A two-year effort to rehabilitate Rainbow Falls Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is now complete, and the next Trails Forever project has been announced — Trillium Gap Trail, a 6.6-mile path that intersects with the Rainbow Falls Trail at Mount LeConte. 

The rehabilitation of Trillium Gap Trail will take two years, beginning in May 2019, and will be conducted together with other critical work across the park on trails such as the Deep Creek Trail, Rough Fork Trail, Smokemont Trail and Noah Bud Ogle Trail. Trillium Gap Trail and associated parking areas will be closed from May 6, 2019, through Nov. 14 of that year, from 7 a.m. Mondays through 5:30 p.m. Thursdays. It will be open on federal holidays. Work will resume in 2020. 

An art-focused fundraising event raised more than $40,000 for the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation last month, allowing for education and improvements to continue along the 469-mile corridor. 

A weekly fly tying class has started at Outdoor 76 in Franklin, held 6 to 8 p.m. every Wednesday. 

An environmental assessment for a rule that would allow members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians to gather sochan in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is out for comment through Thursday, Dec. 13. 

The early spring leaves of sochan, also known as the green-headed coneflower, have traditionally been an important food source for Cherokee people, whose large territory used to encompass the area now covered by the park. The Qualla Boundary currently abuts the park boundary, but gathering any type of plant or plant part is uniformly prohibited in the Smokies. 

LifePoint Health and RCCH HealthCare Partners have completed their merger and will now begin operating as one united company under the LifePoint Health name. 

Sometimes we hear people make statements like, “I don’t eat any processed foods!” …and then open up a Greek yogurt or order hummus with pita bread… and all of those foods are processed. What I think some health gurus are trying to say when they make that sort of pronouncement is in fact, “Avoid or limit foods that have been highly processed and include high amounts of fats, sodium (salt) or sugars.” 

To the Editor:

The first duty of government to its citizens is to safeguard them from acts of violence. Instead, the President suggests that worshiping Jews, Christians, Muslims and school teachers bear the responsibility and costs of hiring private armies to protect our people and our institutions.

I don’t want live in a country where we need armed guards in houses of worship and schools. The President’s offhand solution to the violence in our nation, this time in Pittsburgh, is repugnant. If more guns in schools and churches is the answer, then God help us.

George Soros and the media cannot be blamed for the President’s dereliction of duty. In the meantime, the President is obsessed with sending a militia to turn back thousands of families fleeing from murderous violence in their homelands.

In demonizing “the other,” President Trump incites the acts of hate that he professes to deplore. He can express condemnation of such acts all he wants, but his calls for harsher punishments fail to address remedies that might actually work to prevent hate crimes, such as, stricter screening for buyers of firearms and explosives and a toning down of his divisive rhetoric.

The President wants to turn back the clock to a time when “America was great.” He chooses to ignore that his mythical time of American greatness included a time when the people choose our leaders, not the courts or an outdated electoral process, a time when political discourse was measured by civility, a time when armed guards in schools and churches was an unimaginable necessity.

I have no expectation that the President will change his bellicose, hate-driven rhetoric, but we the people who live in the backdrop of the current political divisiveness can do more. All of us should strive to make a sincere effort to treat those whose political opinions we disagree with respect. And let’s do a better job of practicing what our religious faith and moral compasses teach.

John Barry

Franklin

To the Editor:

Another large rainfall event is visiting our mountains this week, which can lead to flash floods and dangerous driving conditions. I can't help but wonder if some improvement might be attained by simply keeping the drains unclogged that are choked with debris from months of neglect. Call the Division of Street/DOT road crew, etc.? 

I did back before Flo was possibly coming at us. I was told it would be checked out but nothing has been unclogged along Russ Avenue yet. Primarily across from Kmart all going downhill towards Lake Junaluska. I've noticed other roads and areas as well. I'm sure there are different departments whose responsibility this task falls upon, but I think safety and common sense should prevail.  

Mylan Sessions 

Waynesville

To the Editor:

Now that the rest of the nation has seen the reality of the Trump Administration and voted out the GOP House majority, I would like to suggest our local Congressman, Republican Mark “Gerrymander” Meadows,  be nominated for the Chairmanship of the U.S. House Sanitation Committee. Perhaps the Democrats, who now control the House, will see fit to place Meadows, a Floridian and North Carolina pretender, to atop the committee. 

Meadows, a holdout from the dwindling Republican Party, would be an exemplary congressman for overseeing the removal of trash from Capitol Hill. He is a true, proven “garbage-man.” I might suggest his buddy, Californian Rep. Devin Nunes, be nominated for vice chairman of the Sanitation Committee. Both GOP “representatives” have truly been disgraceful for eroding the U.S. Constitution. 

Meadows is not a patriot, as he has continually put party and ideology above America. Meadows, like Trump, is a proponent for the wealthy at the expense of the working class, and, like Trump, he is an incredible “deceiver.” 

I have little hope average voters in WNC will ever grasp the damage they are doing to themselves by re-electing “Gerrymander”  Meadows to the 11th Congressional District. But, as a native Southerner, I’ve dealt with dumb-assess my entire life; it comes with the territory like deviled eggs, fried chicken and coronary stents.

James Budd

Bryson City

To the Editor:

I would like to thank The Chef’s Table and Harrah’s Cherokee Casino for their generosity of inviting all veterans for a fantastic free buffet on Veterans Day. The staff and food were exceptional. I know all veterans were appreciative of the open arm welcome and the acknowledgement of our service by each of the staff.

I think we all owe Harrah’s our gratitude along with all the other businesses that extended their hands to veterans on this special day. I, as a Vietnam veteran, appreciate each and every one of you. Thank you for supporting and remembering veterans of all wars.

Ron Raccioppi

Cullowhee

By Rhonda Cole Schandevel • Guest Columnist

Good day to all who will take the time to read my long and final post as your past candidate for N.C. House District 118. I will not apologize for the length of my remarks. My family and I have sacrificed three years of our lives to gain this seat and to bring back civility to our community through kindness and compassion. Therefore, there are several things that my heart must share.

A Haywood County man has become the second person to be attacked by a black bear in Western North Carolina this year. 

Veteran ranger Kevin Bischof has been named to the superintendent’s post at Mount Mitchell State Park in Yancey County. 

A $905,000 grant from the Buncombe County Tourism Development authority will make it possible for the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville to hold evening events throughout the year. 

Cataloochee Ski Area opened for the first time this season on Sunday, Nov. 11.

Four new wayside signs have appeared at the Jackson County Greenway, East LaPorte Park and South Painter Park, thanks to a grant from the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area. 

After two years of work, the new and improved Rainbow Falls Trail is open for business following a Nov. 14 ribbon-cutting ceremony.

A federal judge found that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service violated the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Protection Act when it rolled back protections for the world’s only wild population of red wolves. 

The 2014 Farm Bill expired at midnight Sept. 30, and Congress has thus far failed to reauthorize a new five-year bill, spurring concerns as to the lapse’s potential effect on agriculture. 

Susan Brummell Belcher, wife of late Western Carolina University Chancellor David O. Belcher, received one of the top honors bestowed by the university, the Distinguished Service Award, and three alumni were recognized for their achievements Nov. 3 as part of Homecoming activities on campus.

On Thursday, Nov. 15, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit will make history by holding oral arguments for the first time in Indian Country, at the Cherokee Court on the Qualla Boundary. 

The Haywood County Arts Council (HCAC), administrator of this year’s Regional Artist Project Grant (RAPG), is pleased to announce grantees selected for the 2018-19 fiscal year. 

The Haywood County Arts Council (HCAC), serving as a Designated County Partner of the North Carolina Arts Council, is pleased to announce the 2018-19 subgrantees for the Grassroots Arts Program. 

Taste of Local, Ingles in Weaverville. 140 Weaver Blvd. Thursday, November 15 • 3-6 p.m.

By Autumn Woodward • Guest Columnist

The Irish morning was cool. I’d tumbled over a stone wall into the park to go walking. Under two lines of ancient beech trees a peculiar, crooked figure dressed all in black was moving down the path. Overtaking it (it wasn’t moving fast), I peered sideways. The figure stopped.

A 2.9-mile section of the Bote Mountain Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is now open to hikers for the first time since Sept. 24. 

Gov. Roy Cooper has signed an executive order directed at “North Carolina’s commitment to fight climate change and lead transition to a clean energy economy.”

Longtime Haywood County farmer and agricultural community leader Bill Yarborough has been recognized with the highest honor the state has to give, the Order of the Long Leaf Pine. 

A celebration of the completed Foothills Parkway section known as the “Missing Link” will be held Thursday, Nov. 8, with community members invited to walk the 1.65-mile section before it opens to motorists and cyclists Saturday, Nov. 10. 

The Haywood Healthcare Foundation, Haywood Regional Medical Center, and Haywood Community College recently held a presentation ceremony for Dr. Bennie Sharpton, a retired general surgeon. 

The Jackson County Tourism Development Authority, whose mission it is to promote and market the county, is conducting its first comprehensive research project. 

To the Editor: 

“Meet the real Rhonda Schandevel” was what I read on the latest inaccurate ad I received in my mailbox. I began to wonder if those who came up with that title have even met her themselves. Well, I have met the real Rhonda Schandevel and I can assure you that what you’ve read on some ad or heard on television from her opponent’s supporters and big money donors is completely false. Let me tell about the Rhonda I have met, know, and love. 

She is a mother first and foremost to her son, Canie. Everything she is doing and fighting for is for him. He is a vital part of the special needs community and Rhonda will do everything in her power to make sure these beautiful souls who are the best among us have what they need to thrive. 

Her love for teachers and children in our public school system is another thing I have witnessed since I met the real Rhonda Schandevel. Every teacher that I have talked to has shared their struggles and have emphasized how important it is to elect someone like Rhonda who will support them.

Rhonda is a strong woman of faith. Her belief and trust in her Lord is what sustains her and what has given her strength to go through the different seasons of her life. 

I spoke with a sweet lady on the first day of early voting. She said, “I didn’t vote for Rhonda last time and I regret that I didn’t. I think she is exactly who we need to go to Raleigh. This time I will be voting for her.” 

This time is her time and it’s North Carolina’s time to meet the “Real Rhonda Schandevel.” Join me here in Haywood County and my friends in Yancey and Madison in voting for Rhonda Cole Schandevel for N.C. House District 118

Leslie Hipps

Canton

To the Editor:

We have been battered with a drumbeat of name calling and blaming over the last two years. It might be constructive to consider the meaning of several “isms”. According to Merriam-Webster the following definitions apply. 

Fascism: A political philosophy, movement, or regime (such as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition.

McCarthyism: A mid-20th century political attitude characterized chiefly by opposition to elements held to be subversive and by the use of tactics involving personal attacks on individuals by means of widely publicized indiscriminate allegations especially on the basis of unsubstantiated charges broadly: defamation of character or reputation through such tactics. 

Socialism vs. Social Democracy: In the many years since socialism entered English around 1830, it has acquired several different meanings. It refers to a system of social organization in which private property and the distribution of income are subject to social control, but the conception of that control has varied, and the term has been interpreted in widely diverging ways, ranging from statist to libertarian, from Marxist to liberal. 

In the modern era, "pure" socialism has been seen only rarely and usually briefly in a few Communist regimes. Far more common are systems of social democracy, now often referred to as democratic socialism, in which extensive state regulation, with limited state ownership, has been employed by democratically elected governments (as in Sweden and Denmark) in the belief that it produces a fair distribution of income without impairing economic growth.

Democracy: Government by the people especially: rule of the majority, a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections.

Voting is critical and no longer a choice to save our democracy!

Ron Robinson

Sylva

To the Editor:

The amendment on the ballot reads “Constitutional amendment to require voters to provide photo identification before voting in person.” 

This is a solution in search of a problem. Voter fraud is a ruse that demagogues and self-described nationalists use to fire up their base. It is in fact practically non-existent. 

Significant numbers of citizens lack photo ID. If it was easy to obtain such, or if they had any need for such, they certainly would have gotten such. Their rights shouldn't be limited by the majority, who have such. 

The problem that remains unaddressed is the much more damaging attack against our vote and our democracy by foreign entities and radical right-wing extremists. Attempted manipulation in the form of specious imputations, out of thin air, is a specialty of those who feel that their place and power are somehow diminished by other people exercising their rights. If you think America can't be manipulated thusly, I offer practically any video of our current president, whose "truthful hyperbole" is in fact lie after lie after lie. And the crowd laughs and cheers (at his mocking of Dr. Ford, for example).

 Educate yourself, who would have thought we could be fooled so badly?

Bil Aylor

Bryson City

To the Editor:

John Wooden once said, “ … the true test of a man’s character is what he does when no one is watching.”

I want to address someone’s character that I know well. Rhonda Cole Schandevel has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember, and I have a tremendous amount of love and respect for her. Her son, Canie, and I grew up together. 

The Rhonda I know is the definition of selfless. She has spent a majority of her life advocating for those who need a voice, including Canie. There are not many people in the world that love as fiercely as Rhonda loves people, all people.  She is faithful and she is undoubtedly honorable. She is compassionate and has a servant’s heart. When facing adversity she will alwayspersevere. The Rhonda that I know is so much more than I can put into this short letter. 

Family isn’t always blood. Sometimes it is also people you choose. And Rhonda is family. My daughter, Sloane Canie, is her son’s namesake, and my heart is so happy knowing that I get to raise my daughter surrounded by Rhonda as a part of our family. Sloane will grow up knowing the Rhonda that I know, and for that I couldn’t be more thankful. 

Rhonda is loyal and loving. Her actions speak for her character and have as long as I’ve known her. She has always been an example for me as to how I want to grow into my role as a mother and an active citizen. 

If you don’t know Rhonda, I urge you to get to know her, not only as a candidate for NC House District 118, but also as a person. I promise you will be blessed. 

Mary Beth Brown

Waynesville

To the Editor: 

Republican Mark Meadows held an impromptu rally in front of the Macon County Courthouse on October 24, as voters were coming in to participate in early voting. Meadows represents the 11th District of North Carolina in the United States House of Representatives. 

Prior knowledge of his appearance was announced only to his Republican supporters. No mention of his being in Franklin was made to any of the press or local media. His arrival in Franklin appeared only on the Republican’s calendar. 

Why did Rep. Meadows slip into Franklin without informing the rest of his constituents? Is his message only for Republican ears? Do we really want a person representing all of us in the U.S. House who talks and listens only to those who he believes agree with him? Are the rest of us satisfied with a candidate who ignores us and does not want to hear from us? 

Meadows has not scheduled a town hall meeting open to the public in the last two years or longer. Voters do have a choice. We need to go to the polls and elect the candidate who will truly represent all the citizens of District 11.

Marge Abel

Franklin

Taste of Local, Ingles in Weaverville. 140 Weaver Blvd. Thursday, November 15 • 3-6 p.m.

To the Editor:

The first duty of government to its citizens is to safeguard them from acts of violence. Instead, the president suggests that worshiping Jews, Christians, Muslims, and school teachers bear the responsibility and costs of hiring private armies to protect our people and our institutions.

I don’t want live in a country where we need armed guards in houses worship and schools. The president’s offhand solution to the violence in our nation, this time in Pittsburgh, is repugnant. If more guns in schools and churches is the answer, then God help us.

George Soros and the media cannot be blamed for the president’s dereliction of duty. In the meantime, the president is obsessed with sending a militia to turn back thousands of families fleeing from murderous violence in their homelands.

In demonizing “the other,” President Trump incites the acts of hate that he professes to deplore. He can express condemnation of such acts all he wants, but his calls for harsher punishments fail to address remedies that might actually work to prevent hate crimes.

The president wants to turn back the clock to a time when “America was great.” He chooses to ignore that his mythical time of American greatness included a time when the people choose our leaders, not the courts or an outdated electoral process, a time when political discourse was measured by civility, a time when armed guards in schools and churches was an unimaginable necessity.

I have no expectation that the president will change his bellicose, hate-driven rhetoric, but we the people who live in the backdrop of the current political divisiveness can do more. All of us should strive to make a sincere effort to treat those whose political opinions we disagree with respect. And let’s do a better job of practicing what our religious faith and moral compasses teach.

John Barry

Franklin

To the Editor:

Recent newspaper stories have provided information about the six proposed amendments to the state constitution. We would like to share why we will be voting against all of the six amendments. 

We quote the State Board of Elections & Ethics Enforcement for the titles to each proposed amendment. 

1. “Right to hunt and fish:” The people currently have the right to hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife. But if this amendment passes, it could deny private property owners’ rights to forbid hunting on their land, among other unintended consequences. 

2. “Changes to current victims’ rights:” This is a California billionaire’s campaign that would delay justice and cost tens of millions of our tax dollars per year to implement. If there are changes needed in current legal protections, a more appropriate way is to enact laws, not constitutional amendments. 

3. “Cap maximum state income tax at 7%:” This is a gift to the rich. If this passes, in some future emergency the only way to raise revenue to meet the emergency will be to tax working men and women through increased property and sales taxes. 

4. “Require photographic identification to vote:” A thinly veiled bypass to allow the legislature to enact whatever voting eligibility laws it desires. Our legislature has an ongoing, proven track record of passing unconstitutional voter suppression laws — this amendment could not only deny many students, disabled, veteran, and elderly voters the right to continue voting but also cost all taxpayers tens of millions of dollars. 

5. “Legislature to control judicial appointments:” Why would we turn over one branch of the government (the judicial) to another (the legislature)? That is what this amendment would do, while bringing us one step closer to ending voters’ rights to elect judges. 

6. “Party leaders in legislature to control ethics and elections board appointments; eliminate nonpartisan representation on board:” North Carolina already has a nine-member, bi-partisan state elections board. This amendment would reduce it to eight members (four from each party) and thereby create gridlock, while allowing legislators to change the constitution with impunity. A prior version of this law was declared unconstitutional by North Carolina’s Supreme Court. 

These are the reasons we are voting against all amendments: either “it’s not broke, so don’t fix it” (the hunting/fishing amendment), “it’ll make things worse while not fixing what’s wrong” (the victim’s rights amendment), or “it’s destroying our balanced government” (amendments 3 – 6).  We’d rather see government work more efficiently and not waste our tax dollars.

Lynn and Carol Hogue

Bryson City

A coalition of businesses, groups and organizations calling itself I Heart Pisgah has formed to advocate for greater protections in the still-being-written Pisgah-Nantahala Forest Management Plan. 

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission wants to hear about hellbender sightings, part of agency biologists’ ongoing effort to learn more about where the giant salamanders live and how their populations are faring. 

A new N.C. Trails website has launched, providing a hub for the N.C. Trails Program and offering quick and easy access to information on state trails, as well as guidance for funding, creating and maintaining a trail. 

For the first time since wildfires ravaged the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in fall 2016, the Bull Head and Sugarland Mountain trails are open. 

A long-awaited section of the Foothills Parkway between Walland and Wears Valley in Tennessee will officially open on Saturday, Nov. 10. Weather permitting, the public can preview the Parkway by foot during the morning of Thursday, Nov. 8, with a shuttle operation. Details will be announced Friday, Nov. 2. 

Open Enrollment for the 2019 Federal Health Insurance Exchange begins Thursday, Nov. 1 and runs through Dec. 15 for coverage to start Jan. 1, 2019.

Groups: recover together, a leading provider of opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment, will be hosting an open house from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 13, to cut the ribbon on the new Waynesville office with the support of the Waynesville Chamber of Commerce. 

Many trendy diets like keto, whole30, paleo and carnivore all slam carbohydrates and particularly pasta, but pasta can be part of healthy and nutritious meals.

Leah McGrath, RDN, LDN is the Corporate Dietitian for Ingles Markets. She can answer your questions about food from the farm to the plate, whether you want to know about nutrition, ingredients, preparation or agriculture.

A sewage spill occurred in Haywood County Oct. 15 when a septic tank pump truck became involved in an accident on eastbound U.S. 23/74 along Richland Creek.