Bicyclists, ghosts and goblins will be on the road for the Tour de Franklin “Halloween Hunard” charity bicycle ride on Sunday, Oct. 31. The race starts at 9 a.m. from Smoky Mountain Bicycles in Franklin, which sponsors the annual autumn ride.

More than 100 cyclists participated in last year’s ride. It’s popularity has spread because of the beauty of the courses, the festive Halloween atmosphere and the great post-ride meal.

Routes feature rides of 28, 66, and 103 miles with total climbing elevations ranging from 2200 to 8500 feet.

Smoky Mountain Bicycles owners Dave and Pam Forshee mapped out the routes to include spectacular mountain scenery when the fall colors are at their peak.

“We welcome volunteers — Halloween costumes encouraged — to help provide support at rest stops,” Pam Forshee said. “Last year, our generous sponsors and volunteers helped make the ride a great success.”

All proceeds will go to the Franklin Fire Department first responders and go toward the purchase of an automated cardiopulmonary resuscitation machine. Cost is $35 before Oct. 15 and $45 afterwards. The ride fee includes fully stocked rest stops, a commemorative custom t-shirt, and a post-ride meal. Sponsorships, which include the sponsors name on ride T-shirts are $100.

828.369.2881 or check out www.tourdefranklin.com for maps and cue sheets.

The Plateau Fly Fishing Club will hold its last meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 18, at the Albert Carlton-Cashiers library. The meeting will feature Jeff Curtis who will discuss fly fishing in the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Curtis is the co-founder of Curtis Wright Outfitters, camp director of Trout Unlimited’s “Rivercourse” and local guide for the past 15 years. His family operates Sourwood Inn outside Asheville.  

Following the presentation, a raffle featuring an Orvis 9’ 5 weight midflex rod and other fly fishing essentials will end the ninth season of the Plateau Fly Fishing Club. Event is open to the public. Call 828.885.7130 for information.

Parks and rec departments around WNC are jointly hosting a unique disc golf tournament for the first time ever on Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 23 and 24.

The disc golf course at the Waynesville Rec Park along Richland Creek is one of four sites where the Region 9 Sidewinder Disc Golf Tournament will be held. Others are Black Mountain, Mars Hill and Fletcher.

Top four winners from the regional sites on Saturday advance to finals on Sunday at the Richmond Hill Disc Golf Course in Asheville.

There are three divisions for all skill levels: novice, recreation and professional. The novice will place 18 holes and the recreational and professional teams will play 36 holes. The format is 2-person teams with a captains choice format.

The tournament is a fundraiser to support the North Carolina Recreation and Park Association. Cost is $20 per novice team, $40 per recreational team, and $50 per professional team. Lunch will be provided at each regional location on Saturday, and everyone gets a disc and T-shirt. Play starts at 10 a.m. on Saturday.

828.456.2030 or rThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or 828.452.6789 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

An outdoor author who embarked on a modern day pilgrimage to follow in the footsteps of William Bartram, a naturalist and explorer in the region more than two centuries ago, will talk about his journey during a special program at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 14, at the Macon County Library in Franklin.

Jim Kautz, author of Footprints Across the South: Bartram’s Trail Revisited, will give a talk called “What I Learned Following William Bartram Across the South” being sponsored by the North Carolina Bartram Trail Society.

Bartram explored the frontier from North Carolina to Louisiana just prior to the American Revolution, capturing the landscape and its inhabitants with eloquent descriptions.

Kautz set out to retrace that route — over the course of five years, 15,000 miles and seven states — comparing then to now and the historical, environmental and cultural occurrences that had occurred since. He tramped trails, paddled and motored rivers and streams, and interviewed dozens of residents, scientists, and community leaders in revisiting Bartram’s trail.

“Bartram’s writings give us a benchmark,” he says. “I found a few spots that have changed little in 230 years. A modern traveler can easily imagine the Cherokee town of Cowee in quiet pastureland and rows of corn beside the Little Tennessee River…. On the other hand, environmentalists struggle to restore the health of lands and streams that Bartram found lush and thriving.”

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

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway are playing host to a visiting entourage from Iceland, who are looking to the parks here as a model for a new national park of their own called Vatnakokull.

Specifically, the new Icelandic National Park hopes to copy the relationship between the Smokies and its non-profit support arm, Friends of the Smokies. A non-profit Friends group for the Icelandic park enlisted George Ivey of Waynesville, the former director of N.C. Friends of the Smokies, as a consultant to help them get started.

“Vatnajokull and the Smokies are different in many ways,” said Ivey, who also family roots in Iceland. “However, they share many common interests, including support for educational programs, scientific research, recreation, volunteer programs, and park philanthropy. We see a lot of potential for the two parks and the two friends groups to learn from each other over time.”

Vatnajokull National Park includes Europe’s largest glacier, Europe’s largest waterfall, and tremendous volcanic and geological resources. At more than 5,000 square miles in size and covering around 13 percent of the entire country of Iceland, Vatnajokull National Park is more than six times bigger than the Smokies.

The “shadow of the bear,” located in southern Jackson County near Cashiers, will be visible for 30 minutes daily between 5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. from mid October through early November.

During this period, the bear-like shadow comes out of hibernation when the autumnal sun sets behind Whiteside Mountain. The mountain, with an elevation of 4,930 feet, boasts sheer rock cliffs that are among the highest in the eastern United States.

Tourists and photographers come from near and far to catch a glimpse of this natural phenomenon, which also occurs in late winter from mid February through early March.

800.962.1911 visit www.MountainLovers.com.

The 17th annual Bethel Half Marathon and 5K race will be held Saturday, Oct. 9.

The two routes follow back roads through the pastoral setting of Bethel. The race is known for its unique awards given to top finishers in each age class.

The race starts at 8:30 a.m. from the Bethel Middle School gym on Sonoma Road. Organizers will use chip timing for the first time this year.

Day-of registration starts at 7 a.m. Cost is $25 and includes hot soup, fruit, drinks and door prizes.

Proceeds benefit the Bethel Rural Community Organization. www.bethelrural.org or 828.506.0939.

Blue Ridge Books in Waynesville is offering a full lineup of special events this month. For more information on any of these events call 828.456.6000.

• 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 9: Vicki Lane, the popular regional author of the Elizabeth Goodweather mysteries, including Signs in the Blood, Art’s Blood, Old Wounds and In a Dark Season.

Lane’s new book, The Day of Small Things, tells the story of Miss Birdie, Elizabeth’s octogenarian neighbor. Lane and her family have lived on a mountain farm in North Carolina since 1975. The Elizabeth Goodweather books are a direct reflection of that experience.

• 9 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 9: Watch stained glass artist, Dianne Lee, work on the deck. Lee will design a one-of-a-kind, original work of art of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

With fourteen years experience in stained glass design as well as her background in horticulture and landscape design; all combine to capture the beauty, color, texture and light of our ever changing western North Carolina Mountains. 

• 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 16: Bob Plott is the author of three books written about the Smoky Mountains: Strike and Stay-The Story of the Plott Hound, A History of Hunting in the Great Smoky Mountains, and Legendary Hunters of the Southern Highlands.

Plott is a North Carolina native who can trace his family roots in the Old North State back to 1750, when his great-great-great-grandfather Johannes Plott arrived here with five of the family hunting dogs. These dogs would later become renowned as the premier big game hunting dog breed in America — the Plott bear hound.

Mary J. Messer, author of Moonshiner’s Daughter, the recently published Haywood County based Appalachian memoir, presented a check to REACH of Haywood at their annual board meeting Sept. 20. Messer’s donation will to help REACH in its effort to prevent domestic violence, sexual assault and elder abuse and to assist survivors as they seek healing and safety during recovery.  

She also donated over 30 copies of Moonshiner’s Daughter to the Within REACH Resale Store in Hazelwood.  In her memoir, Messer tells the tale of her own harsh childhood and adolescence in Haywood County.

Messer will hold a free reading and book signing on Friday, Oct. 8, at Malaprops Bookstore in Asheville. For information, e-mail Messer at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  or 828.452.2539 or visit www.moonshinersdaughter.com.

To the Editor:

I am going to the dentist in the coming week. As a self-employed artist and educator, I have put it off. While I manage to pay for my own health insurance, I have no dental coverage. Luckily, my work has been productive and I can pull together the money. Perhaps you have been in the same position.

In the past month I have worked with not one but two students who have to decide between having a tooth pulled or having more expensive dental services to save that tooth. They are hard-working individuals with families who are a part of our community, and they are also trying to get an education.

The Democrats chose to take on health care reform when Barack Obama became president. They worked to try and solve the problem of these families who provide for themselves and others, but cannot manage to pay for the expense of medical coverage. Rather than ignore the problem as had been done for so long, Obama took on the issue, knowing that it may make things more difficult for Democrats in the next election. Democrats could have easily chosen to focus on other issues even though they knew many U.S. families struggle with obtaining medical care.

I speak to those who are unsure of their position, or who supported President Obama in 2008. Changes to help solve the complicated problems that we all face will take longer than the 19 months that Mr. Obama has been in office. In November support those candidates who support Mr. Obama so that he may continue to work to make these changes possible.

Frank Brannon Jr.

Sylva

By David Redman • Guest Columnist

When did we, as a nation, transition from courteous and abiding by the ” laws of the highway” drivers to drivers who are aggressive and “to heck with speed limits and other laws and rules?”

At this writing I’m on southbound on I-81 nearing Wytheville, Va. So far this trip’s total mileage is approaching  2,000. Haven’t seen one law enforcement vehicle in two days. However, I’ve witnessed more aggressive drivers and nuts than the miles I’ve driven … and that’s just in the past eight hours.

Why has exceeding safe speeds and aggressive driving taken over our driving mentality? Is it the lack of law enforcement? Can we shift blame to NASCAR? Seems as if our roads have become more like a Daytona 500 on the 4th of July.   

In reality, the root  of the problem is the individual driver — nothing else!

Speeding is a choice. Tailgating is a choice. Aggressive lane changing is a choice. Each, however, is illegal. In North Carolina driving in the left (passing) lane at a speed slower than the posted speed limit is illegal as well.    

I reported a speeder last school year to Jackson County 911. The driver’s estimated speed at the Smokey Mountain Elementary School area in Whittier was 75. Deputies stopped the offender several miles past the school. The driver’s reason for driving so fast in a school zone was “I was running late for class at Southwestern Community College.” Good grief!  

Today an older Suburban loaded with a family and towing a travel trailer passed me on I-81. However, it tailgated me for about a mile and then passed me doing about 80 mph. Did the driver feel that tailgating and excessive speed was necessary to get to his destination, especially with his cargo of family?

Whatever happened to the “rule of thumb” safety margin of staying one car length behind the vehicle in front for each 10 miles of speed? No wonder accidents are so horrific on our highways. Common sense has been blown out the tailpipe when it comes to our collective driving habits.

Parents are teaching children that not obeying laws of the road is acceptable. Thus, we have an upcoming generation of probably more aggressive and less law abiding citizenery in the making. Being allowed to drive on the nation’s highways is a privilege which has laws governing same.

Give me a radar gun and authority to issue tickets with a commission of 20 percent. Station me at the bottom of the either hill coming into Dillsboro. Bet my annual income could easily reach $100,000 on speeding and reckless driving fines.    

It seems either people can’t read numbers and match speed limit signs to their speedometer or the signs are useless. I’ve often thought that speed limits should be painted on the highway, just like the stripes.    Business signs, highway signs, and political signs during election, are distractions for the driver.   

Our court system is burdened with traffic offenders. If you’re a good driver, you should attend one of the traffic court sessions to see what law enforcement and the courts are dealing with. I encourage it. Get to the courtroom early and stay late. Get ready for a jam-packed room.   

Request a copy of the docket for that session. Read the arrest reports published in the area newspapers. Make a list of the offenses by category. Listen carefully … the courtroom is an very interesting place.

Like Jon Stewart of the “Daily Show” and his “Restoring Sanity to America” rally, I encourage all drivers to “Restore Sanity to America’s Highways”.

(David Redman is a Sylva resident.)

The Jackson County Arts Council’s annual Members Gala will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 17, at Riverwood Shops in Dillsboro.

In addition to food and beverages, Western Carolina University’s gamelan and woodwind trio, “Six Foot Three,” and Jay Coward’s bluegrass group, Pirates of the Tuckaseegee, will perform.

Stephen Wohlrab and Eliot Wadopian will wrap up the evening with jazz, as they have for four of the last five years. Additionally, there will be drawings for door prizes.

The Gala is a way to give thanks to Jackson County Arts Council members for their support throughout the year. Another important function of the Gala is to help increase membership. The Gala is free to all members, with the exception of a $5 reservation fee. Memberships range from $25 for single, $45 for family, $60 for patron and $100 or more for sponsor.

Call 828.293.5458, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or drop by Gallery One on Main St. to pick up an application or request a JCAC newsletter.

The well-known Fiddling Dills Sisters will perform gospel, bluegrass and traditional mountain music at 7 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 18, at the Jackson County Public Library.

Amanda Dills Stewart and Sharon Dills, locally known as the Fiddling Dills Sisters, have been playing music together for many years. Amanda started playing violin at age five and Sharon at the age of three.

Amanda graduated from WCU with a degree in Music Education. She taught music at Fairview Elementary for four years and now is a stay at home mom. Sharon graduated from WCU with a degree in Education. She is now a social worker.

The performance is free to the public and is part of the library’s Community Outreach Series. This program is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Jackson County Main Library.

Bluegrass fans attending the 7:30 p.m. performance on Friday, Oct. 8, of Dailey & Vincent at the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts in Franklin, NC, now have even more to cheer about.

Dailey & Vincent earned top honors with multiple awards, including the coveted Entertainer of the Year title, Thursday at the International Bluegrass Music Association Awards in Knoxville. It’s their third straight victory in this category. They also won vocal group of the year for the third straight time, album of the year and graphic design for “The Statler Brothers,” and recorded event of the year for “Give This Message To Your Heart.”

“With Dailey & Vincent, we knew we had booked one of the hottest bluegrass bands in the world right now,” said Scott Bass, manager of the Smoky Mountain Center, “so we were already very excited about their upcoming Friday night show. But these new and recent awards have really taken it to a new level.”

Tickets cost $16 and are on sale now at the theater box office at 1024 Georgia Road in Franklin, at Dalton’s Christian Bookstore locations in Franklin and Waynesville and online at GreatMountainMusic.com.

Learn the unique art of yo-yoing and all the different tricks to master with a yo-yo with a new club headed by Conner Zranizan.

Fun Things Etc., a toy store in downtown Waynesville, started up its Yo-Yo Club again on Sept. 23. The club will meet at 4 p.m. every Thursday at in the event space at Fun Things Etc.

The Yo-Yo club is free and open to anyone 10 and up.

828.456.7672 or www.funthingsetc.net.

Nicole Polzella, owner of AccessDance WNC, has released the instructional DVD, “Workplace Yoga with Nicole Polzella.”

The program offers viewers a chance to bring tranquility to their hectic schedules with simple Chair Yoga postures and deep stretches promoting relaxation, stress relief, deep breathing and better posture. The disc also includes two relaxing guided meditation segments complete with soothing music and nature photography by local photographer, Casey Dougan. The DVD was co-produced by Polzella and Jim Guilliams of Black Lab Videography in Weaverville.

www.chairyogaonline.com, 828.778.1841 or 828.276.6458.

Maple Grove United Methodist Church in Waynesville will have its annual harvest dinner beginning at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 16. The church is located off Russ Avenue across from the Maple Tree Veterinary Hospital.

At the dinner, there will also be a fishing pond and cake walks for children, a quilt raffle, and a silent auction. Pumpkins and gourds grown in Haywood County will be available for sale as well.

$7 adult; $4 children 12 and under.

The Serbian group Talija, which was very popular at the 2009 Folkmoot Festival, will perform at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 24, in the Haywood Community College auditorium.

Proceeds from the show will benefit the 2011 Folkmoot Festival Children’s Free Programs during Folkmoot USA, the state’s official international festival.

Serbian group Talija were the headliner group for the 2009 Folkmoot Festival, eliciting standing ovations everywhere they appeared. Their energetic leaps and gymnastic-like moves coupled with precise footwork and authentic costumes rival any of the Folkmoot groups throughout its 27-year history.

Talija members live in Serbia and form an organization of about 200 professional dancers and musicians who travel the world sharing their culture.

Talija performs dances that represent the heart of Serbia. Original Serbian folk dances are described as delicate and beautiful, other dances are a blend of spiritual culture and traditional stylized dances. The regional folk dances of Serbia are highly influenced by other cultures such as Bulgarian folklore in the valley of the Nisava River on the Old Mountain hillside.

The authentic national clothing was acquired from people in different parts of the country or was made by artisans to resemble cultural dress. The costumes represent the district from which the dances originate. Shepherd’s clothes made of sheep’s wool are the costumes used for The Shepherd Dances, along with walking sticks.

Asheville’s Filipino-American community dancers will open for Talija in their first Folkmoot performance.

The Filipino-American Community of Western North Carolina is a social organization bound together by a common interest in Filipino culture. Founded in Asheville more than 16 years ago, FAC-WNC has become the premier Filipino cultural dance troupe in the Carolinas. Made up of volunteers, this group, who practices almost seven months out of the year, dances to preserve and pass on the rich cultural history of the Philippines.

Topping off the evening of Folkmoot dance is an opportunity to meet the performers following the event.

$20 adult; $5 student; children 12 and under free.

www.FolkmootUSA.org or 877.365.5872.

Cirque Shanghai, a troupe of China’s most talented acrobatic performers will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 9 at the Harrah’s Casino Event Center in Cherokee.

Cirque Shanghai – Bai Xi is a visually spectacular production combining astounding Chinese acrobatics, balancing acts, and martial arts with graceful dance and folklore. Dating back 2,000 years to the Han Dynasty, acrobats performed Bai Xi, or “one hundred amazing acts,” for Imperial courts. The stage production pushes this performance to the limits by incorporating traditional and modern acrobatics with spectacular costumes and state-of-the-art lighting.

Ticket are $20, $25 and $45 and are available at www.ticketmaster.com or 1.800.745.3000.

The 3rd Annual Chilly Fest in Sylva is looking for professional and amateur chili cook-off contestants as well as crafters for the event. Chilly Fest is set for noon through 5 p.m. on Nov. 6, at the Bridge Park and Poteet Park in historic downtown Sylva.

The fest features live music from Ian Moore’s Mountain Music Miscellany and The Vinyl Brothers Big Band, children’s activities and host crafters during the event. Ian Moore will emcee the event.

To download applications, visit www.downtownsylva.org, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call the Downtown Sylva Association office at 828.586.1577.

Medieval chainmail classes will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. on four Wednesdays from Oct. 13 to Nov. 3, at the Jackson County Green Energy Park.  

Chainmail technique hasn’t changed much since the Middle Ages, but the look is still intricate and interesting. The course will cover the basics of chainmail, including tools involved, construction and basic patterning for larger pieces.

Participants will learn between four to eight different weaves and will experiment with different gauges of wire and mixed metals to create unique designs. This class will give students skills to make your own jewelry and accessories, as well as armor and clothing.

Students should bring two simple pliers (needle-nose or jewelers) if available.

$130 includes materials. Pre-registration required. 828.631.0271.

Full Throttle Bike Nite will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 8, at Cycle Motorsports in Sylva.

Bike Nite will feature slow races, in which the last one to touch their feet to the ground and cross the finish line wins. The Leigh Glass Band, a Haywood County-based female country blues-rock group, will perform. A 50/50 raffle will benefit Pediatric Brain Foundations Ride for Kids. Prizes include T-shirts, shop discounts on parts and service, H-D figurines, free oil changes and more.

All types of bikes are welcome.

Western North Carolina’s s internationally acclaimed children’s choir, Voices in the Laurel, will perform a concert on Sunday, Oct. 10, at The Gateway Club, located at 37 Church Street in downtown Waynesville, during the Annual Voices Benefit Auction. The event will include both a silent and live auction.  

“This year’s auction at its new and centrally located venue in the historic Gateway Club should prove to be the most exciting to date” according to Operations Manager, Sharon Flushing.  “We have some wonderful and unique items with something for just about everyone.” Items to be auctioned include vintage costume jewelry, signed paintings, a Teresa Pennington print, an antique rocking chair, tickets to Dollywood, Ashville’s Lyric Opera and the Biltmore House and even an hour’s electrical service from Robert’s Electric. Proceeds from this event provide Voices with its operating budget for the year.

Since 1996, Voices has toured throughout the United States, Europe and Australia, singing in venues such as the Ryman Auditorium, St Patrick’s Cathedral and the Sydney Opera House.  With choirs ranging from the Treble Makers, comprised of first and second graders to the Concert choir of third through fifth grade, and the Chamber choir of sixth through twelfth grade;

To purchase advance tickets go to www.voicesinthelaurel.org or 828.335.2849.

Theater students from Western Carolina University will present “Romantic Fools” at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, Oct. 6-9, in Niggli Theatre on campus.

With influences including Monty Python, the Marx Brothers, “Saturday Night Live” and classic vaudeville, “Romantic Fools,” by Rich Orloff, comprises 12 two-character shorts with topics from blind dates to the frustrations of having a perfect mate. The play stars WCU students Christina Banner, Christina DeSoto, Andrew Drake, Chris Evans, Courtney Olivier, John R. Raines, Jordan Snead and Tara Williams. Peter Savage, a faculty member in the School of Stage and Screen, will direct. While a comedy, the play is for mature audiences.

The next play in the Niggli Series is “Reasons to be Pretty” by Neil LaBute, Feb. 9-12, about the frustrations of love; followed by “TheAtrainplays, Vol. 2,” April 13-16, created by various playwrights under a tight deadline in one of New York’s most famous subway lines.

Cost is $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and WCU employees, and $5 for students. Seating is reserved, with tickets available at the door or in advance at the box office of the Fine and Performing Arts Center. For tickets or information, call 828.227.2479 or visit theatretickets.wcu.edu.

Jammin’ at the Mill Pond, a free bluegrass event to showcase Haywood Community College and the Appalachian heritage of Western North Carolina, will take place from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 16, at HCC.

The event will be hosted by the Hominy Valley Boys and feature other local artists. Richard Hurley will emcee the event. There will be a molasses-making demonstration, barbecue or catfish meals available for purchase, jammin’ areas, vendor booths, and corn shelling. In addition, there will be a free gospel concert in the college auditorium starting at 7 p.m.

There will be a special HCC Alumni Reception Tent for alumni to gather with old friends. To facilitate the reunion process, the college has designated specific times for departments to meet under the tent. However, alumni are free to hang out and visit other departments if they want:

• Creative Arts from 10 until 11 a.m.

• Health and Human Services from 11 a.m. until noon.

• Natural resources will meet from 1 until 2 p.m.

• Business and Entrepreneurship programs will meet from 2 until 3 p.m.

• Applied Technologies will meet from 3 until 4 p.m.

• Arts and General Education will meet from 4 until 5 p.m.

Contact Brenda Fannon at 828.627.4522.

Balsam Range will headline the Annual Harvest Festival with a performance at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 16, in the Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center auditorium.

Balsam Range has been nominated as the Emerging Artist of the Year for 2010 by the International Bluegrass Music Association. The band’s new CD “Trains I’ve Missed” is out this month.

$15 adults. $5 K-12. Tickets can be purchased in the Stecoah Gallery, 828.479.3364 or www.stecoahvalleycenter.com.

The North Hominy Community Center will have its annual Apple Festival breakfast beginning at 7 a.m. on Oct 16, at the center at 2670 Newfound Road near Canton. This homemade farm-style breakfast of grits, bacon, country ham, biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs, sliced tomatoes, coffee, juice and water will also feature fried apple pies, apple butter and apple jelly.

Cost is $7 for adults, $3.50 for those four to 12, and free for those three and under. Fried pies, apple butter and apple jelly will be available for sale. There also will be handmade crafts available plus a raffle for a hand-made baby blanket. Weather permitting, there will be apple butter making over an open fire in a large pot with a wooden stirring paddle.

The Cashiers Valley Leaf Festival will be held Oct. 8-10 in and around Cashiers.

The festival main stage is at the Village Green and Commons in Cashiers where attendees will hear music from bluegrass to rock and roll on two stages.  Along with the bands and entertainers throughout the day, the festival — sponsored by lead donor the Highlands-Cashiers Board of Realtors and supported by numerous local businesses and individuals — features a juried artisans show, vendors and merchants booths and Sapphire, Glenville, Cashiers and Highlands home tours.  

On Sunday morning, prior to the booth and entertainment openings, a worship service offered by Christ Church of the Valley will be held at 10:30 at the main stage of the Cashiers Commons.

Opportunities for prizes and treasures will attract all ages.

Festival-goers will miss out unless they move on from the Cashiers Crossroads north on N.C. 107 to Glenville to enjoy free Lake Glenville Boat Tours, the VFW Pumpkin Patch and a Pancake Breakfast at Tom Sawyer’s Christmas Tree Farm on Saturday morning. The Glenville Community Development Club tent presents remarkable artists and crafters, demonstrations and historical storytelling by Glenville History Project members.

Local restaurant booths will serve fare from hot dogs, barbecue, burgers, low country boil, crab cakes, ice cream, cookies, cotton candy, popcorn, caramel apples, cider and apples.

For more information call 828.743.1630 or visit www.visitcashiersvalleyleaffest.com.

Students of the fine arts at Western Carolina University will show work from their senior portfolios from Thursday, Oct. 7, through Sunday, Oct. 24, in the Fine Art Museum in the Fine and Performing Arts Center.

Admission to WCU’s Fine Art Museum is free and the public is invited.

Titled “The New Sugar,” the exhibition will include a mix of ceramics, drawing, painting, printmaking and sculpture by 12 students who are part of a class taught by Marya Roland, associate professor of art, that prepares students for entry into the professional art world.

Participating students are Christine Cady, sculpture; Michael Dodson, sculpture; Lisa Erato, painting; Allyson Greer, printmaking; Rachael Griffin, painting; Lauren Hill, printmaking; Alexandra Kirtley, printmaking; Sarah Lovell, painting; Michelle McAfee, sculpture; Constance McCormick, ceramics; Janine Paris, drawing; and Trace Pierce, ceramics.

The show is the first of a two-part exhibition featuring these seniors. The second, “Oh Sweet Pestilence,” will open Monday, Nov. 29.

The Oct. 24 closing date of the first student exhibit coincides with the opening reception for WCU’s yearlong outdoor sculpture exhibit and “Seeing Rural Appalachia,” photographs by Mike Smith. That event, from 2 to 4 p.m., also is free and the public is invited.

The Fine Art Museum’s hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday. The museum also is open one hour before Fine and Performing Arts Center Galaxy of Stars performances and selected Saturday “Family Art Days.”

828.227.3593 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. For more information about the Fine Art Museum, contact Denise Drury at 828.227.3591 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. fineartmuseum.wcu.edu.

Decorated gourds are popular handmade accessories for homes today.

Learn to make decorative gourds by attending “Wood Burning on Gourds” from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Oct. 13, in the Conference Room of the Community Service Center in Sylva.

Ronna Wuttke, of Turtle Feathers of Bryson City, will lead the workshop. Wuttke is an accomplished crafter whose specialty is working with natural materials.

Participants will learn the basics of wood burning while completing a sunflower pattern on a gourd.

Persons attending are asked to bring a gourd cleaned and ready for decorating, lunch and a wood-burning tool if available. The instructor has a limited number of tools that can be shared.

$20. Register at 828.586.4009 by Oct. 11.

A new exhibition of lathe-made bowls from acclaimed artists Philip and Matt Moulthrop will be on display in the Bascom’s Atrium Gallery through Nov. 6.  

The Highlands-Cashiers plateau boasts a strong concentration of private Moulthrop collectors, in part because of the Wade Hamptom Golf Club annual golf tournament that once yielded a prize of a Moulthrop-turned bowl. All works in this exhibition are for sale and the customer can take the work home when purchased.

Exhibitions at The Bascom are free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m Tuesdays through Saturdays. It will also open from noon to 5 p.m. on Sundays through Oct.1.

www.thebascom.org or 828.526.4949.

The Alumni Scholarship Homecoming Golf Tournament will begin at 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 8, at Sequoyah National Golf Club in Whittier. Then, the Homecoming parade will begin at 6:15 p.m. in downtown Sylva. Meanwhile, the Catamount soccer team will play Georgia Southern at 6 p.m.

On Saturday, Oct. 9, an alumni breakfast will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. in the multipurpose room in the University Center. Tailgating begins at noon before the 3 p.m. Catamount home football game against the Samford Bulldogs.

A show titled “Homecoming Step Show: Battle for the Yard” will be held in Ramsey Regional Activity Center at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5.

The weekend concludes Sunday, Oct. 10, with a 3 p.m. Inspirational Choir concert in the A.K. Hinds University Center Grandroom followed by a 4 p.m. Catamount soccer game against Davidson in the CAC.

For more specific event information, alumni are invited to visit alumni.wcu.edu and students are invited to visit homecoming.wcu.edu.

Jackson County Early College High School (JCEC) is recruiting for the 2011-2012 school year.  

Several information sessions are scheduled for interested students and their parents. Four dates are scheduled; each begin at 6 p.m. Students and parent should select one session to attend. The dates are: Thursday, Oct. 21; Monday, Nov. 8; Wednesday, Dec. 8; and Tuesday, Jan. 11.

The meetings will be held on the Sylva campus of Southwestern Community College in the lobby of the new JCEC Building, next to Holt Library. Applications may be picked up at any of the information sessions.  The early application deadline is Feb. 1.  For more information, contact the JCEC staff at 828-339-4468.

Candidates for District Court judge will espouse their vision for the bench at election forums held next week in Haywood and Jackson County.

“Judges make decisions every day that directly influence people’s lives, yet many voters don’t know where judicial candidates stand on the most important issues of the day,” said Chris Cooper, WCU associate professor of political science and public affairs, and director of the Public Policy Institute. “We want to help voters learn what they need to know about the people who want to represent them in the judiciary.”

Candidates in other local races will be given two-minutes at the mic prior to the judge hopefuls taking the stage. The forums will be sponsored by Western Carolina University’s Public Policy Institute and The Smoky Mountain News. The two forums are:

• 6:30 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 12, at Western Carolina University Multipurpose Room of A.K. Hinds University Center.

• 6:30 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 14, at Haywood Community College auditorium.

A reception will be held from 6:30 to 7 p.m. where voters can talk informally with the candidates for judge and other local offices. The formal portion of the forum will begin at 7 p.m. Local candidates who attend — county commissioner, school board, sheriff, and state representative or senate candidates — will get two minutes each to introduce themselves and discuss their platforms.

Todd Collins, WCU assistant professor of political science and public affairs, will serve as moderator of the forum with the judicial candidates. Questions will be developed prior to the forum, but audience participation will be allowed as time permits.

For information, contact the Public Policy Institute at 828.227.2086 or e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

By Karen Dill • Special to The Smoky Mountain News

August in the Appalachian Mountains is a time to enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Summer is winding down, and we look for simple and free escapes to get through the end of the hot days. Wading in a cool stream, walking barefoot in the heavy dew of the early morning and eating ripe tomatoes straight off the vine are only a few of the ways to enjoy August in the mountains. Meals are ones that are easy to prepare, take up little energy and utilize ripe vegetables from tired gardens that are winding down in the August heat.

My first child was born in late August 1980. I can still remember the sultry heat, the heaviness of my body, and the sweet smell of ripe tomatoes that seemed to be forever in my mind. Indeed I felt like a large tomato plant in August; lumbering, awkward and overladen with fruit (or child). I seemed to crave ripe tomato sandwiches and never tired of cups of cornbread and milk for supper. Though I was living in another country far away from the mountains of my childhood, my body seemed to crave the simple dishes of those long-ago Augusts.

I had always had a love affair with the tomato. I loved a sliced tomato for breakfast with scrambled eggs and with fried corn for supper. When we did not have sliced bread (light bread it was called), I would carry a tomato biscuit in my lunch sack to Bethel Elementary. I easily tolerated the teasing from the kids with sliced bread, as there are a few other lunches with leftover biscuits filled with sliced ham, bacon and even tomatoes.

Ripe tomatoes seem to mark the downhill march of summer. The air is heavy with heat and the crisp cool mornings of early summer have gone. Gardens are crowded with vegetables ready for picking. It is a bountiful time, a time of abundance and pregnant fullness. It is a time to sit back and enjoy the simple gifts of the earth.

As a child growing up in Bethel, August also meant work. My father would harvest our family garden and my mother would spend days in the sweltering kitchen canning tomatoes, green beans and preserving all of the other vegetables from the garden. And as if that were not enough, my father would lead me to the tomato fields in our valley to pick the remains of the crop and later to the tomato packing houses to gather the culls that didn’t make the cut in some imaginary tomato pageant.

My father’s friend, Way Abel, had several large tomato fields and a tomato packing house in Bethel. Earnest Beck grew tomatoes for profit also. These men were my father’s old friends and he was not too proud to ask for free tomatoes from their fields. It was in these fields that I learned the lessons of hard work. I would head to the fields with an old wooden wagon with the promise of a dollar from my father if I could fill up that wagon with good tomatoes. Sometimes, he would throw in an extra quarter for a job well done — but not every time as my daddy seemed to understand the power of intermittent reinforcement.

As the summer sun beat down on my head, I would trudge through the rows of tomatoes and pick the leftovers. I learned to pick carefully as a rotten tomato would easily squish in my hand and leave a horrible odor. I was a rather nervous child and when I could not wash my hands, I became anxious (my mother blamed my bad nerves on her side of the family). So I would try desperately to pick the red orbs with great care. During these long hot treks down each row, I decided that I wanted a future that required reading books rather than hard physical labor.

Despite the hard work involved in the harvesting of tomatoes, I grew up loving a good garden-grown tomato. My father would eat tomatoes like apples as he sat in the grass under a shade tree at the end of a tomato row. I preferred my tomatoes sliced and salted for a tomato sandwich. And I was very particular about the making of that sandwich.

The tomato had to be warm and just picked from the garden. The bread had to be white (preferably Bunny Bread). The mayonnaise (best to be Ann Page from the local A&P store in Canton) had to be thickly slathered on both sides of the bread. The tomato slices were salted. The sandwich was then neatly sliced in half, and if we were lucky enough to have some barbequed potato chips, these could be placed inside the sandwich. This addition came later in my life while I was in high school but has added a nice crunch to the standard tomato sandwich ever since. The simple pleasure of constructing a really good tomato sandwich is hard to beat.

As summer farmers well know, tomato sandwiches are only a few of the many delightful dishes from the August garden. Zucchini and yellow squash are so plentiful that neighbors have been known to leave them on doorsteps in the dead of night to avoid being caught. And because my father could not bear to waste a single vegetable, he continued to bring me baskets of those green missiles long after I had moved out of my childhood home to my own rented house on the “backside” of Pigeon River.

I was teaching 2nd grade in Canton and had a full schedule, but my father would show up on my doorstep many evenings in August with baskets of vegetables that begged to be canned, frozen or baked up into breads. I quickly learned how to bake zucchini bread and had filled a small freezer by September. He once appeared on my porch with a basket of over-ripe bananas that had given to him by a local grocer, and I stayed up until dawn making endless loaves of banana bread. I was after all, my father’s daughter. Waste not, want not.

I think that I learned the necessity of frugality and the joy of simplicity from my parents. They had few material goods but found so much pleasure from the gifts of the earth. My mother loved to grow flowers and in the summer, our yard was abloom with colorful flower carpets. My father loved to carve and restore anything that was old and ready to be thrown away. He once made me a set of clay marbles from a clay mud mixture that we dug from a nearby creek. It took days of baking in the hot sun, but the clay marbles were a treasure that I kept for years. These were reminiscent of the simple toys of his childhood.

I can still see my parents as they sat at the kitchen table with its red-checked oil tablecloth at the end of a long day in August. Fresh vegetables would grace the table as bright offerings at an altar. My father would crumble up his cornbread in buttermilk and my mother would chop a slice of onion to add to her cornbread and milk. Talk about the preparation of new vegetables from the garden would be the daily topic of conversation.

Many years and travels later, I cannot resist the allure of plentiful vegetables in August. I will wake up in the early morning planning the evening meal around the vegetables that demand to be picked. I love to see the dinner table laden with bowls of boiled okra, fried corn, squash, sliced tomatoes, boiled potatoes, and green beans. All this meal needs is a cake of corn bread and maybe some onions.

This year I have decided to try a dish that I recently heard about on an NPR show — tomato pie. It sounded a little crazy and the recipe is definitely not low-calorie, but I have decided that it is worth a try. It requires mayonnaise so it can’t be too bad even though it will be hard to rival the standard sandwich.

Fresh vegetables from the garden will accompany this strange pie. Cornfield beans are plentiful, and I fix them in the traditional mountain manner with streaked meat. A side dish of corn is simple to prepare. I scrap the kernels off the cob and saute them with some onions and chopped bell peppers in some butter. I would love to serve a side of cornbread and milk but compromise with a cornbread salad that also utilizes fresh vegetables and is pretty when constructed in a glass bowl. Blueberry lemon pound cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or dash of whipped cream will finish off this meal. This meal is a medley of simple foods that seems to inspire a quiet sense of contentment and gratitude for the earth and its remarkable bounties.

Simple pleasures are plentiful the year round in our mountains, but August seems to be a special time to enjoy them. On warm sultry days and cool evenings, I am overwhelmed with gratitude. I am grateful for life in a beautiful place with four distinct seasons and every imaginable type of weather. I am grateful for babies born in this hot month. I am grateful for a simple childhood that keeps me humble. I am grateful for beautiful ripe tomatoes and simple pleasures that living in the mountains bring.

Tomato Pie

1 deep dish pie shell (found in the frozen foods section)

6 medium ripe tomatoes

Fresh basil leaves (optional)

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper

Follow baking instructions on the pie shell package. Remember to poke the bottom of the crust with a fork to prevent bubbling. Peel the tomatoes, slice and drain as much water as possible by placing slices between layers of paper towel. Layer the sliced tomatoes, chopped onion and basil leaves on the baked pie crust. Mix together the sour cream, mayo and cheddar cheese. Salt and pepper the mixture to taste. Spread the mixture over the tomato slices. Sprinkle the top with parmesan cheese and bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes. Slice and serve.

Cornbread Salad

1 package Hidden Valley Ranch dry salad dressing

1 cup sour cream

1 cup mayonnaise

1 pan cornbread, crumbled

3 large tomatoes, chopped

1 can (16 oz) black beans

1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper

1/2 cup chopped green onions

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

10 slices cooked bacon, crumbled

2 cups of fresh corn, cut from the cob and sautéed until tender

Combine salad dressing mix, sour cream, and mayo. Set aside. Place half of crumbled cornbread in the bottom of a large serving bowl (a tall glass bowl works nicely). Top with half of beans.

In a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, green pepper and onions; layer half of this mixture over beans. Layer half of cheese, bacon, corn and reserved salad dressing. Repeat layers using remaining ingredients. Garnish with cheese and bacon bits. Cover and chill 2-3 hours before serving.

Blueberry Lemon Pound cake

2 cups butter, softened

3 cups white sugar

1 cup milk, room temperature

6 eggs

2 teaspoons lemon extract

1 tablespoon baking powder

4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

2 cups fresh blue berries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the lemon extract. Combine the flour, baking powder, and lemon zest; stir by hand, mixing just until blended so the batter is not over mixed. Be sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl often. Fold in the blueberries. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in pan for at least 10 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.

My Favorite Zucchini Bread

I like this recipe because it is super easy (I have it memorized) and has walnuts in it.

4 eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons soda

? teaspoon salt

2 cups of grated unpeeled zucchini

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

3 cups unbleached plain flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 cup chopped walnuts

Beat the eggs, gradually beat in sugar and oil. Combine flour, soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, zucchini, walnuts and vanilla. Pour in a bread or tube pan. Bake 350 degrees for 50 minutes.

A proposed park at the site of the Nikwasi mound in Franklin would provide a quiet place for residents to gather while beautifying downtown and educating passersby on the mound’s historical importance.

The Nikwasi mound, located near East Main Street and the Little Tennessee River, is the only remnant of a Cherokee town with the same name that once stood where Franklin is today. While the town owns the mound itself, the property surrounding the mound is in private hands. Two tracts around the mound have recently come on the market, sparking community efforts to buy the parcels for a park. While interest is widespread, the coalition must find funding for the purchase of the land.

The park would link up with the Little Tennessee River Greenway, a five-mile hiking and bicycling trail that winds along next to the river.

Those involved with the project hope the park would help accentuate one of the largest and most well-preserved mounds in the Southeast, a landmark that has become somewhat overshadowed by the buildings that have cropped up around it. For years, the mound had been the spiritual center of the Cherokee town, where councils, religious ceremonies and general meetings were held, according to the Macon County Historical Society.

Gordon Mercer, chair of the Nikwasi Planning Committee and a Western Carolina University political science professor, said if the park comes to fruition, there would be signage in both English and the Cherokee language, explaining the mound’s history.

A coalition that includes the planning committee, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, the Town of Franklin, Macon County Historical Society, Cherokee Preservation Foundation, Western Carolina University faculty, and The Land Trust for the Little Tennessee River has formed to get the ball rolling.

A national organization called the Trust for Public Land has taken up a leading role, while Congressman Heath Shuler (D-Waynesville) has also expressed an interest in getting involved.

Slade Gleaton, senior project manager with TPL, said the park project would fulfill a few of the organization’s overarching goals by protecting cultural, historical and recreational landscapes.

TPL will work on appraising the property around the mound that recently came on the market. Luckily for the coalition, both land owners have said they are interested in having a park created.

After appraising the 0.67-acre and 0.6-acre parcels, TPL will work specifics of the land purchase, including surveys, environmental work and title work.

Franklin Mayor Joe Collins said the vision for the park has existed for a couple of years, but the project still is far from the finish line.

“It’s not anywhere close to a done deal,” Collins said.

Collins, who has Cherokee lineage, said the town might also be willing to reconsider its ownership of the Nikwasi mound.

“At the end of the day, it may be that all the land gets put under the same trust ownership,” said Collins. “We don’t absolutely need to have it in our name.”

A meeting that is open to the public will b held at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 2, at Franklin Town Hall.

By Joe Hooten • Guest Writer

Americana-roots music has seen its fair share of imitators since its revival in the early 1990s. The explosive array of alt-country talent that preceded all the primed-for-CMT bands can be traced back to a handful of artists that pushed the door wide enough so that others could conveniently slip by.

Thankfully, pioneers like the Bottle Rockets are still making considerable attempts at carrying their banner into the 21st century.

Currently based in St. Louis, the Bottle Rockets have earned their well-deserved place alongside bands like Uncle Tupelo and The Jayhawks as the “godfathers of the alt-country movement” by creating their own brand of Americana heartfelt rock that transcends far beyond the simplistic and overly glorified artists that grace the stages of the most recent Country Music Awards show.

Frontman for the Bottle Rockets, Brian Henneman, has seen a lot in his 15-plus years with his group, but he has never lost sight of the fundamental elements that encompass their music — a good story, solid musicianship, a sense of humor, and that midwestern honesty that comes through in every song. The once self-proclaimed “reporters from the heartland,” Henneman, Mark Ortman, John Horton, and Keith Voegele, have maintained a solid and rather substantial fanbase through all the ups and downs of the Bottle Rocket’s history. Regardless of record label or band member changes, the Bottle Rockets’ sound has expanded in its stature and force over time as they have continually presented solid albums throughout the years, particularly on their most recent, Lean Forward. And with classic songs like “Kerosene,” “Get Down River,” and “Welfare Music,” that may perhaps rival some of the best in the business, the Bottle Rockets catalog grows with new songs like “The Long Way,” “Done it All Before,” “Hard Times” and the rocking “Nothing But a Driver.”

As they celebrate the release of their new album and the anticipated live DVD, the Bottle Rockets show no sign of letting up and despite being one of the hardest working bands on the planet. Brian Henneman took time to talk to Smoky Mountain News prior to the band’s show at the Grey Eagle in Asheville on Aug. 29.

SMN: The title of your new album, Lean Forward (in stores Aug. 11) sounds optimistic in these bleak economic times. Does this apply to the current philosophy within the band or could this be construed as a charge put forth to the listener?

BH: If you wanna be optimistic these days, you gotta work at it. Lean into it. It can be done. You can keep on the sunny side, but, seems like the minute you start slackin’ black clouds’ll find you. This album’s just a little reminder of that. You can do whatever you want, but you can’t say we didn’t remind you.

SMN: Songwriting duties on Lean Forward were divided among the band members. Does this process help the chemistry within the band when it comes to creating an album?

BH: Absolutely!

SMN: You regularly post on the Bottle Rockets message board. Is this a conscious effort on your part to stay in touch with fans?

BH: Not a conscious effort, just me goofin’ off on the Internet. If you’re going to waste time on the Internet, might as well put it to good use. It’s fun. I think the fans enjoy it. I know I do.

SMN: In 2008 the Bottle Rockets celebrated their 15th anniversary. How does it feel to make it this far with all the label and band member changes?

BH: Makes me feel like a cross between a superhero, Survivorman, and a cockroach.

SMN: The music industry has changed dramatically over the past several years, especially when faced with the issue of illegal downloading. Have you come to accept this practice as apart of the business?

BH: Yes. Wha are you gonna do? Go ahead, steal our shit. For us to complain makes us look greedy, which may make us lose potential fans who’d love to steal our shit. It’s all about the consumer. I’d hate to make anything inconvenient for anyone. Please, take it from us, send me your address, I’ll buy you some McDonald’s gift certificates too. I don’t need money, I’m a superhero.

SMN: Extensive touring has been apart of the Bottle Rocket’s work ethic for many years. Music fans often romanticize life on the road. Is it as glamorous as we imagine or is the reality drastically different?

BH: Depends on your definition of glamorous! We don’t get much sleep, I’ll tell you that. Is that glamorous? If so, this life is VERY glamorous.

SMN: In early May 2009, the Bottle Rockets were filmed for an upcoming live DVD release; did this idea originate with the band or with your record label, Bloodshot Records? Was everyone pleased with the outcome?

BH: It was a band idea. The performance that night was great. We haven’t seen any of the footage yet, they had six cameras goin’, gonna be editing for a while yet. I predict it’s gonna be very cool.

SMN: You recently reflected on your contribution to the acclaimed Uncle Tupelo album, March 16-20, 1992. Did those five days in Athens, Ga., have any impact on your career as a musician?

BH: I guess it kinda got my foot in the door back then. A year later we were recording the first Bottle Rockets album in the same studio. Seems like the impact faded pretty quickly, and we were thrown out into the cold, hard, music biz on our own.

SMN: Have you ever entertained the idea of creating your own record label?

BH: Bloodshot’s great, as long as they’ll have us, this answer is an absolute NO. None more no. The no-est.

SMN: The Bottle Rockets are notorious for energetic and memorable live performance. What can Western North Carolina music fans expect at your upcoming show at the Grey Eagle on Aug. 29?

BH: An energetic and memorable live performance! That’s how we roll!

Tickets for their show at the Grey Eagle are only $10 and still available.

The latest U.S. News & World Report guide to “America’s Best Colleges” ranks Western Carolina University 10th among public universities in the South that offer master’s degrees.

It is the first time WCU has made the U.S. News top 10 list of Southern public master’s institutions.

“Western Carolina has moved steadily up the rankings over the past few years, and we are glad to see that trend continue again this year,” said WCU Chancellor John Bardo. “In recent years, our College of Education and Allied Professions has received two major national honors, and our academic programs in business administration, project management, criminal justice and entrepreneurship have earned high national rankings.”

Still, Bardo cautioned prospective students against putting too much stock in rankings when they are making the important decision of where to go to college. “After students narrow down their list of prospective colleges to a handful, they should visit the various campuses to get a feel about which one is right for them,” he said.

WCU representatives will hold open house sessions on the Cullowhee campus to allow prospective students to do just that on Oct. 3, Nov. 14, Feb. 17 and April 17.

For information about those events and other information about undergraduate and graduate admissions at WCU, visit admissions.wcu.edu.

WCU partners with Dillsboro

Western Carolina University has entered into a partnership with the municipality of Dillsboro to provide assistance in building the town’s economy after the recent departure of the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad.

WCU has become involved with the town through its Quality Enhancement Plan, an effort to enhance undergraduate education by linking student experiences in and out of the classroom, and its responses to UNC Tomorrow, a university system initiative to help solve critical statewide problems.

“What a tremendous opportunity this gives the students, and the citizens and the merchants of Dillsboro,” said Mayor Jean Hartbarger.

WCU Chancellor John Bardo said the university will recruit students who are academically prepared, conduct a strategic program analysis of all academic programs and examine the structure of the university to ensure the university is well-positioned to provide assistance to surrounding communities.

The university will try to emphasize quality in spite of an 8 percent budget cut of approximately $8 million, and the loss of 92 positions last fiscal year, Bardo said. Although the majority of those eliminated positions were vacant, about 31 of them were filled. “The WCU family was hurt by the state budget situation,” Bardo said. “All of us have had to take furloughs. We have had to lay off members of the family, and that hurts.”

The university is facing an additional $200,000 in cuts but can manage those without additional layoffs, he said

SMN: What did you learn from the teletown meeting? Anything new?

Heath Shuler: “The meeting reinforced my belief that most people don’t fully understand what is in the health-care reform bill and they have many valid questions about it. It also showed that we shouldn’t rush to pass this bill that will have a dramatic effect on most Americans’ lives.”

Why do a teletown meeting, rather than a regular regular town hall meeting?

“I decided to hold a tele-town hall meeting because I wanted to explain my position on health care reform and listen to constituents’ questions and comments without the grandstanding from political groups. It also allowed constituents in the western region to dial in from their own homes rather than having to drive hours to attend.”

How much have you been affected by the grassroots efforts on both sides?

“I listen to all my constituents, but at the end of the day, I still must vote for what I feel is right for the people of Western North Carolina. While I support health-care reform, I still oppose the H.R. 3200 legislation.”

There is a wellness, disease management, and prevention aspect in the bill. What specifically would you add to that? How much could focusing on this bring down costs?

“I’d like to see more tax benefits for individuals and companies to promote wellness and prevention. I’m looking at several proposals on this currently. The problem is that it’s hard for government agencies to quantify saving from wellness and prevention programs. But it makes sense that spending money on prevention will save costs down the road.”

Same with preventing waste, fraud and abuse – what specific measures would you add to the bill that aren’t already there?

“One item is streamlining medical codes for all procedures. Doctors often can get paid different prices for the same procedure depending on which medical procedure code they use to bill.”

H.R.3200 proposes that small businesses with under $500,000 in payroll be exempt from providing health care to their employees. What is your opinion on that proposal?

“I oppose any measure that mandates that business provide health care benefits and would saddle small businesses with higher costs at a time when many already are struggling in these economic times.”

Are you for or against having a public option for health care?

“So far, I have not seen a public-option proposal that I can support.”

What do you hope accomplish with the next tele-town hall meeting?

“I want to continue to listen to my constituents about their thoughts on health care and answer as many questions as possible.”

A Macon County group is one step closer to its dream of establishing a Living History Farm, a working replica of a pioneer village where visitors can witness what life was like for the earliest settlers in the area.

An independent consultant has completed the first feasibility study for the project, and the results will be made public within the coming month, said Margaret Ramsey, chair of the Macon County Folk Heritage Association Board of Directors. The nonprofit group is the sponsor of the project.

“It’s not a binding thing, but whatever she says, we will certainly study at length,” Ramsey said of the study.

The completion of the feasibility study marks a key first step in getting the idea for the Living History Farm off the ground, a process that has already been a long one. The farm has been a major goal of the Folk Heritage Association since its formation seven years ago, but fundraising for the feasibility study only began this past spring. The group collected $22,000 from various sources, including the Macon County commissioners, the Town of Franklin and local banks.

More money will be needed to continue the process of establishing the Village, a fact the group recognizes won’t be easy in the current economy.

“We realize that these are tough economic times to try to get anything underway, so we’re not anticipating anything immediately, but we are still trying to lay a firm foundation,” said Ramsey.

Preserving heritage

The Living History Farm aims to provide a deeper understanding of today’s mountain heritage by giving visitors a glimpse of early Macon County life.

“Heritage is a living part of us,” said Ramsey. “It’s more than just reading and learning — it’s part of who we are.”

The concept of replicating a working village from a long-ago era isn’t new to Western North Carolina. The Oconaluftee Indian Village in Cherokee transports visitors back to 1750s Cherokee life, complete with villagers who hull canoes, make pottery, and weave baskets. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Mountain Farm Museum recreates a mountain farm, but it has working exhibits only a few weekends a year. Unlike other villages, the Living History Village will be the first exhibit of its kind to honor the area’s European settlers. According to Ramsey, Macon County makes an ideal location.

“I think it’s representative of all of Western North Carolina,” Ramsey said of Macon. “It was one of the earlier settled counties, and I think there’s been a lot of interest over the years in recording and preserving history here.”

That interest is evidenced by the success of the Macon County Folk Festival, the first official event ever put on by the Folk Heritage Association. Now in its sixth year, the most recent festival welcomed more than 100 exhibitors and its largest crowd to date.

“Our short-range goal has been preserving the heritage through the festival, and it’s been extremely popular and successful,” said Ramsey.

But the group’s long-range goal, and ultimate vision, is the Living History Farm. The county has already donated a 23-acre site for the farm, located along Cartoogechaye Creek behind Southwestern Community College. Ramsey envisions bringing in a collection of historic buildings, such as a log cabin, a one-room schoolhouse, a church and a store, all of which will be restored and furnished on site. The village “won’t be a static exhibit that people just walk through and look at,” said Ramsey. Instead, volunteers in period clothing will be on site operating a grist mill, running a blacksmithing shop, raising a patch of sorghum molasses and performing everyday tasks of a long ago era. Guests will have the opportunity to take part through various activities and classes on heritage skills.

Exactly what time period will be represented is yet to be decided, though Ramsey said the village could feature buildings that represent different periods throughout Macon County’s history.

“We want to do the very best research and planning we can,” Ramsey said. “We’re going to concentrate on making ours different from anything else available. That’s the only way we’re going to get people here and make sure it’s a sustainable thing.”

A patchwork effort

One unique possibility for the village is a focus on quilting, a popular heritage craft. Ramsey is the former manager of the Maco Crafts cooperative, a now-defunct group that was once well known throughout the region. The cooperative was particularly recognized for its quilting abilities.

Ramsey has her eye on four particular creations that could play a role at the Living History Farm. One of them is the World’s Largest Quilt, which has been shown up and down the Eastern seaboard and hung in the Kennedy Center and at the Knoxville World’s Fair. The quilt was sold on the condition that it would remain in Macon County permanently and is on display at the WhistleStop Mall. Another creation, known as the Celebrate America Quilt, was won by a local woman who wants to see it displayed. The quilt features the autographs of stars like Alan Jackson, George Strait, and Randy Travis.

Ramsey is trying to track down two other creations. One is the world’s largest quilted wall hanging that hung in the Phillip Morris cigarette plant in Concord until the facility closed two years ago. The other is an original design that commemorated the 1982 World’s Fair in Knoxville. The whereabouts of the two quilts are currently unknown.

“We’ve got the possibility of [obtaining] these four outstanding and unique quilts,” Ramsey said. “We’d hope to have a place for them and maybe use that exhibit to help attract visitors here.”

Keeping the vision

The much-awaited results of the feasibility study will assess the practical and impractical points of the plan for the Living History Farm, and address what it will take for the project to be sustainable. It’s an important first step, but there’s still much work to be done. For now, Ramsey and the Folk Heritage Association members seem determined to see their vision through.

“We’ve got lots of plans and lots of things to pull together, and lots of obstacles in the process,” said Ramsey. “But we’re still in there working.”

Haywood Community College recently acquired a 328-acre tract of land located at Balsam Gap through a generous gift from The Conservation Fund.

Bordering the Blue Ridge Parkway for 3 miles, the property forms the headwaters of Dark Ridge Creek, which shelters a pure strain of brook trout.

As a natural extension of protected forest land, the Balsam Gap property will serve as a teaching environmental laboratory for HCC’s

Natural Resources programs. This laboratory of native hardwoods and plants will serve HCC’s Forest Management, Fish and Wildlife, GIS/GPS, Low Impact Development and Horticulture programs. HCC is one of only a few community colleges across the nation to offer these comprehensive programs and as a result serves a diversity of students from across the U.S.

“Our Natural Resources programs are attractive not only because of their quality of instruction and high rate of job placement but also because of their field-based instructional methodologies,” said Dr. Rose Johnson, HCC President. “The Balsam Gap property will greatly enhance our students learning experiences by providing more hands-on, in-the-field instruction. This property will have a profound impact on HCC, its students and our surrounding communities. I am deeply grateful to The Conservation Fund for this gift.”

1920s

Forney Creek Township wants a road leading from Bryson City to Deals Gap on the Tennessee state line. It is the height of the timber boom, and the road would improve access to Knoxville. The community took out bonds totaling $400,000 to pay for the road.

1934

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is officially created.

1940

Forney Creek Township has yet to pay a single cent on the road bonds it took out nearly 20 years prior. With interest, the amount now came to $694,000. The county assumes the outstanding debt. It refinances the bond for $1.3 million, which also includes money for a new school.

1941

President Roosevelt authorizes federal funding to build Fontana Dam on the Little Tennessee River. The hydropower is needed by Alcoa, which is producing sheets of aluminum for wartime airplanes. Tennessee Valley Authority begins land acquisition.

1942

The federal government wrestles with what to do about 216 families living in a 44,000-acre territory that will be cut off when the lake floods the only road in or out of the area. With a war on, the government doesn’t have the money or time to build a new road above the high water mark. But leaving the people isolated on the far side of the lake isn’t an option either.

1943

The 44,000 acres is added to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the people evacuated, along with those in the direct path of rising water. An agreement is signed between Swain County commissioners, the Governor of North Carolina, Tennessee Valley Authority and the Department of Interior that promises to build a new road — provided Congress appropriates the funds — along the north shore. Road is to be part of an “Around the Park” road network, to commence as soon after WWII as Congress appropriates funds.

1946

Six landowners who didn’t want to give up their land in the North Shore area lose a lawsuit against the Tennessee Valley Authority. They wanted to keep their land, since the government was supposedly rebuilding the road, and saw no need for it to be ceded to the park service.

They won twice in lower courts, but it was appealed to the Supreme Court, which denied the families’ claim.

1947-48

Park service builds 0.9 mile of the promised road on the Fontana Dam side.

1959

State of North Carolina constructs a road from Bryson City to the national park boundary, laying the groundwork for the park to pick up construction.

1960

Congressman Roy A. Taylor secured $8 million for construction of the North Shore Road. Park service commences road construction where the state left off.

1962

National Park Service issues a report stating “it appears to be in the public interest to seriously reconsider the plan” to build the road.

1964

National Park Service proposes a trans-mountain road from Bryson City to Townsend, Tenn., in lieu of completing a road along the lake shore.

1966

A public hearing is held in Bryson City that pits advocates of Wilderness Area designation for the park with locals who want their road.

1968

Construction on the road stops after seven miles. The park service has used up the $8 million and is out of money. The prospects for more money seem slim due to environmental opposition.

1974

Contingency from Swain County makes a trip to Raleigh to visit N.C. Attorney General Robert Morgan. They ask Morgan for the state’s help suing the federal government to resolve the 1943 Agreement. They learn they have no grounds for a lawsuit, due to a hold harmless clause in the agreement.

1975

Swain County finally pays off the Forney Creek Road debt from the 1920s for a road that’s long since been flooded by the creation of Lake Fontana.

1975

North Carolina Gov. James Holshouser attempts to craft a compromise to provide a cash settlement for Swain County in lieu of the road. At a later meeting in Washington, D.C., a Swain County attorney offers a starting figure of $25 million, but the National Park Service representative refuses to even negotiate and ends the meeting.

1977

A public hearing is held in Bryson City, again on the issue of wilderness designation for the park.

1978

Secretary of the Department of the Interior Cecil Andrus visits Swain County at the request of local leaders clamoring to get the score settled. They hire a bus and pile in with Andrus on a tour of the county, from Calf Pen Gap overlooking the lake to lunch at the Deep Creek pavilion in the park. After returning to Washington, Andrus appoints an ad hoc committee “to look into the controversies surrounding the agreement and recommend possible solutions.”

Nov. 28, 1980

Andrus writes a letter to the Swain County commissioners agreeing to help them secure a financial settlement of $9.5 million. The sum is based on the value of the road in 1940 at $1.3 million and compounded annually at 5 percent. His letter states: “Over the years others have proposed alternative solutions to resolving the conditions of the agreement but none have been successful. In as such as this controversy has existed for 37 years, it is now time to resolve this controversy.”

1980

Congressman Lamar Gudger, D-Asheville, introduces a bill for a cash settlement of $11.1 million. The bill passes the House but never makes it to the Senate.

1983

A group of Swain County residents files a lawsuit in federal court against all the signatories of the ’43 Agreement asking for road to be built or the lake to be lowered. Known as the Helen Vance lawsuit, it is struck down, appealed, and struck down again. The families appealed a third time to the Supreme Court, but the Court refused to hear the case.

1984

A hearing on dueling Senate bills is held in Bryson City. One bill would give Swain County a cash settlement of $9.5 million in lieu of the road. The other bill would build the road and give Swain $9.5 million to boot. County Commissioner Chairman James Coggins makes the following statement at the hearing: “We are weary of making agreements that are never honored by the federal government. It is my sincere desire that Congress will at last pass our long waited for settlement of the 1943 Agreement.”

1987

Another hearing on the dueling Senate bills is held. County Commissioner Chairman James Coggins recycles the same speech as three years prior.

1991

Senator Terry Sanford proposes a cash settlement of $16 million to Swain County. His bill also calls for designating 90 percent of park as wilderness.

1991

Sen. Jesse Helms introduces legislation calling for construction of the road as well as cash payments to Swain County. The bill fails, as do efforts in 1993, 1995, and 1996.

1996

Study puts cost of completing a road at between $136 and $150 million.

Summer, 2000

Citizens for the Economic Future of Swain County is formed to advance the cause of a cash settlement. Ten people gather in the living room at Claude Douthit’s house. The group has 284 dues-paying members today.

2000

Congressman Charles Taylor slips in $16 million for road construction during the conference committee of the federal budget.

2002

The park service launches a lengthy and comprehensive environmental analysis of road construction, weighing it against a cash settlement. It would ultimately take five years and burn through $10 million of the money Taylor secured for road building.

Jan., 2003

Citizens for the Economic Future of Swain County hire Crisp, Hughes and Evans accounting firm to come up with a figure for the monetary settlement. They arrive at $52 million, based on the cost of the road when it was flooded, with interest and adjusted for inflation.

Feb., 2003

Swain County commissioners vote 4-1 in favor of a cash settlement of $52 million. Bryson City aldermen adopt the same resolution.

2003

North Carolina Governor Mike Easley, representing one of the original signatories to the ’43 Agreement, signs on in favor of a cash settlement.

March, 2007

A coalition of Senators and Congressmen from North Carolina and Tennessee sign a letter calling for a cash payoff to Swain County in lieu of building the road.

April, 2007

National Park Service announces its long-awaited decision in the lengthy environmental assessment. It comes down in favor of a cash settlement.

Dec., 2007

Congressman Heath Shuler from Western North Carolina, with the help of Senator Lamar Alexander from Tennessee, secure $6 million as a down payment on a cash settlement as part of the 2008 fiscal year budget. The funds have not yet been remitted to Swain County, however.

2008

In preparation for a cash settlement, the N.C. General Assembly authorizes a trust fund that will safeguard the money on behalf of Swain County. The state will give the county the interest off the account annually, but the principal can’t be touched unless approved by two-thirds of voters in a countywide referendum.

2008

Park reneges on dollar amount of $52 million and lowballs Swain County in negotiations. Advocates of a cash settlement feel double-crossed. Park Superintendent Dale Ditmanson digs in on his position that $52 million is too much, while Swain leaders refuse to accept anything less. Negotiations remain in a stalemate.

2009

Great Smoky Mountains National Park celebrates 75th anniversary. Swain County approaches its 67th year with an unsettled contract from the federal government.

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission has opened a boating access Area and Public Fishing Area on the bank of the Cheoah Lake.

The Lewellyn Branch boat ramp provides boaters and anglers access to the popular lake in Swain and Graham counties, and is a result of a cost-sharing agreement with Alcoa Power.

“The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is continuously looking for opportunities to increase access to public waters across the state, and the mountain region is no exception,” said Erik Christofferson, chief of the Commission’s Division of Engineering Services. “We are grateful for Alcoa’s help on this project and look forward to many years of boating and fishing access at Lewellyn Branch, thanks to this partnership.”

The one-lane boat ramp is 15-feet wide and 110-feet long, and the fishing pier is 12-by-24 feet. Both the ramp and fishing pier are handicapped accessible. Off-road parking is available. The site is on N.C. 28, 3 miles north of the junction with Fontana Dam Road.

“We are pleased to partner with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission on this project,” said Bill Bunker, vice president and operations manager of Alcoa. “The access area provides a wonderful place for individuals to enjoy the natural beauty of the area and take advantage of boating and fishing activities.”

For more information on boating in North Carolina’s waters, visit www.ncwild life.org/pg05_BoatingWaterways/pg5.htm. For information on Public Fishing Areas visit www.ncwildlife.org/pg03_Fishing/pg3a.htm.

The Richland Hills low-income senior housing development was touted publicly as being under the auspice of the Asheville-based nonprofit Mountain Housing Opportunities, which has built similar projects in Buncombe County.

Behind the scenes, however, two local players are involved in the project: Attorney Rusty McLean and Denise Mathis, the former director of the Haywood County Council on Aging, which collapsed due to financial insolvency. Mathis was charged with embezzlement for allegedly diverting donations to other uses while at the helm of the nonprofit. The charges were later dropped since Mathis had diverted the money to cover the debts of the nonprofit and not for personal gain.

McLean served as Mathis’s attorney in the criminal charges and has since represented her in civil suits seeking damages from those whom she says wrongly accused her. Mathis works in McLean’s law office.

McLean is part of a development company that owns the property where the complex is proposed.

While Mountain Housing Opportunities was the public face of Richland Hills, a second entity called VIA Community Network was listed as a key partner in the project in the application for tax credits. Mathis is listed as the registered agent for VIA Community Network, which is described in N.C. Secretary of State filings as a nonprofit formed for charitable and religious purposes.

The same day VIA Community Network was created in December 2008, an LLC called VIA Community Development was also formed. Mathis is again listed as the registered agent for the entity. McLean is listed as a member. Mathis’s home address and McLean’s law firm are listed as the office addresses for both entities.

VIA Community Development, an LLC in which McLean is a member, is the entity slated to purchase the property owned by McLean for $950,000.

Western North Carolina high school students bicycled 300 miles to the nation’s capital on one trip and canoed along the route of Lewis and Clark on another as part of summer activities sponsored by Talent Search at Western Carolina University.

The federally-funded Talent Search program is designed to encourage and prepare participants to graduate from high school and continue their educations. Todd Murdock, director of the program at WCU, said the goal of the summer trips was to help students explore, learn and grow as they developed leadership skills and cultural awareness.

Nine high school students and a Talent Search alumnus who is in college joined the cycling trip that left June 25 – cooking, camping, and visiting historical sites along the Great Allegheny Passage and C& O Canal Towpath Trail. The trip took them from Pennsylvania through Maryland to Washington, D.C. Participants rode on part of the same path along the Potomac River that Abraham Lincoln traveled by horse and buggy. They arrived in Georgetown, Va., tired and splattered in mud kicked up by their tires on the trail.

Participant Alex Madill, a Smoky Mountain High School senior from Cullowhee, said the most challenging part of the trip was the mental and physical challenge of cycling so far, while the best parts were the camaraderie and shared experiences. “The Antietam battlefield was pretty overwhelming,” said Madill. “It’s so huge, and we thought about how many people died there.”

The second Talent Search group left July 10 for a week to volunteer and hike in Glacier National Park, participate in the North American Indian Days powwow in Browning, Mont., and canoe 50 miles on the Missouri River along the same route as the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

“I ate beaver tail and buffalo tongue,” said Anna Purser, an Andrews High School junior from Andrews. “How many people get to say that?”

In letters that participants wrote to themselves to help them transfer the experience home, they talked about lessons they learned on the trip: Keep making new friends. Be kind. Don’t get trapped. Remember that everyone has problems.

Kyle Broom, a Smoky Mountain High School sophomore from Tuckasegee, said he made friends and had experiences he previously had not even imagined. “I love the great outdoors even more now, and I didn’t think that was possible,” he said.

For more information on the program, contact Todd Murdock at 828.227.3482.

By Julia Merchant • Correspondent

The minimum-security Hazelwood Prison in Waynesville is the only correctional facility of its kind to survive state budget cuts. It is now the sole remaining old-style prison left in North Carolina.

“It’s a certain thing — it will remain open,” said Sen. John Snow, D-Murphy, who fought a tough battle on behalf of the prison. It’s a fight Western North Carolina legislators are accustomed to. The facility has appeared on the chopping block numerous times over the years, only to be rescued by the efforts of Snow and other regional representatives.

“It’s the effectiveness of our delegation,” said Sen. Joe Sam Queen, D-Waynesville, who also fought, once again, to save the prison. “We worked hard, pinned it down early, and stayed with it the whole way.”

Hazelwood will be the state’s last example of a small dormitory-style brick prison built in the 1920s. The only other two like it, in Gates and Union counties, were slated for closure as well.

“They’re older prisons, and that was one of the reasons they were targeted for closure,” said Snow. “Some of them cost a lot to maintain.”

Like Hazelwood, Gates and Union also have their staunch supporters. The prisons provide a means of employment for locals, and inmates perform work detail in the community and provide local churches with an outlet for volunteering. But for one reason or another, Gates and Union were both felled by budget cuts. So why did Hazelwood survive?

“I think it’s the location of the prison, and the fact that it’s the only prison in far Western North Carolina,” said Snow. “It’s almost 90 miles from Murphy to Haywood County, so if they closed it down, the next closest minimum security prison would be somewhere in McDowell County.”

If inmates are kept further away, their loved ones are less likely to visit — which can detract from an inmate’s rehabiliation.

“It’s very important to the families of Western North Carolina, whose family members are incarcerated, that they be closer to home,” said Queen.

If Hazelwood were to close, it might be harder to place its employees in equally well-paying jobs close to home — another reason the prison may have fared better than the others.

“These other prisons that we closed, we had facilities close at hand that employees could be transferred to and keep jobs,” said Snow. “Here, we would have had a harder time transferring employees to equal jobs. That was one of the things that was very important — we would have lost about 50 positions.”

Local government officials have advocated on behalf of the prison, largely due to the amount of work detail the inmates provide to the surrounding community. The inmates pick up trash on the highways and performance maintenance to schools.

“It’s very important for the services that these minimum security prisoners deliver, helping governments do chores and tasks around Western North Carolina,” said Queen.

Snow said he received letters from county commissioners and school board members telling him how important the prison was to them. The Haywood County Commissioners even passed a resolution asking, “Who’s going to keep the highways clean if the Haywood Correctional Center closes?”

Snow also said the prison may also have survived cuts because of its rather good condition.

“It’s in good shape, considering its age,” Snow said.

But Queen stresses that saving the prison this time around is simply buying time and is only a temporary solution. Eventaully, the facility will have to be replaced.

“It’s very important for us in Haywood County and WNC to keep this minimum security unit open until we can upgrade it, but there’s no question it needs to be modernized and replaced with a new facility,” Queen said.

Queen said he plans to make a bigger push toward that goal.

“I want to work with the county, so we can be prepared to replace it with a modern facility as soon as we can find money for capital improvements,” he said.

Queen said a new facility can’t be put off much longer.

“This year we didn’t build any, but we almost lost our prison,” he said. “We definitely need to realize that we had our warning, and now we need to prepare and make other plans.”

To the Editor:

Well, I am at a disadvantage in this discussion on wind energy development in North Carolina. My friend and, in this case, adversary, Don Hendershot has his weekly bully pulpit and he used it to quote me out of context, while the readers did not have the benefit of reading the entire text of my most recent unpublished op-ed in The Smoky Mountain News.

That’s OK. I understand the limits of paper publications. Others deserve the opportunity to voice their views as well, and I can’t expect more than the very fair treatment this newspaper has given me over the years.

In the Aug. 5-11 issue of SMN, Don once again skirted the basic point being made in my last response to him. By using and accepting utility industry projections of future energy consumption, he is able to make the potential of wind energy in the mountains appear to be minimal. In so doing, he is ignoring the reality of climate change and environmental degradation in the mountains.

He is also ignoring the absolute need to reduce energy consumption in order to avoid the worst consequences of climate change. He is further ignoring the simple arithmetic fact that if we reduce overall energy consumption, the percentage of wind potential in the total mix increases and becomes considerably more significant.

Don and others who are carrying on a religious crusade to totally ban all utility scale wind development in the mountains are intellectually tricking themselves. The fear is that large-scale wind energy development has the potential to destroy the magnificent vistas in the mountains. They are so focused on this fear that their only answer is an absolute ban.

Meanwhile, there is total denial of the actual destruction of the mountains that is taking place as we debate this issue. Acid rain, high ozone levels, excess nitrogen deposition, mercury, lead, arsenic, dioxin contamination and greenhouse gases from the burning of coal to produce electricity is killing plants, birds, animals, fish, trees and human beings.

Often, the Canary Coalition and other environmental organizations are unjustly accused of protesting against certain industrial practices, such as burning coal, without offering a viable alternative. We are told, “It’s easy to complain about everything. But, what’s your solution? If we don’t burn coal, how will we meet future energy demand?”

This is an unjust accusation because, in fact, we are offering a viable alternative. We have a basic plan. That plan includes dramatically reducing residential, commercial and industrial energy consumption through utility rate restructuring that provides a strong economic incentive for investment in efficiency and conservation measures. Our proposed plan also, by necessity, includes exploiting whatever available renewable energy resources we have in North Carolina to replace and phase out coal. Wind energy in the mountains is by far the least expensive and most viable source of renewable energy available to us at this time. By eliminating this option completely, it’s difficult to see how North Carolina can meet future energy demand without burning more coal.

North Carolina Senators Martin Nesbitt (D-Asheville), Joe Sam Queen (D-Waynesville) and John Snow (D-Murphy) address the issue by completely ignoring the reality and consequences of climate change. They have all voted to fund the construction of new coal-burning power plants, while voting to ban the development of wind energy in the mountains. I don’t believe Don Hendershot would agree with this prescription for meeting future energy demand. I believe he understands the negative consequences of burning coal and how it’s destroying mountain life in North Carolina, as it destroys actual mountains in Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia.

But, I’m forced to level the same question at Don as the one unjustly leveled at our organization so often. If you understand how coal is destroying the mountains, and, if you understand that we have to dramatically reduce energy consumption to survive, what is your plan for supplying the energy needs of North Carolinians? It’s easy to “just say no” when confronted with unpleasant choices. But, if you say “no” to wind, the least expensive and most available option, what is your viable alternative? I haven’t seen anything in your anti-wind tirades that answers that question.

P.S. I want to thank the Jackson County Board of Commissioners for voting unanimously last week to pass a resolution opposing a state ban on wind development in the mountains.

It was the right thing to do.

The issue came up because an important but controversial bill has come before the North Carolina General Assembly this year. Senate Bill 1068 was originally introduced as a meaningful set of guidelines that would restrict wind development in areas of historic significance, in areas of particular ecological sensitivity and in areas where it would interrupt popular viewsheds. The original SB 1068 would give local governments discretion in further restricting wind development or designating areas they deem appropriate.

Under the new version of the bill, all local discretion has been removed and all utility-scale wind generation has been effectively banned. A sledge hammer is being applied where a surgical scalpel is needed. The bill has not yet passed in the House, and may not be dealt with in that chamber until the Short Session next year.

I don’t believe there are too many people who want to see windmills built on the Blue Ridge Parkway, in ecologically sensitive areas, or in places of historic significance. I know I don’t. But, there are many of us who think wind turbines in the mountains have a place.

Unfortunately, in 2007, Senators Snow, Nesbitt and Queen voted to provide ratepayer funding for the construction of new coal plants in North Carolina. Now, they intend to ban windmills in the mountains. How is that benefitting the mountains, western North Carolina and its people?

Thank you again Commissioners William Shelton, Mark Jones, Joe Cowan, Tom Massie and Brian McMahan for standing for reason.

Avram Friedman

Executive Director, Canary Coalition

Sylva

Eric Sink, a teacher at Summit Charter School in Cashiers, N.C., looks forward to loading his fifth-graders up on a bus every year and heading into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where the woods become the classroom and a park ranger takes over as teacher for the day. Sink wants his students to realize that where they live is special.

“Why do we study about the rainforest in South America when we have one right here in the Southern Appalachians?” Sink questioned.

The Parks as Classrooms fieldtrip for fifth-graders focuses on air quality at Clingmans Dome, where students visit a monitoring station that tests high-elevation ozone.

“We start with several lessons prior to even going, like what creates the pollution and what can we do to reduce the pollution,” Sink said. “They think a lot about things they can actually do, like the conservation of electricity.”

Since most of the pollution is from coal-fired power plants, they begin to think, “‘If I turn off my lights, I conserve electricity and that’s less coal that has to be burned,’” Sink said. Students also think about driving cars that use less gas, or even riding a bike or walking.

Once in the park, the students turn into scientists, conducting their own experiments to measure the effects of air pollution. They do pH tests of the soil to detect acid rain. They measure wind speed and talk about how it carries the pollution into the mountains.

Sink loves to see his students developing hypotheses, collecting data and performing studies.

“It really gets them to think more about it. We always do better when we are there than learning inside the classroom,” Sink said. “I think the great thing about it is they get that firsthand experimental learning.”

The fieldtrips are tailored for each grade level. Each is synced with the curriculum for that grade — even for kindergarten.

The state curriculum for kindergartners includes learning about animals and how they interact with their environment. A fieldtrip to the Oconaluftee River in the Smokies provides the perfect opportunity.

“We saw squirrels scurrying around gathering nuts. We saw groundhogs popping their heads up in the field. There is lots we are observing and watching in terms of animals,” said Lee Messer, a kindergarten teacher at Hazelwood Elementary in Haywood County, who takes her kids on the fieldtrip every year.

The park is rife with the chance to use observation skills, another big part of the kindergarten curriculum. They get clipboards and magnifying glasses to observe the world around them. Park rangers show them natural objects, like turtle shells and otter pelts, and ask the students to describe how they look, feel, smell and sound. To heighten the use of senses, students listen to recordings of animals and try to guess what animal it is.

Kindergartners are learning how to sort objects by category, and the rock pebbles along the Oconaluftee River prove fertile ground. Armed with nothing but two buckets, the students pick their own attributes — bumpy versus smooth, for example — and sort accordingly.

“Taking this fieldtrip brings everything you are talking about all year long to life,” Messer said. “It is an amazing, amazing fieldtrip. The children always come back talking about it.”

The Jackson County Green Energy Park recently opened the first landfill methane-fueled art foundry in the world.

“Because of the increasing costs of fossil fuels, as well as the environmental impact of the fire arts in general, demonstrating that landfill gas can work in a foundry situation opens up new opportunities for the preservation of these art forms,” said Tracy Kirchmann, a Western Carolina University graduate student and assistant to JCGEP.

Kirchmann was a recent recipient of an honorable mention in the International Sculpture Center’s Outstanding Student Achievement Award.

The foundry was built to increase the versatility of the metals shop for incoming artist residents. The JCGEP metals shop has two studio spaces available for one to three-year residencies, and is also available for four-week residencies and internships year round. Resident artists share access to the 2,500-square-foot shop, which includes metal fabrication equipment, blacksmithing forges and the foundry.

As the JCGEP program develops, additional works will be shown onsite through an annual sculpture competition. This year’s selected piece, “Metamorphosis,” is a sculpture made of cor-ten steel by Waynesville artist Grace Cathey.

To date, JCGEP also has completed construction on a metals shop featuring a series of greenhouses, three blacksmithing forges, and a glassblowing studio that is slated to open this fall. The major appliances in each of these facilities utilize the landfill gas as their fuel source.

For more information, or to organize a tour of the JCGEP, call 828.631.0271.