Haywood County will mark the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Helene this week with a series of commemorations beginning during the opening ceremonies of the annual Haywood County Fair. At 5 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 25, a proclamation will be read at the Smoky Mountain Event Center, and attendees will have the chance to recognize first responders, volunteers and partner organizations who have played a role in recovery.

Two Haywood County water systems will benefit from a combined $15 million in funding for drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects as part of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency program for disaster-affected states. North Carolina is the first state impacted by Helene to award grants from this program. 

The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has awarded a total of $3 million to two local partners in Haywood County to support ongoing recovery efforts from Hurricane Helene and to strengthen the region’s resilience to future storms. 

Since Hurricane Helene devastated Western North Carolina, residents have learned countless lessons and encountered unforeseen circumstances, even long after the initially recovery phase began. 

Another year, another set of numbers, and once again the mountains tell a complicated story of educational achievement. 

As in years past, Haywood County set the regional pace, with the highest-performing high school (Haywood Early College), the highest-performing middle school (Bethel) and the highest-performing elementary school (Riverbend) based on achievement scores issued by the Department of Public Instruction for schools in The Smoky Mountain News core coverage area of Haywood, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties. 

It’s beginning to sound like a broken record — nearly a year after Hurricane Helene tore through Western North Carolina, Haywood County government has received only 4% of the money it is owed from the federal government, leaving officials frustrated and taxpayers effectively footing the bill. 

When the Pactiv Evergreen paper mill in Canton closed after more than a century of operations in June 2023, the shockwaves went far beyond the hundreds of workers who lost their jobs.

As Haywood Community College celebrates its 60-year anniversary Thursday, Sept. 18, administrators are reflecting on more than a half-century of progress while looking ahead to the institution’s evolving legacy.  

To the Editor:

The Haywood County Board of Commissioners has been transferring $75,000 annually, since 2018, to Buncombe-Asheville Chamber of Commerce for a “Joint Economic Development” initiative to attract businesses and jobs to Haywood County. 

The Smoky Mountain Long Term Recovery Group will host a free “Day of Resilience” event on Saturday, Sept. 20, from noon to 5 p.m. at First United Methodist Church of Waynesville, 566 S. Haywood St.