October marks Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM), a time to raise our collective consciousness about family violence in our community and to highlight the critical support systems available for survivors locally.  

As the sun set behind the Saunook fire station in west Haywood County, members of the community gathered in the bay that would normally house the fire trucks and anxiously took their seats. They were told the news was good, they just didn’t know how good.  

Haywood County commissioners advanced the long-planned Clyde EMS base project Oct. 20 by approving a $2,069,955 construction contract with RYSE Construction. 

The bid represents the second phase of a federally funded initiative to redevelop the Clyde Armory campus into a modern emergency response hub that will serve as both an EMS base and a regional emergency shelter, right in the geographic center of Haywood County. 

Haywood County’s elected clerk of superior court Hunter Plemmons has announced that he is resigning from his position effective Nov. 17.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness month in the United States.

This week, the Smoky Mountain News has partnered with REACH of Haywood County to publish a series of stories outlining the ways domestic violence perpetrators can victimize those they should love and what resources are available for anyone in need.  

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month — a time to honor survivors, remember those lost to violence and recommit to building a community where everyone feels safe and valued. For nearly four decades, REACH of Haywood County has been doing exactly that: working quietly but persistently to make Haywood County a safer, stronger place to live. 

For close to four decades, I’ve been an advocate for victims and survivors of domestic violence and sexual abuse. It has been quite a journey. 

Along the way, I’ve met so many incredibly strong, wise, brave, and determined women who have faced terrible abuse from the person who, at the beginning of the relationship, claimed to love them. They have learned the hard way that love and abuse do not go together. 

Last month, at the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) award show in Chattanooga, Appalachian Road Show took the stage to perform “Della Jane’s Heart” in front of every big star currently within the “high, lonesome sound.” 

To  the Editor:

After learning that N.C. Senate leader Phil Berger was considering further redistricting in North Carolina, I sent the following petition to Rep. Mark Pless, Sen. Kevin Corbin, U.S. Senators Thom Tillis and Ted Budd on October 10. I encourage all N.C. residents to educate themselves about this issue and communicate with their representatives: 

It was supposed to be a routine public safety forum, and in a way, it was — the faces were familiar, the frustrations all the same. 

Elected officials, troopers, prosecutors and politicians once again took turns describing a justice system straining under its own weight, a system where clogged courts, half-hearted drug treatment, mental health failures and chronic underfunding blur the thin blue line between order and chaos. Their words carried a sense of urgency, tinged with exhaustion.