursday, April 9, in Room 202 of Harrell Center.  

These events are for potential employees to learn more about Lake Junaluska’s open positions for full- and part-time seasonal opportunities and to interview on the spot. 

Following a heated campaign, Mark Mease has defeated incumbent Haywood County Sheriff Bill Wilke in the Republican Primary Election.

Greg West is heading back to his old office in the Historic Haywood County Courthouse.