The 3rd Annual Steve Whiddon Music Fest will be at 6 p.m. on July 8 at the Grandview Lodge. The proceeds from this event will benefit the four animal non-profit agencies in Haywood County, Sarge’s Animal Rescue Foundation, Save the Animals Rescue (STAR) Ranch, HAWA Spay/Neuter and The Francis Fund. Featured artists will include The Steve Whiddon Band, Karen “Sugar” Barnes and Dave Magill, Angie Toomie, Bobby Wallace Country Classics, Susan Costine and more, plus a few big surprises.

The event will be held inside the Grandview Lodge and on the wrap-around porch. Haywood Equipment Rental is donating tents, tables, and chairs for additional space. The fish fry buffet dinner will be served following a short skit by the four animal non-profit agencies along with an introduction of animals available for adoptions.  

Tickets are $25. 828.421.1290 or visit www.grandviewlodgenc.com.

Galleries in Sylva and Waynesville will stay open late this Friday, July 1, for evening art walks held the first Friday of the month.

This month in Sylva, the Hallway Gallery will feature fresh paintings of blooming rhododendrons representing late spring. Just for summer inspirations include paintings of mountains, lakes, waterfalls and beach scenes of a realistic style.

Robert L. Shook will be signing his novel A Journey in Courage from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Monday, July 4, at Books Unlimited in Franklin.

Based on the true story of Shook’s ancestors, the book captures the incredible legacy of the Schuck family, a family connected by their faith in God and their deep love for their country and one another. This fascinating account will treat you to a remarkable three-dimensional trip through time and leave a lasting impression on your heart.

828.369.7942

Laura Boosinger will begin the 2011 Songcatchers Music series at the Cradle of Forestry at 6 p.m. on July 3. Also performing will be the local old-time music trio Galloway, Gordon and Hudson.

Boosinger’s music focuses on the interpretation of traditional music from the southern mountains. She plays banjo, guitar, dulcimer and autoharp.

The Songcatchers Music Series continues with the Crooked Pine Band on July 10, Sparky and Rhonda on July 17, Josh Goforth on July 24 and Don Pedi and Bruce Greene on July 31. Admission for all shows is $6 ages 16 and older, and $3 for 15 and under and America the Beautiful and Golden Age pass holders. The Cradle of Forestry is located on U.S. 276 in the Pisgah National Forest, six miles north of Looking Glass Falls and four miles south of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Attendees can bring picnics, chairs, and blankets for use on the grass. Concert-goers can arrive early and view indoor and outdoor exhibits, two interpretive trails and the Cradle of Forestry’s gift shop

828.877.3130 or visit www.cradleofforestry.org.

Jaime Lauren Webb, a singer-songwriter, will be performing from 7 to 10 p.m. on Friday, July 1, at the Wine Seller in downtown Waynesville. She will be performing with her banjo, ukulele, harmonica, and harp. Jarred Teague will also be performing.

ClassicWineSeller.com

The Friends of the Library Used Book Store in Jackson County received a large donation of books that includes some historical fiction books and many non-fiction history books. The books deal with U.S. history, military history, the Civil War and World War II. Many are first editions and some are signed copies.

Also included with the collection are approximately 100 videos on a variety of subjects, including Walt Disney classics and some series. First editions of fiction and non-fiction books with a variety of titles from other donations are also on display at the bookstore.

828.586.1640 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Local author Barbara Dumas Ballew will be available to sign copies of her novel, George’s Creek to Georgia, July 1 and 2, at the Smoky Mountain Firecracker Fest in Franklin.

George’s Creek to Georgia is a journey through four generations of Barbara Dumas Ballew’s family. Ballew, a genealogist and storyteller, takes readers back to a simpler time when a young, illiterate pioneer purchased land for his first farm, met the woman of his dreams and started a family.

888.361.9473 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The annual Firecracker 5K sponsored by the Bryson City Rotary Club is set for Monday, July 4, in conjunction with downtown festivities scheduled for later that day.

The race will begin at 8 a.m. with registration starting at 6:45 a.m.

It’s a fast, flat, road race through the Deep Creek community near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The race begins and ends at the administration building in downtown Bryson City.

Cost is $20 with a T-shirt or $15 without a T-shirt if you register online by 5 p.m. Friday, July 1. Cost goes up $5 afterwards.

To register by mail, send checks payable to Rotary Club of Bryson City with the completed registration form to Brian Thomas, P.O. Box 2305, Bryson City NC 28713.

www.runbrysoncity.com or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.342.5015.

Stories of Appalachian conservation by a native son and award-winning storyteller Gary Carden will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 30, in Highlands.

The program is hosted by the Highlands Biological Foundation as part of the “Think About Thursdays” summer event series. The event will be held at the Highlands Nature Center (930 Horse Cove Road.) Free. 828.526.2221.

A raising trout class will be held Saturday, June 25, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. for ages 4 to 7. The event will cover the ins and outs of the Bobby N. Setzer trout hatchery operations, plus kids can feed the fish. The program is free, but spaces are limited and pre-registration is required. 828.877.4423

On Friday, July 1, a Women’s Introduction to Fly Fishing class will be presented from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., covering equipment, knots, casting techniques and aquatic entomology.  Equipment and materials provided. The program is free and open to ages 12 and up. Spaces are limited and pre-registration is required. 828.877.4423.

The Canary Coalition will hold its annual membership meeting from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, June 30, in Sylva.

All members of the public interested in grassroots action to further this cause are invited. There will be a general discussion about the direction of the organization. Director Avram Friedman called the past year a “landmark” one for the group.

The Canary Coalition began in 1999 as a small, dedicated group of grassroots activists who were determined to bring clean air back to the mountains of Western North Carolina. Since then the organization has grown to include more than 2,000 people, organizations and businesses. Most are here in North Carolina, but there are now 23 states with members represented in the Canary Coalition.

The Canary Coalition’s annual meeting includes a potluck dinner. Bring a favorite dish to share, along with a plate or bowl, cup and silverware.

The results of the annual board of directors’ elections will be announced at the meeting.

The meeting will be at the Community Services Building, room 234, at 538 Scotts Creek Road. www.canarycoalition.org.

The U.S. Forest Service is warning hikers and campers that there has been an increase in black bear encounters in the vicinity of Graveyard Fields on the Pisgah Ranger District.

There have also been reports of increased bear activity around North Mills River and Wash Creek areas. Although none of these areas are currently closed, forest users are encouraged to use caution and follow bear-safety practices when in the forest.

Suggested practices include:

• Keeping a clean camp site by properly disposing of food scraps and garbage.

• Not leaving food or coolers unattended.

• Never storing food in a tent.

• Staying away from any black bears spotted in the area.

“Hunters of the Sky,” a program featuring live birds of prey, will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 28, at the Village Commons at the Crossroads in Cashiers.

The program, by Michael Skinner of Balsam Mountain Trust, is part of the Village Nature Series. This is a rare opportunity to learn about the Bald Eagle, Peregrine falcon, and other birds of prey.

Before working at Balsam Mountain Trust, Skinner was the Emmy nominated host of “Georgia Outdoors” on Georgia Public Television. He is an experienced field ecologist, naturalist, nature photographer and environmental educator.

The event is free. The Village Nature Series is the result of collaboration between two local non-profits: Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust and the Village Green. www.hicashlt.org or www.villlagegreencashiersnc.com.

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is seeking nominees for its annual Lawrence G. Diedrick Small Game Award, given to an individual and an organization whose actions significantly and positively impact North Carolina’s small game populations, including Northern bobwhite, ruffed grouse, squirrel and rabbit.

In the individual category, past award winners were landowners who improved and integrated small game habitat into their forestry or farming operations. In the organization category, past award winners included corporations, government agencies, and non-government organizations whose actions improved small game habitat.

Nominations for this year’s award are due Aug. 1.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission,  Division of Wildlife Management, c/o Martha Homovec, 1722 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1722.

Fifth graders at Clyde Elementary school worked with Haywood Waterways Association to stencil storm drains in their school campus parking lot this month.

The drains now provide the message that the water that flows into them goes straight into the stream next to the school and on to the Pigeon River. The students not only learned where water goes once it disappears through the grates of a storm drain, but also broadcast it to the public.

Christine O’Brien, project assistant, and Jane Falkenstein, outreach specialist, with Haywood Waterways, went over the basics of the water cycle and demonstrated why it’s so important to use water wisely, and keep it clean and free of debris.  

Then, using bright green paint and stencils to label each storm drain in the parking lot, kids cleaned each area, set up the stencils, and spray painted each one.

“It was environmental stewardship in action, a perfect example of how education plus service learning and a chance to make a difference can lead to a sense of ownership by the kids and a feeling of responsibility for taking care of our waterways,” O’Brien said.

The Watershed Association of the Tuckasegee River will hold its annual summer meeting at 6 p.m. on Monday, June 27, at Monteith Farmstead Park in Dillsboro.

Anyone interested in water quality is welcome. The meeting will include an overview of WATR initiatives and projects, including creek cleanups.

People can also check out the new Interpretive Buffer Trail being constructed with the help of the Oconaluftee Jobs Corps students. This trail demonstrates the critical benefits of a natural riparian buffer to the health of creeks and forests. 

Dinner will consist of hot dogs, potato salad, and cookies, plus drinks. It is free, though contributions are welcome.

828.506.0899 or www.WATRnc.org.

Recent storms have left debris on and other damage to trails in Panthertown Valley, a national forest recreation area located in southern Jackson County near Cashiers.

Friends of Panthertown will hold a workday to clean up those trails from 9:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. Saturday, June 25. Meet at Salt Rock trail-head (located at the end of Breedlove Road). Tools will be provided.

www.panthertown.org or 828.269.4453.

Western Carolina University faculty member and writer Ron Rash is putting the final touches on his new novel even as he is honored for the contributions he has made to Southern literature through his previous novels, short stories and poems.

Rash, who serves as WCU’s Parris Distinguished Professor of Appalachian Culture, is currently making last revisions to The Cove, which is scheduled for release next April. Set in Western North Carolina during World War I, the novel tells the story of a mountain woman who comes upon a mysterious stranger in the woods whom she saves from a near-fatal accident.

As Rash gets The Cove ready for publication, he also is working on a new book of short stories. He has about one-third of the stories written, and one of them, “The Trusty,” was recently published in The New Yorker magazine, along with an interview with Rash.

Rash is the author of seven books of fiction set in the Southern Appalachian Mountains (including the best-selling novel Serena) and three books of poetry. A native of Boiling Springs who was raised there and in Chester, S.C., he teaches Appalachian literature and creative writing at WCU.

Local author Barbara Dumas Ballew will be available to sign copies of her novel, George’s Creek to Georgia, July 1 and 2, at the Smoky Mountain Firecracker Fest in Franklin.

George’s Creek to Georgia is a journey through four generations of Barbara Dumas Ballew’s family. Ballew, a genealogist and storyteller, takes readers back to a simpler time when a young, illiterate pioneer purchased land for his first farm, met the woman of his dreams and started a family.

888.361.9473 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Maggie Valley will be hosting Red, White, and Boom 2011 at the Maggie Valley Festival Grounds July 1 through July 4. There will be 14 mechanical rides available, three inflatable attractions, a fun house, a caged ferris wheel and a hot air balloon ride among the various attractions. Live music will be featured as well, including Glen Shelton, John Emil, Caribbean Cowboys, Sarkadelics, Sound Extreme Entertainment and Karaoke with Dan Massey. Novelty items, food, beverages, crafts and games will be available all weekend.

Tickets are now on sale to get unlimited rides with a daily bracelet. Early-bird online purchases start at $7 and $10. 828.926.0866 or www.maggievalleyfestivalgrounds.org.

The Haywood Arts Regional Theatre will hold auditions for its August production of the Noel Coward comedy hit “Hay Fever” at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday and Monday, June 26 and 27, in the HART Theatre in Waynesville. The production is being directed by Jeff Bachar and opens Aug. 19.

“Hay Fever” is a witty comedy set in the English countryside in the 1920s and focuses on the Bliss family, an eccentric bunch, each of whom has invited a guest for the weekend. It features roles for four men and five women all colorful characters of various ages.

Actors will be given scenes to read from the script. Anyone interested in working backstage on the production should also come during auditions to sign up.

Didgeridoo Down Under will visit the Marianna Black Library at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, June 28.   

The show is a high-energy, Australia-themed program that combines music, puppetry, comedy, environmental education, character building and audience participation. They have presented more than 3,000 shows and workshops at 1,800-plus venues for well over 300,000 viewers and participants.

828.488.3030 or fontanalib.org/brysoncity.

“Guys and Dolls,” the Tony award-winning musical, will be performed by the Overlook Players at 7:30 p.m. June 23, 24, and 25 and again at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, June 26, at the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts in Franklin.

“Guys and Dolls” is a musical take on gamblers, night club singers and missionaries in 1940s New York. The play is directed by Scotty Corbin, Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts Artistic Director, and stars Heather Lenox as missionary Sarah Brown; Chase Byrd as gambler Sky Masterson; Kathi Graham and Fred Berger as showgirl Miss Adelaide and her beau Nathan Detroit; and father-and-son Steven and Samuel Crabtree as pals Nicely-Nicely Johnson and Benny Southstreet.

866.273.4615 or GreatMountainMusic.com.

Penland School of Crafts has open spaces in several classes in the third summer session available at half tuition to local residents. Regular room and board charges apply, but students are not required to stay on campus.

The session runs June 26 to July 8 with openings in clay, metals, photography, print and letterpress, and a textiles class with a special emphasis on teaching. The clay class, taught by Stephen Dixon will explore unconventional approaches to figurative sculpture. Angela Bubash’s metals class will include ways to incorporate natural and found materials into jewelry. Students in Maritza Molina’s intermediate-level photography class will create dramatic theatrical scenarios and photograph them. In the print and letterpress studios, Amy Pirkle and Bill Hall will combine letterpress printing with copperplate etching. And in textiles, Sherri Wood will teach improvisational quiltmaking in a class especially geared for teachers who want to bring artmaking into the classroom.

The photography class requires prior experience. All of the other classes mentioned are open to students of all levels.

828.765.2359, ext. 15 or visit www.penland.org.

The Macon County Art Association’s Uptown Gallery, located on Main Street in Franklin, will host an art workshop from 9:30 a.m. until 12 p.m. on Saturday, June 25, for children age 8 and older. The project will consist of studying and reproducing VanGogh’s “Wheatfield with Cypress” using acrylic paint on canvas.

Pre-registration is required by signing up at the gallery. 828.369.0356 or 828.349.4607 or visit mcaauptowngallery.org.

Local artists in Swain and surrounding counties are invited to submit up to four original works for the annual community art exhibit at Swain County Center for the Arts. Artwork for this nine-week exhibit will be received in the lobby of the Center for the Arts between 8-11 a.m. on Thursday, July 28, or earlier by appointment. All artwork submitted should be available for display through the end of September and can be priced to sell.  

The venue is equipped to show almost anything that can be hung on the wall or large sculptures that sit on the floor. There are four maple cases with locked glass doors where items such as pottery, jewelry, baskets, carvings and other handcrafted items or small paintings can be displayed.  

If artwork is sold as a result of this exhibit, artists are asked to agree to donate ten percent to the ongoing programs and exhibits at Swain County Center for the Arts.

828.488.7843 or visit www.swain.k12.nc.us/cfta.

Local bluegrass group The Sweet Tater Band will perform at the Jackson County Public Library Complex at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 30, in the Community Room.

The Sweet Tater Band is made up of musicians from Cullowhee and Canada. They have appeared on stage throughout the region. Recently, Sweet Tater was filmed on the History Channel series, “Only in America,” with host Larry the Cable Guy.

The performance is part of the adult services summer program series and is free to the public.

828.586.2016.

This month’s Fourth-Sunday contra dance will run from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, June 26, at The Gateway Club in downtown Waynesville.

The venue is air conditioned and dances will be called by Diane Silver, with music by Laura Lengnick and Karen Gaughan

Tickets are $5.

The Summer Concert Series at Western Carolina University will begin at 7 p.m. on Thursdays in June and July and is held on the University Center Lawn. The lineup for this summer includes: Lionz of Zion on June 23, who fuse funk and reggae for a unique sound that gets people dancing and Luke Webb on June 30, a singer-songwriter and guitarist from Sylva and recently formed The Imperative, which features an unusual brand of alternative folk.

July will feature the Buchanan Boys, a progressive country group that blends high-energy country, ballads and three-part harmony, singer-songwriter Beau Bristow and Serious Clark, a folk-fusion trio.

828.227.3622 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The third annual Cashiers Mountain Music Festival on Saturday and Sunday, July 2-3, will feature folk music legend Doc Watson, accompanied by David Holt.

Watson and Holt will close out the festival. Sweet Tater, Hurricane Creek, the Harris Brothers, the Darren Nicholson Band, the Songs of Jackson County band and the Rye Holler Boys will also perform.

Local favorites Balsam Range will perform Saturday, along with Suite Caroline, Mountain Faith, The Hims, Rafe Hollister, Nitrograss, and Dehlia Low.

A fireworks display will mark the end of the festival. There will also be food and beverages available, a children’s zone, a car show, and an arts and crafts show. The festival is also looking for local vendors to sell their wares at the festival.

Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 at the gate and are good for both days of the festival. 828.743.5191 or visit cashiersnorthcarolina.com/cmmf/index.htm.

The Heritage Alive! Mountain Youth Talent Contest will be held again during the Franklin Folk Festival beginning at 1:30 p.m. on July 16. Joe Deitz of the Deitz Family Band will emcee the contest. Categories will include: poetry/storytelling, vocal performance, instrumentalists, and dance.

Talents in these areas must reflect heritage and old Appalachian ways of the region. Prizes are offered for first-, second- and third-place winners. First Place best of show winner will have the opportunity of playing on the Heritage Stage at Western Carolina University’s Mountain Heritage Day on Saturday, Sept. 24. Contestants that wish to participate must register by July 1.

828.586.4009 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The year’s first Summer Barn Dance will begin at 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 25, at the Bascom Center for the Visual Arts in Highlands. The Wild Hog Band will be performing and food and beverages will be available for purchase. Tickets are $5 per person (cash only) and can be purchased at the door. The Summer Barn Dances are sponsored by the Bascom, Highlands Historical Society, Mountain Fresh Grocery and the Ugly Dog Pub.

828.526.4949 or www.TheBascom.org.

The Waynesville Parks and Recreation Department will offer the XBox 360 Dance Central contest at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 25, at the Waynesville Recreation Center.

The contest is open to all ages and is free to enter. There are also prizes for the winners.

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

The Taste of Downtown Sylva walking culinary tour will be from 2 p.m. through 5 p.m. Saturday, June 25. Tickets are on sale at participating businesses now for $15 for adults and $7 for children 12 and under (cash or check only).

Sample items from Papou’s Wine Shop and Bar, Lulu’s on Main, Signature Brew Coffee Company, Eric’s Fresh Fish Market, City Lights Café, Hooper’s Downtown, Heinzelmannchen Brewery, Annie’s Naturally Bakery, Pixies Emporium and Breakfast Togo will be available.

828.586.1577 or www.downtownsylva.org

The Friends of the Rickman Store will be hosting a forum for music and poetry at 7 p.m. on June 24, at the store in Franklin. Performers such as Steve Brady, Angela Faye Martin and many more will take the stage.

All are encouraged to come out to the store, dust off that flat-top or bring out some of that stowed poetry you would like to share among neighbors, songwriters, poets and local talents.  Short stories are welcome, too. The time of each presentation will be kept to around 15 minutes to increase the chance that everyone gets a chance to present. To sign up ahead of time, call 828.369.5595 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

“The American people are losing confidence in the system and they want electoral reform ....”

What American political leader, a veteran of high office, made this statement then put his name in support of voter photo ID. Was it Ronald Reagan? Newt Gingrich? Dick Cheney?

Guess again. It was Jimmy Carter.

In September 2005 the former President joined with colleagues on the Federal Election Reform Commission to endorse voter photo IDs. The commission, organized by American University’s Center for Democracy and Election Management, had 87 recommendations, and highlighted photo voter IDs in announcing its presentation to President Bush and Congress.

The bi-partisan, 21-member commission, commonly referred to as “Carter-Baker,” was co-chaired by Carter and former Secretary of State James Baker.

Support for photo ID at the polls has also come from the federal judiciary. In April, 2008 Justice John Paul Stevens, a liberal, wrote the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision upholding Indiana’s requirement of government-issued voter photo ID (Crawford vs. Marion County). The opinion recognizes the necessity and prudence of such legislation to guard against election fraud, which could affect the outcome of an election.

Stevens’ decision cited examples of fraud including the 2004 Washington State gubernatorial race where one person voted 19 times using the names of dead people.

Additional evidence of voting fraud in American elections is abundant. A leading source is Stealing Elections: How Voter Fraud Threatens Our Democracy, by John Fund, a veteran investigative reporter with the Wall Street Journal. Fund’s book examines the 2004 Washington state gubernatorial race; the 2000 general election in Missouri when 56,000 St. Louis area voters held multiple voter registrations and more than 100 felons voted illegally; and misconduct in Georgia, Illinois, Mississippi and other states.  

My point? The issue of voter photo ID is not a partisan issue, and it should not be conceived as a conservative or liberal matter — though it has been depicted as both by its critics in North Carolina. The issue is trust and confidence in the American political system. The legitimacy of the political system flows from the electoral process. When Americans lose trust in the electoral process they lose faith in the entire political system. This was President Carter’s point.

To advocate the photo ID requirement for voters in no ways casts aspersions on election officials. In North Carolina’s case, it recognizes that our way of life has changed. We live among strangers, and this is why photo IDs are required to cash a check, board an airplane, and enter many federal buildings. Does not the integrity of our political system deserve such protection also?

Opinion polls by Rasmussen and the Civitas Institute in Raleigh demonstrate a majority of Americans and North Carolinians say yes; and 12 states, including our neighbors Tennessee, Georgia, and South Carolina, require voter photo ID.

So why the opposition? Some say the legislation is a solution in search of a problem: there is no demonstrable fraud and estimated costs, borne by the state, could exceed $2 million. This criticism falls short.

Voter photo ID laws are intended to prevent fraud. Prevention is basically easier than detection and the legal challenges it brings (I have never lost a home to fire, but I still carry fire insurance). North Carolina officials allocate funds exceeding tens of billions of dollars. The cost of protecting the peoples’ voice through elections is small by comparison.

Liberal members on the Carter-Baker Commission expressed dissenting views that photo ID could deter minorities from voting. Similar views were reported last week in The Charlotte Observer by Jim Morrill: “Critics, including the AARP, say the ID requirement would lower turnout among seniors, students and African-Americans. There are about 460,000 active N.C. voters who don’t have a driver’s license ….  A disproportionate number are black voters, who tend to vote Democratic.”

Morrill quoted Rep. Ray Rapp, D-Mars Hill, whose district includes most of Haywood County: “The name of this bill should be the “Voter Suppression Bill.”

North Carolina Republicans have repeatedly rejected this charge, and have countered, as Morrill reported, that when Georgia adopted a photo ID law in 2006, minority voting saw an upsurge two years later.

So what should Gov. Perdue do? Listen to Jimmy Carter and John Paul Stevens and do the right thing — support voter photo ID and make it the law in North Carolina!

(Kirkwood Callahan is retired and lives in Waynesville. He has taught American government at four southern universities. He may be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..)

To the Editor:

The past few months have been filled with letters to the editors, editorials and presentations to the Haywood County Board of Commissioners. All of this has been over property re-evaluations and raised property taxes. In our depressed economy where jobs have been lost, almost half of the people of Haywood County have received an increased valuation of their homes. Indeed, some homes have seen a value increase of nearly 100 percent and have created a situation possibly forcing people out of their homes.

No government is given the constitutional right to harness people with taxes, which will force them to leave what has been their family’s home afor generations. These “salt of the earth” people are what have made this country strong. Now, the “powers that be” are really saying that those people no longer belong here. One commissioner even had the nerve to tell a man that, “he didn’t have to live in Haywood County if he didn’t like the new valuation of his property.” That is an irresponsible and immature response to a citizen of our community.

On top of facing that impossible burden, people of our county may not know that commissioners will vote on a new budget which will hit residents with an approximately 5 percent tax rate increase. Having both more property taxes and an increase of the county tax rate is like putting a double barreled shotgun to the heads of our fellow citizens. It makes one wonder how our county commissioners can live with themselves, when most of our surrounding counties elected to do no re-evaluation due to the blighted economy.

Like most Haywood County residents, we expect our county budget to hold fast, just as each of our household budgets must do. Since we have tightened our belts and do with less, so must departments within the county operations. As the Chairman of the Haywood County Republican Party, I urge the county commissioners to hold the fiscal line, and repeal any tax increase within the budget.

We can live with it, and so must you.

John Meinecke

Haywood County Republican Party Chairman

To the Editor:

The State of North Carolina has been blessed in many ways.  One of her blessings, in spite of her rugged, dangerous coastline, is that she has never had to attempt to survive a tsunami sweeping in from the sea and destroying all in its path.

However, she has been subjected to a tsunami of newly-elected young (and old) Turks who have systematically staged and produced a greatly devastating wave of what they determine to be economically inspired changes. They believe this will make the state a domain in which they believe their party and their programs will prosper. But they forget about the people who do not have incomes, or voices, on the level of senators and representatives. These mostly silent people form the underlying cushion for so many of the activities in which all of us participate.

They have seriously damaged the entire system of education in North Carolina which had heretofore been a source of great pride to the people of this state, and which has been formed over many years of struggle and sacrifice. Those years produced the North Carolina Community College System, tops in the nation; schools of math and science which turned out students highly proficient and capable of leading the way in our nation today; health care systems, including Medicaid and women’s services which have stood as models for other states. In the days ahead, we will know for sure that these proud accomplishments are in the past.

These politicians, in their determination to make up for all the years when North Carolina could depend on the Democrats to provide for the common welfare, and in their efforts to force their own philosophies down the throats of people who cannot help themselves, have done more damage since November of 2010 than can be repaired through many years, even if their terms ended tomorrow.

In the past two days, the papers have been filled with information about the fearless leader of these destroyers – Thom Tillis. According to stories in the Asheville Citizen-Times, Tillis has lost no time in padding his salary and that of his assistants. He gave himself a 27 percent raise. He gave his chief of staff a 25 percent increase, boosting him from $120,000 per year to $150,000 per year. His general counsel received a 27% raise, going from $110,000 to $140,000 per year. Two of his policy advisers received $12,000 raises for each of them, putting them up from $70,000 to $82,000. Do policy advisers work a 40-hour week, or is this job just a moonlighting addition to a regular job? Tillis himself received a reported 27 percent increase.

And here we all thought being a legislator was not really a full-time job, since most legislators still have a home many miles from Raleigh, and other income. By the way, don’t they also receive travel reimbursement and per diem for meals away from home, and lodging, and other fringe benefits?

I must say that Tillis’ promises before the election to cut expenses in his office and in the spending of state tax money seem to have as much validity as his protestations that his party has done no damage to the educational system of this state, among other destructive activities we are now hearing about. And, by the way, none of those people receiving those huge raises will pay the first dime of Social Security tax on the amounts they receive above $106,000.00. That is the present cap on Social Security taxes which anyone receiving a salary must pay. Seems a strange balance — wouldn’t common sense require that any forgiveness of paying into Social Security be on the lower end of the scale, rather than on the highest end?

When Jim Davis was running against John Snow in the late, lamented election last fall, he charged Snow with having cut a great many teachers’ jobs. Apparently he and his present owner, Art Pope, who purchased his own private legislator with almost half a million dollars invested in the election in a small, obscure mountain county, felt that the new guys in town could do an even better slash job, ignoring their spurious promises to keep all teachers and aides and other school personnel. I suppose Sen. Davis, R-Franklin, voted to uphold all the cuts and slashes his party has made against our school system.

Those of us who have lived a couple of generations have seen many changes come and go, but few of us have seen such punitive changes visited on an entire state. But I do have faith that this worm will turn one day, if those of us who care about and strive for the good of our fellow man as well as ourselves, will only keep the faith, and will put ever more effort into electing representatives and senators who will also care about the people who put them in office, and who will strive for the common welfare.

I remember a line from the John Steinbeck book, The Grapes of Wrath, when one of his characters from dust-bowl Oklahoma was thinking of all the troubles and trials they had endured, when she said “But we are the people, and the people go on forever.”

Hopefully there will be enough people of good will who will begin to think about the trampling of the state policies which have just occurred, and will right some of those wrongs on another day to come. If we cannot find the will and the effort to elect people of honor to these positions of responsibility, perhaps we deserve a situation in the state of which we have just had a small taste. I suggest there will be worse to come.

Sue Waldroop

Franklin

Two $500 scholarships have been awarded to Lella Dougherty of Cherokee County Schools and Sarah Bruegger of Jackson County Schools by the Center for Diversity Education. The scholarships will be used to travel with the Western Region Education Service Alliance (WRESA) for a 10-day visit to China in June. Forty local teachers will be traveling to Beijing, Xi’an, and Shanghai.

828.232.5024 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Western Carolina University’s Theatre Summer camp has space remaining for campers ages 7 to 17. Registration will run through July 7. The camp will be 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. for 7- to 12-year-olds and from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. for 13- to 17-year olds July 11 through 15. The camp isled by actors from the Asheville-based Bright Star Children’s Theatre and will include games, improvisation, stage direction and discussions intended to inspire creativity and a passion for live theater.

The cost is $100 per child. Additional children from the same family will be $80. Campers are responsible for bringing their own lunches and beverages. 828.227.2305, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit fapac.wcu.edu.

Money and donations of clothing, furniture and other household items are being accepted at the Swain County Sheriff’s Office to help Michael Harrison, a school resource officer whose home burned down.

Harrison was called home to Swain County last Friday from his National Guard duty after the fire, which occurred shortly after electric power had been restored that afternoon. His wife and two children had been staying with relatives and were not home at the time.

Clothing sizes needed are: men’s large shirts, 35-26/32 pants, and 10 or 10 1/2 shoe size; women’s small shirts, size 5 pants, and 7 1/2 shoe size; for a 5 year old boy: 5T clothes and child size 10 shoes; and for a 2 year old girl: 2T clothes and child size 2 shoes. Children’s toys acceptable for a 5 year old boy and a 2 year old girl as well as children’s books would be appreciated, along with encouraging letters or cards.

828.488.0159

The SEJ Laity Conference, a family experience, will be offered June 30 through July 3 at Lake Junaluska Conference and Retreat Center.

A two-hour “Festival of Families” event will be held from 3 to 5 p.m. Friday, July 1, and Saturday, July 2, featuring the Rev. Clayton Jordan, a ventriloquist and stringed instrument musician from Dothan, Ala. During the same time period, participants may choose to attend two of the nine interest groups, meeting on a variety of subjects. A special project that emphasizes “Stop Hunger Now” will be held at 12:45 p.m. Friday, July 1. Participants can help package meals.

Registration fees are $35 for an individual or $60 for a couple. 1.800.222.4930 (group code #406796) or 828.454.6656

William Shelton is off the local community college’s board of trustees after the Jackson County Board of Commissioners, in a 3-2 vote, instead appointed Dewayne Elders, Commissioner Charles Elders’ son.

Shelton, a Democrat, was a former Jackson County commissioner who lost his bid last November for re-election — to Elders, a Republican.

Shelton had served as a board of trustee member for Southwestern Community College since 2007.

“It was a pleasure to serve as a trustee, and now it is time for someone else to step in,” Shelton said the morning after the vote, adding he wished the SCC board the “best of luck.”

Elders, before voting, asked stand-in county Attorney David Moore (the usual attorney, Jay Coward wasn’t there) for a legal opinion.

“I don’t think this is a conflict, because I’m not going back to school, but I want to make sure before I vote,” Elders said.

Moore responded that he was not particularly prepared to answer such a question, but that in his best off-the-cuff response it was really up to Elders and the board to make that decision.

Without Elders, the board would have had a split vote, 2-2.

Asked by Chairman Jack Debnam if he wanted to abstain, Elders responded that no, he did not. And he didn’t, instead choosing to vote with Debnam (who nominated Dewayne Elders) and fellow Republican Doug Cody. Debnam is an Independent, but his votes are in line with the Republicans.

Amanda Martin, an attorney for the N.C. Press Association, said the law prohibits elected officials from gaining a direct personnel benefit, meaning Elders didn’t violate the state statute.

Democrat Joe Cowan spoke in favor of Shelton, alluding to the former commissioner’s leadership qualities and service. He and Democrat Mark Jones voted against Dewayne Elders.

“I’ve had a number of requests from constituents of mine that the board reappoint (Shelton),” Cowan said.

Macon County non-profit organizations have until July 30 to apply for grants through the Macon County Community Funding Pool.

Organizations applying for funds must provide financial statements such as budgets and federal tax-exempt reports, organization goals and objectives and program descriptions, and board/staff roster. Groups not incorporated as non-profits may enlist an established non-profit to serve as their fiscal agent.

Application forms and instructions are available on the Macon County website, www.maconnc.org, or at the Macon County Public Library.

First-time applicants should contact Karen Wallace, 828.524.3600, or Mary Ann Sloan, 828.526.4280, to discuss their proposal.

MedWest Health System’s osteoporosis bus provides bone density testing each week to women throughout rural Western North Carolina. Osteoporosis causes bones become brittle and more likely to break. The Osteoporosis Center at MedWest-Haywood is currently the only center accredited in Western North Carolina by the International Society for Clinical Densitometry. A full range of osteoporosis services are offered at the Osteoporosis Center as well as a monthly community education program, which is free and open to the public.

828.452.8850

There’s only one way to tell how right — or wrong — Haywood County’s recent property revaluation is. Appraisers attempt to peg the price of house or lot, predicting what a buyer would pay should a ‘for sale’ sign go up in the yard.

As hackles fly over whether the county’s assessed values are too high or low, the only way to tell for sure is delving into the world of property sales.

The Smoky Mountain News compared the selling price of 84 properties in April and May to the new values assessed by the county. Of those, 20 percent were accurate within a 10 percent margin of error.

Of the 68 whose assessed value was more than 10 percent off the actual selling price, 37 sold for less than their assessed values and 29 of them sold for more.

Property in Maggie, Crabtree, Bethel and Beaverdam were more likely to be overvalued in the county’s appraisal. Property in Waynesville was more likely to be undervalued compared to the sale prices — more likely to fetch a higher selling price than what appraisers had pegged it for.

Waynesville sales shows 17 properties outside the margin of error. The majority — 12 out of 17 — sold for more than the revaluation amount.

However, six out of nine properties in the Beaverdam community were valued higher by county appraiser than what the actually sold for. For example, a three bedroom, three bathroom house in Beaverdam valued at $262,900 was sold for $192,500.

According to the data, assessors undervalued three out of four properties in Crabtree and all properties in the Iron Duff community.

Maggie Valley properties were appraised for more than their actual selling price in seven out of 10 instances. A three bedroom, three bathroom house in Maggie Valley that was valued at $204,800 sold for $115,000.

There are few discernable trends when comparing the accuracy of appraised value by price bracket.

Of 14 properties that were appraised at $100,000 or less, 12 of them sold for more than the revaluation assessment.

Of the 42 properties appraised between $100,000-$300,000, 14 fetched a higher selling price than the county’s value and 28 sold for less than the county’s value.

Of the 7 properties appraised between $300,000 and $500,000, four sold for more and three for less.

Only two properties sold in April and May with an appraised value of more than $500,000. One home in Maggie, revalued at $520,400 sold for less at $340,000. Another in Waynesville appraised at $541,000 sold for more at $620,000.

— By DeeAnna Haney • Contributing writer