The Voices in the Laurel choirs have announced that spring registration is now open and the organization invites new/returning singers from Haywood, Buncombe, Jackson and Swain counties to be part of its 30th season. 

Last September, when Hurricane Helene brought flooding to much of the region, the little league baseball field behind the Waynesville Elks Club was swamped by several inches of water, dugouts were destroyed and lights were carried downstream along with tons of other debris. But now, hundreds of thousands of dollars and hundreds of person-hours later, action has returned to that hallowed diamond. 

Girls on the Run of Western North Carolina (GOTR WNC) announced the appointment of Stacie Marlowe as its executive director. A Henderson County native and long-time advocate for youth development, Marlowe steps into the role with a passion for empowering girls and a strong background in youth development programming and nonprofit leadership. 

A Western Carolina University instructor of management will be leading a weeklong entrepreneurship and leadership camp for underserved youth in Western North Carolina to help them get an early jump on learning some of the steps necessary for starting a business. 

Jackson County’s Blue Ridge School is offering a soccer camp at its field.

The camp will run from 8 a.m. to noon from May 28-30. Ages 6-12. Cost is $60 per day, and registration is open through May 26. 

Kids ages 10-14 in Jackson County will have the chance to learn the ins and out of archery.

The course will be held from 2-5 p.m. May 17 at the Cashiers/Glenville Recreation Center. 

The George Masa Foundation announced that the winning photographs from the inaugural George Masa Foundation Youth Conservation Photography Prize are on display at The North Carolina Arboretum’s Baker Building through April 30. 

Youth who exhibited livestock at the N.C. State Fair are eligible to apply for N.C. State Fair Junior Livestock Scholarships.

The application period is open through March 1. Up to 25 $2,000 scholarships are available, in addition to one $2,500 Farm Credit of N.C. Premier Scholarship.

Residents of Jackson County have long voiced their support, organized and fundraised for a skatepark with little to show other than a temporary half-pipe that stood behind Motion Makers in Sylva for just over one year. 

During the early 2000s when I was first teaching middle school, I heard my mentor say to one of our students, “Garbage in, garbage out.” At the time, it was simply a passing comment because the teen was listening to music with foul language, but it stuck with me and often floats through my mind as I consume content or guide my children in their consumption of content.