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February 8-14, 2017 Vol. 18 Iss. 37

FBI raids Qualla Housing Authority in Cherokee Page 6 Haywood wants an appointed tax collector Page 12

CONTENTS

STAFF

On the Cover: The real estate market in Western North Carolina has been making a slow and steady comeback in the last couple of years, which is a good indicator of stronger local economies as well. While each county’s market is different, they all rely heavily on the second-home and vacation market. (Page 6)

News Cherokee council votes to impeach Chief Lambert ................................................ 3 FBI raids Qualla Housing Authority .............................................................................. 6 Swain hospital: ‘ER is open 24/7’ .............................................................................. 11 Haywood wants an appointed tax collector ............................................................ 12 Recreation improvements coming to Waynesville ..................................................14 Shining Rock receives $10,000 grant ...................................................................... 15 Proposed room tax hike already in jeopardy ............................................................ 16 Business News ..................................................................................................................17

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Scott McLeod. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@smokymountainnews.com Greg Boothroyd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . greg@smokymountainnews.com Micah McClure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . micah@smokymountainnews.com Travis Bumgardner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . travis@smokymountainnews.com Emily Moss. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . emily@smokymountainnews.com Amanda Belue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . amanda.b@smokymountainnews.com Amanda Bradley. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jc-ads@smokymountainnews.com Hylah Birenbaum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . hylah@smliv.com Scott Collier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . classads@smokymountainnews.com Jessi Stone. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . jessi@smokymountainnews.com Becky Johnson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . becky@smokymountainnews.com Cory Vaillancourt. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . cory@smokymountainnews.com Holly Kays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . holly@smokymountainnews.com Garret K. Woodward. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . garret@smokymountainnews.com Amanda Singletary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . smnbooks@smokymountainnews.com Scott Collier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . classads@smokymountainnews.com Jeff Minick (writing), Chris Cox (writing), George Ellison (writing), Gary Carden (writing), Don Hendershot (writing), Susanna Barbee (writing)

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Opinion New commissioner stumbles out of the gate............................................................19

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A&E John Cowan on bluegrass, life ......................................................................................24

Outdoors N.C. woman relives six months spent hiking the state ..........................................34

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Back Then The copper run in the Great Smokies........................................................................ 47

February 8-14, 2017

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Cherokee council votes to impeach Chief Lambert

Chief Patrick Lambert talks to tribal members following Tribal Council’s vote to begin impeachment. Holly Kays photo

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“I’ve got employees still calling, saying they’re terrified to come to work, they’ve been targeted in social media, they’ve been locked in their offices for doing their jobs and complying with the investigation,” Jones told Council Thursday morning (Feb. 2) as he explained his move to bring articles of impeachment against Lambert later that afternoon.

Lambert disputed the accusation.

“I have never done that,” he told Jones. “If they are fearful it’s only because they are perhaps doing wrong on their own or scared they’ll eventually get caught at that. I’ve only asked people to do their job … I haven’t threatened anybody with their job.”

“That’s a fair statement chief,” Jones replied. “What I want to say is they feel threatened. I never said that you went and threatened these people.”

“I can’t control people’s feelings,” Lambert said.

AN ATTEMPT TO TURN THE TABLES In his public response to the OIA audit, Lambert said that each of the supposed violations found were “easily defensible” but that OIA had not included his responses to those accusations in its report.

If anybody should be impeached, Lambert said, it’s the members of Tribal Council who voted themselves $10,000 pay raises in October 2014.

The tribe’s Charter and Governing Document states that any pay raises council votes for itself can’t take place until after the

SHOWDOWN IN THE COUNCIL HOUSE By the time a resolution had been drafted and council had worked its way to the end of its regular agenda, the council house was packed to the gills with tribal members waiting to witness the showdown. Every seat was full, with a load of fold-up chairs brought in for additional seating. The lobby and hallway from the door to the chambers became a standing-room-only space.

It was a little after 3 p.m. when the resolution was read, outlining council’s authority to impeach, the findings of the OIA report, and the intention to draft articles of impeachment. Though they were later struck, the resolution also included provisions suspending Lambert from office until the impeachment proceedings were over and requiring him to pay for his own lawyer.

As the reading concluded, the audience — which appeared to be largely composed of Lambert supporters — let out a resounding “booooo,” telling Council what they thought

“You’re saying this man got 71 percent of the vote but he’s not good enough to be our chief. Did you get that many votes?”

— Wilma Taylor to her nephew, Chairman Bill Taylor

“Go home,” she said. “The FBI wouldn’t be here if you didn’t do anything wrong.”

When she finished speaking, Saunooke moved to kill the impeachment resolution as the audience cheered. Jones responded by moving to pass it, with Smith seconding the motion.

Mary Wachacha, a tribal member from Yellowhill, spoke next, calling into question her representatives’ assertion that the impeachment effort was merely a response to feedback from community members.

“There are 900 registered voters in the Yellowhill community, so unless you have three or 400 calls saying to impeach the chief, you’re not speaking for our community,” she said. “You are a living, prime example of exactly why we need term limits.”

Perhaps there are some tribal employees who are afraid to come to work, she said, but if so it’s probably for good reason.

S EE LAMBERT, PAGE 5

Smoky Mountain News

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER o the boos of an outspoken audience, the Cherokee Tribal Council voted 9-3 Feb. 2 to begin impeachment proceedings against Principal Chief Patrick Lambert.

Rumors of coming attempts to impeach Lambert have been circulating on the Qualla Boundary for months now, but the issue came to a head with the Jan. 18 completion of an investigation into contracts and human resources dealings over the course of Lambert’s administration. Tribal Council had ordered the investigation in August following a spur-of-themoment move from Councilmember Travis Smith, of Birdtown. The tribe’s Office of Internal Audit conducted the investigation.

Some members of council felt that the investigation’s findings were worrying enough to warrant impeachment, while others believed the issue to be retaliation for the audits and investigations that Lambert himself had been conducting since taking office. One of those audits led to what is now an active FBI investigation into dealings at the Qualla Housing Authority (see story on page 4), on whose board six current councilmembers sit.

According to Councilmember Brandon Jones, of Snowbird — who does not sit on the Qualla Housing board — the interest in impeachment was borne of calls he’d been getting from constituents who said they were afraid to go to work and felt threatened by the new administration.

For more information about the contents of the OIA report, read the story at http://bit.ly/2kl6ivy.

of the impeachment concept. Taylor responded by directing Officer Fred Penick to clear the chambers, which caused the audience to yell, “No! We’re not leaving!” Lambert expressed his support for letting the people stay, setting off a brief power struggle between him and Taylor.

“Fred, clear the chambers,” Taylor repeated.

“No!” the people yelled. “No!” “Fred, I’m telling you not to,” Lambert interjected.

Penick didn’t take long to speak.

“I work for this man,” he said, gesturing toward Lambert.

Taylor then called upon a second police officer to clear the chambers, but once again nobody moved. Taylor, insisting that he, as the chairman, controls the chambers, appealed to Legislative Counsel Carolyn West for a legal opinion. She responded by reading a section of Cherokee code that states “The Principal Chief shall be charged with the responsibility of ensuring proper use, security, and maintenance of the Council House.”

So, the audience was allowed to stay, and many of them took advantage of the opportunity to address council before the issue came to a vote.

Lori Taylor, of Big Cove, started off the public comments by asking council to suspend any members involved with the dealings at Qualla Housing currently under investigation by the FBI.

February 8-14, 2017

9-3 vote begins impeachment process as tribal members speak in support of Lambert

next election is over and the new council is seated, but the 2014 raises went into effect right away and also included backpay for the years when councilmembers supposedly should have already been receiving the higher pay. Currently, all councilmembers make more than $80,000 per year. A coalition of tribal members calling itself the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians for Justice and Accountability contested the matter in tribal court, but the case was dismissed last summer due to lack of standing.

“If we’re going to go down this road, then by the end of today as a piece of sister legislation to that I would ask that we also entertain a motion to impeach each of the councilmembers from the last council session that voted themselves a pay raise in clear violation of the law,” Lambert said. “If we’re going to go down this road, I think we need to be fair across the board. This is just a political attack toward me.”

Current members of Tribal Council who held office at the time of the pay raises and voted in favor of those pay raises include Chairman Bill Taylor, of Wolfetown; Councilmember Adam Wachacha, of Snowbird; Councilmember Albert Rose, of Birdtown; Councilmember Tommye Saunooke, of Painttown; and Councilmember Alan “B” Ensley, of Yellowhill. Though he initially voted for the raises, Rose later reversed his position and entered a formal protest of the decision.

Lambert’s suggestion didn’t gain any traction. Instead, council voted overwhelmingly to have an impeachment resolution drafted for consideration later that day. The only members who voted against drafting the resolution were Councilmember Teresa McCoy, of Big Cove; Councilmember Richard French, of Big Cove; and Saunooke. The same three members consistently voted against the other nine during all impeachment-related matters that day.

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FBI raids Qualla Housing Authority Documents removed as part of investigation; resolution to dissolve QHA meets resistance

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER team of 26 FBI agents descended on Cherokee Feb. 2, filling the Qualla Housing Authority building and wheeling entire filing cabinets, as well as papers and hard drives, into a U-Haul parked to the side of the building.

The agents, joined by deputies from the Cherokee Indian Police Department, were there for hours, eventually filling two U-Haul trucks. They pulled the blinds down on the conference room facing the road and directed media and general bystanders to stand on the other side of the street or risk becoming part of the investigation.

News of the FBI raid traveled fast through the Qualla Boundary. On the other side of the Oconaluftee River, Tribal Council was beginning its monthly meeting and announcing the intention of its majority to begin impeachment proceedings against Principal Chief Patrick Lambert. As the day went on, the issues of impeachment and FBI investigations swiftly became intertwined in the discussion that followed.

The raid stemmed from an Oct. 4, 2016 letter that Charlene Owle, then the director of Qualla Housing, received from the U.S. Department of Justice informing her that the FBI was investigating the organization for “possible criminal conduct related to certain loans and loan applications, among other matters.” The letter went on to say that any attempt to destroy, hide or falsify documents

Agents from the FBI and Cherokee Indian Police Department stand outside the Qualla Housing Authority in Cherokee as documents are removed from the building.

Smoky Mountain News

February 8-14, 2017

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Holly Kays photo

that might be requested over the course of the investigation could result in further charges.

According to Lambert, that advice was not heeded. An emergency resolution he submitted to Tribal Council last week said there had been at least three reports of documents being shredded at Qualla Housing since Oct. 4.

The Qualla Housing Authority was set up in the 1960s to help low-income tribal members get into safe, sanitary, affordable housing. It administers about $3.2 million each year from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and is overseen by a board of six Tribal Council members and one appointee from the principal chief.

Current Tribal Council members on the board are Chairman Bill Taylor, of Wolfetown; Councilmember Alan “B” Ensley, of Yellowhill; Councilmember Adam Wachacha, of Snowbird; Councilmember Albert Rose, of Birdtown; Councilmember Richard French, of Big Cove; and Councilmember Marie Junaluska, of Painttown. Taylor, Ensley and Wachacha have been on the board since 2009; Junaluska and French took their seats more recently, in

2015. Rose joined the board in 2013.

In response to the FBI raid, Lambert brought council a resolution that would dissolve Qualla Housing and its board, merging it with the tribe’s Department of Housing and Community Development.

Lambert told council that the reorganization made sense and was necessary to enact immediately to minimize the lapse in service to tribal members.

“Right now to my understanding they took all the files, they took all the computers,” Lambert told council. “Qualla Housing can’t function.”

By migrating Qualla Housing responsibilities to the Department of Housing, he said, tribal members would experience only a “short little blip” in service before funds could once more be dispersed.

Councilmember Teresa McCoy, of Big Cove, voiced her support for the resolution.

“Qualla Housing has been here since the early 60s, which makes it almost as old as me,” she said. “Things become antiquated and they’re no longer useful and they get broken. Qualla Housing has been broke for a long time.”

During the two years she served on the board, McCoy said, the organization was a “disaster” that didn’t even manage to get anyone into a home. It’s time to abolish the board and turn management over to the housing secretary, she said, moving to pass the resolution.

Not all councilmembers agreed.

Wachacha, for instance, concurred that “there needs to be some oversight” but balked at putting Qualla Housing under the housing secretary.

“I’m not trying to put another load on him, but at this point I think I would just trust it being under the attorney general’s office right now,” Wachacha said.

The statement caused Lambert to question whether there was a personal issue between Wachacha and the housing secretary and to state that the attorney general’s office is not set up to deal with housing issues.

Taylor said that because Qualla Housing is set up in an ordinance, it would require more than an emergency resolution to actually disband it. And Councilmember Travis Smith, of Birdtown, said it was too early to do anything drastic.

“I still don’t know what went on today,” Smith said of the FBI raid. “After listening to this resolution and still having questions about what’s going on, it seems like putting the cart before the horse.”

Attorney General Danny Davis reminded council that Qualla Housing was currently without any documents or anyone to run it, implying that swift action would be beneficial.

“Clearly something’s got to be done,” he said.

Council, however, did not wind up voting on the issue. McCoy withdrew her move to pass it with the understanding that council would reconvene to decide the issue sometime soon. “Like tomorrow,” McCoy said.

As of press time, council had not met again and no action had been taken on the Qualla Housing resolution. No indictments have yet been issued in the investigation.

LAMBERT, CONTINUED FROM 3

What type of fat does Ingles use in the Bakery for frying donuts, and why isn’t beef fat/lard or coconut oil used?

For quite some time, Ingles Markets has used canola oil to deep-fry our doughnuts. We have chosen to use canola oil instead of hydrogenated vegetable oil to reduce the amount of trans-fat and saturated fat in our bakery products, but still have an oil that works well for frying.

Trans-fat and saturated fat may increase cholesterol levels and can increase the risk for heart disease. Monounsaturated fats like canola oil, olive oil, avocados, and nut butter may help lower cholesterol levels and the reduce risk for heart disease. Canola oil is a monounsaturated fat (6% saturated). Meanwhile, coconut oil (90% saturated), palm oil (48% saturated), beef tallow (37% saturated), butter (61% saturated), and lard (40% saturated) are higher in saturated fat compared to canola oil. Also, Ingles does not use hydrogenated fat/oil in our cake frostings or other products.

Another important thing that we have to consider is that all oils do not work equally well for frying. This is certainly the case with both butter and coconut oil due to the low smoke point – 350 degrees ( the temperature at which the oil begins to smoke) which would be problematic for us for taste as well as safety.

As far as frying a a doughnut in beef tallow (beef fat) — while it does have a similar smoke point as canola oil, we are not aware of any operation that does this as it would certainly give a meaty ( and undesirable) flavor to the doughnuts.

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Smoky Mountain News

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The Way We Fry Our Donuts

February 8-14, 2017

“The ones that I know that are afraid, they’re afraid because they’re not doing their job,” she said.

The speakers kept coming.

Dave Lambert told council that his political alliances got him demoted 12 years ago when former Principal Chief Michell Hicks took office. As a football coach, he said, he didn’t “make a big stink” about the demotion but just “kept my nose to the ground and kept winning.”

“I think Patrick’s a great guy. He’s honest.

I think he’s trying to straighten up a lot of this stuff,” Dave Lambert said as applause broke out. “We don’t need to push him out. We need to push him up.”

Ann Blythe told council that she doesn’t view the accusations against Lambert as warranting impeachment and reminded the body that Lambert was elected with an overwhelming 71 percent of the vote.

Even Wilma Taylor, who is Bill Taylor’s aunt and sister of his father Ed Taylor, a former Cherokee chief who was removed from office in the 1990s, spoke in favor of Lambert.

“You’re saying this man got 71 percent of the vote but he’s not good enough to be our chief,” she told Bill Taylor.

“Did you get that many votes?”

Of eight speakers, the only one supporting impeachment was Mollie Grant, who had been the director of emergency management under Hicks’ administration. Grant was one of six senior-level employees Councilmember Anita Lossiah, of Yellowhill, and who were let go when Lambert Councilmember Richard French, of Big Cove, confer after the took office. impeachment vote. Lossiah voted for impeachment and “Over a year ago I come in here with a bunch of other French voted against it. Holly Kays photo tribal employees,” Grant said.

“We were done wrong. We didn’t get due In the meantime, council will move forprocess. This man (Lambert) didn’t allow us ward with the impeachment effort. Some to have our due process.” aspects of the original resolution were struck Grant said that the roomful of Lambert — such as those requiring Lambert to pay for supporters was not an accurate reflection of his own defense and suspending him from the community at large, claiming that super- office until the impeachment process is comvisors were only letting employees off work to plete — after Attorney General Danny Davis come support Lambert, not to oppose him. advised council the provisions were unlawful.

The crowd responded to the claim by yelling According to the rules used during a 2003 “bull” in unison. attempt to oust then-Principal Chief Leon The in-person support Lambert received Jones, the impeachment process will be simiin council has been duplicated online. A Feb. lar to a court hearing, with Tribal Council sit2 post that his wife Cyndi wrote on his public ting in place of judges. At least nine of the 12 Facebook page referencing the impeachment must be present to constitute a quorum, and attempt received 171 comments, and not a both sides will have legal representation and single one was negative toward Lambert. the ability to subpoena and cross-examine witnesses. Following the hearing, at least twoof the Tribal Council must vote to HE CHIEF S RESPONSE thirds remove the chief from office based on the Finally it was Lambert’s turn to address offenses listed in the articles of impeachment.

The next step in the process would be to the issue. He maintained that he’d done nothing wrong, and that it was a shame to put the approve articles of impeachment, which have yet to be drafted. The resolution passed last tribe through this ordeal.

“The thing that kind of bugs me about week directed that they be prepared for later this is that I could have acted like other approval by council.

For council members in favor of impeachchiefs,” Lambert told council. “I could have shut this down. I could have locked it down ment, the clock is ticking. This is an election tight and y’all wouldn’t have even gotten your year on the Qualla Boundary, and all 12 counreport, but in the mode of transparency I let cil seats will be on the ballot in September.

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this information come out of these departments. Two years ago, would you have gotten this done with the former chief?”

Lambert implied confidence that his popularity with the people wouldn’t suffer much as a result of the accusations when he asked council to consider calling a special election for his seat, rather than incurring the expense and spectacle of an impeachment.

“If the people want me gone,” he said, “I’ll be glad to step aside.”

The suggestion of a special election didn’t garner much interest from council. However, Lambert said he does plan to call a grand council, a power granted him in the tribe’s Charter and Governing Document. A grand council is a gathering of all enrolled members in which decisions can be made on issues facing the tribe.

“I’m going to take a vote during that and let the people decide this question,” Lambert said.

According to Lambert’s chief of staff Sage Dunston, decisions of the Grand Council supersede those of the Tribal Council.

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news Sherry Patterson of Daytona Beach, Florida, looks out at the mountain views from a rental cabin she is considering purchasing just outside of Bryson City. Jessi Stone photo

GET REAL February 8-14, 2017

WNC real estate market comes back swinging

Smoky Mountain News

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER Within the residential real estate industry lies an interesting contradiction.

While it provides one of humanity’s most basic and critical needs — shelter from the elements — it also plays a complex and important role in the global economy.

Accordingly, changes in the industry and the environment in which the industry operates can have dramatic repercussions on everything from one’s personal financial health to the wealth of nations.

In 2006, real estate construction in the United States accounted for $1.2 trillion in gross domestic product — good for an 8.9 percent share.

But a looming financial crisis would soon reshape both the industry and the environment, causing hard times for everyone from bankers to builders to bakers.

In mid-2007, residential real estate prices began to slip; existing single-family home prices dropped 4 percent from their 2005 peak.

Although not disastrous on its face, the slump was exacerbated by Wall Street shenanigans, in the form of mortgage-backed securities. Banks peddled these securities to companies and individuals who were enamored with the assurance that they were safe investments that would bolster retirement portfolios.

The hedge against default on these securities was a financial product called credit 6

default swaps, wherein the sellers of those swaps contracted to insure the buyer’s possible losses in the event of a default.

Everything would have been just fine in 2007 had borrowers continued to pay their mortgages. However, almost half of all mortgages created between 2005 and 2007 were sub-prime mortgages, which are issued to borrowers with less-than-perfect credit.

Since those mortgages represented an increased risk to lenders, interest rates were higher than conventional mortgages; as those buyers began to default under the strain, their sheer numbers overwhelmed the ability of lenders to compensate the holders of mortgage-backed securities against the losses.

American International Group was the largest issuer of such securities and quickly found itself with a weak cash position, so much so that in September 2008, the Federal Reserve had to give AIG a two-year, $85 billion loan to keep it afloat. Banks similarly situated — like Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers — were either sold or entered bankruptcy, kicking off a nearly decade-long Great Recession, from which Western North Carolina is only now recovering.

In 2016, real estate construction in the United States accounted for $1.2 trillion in gross domestic product, finally returning to near-2006 levels of valuation; but that intervening decade saw trillions in market value evaporate as consequences reverberated through almost every aspect of the economy.

Home sales don’t exist in a bubble. Even the transaction itself involves multiple professionals who derive income from inspecting, repairing, advertising, selling, insuring, titling and closing the sale.

When a home is sold, it represents more than just a change in address for the buyer. It also usually represents a change in lifestyle — a renter becomes a homeowner, a couple welcomes a child into their lives, a speculator buys an income-generating property, a family purchases a vacation home, a retiring empty nester downsizes and a decedent’s estate liquidates.

Each of those very typical transactions involves associated purchases that create a powerful economic multiplication effect.

That renter suddenly needs a lawnmower, that couple needs a minivan, that speculator needs appliances, that family needs a Jacuzzi, that empty nester needs a putting green and that estate needs an attorney.

Such consumer spending — defined as the sales of services, of consumables and of durable goods like lawnmowers and minivans — has historically accounted for between 60 and 70 percent of the U.S. economy.

Thus a downturn in the housing market can create a vicious circle of unemployment resulting in reduced consumer spending resulting in further unemployment resulting in that renter never quite being able to afford to buy their first home.

Given that most Americans’ single biggest asset is the equity in their homes, those who never achieve home ownership build wealth for speculators, but not for themselves, which contributes to a variety of social ills — from increasing wealth and class divisions to increasing stress on social safety net programs.

But where it can place the most stress, or the most largesse, is in the municipal budgets of local governments that rely on property taxes for the bulk of their revenues.

Haywood County, for example, derives 56 percent of its yearly revenue from ad valorem — more than $42 million. In Jackson County, it’s 48 percent.

That revenue figure is the product of two factors: the tax rate, and the value of the taxable property.

When that revenue declines — either by tax rate cuts, which are rare, or more commonly by a change in property value — it affects every service a county might provide, from general government and public safety to recreation and education.

Property values change when residential property is sold. If the buyer and seller have, through the influence of market forces, agreed upon a transaction that differs somewhat from the assessed value of the property, the property may be reassessed at a higher or lower rate.

Houses that remain under the same ownership for longer periods of time, however, are obviously not subjected to the regular reassessments that come with a sale. This is part of the reason why counties perform periodic revaluations of all taxable property.

Haywood County’s most recent revaluation was in 2011 — during the heart of the recession — but a revaluation is currently underway, with new valuations expected to

be mailed to homeowners around Feb. 15.

Jackson County’s last revaluation was enacted Jan. 1, 2016, and actually produced a lower taxable value than had previously been estimated, resulting in the county having to raise its tax rate to keep the budget balanced.

Macon County revalued in 2015 and Swain County in 2013, as lingering economic woes continued to plague the market. Their next revaluations are slated for 2019 and 2021, respectively.

What can Macon and Swain expect from their upcoming revaluations? And what can Haywood County expect from theirs?

According to figures provided by the Haywood County Board of Realtors, the general trend is upward. Total sales volume in the county in 2016 increased by 19.4 percent over 2015, and the mountainous region of Western North Carolina saw gains of 9 percent over that same period.

Given that housing market depressions ripple through many economic sectors, market booms also create conversely cyclical effects that can spur economic growth — more lawnmowers and more minivans sold mean more jobs, higher pay and greater economic prosperity.

Probably most importantly, however, booms also mean more revenue for the taxing authority; were a revaluation to occur that set realistic taxable property values say, 10 percent higher than in the previous revaluation, that would theoretically lead to a 10 percent increase in property tax revenues.

In Haywood County’s case, that would amount to an extra $4.2 million, which could be used in any number of ways — like expanding the county’s yearly economic and physical development spending of $2.3 million by almost 200 percent, increasing the county’s yearly education spending of $15 million by 28 percent, or retiring a majority of the county’s long-term debt.

Alternatively, if budget spending levels remain constant year over year, that 10 percent increase could be refunded to taxpayers in the form of an again-theoretical 10 percent property tax cut, saving the owner of a $300,000 home about $170 a year.

But during a meeting of the Haywood County Board of Commissioners meeting Feb. 6, Haywood County Tax Administrator David Francis revealed that it was likely Haywood County’s overall valuation would be slightly lower than that of 2011, setting up a cut spending/raise taxes scenario due to decreased ad valorem revenue.

All of these theoreticals, however, depend on one thing — the revenue generated both during and subsequent to the sale of a home, which in turn relies on two basic influences — supply and demand.

The Smoky Mountain News recently spoke to buyers, sellers, brokers, lenders, and real estate agents in Haywood, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties to elaborate on supply and demand trends as well as the overall vitality of the market.

And although most professionals agree there is room for reasonable near-term optimism, each county faces different challenges it must overcome to continue emerging from the most significant economic downturn since the Great Depression.

Haywood housing demand is high but inventory is low

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A typical higher-end Haywood County listing off Camp Branch Road. Cory Vaillancourt photo

HOUSING MARKET COMEBACK “If they’re coming from New Jersey, they’re going, ‘Wow, these are great prices!’ but if they’re coming from Greenville they’re going, ‘What? I can’t move here.’”

— Brian Cagle, Beverly-Hanks and Associates

Garrod are among Haywood County’s newest residents; originally from the United Kingdom, they spent almost 25 years in the Bradenton, Florida, area before purchasing a home in Crabtree in July 2016.

“If Florida is ‘100’ [in terms of value], then Haywood is 120,” Peter said.

Residential mortgage interest rates remain near historic lows, indicating a renewed willingness on the part of lenders to engage in that line of business and a renewed faith that the U.S economy is again on solid footing.

The wild card in all that is the never-ending parade of legislative proposals that could impact an already heavily regulated industry.

On the state level, N.C. Realtors is a 96-yearold trade association with 37,000 members and advocates for a variety of positions meant to ensure the ongoing success of its members.

Among its current legislative priorities are the prohibition of sales tax on professional services, increased economic development and Workforce Housing Loan Program funding, increased historic preservation tax credits and beach renourishment.

Smoky Mountain News

“The change would have to be with new home starts,” Sither said.

“There’s really no new inventory coming on line — or very little,” said Cagle. “And there’s a lot of reasons for that. People that were building spec homes in the past, when things got really rough, a lot them decided to retire. So the inventory’s really old, and a lot of it’s really tired, in all price ranges.”

Spec homes — short for speculative — are homes built by entrepreneurs using either their own private money or bank loans, with the sole intent of being sold.

These capitalists assume massive amounts Ellen Sither of risk in hopes of great reward, but rugged and mountainous Haywood County’s lack of developable land — and accompanying sewer/water issues — consistently serves as a ceiling to development and has in turn contributed to the county’s affordable housing crisis.

Yet, in some quarters, optimism about housing stock still prevails.

“This is a historically low time of the year for the industry. Everybody’s mindset is, ‘We don’t want our house on the market in the winter,’” said Cagle. “But it continues to be an issue for us. Will we slow this year because of lack of inventory? It’s possible. I’m optimistic we won’t in Haywood.”

Supply-side pricing is also an issue, and a relative one at that. Buyers coming from oversaturated markets further afield than Asheville are pleasantly surprised with the bargains in Haywood, Cagle said, but not everyone can afford to live in the area.

“If they’re coming from New Jersey, they’re going, ‘Wow, these are great prices!’ but if they’re coming from Greenville they’re going, ‘What? I can’t move here.’”

Semi-retired couple Peter and Jane

February 8-14, 2017

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER rian Cagle is vice president and managing broker at Beverly-Hanks in Waynesville. Beverly Hanks doesn’t sell real estate, however; Beverly-Hanks sells a lifestyle.

“That’s one of the cool things about being here in the mountains is that either you are here, or you’d like to be here. So we get to help a lot of people who’d like to be here,” Cagle said. “Some of the funnest times we have are when somebody comes in and they’ve been coming here for summers on vacation since they were kids — maybe with their parents or even grandparents — and they’ve dreamed of buying a house in the mountains. They’ve saved their whole life, and finally it’s time. That’s pretty special to be able to help people in that moment.”

Cagle alluded to the amount of work involved in making that moment a happy one — builders must build just as sellers must sell and for that to work in concert, demand must be sufficient enough to justify the orchestrations.

Haywood County has seen a pitched increase in demand, especially since 2011. In 2007, the sales volume of all real estate in the county — residential and commercial, homes and land — was $266.4 million. That volume declined to just $166 million during the depths of the Great Recession in 2011, but has since recovered to the tune of $236.6 million for 2016.

Other data from the Haywood County Board of Realtors also shows encouraging growth. In 2012, sellers could expect their homes to sit on the market for more than 32 weeks; today, that figure is closer to 22 weeks.

Price per square foot is up 17.7 percent since 2012, and the amount of units sold in the county is up 41 percent over that same span.

“It’s just supply and demand, simple as that,” said Cagle.

Driving that demand is not only the national recovery from the Great Recession, but also Haywood’s better-known neighbor to the east.

As Asheville became a nationally known cultural destination over the past decade or so, it’s seen population growth fuel a bustling real estate market that has led more and more buyers to find better values in Haywood’s nearby municipalities — especially Canton, a scant 15 miles west on Interstate 40.

While local demand appears strong as of late, the single biggest problem in the Haywood County real estate market continues to be supply.

According to Beverly-Hanks Agent Broker and HCBOR President Ellen Sither, a perfectly balanced market has six months of inventory; Haywood County currently has just four months.

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Selling a mountain lifestyle

Although the beaches of Haywood County aren’t in exactly in need of renourishment — since there aren’t any — another more locally relevant priority of the group is private road maintenance.

“Roads are either state-maintained, maintained by the townships or the private homeowners,” Sither said. “But there are many roads out there without written agreements for maintenance, which can be costly.”

These “orphaned roads” are an issue for Realtors because when mortgage companies can’t verify a contractual or deeded relationship designating a homeowner or homeowners association responsible for road maintenance, they’re less than thrilled.

On the federal level, the powerful National Association of Realtors spent $64.8 million in lobbying efforts during 2016, second only to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s $103.9 million.

Traditional NAR agendas include the vigorous defense of the mortgage interest tax deduction, which critics say rewards the richest Americans.

President Donald Trump, himself a developer, doesn’t appear to have the deduction on the chopping block, but wasn’t shy about poking the NAR right in the eye just hours after inauguration by indefinitely postponing a quarter-point cut in FHA mortgage insurance rates.

And then there’s Dodd-Frank.

On Jan. 30, President Trump said he’d “do a big number” on the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, commonly known as Dodd-Frank because it was sponsored by Democratic Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut and Democratic Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts.

Designed to prevent the kind of industry practices that led to the housing bubble and Great Recession, Dodd-Frank was enacted in 2010.

Its repeal or evisceration would loosen restrictions on banks and lead to easier access to the market for those with borderline financial histories, but would also carry with it the risk of another financial collapse like the one that hopefully remains in Haywood County’s rear-view mirror forever.

“The only thing I know — and I don’t follow all that real closely — it does seem to me that people with money are a little more optimistic and are going to turn it loose a little easier,” said Cagle. “But we’ve got to make it work no matter who’s running stuff in government, and that’s what we try to do.”

Cagle’s optimism, seconded by Sither, seems to indicate that people will continue to buy that Haywood County lifestyle they’ve long sought.

“The pace of life is a little slower,” said Peter Garrod. “The small-town atmosphere, people are very genuine — that’s what we found. If they say they’re going to do something, with a shake of the hand, they do it. It’s sort of old fashioned in that respect.”

“We’ve had the largest January we’ve ever had — we’re up 70 percent in written business over last January, so it seems to be taking off with a roar,” said Cagle. “Historically, January is a time we all rest up and recharge our batteries, but we’ve been running hard, so that makes me feel pretty good.”

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Macon making sustainable growth in real estate market

Macon County real estate trends (Excluding homes sold in Highlands) 2016 • Homes sold..........................................609 • Number of new listings....................1,019 • Average price............................. $133,388 • Average days on the market................203 • Total sold amount................. $81,233,277 2015 • Homes sold..........................................523 • Number of new listings.......................971 • Average price............................. $134,166 • Average days on the market................214 • Total sold amount................. $70,168,842 2014 • Homes sold..........................................435 • Number of new listings.......................948 • Average price............................. $135,388 • Average days on the market................210 • Total sold amount................. $58,893,963 2013 • Homes sold..........................................482 • Number of new listings....................1,024 • Average price............................. $130,698 • Average days on the market................207 • Total sold amount................. $62,996,322

Home buyers flock to Macon County for a small, mountain town quality of life. File photo

Smoky Mountain News

February 8-14, 2017

BY J ESSI STONE N EWS E DITOR t hasn’t been a quick or easy recovery, but Macon County real estate is back on the rise and Realtors see that trend continuing into 2017.

After a slow downward spiral following the market crash, John Becker, owner of Bald Head Realty, said Macon County is finally starting to dig its way out into a more healthy and manageable housing market.

A total of 609 houses were sold in 2016 for a total value of over $81 million — that’s almost double the real estate sales in 2012.

Becker’s business alone has seen a 30-percent increase in 2016 over 2015. With only seven agents on staff, the independent agency grossed about $29 million.

“In general, this market had been descending for five years or so. It was cruising downward steeper and steeper and it was pushed that way by all the foreclosures and short sales we had,” Becker said.

All those foreclosures and short sales following the recession further hurt the local markets when the federal government stepped in and mandated that appraisers had to start including those foreclosures and short sales when determining comparable home values in the area.

“It lowered the value of homes and spurred some sales at the time,” Becker said.

But now that many of those foreclosures and short sales are off the market and not bringing down the value of other homes in the 8 area, Becker said real growth is underway.

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Home value recovery mixed with interest rates that are creeping upward has put dual pressure on the real estate market. As interest rates begin to climb, many people have that “fear of loss” pushing them to either put their home on the market to sell now or buy a home now while rates are still good. Becker predicts things will only get better moving forward.

“Our records don’t indicate a sharp ascent — it will be gradual — but with the new administration in office, a whole lot of regulations are being peeled back to make it easier for people to get a loan. That will really help,” he said.

President Donald Trump’s administration is working toward rolling back some of the financial regulations that were put forth in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act passed in 2010 in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. DoddFrank put an end to loose lending practices that helped cause the bubble and crash, but the downside is it made it much harder for people with lower credit scores or higher debt to get approved for a mortgage.

Macon County’s real estate has always hinged on the second-home market, whether people are buying million dollar homes in Highlands or buying a more moderately priced home closer to Franklin in anticipation of retiring to the mountains.

Local Realtors will tell you that Macon’s second-home market has always been dictated by what’s happening with Florida’s real estate market because that’s where most of

2012 • Homes sold..........................................349 • Number of new listings.......................889 • Average price............................. $128,197 • Average days on the market................218 • Total sold amount................. $44,740,886 Source: Navica MLS the buyers are coming from.

“When we see big movement in Florida, we know there’s going to be big movement here,” Becker said.

Another eye catcher when looking at the housing market stats for Macon County is the increase in the number of cash offers. Out of 609 home sales in 2016, 262 of those were cash transactions while 240 were done through conventional financing.

Becker said the increase in cash offers could be attributed to what’s been going on in the Florida market over the last few years.

HOUSING MARKET COMEBACK Two years ago there was an “artificial movement” in parts of Florida when big hedge fund companies came to areas like Cape Coral and bought up all the foreclosures in one clean sweep, which gave the appearance that the area didn’t have any inventory.

Becker said that spurred contractors to start building and when inventory was stable again, the hedge fund companies put all those foreclosure homes back on the market at a much lower value.

“That’s all over now. All those areas are doubling in home values and people are sell-

ing them and coming up here to buy a home — that’s where all that cash is coming from,” Becker said.

Sherman Pope, a broker with Pat Allen Realty Group in Highlands, confirmed that the second-home market is indeed on the rise.

“I can tell you that 2016 was our busiest year yet and we’ve already started 2017 off with a bang,” he said.

Pope said folks coming from Atlanta and Florida to buy a home in Highlands are still getting good deals on homes since the prices are still down compared to 10 years ago.

“Some new houses are being built but for the most part, people are buying older homes and remodeling them because the prices have come down over the last few years,” he said. “It just makes sense for them to buy now and renovate.”

While other counties like Swain have reported an inventory shortage, Macon County is in the sweet spot with plenty of options for every price range. As of Monday, there were about 400 homes on the market.

Pope said Highlands usually has plenty of inventory, though a good deal of it was cleaned out during 2016. If priced correctly, he said, sales are brisk, but others have sat on the market for more than a year.

Pope said people are drawn to places like Highlands and Cashiers because of the privacy and the small-town feel they can’t get in the urban areas.

“People want a sense of community and to get away from the big cities where they’re living,” he said.

Homebuyers with the same goals but small budgets may choose to come to Franklin or the surrounding Macon communities. In addition to retirees and secondhome buyers, Becker said he’s also seen many younger Macon County natives who are now returning to their hometown to start a business and settle down with their families.

“Young people leave here in droves after high school because there’s nothing to do, but they end up coming back and now you see these mom and pop businesses popping up here,” Becker said.

It’s a natural progression Becker sees continuing into the future without the fear of over-development. Franklin is unlike Waynesville or Sylva because it’s surrounded by national forests.

“We can’t sprawl out and that’s good because it keeps the population small. We don’t have the demographic footprint that appeals to national chains and that will keep the town quant and little and that’s what people really like,” he said. “I’m optimistic for 2017 — the inventory is there, the loan capability is there — there’s no reason why we shouldn’t have a good year.”

At the end of the day, everyone benefits from a healthy real estate market. When real estate values are up and more people are buying homes, it means more money for county budgets. County Manager Derek Roland recently made his preliminary budget presentation to commissioners and reported that revenue is up more than $1 million over last year — $760,208 of that increase was from property tax.

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Real estate rebounding in Jackson

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Home sales in the Cashiers area Year Value sold (millions) % change Number sold % change 2016..................... $162.8......................... 25.8............................ 266............................13.2 2015..................... $129.4......................... 13.4............................ 235............................ 21.8 2014..................... $114.2...........................1.4............................. 193.............................-3.6 2013..................... $112.6......................... 17.5............................ 200............................. 2.0 2012...................... $95.9............................1.7............................. 196............................ 16.7 2011...................... $94.2............................2.8............................. 168............................. 3.7 2010...................... $91.6.............................................................. 162 Source: MLS data compiled by Silver Creek Real Estate

close proximity to town, a contrast from the desire for remote, mountainside living that was popular before the recession.

“Everybody wants to have a small garden, which is kind of exciting,” Gersky said.

“Everybody wants to support the local businesses by buying locally and all of that involves many trips to town, so I guess that’s why they would want to be a little bit closer. I find that an interesting thing that I didn’t see so much six or seven years ago.

“Something’s causing all of us to want to be a little more community-oriented, I think.”

Smoky Mountain News

-BY HOLLY KAYS ySTAFF WRITER w ith the recession nearly a decade in the rearview mirror, the real estate market is once more robust in rJackson County — especially in the southern tend of the county around Cashiers. e “When you’ve got double-digit sales volpume growth in ‘16 and ‘15, the market is definitely coming back,” said Jochen Lucke, owner -and broker at Silver Creek Real Estate Group. f On the Jackson County portion of the eplateau, $162.8 million worth of homes were dsold in 2016, a 25.8 percent increase over 2015.

The 2015 figure of $129.4 million was also a djump from the previous year, 13.3 percent ehigher than the $114.2 million sold in 2014. tCompare 2016 sales to 2010, when the recespsion was in full swing, and the gain is even -more impressive — 2016 numbers are 77.6 r

HOUSING MARKET COMEBACK

February 8-14, 2017

Double-digit growth in Cashiers area; steady t oincrease elsewhere -

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percent higher than the sales totals for 2010.

As was the case before the recession, buyers on the plateau tend to be people from across the Southeast who are looking for a second or third home in a place that’s got an established vacation home market, Lucke said. However, the inventory these days is different from what existed in 2007.

“Ideally, folks would like something that’s turnkey and newer, and just since the recession the number of spec homes (homes a builder constructs expecting a buyer will come along) has not come back to the level it was prior to the recession,” he said. “That’s why we’re seeing a lot more custom homes.”

Buyers are also turning more to older homes, he said, a good option for people who don’t want to wait a year or more for a freshly constructed house and would rather update an existing structure.

Low inventory can present a challenge, especially in the more desirable communities. In some of the gated communities where five years ago there may have been five homes for sale at any given time, now there might be only one, Lucke said.

But buyers aren’t necessarily jumping on deals with a moment’s notice. The recession has made them aware of what can happen where the real estate market is concerned.

“They know what happened eight years ago, and they want to protect themselves from that,” Lucke said. “We as brokers are educating the clients much more heavily than may have been done in the past.”

The real estate climate is different, however, outside of the Cashiers area.

“My sense is that we’re seeing the growth

tent and most Realtors who are in this fulltime seem to be busy.”

According to Gersky, most of the business seems to be coming from retirees looking to downsize and first-time homebuyers looking to get out of a rental situation before interest rates go up.

“I don’t see that many families with children making big moves,” she said. “It seems to be more professionals who are planning children but don’t have them right now. A lot of them are looking for room to expand. And not a ton of second homes. Not like it was in 2008 but more than it was a year or two ago.”

Gersky said she’s noticed that buyers’ preferences are different now than they were pre-recession. More people are asking for main-level living with flat ground nearby and

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occur in the southern end of the county,” said Rich Price, Jackson County’s economic development director. “It’s matriculating into the central and northern end of the county.”

For those parts of the county, Price said, inventory is a big challenge. There’s strong demand for workforce housing — dwellings for middle-income people who work at professional or administrative jobs — but not enough supply. Many people who work for Western Carolina University or Harris Regional Hospital or Harrah’s Cherokee Casino make the drive over Balsam or Soco each day, finding better housing options in Haywood County than in Jackson.

“We hear from our resources all over the county — whether it’s the university, the hospital, even the casino — that one of the biggest challenges they have in recruiting and retaining employees is the fact that it’s very difficult to find affordable professional housing types here in Jackson County,” Price said.

Lack of developable land and higher land prices are part of the challenge, Price said. In addition, some people will just choose to live further east so they can be closer to Asheville.

However, even in the northern end of Jackson the market is seeing noticeable recovery.

“The market does seem to be rebounding somewhat in a small manner with residential — not so much with vacant land,” said Mona Gersky of MoonDancer Realty and past president of the Carolina Smokies Association of Realtors. “Whether or not that would indicate there’s been a full recovery I don’t think so, but it does seem to be a little more consis-

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Mountain cabins in high demand in Swain

BY J ESSI STONE N EWS E DITOR herry and Gary Patterson vacationed in Bryson City for the first time about 20 years ago and now they can’t get enough of it.

“We just fell in love with it here,” Sherry said.

Now that Sherry is starting to think about retirement, she’s been slowing implementing her plan to live in Bryson City full-time while still being able to earn an income — and buying up some premium real estate in the mountains might be the way to do it.

The Pattersons have purchased two cabins from local Realtor Christina Lohmann in the last few years that they use and also rent out to vacationers. They traveled up from Daytona Beach, Florida, again last week for Lohmann to show them a couple of options in their search to purchase five cabin rentals.

Lohmann said it’s the cabin rental niche that has had Swain County’s real estate market booming again in recent years.

“We don’t get that many permanent residents moving in and buying houses — our market is based on investment properties and short-term vacation rentals,” she said.

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HOUSING MARKET COMEBACK Lohmann has been in the real estate industry for 20 years, though she’s only been selling with Bryson City Realty Group for the last three years.

“After the economy dived I had gotten involved in real estate here against what everybody else was doing and all of a sudden the economy started to turn around and all of a sudden people started to go on vacation again and realized it’s such a unique area we have here,” she said.

A couple of features on HGTV’s Log Cabin Living show in 2014 and again in 2016 have helped launch Bryson City into the spotlight for people across the nation looking for their our mountain getaway.

“People realized the best-kept secret out here and investors decided that instead of investing in the stock market they’d invest in vacation rentals,” Lohmann said, who was one of the Realtors who appeared in the HGTV show.

The publicity has been good for her business personally by generating leads, but it has also helped the county as a whole.

“My sales increased by at least $2 million in 2016 from 2015, so I’m really hoping to see more of that,” she said. “And when real estate is doing better then more people are coming here to visit and it benefits the businesses downtown.”

While some people are looking to buy several small cabin rentals like the

Swain County real estate sales 2016 • Homes sold..........................................120 • Total value............................$18.2 million 2015 • Homes sold............................................97 • Total value...........................$13. 3 million 2014 • Homes sold..........................................100 • Total value............................$16.5 million 2013 • Homes sold............................................86 • Total value............................$14.1 million Source: Swain County Tax Office

Pattersons, others are buying much larger and extravagant log cabins as second homes.

Lohmann said log cabins in the $200,000 to $350,000 price range are moving fairly quickly on the market. She said sales have been spread out around the county because everybody is looking for something different. Some prefer to be close to town, some want a mountaintop view and others wants to be out toward the Nantahala Gorge and Nantahala Outdoor Center.

Lohmann said the only problem she sees in Swain County real estate right now is a lack of inventory because people are buying homes up as quickly as they get listed or built.

If there was ever a better time to sell your home or land in Swain County, it’s now.

“As of right now a lot of concern for agents is the lack of inventory — we can sell faster than they can build them,” she said. “There’s an influx of property available for new construction because a lot of people bought land before the recession with plans to live here but their plans fell through and now they’re trying to sell it.”

Ken Mills, economic development director for Swain County, said all indicators are looking good — real estate is up, unemployment is down and sales tax is skyrocketing.

“The Department of Commerce numbers just came out and our unemployment rate is down to 5.5 percent and the increase in the real estate market is great — everything seems to be moving — all this tells me we’re in a sweet spot,” he said. “Swain County grossed $70 million in sales tax revenue in 2015 and tourism is a big part of that.”

Since 87 percent of the county land is federally owned, the commissioners are able to collect property taxes on only 13 percent of the county. That large sales tax revenue is what allows the county to keep property tax rates low for its residents. Without that revenue, Mills said an average family of four would have to spend an additional $60,000 a year in Swain County to replace the sales tax revenue brought in by tourists.

Swain hospital: ‘ER is open 24/7’ S

However, he and Swain Hospital Administrator Lucretia Stargell are still struggling to make people understand that the ER will still be open to the public 24 hours a day,

seven days a week with no exceptions. They said the problem stems from a Nov. 17 “erroneous headline” in The Smoky Mountain Times stating the hospital was eliminating its 24-hour in-house ER service.

In an attempt to overcome that misperception, the hospital has invited residents to attend focus groups, but participation from the community has been low.

The most attended session was last Wednesday when newly elected Rep. Mike Clampitt, R-Bryson City and Swain County Commissioner David Monteith attended.

Dr. Dave Zimmerman, who is retired from Swain Community Hospital, and Bryson City resident Joe Hayes also attended the session.

After talking to commissioners and emergency service personnel in Swain and Graham counties, Heatherly said they were also concerned with possibly having to divert ambulances to hospitals that are farther away.

Given that the hospital sees an average of 3.4 people per night in the ER, he said overcrowding and diverting ambulances was highly unlikely unless there was a major disaster.

On average, Zimmerman said an ambu-

lance arrives at the hospital during overnight hours once every three days and even out of those 3.4 people coming in overnight, it’s rare that the cases are an actual emergency situation.

He also wanted to address the concern that PAs and NPs aren’t as qualified to run the ER overnight shift. He assured the group that the hospital’s mid-level providers are highly qualified and capable of the task. The PA or NP will also be supported by an offsite physician, which he said is a fairly common arrangement in an emergency department.

“These will be ER trained PAs,” he said.

“I don’t think in that period of time care is going to suffer,” he said.

Heatherly said the hospital is still searching to hire specially trained providers to run the emergency department and that the ER staffing changes wouldn’t be changed until those people are on board.

FUTURE PLANS The main focus has been on the change in ER operations, but Heatherly said little

February 8-14, 2017

MISPERCEPTIONS

A focus group discusses changes coming to Swain Community Hospital. Jessi Stone photo

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BY J ESSI STONE N EWS E DITOR wain Community Hospital is still trying to overcome misperceptions in the community regarding its recent emergency department changes as well as the local medical services available to residents.

The hospital announced in November that the emergency department would begin operating under a new model as of Jan. 3, 2017. Under the new model, the ER will be staffed with providers and nursing staff from 8 a.m. to midnight but the remaining eight hours will only be staffed with mid-level providers like a nurse practitioner or a physician’s assistant.

Without a physician on staff during the overnight hours, many have expressed concern about the level of care that will be provided at Swain’s ER and whether county EMS services will have to transport more people to Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva because of the change.

Steve Heatherly, CEO of Swain and Harris, said the change needed to be made because of the low overnight volumes in the ER and the need to expand services in other areas of the hospital to best serve the community’s needs. He said so far the implementation — though not complete — has been seamless and unnoticeable to the public.

“We were confident going in that there was not going to be a significant — or any — disruption in how people receive care,” he said.

“But we’ll keep our ear to the ground to make sure we continue to assess the situation.”

attention has been given to the improvements that will be able to be made by reallocating resources.

A new provider has been added to Swain Family Care to increase primary care services for families and new CT scan equipment will allow more residents to get certain tests done in Swain instead of traveling to Sylva or Asheville.

Swain is also in the planning stage of constructing an endoscopy suite on its campus and recently added two sleep study beds that are likely to stay full every night because of the huge demand for sleep studies.

Looking more long term, Heatherly said the hospital is evaluating how to best utilize the old east wing of hospital and adding up to 10 more behavioral health beds could be a possibility. If the ER ever does have to divert ambulances, Heatherly predicts it will be because they run out of behavioral health beds.

Heatherly said the hospital is also looking to offer “swing bed service” to patients having major surgeries at other hospitals.

This in-between care would be for people who may have a hip replacement done in Asheville and need somewhere to continue to heal before they’re ready to be on their own at home.

Zimmerman said there is also a misperception that patients may have to wait a long time to be able to see a doctor at the hospital, but after speaking to other physicians, he found out many people are able to get a same-day appointment. Physicians on staff are actually blocking out time in their day specifically for that purpose, which he said is a major benefit to the community.

Healtherly and Stargell hope to continue their efforts to inform the community about the services available locally to encourage residents to support their local hospital.

“If you take a 20-year look at access to health care in Swain County, it’s better today than it was 20 years ago, but there are always going to be ebbs and flows,” Heatherly said.

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Haywood looks to turn tax collector into appointed position

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER aywood County Tax Collector Mike Matthews has been a lightning rod for controversy since before he narrowly defeated veteran incumbent David Francis in the 2014 election.

As a Maggie Valley alderman, he was one of just two elected officials countywide to oppose the Tourism Development Authority’s 2013 proposed occupancy tax increase, which failed at the state level. Since taking county office, he’s been labeled as nearly unbondable, dogged with accusations of absenteeism, criticized for his collections performance, and chided for several vehicular citations.

On Feb. 6, the Haywood County Board of Commissioners took up a resolution to change the tax collector position from an elected post to an appointed one. Haywood County has the only remaining elected tax collector in any of North Carolina’s 100 counties.

Although no action was taken on the resolution at the marathon six-hour meeting, commissioners were candid with their gripes while they waited about an hour for Matthews to produce a requested tax delinquency report.

It’s clear a showdown appears imminent, and while the Democrat-majority commission says it’s not about the brash young Republican currently in the position, Matthews feels differently.

He also feels like he’s never truly had his say — until now.

time [Feb. 20].

So on that subject, why are they doing this? Why are they attempting to pass this resolution?

MM: I know exactly why. Since I won the election, they’ve been bitter ever since. And they felt the exact opposite way right before the election because there’s a handful of people that went to them and said “Why is this even elected any more?” And they fought and fought and fought for it. The election didn’t go the way they wanted to go, so they went this route with it.

And I could go either way with it — I can see either side of it. As far as me doing this again for another four years? I mean, I’m struggling if I want to do it again for another two years. So it means nothing to me whether they do it or not.

Smoky Mountain News: We had an interesting day in the old courthouse today. How are you feeling?

Mike Matthews: Honestly, I’m upfront with the numbers. All the rest of this stuff is bullshit. That resolution today, or what they attempted to do today — did they actually do it? I wasn’t in there when it came down.

SMN: And that’s a partisan election, right?

MM: It is a partisan election.

Smoky Mountain News

February 8-14, 2017

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SMN: No, [Haywood County Commissioner] Brandon Rogers said that he thought citizens should have more of a chance to weigh in, and [commissioner] Kevin Ensley said he was prepared to vote but wanted to err on the side of transparency.

Chairman Kirkpatrick seemed to agree with that, but [commissioners] Mike Sorrells and Bill Upton seemed ready to roll, saying that the public has been commenting on this issue for a few years now.

Apparently, at the next meeting they’re not going to have a public hearing but anyone who wants to speak during the customary public comments portion of the meeting, that’s their time to do so. Nothing has been 12 done, and nothing will be done until next

SMN: Do you think this reflects more on them than on you?

MM: The fact is that this is one more thing that they’re trying to take away from the voters — the voters, they voted. They went out and voted for a change. The commissioners didn’t like the way it went apparently, and now they are saying, “Well, we know better than what you do, so we’re going to go ahead and switch it.” That’s what they’re trying to do.

SMN: You defeated David Francis, who’s a Democrat, right?

MM: Right.

SMN: So you’re saying they didn’t like the way it went, but you’ve got a Republican on there in Kevin Ensley, and he’s sided with them as well. So is this a partisan thing or a personal thing?

MM: Kevin Ensley’s not even remotely a Republican. He is the furthest thing from a Republican that I’ve ever met. I could see this position being non–partisan, and that’s fine.

And I could see making it an appointed position, which is fine if you had a board you could trust enough to appoint the right person.

SMN: You don’t think this board could do that?

MM: I’m still up in the air with one, maybe two, but the majority, no. They haven’t done it before. Their biggest gripe with me right now is how I’m choosing to do the collections. But they can’t argue my numbers. My numbers are better than they’ve ever been. My current collection rates the past two years have been 97 percent plus. That’s better

Embattled Haywood County Tax Collector Mike Matthews (left) talks with County Manager Ira Dove while County Attorney Chip Killian (foreground) reviews paperwork Feb. 6. Cory Vaillancourt photo than the past 10 years or more and the only reason I say 10 years is that’s as far back as I’ve gone to look. This whole time, keeping a 97 percent rate, my delinquent balance I’m carrying over every year is lower than it’s been in 10 years.

The numbers that they’re coming out and saying are bad or lower than before are the enforced collections — where I’m going out and attaching somebody’s bank account, or garnishing somebody’s paycheck, or foreclosing on somebody’s house. I didn’t run on that. I will do it as a last measure, or a last result, if I can’t get in contact with somebody or that sort of thing — that’s what we do.

But what I will do, right off the bat is call, reach out to people, work out a plan that we can get their taxes paid, then the county still gets some money and these people don’t lose their house, or whatever the case may be. And it’s working.

Their biggest gripe is foreclosures — that I’m not doing them. I will do a few, if I have to as a last resort. I haven’t kicked anybody out of their house yet, and I don’t intend to — unless I have to, as a last resort.

The gripe that I have, and you could speculate on this however you want to, is that it’s a revenue stream that they’re not able to purchase, their friends aren’t able to purchase, or however — they’re losing income off of this somehow. That’s been their biggest gripe. If they can’t benefit off a foreclosure, that’s what they’re mad about. And it’s not going to happen. I’m not going to do it.

SMN: And you’ve said that in board meetings, that you’re not going out there and attaching or garnishing or seizing property.

MM: Until a last resort — I’ll do it, but it’s a last resort. They have that mentality that ‘I’m going to beat you over the head and take it from you’ as opposed to giving you a call and saying, “Hey, what can we work out?”

That’s what I’ve been trying to do. When I ran, I said it’s time for us to start treating our taxpayers like the neighbors they are, as opposed to just a dollar sign. That’s the

approach I’m taking and it’s worked.

SMN: Ensley’s said people have a problem with you not being in your office.

MM: Ensley keeps mentioning these constituent concerns that he gets. As far as I’m concerned, if that’s the case, Ensley is not doing his job, because he has not once come to me and said, “Hey, this is what I’m hearing.”

Instead, he takes a couple minutes out of a meeting to ambush me on it. If he’s hearing constituent concerns — if I was complaining to my commissioner, and my commissioner’s not going to the person to find out what’s going on, I would be upset. He’s not doing his job.

When I have people call me at the office and say, “I talked to this tax clerk, she was rude, she wasn’t there, she wasn’t paying attention to me,” I address it. I don’t wait until a meeting and throw a couple digs here and there but never once directly address it.

Ensley’s not doing his job, and if anybody else is getting those complaints, they’re not doing their job either.

SMN: At the same time, Chairman Kirkpatrick says the county doesn’t have any control over the hours you work, and since you’re an elected official, they don’t have the kind of control they seek. How do you feel, moving forward — should they have that control over this position?

MM: I can go either way with it. Honestly, I think giving them that control, it takes it away from the voters.

SMN: But voters in 99 of 100 North Carolina counties don’t get to elect their tax collector.

MM: I get that. Like I’m saying, I could go either way with it. I could — if you had a board that you could trust to do it correctly.

SMN: Commissioner Sorrells says this is an integrity issue, and that you have brought question upon the

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SMN: I don’t know what your trade or profession is, but is this job a step back for you, professionally or financially?

MM: Financially, absolutely.

SMN: They usually are. But even professionally, if you have professional goals…

MM: I would say professionally, too.

Professionally and financially. This is a huge step backwards for me.

SMN: Now this [resolution to make Matthews’ position appointed, rather than elected] has to go to Raleigh, and you’ve said you have supporters in Raleigh. Who are those supporters?

MM: [Republican N.C. State Senator] Jim Davis — if he were to introduce a bill, I can’t fault him for introducing a bill. If he’s asked

“And as far as the appointed thing, that just frees me up to run against Kevin Ensley.”

to do it, he should. If there’s business at a local level, and he’s their representative, then he absolutely should do it. And if it wasn’t for the circumstances of why they’re trying to do this, everyone in Raleigh should vote in favor of it. The only reason they’re doing this is there was an election, they didn’t like who won, and now they’re trying to take it away.

If Michele [Presnell, Republican N.C. State Representative] was in favor of it, I could not blame her but for how they’re trying to do it. They fought against it. They just fought against this.

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SMN: There are still persistent claims though — a civil action, unpaid tax bill, all these other things that they’re bringing against you, the issue with the bonding company, the integrity of this person is not good for the office — they keep saying that. But you keep coming back with facts about your performance and your 97 percent being very good.

MM: As far as the unpaid tax thing I talked about was, I sold a house 15 years ago, moved to Florida, and didn’t get a bill. It was $300. I get it – I mean I understand. I’m not denying the fact that was there. But when I got the bill I took care of it. You know what?

I’m 37 years old, and if one of the craziest things you could find on me that I’ve done was an unpaid tax bill 20 years ago, I feel like I’m doing alright with my life.

SMN: If there’s anything you want to say or anything I haven’t asked you that you think is important, now’s your chance to spill it.

MM: I’ve got so many things going through my mind right now, I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around it, to be honest with you. It’s just absolutely ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. If they want to make it an appointed position, and they want to extend that resolution, fine — do it. That’s fine with me. I have no qualms. The fact of how they’re doing it is what I have an issue with. It’s just one more thing they’re taking away from the voters.

If we were failing at our job… look at what I have done — not me, my office — has done in the past two years with a limited staff, we’re probably one of the lowest-paid departments in the county, including myself, which is fine. They get no credit for anything.

Imagine what we could accomplish or achieve if I wasn’t constantly having to fight them. And I’m fighting them for no reason other than they want to be able to say ‘I told you so.’ Well, if they wanted to be able to say ‘I told you so’ they should have done something during the election to keep me out — not after the fact.

We played a game, I won the game, now they’re trying to change the rules after the fact.

Honestly, I’ve never had the greatest — the media here, I don’t feel that you’re that way — but I do know that you work for somebody, and the media here, they’re stuck with the commissioners for whatever reason. That regime, they have such a tight grip on everything going on there. And up until — and I’m hoping it changes at this point — up until this point I’ve had no outlet to say anything because it’s going to get skewed.

As of January 31, we have collected roughly 91.5 percent of the taxes for the year, and I’ve still got until June 30 to go with it. Hell, I can think of years David Francis didn’t do 91 percent of the taxes even until June 30. I could stop collecting delinquent taxes today — which I’m not going to do — and my numbers would still be better than some of his, and I’ve got until June 30 to do it.

And it has nothing to do with David Francis — it just happens to be the office, and he just happens to be the person before me.

I’m not saying anything negative about him. I like him personally.

But if I wasn’t doing the job, and my office wasn’t performing, absolutely — they should be coming after me the way they are.

But to do this because they don’t like me is ridiculous.

And as far as the appointed thing, that just frees me up to run against Kevin Ensley.

N I & T U O g n Getti S T N E M E L O ur E

February 8-14, 2017

— Mike Matthews, Haywood County tax collector

SMN: I can’t argue with you there, but the driver’s license stuff there too, again, they continue to dump this stuff on you…

MM: They’re going to dump whatever they can, and honestly, I’m not even going to validate it with a response, because as far as I’m concerned, your story — the story needs to be what it is to sell papers. As far as the commissioners go and as far as my job goes, once my numbers start slipping, then we have issues.

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integrity of this office. What would you say to him about that?

MM: Honestly, how? Again, these little things they keep coming up with, they tell me nothing about it. I don’t know how to respond to that question. The integrity and the morals and values that I have, I’m here to help people. I’m not here to benefit financially or anything else. I’m here to help people in the community and I have. And I have.

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Smoky Mountain News

February 8-14, 2017

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Recreation improvements coming to Waynesville

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER he active, outdoorsy lifestyle favored by residents of Western North Carolina has long been fostered by the Town of Waynesville, but if all goes according to recently released plans, it’s about to get much, much better. “The commitment that was made to creating Recreation Park started back in the ‘80s,� said Mayor Gavin Brown. “The Town of Waynesville boards back then always wanted to have a state-of-the-art recreation facility, and by the ‘90s they realized that they were going to do it. It was a great effort on their behalf.�

Although that facility has been met with great appreciation by residents, the town is nevertheless looking to the future as it prepares to implement a master recreational plan created by Chicago-based consultants Alfred Benesch and Company.

The plan, which took months to assemble, included a robust amount of public input, both through surveys and public meetings. “I’m extremely satisfied with the plan,� said Waynesville Parks and Recreation Director Rhett Langston. “We got precisely 442 responses on our survey, and about 100 visitors to the public meetings. We got not only a lot of good numbers, but a lot of good representation from different ages. I think it was a very well-spoken representation of the community.�

Langston and Benesch consultant Derek Williams presented the 10-year, $10 million

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“I was surprised by that number,� Brown said. “I found it interesting. Some of our property is a little difficult to develop into parks, and it’s been pointed out that the Cavalry Street lots are a little steep so trying to do things there might be a little tough, but I am not adverse to adding to our inventory of land.�

The town has recently sought to purchase three blighted lots off Pigeon Street from Haywood County for utilization as a park; on

Speak out The final opportunity for the public to weigh in on the proposed Waynesville Parks and Rec master plan is at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 14, in the Waynesville Town Hall Board Room, 9 South Main St. Feb. 6, the county agreed to enter into negotiations with the town for the lots, which have also drawn interest from the private sector.

Although those lots will come cheap, the rest of the plan — estimated at $5.7 million through 2021 and $4.1 million from 2022 to 2026 — will not. “We just raised taxes almost 5 cents per $100 for the fire department,� said Brown. “So how am I going to pay for this?�

Much like the Town of Canton’s pool financing issue, the retirement of existing long-term debt could allow for a slight budget

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surplus to be directly applied to plan. Brown said that the debt for the Recreation Park facility will be satisfied in budget year 201718, allowing the town to begin addressing a long list of needs and wants.

Community input indicates overwhelming support for the town’s skateboard park. “I think the quality of that skateboard park — there’s a bunch of towns that have skateboard parks, but that’s a really nice skateboard park,� Williams said. Lights, restrooms and water fountains top skaters’ wish lists.

The tennis courts are also very popular, but would be more so with the inclusion of restrooms and shelters.

Recreation Center improvements suggested include the expansion of the weight room, aerobics areas and spin rooms, as well as the addition of a therapy pool and outdoor splash pad.

Walking and biking are also popular local activities; respondents communicated a desire for expanded trails and improvements to the Arboretum Trail as well as a community park and amphitheater.

Declining in interest is the sport of softball, which could mean the elimination of the field at Recreation Park.

The final opportunity for the public to weigh in on these and other proposed recreational improvements — as well as the price tag — is at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 14, in the Waynesville Town Hall Board Room, 9 South Main St.

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plan to town aldermen Jan. 24.

The first step, Williams said, was to inventory existing facilities and acreage; the results revealed that Waynesville has six parks and 52 acres of land devoted to recreation.

During the meeting, Brown asked Williams to give the town’s parks a letter grade. Williams said that grade would be “at least a ‘B.’� “For a town with less than 10,000 people to have that rec center that you’ve got, with the gymnasiums, racquetball, indoor aquatics and all that — that is pretty unusual,�

Williams said, calling it a “first-rate� facility.

Town Manager Rob Hites — a veteran of local government statewide, agreed.

But there is room for improvement, and the plan presents several possibilities based on recommendations from both the public and the National Recreation and Park Association. “Certainly, they [the NRPA] are the authority on park needs and park classifications,� said Williams. “They go out of their way to say there are no national standards, so we established standards for Waynesville. But with that said, as you’re going through this process, you look and see what other communities are using and what the NRPA had done in the past.�

One deficiency noted in the plan is that for a town of Waynesville’s size, there should be around 10 acres of recreational property per thousand residents — or about a hundred, compared to the current 52.

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BY J ESSI STONE “We learned how to clean up our enviN EWS E DITOR ronment and you get to help the little kids hining Rock Classical Academy will be learn how to pick up trash,” she said. able to construct an outdoor class“It was also a good bonding experience room on its campus this year thanks to for all of us in the beginning,” Lee added. a $10,000 grant from Parents for The funding from the grant came from Educational Freedom in North Carolina — PEFNC and its N.C. Public Charter School the state’s leading parental school choice Accelerator Program, which has assisted 12 advocacy organization. public charter schools get started in the It was fitting for the check to be delivstate since 2012 when the cap on charters ered Jan. 25 to the Waynesville charter Shining Rock Classical Academy receives a $10,000 grant schools during National from Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina School Choice Week. and the N.C. Public Charter School Accelerator Program PEFNC President Darrell to construct an outdoor classroom. Jessi Stone photo Allison made the trip from Raleigh to present SRCA with the grant check and congratulate administration and students for their early success.

“It usually takes a while to be great when you’re first getting started, but Shining Rock has been a shining light in the state,” Allison said to the SRCA seventhwas lifted. Before new legislation was grade class. passed in 2011, there was a cap on charter Allison was referring to SRCA being the schools that allowed only 100 to operate in first charter school to open in Haywood North Carolina at any given time. That County in 2015 and also earning a ‘B’ in the number has grown to about 170 public state public education grading system durcharters since the cap was lifted. ing its first year of operations.

The process to open a charter school is “That’s rare,” Allison said. “We want to still arduous. Butler said the accelerator proreplicate and duplicate your model throughgram staff has been instrumental in helping out the state.”

SRCA succeed since the beginning. Not only Since experiential learning opportunidid the program provide guidance through ties are one of the ways SRCA differentiates the charter application process, it has given itself from the traditional public schools’ funding to help SRCA provide bus transcurriculum, School Director Ben Butler and portation and now an outdoor classroom.

SRCA students are excited about getting an “Beyond financial help, they have been outdoor classroom on it’s campus. Butler really helpful in advancing us as a rural said the plan was to create an amphitheater charter school,” Butler said. “And they have type set up with seating on Lake Junaluska helped me personally develop a vision for Assembly property situated behind the the school.” school on Dellwood Road. He hopes the Thom\as Miller, director of the N.C. project can be completed by June.

Public Charter School Accelerator, also “This is an opportunity for classes to get attended the check presentation at SRCA, outside for lessons in science or writing,” and spoke about how the program is pushButler said. ing to open more rural charters across the Seventh-grader James Lee, who will be state. Even with the large growth since the part of SRCA’s first graduating class, said he charter cap was lifted, he said there are still enjoyed the outdoor learning that is avail40 counties in the state without a public able at SRCA and couldn’t wait to use the charter school. new outdoor classroom.

Through public and private funding “The main goal is to be outside more partnerships, Miller said the accelerator and this gets kids out there who would usuprogram was able to provide grants to charally be inside playing video games,” he said. ter schools to help offset the fact charters “And an outdoor classroom is something don’t get state funding for capital projects. that would be considered a waste of money “We try to give them money for their in the public schools.” budget that otherwise would be set aside,” Seventh-grader Holly Porter said her Miller said. “They don’t get capital funds — class has been able to spend time at Lake they have to do more with less — so we try Logan canoeing, cleaning up litter around to fund that extra money because they don’t Lake Junaluska and went on a three-day trip have a school system to call on. We also try to Earthshine Discovery Center for zip linto help with policy, strategy and navigating ing and other team building activities. the laws.”

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Shining Rock receives grant for outdoor classes

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Proposed room tax hike already in jeopardy Haywood commissioner changes campaign stance on tax

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER renewed effort to increase Haywood County’s room occupancy tax from 4 to 6 percent has already run into almost as much opposition as it has in previous years, calling into question its chances of passage in the state legislature.

On Jan. 25, the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority unanimously passed a resolution calling for an increase in the tax on overnight stays in hotel rooms, inns, B&Bs or any other overnight accommodations that also charge a sales tax.

That unanimity came only after TDA board member Pratik Shah, who initially indicated he’d vote no on the resolution, voiced concerns over the accountability and efficacy of TDA spending intended to draw overnight visitors to the county.

While Shah — general manager of the Best Western Smoky Mountain Inn in Waynesville — changed his vote to yes after Brandon Rogers prodding by TDA board members, newly elected Haywood County Commissioner Brandon Rogers changed his mind altogether.

During the Haywood County Board of Commissioners meeting Feb. 6, Rogers let it be known that after what he called some “soul searching,” he’d vote no on a county resolution encouraging state legislation that would enable the county to begin charging 6 percent on lodging.

“When I first looked at it, I thought, ‘How could anybody be against this?’”

Rogers said during the meeting.

During the campaign last fall, Rogers expressed his support for the increase, which at that point was just a rumor.

After the TDA passed its resolution in late January, the TDA encouraged municipalities to issue statements or resolutions supporting the measure.

When that resolution came before county commissioners, it passed 4 to 1, with Rogers the lone holdout. Even fellow Republican Commissioner Kevin Ensley supported the measure, as he had previously.

“It’s an economic development tool, in my opinion,” Ensley said. “It’s not a tax on anyone in the county; they come here, use our services, I think they can give something

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back to our community.”

Rogers said he’d “searched his soul” since the election, and said he had “run his whole campaign” on the premise of raising taxes only as a last resort.

Ensley said he was surprised by Rogers’ about-face.

“We [commission candidates Robin Black, Steve Brown, Ensley, and Rogers] all campaigned on it,” said Ensley. “But sometimes it’s tough, because things come to the surface — facts you didn’t know. But during a campaign if you say you’re going to do something, you should do it. That’s what I always try to do.”

To justify his position, Rogers cited stats that show TDA revenue has been growing year-over-year at the current 4 percent level, and opined that the tax wasn’t really needed.

Although Rogers continues to be in the minority on the issue, his defiance is significant in that the last time such a measure was proffered in 2013, it was endorsed unanimously by commissioners — all of whom continue to serve as commissioners except for then-Chairman Mark Swanger, who declined to stand for re-election in 2016.

In fact, resolutions in support of the 2013 attempt were passed unanimously in all Haywood municipalities except Maggie Valley, where Republican Aldermen Phillip Wight and Mike Matthews opposed it.

Matthews won election as Haywood County’s tax collector in 2014 (see page 12) and is no longer an alderman, and Wight — still a Maggie Valley alderman and motel owner himself — worked with the TDA this time around to craft the new measure, which rectifies spending concerns he held last time around.

The major difference in proposals is that previously, all of the 2 percent revenue would have gone directly to the TDA; now, half would go to the TDA with the other half returning to the zip codes from whence it came. TDA executive director Lynn Collins told county commissioners Feb. 6 she expected a 2 percent hike to generate an additional $650,000 in its first year.

For the proposal to be enacted, it must receive unanimous support from Haywood County’s legislative delegation — Sen. Jim Davis, R-Franklin, Rep. Mike Clampitt, RBryson City and Rep. Michele Presnell, RBurnsville.

Presnell prevented the measure from being passed in 2013, and in November 2016 said she generally doesn’t vote for these types of proposals — not just in her own district, but anywhere; she hasn’t responded to requests for comment on the current proposal.

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www.southwesterncc.edu/sbc, call 828.339.4211 or email t_henry@southwesterncc.edu.

HCC to hold free business seminar

Bryson Senior Living breaks ground Affinity Living Group held a groundbreaking ceremony recently for its new assisted living community, Bryson Senior Living. Pictured moving the ceremonial first shovelfuls of earth are Denis Rainey, Affinity Vice President of Operations; (from left) Swain County Commissioners David Monteith, Ben Bushyhead, Philip Carson, Swain County Sheriff Curtis Cochran and Adult Services Supervisor Carol Manley.

Bryson Senior Living is scheduled to open in fall 2017 to provide health and personal care in comfortable surroundings along with registered dietician approved meals, activities and 24/7 on-site staff.

Residents will be able to choose furnished or unfurnished companion or private rooms. The building will feature welcoming common areas including living spaces, activities room, outdoor spaces and more.

Coaches help SUBWAY fight cancer

confidence, the Motivo Tour is backed by a limited lifetime warranty and is made in the USA. www.motivolife.com.

Locally owned SUBWAY restaurants in Western North Carolina are teaming up with the following Division 1 head men’s basketball coaches Larry Hunter of Western Carolina University and Nick McDevitt of UNC-Asheville in the six-week campaign to help beat cancer.

To demonstrate their commitment to the campaign, the coaches are taking their turn as guest SUBWAY Sandwich Artists during lunch at a sub shop near their university’s campus. Through Feb. 28, the public is invited to visit a participating SUBWAY restaurant to make a donation at the checkout to Coaches vs.

Cancer. All contributions will go to support American Cancer Society local patient support programs, education and research. www.cancer.org.

Mast helps feed hungry

Mountaineer Oxygen offers innovative walker Mountaineer Oxygen Services will begin offering the Motivo Tour, a practical new innovation in mobility devices.

The Motivo Tour provides its users greater independence for a more active lifestyle. Designed for better ergonomic use and unique personal style, its groundbreaking design and stow-away padded seat enables users to walk upright, inside the unit for less fatigue, better posture and greater stability.

The Tour is made of lightweight and ultra-durable materials for unmatched build quality. It folds compactly, making it ideal for easy transport. For added

Mast General Store in Waynesville is partnering with MANNA FoodBank this Feb. 11-12 to fill the MANNA food pantry.

The annual Be a Sweetheart, Feed the Hungry campaign matches each pound of candy purchased at Mast with a $1 donation to help ensure that those in our communities who need a good meal will have one.

MANNA is able to turn that $1 into three meals, which will feed hungry folks in the local area.

SCC to offer free business startup series Southwestern Community College’s Small Business Center is beginning a business startup series, which will be held from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Monday nights through March 27.

All programs are free of charge, but registration is required. This series focuses on aspiring entrepreneurs and gives them the information needed to start up their own business. The series schedule is as follows: Feb. 6 - Choosing a Legal Structure; Feb. 13 - Financing Your Business; Feb. 20 - How to Find Your Customers; Feb. 27 - How to Write a Business Plan; March 6 - Basics of Bookkeeping; March 13 - Marketing Your Business; March 20 - Business Taxes; March 27 - How to Price Your Product or Service.

Register for any or all of these programs at

The Small Business Center at Haywood Community College will offer a free seminar entitled, “Financing Your Business,” from 5 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 1, in Room 3021 at the College’s Regional High Technology Center.

Participants will explore the advantages and disadvantages of the different types of funding sources and how to choose the right one for individual needs.

“Financing Your Business” will help attendees discover the keys to financing success.

The speakers for this seminar will include representatives from the N.C. Rural Center.

Additional seminars in this series include: “How to Start a Business” on Feb. 7; “How to Price Your Product or Service” on Feb. 13; “How to Find Your Customers” on Feb. 16; “How to Write a Business Plan” on Feb. 21; “Basics of Bookkeeping” on Feb. 23; “Choosing Your Legal Structure” on Feb. 28; “Your Small Business Taxes” on March 14 and “Marketing Your Business” on March 16.

Visit sbc.haywood.edu or call 828.627.4512 to register.

Boomer Sassman to present free seminar Boomer Sassmann, owner and lead internet consultant of Big Boom Design, will present two free small business seminars for Southwestern Community College’s Small Business Center.

Both seminars will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday nights at SCC’s Jackson Campus. “Build Your Business’ Website Using WordPress CMS” will be held Feb. 9 and “Using WordPress to Blog for Your Business” will be held Feb. 21.

Sassman founded Big Boom Design in 2007 after graduating from Appalachian State University with a degree in industrial design. In addition to his web design business, Sassmann teaches throughout the Southeast, covering topics such as Google Analytics tracking and WordPress website design.

Call 828.339.4211 or email t_henry@southwesterncc.edu to register.

Harrah’s gets Green Key award Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort was awarded a 4Key rating by Green Key Global, for efforts to reduce waste and conserve resources.

Green Key ratings are based on efforts to reduce utility consumption, waste, emissions, and operating costs.

Conservation efforts in 2016 for Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort were highlighted by a 9 percent reduction in laundry use by weight. Additionally, Harrah’s Cherokee Casinos’ hotels in Murphy and Cherokee are launching a new Housekeeping Opt-Out program that aims to reward guests with $20 in Free Slot Play for opting out of housekeeping service on multi-night stays, thus reducing linens use and unnecessary cleaning.

17

• Harrah’s Cherokee Casinos community outreach programs focus on assisting health and wellness organizations, senior care, education, as well as organizations, that promote diversity and civic improvement. In 2016, Harrah’s Cherokee Casinos donated more than $190,000 to nonprofits in Western North Carolina.

Harrah’s Cherokee employees volunteered over 80,000 service hours.

ALSO:

• The 2017 Maggie Valley Visitor Guides for are now available. Contact the Maggie Valley Chamber of Commerce for more information. 828.926.1686 or www.maggievalley.org.

• The Franklin Chamber of Commerce is proud to welcome Sassy Stitches to its membership at a ribbon cutting celebration held recently. Sassy Stitches is located at 106 W. Palmer Street near downtown Franklin.

• Haywood Community College’s Small Business Center will offer a free seminar on QuickBooks 2 from 3 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 2, in Room 203, Building 200 on the college campus. Visit sbc.haywood.edu or call 828.627.4512 to register.

• Sassy Stitches, formerly Deb’s Cats N Quilts in Franklin, is now under new ownership. Lindy Blanton and her mother Anne Alewine purchased the business located at 106 W. Palmer St., in July 2016.

Today, Sassy Stitches is a 4300 square-foot, full-service quilt shop.

• A grand opening was recently held for Aspire Training & Development located at 168 S. Main St., in downtown Waynesville.

The training center is owned and operated by Bronwen Talley-Coffey. Call 828.246.0956.

February 14th-15th Waynesville Location Only

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Smoky Mountain News

February 8-14, 2017

828-454-1004

18

485 Hendersonville Rd. Ste. 3, Asheville

www.PinkRegalia.com

828-785-1881

Opinion

Smoky Mountain News

19

New commissioner stumbles out of the gate B

The world joins in supporting democracy To the Editor: The Constitution guarantees the right to assembly, and Americans continue to exercise that right throughout history. In the 1900s, we marched for women’s suffrage; in the 1930s, we marched for workers’ rights; in the 1960s, we marched for civil rights; in the 1970s, we marched for peace. Never before in the history of American non-violent protest were these marches joined by people from all around the world.

The Women’s March the day after the inauguratio was a worldwide phenomenon of epic proportions. In hundreds of cities around the world, thousands participated, totaling millions of people worldwide. While these events were organized by women, the point of the marches was not limited to issues affecting women. The march was a show of solidary and an affirmation of human rights. It was a coming together to gather strength and inspiration from one another.

I, for one, am grateful that I live in a country where the transfer of power shifts without bloodletting. That said, it is important to remember that, while the electoral college handed us a new president, the result was not the will of the majority. The elections of 2016 and 2000 are the only times in modern history when the American public was forced to accept a president not elected by the majority of its people. But government is not perfect and we live with the consequences. It is not too early to begin to think about the elections of 2018 and 2020.

Over the next four years, no doubt, American institutions will be dismantled. We face the dissolution of Social Security, a program that has helped Americans for the better part of a century. We face the erosion of Medicare, an insurance program that

oppose this proposed increase. Worse, he’s thrown his lot in with the likes of Rep. Michelle Presnell, R-Burnsville, whose opposition to this measure and others has negatively impacted Haywood County’s economy for years.

She’s the only state legislator who represents Haywood and has not supported this increase.

Rogers said he changed his mind after doing some soul-searching. He gave as justification for his reversal the fact that he campaigned on raising taxes only as a last resort. Here’s what he told one of our reporters during the Editor campaign: “I want to be a voice for the people. For the common core guy like myself trying to raise a family in the county, I want to make a difference and be a voice for them.”

That statement makes this vote even more surprising.

Helping improve the tourism economy — which is Haywood’s largest economic sector — helps keep taxes down for all Haywood County residents, especially working-class citizens.

If more tourists show up, Haywood gets millions more back in sales tax from the state. Restaurants, galleries, motels, convenience stores and retail outlets will all hire more people or pay

Scott McLeod

randon Rogers almost certainly disappointed — and surprised — many of his supporters during Monday’s Haywood County Commissioners meeting. Apparently that discomforting politician’s habit of saying one thing and then doing something completely different once in office has now reached down to the local level.

Rogers, a Republican, is the newly elected county commissioner who earned the most votes in the November election.

He worked hard during the campaign, expressed his position clearly on several important issues, and is a likeable guy. He undoubtedly benefitted from the Donald Trump tidal wave that swept a lot of GOP and independent voters to the polls, but that’s the electoral reality of 2016. Chances are he would have won even without the Trump coattails.

On Monday, however, he reversed position on a key issue.

During his campaign, he said he supported Haywood County’s Tourism Development Authority’s effort to increase the room tax on overnight hotel stays from 4 to 6 percent. The TDA has been trying to get this increase passed for a couple of years, and every elected board in Haywood County passed resolutions of support back in 2013.

So not only did Rogers tell voters one thing and then do something completely different, he now stands as the only locally elected commissioner or aldermen in the county to

their current employees more. Some of those tourists eventually buy houses or real estate, which means that property tax collections rise and local people get jobs in real estate firms or construction companies. All of that economic activity leads to more money in the pockets of small businesses and their employees throughout the county, and that translates to more money for everything from youth league sports to churches.

And the bottom line for commissioners and town aldermen is that a successful tourism economy allows them to keep property taxes as low as possible. Tourism-related economic activity saves each Haywood resident $259.43 annually in property tax increases. That’s why the local Economic Development Commission and the local Chamber of Commerce support the increase.

There are relevant questions about how the additional room tax money might be spent, and there are ways county commissioners can exert their influence in this arena.

Additionally, I get that there’s a learning curve with being a commissioner. But to come out of the gate reversing yourself on a campaign pledge — and doing it on an issue that is supported by almost every county leader who has seriously studied the issue — is disappointing to say the least.

Reach Scott McLeod at info@smokymountainnews.com.

Please take time to give feedback

LETTERS provides care to seniors. We face the repeal of the Affordable Care Act and a return to people paying into a system when they are healthy, only to find their insurance denied when they need it most. We face the return to an environment where clean water and clean air are no longer priorities. We face the loss of a minuscule amount of the federal budget that supports community programming under the NEA, NEH and PBS. Still, we should take heart. Never before in history, have people from all around the world joined America to affirm our concerns and to support our democracy.

Anna Fariello Cullowhee

NATO is too important to scrap To the Editor: Our fathers and grandfathers fought in World War II to save the world from Nazi domination.

Over 60 million people died in that war. There had been a European war about every 30 years for the last couple of centuries. After WWII, American leaders decided to make sure it would never happen again. The key to preventing another World War was NATO. NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, was formed as a military alliance of European and North American democracies to serve as a counterbalance to the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact.

Today NATO is just as important as it was in 1945.

Gen. James Mattis, the new Secretary of

S EE LETTERS, PAGE 21

Many thanks to The Smoky Mountain News for the recent article by Becky Johnson (www.smokymountainnews.com/news/item/19193) to update the citizens of Haywood County about the library system survey many will receive in early February. The feedback from that survey is important to shape the development of the library system strategic plan. If you receive one of the 4,500 surveys in the mail, please take a few moments to fill out the two-sided form and then place it in the postage-paid envelope and return in the mail. The Public Policy Institute of Western Carolina University will tabulate the results of your feedback and present them to the library task force in mid-March. The draft strategic plan should be completed in time to inform the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) of citizen interests this spring.

Why is this library survey important? The key stakeholders — the Haywood County leadership (including the county board, county manager, library director and appointed, volunteer board of trustees) and the nonprofit library support organizations (Friends of the Library and Library Foundation) have agreed to share resources to fund this county-wide, broad-sample survey so that we have the most current ideas to work with to complete the multi-year library system strategic plan.

Haywood County citizens have much to be proud of from the talented library team led by Sharon Woodrow. In 2016, the Haywood County Public Library won a state award (from among our 100 counties) for one innovative program and a second national level award for a separate initiative called “plug in and read” to inspire preschoolers. The library team wants to provide even better service to the citizens and needs your feedback on how to best meet that goal.

The Friends of the Library provide both extensive volunteer hours and significant nonprofit resources to ensure maximum, quality programs are made available to citizens across all ages and interests. The Library Foundation, another nonprofit organization, provides infrastructure support across the library system.

Both nonprofits rely on citizen donations to meet those needs and initiatives.

Thanks for your interest in helping to even better “connect the community” by completing the library survey and returning your feedback!

David E McCracken President Haywood County Library Foundation Kevin P. Murphy, President Friends of the Library Foundation

Smoky Mountain News

February 8-14, 2017 20

hey were both quiet, their voices barely audible even during roll call, and absolutely silent otherwise. Even as a new teacher, I understood that freshman English was a class that most students simply endured, rather than enjoyed. I had not really enjoyed it that much myself when I had been a freshman, so what flint did I have that could generate a spark for writing narrative or comparison and contrast essays among my own students? Neither Steve nor David seemed to express any more interest than I had in the immense possibilities that writing an essay might contain.

Steve was in the very first class I ever taught, as a teaching assistant at Appalachian State University. He was on the football team, a red-shirt freshman who had played quarterback on his high school team, one of the Charlotte city schools. Not surprisingly, when the time came to choose a topic, he wanted to write about football. If I wanted a story, he had a good one. He had led his team to a state championship during his senior year in high school, which had been only a few months prior.

I told him that would be fine, as long as he stayed focused on the one game, and did not fall into the trap of describing highlights from the entire season, which would not really work for a narrative.

The narrative was supposed to be about 800-1,000 words or so, but when Steve

T

came into the class a few days later, he was holding what looked like the rough draft of Moby Dick. His narrative was 14 pages long if it was a paragraph. I looked at him, completely dumbfounded.

“You covered the whole season, middle school, Pop Warner, and every practice in between, didn’t you, Steve?” I asked.

“No sir,” he said with a sly smile.

“You said one game, so this is just one game.”

I took his draft Columnist back to my little apartment on the edge of campus and began reading. Steve had reproduced the entire game on paper, beginning with the kick-off followed by a short description of every play from start to finish for all four quarters. It was a remarkable example of recall, but as a narrative it fell completely flat. After the first three pages, it was all I could do to make myself read the rest of it.

Steve had done exactly what I asked him to do, which was to tell a specific story that covered no more than a few hours, and it was terrible. Now what, teacher? I asked him to meet me for a conference. I asked him what he thought the thesis of his paper was.

Chris Cox

opinion

Two essays that left a lasting influence “We won,” he said.

We must have talked for an hour or more, both of us trying to figure out what he should do with his paper. We finally settled on a strategy, cutting the narrative down to just the winning drive — only a few minutes in real time — adding all of the sensory details that had to be left out of the first draft to keep it down to a “trim” 14 pages — and focusing more on what winning meant to him, which turned out to be much deeper than he realized.

Now, when I read Steve’s paper, I could hear the marching band, the crunch of shoulder pads colliding, the epithets of a mouthy middle linebacker. I could taste the mint in my mouthpiece, the coppery blood seeping around a loose tooth. I could feel the tension of a third and long, the thrill of finding an open receiver on a deep route, the pure joy of being surrounded by teammates and fans and family, regarded as a hero. I could see my father, that look on his face.

At half the size of the original, the final draft was a beautiful narrative, a genuine pleasure to read. I had never been the quarterback of a championship football team, and Steve had taken me there.

A few short years later, I got a job at Southwestern Community College, and in my very class, I met David. He had just gotten back from a tour in Desert Storm and had enrolled in school on the GI Bill. He sat in the very back of class, attentive, always on time, with excellent posture and piercing blue eyes, like Paul Newman’s.

I figured it was going to be quite a feat to get him to write more than a paragraph or two about anything at all, given his daily habit of saying nothing more than “here” when I called his name. Even when I asked him after class if he had any ideas for his narrative, he was noncommittal.

“I dunno,” he said. “Something.”

On the day the rough draft was due, David didn’t appear to have one. This is not that uncommon, and I cannot say that I was that surprised as I walked around the room collecting drafts from those who had them.

But when I got to David, he suddenly produced a folded copy from inside the uniformly blank pages of a spiral bound notebook, as if he had performed a routine and particularly boring magic trick.

When I came upon his draft in a tall stack of them the following Saturday afternoon, I thought, well, this should be interesting. And it was. David had chosen to begin his narrative with dialogue, literally a voice in the night, the words appearing tentatively at first, like pinpricks on a vast black canvas.

“David. David? David!”

It was his father, just before dawn, trying to shake David out of a deep sleep. They were going hunting.

OK, OK, I thought. This is pretty good.

A father/son hunting trip.

In the cab of his dad’s pick-up on the way to the section of woods where they had their deer stand set up, there wasn’t a lot of

talk. His dad farted and made a joke about it. David elbowed him in the ribs and made a sharp remark, and his dad made one back. They gulped black coffee and complained about the crappy heater that hadn’t worked worth a damn in years.

They turned off road, geared down, and rattled their way through the potholes and debris over a trail that didn’t look anything like a trail toward their usual parking spot.

When they got out and grabbed their rifles, it was on the verge of dawn and so cold that walking on the dead, frozen grass in their boots sounded like breaking ten thousand baby bird eggshells.

When they entered the woods, his dad broke left to the deer stand, and David to the right, to his lucky spot. But his mind really wasn’t on deer hunting, not today, and neither was his dad’s. Tomorrow, he would ship off to the Middle East to fight in Desert Storm. He and his dad went hunting all the time, but this might be, could maybe be, the very last hunting trip they would make. He’d be back, wouldn’t he? Probably would. But sometimes people don’t come back, at least not to deer hunt, or to happy family reunions. And when they came back, sometimes they came back to a different place. He knew it. His dad knew it.

They didn’t know how to talk about it.

So they went hunting, and drank black coffee out of a red and gray thermos, and made fart jokes, and walked in different directions in the frozen dawn, communicating in the only language they could speak.

By the time I finished David’s narrative, I was surprised to find myself in tears. I sat and held it in my hands for a long time, letting its greatness wash over me, letting as much of it sink in as I could.

For the next 15 years, I read that story to every freshman English class I taught as an example of what can be done in a narrative essay. Unfortunately, I lost it in one of several office moves a few years ago, but I have read it so many times to so many people — literally hundreds and hundreds of people — that I will always remember it.

A few weeks ago — just days apart — I saw two items that jolted me, as sudden powerful confrontations with the past will sometimes do. I saw that Steve, the shy writer of the high school football opus, had been named as the new Defensive Coordinator of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League.

And I saw that David, the shy chronicler of an unforgettable hunting trip, had died tragically and unexpectedly in his hometown.

These two students didn’t know each other and had nothing in common, except their enduring influence on an aging English teacher who will never forget either of them, or their magnificent stories. It has been 30 years since I have seen Steve, and 25 since I have seen David, but I know that they’ll be with me always.

Thanks for telling me your stories, guys.

(Chris Cox is an English teacher and a writer. jchriscox@live.com.)

tasteTHEmountains

LETTERS, CONTINUED FROM 19 Defense, said at his confirmation hearing, “If we did not have NATO today, we would need to create it.” It was clear in 1945 and it is clear today that Russia is our main adversary in the fight to create a world governed by democratic principles and the rule of law.

Gen. Mattis called Russia “the principle threat” to the United States and he said, “I have very modest expectations about areas of cooperation with Mr. [Vladimir] Putin.”

Russia sees NATO as the chief obstacle to its divide and conquer method of expansion.

Today, Russia is on the march to recreate the old Soviet Union. In March of 2014 they took by military force Crimea, the territory in Ukraine. This was the first time since the end of the WWII that a border in Europe had been changed by military force.

Sanctions were imposed on Russia for this act of war. Through the use of cyber warfare, propaganda and social media, Russia has been attempting to destabilize every country in Europe. It is not clear if the Russian interference made any difference in our election, but it is clear they tried.

Since WWII, we have been the world leader in opposing the forces of tyranny and oppression. The relative peace and prosperity we have enjoyed in the last 70 years is a direct result of the unity and power of NATO and similar alliances. Now, with a casual tweet calling NATO obsolete, our world leadership is in question.

Louis Vitale Franklin

Mon.-Fri. 11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Saturday 12 p.m.-10 p.m.

Closed Tues.

Sun. 12-9 p.m.

Sandwiches • Burgers • Wraps 32 Felmet Street (828) 246-0927

Taste the Mountains is an ever-evolving paid section of places to dine in Western North Carolina. If you would like to be included in the listing please contact our advertising department at 828.452.4251 BLOSSOM ON MAIN 128 N. Main Street, Waynesville.

828.454.5400. Open for lunch and dinner from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Sunday. Mild, medium, to hot and spicy, our food is cooked to your like-able temperature. Forget the myth that all Thai food is spicy. Traditional Thai food is known to be quite healthy, making use of natural and fresh ingredients, paired with lots of spices, herbs, and vegetables. Vegetarians and health conscious individuals will not be disappointed as fresh vegetables and tofu are available in most of our menu as well as wines and saki chosen to compliment the unique flavors of Thai cuisine.

BLUE ROOSTER SOUTHERN GRILL 207 Paragon Parkway, Clyde, Lakeside Plaza at the old Wal-Mart. 828.456.1997.

Open Monday through Friday. Friendly and fun family atmosphere. Local, handmade Southern cuisine. Fresh-cut salads; slowsimmered soups; flame grilled burgers and steaks, and homemade signature desserts.

Blue-plates and local fresh vegetables daily.

BREAKING BREAD CAFÉ 6147 Hwy 276 S. Bethel (at the Mobil Gas Station) 828.648.3838 Sunday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Saturday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Chef owned and operated. Our salads are made in house using local seasonal vegetables. Fresh roasted ham, turkey and roast beef used in our hoagies. We hand make our own eggplant and chicken parmesan, pork meatballs and hamburgers. We use 1st quality fresh not pre-prepared products to make sure you get the best food for a reasonable price. We make vegetarian, gluten free and sugar free items. Call or go to Facebook (Breaking Bread Café NC) to find out what our specials are.

BRYSON CITY CORK & BEAN A MOUNTAIN SOCIAL HOUSE 16 Everett St.,Bryson City. 828.488.1934.

Open Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday and Sunday brunch 9 a.m. to

Valentine’s Menu

128 N. Main St., Waynesville

Valentine’s Special Dinner for 2 $36

includes 2 house salads, choice of 6oz Bistro Filet or Thai Shrimp Scampi each, choice of noodle, rice or veggie side each and choice of dessert to share!

Call for reservations.

Locals BOGO Special does not apply.

Valentine’s Days Dinner for Two FRIDAY-TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10-14 Come and enjoy a great dinner for two on those special nights for sweethearts!

FEB. 11, 12 & 14

RESERVATIONS SUGGESTED DINNER @ 4:30 P.M. FEB. 14

Appetizer: Fried Oysters

———————————————

FOR ONLY

$

29.

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Smoky Mountain News

To the Editor: Unfortunately, anti-abortion supporters named themselves pro-life, thereby labeling pro-choice supporters pro-death. This serves to demonize the pro-choice movement, increase division, promote intolerance, and incite violence, as in the bombing of Planned Parenthood clinics and murder of their clinicians who provide low-cost healthcare for women and access to contraception, which results in fewer abortions.

The point of contention between these two groups lies in definitions of when life begins. It is at conception for the anti-abortionists, and for pro-choice supporters it is either when an embryo becomes a fetus (occurring the earliest at the end of the first trimester) or when capable of sustaining life independently, at about 24 weeks.

The pro-choice movement maintains that these beliefs and choices are personal decisions not to be decided for them by any government entity or any group or individual. They support the right of women in the anti-abortion movement to their own beliefs.

Some members of the pro-choice movement personally do not favor abortion but concede that every woman has a right to choose for herself whenever it concerns her own body.

Judy Stockinger Franklin

BOURBON BARREL BEEF & ALE 454 Hazelwood Ave., Waynesville, 828.452.9191. Lunch served 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; Monday through Saturday.

Dinner 5 to 9 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Closed on Sunday. We specialize in hand-cut, all natural steaks from local farms, incredible burgers, and other classic american comfort foods that are made using only the finest local and sustainable ingredients available.

Entree Specials:

• 5 Oz. center cut filet with sautéed mushrooms and 4 oz lobster tail $30.00 • 2 clusters of crabs. lobster tail, and 3 fried shrimp $32.99

Specialty desserts:

Dinner Includes:

WINE • BEER • SAKE

Two 8oz. Hand-Cut Ribeyes with Choice of Side, Salad, Non-Alcoholic Beverage & a Special Dessert for Two!

Open Thur - Tue 11:30-9 Closed Wednesdays

(828) 454-5400

BlossomOnMain.com

February 8-14, 2017

Defining pro-choice, pro-life

Brown bagging is permitted. Private parties, catering, and take-out available. Call-ahead seating available.

35 EAST MAIN ST. • SYLVA 828.586.6532

Red velvet cheese cake with cream cheese frosting & Raspberry champagne cupcakes All entrees served with warm rolls, side dish and side salad

383-45

REGULAR MENU & BAR ALSO AVAILABLE

828.926.1817 jarthurs.com 2843 Soco Rd. Maggie Valley Open @ 4:30 p.m. Thurs.-Sat. • Sun. @ Noon

21

2 OFF DAILY SPECIAL

$ 00

DINE IN ONLY. EXPIRES 3/1/17.

HOURS: 11 A.M.-10 P.M. TUES.-THURS. 11 A.M.-11 P.M. FRI. & SAT. • NOON-9 P.M. SUN.

828.586.1985

483 Skyland Drive • Sylva

Exit 85 to Skyland Dr., two blocks from McDonalds

Tuesday, February 14th Dinner for 2 • $3799 A 3 course meal with fresh made pasta, San Marzano Tomato sauce and stuffed Italian sausage.

Newlywed Game @9 Not So Newlywed Game @ 7

Winners Eat Free!

February 8-14, 2017

LIVE MUSIC Reservations requested for preferred TWELFTH FRET seating and game spot: 828-586-6440 1315 W Main St, Sylva • Tue.-Sat. 2pm – 12am

Real New Yorkers.

Real Italians. Real Pizza.

Smoky Mountain News

Dine-In ~ Take Out ~ Delivery

An Authentic Italian Pizzeria & Restaurant from New York to the Blue Ridge.

Just to serve you!

Featuring: Calzones · Stromboli Subs · Pasta and More NOW OPEN

Mon.-Sat. 11 am to 9 pm · Closed Sundays

243 Paragon Parkway | Clyde 22

828-476-5058

tasteTHEmountains 3p.m., Full Menu 3 to 9 p.m. Serving fresh and delicious weekday morning lite fare, lunch, dinner, and brunch. Freshly prepared menu offerings range from house-made soups & salads, lite fare & tapas, crepes, specialty sandwiches and burgers. Be sure not to miss the bold flavors and creative combinations that make up the daily Chef Supper Specials starting at 5pm every day.

Followed by a tempting selection of desserts prepared daily by our chefs and other local bakers. Enjoy craft beers on tap, as well as our full bar and eclectic wine list.

CATALOOCHEE RANCH 119 Ranch Dr., Maggie Valley.

828.926.1401. Family-style breakfast seven days a week, from 8 am to 9:30 am – with eggs, bacon, sausage, grits and oatmeal, fresh fruit, sometimes French toast or pancakes, and always all-you-can-eat. Lunch every day from 12:00 till 2 pm. Evening cookouts on the terrace on weekends and Wednesdays, featuring steaks, ribs, chicken, and pork chops, to name a few. Bountiful family-style dinners on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, with entrees that include prime rib, baked ham and herb-baked chicken, complemented by seasonal vegetables, homemade breads, jellies and desserts. We also offer a fine selection of wine and beer.

The evening social hour starts at 6 pm, and dinner is served starting at 7 pm. So join us for mile-high mountaintop dining with a spectacular view. Please call for reservations.

CHEF’S TABLE 30 Church St., Waynesville. 828.452.6210.

From 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday dinner starting at 5 p.m. “Best of” Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator Magazine. Set in a distinguished atmosphere with an exceptional menu. Extensive selection of wine and beer. Reservations honored.

CHURCH STREET DEPOT 34 Church Street, downtown Waynesville.

828.246.6505. 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Mouthwatering all beef burgers and dogs, hand-dipped, hand-spun real ice cream shakes and floats, fresh handcut fries. Locally sourced beef. Indoor and outdoor dining. facebook.com/ChurchStreetDepot, twitter.com/ChurchStDepot.

CITY LIGHTS CAFE Spring Street in downtown Sylva.

828.587.2233. Open Monday-Saturday 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sunday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tasty, healthy and quick. Breakfast,

Presents Valentine’s

lunch, dinner, espresso, beer and wine.

Come taste the savory and sweet crepes, grilled paninis, fresh, organic salads, soups and more. Outside patio seating. Free Wi-Fi, pet-friendly. Live music and lots of events.

Check the web calendar at citylightscafe.com.

THE CLASSIC WINESELLER 20 Church Street, Waynesville.

828.452.6000. Underground retail wine and craft beer shop, restaurant, and intimate live music venue. Kitchen opens at 4 p.m.

Wednesday through Saturday serving freshly prepared small plates, tapas, charcuterie, desserts. Enjoy live music every Friday and Saturday night at 7pm. www.classicwineseller.com. Also on facebook and twitter.

COUNTRY VITTLES: FAMILY STYLE RESTAURANT 3589 Soco Rd, Maggie Valley.

828.926.1820 Winter hours: Wednesday through Sunday 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Family Style at Country Vittles is not a buffet.

Instead our waitresses will bring your food piping hot from the kitchen right to your table and as many refills as you want. So if you have a big appetite, but sure to ask your waitress about our family style service.

FERRARA PIZZA & PASTA 243 Paragon Parkway, Clyde.

828.476.5058. Open Monday-Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Real New Yorkers. Real Italians. Real Pizza. A full service authentic Italian pizzeria and restaurant from New York to the Blue Ridge. Dine in, take out, and delivery. Check out our daily lunch specials plus customer appreciation nights on Monday and Tuesday 5 to 9 p.m. with large cheese pizzas for $9.95.

FROGS LEAP PUBLIC HOUSE 44 Church St., Downtown Waynesville 828.456.1930 Serving lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; Dinner 5 to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday. 5 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Closed Sunday and Monday. Frogs Leap is a farm to table restaurant focused on local, sustainable, natural and organic products prepared in modern regional dishes. Seasonal menu focuses on Southern comfort foods with upscale flavors. www.frogsleappublichouse.com.

GUADALUPE CAFÉ 606 W. Main Street, Sylva. 828.586.9877.

Open 7 days a week at 5 p.m. Located in the historic Hooper’s Drugstore, Guadalupe Café is a chef-owned and operated restaurant serving Caribbean inspired fare compliment-

ed by a quirky selection of wines and microbrews. Supporting local farmers of organic produce, livestock, hand-crafted cheese, and using sustainably harvested seafood.

J. ARTHUR’S RESTAURANT AT MAGGIE VALLEY U.S. 19 in Maggie Valley. 828.926.1817.

Open nightly for dinner at 4 p.m.; Friday through Sunday 12 to 4 p.m. for lunch. Daily luncheon special at $6.99. World-famous prime rib, steaks, fresh seafood, gorgonzola cheese and salads. All ABC permits and open year-round. Children always welcome. Takeout menu. Excellent service and hospitality.

JUKEBOX JUNCTION U.S. 276 and N.C. 110 intersection, Bethel.

828.648.4193. 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday; Sunday 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Serving breakfast, lunch, nd dinner.

The restaurant has a 1950s & 60s theme decorated with memorabilia from that era.

MAD BATTER FOOD & FILM 617 W. Main Street Downtown Sylva.

828.586.3555. Open Monday through Wednesday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Thursday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Handtossed pizza, steak sandwiches, wraps, salads and desserts. All made from scratch.

Beer and wine. Free movies with showtimes at 6:30 and 9 p.m. with a Saturday matinee at 2 p.m. Visit madbatterfoodandfilm.com for this week’s shows.

MAGGIE VALLEY CLUB 1819 Country Club Dr., Maggie Valley.

828.926.1616. maggievalleyclub.com/dine.

Open seasonally for lunch and dinner. Fine and casual fireside dining in welcoming atmosphere. Full bar. Reservations accepted.

MOUNTAIN PERKS ESPRESSO BAR & CAFÉ 9 Depot St., Bryson City. 828.488.9561.

Open Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. With music at the Depot. Sunday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Life is too short for bad coffee. We feature wonderful breakfast and lunch selections. Bagels, wraps, soups, sandwiches, salads and quiche with a variety of specialty coffees, teas and smoothies. Various desserts.

NEWFOUND LODGE RESTAURANT 1303 Tsali Blvd, Cherokee (Located on 441 North at entrance to GSMNP).

828.497.4590. Open 7 a.m. daily.

Established in 1946 and serving breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week. Family style dining for adults and children.

WAYNESVILLE’S BEST BURGERS

Saturday, February 11

LIVE

SEATING STARTS AT 7:30 SHOW STARTS AT 8:00

JAZZ MUSIC

TICKETS $8

IN ADVANCE

$10

AT THE DOOR

Special Valentine Menu PURCHASE ONLINE AT:

828.586.3555

Located Located inin Beautiful Beautiful Downtown Downtown Sylva, Sylva, NCNC www.MadBatterFoodFilm.com

MON.-SAT. 11 A.M.-8 P.M.

34 CHURCH ST. WAYNESVILLE 828.246.6505 Mtwitter.com/ChurchStDepot C facebook.com/ChurchStreetDepot

Valentine’s Weekend

Fixed-Price Specials Mon.&Tue. Feb. 13/14

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

Order off the menu or choose 1 of 4 affordable packages that includes a bottle of wine, champagne or pitcher of local beer. Buy 1-Get 1 Free Dessert Crepes and $5 Flights of Beer. We will have 6 Specials those nights, plus our regular menu items.

Reservations Encouraged 828.587.2233 3 E JACKSON ST. • SYLVA, NC

www.CityLightsCafe.com

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REEKSIDE COYSTER HOUSE & GRILL

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tasteTHEmountains PASQUALE’S 1863 South Main Street, Waynesville. Off exit 98, 828.454.5002. Open for lunch and dinner, Tuesday through Sunday.

Classic Italian dishes, exceptional steaks and seafood (available in full and lighter sizes), thin crust pizza, homemade soups, salads hand tossed at your table. Fine wine and beer selection. Casual atmosphere, dine indoors, outside on the patio or at the bar. Reservations appreciated.

RENDEZVOUS RESTAURANT AND BAR Maggie Valley Inn and Conference Center 70 Soco Road, Maggie Valley 828.926.0201 Home of the Maggie Valley Pizzeria. We deliver after 4 p.m. daily to all of Maggie Valley, J-Creek area, and Lake Junaluska. Monday through Wednesday: 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Thursday: 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. country buffet and salad bar from 5 to 9 p.m. $11.95 with Steve Whiddon on piano. Friday and Saturday: 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sunday 11:30 to 8 p.m. 11:30 to 3 p.m. family style, fried chicken, ham, fried fish, salad bar, along with all the fixings, $11.95. Check out our events and menu at rendezvousmaggievalley.com SAGEBRUSH STEAKHOUSE 1941 Champion Drive, Canton 828.646.3750 895 Russ Ave., Waynesville 828.452.5822. Sunday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Carry out available.

Sagebrush features hand carved steaks, chicken and award winning BBQ ribs. We have fresh salads, seasonal vegetables and scrumptious deserts. Extensive selection of local craft beers and a full bar. Catering special events is one of our specialties.

SMOKY MOUNTAIN SUB SHOP 29 Miller Street Waynesville 828.456.3400.

Open from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. A Waynesville tradition, the Smoky Mountain

SPEEDY’S PIZZA 285 Main Street, Sylva. 828.586.3800.

Open seven days a week. Monday-Friday 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Saturday 3 p.m.-11 p.m., Sunday 4 p.m.-10 p.m. Family-owned for 30 years. Serving hand-tossed pizza made to order, pasta, subs, gourmet salads, calzones and seafood. Also serving excellent prime rib on Thursdays. Dine in or take out available.

Located across from the Fire Station.

TAP ROOM BAR & GRILL 176 Country Club Drive, Waynesville.

828.456.3551. Open seven days a week serving lunch and dinner. 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Tucked away inside Waynesville Inn, the Tap Room Bar & Grill has an approachable menu designed around locally sourced, sustainable, farm-to-table ingredients. Full bar and wine cellar. www.thewaynesvilleinn.com.

TRAILHEAD CAFE & BAKERY 18 N Main Street, Waynesville.

828.452.3881 Open 7 days a week Monday-Saturday 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. You will find a delicious selection of pastries & donuts, breakfast & lunch along with a fresh coffee & barista selection. Happy Trails!

VITO’S PIZZA 607 Highlands Rd., Franklin.

828.369.9890. Established here in in 1998. Come to Franklin and enjoy our laid back place, a place you can sit back, relax and enjoy our 62” HDTV. Our Pizza dough, sauce, meatballs, and sausage are all made from scratch by Vito.

Valentine’s Day Brunch Sunday Feb. 12th 10am - 3pm

$1395 Hand carved roast beef Breakfast Items • Omelet station Fried Chicken • Baked Ham • Fried Shrimp Salad Bar • Dessert Bar Noon: Mimosa & Bloody Mary Bar (priced per drink) Starters Bar with your favorite finger foods and our famous Chili

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Music from Steve Whiddon the Piano Man

The Rendezvous RESTAURANT & LOUNGE At the Maggie Valley Inn

70 Soco Road, Maggie Valley 828.926.0201 325-7

Valentine’s

WAYNESVILLE PIZZA COMPANY 32 Felmet Street, Waynesville.

828.246.0927. Open Monday through Friday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Saturday, noon to 10 p.m.; Sunday noon to 9 p.m.; closed Tuesdays. Opened in May 2016, The Waynesville Pizza Company has earned a reputation for having the best hand-tossed pizza in the area. Featuring a custom bar with more than 20 beers and a rustic, family friendly dining room. Menu includes salads, burgers, wraps, hot and cold sandwiches, gourmet pizza, homemade desserts, and a loaded salad bar. The Cuban sandwich is considered by most to be the best in town.

5

Specials

5 Specials 5 Days 5 Hours

Seafood Lovers

Pasta Lovers

Beef Lovers

Seafood Lovers Delight: Pan seared Flounder ,Grilled Shrimp on a Stix basted with butter garlic sauce, Shrimp Scampi,sample of Cole Slaw, and a side of Citrus Gazed Green Beans, brown rice and apples 16.99

Pasta Lovers Dinner: Tri colored three cheese tortellini covered in our house made alfredo sauce, stuffed shells covered with our house made red sauce and Mozzarella cheese, two meat balls with spaghetti and red sauce. 14.99

Prime Rib Lovers: 8 oz. cut of prime rib with house made Au Jus, sautéed button mushrooms, and a Baked Potato. 16.99

Fish can be pan seared or broiled at no extra cost

CALL FOR RESERVATIONS

The Rendezvous RESTAURANT & LOUNGE At the Maggie Valley Inn

Rib Eye Lovers : Fresh hand cut 10 oz. Angus Rib Eye beef cooked to order, sautéed button mushrooms, and a Baked Potato. 17.99 Additional ounces available for Prime Rib or Rib Eye add 1.50 per ounce.

70 Soco Road, Maggie Valley 828.926.0201

Smoky Mountain News

WE ARE SERVING THESE FIVE VALENTINE SPECIALS FRIDAY, SATURDAY, SUNDAY, MONDAY, AND TUESDAY FROM 4PM TO 9PM.

Fish Lovers Platter: Flounder Fried golden brown with Hush Puppies, sample of Cole Slaw, and a fresh Baked Potato. 14.99

February 8-14, 2017

SMOKEY SHADOWS LODGE 323 Smoky Shadows Lane, Maggie Valley 828.926.0001. Check Facebook page for hours, which vary. Call early when serving because restaurant fills up fast. Remember when families joined each other at the table for a delicious homemade meal and shared stories about their day? That time is now at Smokey Shadows. The menus are customizable for your special event. Group of eight or more can schedule their own dinner.

Sub Shop has been serving great food for over 20 years. Come in and enjoy the relaxed, casual atmosphere. Sub breads are baked fresh every morning in Waynesville.

Using only the freshest ingredients in homemade soups, salads and sandwiches.

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24

A&E

Smoky Mountain News

Lonesome and a long way from home John Cowan on bluegrass, life

BY GARRET K. WOODWARD STAFF WRITER They wanted to shake things up.

In 1971, a young Sam Bush aimed to create a new kind of bluegrass music. The legendary mandolinist was a teenager when he formed New Grass Revival. In the “classic lineup,” the group brought together the likes of Curtis Burch, Courtney Johnson and John Cowan (and later Bela Fleck).

And it was Cowan — barely 20 years old when he joined in 1972 — who found himself traveling to the rural mountains of Kentucky to audition for Bush. Cowan was hired on the spot as a bass player, atop his distinct vocal skills that also led to him becoming the lead singer of New Grass Revival.

With long hair, bushy beards and shaggy clothing, the band stuck out like a sore thumb at the old-school conservative bluegrass festivals and national touring circuits. But, all skepticism quickly faded away the moment New Grass Revival plugged in their instruments and kicked off their wild and exuberant style of that “high, lonesome sound.”

In the true spirit of bluegrass — and of time itself — the members of New Grass Revival held steady and kept pickin’ away, and now they’re viewed as a crucial link between the neo-traditional and progressive camps of a genre constantly in flux.

Smoky Mountain News: When you look back on New Grass Revival being the outsiders early on, is it weird to be considered one of the pillars of the genre nowadays?

John Cowan: It’s not weird. It’s kind of nice, actually. To my 25-year-old self back then it may have seemed weird. But now, it’s more of an organic, natural movement of time and space.

SMN: What was it about bluegrass that stuck to you in the beginning? When you started out in the late 1960s and early 1970s, bluegrass might have seemed like outer space in an era when rock-n-roll dominated everything…

JC: It was. It wasn’t necessarily that it was appealing to me. The job came available to me.

The Osborne Brothers. Our name said we were going to take the music and revive it, to keep it going and keep the torch lit.

SMN: Were you looking to make a statement right out of the gate?

JC: I think the only statement we were trying to make was in response to being offended by the older people. Because you’ve got to remember — at that time — there was this huge cultural chasm in the late 60s and early 70s in our country. It was “us versus them,” “them” being our parents’ generation. It was so broad, culturally speaking, that it worked its way down into the bluegrass world we lived in. There was this whole thing about, “those kids are on drugs, they’re ruining our music, they’re plugging their instruments in.” We were kind of offended because we loved Flatt & Scruggs and Bill Monroe. But, we also loved Miles Davis, Frank Zappa, The Allman Brothers Band and Jackson Browne. We were bringing what we heard and saw around us into the music.

One of the former members of New Grass Revival, bassist/vocalist John Cowan is regarded as an iconic force in bluegrass music, past and present. He also is the current bass player for rock act The Doobie Brothers.

I had some mutual friends that knew New Grass Revival was looking for an electric bass player. And then I had some mutual friends in Louisville that knew Sam [Bush], and they told him there’s this guy he should check out that sings and plays well (Cowan). So, they just called me out of the blue. I went to Western Kentucky to audition. They hired me and I never left.

SMN: What sets bluegrass apart from other genres?

JC: I just think that it’s so deep — culturally.

It’s an art form. It’s kind of always the opposite of pop music. Not that I don’t like popular music, but bluegrass is encased in the same ideals as Dixieland, jazz, be-bop and the blues.

It’s roots music. It’s very earthy. Whether you’re a jazz musician or a bluegrass musician, you can’t make a living in this business if you can’t play your instrument. And that’s not necessarily true in pop or rock-n-roll music. It’s pretty much the 10,000 hours concept. You’ve got to learn, to sit around for years and learn your instrument. There’s a whole pedigree you have to learn.

Want to go?

Bluegrass legend John Cowan will perform alongside Darin & Brooke Aldridge at the 22nd annual Bluegrass First Class festival Feb. 17-19 at the Crowne Plaza Resort in Asheville.

Cowan will hit the stage at 2 p.m. and 7:45 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18. Other acts include Dailey & Vincent, Seldom Scene, Rhonda Vincent & The Rage, Town Mountain, The Grascals, Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out, Flatt Lonesome, and many more.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.bluegrassfirstclass.com.

SMN: You guys were really young when you started New Grass Revival, and at a time when a lot of dinosaurs were walking around bluegrass. Were you aware of how important it was at that time to have new blood in the music?

JC: Yeah, and that’s the reason behind the name. It had already “been done” in traditional bluegrass — The Dillards, Country Gentlemen,

SMN: Do you see that divide today between neo-traditional and progressive bluegrass?

JC: I don’t, but I’ve also always lived on the periphery of the genre. What I saw going to the IBMAs (International Bluegrass Music Association awards in Raleigh) this year was that everything seemed really balanced. And we’re part of the old guard, with Ricky Skaggs and Del McCoury, and none of us would say that the next generation is ruining the music. I don’t get that. I see and love the whole openness about the music.

SMN: What does bluegrass mean to you these days, as someone who has dedicated his life to the music?

JC: It’s nice to have done something that was about the heart of the matter, which for us, was trying to be really good at something, and trying to think as human beings about other people. We wonder what’s going to happen to music [moving forward]. But, there’s always going to be some kid in their bedroom learning how to play Stevie Ray Vaughan or Bill Monroe or David Grisman or Sam Bush, or even Beyonce for that matter, who knows? Music is going to continue to exist, and we just don’t know what form it will take. That’s something about human nature — people need to express themselves.

“It’s nice to have done something that was about the heart of the matter, which for us, was trying to be really good at something, and trying to think as human beings about other people.”

— John Cowan

BY GARRET K. WOODWARD

Beach camping at Port Aransas, Texas.

Garret K. Woodward photo

Feet in the sand, not your head

5

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mobile technology to help you get a lot less mobile.

Smoky Mountain News

How could something so Acclaimed chamberfolk act Harpeth Rising will beautiful be so ugly? perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 17, at The Standing at the edge of the Strand at 38 Main in Waynesville. ocean on the Gulf Coast of Texas, The “Songwriters in the Round” series will I looked down at my feet being continue with a “Valentine’s Songwriter” washed over by the relentless evening featuring Henry Hipkens, Pat waves of crisp waters filled with Bergeson and Annie Sellick at 6 p.m. mystery and wonder. I kicked Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Balsam Mountain Inn. around pebbles and broken shells, just glancing down at them There will be a “Chocolate & Bier Pairing” with such awe, almost a Zen-like from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18, at state of mind where you simply Heinzelmännchen Brewery in Sylva. zone out and immerse yourself in There will be wine-tasting fundraiser for Becca the winds of change, and of self.

Swanger, who is running for the 2017 Mardi With all the chaos erupting Gras Ball queen to raise money for the way up there in Washington, Haywood County Schools Foundation, from D.C., since Jan. 20, I awoke the 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10, at other day in the back of my old Cork & Cleaver (Waynesville Inn). pickup truck to the sounds of crashing waves right outside my The Jackson County Extension Office will be open tailgate. The sun was a few offering an “Alcohol Ink Workshop” from 10 minutes from creeping up over a.m. to noon Thursday, Feb. 16, in Sylva. the horizon, the morning dew starting to drip down the side and gloom”? Perhaps it’s just the natural windows of the truck cap. A couple of early order of things. You know, Isaac Newton’s morning walkers were already up and movThird Law, which states, “for every action, ing along the shoreline. I sat up and welthere is an equal and opposite reaction.” comed the sun as it finally arose, peering Meandering up the Texas coast for the over several enormous freighters anchored better part of the last week, I keep turning way out in the Gulf. my head to the right, eyes squinting in the And I thought to myself, how many sunbright sun at the big blue pool of water, rises has this beach seen? Probably as many where somewhere due east is Florida, due as there are grains of sands on said beach, south an array of islands and cultures I hope eh? With all this natural beauty around me to someday explore.

— and all of us, at all times — why must Being somewhat disconnected from the there be such a counterbalance of “doom

SAT. FEB. 11TH 1-5 PM

February 8-14, 2017

HOT PICKS 1 2 3 4

arts & entertainment

This must be the place

outside world has been nice while beach camping and living like a nomad out of the back of the rusty, musty pickup. Yes, I have a smartphone that dings incessantly with folks asking where I am and when to expect things on events and subject matter I’ve planned to write about or promote (or both).

And yet, there are those long minutes and even longer hours where that dang smartphone is hidden underneath some dirty clothes on the driver’s seat in the truck, purposely put on vibrate, and several yards away from my ragged beach chair and beer holder filled with the coldest Lone Star cans this side of Austin.

Isn’t it wild to think that — in terms of the timeline of the universe — we’re just a blip on the screen? Our entire history as a species is a mere second in the endless abyss that is time itself. That notion is not meant to say whatever we do (or try to do) with our lives is all for nothing. Far from. What that means, is that we’ve been given this chance to be present and alive in this exact crossroads of time and place, so why not make the most of it by being a positive and contributing force?

Last week, I had the pleasure of sitting down and interviewing singer-songwriter Hayes Carll. I asked him about what he sees and thinks about the world nowadays. And what he said really struck a deep chord within me: “You can’t communicate with people who have different points of view if you’re demonizing them. Liberal or conservative, if you can’t have a civilized conversation with them, then you’re just yelling at each other and treating each other as a monolith group. Whether it’s a Muslim, Mexican, Republican or Democrat, we’re not monoliths. That idea of treating these groups as monoliths is a disservice to our country. We can’t talk about these issues more because ‘they’re the enemy.’”

At the end of the day, every single one of us was at one time born, where we will all cry, laugh, bleed, win, lose and, ultimately, die. The only differences we see are what we’re told are exactly that — differences.

Yes, there are dangers out there, that’s just part of being a society trying to find steady ground in turbulent times. Are there bad people? Of course. But, are most people of good nature and want to sincerely help one another? I believe so, in my heart-of-hearts.

It’s a weird world out there, I can attest to that. And within the confines of history, it’s not any weirder than any other time before, or after today either. What makes it all seem so much more intense is that we’ve created a daily existence where all of these negative people, places and things are always in our face (or vibrating on our nearby table, waiting to be picked up and interacted with).

I think we all need to track down our ragged beach chairs and cold suds, and just walk out into the backyard, phone left inside (on silent) and soak in the afternoon sunshine like a lazy cat with no plans for the day except to be left alone to collect one’s thoughts, that centering of the soul we all too often disregard in favor of fast-paced priorities that don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. Onward and upward.

Life is beautiful, grasp for it, y’all.

Log on. Plan a trip.

And start kicking back.

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arts & entertainment

On the beat Voices in the Laurel concert The Voices in the Laurel will host its “My Funny Valentine” performance at 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.

The program will feature jazz, popular and show music celebrating love and friendship.

Voices in the Laurel is a nonprofit organization catering to young singers in Western North Carolina by giving them the opportunity to study, rehearse and perform quality choral literature. Voices in the Laurel has touched the lives of over 650 choristers in its 21-year existence.

Tickets are $10 in advance, $15 at the door. For ticket information for the concert, which is open to the public, visit www.voicesinthelaurel.org or contact Suzy Bernardi at 828.734.9163.

Bryson City community jam

February 8-14, 2017

A community music jam will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16, at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City.

Anyone with a guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle, dulcimer or anything unplugged, is invited to join. Singers are also welcomed to join in or you can just

Smoky Mountain News

stop by and listen. The jam is facilitated

by Larry Barnett of Grampa’s Music in Bryson City.

The community jams offer a chance for musicians of all ages and levels of ability to share music they have learned over the years or learn old-time mountain songs.

The music jams are offered to the public each first and third Thursday of the month — year-round. This program received support from the North Carolina Arts Council, an agency funded by the State of North Carolina and the National Endowment of the Arts.

828.488.3030.

Singer-songwriter Jeff Thompson will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, in the Harmons’ Den Bistro at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.

Thompson has won the Eddie’s Attic Competition in Atlanta (other winners include John Mayer and The Indigo Girls), the Six String Cafe Songwriter’s Competition and the Evening Muse Songwriters’ Competition. He was featured in Performing Songwriter Magazine.

The bistro will be open for food and beverage service featuring lighter snacks in addition to the regular menu, and there is a $5 cover charge. www.jeffthompsonmusic.com or www.harttheatre.org.

UPCOMING MUSIC AT LAZY HIKER IN FRANKLIN

• The Classic Wineseller (Waynesville) will host James Hammel (pop/jazz) Feb. 10, Joe Cruz (piano/pop) Feb. 11 and 18, and Sheila Gordon (piano/jazz) Feb. 17. All events begin at 7 p.m. 828.452.6000 or www.classicwineseller.com.

Lazy Hiker Brewing (Franklin) will host Nick Prestia (singersongwriter) Feb. 10, Andalyn (rock/Americana) Feb. 11 and Calvin Get Down (funk/soul) Feb. 18. All shows are free and begin at 8 p.m. 828.349.2337 or www.lazyhikerbrewing.com.

• Derailed Bar & Lounge (Bryson City) will have music at 7 p.m. on Saturdays.

828.488.8898.

• Frog Level Brewing (Waynesville) will host Chris Minick (singer-songwriter) 9 p.m. Feb. 11. All shows are free. www.froglevelbrewing.com.

‘Chamberfolk’ at The Strand Harpeth Rising.

Nick Fancher photo

Live music at HART

• The Canton Armory will host “Winter Pickin’ in the Armory” at 7 p.m. every first and third Friday of the month. The event includes mountain music, vintage country, clogging and dancing. Doors open at 6 p.m. Free. www.cantonnc.com.

ALSO:

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16. All events are free and begin at 8 p.m. www.innovation-brewing.com.

• Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort will host “Purple Reign: The Prince Tribute Show” at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 18. For tickets, visit www.harrahscherokee.com.

• No Name Sports Pub (Sylva) will host Alex Culbreth (folk/blues) Feb. 10, Ol’ Dirty Bathtub (Americana/bluegrass) Feb. 11, Jonny Monster Band (rock) Feb. 17 and Swinging Tire Drinking Choir (Americana) Feb. 18. All shows are free and begin at 9:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted. www.nonamesportspub.com.

• Innovation Brewing (Sylva) will have an Open Mic night Feb. 8 and 15, and a jazz night with the Kittle/Collings Duo Feb. 9 and

• The Oconaluftee Visitor Center (Cherokee) will host a back porch old-time music jam from 1 to 3 p.m. Feb. 18. All are welcome to

Acclaimed chamberfolk act Harpeth Rising will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 17, at The Strand at 38 Main in Waynesville.

Fusing folk, newgrass, rock and classical music, the trio is lyrically rooted in the singer/songwriter tradition, and wrapped in three-part vocal harmonies reminiscent of both Appalachia and medieval Europe. The three musicians each hold classical performance degrees from some of the most venerated schools in the world: Indiana University, Oberlin and Eastman School of Music. But, their classical background is only one dimension of this trio’s powerful musical voice.

Tickets are $15. To purchase tickets, visit www.38main.com.

person. There will also be a production of “We’ve Only Just Begun: The Carpenters Remembered” on Feb. 18, with tickets starting at $20 per person. www.greatmountainmusic.com.

• Soul Infusion Tea House & Bistro (Sylva) will host Brother Bluebird (Americana/folk) during the pre-Valentine’s Day dinner at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 11. 828.586.1717.

• The Strand at 38 Main (Waynesville) will host an “Open Mic” night from 7 to 9 p.m. on Saturdays. All are welcome. 828.283.0079 or www.38main.com.

come play or simply sit and listen to sounds of Southern Appalachia.

• Satulah Mountain Brewing (Highlands) will host “Hoppy Hour” and an open mic with Jimandi at 5:30 p.m. on Thursdays, “Funky Friday” with Bud Davis at 7 p.m. on Fridays and Isaish Breedlove (Americana) at 7 p.m. on Saturdays. 828.482.9794 or www.satulahmountainbrewing.com.

• The Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts (Franklin) will host The Booth Brothers (Christian/pop) at 7:30 p.m.

Feb. 10, with tickets available at $20 per

• The Ugly Dog Pub (Highlands) will host a weekly Appalachian music night from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Wednesdays with Nitrograss.

828.526.8364 or www.theuglydogpub.com.

• The Water’n Hole Bar & Grill (Waynesville) will host Positive Mental Attitude (reggae/rock) Feb. 10, Bender Kills (rock) Feb. 17 and Jonny Monster Band (rock) Feb. 18. All shows begin at 9 p.m.

• Western Carolina University (Cullowhee) will host the All-District Band competition from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Feb. 10 and a Horn Studio Recital 7:30 p.m. Feb. 16 in the recital hall of the Coulter Building. www.wcu.edu.

On the beat Musicians Jacob Jones, Jessie Stephens & Friends will provide a lively evening of bluegrass and old-timey mountain music on Thursday, Feb. 9, at the Historic Jackson County Courthouse in Sylva.

As part of the Jackson County Genealogical Society’s second program of the year, this annual concert has become one of the JCGS’s most popular events.

Refreshments will be served and JCGS activities will be shared beginning at 6:30 p.m. followed by the program starting at 7 p.m.

All JCGS events are free of charge and the public is welcome. For more information, call 828.631.2646.

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arts & entertainment

Mountain music concert

WE LOVE OUR LOCALS

Affairs of the Heart

————————————————————————————— 120 N. Main St. • Waynesville, NC • 828.452.0526

NCDOT TO HOLD A PUBLIC MEETING REGARDING IMPROVEMENTS TO N.C. 107 FROM N.C. 116 to U.S. 23 BUSINESS IN JACKSON COUNTY

Henry Hipkens.

STIP PROJECT R-5600

The project team is developing designs for upgrading N.C. 107 to a four-lane, median divided facility with access management considerations to relieve congestion and improve traffic operations along this heavily traveled route.

@Smoky MtnNews

The public can view information online at https://www.ncdot.gov/projects/publicmeetings/.

Anyone desiring additional information may contact Steve Williams, NCDOT Division 14, Design Construction Engineer; 253 Webster Road, Sylva, NC 28779 by phone; (828) 586-2141 or via email; sjwilliams@ncdot.gov.

NCDOT will provide auxiliary aids and services under the Americans with Disabilities Act for disabled persons who wish to participate in this meeting. Anyone requiring special services should contact: Mr. Williams as early as possible so that arrangements can be made.

Persons who speak Spanish and do not speak English, or have a limited ability to read, speak or understand English, may receive interpretive services upon request prior to the meeting by calling 1-800-481-6494.

Smoky Mountain News

The “Songwriters in the Round” series will continue with a “Valentine’s Songwriter” evening featuring Nashville act Henry Hipkens at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Balsam Mountain Inn. Well-known for his modern standards, Hipkens’ songs have been recorded or performed by Ricky Skaggs, Pam Tillis, Tim O’Brien, Maura O’Connell, Claire Lynch, Robin and Linda Williams, Maryann Price and Trout Fishing in America. He performs regularly at the Bluebird Café in Nashville.

Hipkens will also be joined by singer-songwriters Pat Bergeson and Annie Sellick.

Tickets are $49, which includes a buffet dinner.

828.456.9498 or www.balsammountaininn.net.

February 8-14, 2017

Balsam songwriter series

The public meeting will take place on Thursday February 23, 2017, from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the Southwestern Community College, in the Conrad Burrell Building (Room 102C), located at 447 College Drive, Sylva. Interested citizens may attend at any time and NCDOT representatives will be available to answer questions and receive comments regarding the proposed project. Attendees will also have the opportunity to submit written comments and questions until March 13, 2017. No formal presentation will be made.

Aquellas personas que hablan español y no hablan inglés, o tienen limitaciones para leer, hablar o entender inglés, podrían recibir servicios de interpretación si los solicitan antes de la reunión llamando al 1-800-481-6494.

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arts & entertainment

On the street

O

WOW Mardi Gras fundraiser The Women of Waynesville (WOW) will host a wine-tasting fundraiser for member Becca Swanger, who is running for the 2017 Mardi Gras Ball queen to raise money for the Haywood County Schools Foundation.

The fundraiser will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10, at Cork & Cleaver (Waynesville Inn restaurant).

Tickets are $20 a person, which includes four wine tastings and snacks. All proceeds go to Swanger’s queen campaign. Half of whatever is raised for her campaign will be used to establish a WOW scholarship to be awarded to a graduating senior in May. Tickets can be purchased at the door.

To make a donation, call 828.550.9978.

Folkmoot wine, food fundraiser

February 8-14, 2017

In its efforts to bring more year-round cultural programming to the region, Folkmoot is partnering with The Classic Wineseller for a fundraising event to purchase stage curtains in the Sam Love Queen Auditorium.

The evening will feature tasty wine, live music and delicious food from 6 to 9 p.m.

Thursday, Feb. 9, at The Classic Wineseller

in Waynesville.

The menu will include a first course that is chef's choice amuse bouche (chef's selection); second course choice of either Caesar salad or tomato bisque; third course choices of Tuscan pasta, chicken marsala or Italian shrimp scampi, and fourth course dessert of California cheesecake with a choice of chocolate port or raspberry port sauce.

One glass of wine or nonalcoholic beverage and taxes and gratuities are included in the fundraising cost of $60 per person.

Visit www.folkmoot.org to purchase tickets online or call the office, 828.452.2997 to purchase tickets over the phone. Tickets are not available at the door.

Do you like chocolate and beer?

There will be a “Chocolate & Bier Pairing” from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18, at Heinzelmännchen Brewery in Sylva.

Six samples of Heinzelmännchen Biers and six delectable chocolates from Baxley's.

Tickets are $10 in advance, $15 at the door and can be purchased at either business. Cash or check only. $5 of each ticket will go to The Community Table, a nonprofit that provides nutritious meals to neighbors in need.

828.631.4466 or 828.631.3379.

Three Course

Valentine’s Dinner TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14 | 5:30-8:30 P.M. To Begin With …

A Glass of Prosecco Sparkling Wine

Smoky Mountain News

Appetizer Hearts of Palm Salad OR Grilled BBQ Shrimp OR She Crab Soup

Entrée PanSeared Beef Tournedos with Bourbon Mushroom Sauce OR Lemon Beurre Blanc Salmon Stuffed with Crab, Shrimp and Brie Entrées are served with Grilled Asparagus & Roasted Maple Sweet Potatoes

Dessert Dark Chocolate French Silk Pie OR Crème Brulee

$60/Couple | $32.50/Single Excludes tax and gratuity

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WCU ‘Soft Diplomacy’ exhibition

176 COUNTRY CLUB DRIVE | 828.456.3551

The Western Carolina University Fine Art Museum at the Bardo Arts Center is currently showcase the exhibition “Soft Diplomacy: Quilting Cultural Diplomacy in Liberia” through May 5.

Curated by Dr. Stephanie Beck Cohen, “Soft Diplomacy” explores quilts made in Liberia, West Africa, and gifted across the Atlantic Ocean as part of cultural diplomacy with the United States.

During the 19th century, American settlers carried this artistic tradition to Liberia.

In the centuries that followed, quilts served as both an anchor to their American heritage and a medium through which Liberian women visualize their daily lives and their nation’s histories and present.

The series of events related to this exhibition begins on Thursday, Feb. 9, with a roundtable discussion on, “Africa, Cultural Exchange and Soft Diplomacy” from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Immediately after the round table discussion, there will be a gallery talk with Guest Curator Dr. Stephanie Beck Cohen from 5 to 6 p.m. and a reception from 6 to 7 p.m.

In addition to the reception events, there will be an Artist Talk on “Cultural Diplomacy, Why Art Matters” from 4 to 5:30 p.m.

Wednesday, March 22, and a curator talk on “Art in Embassies” from 3:30 to 4:45 p.m.

Thursday, March 23.

All events are free and open to the public. For further information or to schedule a tour, visit bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or call 828.227.3591.

• The Balsam Mountain Inn will host a “Valentine’s Package” through Feb. 28. Add a candlelit dinner for two, fresh flowers, champagne, souvenir flutes and freshly baked cookies for an additional $125 to the room rate. To reserve, 800.224.9498.

Traditions in Dillsboro. Watch the demonstrations, eat samples and taste house wines for $3 a glass. All recipes posted online. www.countrytraditionsnc.com.

ALSO:

• A wine tasting will be held from 2 to 5 p.m.

Feb. 11 and 18 at Papou’s Wine Shop in Sylva. $5 per person. www.papouswineshop.com or 828.586.6300.

• A free wine tasting will be held from 1 to 5 p.m. Feb. 11 and 18 at Bosu’s Wine Shop in Waynesville. www.waynesvillewine.com or 828.452.0120.

• The Classic Wineseller (Waynesville) will host a wine tasting on Wednesdays and a craft beer tasting on Thursdays. Both events run from 4 to 8 p.m. There will also be tapas from 2 to 5 p.m. on Saturdays. www.classicwineseller.com.

• Free cooking demonstrations will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturdays at Country

• The Highlands Performing Arts Center’s “Live via Satellite Series” will continue with the screening of the National Theatre of London’s production of “Amadeus” at 1 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 11. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, a rowdy young prodigy, arrives in Vienna, and he’s determined to make a splash. Tickets are available at www.highlandspac.org, at the door or by calling 828.526.9047.

• There will be a Valentine’s Day Party from 6 to 10 pm. Feb. 14 at the Sneak E Squirrel Brewery in Sylva. Live music provided by the Twelfth Fret during the event. Dinner will be $37 per couple for an Italian-inspired menu and include one beverage per person. They will also be playing two rounds of the Newlywed game, one for couples married more than five years starting at 7 p.m. and one for couples married less than five years starting at 9 p.m. One winning couple from each group will get their dinner for free. Call 828.586.6440 for more information.

On the street

As part of its Appalachian Living series, Western Carolina University’s Mountain Heritage Center will host a multimedia presentation on “Jack Tales” and storytelling from 5 to 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 16, in the Hunter Library in Cullowhee.

“Jack Tales” is a Southern Appalachian storytelling staple and a continuation of an English tradition going back hundreds of years. The most familiar and often repeated of the genre is “Jack and the Bean Stalk.”

The oral history and storytelling presentation will include two live stories told by Ashton Woody, a junior majoring in English at WCU, and an open discussion about regional entertainment traditions and mountain dialects.

Also featured will be audio and video recordings of Ray Hicks (1922-2003), considered the master of “Jack Tales” and named a national treasure by the National Endowment

A day of fun for seniors

with others, so it has invited various senior citizen organizations including, but not limited to, the following: the Jackson County Senior Center, The Macon County Senior Center, The Hermitage Assisted Living, The Haywood Lodge assisted Living, Morning Star Assisted Living, Tsali Care Center, Eckerd Living Center, Autumn Care, Mountain View Manor, The Lions Club, The Rotary Club, The East Sylva Craft Club, The Advisory Team, the regional Ombudsman, and other guests.

For more information, contact Judy Brooks, activities director for Skyland Care Center, or Wanda Martin, activities assistant for Skyland Care Center, at 828.586.8935 (Ext. 1014).

A G U A R A N T E E D G R E AT N I G H T O U T

PURPLE REIGN

All aboard the wine and cheese train

Chef Ricardo Fernandez will be hosting a Mountain Cooking Club class from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18, at the Folkmoot Friendship Center in Waynesville.

Fernandez was the former co-owner/head chef of Lomo Grill. His classes combine his native Argentine cuisine with influences from Spain and Italy, the home of his parents.

The menu for this class will include Thai mussels, lemon grass, coconut cream and green curry; pan seared hanger streak au Poivre, pan roasted rosemary baby potatoes; and coffee bourbon cake with espresso and walnut glaze.

Class fee is $65 plus a $1 Mountain Cooking Club 2016 membership fee. To reserve a space, mail a check (payable to Ricardo Fernandez) to Suzanne Fernandez at 3553 Panther Creek Road, Clyde, NC, 28721. Reservations confirmed upon receipt of payment.

828.627.6751 or chefricardos@gmail.com.

The Rail Line and Wine Experience “Uncorked” will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in the Bryson City Train Depot.

The GSMR is partnering with Lee’s at the Depot in Dillsboro in carefully selecting the wines, and also with Baxley’s Chocolates in Sylva.

The event is a specialty train experience featuring wines to pair with your meal. Full service all-adult first class ride in a private car.

A narrator will be onboard to discuss the wines selected to accompany an exclusive sampling of local cheeses and a freshly made surf and turf meal.

All passengers receive a souvenir stemless wine glass, four samples of selected wines and five chocolate samples. Age 21 and over only.

Tickets are $119 per person. www.gsmr.com or www.greatsmokies.com.

FEB R U A RY 24

F E B R U A R Y 18

B I L LY C U R R I N G TO N

LEE BRICE

J U N E 10

M A Y 12

Visit ticketmaster.com or call 1-800-745-3000 to purchase tickets.

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Smoky Mountain News

Mountain Cooking Club in Waynesville

M ICHAEL BOLTO N

THE PRINCE TRIBUTE

February 8-14, 2017

Skyland Care Center, a skilled nursing center, will be hosting a Valentine’s Day meet and greet party for its residents and the aging community as a whole from 2 to 4 p.m. Feb. 14, at the First Baptist Church in Sylva.

Members of the community who volunteer regularly at the center and various student-led organizations from Western Carolina University volunteering have agreed to help with transportation, crafts, dancing, and other activities.

The center wants to share this day

for the Arts in 1983 for his storytelling ability.

Hicks was a repeat guest at WCU’s Mountain Heritage Day, the September festival that celebrates Southern Appalachian culture through music, living-history demonstrations, crafts and storytelling, appearing in 1985, 1987, 1992, 1995 and 1997. He was posthumously awarded WCU’s Mountain Heritage Award in 2003.

“Jack Tales” evolved from medieval English stories while becoming distinctly mountain lore. The adventures typically include journeys to see the king, outlandish heroic deeds and a humble youth using his wits to gain success or escape dire situations.

Attendees also will be able to see the exhibit “Horace Kephart: Revealing an Enigma” on display in the gallery through Friday, May 12.

An author and outdoorsman who helped spearhead the movement to establish Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Kephart took great interest in mountain dialects and expressions, documenting examples.

For more information, contact the Mountain Heritage Center at 828.227.7129.

arts & entertainment

‘Jack Tales’ at Mountain Heritage Center

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O

Open call for crafters

Sylva ‘Artist Talk,” demonstration

Want to learn alcohol ink?

This year, the town of Dillsboro will be hosting three arts and craft shows open to vendors from the surrounding region. The Dillsboro Merchants Association is scheduling over 40 artisans for each of these festivals, artisans who will be displaying and demonstrating their hand made arts and crafts from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Family entertainment and festival food will be available during each show.

• Saturday, June 17 — The third annual “Front Street Arts & Crafts Show.”

Application due April 1.

• Saturday, Aug. 20 — The Dillsboro Summer Arts & Crafts Market showcases local art and fine crafts, with a focus on family and children activities. Application due by June 1.

• Saturday, Oct. 1 — The ninth annual ColorFest will line Front Street with colorful art and fine crafts. Application due by July 1.

Vendors may apply for these shows by downloading an application from the town’s website, www.visitdillsboro.org. For more information, call Connie Hogan at 828.586.3511 or email festivals@visitdillsboro.org.

The upcoming “Artist Talk” will feature glass artist, John Phillips at 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 13, in the Community Room of the Jackson County Library Complex in Sylva.

Sponsored by the Jackson County Arts Council, Phillips will be discussing and displaying his techniques for stained glass artistry.

Phillips has been a glass artist for over 30 years including studies under worldrenowned glass artist such as, Rudi Gritsch, of Austria, Steve Kline, Roger V. Thomas, Kathleen Sheard, Gil Reynolds, Johnathon Schmuck, Bullseye Glass Studio and many hours of personal study. He has completed stained and leaded glass works for award winning singer Toni Braxton, Princess Cruise Lines and numerous churches and private commissions throughout his career.

Everyone is encouraged to attend this demonstration. There is no charge for this event.

The “Artist Talk” series is sponsored monthly by the Jackson County Arts Council as an effort to celebrate the many artists and art forms in Jackson County.

828.507.9820 or www.jacksoncountyarts.org.

The Jackson County Extension Office will be offering an “Alcohol Ink Workshop” from 10 a.m. to noon Thursday, Feb. 16, in Sylva.

Instructor Sherri Roper will be teaching this unique class using alcohol ink to create colorful backgrounds for stamping, card making and painting or adding color to different surfaces such as glass or metals. You will have the opportunity to create several different projects in this one class.

The cost is $10 and all supplies are provided. Class size is limited. To register, call 828.586.4009.

February 8-14, 2017

arts & entertainment

On the wall

Meet Charlotte Figi.

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Smoky Mountain News

Charlotte didn’t have a single seizure during the first seven days of treatment, which was a clear sign that the Figis had stumbled onto something extraordinary.

Today she is a nine year old who is thriving and enjoying life. The Stanley brothers assure consumers that the oil maintains a 30:1 ratio of CBD to THC. THC is the psychoactive compound that produces the “high” effect in marijuana. Thanks to Charlotte’s Web, Charlotte can now live life like a normal child. She is able to feed herself and sleep through the night. Her autistic symptoms have virtually disappeared. As such, her mind is clear, and her attention is focused. Her brain is recovering, and she is happy.

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A

A h Recent alcohol ink works by Jan Boyer. o • Paint Nite Waynesville will be held at 6 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 11, at Frog Level Brewing in Waynesville. $2 off beers for anyone painting.

Food truck and live music from singer-songwriter Chris Minick will also be onsite. Sign up on the Paint Night Waynesville Facebook page (search event: Brush N. Brew) or call Robin Smathers at 828.400.9560. paintnitewaynesville@gmail.com.

• The Smoky Mountain Quilters Guild will host its next meeting at 9:30 a.m. Monday, Feb. 13, at the Tartan Hall in Franklin. Public welcome. 828.347.6276.

• The Sylva Photo Club will present “Improving Smartphone Photography” by Tony Wu and a panel of club members at 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, in the Cullowhee Methodist Church on the Western Carolina University campus. “Share and Tell” will follow with the theme of “Relationship, Friends, Love.” Bring up to six photos representing this theme, or photos that you’ve taken with your smartphone. Download pictures on a USB drive for sharing. Cost for this program is $5 donation for visitors (applied to membership). Membership to the Sylva Photo Club is a $20 donation, $10 for students per year. sylvaphotoclub.wordpress.com.

ALSO:

• A showcase on the life and times of Horace Kephart will be on display through March 31 in the Mountain Heritage Center at Western Carolina University. In 1904, Kephart was 42-year-old librarian when he came to Western North Carolina looking for a fresh start in the Southern Appalachian wilderness. Over the next 27 years, his numerous articles and books captured a disappearing

s culture, provided practical advice for gener- f ations of outdoor enthusiasts and spear- B headed the movement to establish the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. t 828.227.7129 or www.wcu.edu. n • An “Abstract Expressions” exhibit will run through Feb. 25 in the Gallery & Gifts showroom at the Haywood County Arts Council in Waynesville. The exhibit will feature several local artists. Free and open to the public. www.haywoodarts.org.

s H f

C C I A • “The Magic Starts Here” exhibit will run p through Feb. 25 at The Bascom in o Highlands. Featuring numerous students M from the Master of Fine Arts program at o Western Carolina University, there will be a S reception from 2 to 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10, at I The Bascom. www.thebascom.org.

• The “Women Painters of the Southeast” exhibition will run through May 5 in the Fine Arts Museum at Western Carolina University.

A reception will be held at the museum from 5 to 7 p.m. Jan. 19. www.wcu.edu.

W ‘

h • The Adult Coloring Group will meet at 2 p.m. on Fridays in the Living Room of the 1 Macon County Public Library in Franklin. An C afternoon of creativity and camaraderie. t Supplies are provided, or bring your own.

Beginners are welcome as well as those who a p already enjoy this new trend. a kmoe@fontanalib.org or 828.524.3600. i • “Stitch,” the community gathering of those s interested in crochet, knit and needlepoint, w meet at 2:30 p.m. every first Sunday of the a month at the Canton Public Library. All ages f and skill levels welcome. e www.haywoodlibrary.org.

On the stage

A stage production of “King Lear” will be held at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 15-18 and 3 p.m. Feb. 19 in the Hoey Auditorium at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee.

Renowned as one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies, “King Lear” is an electric tale of an aging monarch’s decent into madness and his personal hell forged from tested love, betrayal, and a kingdom divided. It is the ultimate political thriller where King and kingdom are scorched, human nature scrutinized, and the wise are made fools. Yet, at his lowest, Lear attains new wisdom, discovers true loyalty, and finds salvation in a banished daughter’s love.

“King Lear” is one of the deepest artistic explorations of the human condition and

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Arnette organized many Theatre Series, Community Concert Series for Columbia, was a motivational speaker and produced the “World’s Largest Disco” with 17,000 dancing on the World’s Largest Dance Floor. He was also the social editor of the Vail Daily in Vail Colorado and was the Minister of Music of the Vail Bible church. While he’s retired, he is involved with the Western North Carolina Mountains Magazine. As well, he serves on the board of Folkmoot USA. Dykes moved to Waynesville in 2011 from Atlanta where he was an Assurance and Advisory Partner with Deloitte and Touche for 35 years until retiring in 2009. He continued to work six months each year as a special associate director for a division of the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) in Washington, D.C., as an accounting and auditing expert.

He and his wife Judy are very active in the community, giving of funds and time to a variety of organizations including Haywood Pathways Center, Lions Club, Habitat for Humanity, Mountain Projects and HART. Dykes graduated with a degree in economics and a Masters of Business Administration from Emory University. He is also a member of the Waynesville Town Planning Board and Waynesville United Methodist Church. www.harttheatre.org.

Visit HARRAHSCHEROKEEJOBS.CO OM or call 828.497.8778 for a complete listing off jobs.

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demonstrates how relevant the Bard’s great works are for our generation.

For more information on the show and tickets, visit www.wcu.edu.

• The Highlands Performing Arts Center will continue the “Live via Satellite” series with The National Theatre of London as they present a production of “Amadeus,” 1 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 11. Tickets are available online at www.highlandspac.org, at the door or by calling 828.526.9047.

Smoky Mountain News

WCU presents ‘King Lear’

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February 8-14, 2017

The board of directors of the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre (HART) in Waynesville held its annual meeting recently in the newly opened Daniel and Belle Fangmeyer Theatre.

The board discussed the upcoming theater season and several major fundraising events for the upcoming year. Glenn Arnette and Bucky Dykes were also welcomed to the board.

Arnette moved to Waynesville almost three years ago from Florida and was originally from Florence, South Carolina, but spent most of his time living in Myrtle Beach.

His background is extensive in entertainment from producing, directing, acting and vocals.

He was director of the Myrtle Beach Convention Center and the Buffalo Convention Center, was president of the International Country Music Buyers Association in Nashville, former television personality with the “Glenn Arnette Show” on Fox, produced Central Florida’s Fashion Magazine and Social magazines, former owner of Four Seasons Gift and Accessories Shops, and was the owner of the Highlands Inn in Highlands for a number of years.

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ALSO:

• There will be improvisation comedy at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 15 in the Niggli Theatre at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. www.wcu.edu.

arts & entertainment

HART welcomes Arnette, Dykes

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Books

Smoky Mountain News

Ben-Hur’s long history is captivating ome authors and critics sniff at best-sellers. I suppose the idea is that a novel appealing to so many thousands may contain vivid action or fascinating characters, but somehow fall below what critics may regard as the “standards of literature.” In the last hundred years in particular, we have seen a shift in favor of the new and revolutionary in literature over more traditional forms of storytelling.

Most critics, for example, would regard Faulkner’s The Writer Sound and The Fury as literarily superior to best-selling Erich Marie Remarque’s All Quiet On The Western Front, both of which appeared in 1929.

Although I would tend to agree with that particular appraisal, few general readers would even today choose to read the Faulkner novel over Remarque’s story of World War I trench warfare. The former is obscure in plot, its dense prose and stream of consciousness techniques making a prickly barrier to the average reader. No, books become best-sellers because they appeal to a wide variety of readers and tell a great story.

The best-selling American novel of the nineteenth century was Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. Published in 1880, Ben-Hur surpassed in sales the record long held by Uncle Tom’s Cabin and would hold that title for 50 more years, when Gone With The Wind became the newest champ.

Written by Lew Wallace, a former general in the Union army, Ben-Hur supplies the reader with intricate descriptions of the people and places of the Middle East during the time of Christ. Wallace was a meticulous researcher, traveling great distances to research the workings of a trireme or the descriptions of a temple. President Garfield was so impressed by Wallace’s knowledge and his recreation of the Middle East that he sent Wallace to Constantinople as the United States’ minister to the Ottoman Empire.

Like so many other best-sellers of the past century, Ben-Hur was also made into a movie

Jeff Minick

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ALSO:

successive movie making the race more and more dramatic, both through advancements in technology and through the actors and their directors.

Despite its success, Ben-Hur received a battering from early critics. As Mike Aquilina points out in The World of Ben-Hur (Sophia Institute, 2016, 168 pages, $14.95), they attacked the book for the same reasons some of them attack today’s best-sellers: wooden dialogue, ridiculous coincidences, a contrived plot.

When your enthusiastic readers include personages like Ulysses S. Grant and Jefferson Davis, however, few are paying much attention to those critics.

Aquilina spends some time on BenHur’s creator and the way he cultivated the book. Lew Wallace began writing as a challenge to his own spiritual The World of Ben-Hur by Mike Aquilina. Sophia Institute, 2016. 168 pages. faith — he was an agnostic — and though he never joined an established books they put on film.) All four movies had church, became convinced of the divinity of as their focal point the chariot race, with each — not just once, but four times. (The 1907 version, which featured a chariot race on a beach using firemen’s horses, served as the test case in which the law ruled that the budding motion picture industry had to pay for

• Soul Infusion Tea House & Bistro (Sylva) will host spoken word with Forest Rivers, who will present “Peaceful Reflections.” 828.586.1717.

Christ once he had completed writing his novel.

Most of The World of Ben-Hur, however, looks at the Roman Empire in which Wallace had set his story. Here Aquilina includes chapters on topics presented in the novel: the Roman political system, imperialism, slavery, the punishment of criminals, leprosy and the establishment of hospitals by early Christians, the brilliant construction of the trireme contrasted with the savage lot of the prisoners who manned the oars of this war vessel, the gladiatorial contests with their savagery and death, and of course, the chariot races.

To recreate this world, Aquilina uses passages and ideas from Ben-Hur and then presents alongside them writings from the time, particularly by the Jewish writer Josephus and such Christian writers as Tertullian, Gregory of Nazianzus, and some of the writers of the New Testament. Using this blend, he gives readers some general insights into the Ancient World.

Some of Aquilina’s analysis is particularly fine. He raises a question that occurs to many people: why, if the gladiatorial games were so horrific, did people flock to see them for centuries? Why did even Christian emperors face enormous difficulty in trying to ban them?

Aquilina demonstrates the power over these spectacles, which could even attract those Christians opposed to them, and offers a comparison regarding our own games. Suppose a college president and his administration decided to do away with football at the school. Aquilina rightly tells us what a ruckus this would cause, leading almost certainly to the sacking of that administration.

One flaw in The World of Ben-Hur is Aquilina’s use of long quotations both from Wallace’s novel and from some of the original sources. In some cases, these quotations run to a page or more. Many of these, particularly the Wallace quotes, would have better served this book had they been cut or paraphrased.

But that is more quibble than quarrel.

Amateur historians, lovers of film, and those interested in questions of religious faith should all find some gold in The World of Ben-Hur. (Jeff Minick is a writer and teacher. minick0301@gmail.com.)

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34

Outdoors

Smoky Mountain News

From mountains to sea N.C. woman relives six months spent hiking the state

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER f you’d polled Kimberley Brookshire’s friends a couple years ago, they’d likely have said the chances were slim to none that the Charlotte resident would ever think seriously about leaving it all behind to hike more than 2,000 miles through North Carolina.

“I wasn’t much of an outdoors person,” said Brookshire, 32.

But she is now. Last fall, Brookshire became the first woman to complete a “yoyo hike” of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. In plain English, she hiked the 1,200-mile route from Clingmans Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to Jockey’s Ridge on the Outer Banks and then turned around to do the whole thing over again. She finished the trek in November 2016, 206 days after setting out solo.

After years of working in the fashion industry — as a magazine writer and then as a teacher of young girls — Brookshire had the itch to try something different. She’d recently discovered that she enjoyed day hiking, and with the beginning of 2015 she resolved to try

I

The forest is at its greenest after a rain in the Falls Lake area.

Kimberley Brookshire photo

Kimberley Brookshire stands atop Moore’s Wall near Winston-Salem.

Donated photo

a long-distance hike, something that was completely outside of her comfort zone. The next year was devoted to reading books, gathering gear and taking survival courses.

Finally, she was ready. She took leave from her job as a nanny, sublet her apartment and embarked solo on the cross-state trek.

“At first it was terrifying,” Brookshire said.

“I had never camped by myself or spent the night outside by myself except for maybe once at my house to practice, so it was a little strange. All the noises — I just know it was something that was going to come and eat me or tear my tent apart. It took about two weeks to really feel good in my tent.

“After that I slept the best I’d ever slept in my life.”

CONQUERING THE MOUNTAINS Those first weeks of hiking were hard ones for Brookshire. Her body hadn’t yet adjusted to the demands of the thru-hiking life, and the rugged topography of the western region wasn’t doing her any favors. More than once, she’d reach a summit and wonder how she’d ever made it up. Still, the experience was a

positive one.

“I really enjoyed the mountains,” she said.

“They kicked my butt a lot.”

On the way back, Brookshire got to see just how much stronger she’d become during her months on the trail.

“On the return I was pretty much running up mountains because I’d been walking for so long,” she said. “It was easy as pie almost.”

The changing seasons provided an additional contrast. Brookshire had started her hike in May, when the mountains were bulging with greenery and an abundance of running water. When she returned, autumn leaves were falling and the region was in the thick of drought and wildfire. Some mornings she’d wake up to a tent full of smoke.

“The worst thing about that was just the drought itself,” Brookshire said. “Water was very scarce to come by. All the streams and creeks and rivers had significant drops with the water or were no longer there.”

She was never more grateful than when some stranger would stop to offer her some water. In fact, water is at the center of one of the trek’s most meaningful moments.

Brookshire had already been rationing it for a few days as she hiked along the Blue Ridge Parkway east of Asheville. She came upon a man and his dog, returning to the car they were living out of after a walk in the woods, and she asked him if he had any water. He gave her two full bottles.

“He probably ended up saving my life and he didn’t even realize it,” Brookshire said. “I had some money and I couldn’t eat my money or drink my money, so I gave him all the

money I had for two bottles of water.”

The man was touched. He gave her two necklaces, one of the Virgin Mary and the other of St. Christopher.

“I wore them the rest of the trip,” Brookshire said.

N.C.’S FLATLANDS The trail wasn’t all mountains. East of Greensboro, much it was road walking as the route made its way toward the coast. Soon after the road-walking portion began, around Falls Lake, Brookshire met Michael Boncek.

Boncek was also thru-hiking and had already traversed the state once, walking to raise awareness for the suicide rate among veterans.

“It was really nice to have something to give back to,” Brookshire said. “I was walking for fun, and he was walking for a purpose.”

The two became friends, walking hundreds of miles together until they arrived at the trail’s end at Jockey’s Ridge State Park.

Boncek was planning to turn around at the terminus to do the trail a third time, and as the coast got nearer Brookshire decided that she didn’t want to quit hiking either. Instead, she quit the job that had been waiting for her the past three months.

That decision meant that the trail’s end would not really be the end, but it was an emotional moment nonetheless. Family and friends were waiting for them. Brookshire waved away a local reporter who wanted an interview as she climbed — interviews could wait until after she’d conquered the trail.

F

Fire review underway in the Smokies

“I didn’t want it to be anybody else’s moment but mine and Michael’s,� she explained. “It was really surreal. My heart started pounding really fast like I didn’t know what I was doing anymore.�

But the moment passed, and it was time to look to the trail ahead. Brookshire and Boncek walked down to the visitor’s center, signed the thru-hiker logbook, and immediately began the walk westward.

THE YOYO

get her through the next few months.

She had more to worry about. But somehow she found that she worried less. “On the way back, all of the things I was worried about beforehand — job and family and all that stuff — I just kind of let it go,� she said.

She and Boncek remained a team for about half the hike until an injury got him off the trail. And Brookshire went on to finish the trek solo, just like she’d started it.

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Smoky Mountain News

The sun sinks near Thunder Hill Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Blowing Rock. Kimberley Brookshire photo

my teeth

February 8-14, 2017

She’d cover the same territory on the second hike, but the experience would be completely different. She hadn’t planned for this trip like she had the first one. There was no job waiting at home, nobody subletting her apartment, no money saved up to

in the air. And, unlike the first time she completed the MST, this time she was ready to go home. “One of my goals was to finish before Thanksgiving so I could go home and eat a lot of food,� she said.

She made that goal with two days to spare. Her parents were both there to meet her at the trailhead. For Brookshire, this was a big deal. “My parents were not very friendly for about 13 years before I started this trip,� she said. “They had been divorced for a while. They both surprised me on the day that I left from Clingmans Dome and walked to the parking area together. They are friends now because I went on this trip and are kind to each other.�

The newfound harmony between her parents was wonderful. But other elements of off-trail life were harder to swallow. “It is really hard to get back into a lifestyle where everything is so busy and there’s lots of loud noise and people around,� Brookshire said. “It was different and I didn’t really love it at first.�

Brookshire put off re-entry for a while.

She took off for a month and a half to visit her sister, who is a teacher in Thailand.

Now she’s working on a book drawn from the daily journal she kept while on the trail. Brookshire’s thinking that the future will take her somewhere far away from Charlotte — perhaps to Montana or Colorado, somewhere with few people and many opportunities for outdoor adventure. “I’m kind of excited at the fact that I’m a very different person than I was going into this trip, and it’s changed me in ways I didn’t even realize were possible,�

Brookshire said.

“People stop me to tell me that

outdoors

A team of fire experts is assembling at Great Smoky Mountains National Park to conduct a review of the 2016 Chimney Tops 2 fire that started in the park on Nov. 23.

Team members will look at the facts during the time surrounding the fire and make recommendations as to any issues that could be addressed to reduce chances of a similar incident in the future. “Ultimately the purpose of the review is to identify lessons learned from this incident for use by any wildland firefighting agency,� said Bill Kaage, chief of the National Park Service’s Division of Fire and Aviation in Boise, Idaho, which is overseeing the review.

The seven-member review team will include a variety of specialists from various agencies, including a Park Service fire man-

agement officer from outside the region, a municipal fire department representative from within the region and a Park Service management liaison. The team leader will be Joe Stutler, senior advisor for Deschutes County, Oregon. Stutler has nearly 50 years of experience in the complexities of fire management.

The review will take about two weeks to complete, with a 45-day window afterward for the team to complete its report and submit it to Kaage for review before making it public.

The Chimney Tops 2 fire transformed from a small incident to a tragedy when strong winds overnight Nov. 28 caused the flames to race downhill through tinder-dry forests and into the towns of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, eventually causing 14 deaths and $500 million in property damage. Two teenagers, whose identities have not been released, were arrested on arson charges.

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35

outdoors

New easements conserve hundreds of acres

A racer hurtles down the icy trail during a previous Assault on Blackrock. File photo

February 8-14, 2017

Assault on Blackrock draws closer The seventh annual Assault on Blackrock is on its way, scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, March 18, at Pinnacle Park in Sylva.

The grueling 7-mile trail race ascends 2,770 feet over 3.5 miles to the spectacular view from Blackrock before descending once more to the finish line. The first 100 people to register will receive a T-shirt, with prizes awarded to top finishers. All proceeds will benefit the Clean Slate Coalition, an organization in Sylva that provides safe, accessible, affordable housing for women in transition. $25 for pre-registration. Download a registration form at the Assault on Blackrock Facebook page or register online at www.raceentry.com by paying an additional $2.49 fee.

Brian Barwatt, 828.506.2802 or barwatt@hotmail.com.

More than 340 acres in Jackson and Cherokee counties have been conserved, thanks to conservation easements through Mainspring Conservation Trust.

The bulk of the acreage comes from Patrick and Jeanne McGuire, who decided to conserve 202 acres in Jackson County, protecting a prominent ridgeline that’s visible from Sylva, Webster and Cullowhee. Less than a half-mile from Roy Taylor Forest, a large unit of the Nantahala National Forest, the tract contains a diversity of plant communities, habitats and at least eight headwater springs. “For most of my life I have dreamed of conserving land that has been in our family for six decades,� said Patrick McGuire. “Jeanne and I are so grateful that through this gift we have been able to protect the viewshed for WCU, some of the headwater springs of Wayehutta and Cane Creeks and countless wildlife and timber concerns.�

Over in Cherokee County, a 141-acre property owned by George and Linda Jensen comprises the remainder of the newly conserved acreage. Adjacent to more than 28,000 contiguous acres of U.S. Forest Service land in the Snowbird Mountains, the property contains the headwaters of Fishermare Branch, is visible from U.S. 74

Moon madness coming to Macon A portable planetarium show and film night on NASA’s past and future will come to the Macon County Public Library in Franklin on Thursday, Feb. 9.

The day will begin at 2 p.m. with the planetarium program IMPACT!, presented

by Southwestern Community College science

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The ridgeline of the McGuire property is visible from Western Carolina University. Donated photo and includes old-growth forest. “The Jensen’s decision to conserve their forested land means the property will forever provide ideal habitat for wildlife, includ-

ing stream habitat for salamanders,� said Hiwassee Programs Manager Sara Ruth Posey. “It will be a blessing to see this hardwood forest mature through time.�

chair and physics instructor Matt Cass. The portable planetarium show, narrated by astronaut Tom Jones, teaches about meteors, meteorites, asteroids and comets, also including results from recent NASA missions. Cass will lead a discussion on the reasons behind some of NASA’s current missions.

At 6 p.m., Cass will return to present the film “Back to the Moon for Good,� an award-winning 25-minute show narrated by actor Tim Allen. The film highlights the his-

tory of moon exploration and provides an insider’s look at the teams vying for the $30 million Google Lunar XPRISE, the largest incentivized prize in history.

The programs are supported by grant funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the State Library of North Carolina. The discussion series was funded by Pushing the Limits, a program made possible by a grant from the National Science Foundation.

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outdoors

Haywood Waterways recognizes water champions Haywood’s biggest water champions of 2016 have been recognized by the Haywood Waterways Association, highlighting accomplishments from youth education to picking trash out of streams.

Students look for aquatic critters during a Haywood Waterways Association program. File photo

February 8-14, 2017 Smoky Mountain News

n Pigeon River Award. Gail Heathman, education coordinator for the Haywood Soil and Water Conservation District, won this award honoring individuals and organizations that contribute to protecting Haywood’s land and water resources. A longtime volunteer with Kids in the Creek, Heathman served on HWA’s board of directors from 2010 to 2012 and leads ongoing experiential education opportunities for youth. n Big Creek Award for Partner of the Year.

The town of Maggie Valley received this award for its work to protect and enhance Jonathan Creek through stream cleanups, reducing stormwater impacts and increasing public access points and greenway trails. n Lake Junaluska Award for Volunteer of the Year. This award was a tie between Don Ebaugh, director of property management at Lake Junaluska Assembly, and husband and wife team Larry and Kelly Rice. Ebaugh was recognized for his service on HWA’s board since 2001. The Rices joined HWA much more recently, in 2015, and are frequent participants at a variety of HWA service events.

In addition, Shannon Rabby was honored for his service on the HWA board from 2014 to 2016, with a $50 donation made in his honor to the Pink Francis Scholarship Fund at Haywood Community College.

Rabby is HCC’s lead instructor of fish and wildlife management technology.

Dinner and awards were funded by Derric and Donna Brown, Yvonne Kolomechuk - Keller Williams Great Smokies, Pigeon River Fund of the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, Town of Clyde and Town of Waynesville.

37

outdoors

Oscar is Balsam Mountain Trust’s resident opossum.

Donated photo

Honor the opossum with a hike The oft-maligned Virginia opossum will get the spotlight during an upcoming nature program, 2-4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18, at Balsam Mountain Trust.

The nature center’s very own opossum, Oscar, will display his amazing adaptations, and participants will also learn about opossums’ contributions to human health and how to encourage these helpful critters in their backyards. A tour of the nature center will follow, as well as a short hike to look for opossum habitat. $5. RSVP by Feb. 16 to Jen Knight at 828.631.1060 or register online at www.balsammountaintrust.org.

February 8-14, 2017

Youth gathering planned for Maggie An evening of food, fun and outdoor thrill is planned for 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 12, at Youth for Christ’s Outdoor Mission Camp in Maggie Valley.

Students from every church in Haywood County are invited to come with their friends to eat dinner, participate in a talent show and go for a hayride or sledding, depending on the weather.

Volunteers from the Vine of the Mountains Church will help host the event, with OMC seeking other churches to help with future gatherings.

RSVP to 828.926.3253. OMC is located next to Cataloochee Ranch at 3190 Fie Top Road.

eybee hives, covering what type of honeybees to get, where to locate them, how to manage them and how to harvest honey. $40. Register by Feb. 8 at Haywood County Extension, 828.456.3575.

Smoky Mountain News

Bear better berries this summer

38

Get the buzz on beekeeping Beginning beekeepers will swarm to a full-day class on the art of the apiary on Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Haywood County Extension Center in Waynesville.

Honeybees have been facing significant challenges in recent decades, but good management practices can stem the loss of honeybee colonies. The class will give practical steps for establishing and maintaining hon-

Learn how to establish and maintain strawberry, blackberry and raspberry patches with a seminar coming to Bryson City and Sylva this month. n 6-7:45 p.m. Monday, Feb. 13, at the Swain Extension Center on 60 Almond School Road in Bryson City. n 10-11:45 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 14, at the Jackson County Extension Center on 538 Scotts Creek Road in Sylva.

The seminar will include information about site selection, soil conditions, fertility needs, spacing, weed control, cultivar selection, pruning, pest issues and more.

Free, with registration required.

828.586.4009 in Sylva or 828.488.3848 in Bryson City.

WNC Calendar COMMUNITY EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS • A grand opening event for HOMEBASE College Ministry is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9, in the former Baptist Student Union Building. The facility focuses on aiding students who’ve aged out of the foster care system, are orphans or emancipated. 227.7127.

• WLOS, Channel 13, is hosting a “Your Voice, Your Future” Town Hall on the topic of “Repealing Obamacare: What’s Next?” at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9, at the WNC Ag Center in Fletcher. Event features a panel of experts.

• Applications are being accepted for the Haywood County Farm Bureau Scholarship. Students must be graduating seniors, currently enrolled in a Haywood County school or enrolled in a two- or four-year school and a resident of Haywood County. 2.5 GPA or better.

452.1425 or Karen_greene@ncfbssc.com.

• Volunteers will be available to assist area residents of all ages with federal and state income tax preparation and filing through April 14. Hours are 10 a.m.-3 p.m. every Friday and Monday at the Jackson County Senior Center in Sylva and from 3-6:45 p.m. on Tuesdays or by appointment at the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva. For appointments: 586.2016. For tax preparation assistance in other counties, visit: www.aarp.org.

• Haywood County’s Big Brothers Big Sisters Social Event will be held on Thursday, Feb. 9, at Boojum Brewing Taproom in Waynesville. Open to anyone interested in volunteering. 273.3601.

• Youth for Christ’s Outdoor Mission Camp is opening its doors to youth from every Haywood County church starting at 5 p.m. on Feb. 12 in Maggie Valley. Eat dinner, participate in a talent show, go for a hayride and sled (weather-permitting). Located at 3190 Fie Top Road. RSVP: 926.3253 or 336.529.9932.

• Beaverdam Community Center’s monthly meeting is at 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 13. Guest speaker is Richard Stem, lead dietitian with Clean Plate Nutrition and Wellness. 648.0552.

• Registration is underway for a regional conference entitled “Growing Partnerships with Outdoor Tourism and Local Communities” that will be offered by Western Carolina University from 9:15 a.m.-4 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 28, at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort. Ways to grow demand for outdoor tourism that contributes to the region’s economy will be discussed. Registration: $139. A TDA pre-conference workshop on the fundamentals of operating a tourism development authority will be offered from 1-5:30 p.m. the day before (Feb. 27). That workshop costs $29 with conference registration. Register: tourism.wcu.edu, 227.7397 or 800.928.4968.

• Progressive Nation WNC meetup is held from 5:30-8 p.m. each Monday at the Old Armory at 44 Boundary Street in Waynesville. For like-minded progressive and Democratic activists wanting to share ideas and action steps. Questions: Amber.Kevlin@aol.com.

• The 2017 grant application season has launched and guidelines and applications for the North Carolina Arts Council’s seven grant programs for organizations are now available. The deadline for receiving 2017-18 grant applications is Wednesday, March 1 and applications must be completed electronically through the North Carolina Arts Council’s online portal. For more information, visit www.ncarts.org/resources/grants/grants-organizations.

BUSINESS & EDUCATION • A Planetarium “IMPACT!” featuring Southwestern Community College chair and physics instructor Matt

Smoky Mountain News

39

452.2997 or info@folkmoot.org.

All phone numbers area code 828 unless otherwise noted.

Cass is set for 2 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9, in the Macon County Public Library Living Room in Franklin.

Discussion on the reason behind some of NASA’s current missions. Impact! Is a portable planetarium. At 6 p.m., Cass will introduce the film “Back to the Moon for Good.” 524.3600.

• “How to Price Your Product or Service” is the topic of a seminar offered by Haywood Community College’s Small Business Center from 6-9 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 13, at the Small Business Center, Room 5108. Register or get more info: 627.4512 or SBC.Haywood.edu.

• “How to Find Your Customers” is the topic of a seminar offered by Haywood Community College’s Small Business Center from 6-9 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 16, at the Small Business Center, Room 5108. Register or get more info: 627.4512 or SBC.Haywood.edu.

• An iPhone/iPad Users Group meets at 4 p.m. on Feb. 16 in the Macon County Public Library’s meeting room.

524.3600.

• Registration is underway for a Wilderness First aid class that will be offered from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. on Feb. 18-19 at the Cullowhee Recreation Center. $195. Class introduces you to techniques to care for the ill or injured in the backcountry. www.rec.jacksonnc.org.

• A program entitled “How to Find Your Customers” will be presented by Southwestern Community College’s Small Business Center from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 20, at the Jackson Campus. Part of a business startup series, which will meet each Monday through March 27. Registration required: www.southwesterncc.edu/sbc. Info: 339.4211 or t_henry@southwesterncc.edu.

• Western Carolina University will host a Global Spotlight Series event on the illicit global drug trade from 4-5:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 20, in Room 101 of Forsyth Building in Cullowhee. Presentations include “The Economics of Drug Prohibition” by Angela Dills; “Drug Abuse and the Public Health Response” by Kimberlee Hall; and “The Limitations of Law Enforcement by Al Kopak. Info: 227.3860 or jsschiff@wcu.edu.

• A Hunter Education course will be offered from 6-9:30 p.m. on Feb. 20-21 at Haywood Community College, Building 3300, Room 3322, in Clyde. No minimum age requirement. Must attend two consecutive evenings to receive certification. Preregistration required: www.ncwildlife.org.

• “How to Write a Business Plan” is the topic of a seminar offered by Haywood Community College’s Small Business Center from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at the Small Business Center, Room 5108. Register or get more info: 627.4512 or SBC.Haywood.edu.

• Konnichiwa! A five-week, non-credit conversational Japanese course will be offered from 6-7 p.m. on Wednesdays from Feb. 22-March 29 at Western Carolina University’s Cordelia Camp Building in Cullowhee. Info and online registration: http://go.wcu.edu/japanese.

Questions: yono@wcu.edu.

FUNDRAISERS AND BENEFITS • Folkmoot and the Classic Wineseller will hold a fundraising event from 6-9 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9, at 20 Church Street in Waynesville. Evening will feature wine, live music and food. Fundraiser is to purchase stage curtains in the Sam Love Queen Auditorium. $60 cost includes one glass of wine or nonalcoholic beverage. Purchase tickets at Folkmoot.org or call 452.2997.

Tickets not available at the door. Folkmoot info:

• The Women of Waynesville (WOW) will host a winetasting fundraiser for member Becca Swanger, who is running for the 2017 Mardi Gras Ball queen to raise money for the Haywood County Schools Foundation, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10, at the Cork & Cleaver (Waynesville Inn).

• The Clean Slate Coalition will host its third annual Love Heals Valentine’s Ball from 7-11 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11, at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino & Resort Hotel Ballroom. Live music by Trippin Hardie, professional photography by Tony Wu, silent auction, raffle and dancing. Tickets: $40. Clean Slate provides safe, affordable, transitional housing for women in Western North Carolina. Reserve tickets at cleanslatecoalition.org or 586.3939.

• Mast General Stores in Waynesville, Hendersonville and Asheville are partnering with MANNA FoodBank on Feb. 11-12 to present the annual “Be a Sweetheart, Feed the Hungry” campaign that matches each pound of candy purchased at Mast with a $1 donation to ensure everyone in our communities who needs a good meal gets one.

• A charitable pint night is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Feb. 16 at Blue Ghost Brewery in Fletcher to benefit Friends of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. A program entitled “Salamanders and Storms: Climate Change in the Smokies” will be presented, and a specialty batch Centennial White IPA is on tap to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service.

• Mardi Gras Ball benefit for the Haywood County Schools Foundation is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 25, at Laurel Ridge Country Blub.

Sponsored by Entegra Bank. Call 456.2400 to purchase tickets.

VOLUNTEERS & VENDORS • Haywood Regional Medical Center is currently seeking volunteers of all ages for ongoing support at the hospital, outpatient care center and the Homestead. For info and to apply: 452.8301, stop by the information desk in the lobby or volunteer@haymed.org. Anyone interested in becoming a hospice volunteer can call 452.5039.

• Greening up the Mountains Festival is seeking artists, mountain crafters, environmental and food vendors to apply for a booth in its 20th festival, which is from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on April 22. Applications available at www.greeningupthemountains.com, or call 631.4587.

• Town of Dillsboro will be hosting three arts and craft shows open to vendors from the surrounding region. Over 40 artisans for each of these festivals are needed, artisans who will be displaying and demonstrating their hand made arts and crafts from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.

Family entertainment and festival food will be available during each show. First show is Saturday, June 17 — The 3rd annual “Front Street Arts & Crafts Show.” Application due April 1. Second show is Saturday, Aug. 20 — The Dillsboro Summer Arts & Crafts Market showcases local art and fine crafts, with a focus on family and children activities. Application due by June 1. Third show is Saturday, Oct. 1 — The 9th annual ColorFest will line Front Street with colorful art and fine crafts. Application due by July 1. Vendors may apply for these shows by downloading an application from the town’s website, www.visitdillsboro.org. For more information, call Connie Hogan at 586.3511 or email festivals@visitdillsboro.org.

HEALTH MATTERS • Preparation for Childbirth classes will be taught by a certified childbirth educator from 7-9 p.m. on Thursdays March 30-April 20, June 1-June 22, Aug. 3, Aug. 24 and Oct. 12-Nov. 2 at Haywood Regional

Visit www.smokymountainnews.com and click on Calendar for: ■ Complete listings of local music scene ■ Regional festivals ■ Art gallery events and openings ■ Complete listings of recreational offerings at regional health and fitness centers ■ Civic and social club gatherings Medical Center. 452.8440 or MyHaywoodRegional.com/ParentClasses.

•”Breastfeeding A-Z” will be offered for expectant mothers from 7-9 p.m. on Thursdays, Feb. 9, April. 27, Aug. 31 and Nov. 9 at Haywood Regional Medical Center. Taught by Board-Certified Lactation Consultants. MyHaywoodRegional.com/ParentClasses or 452.8440.

• “Your Amazing Newborn” classes will be offered for new parents from 7-9 p.m. on Thursdays, Feb. 16, May 4, Sept. 7 and Nov. 16 at Haywood Regional Medical Center. MyHaywoodRegional.com/ParentClasses or 452.8440.

• A tired leg/varicose vein educational program is scheduled for 5 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 16, at the Vein Center at Haywood Regional Medical Center in Clyde.

Led by Dr. Al Mina, MD, FACS, and Dr. Joshua Rudd, DO. RSVP required: 452.VEIN (8346).

• A lunch and learn will be presented by Harris Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine on Friday, Feb. 17, in the Harris Regional Hospital boardroom in Sylva.

Register: 631.8894. Dr. Anthony McPherron, an orthopaedic surgeon, will present the session.

• “Rekindling Your Nightingale Flame: A Healing Retreat for Nurses” will take place from Friday through Sunday, Feb. 17-19 at the Lake Junaluska Conference and Retreat Center. Hosted by Padma Dyvine, Trish Rux and Lillian Woods. Register: http://tinyurl.com/josgxww.

Info: 734.0882 or rekindlingynf@gmail.com.

• Prenatal Breastfeeding Class is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. on Feb. 21 at the Haywood County Health and Human Services Agency. Taught by Kasey ValentineSteffen, IBCLC, and Brandi Nations, BS, AlC, CLC. Open to pregnant mothers-to-be and support persons.

Registration required: 356.2207 or 452.2211.

• A Chronic Pain Management class is offered from 9:30-11 a.m. on Tuesdays through Feb. 21 at the Canton Senior Center. 356.2838 or 648.8173.

• Big Brother/Big Sister, a one-evening preparation class for children who are about to greet a new baby into their family, is offered for children ages 3-10 at Haywood Regional Medical Center. 452.8440 or MyHaywoodRegional.com/ParentClasses.

• Mothers Connection, an ongoing social gathering for mothers and their babies, meets from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. on Thursdays excluding holidays at Haywood Regional Medical Center. 452.8440 or MyHaywoodRegional.com/ParentClasses.

• Assistance with Marketplace Open Enrollment is available through Mountain Projects. Enrollment through the Affordable Care Act is currently open and lasts until Jan. 31. 452.1447 or 800.627.1548.

RECREATION AND FITNESS • Beginning Yoga will be offered from 6-7 p.m. on Wednesdays through March 1 at the Historic Colonial Theatre in Canton. $10 per session. Led by Jason Moore.

• Registration is underway for a PDGA-sanctioned disc

wnc calendar

golf tournament, which will be held on Sunday, March 12, at the Waynesville Disc Golf Course at Vance Street Park in Waynesville. Register for the “Blind Hog Day Light Savings Throw Down” at https://www.discgolfscene.com/tournaments/Blind_Hog_Day_Light_Sa vings_Throw_Down_2017. Info: 456.2030 or tpetrea@waynesvillenc.gov.

• ZUMBA! Classes, are offered from 6-7 p.m. on Tuesdays, at the Canton Armory. $5 per class.

648.2363 or parks@cantonnc.com.

• “Winter Warm-Ups” will be offered from 10-11:15 a.m. on Mondays through Feb. 29 at Sylva First Baptist Church. Movement exercises designed to increase flexibility, build strength and encourage more activity during winter months. 369.6909.

• Friday night skiing and snowboarding is being offered through the Jackson County Parks & Recreation Department at Cataloochee Ski Resort.

Hours are 5-9 p.m. on Feb. 10 and March 3. $25 lift only; $35 for lift and rental; $45 for lift, rental and lesson. www.rec.jacksonnc.org.

SPIRITUAL • A new mindfulness group will meet from 5:30-7 p.m. on Thursdays from Feb. 9-March 16 at 166 Branner Ave., Suite C, in Waynesville. Cost: $25 per person or $40 per couple per session. Registration required: 703.609.9107 or dchristiano@yahoo.com.

• An opportunity to worship, ski and participate in fellowship will be offered in a retreat Feb. 10-12 at Lake Junaluska, Cataloochee Ski Area and Wolf Ridge Ski Area. Music by The advice (worship band); speaker is Duffy Robbins. http://tinyurl.com/zfo3k7w.

February 8-14, 2017

• “The Triumph” will be celebrated from Monday through Wednesday, Feb. 12-15 at Saint John’s in Waynesville and at Immaculate Conception in Canton.

Father David Gunter of the Marians of the Immaculate Conception will give his testimony at 4 p.m. on

1196 Skyland Drive Smoky Mountain News

• An opportunity to worship, ski and participate in fellowship will be offered in a retreat Feb. 17-20 at Lake Junaluska, Cataloochee Ski Area and Wolf Ridge Ski Area. Music by Zeke Listenbee & Co. (worship band); speaker is Cintia Listenbee. http://tinyurl.com/jhyd6eh.

POLITICAL • The Jackson County NAACP Branch has rented a bus to attend the 11th annual Moral March on Raleigh and HKonJ People’s Assembly, organized by the N.C. NAACP and Forward Together Moral Movement. The bus departs the Jackson Justice Center parking lot at 2 a.m., on Saturday, Feb. 11, and the march is at 9 a.m, in Raleigh. enrique.a.gomez@gmail.com.

AUTHORS AND BOOKS • A “Theme Team Book Club” is now being offered by the Waynesville Public Library. The group meets quarterly from 2-4 p.m. on the first Friday of the month.

356.2507. Refreshments provided by the Friends of the Library.

SENIOR ACTIVITIES • Skyland Care Center will host a Valentine’s Day meet-and-greet party for residents and the aging community as a whole from 2-4 p.m. on Feb. 14 at First Baptist Church in Sylva. 586.8935, ext. 1014.

• Chair/Mat Yoga is offered from 2-3 p.m. on Thursdays through Feb. 23 at the Canton Senior Center. 356.2838 or 648.8173.

Waynesville. 356.2813.

• The Mexican Train Dominoes Group seeks new players to join games at 1:30 p.m. each Tuesday at the Senior Resource Center in Waynesville. 926.6567.

• Mah Jongg is played at 1 p.m. on Wednesdays at Haywood County Senior Resource Center in Waynesville. 356.2813.

• Eat Smart, Move More North Carolina – an effort to help area residents commit to a healthier lifestyle, will meet from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on Wednesdays at the Haywood County Senior Resource Center in Waynesville.

KIDS & FAMILIES

• Haywood County Senior Resource Center is looking into starting a weekly Euchre Card Group. If interested, contact Michelle Claytor at mclaytor@mountainprojects.org or 356.2800.

• A Silver Sneakers Cardio Fit class will meet from 10-11 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Waynesville Recreation Center. For ages 60 and above.

Cost is regular admission fee to the rec center or free for members. 456.2030 or tplowman@waynesvillenc.gov.

• Book Club is held at 2 p.m. on the third Wednesday of the month at the Haywood County Senior Resource Center in Waynesville. 356.2800 • Senior croquet for ages 55 and older is offered from 9-11:30 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays at Vance Street Park in front of Waynesville Recreation Center.

Free. For info, contact Donald Hummel at 456.2030 or dhummel@waynesvillenc.gov.

• Senior Sale Day is on the third Friday of every month at the Friends of the Library Used Bookstore. Patrons 60 and older get 20 percent off all purchases.

Proceeds benefit the Sylva Library.

• Hearts is played at 12 p.m. on Wednesdays at Haywood County Senior Resource Center in

• “Mommy/Daddy and Me” open gym is available for parents and kids to play or do arts and crafts from 10-11 a.m. on Fridays, through Feb. 24, at the Cullowhee Recreation Center. For ages 3-5 with parents present; no preregistration required. $1 per child per day.

• Registration has begun for Youth Spring Soccer through the Jackson County Parks & Recreation Department. Open to players born between 2003-12.

Birth certificates required for first-time players. $55. www.rec.jacksonnc.org.

• A Hand & Foot card game is held at 1 p.m. on Mondays at Haywood County Senior Resource Center in Waynesville. 356.2800.

• Pinochle game is played at 10 a.m. on Wednesdays at Haywood County Senior Resource Center in Waynesville. 356.2813.

• The 10th annual Father-Daughter Dance is set for 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 18, in the Christian Life Center at First United Methodist Church in Sylva.

Open to daughters of all ages. Music, desserts and punch as well as a keepsake photo. Advance registration: $30 per couple plus $5 for each additional daughter. At the door: $35 per couple plus $5 for each additional daughter. www.firstumcsylva.org or pick up the registration form at the church office. 586.1640.

• The Canton Library offers a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, mathematics) program each month. At 4 p.m. on third Tuesday. Children ages 612 are welcome to attend. Please call 648-2924 for more information.

• Registration is underway for Homeschool P.E. through Jackson County Parks & Recreation Department. $20. Classes will meet at 10 a.m. every Tuesday starting Jan. 31 for 10 weeks. For ages 5-15. www.rec.jacksonnc.org.

• A Tuesday Library Club for ages 5-12 meets at 4

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828.258.1586 800.531.EYES (3937) Ashevilleeye.com

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Sunday. Additional presentations are scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday through Wednesday. Weekend masses are at 5:30 and 7 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m.

Sunday at Saint John’s and at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday at Immaculate Conception. 456.6707 or stjohnwaynesville.org.

828.258.1586

Frank A. Killian, M.D. SYLVA & FRANKLIN OFFICES

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Tuesday, Feb. 14, at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City. Movie is a sequel to a Disney classic that picks up “happily ever after” with three stories involving Cinderella adjusting to her new life as a princess.

Info, including movie title, 488.3030.

• “Art Beats for Kids” will be held from 4 to 5 p.m. on Thursdays at the Charles Heath Gallery in Bryson City.

A new project every week. $20 per child, with includes lesson, materials and snack. To register, call 828.538.2054.

• “Life of PI” will be shown on Friday, Feb. 24 at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. at Mad Batter Food and Film. Free. www.madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• Stories, songs and a craft are offered for ages zerosix (and caregivers) at 10:30 a.m. each Tuesday at the Canton Library. 648.2924.

• A program called “Imagine”, an art program for children 8-12 meets at 2 p.m. on Tuesdays at the Jackson County Public Library. Program contains art, writing, and drama. 586.2016.

• Rompin’ Stompin’, an hourlong storytime with music, movement and books, is held at 10:30 a.m. on Thursdays at the Canton Library and at 11 a.m. on Thursdays at the Waynesville Library. For ages zero to six. 648.2924.

• Rompin’ Stompin’, an hourlong storytime with music, movement and books, is held at 11 a.m. on Fridays at the Canton Library. For ages zero to six.

648.2924.

• Library Olympics will be held at 2 p.m. on Fridays at Jackson County Public Library. Children age 5 and up get active through relay races, bingo, mini golf.

586.2016.

• Full STEAM Ahead, a program for children ages 5-12 to allow them to explore science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics through fun hands-on activities. Program open to the first 15 participants, at 4 p.m. on the third Tuesday of the month at Canton Public Library. 648.2924.

• Family Story Time is held on Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. at the Canton Public Library. Ages 0-6. Stories, songs, dance and crafting. 648.2924.

KIDS MOVIES • “The Lego Batman Movie” will be shown on Friday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 11 at 2:30 p.m., 4:45 p.m., and 7 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 12 at 1 p.m., 3:15 p.m., and 5:30 p.m., and Feb. 13-Feb. 16 at 7 p.m. at The Strand on Main in Waynesville. See website www.38main.com for prices.

• “Trolls” will be shown on Friday, Feb. 10 at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. and Feb. 17 at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. and Feb. 18 at 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. at Mad Batter Food and Film. Free. www.madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• A family movie will be shown at 3:30 p.m. on

FOOD & DRINK • The “Songwriters in the Round” series will continue with a “Valentine’s Songwriter” evening featuring Nashville act Henry Hipkens at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Balsam Mountain Inn. Tickets are $49, which includes a buffet dinner. 456.9498 or www.balsammountaininn.net.

• The Rail Line and Wine Experience “Uncorked” will be held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in the Bryson City Train Depot. The GSMR is partnering with Lee’s at the Depot in Dillsboro in carefully selecting the wines, and also with Baxley’s Chocolates in Sylva. All passengers receive a souvenir stemless wine glass, four samples of selected wines and five chocolate samples. Age 21 and over only. Tickets are $119 per person. www.gsmr.com or www.greatsmokies.com.

• There will be a Valentine’s Day Party from 6 to 10 pm. Feb. 14 at the Sneak E Squirrel Brewery in Sylva.

Live music provided by the Twelfth Fret during the event. Dinner will be $37 per couple for an Italianinspired menu and include one beverage per person.

They will also be playing two rounds of the Newlywed game, one for couples married more than five years starting at 7 p.m. and one for couples married less than five years starting at 9 p.m. One winning couple from each group will get their dinner for free.

586.6440.

ON STAGE & IN CONCERT • The Canton Armory will host “Winter Pickin’ in the Armory” at 7 p.m. every first and third Friday of the month. The event includes mountain music, vintage country, clogging and dancing. Doors open at 6 p.m.

Free. www.cantonnc.com.

• Poet Herisson Chicas will read from 8 to 10 p.m.

Feb. 8 in the UC Illusions at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. www.wcu.edu.

• Jacob Jones, Jessie Stephens & Friends will perform bluegrass and old-timey mountain music at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9, at the Jackson County Genealogical Society’s monthly program in the Community Room of the historic Jackson County Historic Courthouse in Sylva. Refreshment served at 6:30 p.m. 631.2646.

• The Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts (Franklin) will host The Booth Brothers (Christian/pop) will also perform at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 10, with tickets available at $20 per person. www.greatmountainmusic.com.

• Voices in the Laurel will perform a “My Funny Valentine Concert” – a program of jazz, popular and show music – at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11, at Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.

Accompanied by Laurel Strings Ensemble and local professional musicians. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door. To purchase: 734.9163 or www.voicesinthelaurel.org.

• Jeff Thompson (singer-songwriter, guitarist and performer) will be on stage from 8-10 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11, at HART in Waynesville. $5 cover charge.

Harmons’ Den Bistor open for food and beverage service.

• The National Theatre of London presents a produc-

• “King Lear” will be presented by Western Carolina University’s School of Stage and Screen from Wednesday through Sunday, Feb. 15-19, in Hoey Auditorium in Cullowhee. Show times are 7:30 p.m. on Thursday through Saturday and 3 p.m. on Sunday.

Each performance will be followed by a discussion session. $11 for WCU faculty and staff and seniors; $16 for other adults; $10 for students on the show day and $7 in advance. Bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or 227.2479.

• There will be improvisation comedy at 5:30 p.m.

Feb. 15 in the Niggli Theatre at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. www.wcu.edu.

• A multimedia presentation on “Jack Tales” and storytelling will be offered by Western Carolina University’s Mountain Heritage Center from 5-6 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 16, in the center gallery in Cullowhee. Oral history and storytelling presentation.

227.7129.

• Acclaimed chamberfolk act Harpeth Rising will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 17, at The Strand at 38 Main in Waynesville. Tickets are $15. To purchase tickets, go to www.38main.com.

• Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort will host “Purple Reign: The Prince Tribute Show” at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 18.

For tickets, click on www.harrahscherokee.com.

• A multimedia performance of “Taj Express: The Bollywood Musical Revue” – a fusion of film, dance and music – will be performed at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 22, in the Bardo Arts Center at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. $20 for non-students; free for students. Preregistration required: tcbowers1@catamount.wcu.edu (for students) and hensley@wcu.edu (for non-students).

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• Chef Ricardo Hernandez, former owner/head chef of Lomo Grill, operates the Mountain Cooking Club that will present a class celebrating local and seasonal ingredients from 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 18, at Folkmoot Friendship Center at 112 Virginia Ave. in Waynesville. $65 class fee, plus $1 for club membership dues. 627.6751 or Chefricardoskitchen.com.

• There will be a “Chocolate & Bier Pairing” from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 18, at Heinzelmännchen Brewery in Sylva.

• The Balsam Mountain Inn will host a “Valentine’s Package” through Feb. 28. Add a candlelit dinner for two, fresh flowers, champagne, souvenir flutes and

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tion of “Amadeus” at 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11 at The Highlands Performing Arts Center. Tickets are available online at www.highlandspac.org, at the door or 526.9047.

February 8-14, 2017

• Storytimes are held at 10 and 10:40 a.m. every Thursday at Hudson Library in Highlands.

A&E

freshly baked cookies for an additional $125 to the room rate. To reserve, 800.224.9498.

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p.m. each Tuesday (except for the fifth Tuesday on months that occurs) at the Canton Library. Hands-on activities like exercise, cooking, LEGOs, science experiments and crafts. 648.2924 or kpunch@haywoodnc.net.

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wnc calendar

• Rhonda Vincent and the Rage (bluegrass) will perform as part of the Galaxy of Stars Series on Friday, Feb. 24, in the Bardo Arts Center at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. Tickets available at bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or 227.2479.

CLASSES AND PROGRAMS • An “Impasto Painting” workshop will be offered from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9, in conjunction with the opening reception for “Soft Diplomacy: Quilting Cultural Diplomacy in Liberia” at the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. The activity “Piecing a Quilt Top” will engage participants in piecing together a quilted pillow top; learn about characteristics of different types of fibers. Free for students; $20 for community members. Pre-registration required for students (tcbowers1@catamount.wcu.edu) or community members (hensley@wcu.edu).

• “Improving Smartphone Photography” by Tony Wu will be the program for the Sylva Photo Club’s upcoming meeting at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11, in the Cullowhee Methodist Church. $5 donation for visitors (applied to membership). Membership is a $20 donation; $10 for students per year. Sylvaphotoclub.wordpress.com.

• Smoky Mountain Quilters Guild will host area quilt shops at its meeting at 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 13 at Tartan Hall in Franklin. 347.6276.

• An Alcohol Ink Workshop will be offered from 10 a.m.-noon on Thursday, Feb. 16, at the Jackson County Extension Office in Sylva. Create colorful backgrounds for stamping, card-making and painting. $10. All supplies provided. Register: 586.4009.

• The Waynesville Public Art Commission is sending out a “Call for Artists” for a new piece dedicated to the Plott Hound. Should you have any questions, please contact Amie Owens, assistant town manager at aowens@waynesvillenc.gov.

February 8-14, 2017

ART SHOWINGS AND GALLERIES • A reception for the exhibition “Soft Diplomacy: Quilting Cultural Diplomacy in Liberia” will be held from 3:30-4:30 p.m. on Feb. 9 at the Western Carolina University Fine Art Museum at Bardo Arts Center in Cullowhee. Exhibit will run through May 5. 227.3591.

• Jackson County Arts Council will present its monthly “Artist Talk” featuring glass artist John Phillips from 6-7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 13, in the Jackson County Library Community Room in Sylva. Phillips will discuss and display his techniques for stained-glass artistry.

507.9820 or info@jacksoncountyarts.org.

Smoky Mountain News

• The Western North Carolina “Artists Count” project is hosting a series of exhibitions to highlight the rich visual contributions made by area artists. The first such exhibit, “Smoky Mountains Sampler” is now open at the Welcome Center north of Asheville on Interstate 26.

• Abstract art will be exhibited through Feb. 25 at the Haywood County Arts Council Gallery & Gifts at 86 N. Main Street in Waynesville. Featuring local artists.

452.0593, info@haywoodarts.org or HaywoodArts.org.

• “The Magic Starts Here” exhibit will run through Feb. 25 at The Bascom in Highlands. Featuring numerous students from the Master of Fine Arts program at Western Carolina University, there will be a reception from 2 to 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 10, at The Bascom. www.thebascom.org.

• An “Abstract Expressions” exhibit will run through Feb. 25 in the Gallery & Gifts showroom at the Haywood County Arts Council in Waynesville. The exhibit will feature several local artists. Free and open to the public. www.haywoodarts.org.

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• A three-month ceramics exhibit at the Western Carolina University Fine Art Museum is currently in Cullowhee. Fineartmuseum.wcu.edu or 227.3591.

Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free.

Madbatterfoodfilm.com.

Visit www.smokymountainnews.com and click on Calendar for: ■ Complete listings of local music scene ■ Regional festivals ■ Art gallery events and openings ■ Complete listings of recreational offerings at regional health and fitness centers ■ Civic and social club gatherings • The exhibit “Emissaries of Peace: 1762 Cherokee & British Delegations” features Cherokee clothing, feather capes, beads, and other artifacts. It is currently on display at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian and is also available for travel. www.cherokeemuseum.org or bduncan@cherokeemuseum.org.

• Artist Melba Cooper will be exhibiting her stunning series of paintings, “POLLINATION,” at Cullowhee Mountain Arts’ (CMA) Studio in downtown Sylva. www.cullowheemountainarts.org/up-in-the-studioevents or 342.6913.

• The “Women Painters of the Southeast” exhibition will run through May 5 in the Fine Arts Museum at Western Carolina University. www.wcu.edu.

• A showcase on the life and times of Horace Kephart will be on display through March 31 in the Mountain Heritage Center at Western Carolina University. The Mountain Heritage Center’s Kephart Collection is composed of 127 objects, including Kephart’s tent, sleeping bag, backpack and the writing desk. The exhibit will display many of these objects in a campsite setting. 227.7129.

• An exhibition entitled “This is a Photograph: Exploring Contemporary Applications of Photographic Chemistry” is on display at Penland School of Crafts near Spruce Pine. 765.6211 or penland.org/gallery.

• New artist and medium will be featured every month at the Haywood County Senior Resource Center in Waynesville. 356.2800.

• As part of the Arts Council’s Integrated Arts initiative, a sampling of works by renowned Macon County sculptor Nelson Nichols (www.nicholssculpture.com) will be displayed at this event. Executed in stone, bronze, and wood, Nichols’ sculptural body of work reflects his unique style, Spiritual Expressionism, encompassing anatomical/figurative pieces in classical realism, a series of abstract interpretations, a series illustrating universal/spiritual concepts, and an environmentally inspired series including sculptures of endangered/threatened species.

Admission is by donation; $7 is suggested. arts4all@dnet.net or 524.ARTS (2787).

FILM & SCREEN • “Hidden Figures” will be shown on Wednesday, Feb. 8 and Thursday, Feb. 9 at 7 p.m. at The Strand on Main in Waynesville. See website www.38main.com for prices.

• 2017 Academy Award Nominee, “Elle” will be shown on Thursday, Feb. 9 at 7:30 p.m. at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free. Madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• 2017 Academy Award Nominee, “Arrival” will be shown on Thursday, Feb. 16 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Feb. 25 at 7:30 p.m. at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free. Madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• 2017 Academy Award Nominee, “Manchester by the Sea” will be shown on Thursday, Feb. 16 at 7:30 p.m. at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free.

Madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• “Allied” will be shown on Thursday, March 2 at 7:30 p.m. at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free.

Madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• “Doctor Strange” will be shown on Friday, March 3 and Saturday, March 4 at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. at

Outdoors • Sky Trek public observing events will be offered from 6-8 p.m. on Feb. 17 and 18 at Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute in Rosman. Observations of Venus, Neptune, Uranus, the Orion Nebula, Mars and colored stars M31 and M33 will be featured. Cost is $15 per person; 10-and-under are free. Register and pay at www.pari.edu or by calling 862.5554. Info: schappell@pari.edu.

• A crash course on learning how to hike the Appalachian Trail will be offered from 6:30-8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9, at REI in Asheville. Food and equipment selection will be discussed. Sign up: rei.com/learn.

• John and Cathy Sill will lead a birding trip on Feb. 10 to Lake Junaluska in search of wintering water birds and other species. Sponsored by the Franklin Bird Club.

Meet at 8 p.m. at Bi-Lo parking lot in Franklin to carpool. Sign up: 524.5234.

• A winter tree identification workshop will be offered through the Wilderness Society’s Southern Appalachian Office on Friday, Feb. 10. Moderately easy 2-3 mile hike. Meet at the Big Ivy Community Center at 10 a.m.; returning by 5 p.m. RSVP required: michelle_ruigrok@tws.org. Info: 587.9453.

• A fly-tying class taught by Shannon Messer of Appalachian Flies will be offered from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Feb. 11 at the Fly Fishing Museum of the Southern Appalachians in Bryson City. Pre-registration required: 226.2060, 770.500.7420 or appalachianflies@gmail.com.

• ASAP (Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project) kicks of its year with its 14th annual Business of Farming Conference in partnership with NC Cooperative Extension and Mountain Bizworks. The conference is Saturday, Feb. 25, at AB Tech in Asheville. Register: asapconnections.org or 236.1282.

COMPETITIVE EDGE • Registration is underway for the Assault on Black Rock, a seven-mile trail race scheduled for 9 a.m. on Saturday, March 18, in Jackson County. $25 pre-registration; $30 on race day. www.raceentry.com ($2.49 fee for registering online). 506.2802 or barwatt@hotmail.com.

HIKING CLUBS • Carolina Mountain Club will have an 8.4-mile hike with a 2,550-foot ascent on Feb. 12 at Coontree, Bennett Gap and Pressley Cove Lollipop. Info and reservations: 243.3630 or rhysko@yahoo.com.

• The Nantahala Hiking Club will take an easy-to-moderate four-mile hike, with an elevation change of 400 feet, on Saturday, Feb. 18, from Warwoman Dell to Martin’s Creek Falls on the Georgia Bartram Trail.

Reservations: 524.5298. Visitors welcome.

• Hike of the Week is at 10 a.m. every Friday at varying locations along the parkway. Led by National Park Service rangers. www.nps.gov/blri or 298.5330, ext. 304.

• Friends of the Smokies hikes are offered on the second Tuesday of each month. www.friendsofthesmokies.org/hikes.html.

• Nantahala Hiking Club based in Macon County holds weekly Saturday hikes in the Nantahala National Forest and beyond. www.nantahalahikingclub.org • High Country Hikers, based out of Hendersonville but hiking throughout Western North Carolina, plans hikes every Monday and Thursday. Schedules, meeting places and more information are available on their website, www.highcountryhikers.org.

• Balsam Mountain Trust will present a program entitled “Outrageous Opossums” from 2-4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 18, in Sylva. $5 per person.

Reservations required by Feb. 16. RSVP: 631.1061 or www.balsammountaintrust.org.

• Carolina Mountain Club hosts more than 150 hikes a year, including options for full days on weekends, full days on Wednesdays and half days on Sundays. Nonmembers contact event leaders. www.carolinamountainclub.org

• An exhibit chronicling the history of dugout canoes in the Americas will be on display through May 2 at the Baker Exhibit Center of the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville.

• Mountain High Hikers, based in Young Harris, Ga., leads several hikes per week. Guests should contact hike leader. www.mountainhighhikers.org.

FARM AND GARDEN • A beginning beekeeping class will be offered from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Haywood County Extension Center, 589 Raccoom Road in Waynesville. Pre-registration and payment deadline is Feb. 8. 456.3575.

• Seminars on how to establish and maintain a strawberry, blackberry and raspberry patch will be offered from 6-7:45 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 13, at the Swain County Extension Center in Bryson City and from 1011:45 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 14, at the Jackson Extension Center in Sylva. For info or to register: 586.4009 (Sylva) or 488.3848 (Bryson City) or clbreden@ncsu.edu.

• The N.C. Cooperative Extension in Macon County is accepting applications for participation in its 2017 Master Gardener program. Tentative start date is Feb. 17. Application or info: 349.2046 or macon.ces.ncsu.edu.

• Tuscola Garden Club meets at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 21, at the Bethea Welcome Center at Lake Junaluska. Master gardener Marcia Tate will speak about what’s required to become a certified way-station for migrating monarch butterflies. 246.0437.

• A program on starting plants from seed will be offered from 1-2 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 24, in the Waynesville Library Auditorium. Registration required: 356.2507 or kolsen@haywoodnc.net.

• Smoky Mountain Hiking Club, located in East Tennessee, makes weekly hikes in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park as well as surrounding areas. www.smhclub.org.

• Benton MacKaye Trail Association incorporates outings for hikes, trail maintenance and other work trips.

No experience is necessary to participate. www.bmta.org.

• Diamond Brand’s Women’s Hiking Group meets on the third Saturday of every month. For more information, e-mail awilliams@diamondbrand.com or call 684.6262.

OUTDOOR CLUBS • The Jackson County Poultry Club will hold its regular meeting on the third Thursday of each month at the Jackson County Cooperative Extension Office. The club is for adults and children and includes a monthly meeting with a program and a support network for those raising birds. For info, call 586.4009 or write heather_gordon@ncsu.edu.

• The North Carolina Catch program, a three-phase conservation education effort focusing on aquatic environments, will be offered through May 15. The program is offered by the Waynesville Parks and Recreation Department. Free for members; daily admission for non-members. 456.2030 or tpetrea@waynesvillenc.gov.

PRIME REAL ESTATE Advertise in The Smoky Mountain News

AUCTION

MarketPlace information: The Smoky Mountain News Marketplace has a distribution of 16,000 every week to over 500 locations across in Haywood, Jackson, Macon, and Swain counties along with the Qualla Boundary and west Buncombe County. For a link to our MarketPlace Web site, which also contains a link to all of our MarketPlace display advertisers’ Web sites, visit www.smokymountainnews.com.

Rates:

■ Free — Lost or found pet ads.

■ $5 — Residential yard sale ads, ■ $5 — Non-business items that sell for less than $150.

■ $15 — Classified ads that are 50 words or less; each additional line is $2.

If your ad is 10 words or less, it will be displayed with a larger type.

■ $3 — Border around ad and $5 — Picture with ad or colored background.

■ $50 — Non-business items, 25 words or less. 3 month or till sold.

■ $300 — Statewide classifieds run in 117 participating newspapers with 1.6 million circulation. Up to 25 words.

■ All classified ads must be pre-paid.

Classified Advertising: Scott Collier, phone 828.452.4251; fax 828.452.3585 classads@smokymountainnews.com

Great Smokies Storage 10’x20’

92

$

20’x20’

160

$

ONE MONTH

FREE WITH 12-MONTH CONTRACT

828.506.4112 or 828.507.8828 Conveniently located off 19/23 by Thad Woods Auction

BANKRUPTCY AUCTION Online With Bid Center, of Commercial & Residential Properties in Reidsville, NC, Begins Closing 2/23/17 at 2pm, Bankruptcy Liquidation by James C. Lanik, Bankruptcy Trustee & Others, Case No. 15-11192, ironhorseauction.com, 800.997.2248, NCAL3936 ONLINE ONLY AUCTION, North & South Carolina Real Estate Auction, Brunswick, Cabarrus, Montgomery & Randolph Co., NC, Marlboro Co., SC, Begins Closing 2/15/17 at 2pm, ironhorseauction.com, 800.997.2248, NCAL3936 SCAL1684 YOUR AD COULD REACH 1.6 MILLION HOMES ACROSS NC! Your classified ad could be reaching over 1.6 Million Homes across North Carolina! Place your ad with The Smoky Mountain News on the NC Statewide Classified Ad Network- 118 NC newspapers for a low cost of $375 for 25-word ad to appear in each paper! Additional words are $10 each. The whole state at your fingertips! It's a smart advertising buy! Call Scott Collier at 828.452.4251 or for more information visit the N.C. Press Association's website at www.ncpress.com

AUCTION

TAX & BANK REPO AUCTION Saturday, February 18 @10am 201 S. Central Ave. Locust, NC 18 Late Model Ambulances, 2014 Honda Accord 700 miles, Cars, Pickups, Machine Shop Tools, Sunrise Iron Worker, Cosen Saw, 1999 Harley Ultra Electro Glide, 2006 Service Truck, more Machines & Tools.

704.791.8825 ncaf5479 www.ClassicAuctions.com

BUILDING MATERIALS

HAYWOOD BUILDERS Garage Doors, New Installations Service & Repairs, 828.456.6051 100 Charles St. Waynesville Employee Owned.

CONSTRUCTION/ REMODELING FOR SALE: HEATILATOR I-60 Wood Burning Fireplace, for Built In Applications, Large Firebox Opening, with 30ft. Chimney.

New in Original Packaging, $600 For More Info Call 828.696.5039.

ACORN STAIRLIFTS. The Affordable Solution to your stairs! **Limited time -$250 Off Your Stairlift Purchase!** Buy Direct & SAVE. Please call 1.800.291.2712 for FREE DVD and brochure.

FROG POND ESTATE SALES HELPING IN HARD TIMES

DOWNSIZING ESTATE SALES CLEAN OUT SERVICE • COMPANY TRANSFER • DIVORCE • LOST LOVED ONE

WE ARE KNOWN FOR HONESTY & INTEGRITY 828-734-3874 18 COMMERCE STREET WAYNESVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA 28786 WWW.FROGLEVELDOWNSIZING.COM

CONSTRUCTION/ REMODELING

ALL THINGS BASEMENTY! Basement Systems Inc. Call us for all of your basement needs! Waterproofing, Finishing, Structural Repairs, Humidity and Mold Control.

FREE ESTIMATES! Call 1.800.698.9217 BATHTUB REFINISHING Renew or change the color of your bathtub, tile or sink. Fiberglass repair specialists! 5 year warranty.

Locally owned since 1989.

CarolinasTubDoctor.com.

888.988.4430.

SAFE STEP WALK-IN TUB: Alert for Seniors. Bathroom falls can be fatal. Approved by Arthritis Foundation. Therapeutic Jets. Less Than 4 Inch Step-In. Wide Door.

Anti-Slip Floors. American Made.

Installation Included. Call Now 800.701.9850 to receive $750 Off. DAVE’S CUSTOM HOMES OF WNC, Free Estimates & Competitive rates. References avail. upon request. Specializing in: Log Homes, remodeling, decks, new construction, repairs & additions.

Owner/Builder: Dave Donaldson.

Licensed/Insured. 828.631.0747 or 828.508.0316

MOTORCYCLES CRAZY BOB’S BIKER STUFF Jackets, Chaps, Vests, Helmets, Rain Gear, Saddlebags, Sissy Bar Bags, Tool Bags, Stickers, Patches. We also got you covered with 50 Sizes of Tarps: Heavy Duty Silver, Brown & Green, Blue & Silver, Blue & Camo.

1880 Dellwood Rd., Waynesville 828.926.1177

CARS -

ADVERTISE YOUR VEHICLE In over 100 newspapers across the state for only $375. Call Lyndsey Clevesy at NC Press Services, 919.516.8009.

DRIVE WITH UBER. No experience is required, but you'll need a Smartphone. It's fun and easy. For more information, call: 1.800.655.7452

WNC MarketPlace

CARS -

CARS -

A-1 DONATE YOUR CAR For Breast Cancer! Help United Breast Foundation Education, Prevention, & Support Programs. Fast Free Pickup - 24 Hr Response - Tax Deduction 855.306.7348 SAPA CARS/TRUCKS WANTED!!!

Top Dollar! Free Towing From Home, Office or body Shop. All Makes/Models 2000-2016. Same Day Pick-Up Available! Call Now: 1.800.761.9396 SAPA STOP PAYING FOR Expensive Auto Repairs! Get discounted warranty coverage from the wholesale source, and don’t pay for expensive covered repairs!

Start saving now! Call 844.274.6148 SAPA

www.smokymountainnews.com

February 8-14, 2017

PAYING TOO MUCH For SR-22 or similar high-risk car insurance? Call NOW to see how we could save you money TODAY. 1.800.815.9637.

SAPA

DONATE YOUR CAR, Truck Or Boat To Heritage For The Blind. Free 3 Day Vacation, Tax Deductible, Free Towing, All Paperwork Taken Care Of. CALL 1.800.416.1496

PETS

EMPLOYMENT

HAYWOOD SPAY/NEUTER 828.452.1329

FINANCIAL BEWARE OF LOAN FRAUD. Please check with the Better Business Bureau or Consumer Protection Agency before sending any money to any loan company.

SAPA SOCIAL SECURITY Disability Benefits. Unable to work? Denied benefits? We Can Help! WIN or Pay Nothing! Contact Bill Gordon & Associates at 1.800.670.4805 to start your application today! SAPA

FURNITURE COMPARE QUALITY & PRICE Shop Tupelo’s, 828.926.8778.

HAYWOOD BEDDING, INC. The best bedding at the best price!

533 Hazelwood Ave. Waynesville 828.456.4240

Prevent Unwanted Litters!

The Heat Is On! Spay/Neuter For Haywood Pets As Low As $10.

Operation Pit is in Effect!

Free Spay/Neuter, Microchip & Vaccines For Haywood Pitbull Types & Mixes!

Hours:

Tuesday-Friday, 12 Noon - 6 pm 182 Richland Street, Waynesville

EMPLOYMENT AIRLINE MECHANIC TRAINING Get FAA certification to fix planes.

Approved for military benefits. Financial Aid if qualified. Call Aviation Institute of Maintenance 866.441. 6890 DRIVE WITH UBER. You’ll need a Smartphone. It’s fun and easy. For more information, call: 1.800.861.0329 SAPA DRIVER TRAINEES NEEDED! Learn to drive for Stevens Transport! No Experience Needed! New drivers can earn $900+ per week!

Paid CDL Training! Stevens covers all costs! 1.888.748.4137 drive4stevens.com

ACE - A MIX OF PIT BULL AND AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERD, ACCORDING TO HIS PREVIOUS OWNER. HE'S ABOUT SIX MONTHS OLD, AND ALREADY A GOOFBALL. HE HAS A NORMAL LEVEL OF PUPPY ENERGY AND PLAYFUL ATTITUDE, AND IS LEARNING COMMANDS QUICKLY, SUCH AS "SIT" AND "COME".

HE IS REALLY A GOOD DOG, A FAVORITE WITH US! EASTER - A BEAUTIFUL SIX-MONTH-OLD KITTEN WITH AN ORANGE, BLACK AND WHITE COAT. SHE IS A SWEET, FRIENDLY KITTY, AND SHE LOVES TO RECEIVE PETTING FROM ANYONE SHE MEETS. SHE WILL BE A WONDERFUL FAMILY COMPANION CAT.

FTCC Fayetteville Technical Community College is now accepting applications for the following positions: Audio Visual Technician, Dean of Corporate and Industry Training, Critical care Paramedic & RN Instructor, Certified Nursing Assistant Instructor, Automotive Systems Technology Instructor, Program Coordinator-Collision Repair & Refinishing For detailed information and to apply, please visit our employment portal at: https://faytechcc.peopleadmin.com Human Resources Office Phone: 910.678.7342 Internet: http://www.faytechcc.edu An Equal Opportunity Employer LOCAL DRIVERS WANTED! Be your own boss. Flexible hours.

Unlimited earning potential.

Must be 21 with valid U.S. drivers license, insurance & reliable vehicle. Call 855.750.9313 SAPA FTCC Fayetteville Technical Community College is now accepting applications for the following positions: Biology Instructor, Coordinator for Military Programs. For detailed information and to apply, please visit our employment portal at: https://faytechcc.peopleadmin.com Human Resources Office Phone: 910.678.7342 Internet: http://www.faytechcc.edu An Equal Opportunity Employer

NICOL ARMS APARTMENTS NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS Offering 1 & 2 Bedroom Apartments, Starting at $400 Section 8 Accepted - Handicapped Accessible Units When Available

OFFICE HOURS: Monday & Wednesday 8:00am - 4:00pm 168 E. Nicol Arms Road Sylva, NC 28779

Phone# 1.828.273.3639 TDD# 1.800.735.2962

REAL ESTATE ANNOUNCEMENT OUR HUNTERS WILL PAY TOP $$$ To hunt your land. Call for a free Base Camp Leasing info packet and quote. 866.309.1507. www.basecampleasing.com

PUBLISHER’S NOTICE All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Fair Housing Act which makes it illegal to advertise “any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or an intention, to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination” Familial status includes children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians, pregnant women and people securing custody of children under 18 This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All dwellings advertised on equal opportunity basis.

REAL ESTATE ANNOUNCEMENT LEASE TO OWN 1/2 Acre Lots with Mobile Homes & Empty 1/2 Acre + Lots!

Located Next to Cherokee Indian Reservation, 2.5 Miles from Harrah’s Cherokee Casino.

For More Information Please Call 828.506.0578

HOMES FOR SALE ADT SECURITY Protects your home & family from “what if” scenarios. Fire, flood, burglary or carbon monoxide, ADT provides 24/7 security. Don’t wait! Call Now! 888.618.5327 BRUCE MCGOVERN A Full Service Realtor, Locally Owned and Operated mcgovernpropertymgt@gmail.com McGovern Property Management 828.283.2112.

SAVE YOUR HOME! Are you behind paying your Mortgage? Denied a Loan Modification?

Is the bank threatening foreclosure? Call Homeowner’s Relief Line now for Help. 1.844.359.4330.

SAPA

MOBILE HOMES FOR SALE REPOSSESSED MOBILE HOMES. Move in ready. No rent option, but buying could be cheaper than rent!

Owner financing on select homes with approved credit.

336.790.0162 SAPA

CAVALIER ARMS APARTMENTS NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS Offering 1, 2 & 3 Bedroom Apartments, Starting at $400 Section 8 Accepted - Rental Assistance When Available Handicapped Accessible Units When Available

OFFICE HOURS: Wednesday 12:30pm - 4:00pm & Friday. 8:00am- 4:00pm 50 Duckett Cove Road, Waynesville

Phone # 1-828-456-6776 TDD # 1-800-725-2962 Equal Housing Opportunity

This is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer

Commitment, consistency, results.

Carolyn Lauter Broker/ABR 1986 SOCO ROAD, HWY 19 • MAGGIE VALLEY, NC 28751

828.734.4822 Cell • www.carolynlauter.com 44

EMPLOYMENT MEDICAL BILLING TRAINEES NEED! Train at Home for a new career now at CTI! NO EXPERIENCE NEEDED! Online Training can get you job ready! 1.888.512.7122 HS Diploma/GED & Computer needed. careertechnical.edu/nc

carolyn.lauter@realtyworldheritage.com

SFR, ECO, GREEN

147 WALNUT STREET • WAYNESVILLE

828.506.7137

aspivey@sunburstrealty.com

www.sunburstrealty.com/amy-spivey

COMM. PROP. FOR RENT

STORAGE SPACE FOR RENT CLIMATE CONTROLLED STORAGE FOR YOU 1 Month Free with 12 Month Rental. Maggie Valley, Hwy. 19, 1106 Soco Rd. For more information call Torry

828.734.6500, 828.734.6700 maggievalleyselfstorage.com

WELLNESS ADVOCATE mydoterra.com/blueridgewellness ATTENTION SMOKERS: Stop smoking with TBX-FREE! Clinically proven & FDA Approved!

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Call – 855.970.1463 SAPA DIAGNOSED WITH Mesothelioma or Asbestos Lung Cancer? If so, you and your family may be entitled to a substantial financial award. We can help you get cash quick! Call 24/7: 888.707.9877 DIGITAL HEARING AIDS Now offering a 45-Day Risk Free Offer! Free Batteries for Life! Call to start your free trial!

844.538.9403

12X28 STORAGE UNIT FOR RENT In Tuckaseegee, Half Mile Down Hwy. 281. $130/mo. For More Info Call 828.450.0534.

GET HELP NOW! One Button Senior Medical Alert.

Falls, Fires & Emergencies Happen.

24/7 Protection. Only $19.99/mo.

Call Now 888.876.6128 SAPA

GREAT SMOKIES STORAGE Conveniently located off 19/23

by Thad Woods Auction. Available for lease now: 10’x10’ units for $55, 20’x20’ units for $160.

Get one month FREE with 12 month contract. Call 828.507.8828 or 828.506.4112 for more info.

GOT KNEE PAIN? Back Pain? Shoulder Pain? Get a pain-relieving brace at little or NO cost to you. Medicare Patients Call Health Hotline Now! 800.480.7503 SAPA

OXYGEN Anytime. Anywhere. No tanks to refill. No deliveries. The All-New Inogen One G4 is only 2.8 pounds!

FAA approved! FREE info kit: 866.732.9512 SAPA

CHAMPION SUPPLY Janitorial supplies. Professional cleaning products, vacuums, janitorial paper products, swimming pool chemicals, environmentally friendly chemicals, indoor & outdoor light bulbs, odor elimination products, equipment repair including household vacuums. Free delivery across WNC. www.championsupply.com 800.222.0581, 828.225.1075.

SAFE STEP WALK-IN TUB: Alert for Seniors. Bathroom falls can be fatal. Approved by Arthritis Foundation. Therapeutic Jets. Less Than 4 Inch Step-In. Wide Door.

Anti-Slip Floors. American Made.

Installation Included.Call 800.701.9850 for $750 Off. SAPA

PURPLE MARTIN GOURDS $3.95 each, reg $5.97 or mention this ad for 6 for $21.95. 9.5" diameter, lifetime warranty, Call 1.800.764.8688, www.skmfg.com

MEDICAL A PLACE FOR MOM. The nation’s largest senior living referral service. Contact our trusted, local experts today! Our service is Free/No Obligation. Call 1.800.319.8705 SAPA

STRUGGLING WITH DRUGS Or Alcohol? Addicted to Pills? Talk to someone who cares. Call The Addiction Hope & Help Line for a free assessment. 1.800.511.6075.

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Haywood County Real Estate Agents

Find the home you are looking for at www.robrolandrealty.com

Beverly Hanks & Associates

Residential · Land · Commercial

• • • • • • • • •

MOUNTAIN REALTY

Mieko

Thomson ROKER/R /REALTOR EALTOR®® BBROKER

Cell (828) 226-2298 Cell

mthomson@remax-waynesvillenc.com mthomson@remax-waynesvillenc.com www.ncsmokies.com www.ncsmokies.com

beverly-hanks.com Ann Eavenson - AnnEavenson@beverly-hanks.com Randy Flanigan - RandyFlanigan@beverly-hanks.com Michelle McElroy - MichelleMcElroy@beverly-hanks.com Marilynn Obrig - MarilynnObrig@beverly-hanks.com Brooke Parrott - BrookeParrott@beverly-hanks.com Catherine Proben - cproben@beverly-hanks.com Ellen Sither - EllenSither@beverly-hanks.com Mike Stamey - MikeStamey@beverly-hanks.com Pamela Williams - PamelaWilliams@beverly-hanks.com

Emerson Group

2177 Russ Avenue Waynesville NC 28786

• George Escaravage - george@emersongroupus.com

Michelle McElroy RESIDENTIAL BROKER ASSOCIATE E-PRO, CNHS, RCC, SFR

Haywood Properties - haywoodproperties.com • Steve Cox - info@haywoodproperties.com Keller Williams Realty

828.400.9463 Cell

kellerwilliamswaynesville.com • Julie Lapkoff - julielapkoff.yourkwagent.com • Yvonne Kolomechuk - yvonneksells.yourkwagent.com • The Morris Team - www.themorristeamnc.com

michelle@beverly-hanks.com

74 North Main St. • Waynesville 828.452.5809

ERA Sunburst Realty - sunburstrealty.com • Amy Spivey - amyspivey.com • Rick Boarder - sunburstrealty.com

Lakeshore Realty 383-18

• Phyllis Robinson - lakeshore@lakejunaluska.com

Mountain Home Properties

The Real Team

JOLENE HOCOTT • LYN DONLEY MARLYN DICKINSON

Real Experience.

Real Service. Real Results.

828.452.3727

www.The-Real-Team.com

MOUNTAIN REALTY 1904 S. Main St. • Waynesville

mountaindream.com • Sammie Powell - smokiesproperty.com

McGovern Real Estate & Property Management • Bruce McGovern - shamrock13.com

Realty World Heritage Realty realtyworldheritage.com • Carolyn Lauter realtyworldheritage.com/realestate/viewagent/7766 • Martha Sawyer realtyworldheritage.com/realestate/viewagent/7769

RE/MAX — Mountain Realty

• • • • • • •

remax-waynesvillenc.com | remax-maggievalleync.com Brian K. Noland - brianknoland.com Holly Fletcher - hollyfletcher1975@gmail.com Judy Meyers - jameyers@charter.net Mieko Thomson - ncsmokies.com The Real Team - the-real-team.com Ron Breese - ronbreese.com Dan Womack - womackdan@aol.com

smokymountainnews.com

BORING/CARPENTER BEE TRAPS No Chemicals, Poisons or Anything to Harm the Environment.

Handmade in Haywood County. 1 for $20, 2 or More for $15 each.

828.593.8321

828-400-1923

RROLAND33@GMAIL.COM

February 8-14, 2017

FOR SALE

LIFE ALERT. 24/7. One press of a button sends help FAST! Medical, Fire, Burglar.

Even if you can’t reach a phone!

Free Brochure. Call 800.734.2638 SAPA

ROB ROLAND

WNC MarketPlace

PROFESSIONAL MEETING SPACE Located in Waynesville, Holds up to 90 People. Suitable for Seminars, Family Gatherings, Worship, Ect. Kitchen Area, Wifi/ Screen. For More Information and Rates for ROOM 1902 Call 828.454.7445 or 828.551.8960

MEDICAL

Rob Roland Realty

• Rob Roland - rroland33@gmail.com EQUAL HOUSING

OPPORTUNITY

find us at: facebook.com/smnews

TO ADVERTISE IN THE NEXT ISSUE 828.452.4251 | ads@smokymountainnews.com 45

www.smokymountainnews.com

February 8-14, 2017

WNC MarketPlace

Super

46

PAIR-A-PHRASING

CROSSWORD

83 “A Bell for —” (classic novel) ACROSS 84 Any minute 1 Music-licensing gp.

85 “Slim Shady” rapper 6 With greatest frequency 87 Blockhead 14 Light, in a way 89 Half of Mork’s good20 River to Lake Geneva bye 21 Many kids’ art proj91 Gradually withdrew ects 93 Antigen attackers 22 “Any way is fine by 96 EMERALD JEALOUSY me” 102 Path in a jet 23 STARDOM WEALTH 105 Miami- — (Florida 25 “Bewitched” husband county) 26 F minor, e.g.

106 Wasted 27 Albany hrs.

107 Small battery size 28 Abbr. on a pay stub 108 GREATLY OFFING 30 One of King Lear’s 113 Guevara’s comdaughters mander 31 Most like Solomon 115 Of the hipbone 33 STRIKE DWELLING 116 Prickly seedcase 39 “... boy — girl?”

117 Ark.-to-Ill. dir.

40 Gambling place, 119 Mai — briefly 120 Frolic 42 Planted “pet” 122 ALLOWED STATUTE 43 “Für —” (Beethoven 129 Verdi tragedy favorite) 130 Hold dear 44 HUDSON OCTET 131 Flared dress 48 “Peanuts” girl with 132 Forwarded, as mail glasses 133 Furry marine mam52 Student’s dissertation mal 53 Country’s McEntire 134 Encounters 56 Wyatt of the Old West 57 Hector DOWN 60 “Mona —” 1 Terrier noise 63 Makes match up 2 One-named Latina 66 Pasty luau fare singer 67 Skating rink shape 3 Approaches to attack 68 PERFORM ZERO 4 Keep — on (watch) 71 In a strict way 5 Pod spherule 74 Bovine sound 6 What touts tabulate 75 Global divide 7 Liquor bottle 76 NEGATIVE LEVY 8 Overly 81 Tomb-raiding Croft 9 Be incorrect 82 Suffix of pasta names 10 Met or Phillie rival

11 Avian runner 12 RCA rival 13 Fly of Kenya 14 Pot coverer 15 Reality TV celebrity fired by Donald three times 16 Cry from a member of an arriving group 17 Ship’s goods 18 Faith Hill’s “Take Me —” 19 Wife of Dick Cheney 24 Prickly plants 29 N.J. neighbor 31 Pan for stir-frying 32 Ex-froshes 34 Strands post-blizzard 35 Summer misery stat 36 Puff piece?

37 Actor Bert in a lion suit 38 Footballer Tebow 41 City transport 45 And others, in Latin 46 Grain storer 47 See 72-Down 49 El — (peak in California) 50 Mined find 51 Clever adage 54 Party abbr. about drinks 55 Append 57 Certain wind musician 58 Of flight technology 59 Music of Scott Joplin 61 Highway rig 62 Parts of nerve cells 64 — au vin 65 Good name for a chef?

68 Bob of folk

69 Country in West Africa 70 Silver — (photo lab compound) 72 With 47-Down, forensic tool 73 Kind of TV 77 A, in Aquila 78 Ding- — 79 Out-of- — (visitor) 80 De novo 85 Tempted 86 Maestro Zubin 88 Like nondefective DVDs 90 Pakistani’s language 92 Feel sickly 94 Capital of Nebraska 95 135 degrees from 117-Across 97 Nosh on 98 End of some URLs 99 Cole of song 100 “Iglu” for “igloo,” e.g.

101 7’6” Ming 103 R&D center 104 Bursts forth 108 Pep 109 Make thrilled 110 Country singer LeAnn 111 Brother, in Brest 112 Between, in Brest 114 Vogue topic 118 — -do-well 121 Boatload 123 Actor Stephen 124 — Zedong 125 Suffix with 124Down 126 Boy pharaoh 127 “Whack!”

128 Craven of horror films

answers on page 41

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Answers on Page 41

The copper run in the Great Smokies

T

George Ellison

BACK THEN

this long-running gold-turned-to-copper legal legal soap opera as follows: “The dispute between Adams and Westphalt over the ownership of the mine became the

Smoky Mountain News

to W.S Adams, who, “After receiving the results of the assay of the ore promptly headed for Hazel Creek.” (The average assay of ore from the large copper development at Copperhill, Tennessee was .02 percent copper … and the average assay of ore from the Adams-Westfeldt mine was 32 percent copper.) Adams inspected the site, bought [two 100 acre tracts] from Ep Everett, and began developing the mine. About a half-dozen dwelling houses [one of which Horace Kephart lived in 1904-1907], a bunk house, a cookhouse, shops, and a powder house were constructed.”

In his book on Hazel Creek scheduled for publication this spring, University of North Carolina at Asheville historian Daniel S. Pierce provides a description of this initial period of site development: “One of the first men hired by Adams was, of course, Granville Calhoun. As Calhoun recalled, ‘Adams hired inexperienced locals to do the mining by hand: We went to work in there with just pick and shovels … I took charge of it from the very first pick they ever struck.

And I didn’t know, I’d never been inside of a tunnel or anything.’ Adams soon expanded his operations, brought in additional laborers from outside and purchased steam-powered equipment to move miners and tools into the mines and bring out the ore. Miners eventually dug thirteen, five feet wide by seven feet tall shafts to access the ore. The Adams Mine, at its peak of operation, reportedly employed more than a hundred men working in shifts.

“George Westfeldt entered the story in late 1900 [because the] New Orleans financier and land speculator, had purchased [in 1869] several tracts of land on Hazel Creek.

At the time of this purchase, he had some difficulty locating the boundaries of his new property. Legal descriptions of the day used wording such as ‘following the meander of the ridge’ as boundary lines and ‘a red oak stump’ as corners.”

Nevertheless, having convinced himself that he was the legal owner of the mines, around 1900 Westphalt opened his own mine not far from Adams.

According to Pierce, “The remains of an Orr & Stembower steam- powered hoist, parts of it still at the site, testify to the investment Westphalt made in the mine.

The hoist lowered men and equipment down a 110-foot vertical shaft and hauled the ore out. It is not known how many horizontal shafts workers dug off the vertical shaft or how much ore came out of the mine. Westphalt became convinced that Adams had encroached on his land and filed suit to stop the mining and resolve the title.

Both sides claimed the other side moved survey markers and/or falsified records. In 1901, the courts granted Westphalt an injunction until the courts settled the boundary issue and mining at both sites ceased.”

Holland summarized the conclusion of

longest court case in the history of the United States. When one of the sides would win a decision, the other side would appeal. Both sides accused the other of tampering with the boundary line markings and many locals became involved in the dispute.

“Granville Calhoun recalled years later seeing 22 lawyers, 11 for each side, in the courtroom at once. Each side spent about a quarter of a million dollars preparing and presenting their case. W.S. Adams and George Westphalt both died before the case was resolved. Finally, in 1927, 26 years after the litigation had commenced, a compromise was reached with Fronzy Hall. the Adams heirs in control of the mine although the Westphalt heirs retained a large interest in the property.”

(George Ellison is a naturalist and writer.

He can be reached at info@georgeellison.com.)

February 8-14, 2017

he worldwide annual production of “high conductivity copper” had by 1899 risen to 470,000 tons, of which 300,000 tons were used in the burgeoning electrical industry to produce various types and gages of copper wire.

W.S. Adams — an investor based in Boston who had previously financed a kaolin mine near Webster — asked Mark Bryson, a local prospector, about copper deposits in the area. Bryson recalled that Crate Hall had told him about a potentially rich vein his older Columnist brother Fronzy Hall (whose given name was Fronslow), also a Webster area resident, had discovered in the mid-1880s.

Fonzy (sometimes spelled Fronzie) had been visiting Crate who lived on Bone Valley Creek in the present day national park with his wife, Polly, and their 13 children. Fonzy ventured out on his own one day to see if he could locate mica deposits on Little Fork Ridge. He understandably got excited when he broke off with his pick axe a good-sized chunk of rock with an interior that seemed to resemble gold. After he told Crate about what he hoped he’d found, the brothers took Fronzy’s rock to the Rev. Bent Cook (whose given name was Benson) who lived on the Sugar Fork above the small community of Medlin and was the first minister on Hazel Creek.

“Copper” was Bent’s verdict.

Fonzy was sorely disappointed as gold would have eased his large family’s financial woes. Instead, this gold-turned-to-copper story seems to have stuck in the family’s collective imagination for generations. In her biographical account of Fronzy prepared for The Heritage of Jackson County (1988), Margaret Hall Hasty speculated that: “Fonzy may have wished that he had never picked up that golden rock or he may have wished that it had brought prosperity to his family. In either case his daughter, Mary, who went blind in her later years, told of the rock shining in the sunshine the day she first laid eyes on it. She was only nine years old when she first gazed upon its luster, but she could vividly recall every detail at the age of eighty-eight ...

The mountains still retain the copper ore that Fronzy discovered so many years ago and so it only seems proper that those same mountains claim his remains also. Jacob Fronslow Hall died Christmas Day, December 25, 1898. He was buried in a cemetery in Bone Valley, not so very far away from his precious but troublesome and now deserted ’gold’ mine.”

According to Lance Holland’s account in Fontana: A Pocket History of Appalachia (2001) at some point in time, Crate told Mark Bryson about the find and he passed that information, along with an ore sample,

47

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