The specialty Appalachian Trail license plates have raised money to help backpackers safeguard their food from roving black bears along the AT in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy recently granted $2,000 from its specialty license plate funds to the Friends of the Smokies group for the installation of poles and cables that backpackers can use to store food out of the reach of black bears.

“With more than 70 miles of the Appalachian Trail running along the high ridges of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, it’s only natural for our groups to work together,” said Holly Demuth, North Carolina director of Friends of the Smokies.

Work was done at two popular shelters on the Appalachian Trail in the Smokies, Spence Field and Peck’s Corner.

www.friendsofthesmokies.org.

Get ready to play indoor soccer through the Haywood County Recreation and Parks Department, which starts the winter playing-season this week.

Pick-up style games are held at the Old Hazelwood Gym (216 Virginia Avenue) every Wednesday through March 28, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.  

Pickup games run continuously for the two-hour time slot. Teams switch out on a pre-determined scheduled. Cost is $3 per session or $20 for a season pass. Beginners are welcome.

828.452.6789.

It’s truly never too late to learn how to swim, and the MedWest Health & Fitness Center in Haywood County is offering a special program for young adults and adults who want to be able to paddle about the water.

There will be three, 30-minute lessons with a certified American Red Cross swim instructor. Lessons are private, and can be tailored to fit individual needs.

Cost is $30; lessons are available to Fitness Center members and nonmembers, ages 14 and older. The lessons are available through Feb. 29.

828.452.8056.

A grant from Healthy Haywood has helped launch an Outdoor Mission Camp for court-involved kids.

Positive Community Connections is designed to help keep kids of the streets and out of the courtrooms.

The directors are Ruffin and Jamie Shackelford, who operate Outdoor Mission Camp based in Maggie Valley.

The program began this past summer, with court-involved kids given the option to attend camp at OMC. Those who agreed spent a week climbing a challenge course, backpacking the Smoky Mountains, whitewater rafting the Nantahala, and discovering God’s love through relationship.

The goal is to connect youth with adult mentors who will help involve them in a local youth group and give them a positive community connection to help them towards adulthood. They will also meet as a larger group on a monthly basis for encouragement, adventure and to learn from Dr. Patricia Gorman Berry’s book BrainWise, a tool for learning how to manage emotions, control impulsive behavior, and curb destructive behaviors.

OMC is looking for adult mentors in local church communities.

828.926.3253 or 828.456.7265.

Dry Fall Trails in Macon County will see a $446,000 restoration project to stabilize the historic trail and reconstruct the entire walking path to its base — all while preserving the historic integrity of the trail, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the first half of the 20th Century.

Construction starts in April and is scheduled to finish in September. Dry Falls is located north of Highlands along N.C. 28.

“Parts of the trail degraded over the years, making it unsafe for the hundreds of visitors who enjoy the site daily during peak season,” said Mike Wilkins, Nantahala District ranger. “Restoration of the trail will promote public safety.”  

The work is intended to enhance the visual appeal of the trail and make it easier to maintain. Working with a Forest Service archeologist, engineers designed the reconstruction to preserve the current look and historic feel of the site, Wilkins said.

The parking lot and Dry Falls Trail will be closed for the duration of the project. Funding for the project comes from a $208,000 Federal Highways and $258,000 in matching agency funds.

Jackson County resident Jerry Parker has entered a conservation agreement on 107 acres to help protect the ancient petroglyph Judaculla Rock in the Caney Fork valley in Jackson County.

The large, soapstone boulder is carved with hundreds of symbols carved in pre-historic times. Parker’s property surrounds the rock.

The land conservation is part of The Judaculla Rock Preservation Project, which is devoted to preventing further environmental damage to the rock, protection of the environment around the rock and helping people enjoy their visits to the site.

The Land Trust for the Little Tennessee completed the conservation easement in late December.

The conservation agreement ensures the surrounding property won’t be developed, and includes a corridor for Jackson County’s planned greenway.

Bob Grove will facilitate the North Carolina Writers Network West new Prose Critique Sessions at 7 p.m. on Feb. 9 at Tri-Community College in the McSwain Building, Room 152.

The purpose of the critique group is to provide an immediate and useful feedback environment for a prose reading among fellow writers. Short excerpts of fiction and non-fiction are welcome.  

The sessions are open to members of NetWest, and there is no charge for participation.

Grove, of Brasstown, has taught courses in English, journalism, and creative writing. He is founder and publisher of Monitoring Times magazine, and most recently, Grove has written a mystery novel, his memoir, a collection of children’s stories and some poetry.

City Lights Bookstore will celebrate the release of High Vistas Volume II at 6 p.m. on Jan. 27 with a reception and discussion with a few of the authors featured in the book.

The second volume continues the tradition set by the first with nature writing focused on Western North Carolina and the Great Smoky Mountains.

George Ellison will present the book and talk about the importance of nature writing.  Featured writers and artists will include, Elizabeth Ellison, Jim Casada, Jim Costa, Thomas Rain Crowe, John Lane and Bill Hart.

828.586.9499.

Over 100 years ago, Republican President Theodore Roosevelt said to the American people: Of all the questions which can come before this nation, short of the actual preservation of its existence in a great war, there is none which compares in importance with the great central task of leaving this land even a better land for our descendants than it is for us, and training them into a better race to inhabit the land and pass it on. Roosevelt took the issue seriously, as did members of Congress, and when he passed the Antiquities Act in 1906, he established a legal mechanism for future presidents to conserve land as well as making conservation a national bipartisan priority for decades to come.  

Yet when Congress adjourned in December, it left in its wake an unprecedented amount of legislation designed to dismantle decades of laws protecting our public lands. These decades-old laws, passed under Democratic and Republican administrations alike, put the interests of the American people first, and politics second. We enter this New Year with Congress taking the opposite philosophy, and since this is an election year, we can likely count on more of it.  

Here is a brief overview of some of the Great Outdoors Giveaway legislation that members of Congress are returning to Washington this month to work on:

• The “End of the National Monuments” Acts: Eight different bills have been introduced with the sole purpose of gutting the Antiquities Act (HR 302 – introduced by N.C. Congresswoman Elizabeth Fox – HR 758, HR 817, HR 845, HR 846, HR 2147, HR 2877, and HR 3292). All of these eviscerate the president’s authority and most seek to exempt certain states from having new national monuments designated in their borders. National monuments have proven to be economic generators wherever they are designated. The Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, created in 1996, is good proof of this. Steve Roberts, owner of Escalante Outfitters, says “Escalante National Monument didn’t just help the economy, it is the economy.

• The “Great Outdoors Giveaway” Act: Introduced by Congressman Kevin McCarthy, HR1581 would eliminate the Forest Service Roadless Rule, one of the most commented upon and publicly supported conservation policies in Forest Service history. This bill would open 50 million acres of currently protected land to resource extraction. Here in North Carolina it would mean that 178,000 acres of public land would no longer be protected under the Roadless Rule, and that two of our Wilderness Study Areas, Overflow and Snowbird, would lose this congressionally designated status. Former Secretary of Interior Bruce Babbitt testified that HR 1581 “… is the most radical, overreaching attempt to dismantle the architecture of our public land laws that that has been proposed in my lifetime.”  

• The “30-million Acre Giveaway” Act:  HR 2852, known as the “Action Plan for Public Lands and Education Act of 2011 and introduced by Congressman Rob Bishop of Utah, would require that the federal government give away, free of charge, 5 percent of all federal land in each western state — an area equal in size to the state of New York. Billions of dollars in assets that belong to all Americans would be given to states without giving compensation to the rightful owners — the American people. This act would gut the key purpose of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, a bi-partisan statute enacted in 1976 that requires that federal lands be retained in public ownership unless determined to serve the national interest.  

• The “Motorize our Wilderness Areas” Act: HR 2834, introduced by Michigan Rep. Dan Benishek, contains language that would effectively destroy the Wilderness Act by allowing motorized vehicles such as snowmobiles, all terrain vehicles, motorcycles, and motorboats in designated Wilderness as long as they are used for hunting, fishing, and shooting. This act would effectively destroy the values that many hunters and anglers actually seek in Wilderness and undermine the spirit, intent, and integrity of one of America’s unique legislative contributions to permanent land protection.  

The list could go on. There are bills to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, bills to allow the Department of Homeland Security to take over all public lands on the border of Mexico and Canada, and bills to allow uranium mining near the Grand Canyon.

In the same speech Roosevelt told the American people, “Conservation means development as much as it does protection. I recognize the right and duty of this generation to develop and use the natural resources of our land but I do not recognize the right to waste them, or to rob, by wasteful use, the generations that come after us ... Moreover, I believe that the natural resources must be used for the benefit of all our people, and not monopolized for the benefit of the few ... Conservation is a great moral issue, for it involves the patriotic duty of insuring the safety and continuance of the nation.”

I think our patriotic duty this year might begin with writing our congressmen and giving them a history lesson and a call to action for protection of our natural resources instead of squandering them with these bills. And then get outside and enjoy our country’s beautiful forests and parks – they’re still some of the best in the world.

Brent Martin works in Sylva and is Southern Appalachian Regional Director for The Wilderness Society. He can be reached This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

To the Editor:

Thanks for the kind words you have for me and our peace vigilers in last week’s issue (“A reminder of the inhumanity that is war,” Jan. 18 Smoky Mountain News). However, it was not I standing alone in the rain. If it was a man, it was either Bob Peebles or Tony Scardaci. If it was a woman it was either Linda McFarland, Jane Harrison, or Carole Larivee. If we are all present we make seven, including my wife Carol, and as you say, we — and others who have come and gone through the years — have been there every Wednesday since before the start of “Shock and Awe” in 2003.

But thanks even more for pointing up the brutality, insanity, and futility of war and violence as means of resolving disputes, whether personal or national. Some of our signs read: “War Is Not the Answer,” “Build Bridges Not Bombs,” and “How Is the War Economy Working for You?”

The Iraq and Afghanistanwars are simply destroying lives, economies (including ours), environments, and hopes — with nothing substantial to show for it. We firmly believe our weekly vigil, and editorials like yours, are needed to wake people up to the devastating effects of war on our world, our character and image as a nation, and our children’s future.

Doug Wingeier

Haywood County

To the Editor:

As Quintin Ellison notes in her article, “By Land and By Water— (Jan. 18 Smoky Mountain News) the “crowning success” of the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee was undoubtedly the preservation of the 4,500-acre Needmore Tract on the Little Tennessee River.

What is also undoubtedly true and seldom mentioned is the grassroots work of several organizations in that success, and specifically the work of the WNC Alliance.

As a stakeholder in the Tuckasegee Cooperative Stakeholders Team (2000-2005), the Alliance fought to bring Needmore to the table — to be included as mitigation for the federal relicensing of Duke Energy’s hydropower generation in the Nantahala system, which included the Tuckasegee and Little Tennessee Rivers.

The ultimate stakeholders agreement did not include Needmore, but the efforts of WNCA, WATR, American Rivers, and the N.C. Wildlife Federation (to name a few) paved the way for Bill Gibson with the Southwestern Planning Commission to begin negotiations with Duke over the transfer of Needmore to the public domain. This led to the purchase of Needmore by the State of North Carolina with help from USFWS.

There are some who choose to relegate the work of the WNCA as a footnote in the struggle to save Needmore. In reality the Alliance should be part of the main text for organizations that were part of that crowning success.

Roger Turner

Sylva

Southwestern Community College and Macon County JobLink Career Center have joined forces to provide a “one-stop shop” for people looking for a job and want to enhance their career skills.

The new initiative will enhance the region’s ability to develop a better-prepared workforce, said SCC President Don Tomas. “This will benefit not only job seekers, but businesses and the community at large,” he said.

Skills could be as basic as how to search for a job, write a resume, complete an application or dress for an interview.

“We’ll assess their skills, and if they need help in basic skills, math, writing, reading, computers, or need to complete their high school diploma, we’ll direct them to individualized assistance and classes at one of many convenient community locations,” said Darlene Anderson, SCC’s educational opportunities director. The support is one-on-one, self-paced and tailored to each individual.

The career center is located at 427 Harrison Avenue in downtown Franklin.

828.369.9534.

The Franklin Area Chamber of Commerce recently held a ribbon cutting for Carla L. Haire, a certified public accountant who has opened a tax and accounting firm.

Haire’s business is located at 17 Smoky Mountain Drive and shares the building with Smoky Mountain Systems.

Haire provides preparation of all federal and state tax returns, and provides access to those who want to prepare and electronically file their own returns.  

Services include: Compilations, reviews, audits and other assurance statements; tax management and planning; state and federal tax return preparation and e-filing; financial planning and wealth management; bookkeeping, accounting, and write-up; and payroll preparation and reporting.

828.524.0151 or www.efilemyreturn.com.

The Greater Haywood County Chamber of Commerce will hold their annual elected officials reception from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 7, at the Laurel Ridge Country Club in Waynesville.

This is a chamber-member exclusive event. State senators, state representatives, county commissioners,  school board members and municipal leaders, as well as field representatives for national leaders, will be on hand for the event.

Hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar will be available. The Elected Officials Reception is sponsored by Evergreen Packaging, Haywood Advancement Foundation, Champion Credit Union, Old Town Bank and the Andon Reid Inn, Bed & Breakfast.

828.456.3021 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Sylva will likely hire a private company in Texas to process daily pawnshop and second-hand dealers’ receipts instead of those tasks being handled in-house by town police.

Police Chief Davis Woodard has recommended the shift to LeadsOnline, which would cost the town about $2,128 a year. That cost, however, would essentially remove an administrative burden currently on the small, 14-member department, offsetting those dollars, he said.

LeadsOnline bills itself as the largest online investigative service nationwide used by law enforcement. Sylva’s precious metals exchangers and people in metal recycling also would submit information directly to LeadsOnline under the probable new town law.

All the goods flowing through pawn shops would be cataloged in a database police could then access to look for stolen and missing property.

“The information will be reviewed by officers from the Sylva Police Department,” Woodard said. “We go out take a report, go to LeadsOnline, enter a serial number if we have one or distinguishing marks, and it will pop up if it was taken from another place that has LeadsOnline.”

Additionally, the program would allow police to look for stolen items on eBay, the chief said.

Required information would include “clear and accurate” property descriptions, including models and serial numbers if available; the name, residence address phone number and date of birth of the seller; and a description of the seller.

Within 48 hours, the dealer involved would electronically submit the information.

Macon County resident and longtime educator Terry Bell will take over as chairman of Southwestern Community College’s Board of Trustees.

He replaces Conrad Burrell, who served as the board’s chair for 11 years.

“That’s a long time,” said Burrell, the longest serving SCC chairman. Bell, who lives in the Otto community of Macon County, had been vice chairman and an SCC board member since 1995.

SCC’s campus in Macon County has been wildly successful and seen strong enrollment.

Student enrollment set new records, increasing 54 percent since 2000. SCC continually receives top rankings.

Smoky Mountain Living magazine prominently features images from across the southern Appalachians in each edition. Photo essays adhere to the issue’s overall theme.

The next issue of Smoky Mountain Living will focus on all things green. Whether it is youth or spring buds, envy or sustainability, green has many meanings.

Send your hi-resolution digital images to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by February 13, 2012. Include information about where and when the photos were taken and by whom.

A “Great Strides” walk will take place in Franklin, with a kickoff party and information session at 6 p.m., Feb. 3, at the Fun Factory.

The walk is part of a national effort that generates funding to support lifesaving cystic fibrosis research, education and care. Great Strides Franklin is the foundation’s third-fundraising walk in Western North Carolina. The kick-off party is open to all those interested in getting more information about starting a team for Great Strides.

The walk itself is scheduled for Friday, May 4, at the Big Bear Shelter on the Little Tennessee River Greenway.

704.321.7852 or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

A seminar on sustainable tourism is set for 2 p.m., Jan. 31, at the First Presbyterian Church in Highlands, in Coleman Hall.

Alex Naar, director of outreach at the Center for Sustainable Tourism at East Carolina University will lead the seminar. Sustainable tourism contributes to a balanced and healthy economy by creating jobs and protecting a region’s resources.

Topics will include second-home development (lessons from coastal N.C.), trends and success stories from other communities.

828.526.0890 ext. 256

Finding a new home for the Folkmoot sculpture in downtown Waynesville has taken a new turn.

The Waynesville public art commission initially proposed moving the art piece across the street — from its current spot in front of the new town hall to the old town hall.

When the art commission asked the town to sign off on the move earlier this month, however, the town board had a different idea.

The board agreed that the structure must be moved but felt old town hall wasn’t fitting for several reasons. One was there simply is not enough room. The other was lack of visibility to adequately showcase the piece. Plus, the town board expressed concerns that the “disco-ball effect” created by spinning flags on top of the statue would irritate people in adjacent office buildings.

Such complaints by the police department was one of the reasons for moving it in the first place. There have also been occasions when one or more of the flags has fallen off the statue because of high winds that whip by it.

Town board members are strongly considering placing it somewhere on the grounds of the historic courthouse and justice center — a prominent locale for a sculpture celebrating one of Waynesville’s most well known festivals. The art piece features a flowing, banner-like dancer with seven flags that turn in the wind to represent the famed international dance and music festival.

The statue was installed at its current location in 2009 and was created by renowned artist Wayne Trapp.

A free self-defense and personal-safety seminar for women is scheduled from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 17 at Basulto Academy of Defense in Waynesville.

Armando Basulto, who has over 30 years experience in teaching martial arts and self-defense, will lead the program.

Women will learn to recognize and avoid potentially dangerous situations, plus simple techniques for dealing with a larger, stronger attacker. Located at 218 Branner Avenue in downtown Waynesville.

828.230.5056 or www.gracienorthcarolina.com.

American Red Cross Disaster Relief Training will take place from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Jan. 28 in Waynesville for those interested in becoming part of the Disaster Action Team serving Haywood, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties.

This course will provide an overview and introduction to disaster services at the American Red Cross, after which participants will have the opportunity to complete a volunteer application. Attendees will learn the role of the American Red Cross in Disaster Relief and its daily mission to serve the residents of Western North Carolina as well as the entire nation.

In 2011 American Red Cross Disaster Action Teams responded to just over 200 incidents of disaster in Western North Carolina.

Pre-registration requested. Held at the American Red Cross, located at 1668 Brown Avenue in Waynesville.

828.258.3888 ext. 219 or ext. 218.

Edith Callahan, a health science teacher at Smoky Mountain High School in Sylva, was recently named Teacher of the Year for Western North Carolina.

Learn about the ethical issues faced when loved ones age at a Feb. 6, 1 p.m. workshop at Haywood Community Connections. Dr. Lisa Verges will discuss the fine art of gracefully navigating difficult issues with relatives who are getting older, such as driving, managing finances and more.

828.356.2816 or 828.452.2370.

Anime returns to its regular schedule of two shows a month starting this Saturday, Jan. 28, at the Bryson City library.

The morning session, from 11 a.m. to 1:10 p.m., features several popular Japanese TV programs. Then, after a brief intermission, a movie will begin at 1:20 p.m. The program ends at 3 p.m.

Anime is animation from Japan. The shows are full of action, adventure and outrageous humor and have gained a large following in the United States.

This week’s movie features a dashing seaplane pilot who is the only one who can be trusted to stop the pirates of the Adriatic. Only one problem: He has the head of a pig.

828.488.3030.

The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad will run a PEANUTS™ Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown Excursion and Valentine Sweetheart Train at 11 a.m. on Feb. 11.

The train will depart from Bryson City depot, travel along the Tuckasegee River to Dillsboro for a 90-minute layover.

Festivities for the Be My Valentine passengers include mingling with Charlie Brown, Lucy and Snoopy costume characters, listening to the narrated story based on the television special, and children can create their own Valentine.

Standard Coach Class adult tickets are $49, children (2-12) are $29, infants 23 months and under ride free. Upgrade to Crown Class seating and receive a souvenir tumbler with unlimited soda, coffee and tea refills Adult tickets are $66, children (2-12) are $38 and infants 23 months and under are $10.

If you’re looking to enjoy a special Valentine’s date with you and your loved one, purchase a ticket in Adult First Class for a romantic afternoon. Choose from one of four lunches. Receive a gift, souvenir tumbler with unlimited refills, a dessert and a long-stemmed rose. Tickets for adults are $92.

800.872.4681 or www.gsmr.com.

The Jackson County Public Library in Sylva will have a movie night at 6:30 p.m. on Feb. 2.

The library will show “It Happened One Night,” a 1934 Frank Capra classic starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. Colbert plays a spoiled heiress, running away from her family. She is helped by a man (Gable) who is actually a reporter looking for a story. The free movie will be shown in the community room.

828.586.2016.

The Arts and Cultural Events Series at Western Carolina University will host The Poetry Revival, a spoken-word theater experience, at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 25, in the Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center on the WCU campus.

The Poetry Revival includes three writers: Derrick Brown, Anis Mojgani and Buddy Wakefield. Brown has performed as opening act for the Flaming Lips and Cold War Kids. Mojgani is a two-time National Poetry Slam champion, and Wakefield is a two-time Individual World Poetry Slam champ who has been featured on NPR, the BBC and HBO’s “Def Poetry.”

Following The Poetry Revival, WCU will next host La Pasion Flamenca, a showcase of the passion and excitement of Spanish music and dancing, Feb. 13, in the Bardo Arts Center.

Tickets for The Poetry Revival cost $5.

828.227.2479 or www.bardoartscenter.wcu.edu.

Rathskeller Coffee Haus & Pub will host a Select Red Wine Tasting at 6 p.m. on Feb. 8.

Jeremy Sims from Mutual Distributing will run the event, which is free of charge. However, pre-registration is required as seating is limited.

To reserve a space call 828.349.0598.

Rathskeller Coffee Haus & Pub is located at 58 Stewart St. in Franklin.

The Haywood Arts Regional Theater will feature five short plays by Sylva playwright Gary Carden on Jan. 27 thru 29.

The Friday and Saturday shows begin at 7:30 p.m., and the Sunday performance starts at 3 p.m. The plays include: “Land’s End and Beyond,” “Jesse Racer,” “Coy,” “Philoctetes,” “Jimmy Du” and “Signs and Wonders.”

All five are directed by Tom Dewees, with performances by John Winfield, Jack Ross, James Bradley, Holly Ann Harmon and Jeremy Bridges.

Carden is best known for his play “Nance Dude,” which HART put on a few season ago. Carden, a Jackson County resident, is a chronicler of stories with a local spin and resonance. Carden is also an accomplished storyteller.

Tickets are available now. Adults $10, students $6.

828.456.6322 or www.harttheater.com.

Western Carolina University’s Office of Continuing Education will be offering workshops on digital camera basics and processing digital images in the coming weeks.

The first workshop, “Mastering Your Digital Camera,” is designed for the novice digital photographer and will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Jan. 27, in Room 143 of the Cordelia Camp Building. Instructor Gordon Pike will show participants how to take photographs by covering topics such as composition basics, memory cards, camera settings, exposure, resolution, compression, file formats, and color adjustments and white balance.  The workshop cost is $59, with lunch included.

The second workshop, “Digital Workflow with Adobe Lightroom,” will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Feb. 3 and Feb. 4. Designed for beginner and intermediate photographers, the workshop will provide information on topics such as setting up folders on a hard drive, importing and cataloging images, and sharpening and printing images. Instructor Les Saucier is a nature photographer with more than 30 years of teaching experience. The workshop will be held in Room 137 of Camp Building and the cost is $229.

www.learn.wcu.edu.

Local crafter James Stewart-Payne will offer a free one-hour paper collage class for adults at 7 p.m. on Feb. 7 at the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva.

Class participants will create their own birds, using simple papers collected from home, recycling bins and art stashes. “We will build small paper birds layer upon layer in a collective art environment,” said Stewart-Payne. “These winged harbingers of hope (and spring!) make great inspirational pieces, embellishments for cards, scrapbooks and mixed media art, mobiles, or as gifts.”

Supplies will be provided, but participants are also encouraged to bring the following: scissors, paper (including rice paper, meaningful words/texts and/or images, cardstock, decorative and/or linen papers, homemade paper) and embellishments.

Pre-registration is required as the class size is limited to 12 people.

828.586.2016.

The Jackson County Public Library in Sylva will host a daytime music program on the first Friday of every month featuring the “The Lady and the Old Timers Band.”

The February performance will be held from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Feb. 3 in the community room of the Jackson County Public Library Complex.

The monthly performance by the band enables people who may not want to venture out at night to hear live music from local musicians. The Lady and the Old Timers Band is composed of one lady and seven self—described old timers — five of whom are over the age of 80. They play gospel and traditional country tunes. Members include vocalist Delia Sears along with Fred Kirkland, Jim Hite, and Jim Brown on guitar; Carl Sears on bass; “Wild Bill” Jackson on harmonica; Robert Bradley on mandolin; and Roy Ramsey on dobro.

828.586.2016.

Haywood Community College and Champion Credit Union are once again joining forces to help people in Haywood County with heating assistance.

Hominy Valley Boys and several other local groups will host a Share the Warmth benefit concert from 2 to 5 p.m. on Feb. 12 in the HCC Auditorium. There will be designated rooms for playing with the bands for those who want to bring their own instruments.

“This year presents a bigger challenge for supplying heating aid to those who request it. Not only are there more requests and less money, there are also more first time requests than ever before,” said Patsy Dowling, executive director of Mountain Projects.

Admission is a minimum donation of $10 — 100 percent of which will go to Mountain Projects. Donations are tax deductible and checks should be made payable to Mountain Projects. Tickets available at the credit union and the HCC Bookstore.

There will also be drawings for two televisions and a confetti quilt.      

828.627.4522 or 828.648.1515.

Southwestern Community College will offer four arts classes beginning Feb. 4.

• “Instant piano for hopelessly busy people” is open to anyone. The class will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Feb. 4 on the Jackson campus. The $75 registration fee includes workbook, handouts and 60-minute practice CD.

• Intermediate spinning is for those wishing to improve upon their basic spinning skills and learn new techniques for single/double-plied yarns. It will be held Thursdays from 6 to 8 p.m., Feb. 9 thru 23, on the Jackson campus. A spinning wheel will be provided for use during the three weeks. The cost is $100, which includes materials.

• Fine woodworking - Handtools I will be taught by Brian Bartel, a master woodcrafter from Sylva. The first scheduled class is Hand Tools I, which will start Feb. 13 on the Jackson campus. It will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. on subsequent Tuesdays through March 5. Participants will learn to identify, sharpen and use a variety of chisels, planes, scrapers and handsaws. The cost is $40.

• Modern quilting techniques will review the basics for modern quilting.  The class will be held 2 to 4 p.m. on Wednesdays, Feb. 15 thru 22, at the Cashiers Center. Local fabric artist Valerie Halvorson will demonstrate paper piecing with fabric, tubing, making points for stars, fancy patterns and continuous pleats and more. The cost is $25.

828.339.4497.

Cherokee has bears; another town has painted pigs. Harold Sims, who runs the Catman2 shelter, wants cats.

Sims has found life-size, unpainted cat statues and is looking for people to sponsor a cat. The cost per cat depends on how many statutes are ordered at a time, and with enough sponsors, the cost could be less than $100.

“I’d like to have no less than 50 cats,” Sims said. “When we reach the goal we ask sponsors for payment, order cats and let the paint begin. We will advertise sponsors and artists in many ways.”

Once decorated, the painted cats will be on display in shop windows all over Western North Carolina. And in the fall, the shelter will hold an auction to sell the cats, and other fine art items. All proceeds will support the cats at the shelter.

Needed are: people to sponsor a cat, artists to paint it, an auction house (in Asheville) to sponsor the auction, donations of fine art and people to bid on the donated items.

828.293.0892 or www.catman2.org.

The Haywood County Public Library will hold its second annual Lego Extravaganza Contest on Jan. 28 at the Haywood County Cooperative Extension Office.

Registration is free and open to children ages 5-17, with registration forms available at all library branches. People interested in participating in the contest should register by 5:00 p.m., Jan. 18.

“Last year’s contest was extremely popular and Lego enthusiasts have been asking about a repeat contest for months,” said Carole Dennis, youth services librarian at the Waynesville branch library.

Participants will be able to enter as individuals or duos and will compete within their age group. Divisions are “L” for ages 5-6, “E” for ages 7-8, “G” for ages 9-10, “O” for ages 11-12, and division “S” for ages 13 and up. Contestants will have two hours to build their entry on the day of the competition.

Sign-in will begin at 9 a.m. and construction will take place from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.

Judges will be evaluating entries based on a written presentation, which may include drawings or sketches of the design, creativity of the overall design, attention to detail, and construction techniques.

“Last year, we required an oral presentation,” Dennis said, “but that proved to be problematic in several ways. This year, I am asking for a written presentation, which can be prepared ahead of time and can include drawings of the design.”

828.452.5169 ext. 2511 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

A viticulture conference focused on how to grow grapes in a sustainable manner in Western North Carolina will be held all-day Wednesday, Feb. 22, at Warren Wilson College.

The conference is being put on in conjunction with Sustainable Appalachian Viticulture Institute and Jewel of the Blue Ridge Vineyard in Marshall.

The all-day conference will feature speakers sharing information on how to grow grapes organically and biodynamically, which grapes are best for our steep mountain slopes and climate conditions, how to market a vineyard and winery, practical aspects of using various cover crops between rows of grapes, some of the many ways to generate value-added products from grapes including neutraceuticals and how to make wines from organically/biodynamically grown grapes.

The featured speaker will be Phillip Hart, owner/winemaker of AmByth Estates in California. He will talk about growing grapes bio-dynamically and making wines from his bio-dynamically grown grapes.

Fee is $40 in advance, or $50 walk-in registration. Includes lunch, coffee break refreshments, handouts and free parking. www.JeweloftheBlueRidge.com.

Wet those lines, anglers, and you could get your hooks into $10,000 in prize money during Shiver in the River Feb. 3-5.

The tournament will take place on a 2.2-mile stretch of trophy, catch-and-release stream on the Cherokee Indian Reservation. The format is for two-man teams, using “Fips Mouche” rules. There is a separate casting competition, too.

The tournament is limited to 30 teams. There will be 15 teams competing on Saturday morning and 15 on Saturday afternoon. The top seven teams from each session move on to fish Sunday morning. Those who make the cut from Sunday morning’s competition will move, in turn, to fish Sunday afternoon for cash prizes.

Registration is $225 per team.

www.fishcherokee.com/shiver.html

“Books and Boots,” a two-day event celebrating the beauty and bounty of the natural world will be held at the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville on Saturday and Sunday, February 18 and 19.

There will be family programs focusing on indoor and outdoor winter activities, including: guided geo-caching, nature journaling for children and winter bird bingo.

Author presentations by Peter Loewer, nature writer, botanical illustrator and garden photographer; George Ellison, writer and naturalist; James Farmer, a writer and garden and interior designer; and Patricia Moore-Pastides, writer, cook and public-health professional.

The event is free, with the standard parking fee of $8.

828.665.2492 or www.ncarboretum.org.

Mary Bennett has been chosen to serve as the volunteer ambassador for the designated Appalachian Trail Community of Franklin.

Bennett will serve as a community liaison to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and the local volunteer hiking club that maintains in the A.T. in and around Franklin. She’s charged with bolstering volunteerism and stewardship of the trail at the local level.

“The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is excited about building off its volunteer base … (to) help increase local stewardship of public lands and support healthy lifestyles for community citizens,” said Julie Judkins, community program manager.

Bennett has lived in the Franklin community for nearly 20 years. She is an educator, horticulturalist and hiker; she has section hiked much of the A.T.

A grant from Healthy Haywood has helped launch an Outdoor Mission Camp for court-involved kids.

Positive Community Connections is designed to help keep kids off the streets and out of the courtrooms.

The directors are Ruffin and Jamie Shackelford, who operate Outdoor Mission Camp based in Maggie Valley.

The program began this past summer, with court-involved kids given the option to attend camp at OMC. Those who agreed spent a week climbing a challenge course, backpacking the Smoky Mountains, whitewater rafting the Nantahala and discovering God’s love through relationship.

The goal is to connect youth with caring adult mentors who will help involve them in a local youth group and give them a positive community connection to help them navigate towards adulthood. They will also meet as a larger group on a monthly basis for encouragement, adventure and to learn from Dr. Patricia Gorman Berry’s book “BrainWise,” a tool for learning how to manage emotions, control impulsive behavior and curb destructive behaviors.

OMC is looking for adult mentors in local church communities.

828.926.3253 or 828.456.7265.

Farmers, want-to-be farmers and anyone willing to pitch in at local farms are forming “mobs” to help farmers.

These mobs are helping with tasks such as mulching, planting, moving dirt, inoculating mushroom logs, creating low-tech water distribution systems and so on. In the old-time spirit of “barn raisings,” tasks that could take months for a typical farmer working alone can be completed in a day or less with crop mobs.  

The idea was presented Zev Friedman of Living Systems Design of Asheville in a recent two-day, “Hands-on Forest Farming” workshop in Sylva at Vegenui Farm, owned by Cathy and Ron Arps. This workshop was sponsored by Mountain BizWorks, Southwestern Community College Small Business Center and Vegenui Farms.

The 15 participants in the workshop were put to work for hands-on experience in sustainable agriculture techniques and were amazed at the volume of work accomplished. They were inspired to form an online network to facilitate future crop mobs.

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The Watershed Association of the Tuckasegee River will hold a public planning meeting from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 23, at Southwestern Community College’s Sylva campus.

Anyone with an interest in protecting and improving the quality of the Tuckasegee River is invited to attend.

“It is an opportunity for our members and all who are interested in safeguarding our creeks and rivers to sign up for tasks and offer their input. We also want people who are just curious about WATR and about our activities,” said Roger Clapp, WATR executive director.

Clapp said the group will discuss its “ambitious calendar of community events and field work” for the year.

WATR needs volunteers for several projects and activities, including: water monitoring and sampling, mud-source identification, creek cleanups, stream-bank repair, youth programs, public outreach and developing nature trails, including construction of the Scotts Creek Trail at Monteith Farmstead Park. Refreshments will be served starting at 5:30 p.m. Held in room 133 of Founders Hall. 828.488.8418.

A discussion about the Clean Water Act, which environmentalists assert is under assault as industries attempt to rollback federal protections, will be discussed at Green Drinks from 5:30 to 7 p.m on Wednesday, Jan. 18, at Posana Café in Asheville.

Launched in 2006 as part of the international grassroots movement, Asheville Green Drinks is coordinated by the Western North Carolina Alliance and attempts to connect environmental ideas, media and action each week.  

www.ashevillegreendrinks.com.

Robin Whitley will be at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva at 7 p.m. on Jan. 21 to read from her book, In a Southern Closet.

She will also discuss the importance of journaling as a means of thinking about a person’s life and being able to tell that story. In a Southern Closet is a collection of poetry, reflections and essays about the challenges a lesbian Christian faces in living an open life while seeking to live a life of faith.

828.586.9499.

The Marianna Black Library in Bryson City presents Pixar’s “Cars 2” at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 24.

Owen Wilson once again voices speedy race car Lightning McQueen in the sequel to the animated hit “Cars.” When he heads off to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix, Lightning also rolls straight into a case of international intrigue.

Popcorn will be served in the library auditorium starting at 3:20 p.m.

The library shows family movies each Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. The movies are free to the public and projected onto an 8-by-10-foot screen, with a theater sound system. The library will also be giving away one free movie check out voucher to each patron who attends the movie.

828.488.3030

Broadway comes to Cullowhee for one night when composer and lyricist Neil Berg’s “100 Years of Broadway” hits the stage of Western Carolina University’s Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 27.

The performance, part of WCU’s Galaxy of Stars Series, features five stars of Broadway, backed by a live band, re-creating moments from the greatest musicals of the century.

In the lineup are shows including “Phantom of the Opera,” “Les Misérables,” “Jersey Boys,” “Chicago,” “Mamma Mia!” and “Jekyll & Hyde.”

Taking the stage at WCU will be Rita Harvey (“Phantom of the Opera,” “Fiddler on the Roof”), Bob DuSold (“The Producers, Les Misérables”), Lawrence Clayton (“Dreamgirls,” “The Civil War,” “Les Misérables”) and Andrea Rivette (“Jekyll & Hyde,” “Les Misérables”).

WCU debuted the Galaxy of Stars Series in 2005 with the opening of its Fine and Performing Arts Center. Renamed for former WCU Chancellor John W. Bardo in 2011, the center has marked more than 100,000 visitors and has earned a position as a premier arts and entertainment venue in Western North Carolina.

Ticket prices for Neil Berg’s “100 Years of Broadway” are $20 for adults and seniors; $15 for faculty and staff; $10 for groups of 20 or more; and $5 for children and students.

bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or 828.227.2479.

Western Carolina University’s original radio broadcast adaptation of Bram Stoker’s novel “Dracula” will be staged at the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 24.

The “Dracula” cast features students, faculty, staff and professional actors from the university and the region. WCU music faculty and students and strings from the Asheville Symphony Orchestra make up the production’s orchestra.

“‘Dracula’ was a challenge from the standpoint that there are 27 chapters in the book to cook down into a 60-minute radio program,” said producer Don Connelly, who wrote the script. “Unlike a play that can run as long or short as the author wishes, a radio broadcast is timed to the second.”

WCU English literature students received an early draft of the script and began comparing it to the original work. The students are preparing a number of papers on Stoker, and some will be published in the program for the show and presented in a poster session in the lobby of the Bardo Arts Center before the performance.

The show starts promptly at 7:30 p.m. and no one will be admitted after it has started.

All seats are $10, and proceeds benefit student scholarship funds. The show is not appropriate for small children.

Advance tickets can be purchased at the box office of the Bardo Arts Center.

bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or 828.227.2479.

WCU to host workshops for men ...

Western Carolina University will host three workshops titled “Experienced Men Begin Re-Examining Reality” beginning Jan. 24.

The series is intended to help participants redefine men and the world view of masculinity and manhood and to address topics such as media, body image, family and sexual assault.

• The workshop “Chivalry: Dead or Alive?” will be held at 5 p.m. on Jan. 24 and focus on relationships from a male perspective and how men feel about the role of chivalry in dating.

• Luke Heller, a graduate student in the social work department, will discuss men’s roles in ending violence against women in the 6 p.m. workshop “V-Men: Taking a Stand Against Violence.” The Feb. 7 event will kick off “V-week,” which is the week preceding WCU’s annual production of “The Vagina Monologues.”

• The group will examine how men view women as sexualized objects in the workshop “Gazing Dreamworlds: Men and the Media Part 2” at 5 p.m., March 13.

All workshops are free and open to the public and will be held in Multipurpose Room A of A.K. Hinds University Center.

828.227.2617 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

... and workshops for women

Western Carolina University is sponsoring a series of “Growth and Learning Opportunities for Women” workshops beginning Jan. 25.

The series, which is free and open to the public, seeks to enhance knowledge of key women’s issues and topics ranging from communication and red flags in romantic relationships, a healthy mind and body and media stereotypes.

• Jan. 25 – “How Perfect Is Perfect?” The workshop will feature discussion on the pressure society puts on women to be perfect, and how those pressures affect them.

• Feb. 22 – “Mall Madness: The Curse of the Fitting Room Mirror.” Held as part of Love Your Body Week, the workshop will empower women to love their bodies and not be afraid of what they see in the mirror.

• March 21 – “Designing Your Own Superhero.” Scheduled to take place during Women’s History Month, the workshop will prompt participants to look at the power within themselves and learn how to be superheroes using their own voices.

Workshops will be held at 5 p.m. in Multipurpose Room A in A.K. Hinds University Center.

828.227.2617 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..