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June 14-20, 2017 Vol. 19 Iss. 03

Haywood leaders seek input on library plans Page 20 Cullowhee council says no to apartment complex Page 22

CONTENTS

STAFF

On the Cover: Local emergency officials and the National Guard carried out exercises over the weekend to be better prepared should the need for a collaborative response arise in this region. (Pages 6) Cory Vaillancourt

News New EBCI Chief Richie Sneed addresses Tribal employee.................................. 3 Jackson leaders plow forward with comprehensive planning............................ 4-5 Franklin leaders debate noise ordinance...................................................................... 8 Veteran discount cards gaining popularity....................................................................9 Regional summit addresses WNC broadband issues.......................................... 10 Haywood’s Pisgah High School gets new principal.............................................. 12 Housing Task Force says it needs bond money, land trust.................................. 13 Mission officials, leaders meet behind closed doors in Macon.......................... 14 Haywood seeks input on library plans........................................................................ 20 Cullowhee council says no to apartment complex.................................................. 22

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Scott McLeod. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . info@smokymountainnews.com Greg Boothroyd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . greg@smokymountainnews.com Micah McClure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . micah@smokymountainnews.com Travis Bumgardner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . travis@smokymountainnews.com Chloe Collins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . chloe.c@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 Old school dad was open to change.......................................................................... 24

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Chatham County Line comes to Cataloochee Ranch............................................28

Outdoors New mountain bike trails open in Cherokee..............................................................42

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New Cherokee chief addresses employees Richard Sneed calls for collaborative, equitable government

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER Principal Chief Richard Sneed laid out communication, collaboration and community as the guiding principles of his new administration in an address to tribal employees Tuesday, June 6. It had been one

Cherokee’s new leadership team

Smoky Mountain News

Sneed’s new leadership team is: n Cory Blankenship, secretary of treasury n James Bradley, secretary of education n Vickie Bradley, secretary of public health and human services* n Albert Crowe, director of tribal realty* n Mickey Duvall, secretary of commerce* n Jeremy Hyatt, secretary of administration* n Chris McCoy, director of communications* n Paxton Myers, chief of staff n Joey Owle, secretary of agriculture and natural resources n Tara Reed, secretary of human resources n Celia Smith, administrative assistant* (starting June 26) n Sarah Teesateski, executive assistant n Juanita Wilson, director of Snowbird/ Cherokee County services* *Continuing in this position following appointment under the Patrick Lambert administration

June 14-20, 2017

After his swearing-in as Principal Chief May 25, Richie Sneed sent out an email to tribal employees assuring them that they needn’t fear for their jobs as a result of the change in administration and promising that, while higher-level political appointments are intended to end with the term of the chief who appointed them, many of Lambert’s appointments would remain in place.

Sneed introduced his new leadership team during an address to tribal employees Tuesday, June 6, at the Cherokee Central Schools auditorium.

“There was very little change that took place in the structure as far as the leadership team goes,” he said.

Of the 10 leadership team members Sneed introduced, five were continuing in positions they had held during the Lambert administration. Of the remaining five, some had served in similar positions during the Michell Hicks administration while some were new to tribal leadership.

Sneed said the leadership team would soon hold a weekend retreat, during which they would come up with a strategic plan — complete with measurable goals — to present to tribal employees.

week since tribal offices reopened following Tribal Council’s decision to remove former Principal Chief Patrick Lambert from office, and four months since Council took its first impeachment-related action.

“In everything that has happened over the past several months, I think everyone has had some anxiety, everyone has done or heard or said some things they wish they could take back, and now is the time to forgive,” Sneed told the crowd gathered in the Principal Chief Richie Sneed addresses Cherokee Central tribal employees during a morning meeting Schools auditorium that at the Cherokee Central Schools morning. auditorium June 6. Holly Kays photo He promised that as principal chief a Cherokee concept that “We are Cherokee. That’s what sets us apart. When we communicate translates to “the right way,” would guide his and we collaborate, that yields community, because real community is actions.

“That is our core based on relationship.” value as a people. It’s — Principal Chief Richard Sneed what has set us apart from time immemorial the housing issues that exist. The road fortourism success of Bryson City, saying that as Cherokee people, is that we do things the ward, he said, will likely look a lot different — minus gaming revenues — “Swain right way,” Sneed said. than how things are done now. Access is difCounty kicks our butt in tourism every He pledged to follow the tribe’s human resources policies — Lambert’s alleged viola- year.” With the entrance to the Great Smoky ficult, with some driveways costing as much as $100,000, and buildable land is just scarce Mountains National Park at its border, tion of these policies was a cornerstone of Cherokee has an opportunity to do better — compared to the number of people who efforts to impeach him — noting that “for right now, he said, the 2 million vehicles that need it. years and years we have seen it happen “The days of every individual having a 1enter the park through Cherokee each year where people were handed positions and or 2- or 3-acre parcel — folks, those days are mostly just pass through rather than stopimmediately other people say, ‘That’s not gone,” Sneed said. “We don’t have a buildping to spend some of their tourism dollars. fair,’ and they’re right because there’s a able land base for that.”

“We have got to learn to collaborate and process.”

Sneed’s words met a favorable response partner with other cities, towns and counties Sneed told employees that his adminisfrom many in attendance. in our region,” he said. “We can no longer tration would instead be marked by what he “He said exactly what needed to be said stand alone. If the region succeeds, we suctermed “the three Cs of success” — commuand nothing more,” said Joey Owle, who ceed. If the region prospers, we prosper.” nication, collaboration and community.

Sneed named secretary of agriculture and Sneed also spoke to some of the chal“My commitment to you is my door is natural resources. “As the secretary of agrilenges inherent in tribal government — in always open,” Sneed said. “I have met with culture and natural resources, I’m humbled particular, housing. The issue of finding several people who disagree with me on sevand I’m honored to be put in this position to buildable, accessible land where tribal memeral issues, and I have told them my door is bers can build homes, and navigating the red lead that effort to take our tribe where we always open, take a seat … If we disagree on tape surrounding making that land available, need to go.” something, you know something I don’t and “I thought it was very, very positive,” has long been problematic in Cherokee.

I want to hear what that is.” said Councilmember Anita Lossiah, of “We spend a lot of money every year on Sneed was candid in discussing opportuhousing — millions of dollars — and we put Yellowhill. “It was an attempt to bring everynities and challenges facing the tribe. With body together. One of the first elements of very few homes on the ground,” Sneed said. widespread drug use and the ever-present his video was to forgive. We have to be able Housing issues are managed by the worry that the casino might one day cease to to forgive and move forward and unify.”

Department of Housing and Community be the money-making machine it is now, While Sneed’s address included issueDevelopment, which uses tribal funds, and there’s plenty of work to do. But the tribe’s specific direction and vision, the crux of it the Qualla Housing Authority, which uses a opportunity, Sneed said, lies in its resources was that desire to see the tribe come togethcombination of federal and tribal funds.

— financial, environmental and human. er following the division that ran rampant as Qualla Housing is currently under investiga“We will invest, we will preserve and we the impeachment issue heated up. tion by the FBI for potential misuse of those will develop those resources to ensure that “We are Cherokee. That’s what sets us federal dollars. our culture endures for millennia to come,” Sneed intends to gather key stakeholders apart,” Sneed said. “When we communicate he said. and we collaborate, that yields community, However, doing so will require collabora- in the housing issue together for a housing because real community is based on relasummit, an all-day work session to receive tion with agencies outside the Qualla tionship.” input and develop a strategic plan to correct 3 Boundary. Sneed pointed out the recent

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Jackson’s comprehensive plan nears approval Housing, internet and transportation needs at center of 2040 plan

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER fter two years of meetings, research and public input, the Jackson County Comprehensive Land Use Plan must go through one more round of public comment before commissioners can give it final approval. A public hearing is scheduled for 5:50 p.m. Monday, June 19, at the Jackson County Justice Center.

“Anything that gets done gets done because people are committed to accomplishing that or figuring out how that can be implemented,” said Michael Poston, the county’s planning director. “It’s the driving force behind the plan. If everyone decides these aren’t good ideas or we’re not going to do this, it doesn’t really matter what’s written on paper if we don’t have people there to buy into the process.”

The plan came together with the help and input of a 31-person steering committee, the exact membership of which shifted over the two-year planning process as people left old positions and took on new ones. The group — which was simultaneously tasked with developing a comprehensive transportation plan in collaboration with the N.C. Department of Transportation — began by defining the plan’s vision, hearing from various subject matter experts and then breaking it down into various topic areas, appointing subcommittees to look at each.

The steering committee then reconvened to finalize a draft, conducted a series of public meetings last fall, incorporated the resulting Michael Poston comments, and came up with a new version of the draft plan to present to the Jackson County Planning Board, which approved a recommendation for commissioners to adopt it.

The result is a plan that addresses goals and objectives for everything from recreation to infrastructure to education intended to carry the county through 2040. Various objectives are categorized as short-term, mid-term or long-term, giving county leaders a guideline as to how to prioritize implementation. That’s not to say the plan will be a foolproof blueprint for the next 23 years, however.

“It’s not static that for the next 23 years we’ll go down the list and start making checkmarks,” Poston said. “The realization is that we can’t predict everything that’s going to happen. We might be faced with challenges and opportunities we didn’t expect.”

Updates every five to seven years will likely be necessary.

Smoky Mountain News

June 14-20, 2017

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The 1-mile Jackson County Greenway opened in 2016, but the county’s long-term plan calls for expanding that system and otherwise encouraging alternative modes of transportation such as walking, cycling and taking the bus. Nick Breedlove photo As to what is actually in the plan, the answer is a lot. In addition to detailed analyses of demographics and current conditions in the county, objectives range from preventing substance abuse by establishing supervised youth centers in the county to mapping wildlife corridors in order to better protect habitat to getting an annual mud run started.

But regardless of which topic you read through, three themes keep recurring: the county needs better internet access, more workforce housing and more transportation options.

“It wouldn’t go away,” said Mike Byers, vice chancellor of administration and finance at Western Carolina University, and a member of the plan’s steering committee.

“It didn’t matter which topic we tried to discuss. Those topics would find their way back into it.”

All three are of direct concern to WCU, for instance. As the university — and, therefore, the Cullowhee area — continues to grow, transportation solutions that allow students to get around without overloading the small mountain roads more than they already have become ever more pressing. To that end, the plan calls for an expanded county greenway, especially in areas that would connect student housing to campus, for investment in sidewalks and bike-friendly infrastructure, and for collaboration between WCU and county transit so routes are interconnected.

Housing and internet needs converge when it comes to university faculty and staff.

It’s hard to find a quality home for less than

Be heard A public hearing on the proposed Jackson County Comprehensive Land Use Plan will be held at 5:50 p.m. Monday, June 19, in room A201 of the Jackson County Justice and Administration Center in Sylva.

The plan will guide development in the county through 2040 and was developed over a two-year period by a 31-member steering committee representing diverse entities and interests. After the public hearing, commissioners will vote on whether to adopt the plan.

Public comments must be three minutes or less, and written comments can be sent to commissioners using the contact information at www.jacksonnc.org/countycommisioners.html. The proposed plan is online at www.planning.jacksonnc.org/ pdfs/Jackson-County-Comp-Plan-FinalDraft.pdf. $250,000 in Jackson County, Byers said, leading many university employees to buy out of county and resign themselves to a daily commute. Lack of internet access only compounds the problem.

“Many of the people who would work at Western, they don’t do all their work on campus where internet access is high-speed and readily available,” Byers said. “A faculty member wants to be able to do research and conduct business from home at times, and there aren’t that many good options.”

Rich Price, the county’s economic development director and a member of the steering committee, also saw those three issues come into play when planning for future economic development.

“As larger employers continue to be concentrated in more urban areas or areas with particular assets that we don’t have here in the mountains, and certainly topographical challenges that we have Rich Price here in the mountains, small business entrepreneurship will be the staple of our workforce and job creation,” Price said.

New workers need housing, and new businesses need internet. Potential solutions for housing include creating a housing task force, working with private developers to determine what the barriers are to building housing, and exploring programs to help keep existing homes habitable. On the internet side, potential solutions include creating a utilities consortium, looking for funding from grants or private businesses and creating internet hotspots in public buildings.

The economy is also likely to grow through tourism. Visitation has been on the rise, and since his hire to the newly created tourism director position in 2016, Nick Breedlove has been working to push it even farther. Previous comprehensive plans haven’t mentioned tourism as a large sector of Jackson County’s

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Redistricting town hall is June 14

Flynt named to banking commission Western Carolina University Associate Dean Ken Flynt has been appointed to N.C. State Banking Commission by Gov. Roy Cooper.

Flynt, in addition to his position at WCU, was also recently named as the chairman of the Haywood County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.

Flynt received his Master of Economics from North Carolina State University and has

— Michael Poston, Jackson County planning director

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Smoky Mountain News

that are not unique to Jackson County. In particular, the three big ones — housing, internet and transportation — are challenges in counties throughout WNC. However, Price is optimistic that the methods outlined in the plan, combined with the people who committed to working for solutions and the county’s resource-richness when it comes to education, health care and tourism will combine to help Jackson County move the needle over the next couple decades.

“It creates these specific objectives that the community can get behind and rally around and support. I think it creates a pathway,” he said. “We don’t have to use a shotgun-scatter approach for economic development here in Jackson County when you’ve been able to identify particular segments of the economy that you feel that you have the resources and the capabilities to improve upon.”

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STOREWIDE

A non-partisan panel discussion on what the U.S. Supreme Court called racially gerrymandered legislative districts in North Carolina will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, June 14, in the Haywood Community College auditorium at 185 Friedlander Dr. in Clyde.

Sponsored by Durham nonprofit Democracy North Carolina, the N.C. Coalition for Lobbying & Government Reform, the Asheville-Buncombe NAACP, and the Asheville-Buncombe League of Women Voters, the Fair Vote town hall will feature former UNC President and Judge Tom Ross and WCU Political Science Department Chair Chris Cooper, among others. For more information on the forum, visit www.facebook.com/democracynorthcarolina.

“It’s not static that for the next 23 years we’ll go down the list and start making checkmarks.

The realization is that we can’t predict everything that’s going to happen.

We might be faced with challenges and opportunities we didn’t expect.”

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June 14-20, 2017

economy, but this one gives it its due — in 2015, tourism resulted in a $175.9 million economic impact to Jackson County.

“I think providing support to the hospitaleity industry through otraining and recruitment is vital to the sus-tainability of our local -tourism market,” sBreedlove said.

-“Hospitality workers are often the first to interact with tourists, and it is key to support those Nick Breedlove positions and their employers so that tourists have a positive first impression.”

For Jackson County Commissioner Ron Mau, some of the plan’s most notable features are the goals it sets for improving the ecounty’s management of its resources. The plan calls for development of an inventory of ethe county’s and school system’s assets, com”plete with their age, condition and estimated life expectancy. The idea is to use that infor-mation to develop a long-range plan for when rcertain items might need to be replaced, ,which would in turn result in fewer surprise ebudget needs. , Also a member of the Tuckasegee Water gand Sewer Authority Board, Mau is acutely -aware that water and sewer infrastructure is -a big driver of development, with the cost rand availability of connections having a subtstantial impact on where and if development occurs. The plan calls for coordination wbetween TWSA and various other utility eentities in order to better plan new dwater/sewer infrastructure for areas where kdevelopment is likely to occur and to conlocate utilities where possible. s While the plan includes plenty of specific actions to address the issues and goals it identifies, it also grapples with plenty of issues

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held a variety of banking leadership positions, even founding several banks of his own. Flynt regularly works with local leaders and conducts media interviews on economic development.

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news June 14-20, 2017 Smoky Mountain News

Exercise tests federal, local catastrophe response

Responders “decontaminate” a member of Evergreen Packaging’s hazardous response team who’s just returned from the scene of a simulated chlorine leak. Cory Vaillancourt photo

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER y the dawn’s early light, about 300 members of the North Carolina National Guard along with a host of local law enforcement personnel and first responders gathered at Guion Farm in nearby DuPont State Forest, outside Hendersonville the morning of June 8.

Two aircrew had ejected from their F-15 just before it augured in to the rocky dirt, sparking a large fire and kicking off a massive search and rescue mission.

Thankfully, that scenario was only an exercise, but as Operation Vigilant Catamount continued across several sites in Western North Carolina — including in Canton June 10 — regional disaster response teams found themselves dealing with disasters that seemed anything but fabricated.

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MOUNTAIN MANHUNT

Operation Vigilant Catamount is a joint multi-agency disaster response exercise led by the N.C. National Guard and involving local emergency responders, as well as county administration.

The DuPont exercise was but one phase of 6 the operation, which also included simulated

“What it’s really about is having all levels of responders able to come together. You have your local, your county, your state, your federal — that level of exercise is a lot of organization for a lot of people.”

— Dona Stewart, Haywood County administrator

incidents at Fontana Dam, the Mt. Pisgah Observatory and the campus of WCU. “The North Carolina National Guard contributes back to the community every day,” said Raleigh native and 36-year Army veteran Brigadier General John Byrd. “We live in these communities, so when we can do an exercise like this inside of North Carolina and bring in our inter-agency partners like local law enforcement and emergency management, it makes everybody stronger and builds those relationships.”

What those inter-agency partners in DuPont State Forest — including the Henderson, Jackson and Transylvania county Sherriff ’s Departments — didn’t know was that the scenario would take a dramatic twist.

As the jet crash situation developed, it was revealed that one crew member was deceased and the other was injured and needed to be

hoisted by helicopter from a remote clearing in the forest.

Even worse, information soon arrived suggesting that the aircraft was downed by a shoulder-fired missile from a domestic terrorist; local law enforcement found two of the four insurgents after an hours-long manhunt in the rainy, rugged mountain wilderness.

“Any time you have an operation this complex, there’s a lot of moving parts,” Byrd said. “But based on everything that I’ve seen so far, the plans are going forward, everybody’s excited, motivated, ready to go.”

CANTON’S CATASTROPHE The exercise held in Canton the morning of June 10 was far less dramatic, but no less important.

A simulated vehicle accident in a small

parking lot just off Champion Drive caused the release of chlorine gas; as responders from Evergreen Packaging and the Town of Canton arrived at the scene, they realized they’d need to call for backup.

As those calls escalated up the chain of command, agencies from the county, the state and the federal government began arriving on the scene, culminating in the arrival of the 42nd Civil Support Team, an active-duty N.C. Guard unit that responds to chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive incidents.

Chlorine is a deadly chemical that ravages the respiratory system; it was used widely in warfare throughout the early 20th century until banned for its utterly inhumane effects, but has been used recently in Syria’s civil war.

It’s considered a weapon of mass destruction, and its widespread release in Canton could kill or injure hundreds.

Several “victims” were discovered at the scene of the accident, complaining of symptoms like blurred vision, nausea and difficulty breathing.

About 15 or so members of Evergreen’s 35-person emergency response team — which responds to fires, medical emergencies and hazmat incidents at the mill — showed up, some in bulbous green suits meant to protect them from exposure.

Before they could enter the hot zone, however, a decontamination station was set up nearby on Champion Drive, which had been closed to traffic.

Sprouting up around the decontamination station was a dizzying array of firefighters, cops, medics and members of the Guard, all there to support the hazmat operations; they, in turn, were directed literally from above — a command post situated just over the hill where members of the Haywood Incident Management Team operated out of trailers beside the 42nd and the Canton Police Department.

“This gives us the opportunity to have our people exposed to a potentially hazardous material situation that could be life-threatening,” said Canton Police Chief Brian Whitner.

“Being that I have a younger staff, it’s great to be to see all the components come together and we’re glad to be able to do it.”

Whitner represents the older generation of law enforcement personnel in the county; he experienced Haywood’s only recent real disaster — the floods of 2004, during which he worked constantly, slept in his car, dried his clothes on the dashboard and didn’t go home for two weeks.

Whitner’s officers represent the current generation of local law enforcement, and can now say that they’ve come as close to a real disaster as they hopefully ever will.

But training for these incidents doesn’t stop with that generation; the next generation of local law enforcement played a critical role in Operation Vigilant Catamount, from start to finish.

Courtney Wright and Chrislynn Daugherty are both criminal justice majors at Western Carolina University who will graduate in 2018; Daugherty, from Taylorsville, hopes to work homicide and Wright, from Lincolnton, wants to join her local emergency response department.

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Above: A member of the Asheville Fire Department hoists an “injured pilot” up to a waiting Blackhawk helicopter during a training exercise in DuPont State Forest June 8. Below: “Victims” lie strewn about the scene of a simulated vehicular accident that resulted in the “leak” of chlorine during operation Vigilant Catamount in Canton June 10. Left: Another “victim” of chlorine exposure is rolled through a decontamination tent on Champion Drive in Canton during Operation Vigilant Catamount June 10. Cory Vaillancourt photos

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Courtney Wright (right) and Chrislynn Daugherty are just two of the small group of WCU criminal justice students who helped plan portions of Operation Vigilant Catamount.

Cory Vaillancourt photo

know? When will they know? Is there any indication terrorism was involved?

The exercise also served as a recruiting opportunity for the N.C. Guard, which integrates with and supports local responders in situations like last year’s Charlotte riots and Hurricane Matthew.

“As recruiter, I find that a lot of times people just need a little bit more of a sense of

direction, honestly,” said Staff Sgt. Nicole Kimble, a California native who joined the Army 13 years ago because she wanted to become a county sheriff.

“I was trying to get on the department, but I couldn’t because all the veterans were taking all the spots,” she laughed. “On-thejob training, college benefits, or direction — those are the three big reasons why people

join. They stay for different reasons, but that’s why they join.”

While they may not stay just for the excitement of waking up before the sun to spend countless hours responding to a riot, hurricane, jet crash or chemical spill, members of the Guard can take solace in knowing that they’re not only bettering themselves in their abilities, but also enhancing the capabilities of the agencies that would be right there next to them in the proverbial trenches during an emergency.

“What it’s really about is having all levels of responders able to come together. You have your local, your county, your state, your federal — that level of exercise is a lot of organization for a lot of people,” said Dona Stewart, a Haywood County administrator who helped organize the county’s presence during the exercise and also served as the county’s point of contact.

An after-action report will soon be analyzed by participants in the exercise.

“You really can’t put a price on this,” Stewart said. “It was an excellent opportunity for us to train together so that we’re prepared.”

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Smoky Mountain News

r s . As interns in WCU’s emergency disaster o management program, they not only helped r check participants into the Hendersonville exercise, they helped plan it. n “We’ve been working on this since ; January,” Wright said. “We’ve written the scel narios and helped organize who’s going to be h here.” d Wright, Daugherty and the rest of WCU’s o interns involved in the exercise don’t constitute the extent of WCU’s participation, t though — actual human cadaver parts from n WCU’s forensics department were used durl ing the search phase of the operation in Henderson County to provide a realistic t training experience for cadaver dogs.

- In the event of an emergency like the l Henderson County or Canton exercises, offim cials from county and city administration would play a critical role; Canton special n events coordinator Lisa Stinnett delivered a t statement during the press briefing explain- ing the incident and then introduced , Whitner, who fielded questions from the m media that would have probably been asked y were the event real: Should citizens be concerned? Should they evacuate? How will they

June 14-20, 2017

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Franklin wants to address noise complaints

BY J ESSI STONE N EWS E DITOR ranklin Mayor Bob Scott was recently awoken at midnight on a Friday by a phone call from Franklin resident Janet Watson.

Watson — who lives on Cook Street — was at the end of her rope after dealing with loud music and partying coming from a nearby commercial business on Depot Street for several days. On the Saturday just before Easter, Watson said the loud music and partying began at 9 p.m. and continued until 4 or 5 a.m. Sunday morning. She said the partying resumed the following Friday at 10 a.m. and went on all day long.

“At 9 p.m. I called dispatch. I wanted to talk to Chief Adams but I was unable to talk to him so I asked if I could speak to Bob Scott but they said he was unavailable,” Watson recounted for the town council in early May. “So I picked just picked up the phonebook to see if I could find his number and I called him.”

Scott and Chief Adams went out to check out the situation, which Watson said got resolved by 2:30 a.m.

Watson had called the police department many times but had been told there was nothing they could do because the neighbors weren’t breaking any laws. While police can ask people to tone down the noise, they don’t have any legal recourse to make them because the town doesn’t have an ordinance regulating nuisance or loud noise complaints.

“Something’s gonna have to be done. I have health problems and can’t take this stress,” Watson told the town board.

After getting multiple complaints over the last couple of months, the town hopes to remedy the problem by looking at ordinance options. Town Attorney John Henning Jr. presented the board with a draft ordinance at its regular meeting June 5.

Scott wanted the board to approve the ordinance that same night to give police officers a tool to deal with these ongoing issues.

“I want to see the board adopt this tonight — I don’t want to subject our police depart-

Smoky Mountain News

June 14-20, 2017

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ment to another month of this stuff going on,” he said.

Police Chief David Adams said he looked over the ordinance language and thought it was sufficient.

“It reads well — I think it will work,” he said.

Other councilmembers wanted more time to look at the ordinance language and figure out the best way to define nuisance noise.

“We don’t need a knee-jerk response,” said Councilmember Joe Collins.

“I don’t consider this a knee-jerk reaction at all — it’s been brought up time after time,” Scott said, adding that he didn’t want the town to be accused of being negligent if the situation escalates and something bad happens. “We’ve batted this thing around for a while but at some point you have to bite the bullet.”

After getting multiple complaints over the last couple of months, the town hopes to remedy the problem by looking at ordinance options.

Henning said there were a couple of different ways to address the problem — either through a police power ordinance or a broader land-use regulation to prohibit certain uses on commercial properties since that is what is occurring on Depot Street.

The proposed police power ordinance would allow the town to prohibit actions that could be considered detrimental to the health, safety or welfare of residents — and late night partying disrupting neighbors would fit into that category. Henning said the advantage of going this direction would be that the town board wouldn’t be required the town to hold a public hearing before adopting it, which means police would immediately be able to enforce the new law.

Downtown Franklin. File photo The disadvantage, he said, is that the ordinance would have to be applied uniformly throughout the town limits and not just certain parts of town.

If the town goes for a land use regulation instead, the town could prohibit certain actions from certain areas of town during specific hours — like 7 a.m. to midnight.

“The town’s Unified Development Ordinance is already equipped to deal with land uses and ensuring that compatible uses are located away from incompatible ones,” Henning said. “We could add this sort of use to the definition of ‘private club,’ which would then subject it to special requirements, such as a prohibition on locating closer than 500 feet from similar use or within 250 feet of a residential use.”

Nuisance or noise ordinances are still tough to define. How do you define noise? At what decimal does noise become a nuisance to others? How many people are needed to define a party?

The board discussed that 10 might be a good number to define a party, but Councilmember Barbara McRae said four people could still make a lot of noise.

On the other hand, Councilmember Brandon McMahan said his family’s home on Christmas could then be considered a nuisance party.

“So if there are nine people really partying

Franklin discusses climate change resolution

BY J ESSI STONE N EWS E DITOR he town of Franklin is considering how to become more environmentally friendly after being presented with a climate solutions resolution from The Canary Coalition.

Avram Friedman, president of the Canary Coalition — a nonprofit group based in Jackson County that advocates for environmental protections — presented the board with the resolution during a June 5 board meeting.

The NC Climate Solutions resolution calls 8

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for a statewide commitment to achieve a 100 percent transformation from fossil fuels to renewable energy, such as solar and wind, by no later than the year 2050, in accordance with the worldwide scientific community’s virtual consensus of necessity for this schedule to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.

“I urge you to adopt this climate solutions resolution that is part of a nationwide campaign started by scientists at Stanford University to address the climate crisis,” Friedman said. “This group is remarkable

and their efforts shouldn’t be wasted.”

These scientists did a comprehensive study of how each individual state can work toward the 2050 goal.

The results of the North Carolina study indicate that a combination of offshore and onshore wind energy will provide an estimated 55 percent of all energy needs in this state. Solar electric and thermal systems will account for another 41.5 percent.

Hydroelectric power will provide 2.7 percent and ocean wave devices will produce 0.8 percent.

hard, we won’t be able to do anything about it?” he asked.

Collins said he was against passing an ordinance that night and thought it would be best to add something to the Land Development Code.

Councilmember Patti Abel also said she would like more time to consider the ordinance since there were still a number of unanswered questions.

Despite Scott’s push to pass the ordinance, the board decided to table the issue for another month.

Franklin isn’t the first local government to be presented with this issue. At the direction of county commissioners, Macon County’s planning board went through a yearlong process in 2014 and finally passed a nuisance ordinance in April 2015 to address residential noise complaints.

The county now defines nuisance noise as loud, unnecessary and disturbing noise that is intentionally created to disturb someone’s peace. So “intentionally” is the key word.

Franklin may not be able to show that these parties on Depot Street are purposefully trying to disturb others.

The Franklin board could look toward Sylva’s noise ordinance, which allows the town to regulate loud noises, whether it be a noisy animal, vehicle, amplified music and even service stations during certain hours.

A greener environment could also make for a greener economy. According to the study, the average annual energy cost savings per person will be $131. The study indicates that about 64,200 permanent jobs and another 99,500 temporary construction jobs will be created in the state during the process. In addition, $19 billion in healthcare costs will be avoided due to the elimination of air and water pollutants from the burning of fossil fuels. The total energy, health and climate cost savings per person in 2050 could be $6,623.

While the scientists have developed climate solutions, Friedman said they can’t implement them on their own — they need help from local govern-

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“Our goal is three-fold.

First, to get vets to come in and register their discharge papers; secondly, to get as many businesses as possible to participate in the program; and thirdly, as a token of appreciation to our vets for their service to the country.”

— Todd Raby, Macon County Register of Deeds

Other organizations including the American Legion, Vietnam Veterans Association, and Veterans of Foreign Wars were on hand during the kick off. To date, more than 300 Haywood County vets have signed up.

Amy Zieverink, Asstistant Register of Deeds for Johnston County, said they also began their program in November 2016.

“We had 150 vets register the first day and now there are more than 900 individuals registered with 94 participating businesses,” she said.

“It was just overwhelming,” she added.

Guildford County Register of Deeds Jeff Thigpen said proudly that his office won the 2016 Innovation Award from the North

A Guilford County registrant with Jeff Thigpen (left), Guilford County Register of Deeds.

Carolina Association of County Commissioners and the Local Government Federal Credit Union for “excellence in innovation.”

“I see this as an organic movement throughout North Carolina,” he said, adding that his hope for the program is that it will expand to all 100 counties.

The NC Climate Solutions resolution calls for a statewide commitment to achieve a 100 percent transformation from fossil fuels to renewable energy by no later than the year 2050. north to find cooler temperatures and more mosquito-borne illnesses plaguing the South.

“Our tourist economy strongly depends on preservation and it’s being threatened by the burning of fossil fuels,” he said. “This couldn’t be more of a local issue.”

Since the resolution wasn’t technically on the agenda, the Franklin board tabled a vote

for its next meeting in July.

However, the board did have a little discussion regarding greener energy practices in Franklin.

Town Attorney John Henning Jr. said many municipalities were looking to install solar power for their own needs.

“I think we have the capacity to do some of

Raby said he was looking forward to adding Macon County to the growing list of governments participating in the program.

“It’s our way of saying thank you to those who have served,” he concluded.

(Kurt J. Volker is a writer/photographer living in Otto. He may be reached at volkerks4742@frontier.com.)

Smoky Mountain News

ements and organizations like The Canary eCoalition. s “Climate change is a local issue detrimenstally impacting the community and people -who live here,” Friedman said. “Because of eclimate change we’re experiencing extreme nweather conditions — last year we experilenced one of the worst droughts and our air dquality was in a red zone from the wild fires l— that’s just the beginning of what we can texpect from climate change to impact the communities in Western North Carolina.”

- As climate conditions worsen, Friedman tsaid WNC would not only need to worry about dwindling animal habitats but also insects important to our ecosystem migrating

experience with the program, other North Carolina Registers of Deeds expressed overwhelming positive reaction to the “Thank A Vet” program. Haywood County Register of Deeds Sherri Rogers characterized it “personally as one of the best days of my life.”

“The camaraderie of the vets was so incredible,” she added.

Rogers began the Haywood program on Nov. 10, 2016 and had 75 participants register the first day.

“The vets were so appreciative,” she said.

June 14-20, 2017

BY KURT J. VOLKER CONTRIBUTING WRITER program designed to offer free I.D. cards to Macon County veterans for discounted goods and services by participating businesses should be underway shortly, according to Register of Deeds Todd Raby.

Called the “Thank A Veteran” discount program, the idea has already been implemented successfully in approximately 20 North Carolina counties, the first being on Memorial Day 2015 in Guilford County.

Guilford has since issued more than 1,600 cards involving more than 300 participating businesses.

Raby indicated that since the Register of Deeds regularly records a variety of docuoments including military records, his office seemed like a natural fit to administer the tprogram.

“We will be purchasing the photo I.D. nmachine after the beginning of the fiscal year ewhich begins July 1,” he said, “and I hope to dhave the program up and running as soon as possible.“ e Raby told Macon County commissioners -that he is coordinating the program with the -Chamber of Commerce, individual Macon County businesses, and other organizations to -“get the word out.” Participating businesses ewill be listed on his office website. Raby said he will be issuing a press release to indicate when oveterans can expect the program to begin. n Eligible veterans include all Macon sCounty residents who have been honorably gdischarged from any branch of the U.S. eArmed Forces. l “All a veteran needs to do is to come into our office (located in Room 230 on the secsond floor of the government center) with ttheir original DD-214 discharge papers,” sRaby said. The office will then record the .documents, take a picture, and issue the disecount card free of charge.

- “Our goal is three-fold,” Raby said, “First, to get vets to come in and register their disdcharge papers; secondly, to get as many busienesses as possible to participate in the proagram; and thirdly, as a token of appreciation dto our vets for their service to the country.”

When contacted for their individual

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Calling all vets: Macon County wants you

that here with the old landfill property,” he said.

Councilmember Joe Collins said he’d love to see more charging stations for electric vehicles in town.

So far, Friedman said, the towns of Sylva, Boone and the Watauga County Commission have passed the NC Climate Solutions Resolution. It is being introduced to municipalities and counties throughout the state and a vote is currently pending in many local governments.

A statewide resolution has been introduced to the NC General Assembly in the 2017 session. It was filed as House Bill 401, with 16 legislative sponsors, and is currently assigned to the House Rules Committee.

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Broadband group begins mapping plans for service

Smoky Mountain News

June 14-20, 2017

Left to right: Macon County Commissioner Gary Shields, Macon Economic Committee member Tommy Jenkins, and representatives from Balsam West and Morris Broadband participated in a June 12 panel at the Macon County Public Library.

BY KURT J. VOLKER CONTRIBUTING WRITER roadband internet service is vital for future economic growth in Macon County, but it will take time.

That was the conclusion reached by members of the Broadband Information Sharing Group at a meeting held June 12 at the Macon County Public Library (MCPL).

Some 13 panelists including local and regional government representatives from Macon, Swain, and Jackson counties, no less than five internet service providers (ISP), and two community club broadband committees gave a packed audience their assessment of

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how and when broadband services would come to the majority of residents in Macon County.

Sarah Thompson, Executive Director of the Southwestern Commission, a council of governments representing seven counties in western North Carolina, set the stage.

“All of our preliminary surveys and data gathering indicate that a viable broadband internet infrastructure is the number economic development concern in our region,” she said.

The lack of broadband services also negatively affects the student/teacher population in Macon County, 23 percent of whom

gigabytes (one gigabyte equals a thousand megabytes) of download capacity,” he said.

The radios operate via line-of-sight transmission with antennas that are virtually undetectable in the environment, according to Skyrunner.

Tim Will of Catalpa Partners told how he pioneered broadband service in Rutherford County to assist farmers in getting their product to market. He mounted antennas on water towers and showed farmers, a number of whom he taught how to read, to use computers in advertising their produce on line to vendors in Charlotte some 70 miles away.

“Rutherford County went from the 99th

“As it stands now, many home-based businesses can’t survive, fiber is too expensive, and people are just plain frustrated. What we need is an intermediary between the funders and the providers.”

— Tony Deakins, Otto

poorest county in the state to the 67th in just six years,” Will said proudly. Catalpa Partners also offers classes online to teach other farmers how to grow their businesses.

Thompson wrapped up the session by saying the Southwestern Commission will take all the information and surveys gathered to date to develop a request for proposal (RFP) by December 2017.

“The Phase One RFP will develop a plan for the region, provide training on issues, develop community assessment profiles and policies, determine implementation strategies and common routes for fiber routes, and the like,” she said.

Phase II of the study beginning in January 2018 will take all of the information gathered in Phase I and present them to the ISP providers and public and private partnerships to lay the basic groundwork for bringing broadband service to the region.

(Kurt J. Volker is a writer/photographer living in Otto. He may be reached at volkerks4742@frontier.com.)

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reported a lack of broadband/internet availability at their residence.

“That’s why we have so many students utilizing the computer lab at the Macon County Public Library and bringing their own laptops here,” said Charles Diede, Assistant County Librarian who coordinated the meeting.

The standard for broadband as defined by the Federal Communications Commission is internet service that carries a minimum of 25 megabytes per second download speed.

Nearly 40 percent of Americans living in rural communities in North Carolina do not have access to broadband, according to the FCC. Each of the ISP panelists provided those in attendance with a dazzling compendium of technical information on how broadband is provided, the state of technology today, and what’s on the horizon. All agreed that it would take a combination of fiber optic transmission lines and wireless service to get the job done.

Tony Deakins of the Otto Community expressed his angst at the inaccuracy of state survey maps for statewide internet service.

“Their maps show 58 to 80 percent coverage, but our surveys show that 40 percent of Macon County is without service,” he said.

“I’d like to see a goal of 85 percent coverage for Macon with a minimum of 25 megabyte download speed and 3 megabyte upload speed,” Deakins added. “As it stands now, many home-based businesses can’t survive, fiber is too expensive, and people are just plain frustrated. What we need is an intermediary between the funders and the providers. Where’s the bridge between the two?” he concluded.

Joan Mackie, representing the Holly Springs Community, warned that the lack of broadband coverage in Macon was especially difficult for the elderly population.

“Health care systems can provide diagnostic services such as blood pressure, heart monitoring, and the like through broadband connections,” Mackie said, “but not with the current system in place.”

The biggest obstacle in providing broadband service to the mountains is the terrain, the group agreed. But inexpensive solutions such as point-to-point radio transmitters costing about $3,000 each are now available.

J.J. Boyd of Skyrunner Internet, an ISP serving nine western counties, said the technology has improved dramatically in recent years.

“Today, we’re able to provide up to 10

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Pisgah, Haywood Early College to get new principals

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER Three Haywood County Schools will see new administrators this fall after the Haywood County Board of Education approved the personnel changes during a meeting the morning of June 13.

Pisgah Assistant Principal Jill Barker will move up to the head principal position, replacing Greg Bailey, who left last week to take a job at Erwin High School in Buncombe County.

Barker has 22 years of experience and is a two-time high school teacher of the year who has served in varying roles at Bethel Middle School and in the district’s central administration.

“Pisgah is a great high school with a strong tradition of success,” Barker said.

“This is a great opportunity, because the school is so well respected in our region and in our state.”

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Haywood Early College Principal Jeff Haney will leave that post to serve as the district’s secondary supervisor, where he’ll be responsible for a variety of programming and administrative tasks.

Haney will replace interim supervisor Knox Hardin, who took over for Dr. Carol Douglass upon her retirement in February.

Replacing Haney at the Haywood Early College will be Lori Fox. A longtime resident of Haywood County, Fox has taught at Enka Middle School and Central Haywood High School and has been an assistant principal at Pisgah for the last five years.

“We have three very talented and capable people and we’re lucky to have them in the new positions,” Haywood School Board Chairman Chuck Francis told the three upon their appointments. “The challenges ahead are going to be an uphill climb, but we have confidence in you, so congratulations. Now your work begins.”

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tally suspected — that working-class Haywood County residents have had trouble finding comfortable and cost-effective digs.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) defines affordable housing as that which costs no more than 30 percent of an owner’s or renter’s monthly gross income.

Most workers in Haywood County — by far — earn wages from the service sector.

According to the N.C. Department of Commerce, the average monthly wage in that sector is $2,444 per month, meaning an affordable 1-bedroom for a sole occupant should run about $814 per month.

Although that price point for rentals isn’t unattainable, it is unaffordable for the approximately 7,000 workers who make less than the county’s 13,000 service sector workers do, including those in the booming leisure and hospitality sector, where gross monthly wages average $1,196.

And it may even be unaffordable for the approximately 12,000 workers employed in every other sector of the economy, all of which earn more on average than the service sector. A dated housing supply, lack of new construction and lack of multi-unit developments that drive down costs for developers are all contributing factors to the situation.

“I think multi-unit development, just for the economies of scale and getting the cost down, is very important so we can truly move into affordable housing model,” said Jim Blyth, a member of the subcommittee that assembled the plan. “We recommended that municipalities and the county look at zoning

Moving to dispose of more county-owned property, like the old Haywood County Hospital, is but one recommendation made by the county AHTF. File photo issues, density issues and public-private partnerships to encourage developers to build multi-family housing.”

The strategy — released for the first time at an AHTF meeting June 9 — recognizes the challenges the county faces in responding to the needs of residents and those hoping to relocate to the area.

Given that Haywood County’s rate of natural population increase is negative, meaning residents aren’t having enough children to replace the elderly who pass away each year, attracting new residents is crucial for the county’s economic growth.

If those prospective residents have nowhere to live, they obviously won’t be moving to Haywood County and paying property taxes; every municipality in the county receives the majority of its yearly revenue from ad valorem property taxes.

The rest of the recommendations, Stewart said, would create the “toolkit” to help develop public-private partnerships and incen-

Waynesville falls short in playground contest

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ple from across the town, the county, the region and indeed the world — hyperlink data shows votes from Canada, France, Japan and St. Maarten, among other countries.

The contest also received heavy coverage from local print, radio and television outlets from Sylva to Asheville and nearly everywhere in between.

A win by Waynesville would have helped fund an adaptive playground that’s already in the works by the town; once the contest started, Waynesville jumped out to a huge lead it never relinquished, and spent most of the two weeks of the contest with more votes than the next two or three other entrants combined.

A recent N.C. State study claimed that there are at least 1,000 special needs children in Haywood County who could have benefitted from the donation; that number grows

tremendously when the families of special needs children are factored in to the equation.

The nearest adaptive playgrounds to Haywood County residents — which allow children with physical and mental challenges to integrate with their non-disabled peers — are hours away.

Instead, Mankato’s entry, which finished fourth in balloting with 3,061 votes compared to Waynesville’s 6,980 votes, was awarded the prize.

Mankato is a town of 41,000 located in south-central Minnesota not far from the Iowa border. Its proposal was also for an adaptive playground, which is to be built next to an existing special needs facility called a “miracle field.”

Despite being bested by a factor of two in balloting, Mankato’s victory wasn’t an extraordinary occurrence. Last year’s winner

— another adaptive playground in the small town of Poplar Bluff, Missouri — finished “fifth or sixth,” according to organizer Subrina Berger.

After balloting in the contest is completed, Kiwanis interviews the top 10 vote-getters to learn more about their projects.

“We poured our heart into the interview,” Burger said.

Waynesville’s interview was conducted last week, and went well according to Langston.

It’s not known why Waynesville didn’t prevail, but those involved with the project certainly don’t feel like “losers.”

“I’m sad, but proud at the same time of how we ran our campaign,” said Marti Peithman, one of the organizers of Waynesville’s entry. “We certainly raised awareness of our special needs community.

We should be proud of ourselves for running such a well-organized campaign that really got our message out.”

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Smoky Mountain News

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER espite finishing first in an online contest with more than double the votes of its nearest competitor, Waynesville’s adaptive playground will not be funded by the annual Kiwanis “Legacy of Play” contest.

“Regardless of where it is, folks will be able to use it, and in this case, that’s Mankato,” said Waynesville Parks and Recreation Director Rhett Langston.

The contest, which ran from May 16 to 31, featured almost 50 entrants from across the country, all competing for $25,000 in free playground equipment from Kiwanis and Landscape Structures Inc. “Everyone worked so hard, I thought we had a pretty good shot at it,” Langston said.

The balloting effort put on by Waynesville drew together thousands of peo-

tivize private development of affordable housing units.

Among the most progressive of those recommendations is the housing trust fund, which could raise concerns from conservatives who might view it as meddling in a highly speculative, highly capitalist market.

According to the plan, the trust fund would provide low-interest loans to developers and could be funded through a sales tax, bond issue or a line item in the county’s general fund.

The plan further suggests that proceeds from the sale of any county-owned land could also make its way into the fund.

The Board of County Commissioners will tentatively consider approval of the plan August 7.

“I think that the reception from the Board of County Commissioners’ liaison [Commissioner Kevin Ensley] and the County Manager [Ira Dove] — they were very receptive of the product, with the understanding that it is a work in progress,” Blyth said.

June 14-20, 2017

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER strategic plan developed by a subcommittee of the Haywood County Affordable Housing Task Force that proposes 400 affordable housing units by 2028 makes a number of recommendations to help achieve that goal, including the passage of a general obligation bond and the establishment of a land trust.

“The draft strategic plan was received very well by the task force,” said Dona Stewart, Haywood County administrator and co-chair of the affordable housing task force with Mountain Projects’ Patsy Davis.

Repurposing government-owned properties and expanding infrastructure also top the list of suggested solutions to an affordable housing crisis that has gripped the county for some time.

“The plan had a couple of guiding principles,” Stewart said. “One was that we needed to set a specific goal, but we also needed to be flexible enough to take advantage of opportunities that may arise. So we set a specific goal, a recommendation to the commissioners, of 400 units by 2028.”

The Haywood County Affordable Housing Task Force was established by the Haywood County Board of County Commissioners in March 2016, and is charged with creating a strategy to combat the affordable housing crisis after conducting an assessment of both the supply of and demand for affordable housing in the county.

That assessment, released in August 2016, confirmed what was until then only anecdo-

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Haywood housing task force sets goal, issues recommendations

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Public not invited to meeting with Mission Local leaders discuss labor and delivery services at AMC

BY J ESSI STONE N EWS E DITOR ission Health leaders finally agreed to hold a meeting in Franklin to discuss their controversial decision to close the labor and delivery unit at Angel Medical Center, but the public and the media were not allowed to attend.

Only a dozen people were allowed in the meeting held Monday in Franklin, a stipulation that Mission CEO Ron Paulus made even though hundreds of concerned community members and local governmental leaders have been requesting a sit down with him for over a month.

Franklin Mayor Bob Scott said he was torn on whether to participate in the meeting since the community and media couldn’t be there to ask questions, but on the other hand he thought the opportunity presented was better than nothing at all.

“They (Mission) set the ground rules — not us,” he said. “They set the rules and we had to give them a list of who was attending and no media could be there, but we were very careful not to violate open meeting laws — no majority of any board was present and we made no decisions.”

Mission made the labor and delivery closure announcement on April 27 via press release. Mission Health CEO Dr. Ron Paulus held a press conference about it at 8 a.m. on a Friday in Asheville, making it difficult for Macon County leaders to attend. While several news outlets did attend the press conference, they did not have the same opportunity when Paulus came to Franklin.

Members of the concerned citizens group formed to keep the labor and delivery unit open — Operation Heartbeat Two — told Mission they only wanted to ask questions to better understand the reasoning for the closure. While they promised no protesting or angry attendees, that wasn’t enough to get the meeting they wanted.

Instead, only a few Operation Heartbeat Two leaders, including Dan Kowal, were allowed to attend the meeting held at 2 pm.

Monday. Also in attendance were Scott, Franklin Town Manager Summer Woodard, Macon County Commission Chairman Jim Tate, Commissioner Ronnie Beale, Macon Economic Development Director Tommy Jenkins, County Manager Derek Roland and several practicing and retired physicians. On the Mission side, Paulus, AMC President Karen Gorby and AMC Board of Directors Chair Jane Kimsey attended the meeting.

The goal of the meeting was to find some kind of compromise to keep the service available locally, but Scott said he did not walk away hopeful after the hour-long meet14 ing.

Smoky Mountain News

June 14-20, 2017

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“Basically he kind of passed the buck, saying it’s a problem in Raleigh and D.C. that needs to be taken care of.”

— Dan Kowal

“I was glad Dr. Paulus came over here, but it was very disappointing. I saw nothing come out of this meeting that would give us hope right now,” Scott said. “My gut feeling is it was all about profit and loss — pure and simple. Where we can go from here I don’t know. My feeling is we no longer have a community hospital — we have a corporate hospital.”

Kowal said attendees asked Mission to keep a bare-bones staff in Ron Paulus. labor and delivery and keep it open for an additional three months while a better plan is proposed, but he said it was clear after the meeting that Paulus wasn’t going to budge on the decision to stop delivering babies at AMC on July 14.

“He talked a lot in circles,” Kowal said.

“He had all sorts of numbers except the ones we asked for.”

Kowal said Paulus reiterated the same reasoning for the closure he gave at the press conference in Asheville. It comes down to the fact that labor and delivery at AMC loses $1 million or more a year and with health care policies in flux right now in

Washington, D.C., Mission needs to continue to tighten its belt. With Macon’s high rate of Medicaid patients, Paulus has said reimbursements don’t keep up with the cost of providing the service.

“Basically he kind of passed the buck, saying it’s a problem in Raleigh and D.C. that needs to be taken care of,” Kowal said.

“He said we should be putting our energy in D.C. and Raleigh, and we are as much as we can.”

Kowal brought up the fact that Mission Health — a large nonprofit health care system — makes a $63 million profit a year.

“It’s a matter of priority — the life of babies and mothers versus saving a few hundred thousand dollars,” he said. “Why can’t $1.2 million of that come to Franklin? But he didn’t accept that premise. He has his own narrative.”

Paulus maintains Mission’s surplus has to be used to reinvest in health care, which is what he has promised to do by constructing a new $45 million hospital in Franklin within the next few years — even though it will be smaller and without a labor and delivery unit. Paulus claimed the cost of a new hospital would be an additional $7 million if it included a new labor and delivery unit and another $2.3 million to staff it.

“He kept saying we should be appreciative they’re looking to spend $45 million on a new mini hospital,” Kowal said. “Even

though we have a county commissioner and construction builder that says it’s unlikely to be done in that short of time.”

Without delivery at AMC, the closest option for women will be 25 minutes away over Cowee Mountain at Harris Regional Hospital in Sylva. Paulus also thinks more women will choose to travel an hour and a half to Mission Hospital in Asheville since 25 percent of expecting mothers in Macon already deliver there.

Whether they go to Sylva or Asheville, Macon County is likely to see a significant increase to its ambulance transporting costs when the unit at AMC closes. Right now, Macon’s ambulances average seven trips a day to Mission in Asheville and that money comes right out of the county’s — and taxpayers’ — coffers.

The community is concerned about the dangers in pregnant women having to travel far distances to deliver. In emergency situations, physicians staffed at the ER at AMC could deliver a baby, but they aren’t properly trained to deliver by caesarian.

Paulus has also said the demographics in Macon County show the birth rate isn’t growing and the population continues to be a majority 55 and older, which means labor and delivery is not in high demand.

However, births at AMC have been growing steadily for the last four years with nearly 400 babies being born there in 2016.

Despite all the reasons given, Kowal still feels like there’s something Mission isn’t telling the community because of the way the announcement was made and Mission’s actions since the decision made. About a year ago, Mission announced it would be

S EE M ISSION, PAGE 17

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news June 14-20, 2017 Smoky Mountain News 16

Mom delivers baby on way to hospital xpectant mother Caitlin Austin of Balsam never imagined giving birth to her second child in a car.

Austin began having active labor contractions at around 11 a.m. on Tuesday March 30. She called her sister immediately to take her to the hospital as she knew the baby was coming quickly.

Ashby, sister of Austin, works as an Emergency Department nurse at Haywood Regional and called ahead let the hospital know to expect them at the ER. Big brother Carson, 3, was riding in the back seat of the car during the excitement.

“About halfway there, while traveling on the highway, I could feel him start to come out,” said Austin.

A team of women’s care nurses, CNAs, doctors and extra personnel greeted Austin at the doors upon their arrival. Katie Hargrove, nurse on the Women’s Care Unit, was working at the time.

“When we pulled up, Katie immediately checked me in the car and urged me to not push and to breathe, but then I had another contraction and he was coming out,” said Austin.

Hargrove and Austin said after Katie determined the baby’s birth was about to happen, she leaned the passenger seat back toward big brother Carson.

“When all this was going on, we were

E

just thinking about ‘this baby is coming’ and making sure we tended immediately to he and mom, so I leaned the seat back and he was right behind it.”

Carson said, “‘Owwwww’, you’re squishing me mommy.’”

Dawson Louis was born at 11:45 a.m. weighing 7 pounds, 2 ounces. He came out crying and perfectly healthy. The family was then transported up to the Women’s Care Unit where Jody Schmit, Certified Nurse Midwife of Haywood Women’s Medical Center, tended to their care for the remainder of their stay.

Austin credits the entire team at Haywood Regional and especially nurse Katie Hargrove on the exceptional care and experience. She said that the collaboration between the units was amazing.

“Everyone was on the ball with everything.” She said that when the baby came out, staff also tended to Carson to make certain he was occupied and calm. “I can’t complain about anything. It really says a lot how Haywood Regional works as an entity,” she said.

“I can just say that everybody was always fully involved. They were always helpful, always patient, and just awesome. Katie was amazing every step of the way. We enjoyed our gourmet post-delivery meal at the hospital the next day. My fiancé loves steak and I

Pictured are (from left) Lab Technician Ashby Brown and sister to mom Caitlin Austin; brother Carson Austin in mom Caitlin Austin’s arms; Women’s Care Unit Nurse Katie Hargrove with newborn Dawson Louis; and Bethany Cope, Registered Respiratory Therapist. Donated photo don’t cook that at home,” she said. “Give that to him here! They make you feel special after you have a baby, and recognize you.”

The family enjoyed their first meal as a family of four and then were discharged home with their healthy newborn.

M ISSION, CONTINUED FROM 14

owns the property where AMC is now located. Mission and AMC formalized a partnership in 2013 when the small rural hospital signed a management agreement with Mission to bring more financial stability and better access to resources.

However, Kowal said Paulus insisted on Monday that Mission outright owns AMC and the property it’s located upon.

“I asked point-blank about what Mission has to provide under its management agreement with Angel and he said Mission owns it outright,” Kowal said.

Left with few options at the end of the discussions, Kowal said local officials will likely looking for a way to challenge the closing by examining property deed documents and whether Mission has a management agreement with AMC or owns the hospital outright.

H

investing $4.3 million to renovate and expand labor and delivery at AMC to meet the current and future demand. When asked what had changed since that announcement, Paulus said a closer examination of the AMC facility by architects revealed more structural problems than originally anticipated. He said renovating and repairing the problems in the building would have cost more than $50 million — $5 million more than it would cost to build a brand new hospital in Franklin.

Mission will also be closing down its children’s and women’s practices in Sylva soon to consolidate them in Franklin, but still has not sent out a press release regarding that decision.

After the meeting Monday, Kowal said there are also questions of whether Mission

levels of service,” said Maggie Valley Town Manager Nathan Clark. “If anything, they’ll notice an increase.”

Maggie Valley’s fund balance — a robust 107 percent of its annual budget — will dip to about 93 percent.

But because property values generally went down, most residents won’t actually pay more — or much more — in taxes.

“My husband and I, on our property, we’re going to be paying $42 more a year,” Banks said. “To me that’s eminently reasonable — to make sure that my trash is collected once a week, and I can flush my toilets, I can take a shower, I have police protection and fire protection.”

Smoky Mountain News

ed that we could do some budget savings,” Banks said. “Now, the economy has caught up with us.”

The budget as adopted by the board June 12 will appropriate some $380,000 in general fund balance to pay down debts, thus relieving the town of the monthly or yearly payments associated with the debt, saving money on interest and preventing the gutting of municipal services.

“Citizens will notice no difference in the

June 14-20, 2017

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER aywood County’s 2017 property revaluation was like a bucket of cold water in the face of every local government official in the county, but nowhere more so than Maggie Valley.

The town’s taxable value fell 9 percent from $400 million to $365 million, the lowest value since 2007’s $328 million; to collect the same $2.7 million for the fiscal year 2017-18 budget as the 2016-17 budget, the town would have to raise tax rates from a countywide-low of 39 cents per $100 assessed value to 51 cents.

Maggie Valley Aldermen didn’t go that far, instead evaluating needs and wants and coming up with a modest 4-cent increase to 43 cents.

“I think it’s a very fair budget,” said Maggie Alderman Dr. Janet Banks, “We worked very hard in looking at the essential services that we have to provide for the town. Nobody wants to raise taxes, but we’re trying to find about what we can do working within that.”

Banks said that the board looked at the possibility of keeping the tax rate at 39 cents and making massive cuts in spending, as well as raising taxes to 51 cents to maintain existing spending.

“Four years ago, we dropped the tax rate from 42 cents to 39 cents because we decid-

news

Maggie Valley adopts tight budget with small tax increase

17

news

Pool renovations finishing in Sylva and Cashiers Pools will reopen within a week

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER f all goes according to plan, within the week folks in Jackson County will have their choice of pools to soak in the summer as renovations finish up at the Sylva and Cashiers pools.

“We’re using all our resources and working with the contractor to get it open as soon as possible,” said Rusty Ellis, recreation director for Jackson County.

The Sylva pool is expected to open Wednesday, June 21, and the Cashiers pool should be open by Saturday, June 17.

The Sylva pool has been the bigger project, with Charlotte-based Carolina Pool Plastering under a $100,000 contract to replaster and retile the main pool and the kiddie pool. The pool’s plaster came with a life expectancy of 10 to 12 years, but it had been in use for 16 years before its replacement this year. Sylva and Jackson County are splitting the cost of renovations.

“This past summer the bottom of the pool was flaking off because the plaster was coming off,” Ellis said. “People were getting their toes cut, so this was definitely something we had to do before we opened this summer.”

June 14-20, 2017

I

Typically, the pool opens up for Memorial Day weekend, but opening was delayed when the project took longer than expected. Ellis originally expected it to be a simple tile job, but reports by engineer Victor Lofquist showed that a more extensive project was required. The contract was awarded in mid-May, with a string of rainy days then slowing down the work. However, Carolina Plastering’s contract states they must be done by June 17. After that, it will take a few days to fill up the pool and rebalance the chemicals.

The Sylva pool’s plaster came with a life expectancy of 10 to 12 years, but it had been in use for 16 years before its replacement this year.

This will likely be phase one of a twophase effort to revamp the pool. Lofquist is currently working on a report regarding renovations to the bathhouse, which was last renovated in 1999. However, at that point nothing was done with the flooring, and there are currently significant drainage

The Sylva pool has been closed so far this year for replastering. Holly Kays photo issues in need of addressing. It’s unknown at this point how much those renovations might cost. If the project is able to secure grant funding — perhaps from the state’s Parks and Recreation Trust Fund — the city and county would be interested in tearing the building down completely to start from scratch.

Renovations at the Cashiers pool aren’t quite as costly as the $100,000 contract for the Sylva renovations. County workers have

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Smoky Mountain News

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18

been fixing issues with cracks in the pool deck and redoing some doors and light fixtures in the bathhouse. A new pool heater has been ordered and should be in place soon. The work has cost about $20,000.

However, as in Sylva, more investment is likely on the horizon for the Cashiers pool. Lofquist is working on a preliminary report on future renovations for that bathhouse as well. He will be paid $14,400 for his work on the two pools.

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828-456-6322 | www.harttheatre.org This project was supported by the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural & Cultural Resources, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Haywood Dems hold spring rally also be a candidate for re-election in 2018.

Canton Alderman Zeb Smathers led the group of municipal candidates who will be on the ballot in November 2017 by introducing Kristina Smith who formally announced her candidacy for Canton alderwoman.

Campbell also recognized Maggie Valley Alderman Mike Eveland who announced his intent to run for re-election. While Eveland is registered as an unaffiliated voter, Campbell stressed how important she thinks it’s going to be for Democrats to acknowledge candidates like Eveland and to make an effort to engage unaffiliated voters. She pointed out that unaffiliated voters are now the second largest voting bloc in Haywood County and are almost equal in number to Democrats in some precincts.

Other speakers included former N.C. Senate candidate Jane Hipps and former N.C. House candidate Rhonda Cole Schandevel.

Both indicated they are still contemplating the possibility of running in 2018. Hipps said she’s waiting to see some additional data for 2018 before taking on Sen. Jim Davis, RFranklin, again. Schandevel got a roar from the crowd when she said, “I’m not a candidate yet, but stay tuned.”

Live a more sustainable life

opportunity to fly using flight simulators.

For more information, call Gary Sorensen at 828.508.4201.

The event is sponsored by the Macon Aeromodelers Club.

Clampitt to hold town hall in Cashiers

Learn to fly RC model planes The Academy of Model Aeronautics' intro to flight instructors will be hosting “Intro to R/C Flight School” at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 17, at the at the club's Otto Aerodrome field on Tessentee Road in Otto.

The flight school is open to anyone of any age interested in radio controlled model planes, helicopters and drones. There is no cost for the school and participants will get the chance to fly airplanes with instructors on a duel control radio. There will also be the

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Child endangerment bill signed by governor Sen. Jim Davis’s Senate Bill 53 — Law Enforcement Authority/Custody of Child — has been signed by Gov. Roy Cooper and is now law.

Cooper cited this bill as an important piece of legislation to protect children. The bill helps officers and deputies rescue children from domestic violence situations. The process previously in place often took up to five days.

Davis thanked Judge Donna Forga and members of the legal and law enforcement communities for bringing this issue to his attention and providing vital support in the drafting of the bill.

Congressional candidate to speak in Cherokee The June Swain County Democratic Party Whittier/Cherokee precinct meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 20, at the Birdtown Gym in Cherokee.

The precinct will be hosting the Swain County Democratic Party meeting with guest speaker Matt Coffay, a candidate to oppose U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows in 2018. All are welcome.

Bring an appetizer to share. For more information, contact Brenda Donargo at 828.488.1118.

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Smoky Mountain News

Rep. Mike Clampitt, R-Bryson City, will hold his the second quarterly meeting for Jackson County at 4 p.m. Friday, June 23, at Albert Carlton-Cashiers Community Library. www.fontanalib.org/cashiers or 828.743.0215.

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June 14-20, 2017

A class on “Simple Steps to Sustainability” will be held at 2 p.m.

Thursday, June 29, at the Waynesville Public Library, 678 S. Haywood St., Waynesville.

Tatia Elizabeth Childers, Sustainability consultant, life without plastic wellness consultant, and owner of Smoky Mountain Homestead, will be talking about how to live a more sustainable lifestyle.

Free. No registration required.

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news

Several candidates announced their intent to run for office as Haywood County Democrats held their Spring Rally at the Maggie Valley Inn. “It’s really exciting to see this many people engaging so early in the election cycle,” said Democratic Party Chair Myrna Campbell.

According to data collected by the NC Democratic Party, 6,000 new Democrats attended precinct meetings for the first time in February 2017 and 243 new precincts were organized. In Haywood County, about one third of the new precinct officers elected in February are new to the Party.

Several candidates planning to run in2018 addressed the crowd, including Phillip Price and Matt Coffay who have launched campaigns for the 11th Congressional District seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows, R-Asheville; Michael Sorrells who is running for re-election to the Haywood County Board of Commissioners; and Register of Deeds Sherri Rogers also formally announced her intent to run for re-election. A much-anticipated announcement came from Sheriff Greg Christopher who stated that he would

19

news

Public input will guide library’s renovation

BY B ECKY JOHNSON STAFF WRITER n ambitious dream of expanding and remodeling the main Haywood County library in Waynesville has been abandoned, with sights now set on a renovation plan to improve and upgrade the library within the existing footprint.

A strategic library task force is seeking public input on the latest version of a master plan with a series of public input meetings over the next two weeks — one at each of the four library branches in the county.

“We really hope the public will come forward. We want to know, as you look at the future of your library for Haywood County, what kinds of things you want to see,” said County Manager Ira Dove.

A committee of library supporters spent two years crafting a vision for a $6 million expansion and renovation of the Waynesville library. However, the expansion plan was largely dead on arrival.

“We had to completely put that on the back burner. It just wasn’t in the cards,” said David Felmet, chair of the library’s strategic planning task force.

County leaders last fall launched a new strategic planning process with a more holistic view of improving library services countywide that was less focused on expanding the footprint of the Waynesville library. The public feedback thus far still points to the need for more space, but county leaders believe improvements can be achieved through renovations.

While it’s not what library advocates hoped for, Felmet hopes the renovations will come to fruition.

“We play with the hand we’re dealt,” he said. “The expansion, that’s off the table. But we are hoping maybe to get some funding to upgrade the building.”

Built in 1980, the Waynesville library is not only tired and dated, but is no longer adequate to meet the growing population of Waynesville or the modern expectations of a library, Felmet said.

Dove said the new strategic planning process is examining “what is best for the system as a whole, which includes all branches — Canton, Fines Creek, Maggie Valley and Waynesville.”

Dove said county commissioners realize how important the library is to the public.

“Most citizens have a library card,” Dove noted.

Smoky Mountain News

June 14-20, 2017

A

COUNTY HITS THE RESET BUTTON

The grand $6 million expansion plan for the Wayensville library failed to gain traction last year from county commissioners — the ones who hold the purse strings to make the project happen or not.

The plan went over like a lead balloon when library advocates presented it to commissioners at a county budget workshop over a year ago. Commissioners were visibly 20 taken aback by the slick foam board posters

depicting floor plans for a bigger and better library.

County leaders called for a do-over of the planning process, questioning the conclusion that an expansion was the only path forward.

The initial master plan had been two years in the making. Library patrons weighed in with surveys and input meetings, conveying what they wanted to see in their future library. A consultant was hired to analyze library services and facilities — paid for with funding from the non-profit library support groups. And an architect was hired to sketch out a conceptual rendering of the expansion.

The work was mostly tossed out, however.

Last fall, a new county-sanctioned library task force was named, and the work of crafting a strategic plan for the library’s future started over — this time, with county officials taking the lead.

So far, the county is still replicating the first step: public input. The initial planning process had gathered 700 surveys from among library users, but since it only targeted active library users, the responses came from a slanted demographic. More than 70 percent of survey respondents were women, 65 percent had four-year college degrees or higher and only 5 percent of responding adults had no college at all.

County officials felt that it was more representative and less biased to survey a sample of the general public at large, rather than only surveying library patrons.

Take-aways from the library survey A survey targeting a broad cross-section of the general population in Haywood County was conducted in late winter by the WCU Public Policy Institute on behalf of Haywood County. More than 700 respondents answered a wide variety of questions about their library usage and the library amenities and programs that are important to them.

Here’s some of the results: n 56 percent support additional public funding, including a tax increase, to improve the library system. n The top five improvements respondents wanted to see are: bigger collections (54 percent), expanded hours (42 percent), more adult programs (27 percent), additional quiet spaces for reading and studying (25 percent) and better technology (18 percent). n Among respondents who use the library, 18 percent said they use the library daily, 29 percent use it weekly and 28 percent use it occasionally. n 25 percent of respondents reported that they never use the library. Their reasons were: no need for the library (35 percent), inconvenient hours (28 percent) and insufficient collections (17 percent).

Internet connectivity is one of the big attractions at the Paynesville branch of the Haywood County Public Library.

So the county commissioned a new survey, this time designed and conducted by the Western Carolina University Public Policy Institute. The survey was mailed to a cross-section of residents, with 718 responses received.

It was an impressive showing, and achieved the county’s goal of ensuring that the strategic plan moved forward with “as much feedback as possible,” Dove said.

THE SURVEYS Both sides believe the evidence gathered from public surveys and focus groups points to their own conclusion.

Library supporters who want to make the Waynesville flagship library bigger and better point to the public surveys as justification that an expansion and renovation is warranted to meet modern demands and expectations.

“We have gone around and around in this building trying to figure out how it could be better without expanding it,” said Sharon Woodrow, Haywood County Library Director.

Woodrow said the library will certainly take what it can get, but in her opinion, the Waynesville library branch is simply not big enough and remodeling will fall short.

“I don’t feel like it is large enough now to accommodate the services we have currently,” she said. “Of course, upgrading it will make it better. It will just not make it the building that will grow into what we need now and in the future.”

But county leaders who oppose the price tag of an expansion point to the surveys and focus group results as evidence that the library only needs remodeling to meet the public’s needs.

“We got a lot of input with the surveys and thoroughly went through it all to see

what the real needs are,” said County Commissioner Chairman Kirk Kirkpatrick, who serves as a county liaison on the library board.

Kirkpatrick said the public input shows improvements are needed, but doesn’t point to a clear need for a $6 million expansion of the Waynesville library footprint.

“That is certainly disappointing to some folks,” Kirkpatrick sympathized. “But that’s what I deal with all the time. Somebody is always going to be disappointed. It is a balance between what we want and what we need and if we have the money to do it.”

However, Woodrow questions that conclusion.

“The survey was meant to speak for the system and did not ask questions about individual libraries,” Woodrow said. “The survey concluded that the public wants a larger collection, additional hours, more programs, quiet spaces and upgraded computers and internet. In order to provide most of these requests, the library will more than likely need additional space to accommodate them.”

WHAT’S NEXT? Library users are being encouraged to participate in a series of public input meetings over the next two weeks. County officials want feedback on the new strategic plan — which replaces the original expansion plan — before taking it to county commissioners for an endorsement.

The strategic plan does not get into specifics, but rather focuses on overarching goals and priorities. Those goals would in turn guide the creation of a more specific master plan.

“Then the real decision-making begins for our library system,” Woodrow said.

Weigh in

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June 14-20, 2017 Smoky Mountain News

Meanwhile, the Canton library is open limited hours on Sunday, but not at all on Saturday.

During the recession the library’s budget was cut and staffing was reduced, requiring hours to be curtailed. The library’s budget has remained largely stagnant since, even though county finances have improved in recent years. However, most county departments are still operating on less than they were before the recession, Dove pointed out.

“They are all playing with fewer players since the recession,” Dove said.

The library saw a modest budget increase last year, with another in the cards this year. It’s not enough to restore staffing levels, but will hopefully improve the situation some.

The Waynesville library is now the oldest and most dated county facility. Over the past 15 years, the county has systematically replaced or renovated nearly every county building, facility and office.

Haywood County Librarian The county Sharon Woodrow, who’s retiring built a new jusin September, has advocated for tice center, a library expansion. new jail, new sheriff ’s office, new dispatch center, new emergency services base, new health and human services department, new election office, new senior center, new animal shelter, new planning and building department, plus renovated county offices in the historic courthouse. access at home.

The library system is now the next on “If you live in a dark cove in the county, the list, but what, if any, renovations are and need to get online at 2 in the morning, tackled will ultimately depend on the level you can drive to the library and use the of public support the county detects. internet service in the parking lot,” Felmet “There is still much to be done. Together said. we can build on this excellent system and But better workstations are needed to shape its future,” Dove said. accommodate the large volume of people Woodrow, who reports to Dove, has camping out at the library for internet gone out on a limb by speaking out in favor access during the day. of an expansion, even though it’s not what Another top request from the public has county leaders appear to want. Woodrow nothing to do with space or facilities. The plans to retire in September, and is trying public wants expanded library hours. to remain positive in the meantime.

Evening hours are currently limited — with “I have to put my faith into the commisthe library open only until 6 p.m. three days sioners to come up with a plan that will a week, and never past 7 p.m. The help solve this problem and carry the Waynesville library is open for only six library into the future,” Woodrow said. hours Saturday and not at all Sunday.

Presumably, if the strategic plan is approved by commissioners, the next step would be hiring a consultant to develop a renovation plan to repurpose how space is used and allocated in the Waynesville library.

However, in the meantime, Dove said library staff would be engaged in an analysis of short-term measures and fixes that could address immediate goals.

“The next thing is for staff to put pen to paper on what is going to be achievable in the next year and the year after,” Dove said.

Modern technology is one of the biggest deficits identified in the strategic plan. The library was built in a pre-internet era, but it has increasingly become a hub for computer and internet access.

“Our computers are old and our hardwired stations are not adequate,” Felmet said.

The library also serves as a hotspot for people who don’t have high-speed internet

Maximize Your Curb Appeal

news

The following public input meetings are designed to gather feedback on a strategic plan for improving the Haywood County library system. n Fines Creek Library: 2 p.m. Monday, June 19 n Canton Library: 5 p.m. Monday, June 26 n Maggie Valley Library: 2 p.m. Tuesday, June 20 n Waynesville Library: 4 p.m. Tuesday, June 27 To see a copy of the plan, go to smokymountainnews.com and click on this article.

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Permit denied for Cullowhee development Developer calls decision “arbitrary and capricious”

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER controversial request to build a 388-bed student housing complex on South Painter Road in Cullowhee was denied this week following a three-hour hearing before the Cullowhee Community Planning Council, but the decision could be tested if the developer opts to challenge it in court.

“Those standards that were denied, all I heard was, ‘I don’t like it,’” said Gary Miller, attorney for Atlanta-based developer Mallory & Evans, following the vote. “I didn’t hear any objective criteria that was introduced to support those decisions. So it seems to me that those are arbitrary, capricious, in the class of a lawsuit setting.”

“In regard to each one of them we might not all agree on them but ….” said County Attorney Heather Baker.

“But they have to have evidence beyond, ‘My personal gut is it doesn’t feel good,’ Miller said. “There was a traffic study introduced that stated by DOT’s (the N.C. Department of Transportation’s) standards they did everything they had to do. There was nothing introduced on the negative side of that. So I’m just confused as to how decisions were made when there was nothing introduced to support those conclusions.”

“I understand,” said Heather Baker.

“They’ve made their decision and I think you’re to your final vote.”

“So at this point,” said Chairman Scott Baker, “it’s just a formality of the decision based on one through seven that …”

“Mr. Chairman I would respectfully request that you reconsider the denial based on the basis that there was no evidence to support your denials,” said Miller.

“I appreciate your input,” Scott Baker said, “and I think at this point we’ve gotten through these items and I think there’s a process if you disagree with that.”

June 14-20, 2017

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COMMUNITY CONCERNS Smoky Mountain News

Mallory & Evans had wanted to build a gated townhome development for Western Carolina University students on an 11.6-acre piece of property along South Painter Road in Cullowhee. The housing complex was to include 97 units in 12 buildings, with a total of 388 bedrooms. The company’s principal, Brantley Basinger, told the Cullowhee Council that the development would provide in-demand housing for WCU students while also prioritizing student safety and collaboration with the community.

However, the proposal has been fraught with public opposition. The narrow, winding roads in the area just north of campus weren’t built to handle the increasing student population of the Cullowhee area, with a flurry of newer developments on Ledbetter Road — South Painter and Ledbetter both feed into 22 Monteith Gap Road — creating conflicts

between drivers, cyclists and pedestrians. There are no sidewalks in the area.

The problem culminated with the death of pedestrian Daniel Brown in 2016 following a hit-and-run by a WCU student.

The proposed development could inject nearly 400 more cars to this situation, and while the developer offered to build a sidewalk to South Painter’s intersection with Monteith Gap, pedestrians would have nowhere to go from there. As the crow flies, it’s just over half a mile from the site to campus, but that’s not a walkable path.

Building a greenway connector to campus would require crossing five to 10 private properties, Gary Miller, attorney for the developer Mallory & Evans (in middle seat), protests the Cullowhee Planning depending on the route.

Council’s decision to deny a special use permit for a student housing development, as the company’s principal “It’s so sad to be that close and have to depend Brantley Basinger stands behind. Holly Kays photo on a vehicle to get me there because I can’t ride my bike or walk, and it Myrtle Schrader really concerns me greatly the congestion of • No: Rick Bennett, Jim Lewis people trying to get to the back door of camCouncilmembers voted separately on each of pus and on around to all the other things off Proposed use is in harmony with the scale, the six standards needed to approve the perLedbetter and South Painter,” said Myrtle bulk, coverage, density and character of mit. A no on any one standard was sufficient Schrader, a member of the Cullowhee Council.

Cullowhee. (5-1, yes) to deny the permit, and the vote was no on Currently, South Painter Road contains 15 • Yes: Rick Bennett, Scott Baker, Jack two standards. developed properties, including a 42-person Debnam, Myrtle Schrader, Joel Setzer apartment complex. The area is within the • No: Jim Lewis Proposed use will not materially endanger Cullowhee Planning Area — the zoning regupublic health or safety. (6-1, yes) lations were approved in 2015 after an extenProposed use is appropriately located with • Yes: Rick Bennett, Scott Baker, Jack sive public input process — and zoned such respect to transportation, water, fire/police Debnam, Myrtle Schrader, Joel Setzer that any development with more than 40 protection, waste disposal and similar • No: Jim Lewis units must receive a special use permit from facilities. (6-0, yes) the Cullowhee Council. The proposed devel• Yes: Rick Bennett, Scott Baker, Jack Proposed use is reasonably compatible opment calls for 97 units.

Debnam, Myrtle Schrader, Joel Setzer, Jim with significant natural and topographic “Who in this room would be pleased Lewis features on the site and within the immediabout a 388-bed complex with primarily col• No: None. ate vicinity of the site.

(3-3, no) lege students next door?” asked Sarah • Yes: Scott Baker, Jack Debnam, Joel Setzer Fortwendel, who has lived on the property Proposed use will not cause undue traffic • No: Rick Bennett, Myrtle Schrader, Jim next to the proposed development for 23 congestion or create a traffic hazard. (4-2, Lewis years with her husband Clete. no) She told the council that she was con• Yes: Jack Debnam, Joel Setzer Proposed use will not substantially injure cerned that visitors might park along the the value of adjoining properties. (4-2, yes) • No: Rick Bennett, Scott Baker, Myrtle street or in her yard, as the community was to Schrader, Jim Lewis • Yes: Scott Baker, Jack Debnam, Joel Setzer, be gated. Conducting her own traffic study, she said, she counted an average of 60 vehicles per day along South Painter and was worried about adding 400 more to that number. developments committing themselves to this Mountain Road. “If they do do this develop“This will be a traffic hazard and endan- community rather than coming in and look- ment — and I am for it — I think they need to put a footbridge over Cullowhee Creek so ger public safety,” Fortwendel said. “The only ing at Jackson County as a cash cow.” entrance or exit is on South Painter Road.

Adam Bigelow, a Cullowhee resident and that the college kids can get over the creek, go Trying to turn left onto South Painter Road director of the Cullowhee Community over the hill and be in the college without getcurrently is quite difficult and results in much Garden, said that he was concerned that the ting in their cars.” hornblowing, close calls and even being new impervious surface would increase floodflipped off and cursed at.” ing in an already floodprone area. He said the AVIGATING THE STANDARDS “I think this is a bad idea, the way it’s set development would make more sense if it up,” added Clete Fortwendel. “It probably included a way for students to cross the creek While the meeting included opportunity could be changed and arranged differently. and walk to campus. for public comment, councilmembers were I’m not anti-growth, I’m not anti-develop“I don’t want to see more college kids instructed to not take opinions into considerament, but I am pro-control. I’d like to see walking on that road,” agreed Chris tion when making their decision. more controls. I’d like to see more of the Bogardus, who lives on nearby Searcy The proceeding was a quasi-judicial

How they voted

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news The 11.6-acre property that Mallory & Evans had hoped to turn into a student housing development is located along South Painter Road, across from the Cullowhee Community Garden. Holly Kays photo

THE VOTE When it came time to vote on the six standards, the mood turned even more serious than it had been in the earlier part of the proceeding, with the word “struggle” coming up time and again as councilmembers talked through the decisions.

For instance, on the second standard — the one requiring the development be “reasonably compatible with significant natural and topographic features on the site” — Schrader had trouble with the word “natural.”

“I struggle with ‘significant natural and topographical features,’” she said. “I think

Currently, South Painter Road includes 15 developed properties, including a 42-person apartment complex. The area is within the Cullowhee Planning Area and zoned such that any development with more than 40 units must receive a special use permit from the Cullowhee Council. that is a matter of interpretation because that’s not natural.”

“Right, and I think the question would be talking about the evidence presented,” said Planning Director Michael Poston.

“I understand that, but I’m just saying what is natural now and what’s proposed, I don’t think that jives,” Schrader replied.

She wound up voting no on that standard, along with Bennett and Lewis, making it a split vote. Under the rules for a quasi-judicial hearing, a split vote is a no.

The struggle returned for the vote on the sixth standard, the one requiring that the development not cause “undue traffic congestion or create a traffic hazard.”

“I still struggle with the numbers a little bit on this one,” Scott Baker said.

“I don’t really feel like this development is creating the traffic hazard,” said Councilmember Joel Setzer, who was formerly the division engineer for the DOT. “I think the biggest traffic hazard is the vehicle-pedestrian conflicts along the road, and I don’t

think the additional cars are creating the hazard. They’re not helping it. But I don’t think they’re creating it.”

Throughout the conversation, Heather Baker reminded councilmembers that they could only consider the evidence presented, not their own opinions or experience. In some cases this proved difficult, as most members of the council had lived in the area for decades. While realities such as Brown’s pedestrian death in 2016 weren’t part of the testimony, they were certainly on the minds of the decision-makers.

“It’s been a problem. We had a death before,” Bennett said. “We’re trying to make an emergency solution with Ledbetter Road, which is not taking into consideration this new development. I can’t throw that out because whether it’s evidence or not I live here and I’m part of it.”

When the hearing ended, councilmembers took a few minutes to debrief the situation before adjourning the meeting.

“I really appreciate how hard this is, and I appreciate how much work y’all do and how you’re trying to balance everything,” Schrader said to the county employees in attendance, “and I just want to honor you with respect to the position that you’re willing to do this hard job … My biggest sadness is that we’re not a government, that we really have no power in Cullowhee.”

Something has to change, Bennett said.

“I’d like to ask our planning director, our county manager, our board of commissioners to get with the administration of Western Carolina University and solve this student housing issue before it ruins more communities,” he said. “We’ve destroyed three other communities already. Go to Briar Patch or Speedwell Road or anything else, and I think there ought to be a plan to stop that.”

Following the denial, Mallory & Evans can’t reapply for at least a year, unless the Cullowhee Council waives the waiting period.

Smoky Mountain News

it’s probably the safest portion of the area for any student development that’s previously up there on Ledbetter Road,” Basinger answered.

Several members of the council expressed skepticism about the traffic study’s conclusion, and especially about the finding that adding 388 residents to the road wouldn’t impact traffic safety.

“It’s a mess now and very dangerous,” said Councilmember Jim Lewis. “I can’t see how 388 cars makes it the same.”

They also balked at Basinger’s assertion that the development wouldn’t result in students parking alongside the road rather than inside the gated community. Plans call for 418 parking spots — 30 more than the number of potential residents — and while the number meets zoning requirements, some were concerned it wouldn’t be enough.

“Rumor has it from time to time there’s some alcohol involved in student housing too,” Bennett said. “So I don’t see enough parking for your complex.”

“This is more parking than we have at any of our other complexes,” Basinger replied.

“Most of our other complexes are 1:1 and we’ve never had a problem at any of our other complexes.”

June 14-20, 2017

hearing, meaning that the Cullowhee Council presided over a courtlike hearing in which evidence was presented to prove whether the proposal met the six standards required for approval. The council then had to vote on each standard separately based only on the evidence presented — not on public comment or their own opinions and experiences.

Evidence presented came mainly from the developer and the experts it had engaged to complete engineering and traffic studies.

Otherwise, the only testimony presented came from the county’s senior planner, John Jeleniewski. Jeleniewski presented the staff report on the application, which concluded with a recommendation that the council approve the request under the condition that final site plans comply fully with the Cullowhee planning ordinance.

Of the six standards required to greenlight the development, the ones pertaining to traffic and safety were perhaps the most contested in the public sphere. In order to grant the permit, the council would had to have found that the development “will not cause undue traffic congestion or create a traffic hazard” and that it “will not materially endanger the public health or safety.”

According to a traffic study completed by g Waynesville-based J.M. Teague Engineering, lthe development would not adversely impact otraffic congestion. To complete the report, Mark Teague conducted a 24-hour traffic count along the road April 5 to determine the baseline traffic, increasing the number by 2 percent to account for growth over the year between then and when the development could come online. He then projected what the level of traffic would be if all 388 tenants drove it each day.

“The long and short of it is this project is not going to negatively impact the roads,” Teague said.

At DOT’s direction, he studied only the intersection of South Painter and Monteith Gap roads — not the intersection of Monteith Gap and Old Cullowhee or the length of South Painter and Monteith Gap heading out to Old Cullowhee. According to Basinger, they asked to study the Monteith Gap/Old Cullowhee intersection as well, but DOT said it would not be affected. While DOT said the roads could handle the increased traffic, it asked that turning lanes be added at the entrance to the site and on Monteith Gap turning on to South Painter.

However, councilmembers had some concerns about the results of the study. For instance, the study puts the number of cars using Monteith Gap Road at 4,000 per day, but that’s a 2014 number and therefore does-n’t include traffic from the recently constructded 500-bed Riverwalk complex. o “Did any of you go out and walk South oPainter Road or walk Monteith Gap or ride a -bicycle during peak traffic hours?” asked Scott Baker.

“I’ve walked pieces of it, yes, several times, and I’ve also witnessed several pedestrians Swalking as well as bicycling,” Basinger yanswered. e “What would your assessment be of the -safety factor of walking that road?” Baker asked.

“I would tell you that based on that area

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Opinion

Smoky Mountain News

Dad was old school, but he accepted change M

And then he saw the world, which was just what he signed up for. Over the next 24 years he was in Europe, China, Japan, the Philippines, San Diego and Seattle, and up and down the East Coast from Newport to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

He was a radar man and later an instructor, and so managed to avoid direct combat in Korea and Vietnam. I remember the strange way he held cigarettes between his middle and ring finger, a habit he never kicked and one he acquired so he could smoke while working Editor the dials of the radar.

There was talk of a bar brawl in Seattle where someone ended up dead, and Dad almost being discharged. I was never able to get the story straight. Along the way he found his bride while in New Bern, and me and my brothers started coming into the picture.

Dad played baseball until he retired from the Navy in his early 40s, a pitcher who could throw all kinds of “junk” as he called it. In his later years he mastered the knuckleball, prolonging the fun he had with the game and my memories of ball fields, sitting on the hoods of cars in scorching summer weather watching him play against guys 20 years younger.

Retirement was a larger disruptor than he bargained for. He and mom settled back in the South but soon divorced, separating him from his three sons. I was 11 at the time, and so

Scott McLeod

y dad’s been dead about 15 years now, and there’s still no fuzzy, larger-than-life, exaggerated memories that pop into my head when I remember him. As Father’s Day looms, I think of Lawrence McKinley McLeod as a man who created his own opportunities, a man with many strengths and many weaknesses, someone full of contradictions.

He was born in Cheraw, South Carolina, a town that could have come out of Erskine Caldwell’s 1932 novel Tobacco Road or the milltown movie “Norma Rae,” or perhaps a mix of the two. The son of a mill foreman from Robeson County and his half-Catawba Indian bride, Dad was born in 1929 and was the oldest of seven.

The house was small, cheap linoleum floors and a woodstove for heat. Grandpa’s cricket box was always on the porch in summers, ready for him and his brother-in-law, Uncle Buck, to take off fishing at a moment’s notice. There was sugar cane and vegetables growing out back, chickens all around, roosters to wake you at daybreak, metal swinging chairs outside to sit and talk. Grandpa’s hooch often came in nontaxed Mason jars, and the whole house would shake when he got out his harmonica, stomping in time to the music.

My father was among those who took part in what has become one of this nation’s enduring epochs, that of uneducated Southerners joining the military. The story is he lied about his age and somehow got in, got found out at 16, and was kicked out up north near Boston.

He moved to Maine, worked cutting trees for a while before showing back up at the recruiter’s office at 18.

spent part of the next seven years first with my single mom and then with a violent stepfather who was a Vietnam vet. I’m thankful my brothers and I helped convince mom to get out of the marriage before I left for college.

Dad suffered too after the divorce. I remember him moving between rundown apartments and trailers, holding down different jobs and dealing with losing his family and his wife during middle age. But he tried to be there for us, and he and my mom remained amicable. He would often take my brother and me to one of the enlisted men’s clubs on Ft. Bragg, where we would eat hamburgers and he would have a couple beers with his buddies while feeding us quarters to play pinball or pool.

Dad ended up in a second marriage that was long and happy. He kept working, always working, though he never found a second career. He doted on his grandkids and it shocked me how sentimental he got as he aged.

Even when he couldn’t walk he loved riding my son around on his motorized wheelchair, and I can still see the smile on both their faces.

I understand now that he was what was referred to then as a “man’s man,” devoted to his wife and kids, always ready for a game, comfortable with a golf club, a hammer or a beer in his hand.

Dad loved that I was a good student, and he would mail me money while I was in college, always wanted to know what my grades were, and wrote letters almost every month during my first couple of years of college.

He tried his own hand at business a few times but never made it, and he was proud when I started The Smoky Mountain News.

Trump’s dismissal of hacking is the problem

BY MARTIN DYCKMAN G UEST COLUMNIST It’s easy to make a mistake, particularly when relying on another person’s promises or character. It’s harder to admit one. That’s just human nature.

A lot of good people who put their faith in Donald Trump still can’t accept that it was misplaced. But if they care to be good citizens, there are some hard questions to ask themselves in the light of James Comey’s testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee: • Why did Russia, an instinctively hostile power, undertake to sabotage our election?

• Why doesn’t the president of the United States seem to care?

Why does he call it “fake news?”

Comey said he doesn’t remember Trump asking him about it, even once.

Assume for argument’s sake only that no one in Trump’s campaign colluded with Russia. Assume also that the president meant nothing more than to help a friend when he leaned on Comey to drop the Michael Flynn investigation and when he fired Comey for ignoring the transparently veiled command.

Even then, it might still be obstruction of justice, although that’s for Robert Mueller, the special counsel, to find out. However, the suppositions most favorable to Trump fail to excuse his gross acceptance of what Russia was and apparently still is doing.

Remember, he even called on the Russians, on national television, to leak Hillary Clinton’s e-mails.

The issue is not whether the Russians contributed significantly to electing him. It is simply that they tried.

Comey’s only show of emotion, during nearly three hours of testimony, was in that context. His passionate words are worth quoting, and reading, at length: “The reason this is such a big deal ... We have this big messy wonderful country, where we fight with each other all the time. But nobody tells us what to think, what to fight about, what to vote for except other Americans. And that’s wonderful and often painful.

“But we’re talking about a foreign government that was using technical intrusion, lots of other methods, tried to shape the way we think, we vote, we act. That is a big deal. And people need to recognize it. It’s not about Republicans or Democrats. They’re coming after America, which I hope we all love equally.

“They want to undermine our credibility in the face of the world.

They think that this great experiment of ours is a threat to them. So they’re going to try to run it down and dirty it up as much as possible. That’s what this is about and they will be back. Because we remain — as difficult as we can be with each other — we remain that shining city on the hill. And they don’t like it.”

They’re coming after America ... and they will be back.

That came toward the end of his colloquy with Sen. Joe

Those Sunday morning breakfasts were replaced by Sunday morning phone calls as I got older, and we both looked forward to those moments.

One of his second wife’s daughters was a fantastic athlete who played in college and just happened to be gay. Dad loved attending her games, and the old guy from the South accepted her sexuality with unquestioning love. I was amazed at how he adapted to newer views about race and sexuality, other social issues, changing as he aged in ways some people today still can’t.

That, to me, is the definition of wisdom.

It was ALS that took him down, or rather respiratory failure after a multi-year bout with that slow, tormenting killer of a disease. He died on Christmas Day, shrunken, almost unrecognizable compared to the guy who would do triple flips from a low dive at the Chief ’s Club pool, then spend all day swimming around with three boys draped on his shoulders trying to dunk him, and finally take us home and cook supper for the wife and kids, and then stay up late with friends playing cards, listening to Johnny Cash and Boots Randolph records, drinking and smoking, then up at the crack of dawn to go to work.

It’s amazing how far he came from that tiny mill town. Dad wouldn’t have been caught dead wearing a lapel flag pin, but he was one of the most patriotic men I knew. He abided by a quiet, polite, self-effacing, unwavering internal code that seemed to easily discern right from wrong.

Happy Father’s Day, dad.

(Scott McLeod can be reached at info@smokymountainnews.com)

Manchin, the West Virginia Democrat. No other state gave Trump as large a share of its votes. No other state could be as disappointed, or hurt as badly, by the inevitable failure of Trump’s promise to make coal king again or by his already shattered promise to protect Medicaid and Social Security.

But you’re not likely to find people anywhere who are more patriotic than the citizens of West Virginia — the state that was created out of loyalty to our Union during the Civil War — and what Comey replied to their senator should go straight to the heart of their patriotism. As to everyone’s.

Each president takes an oath that he will “to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” which obliges him, among other things “to take care that the laws be faithfully executed.”

Vladimir Putin’s hackers committed multiple offenses against our laws. So did any U.S. citizen who may have colluded with them.

All 17 intelligence agencies agree that the Russian attacks occurred. The president’s dismissal of that remarkable consensus “as fake news” is a betrayal of his oath and an insult to their patriotism. So was the sacking of the FBI director who was faithful to his own oath.

Whatever Trump feared that Americans would find out, it is what he has already done — or not done — that tells his voters how greatly their faith was misplaced, how unworthy he is of it, and why we dare not trust him to protect our country from its enemies.

(Dyckman is a retired journalist who lives in Western North Carolina. dyckmanm@bellsouth.net)

She’s 16, and somehow it snuck up on me

Chris Cox

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and we’ll be sandwiched between transfer trucks going 75 miles per hour, and I will be in a private and very intense conversation with the Lord, praying that she is not as clumsy driving a car as she is trying to walk down a flight of stairs with a basket of laundry.

I am simultaneously holding my breath while trying to Columnist exude confidence, so that she doesn’t get even more nervous. I know I’ve been here before — well, not HERE before, with these enormous trucks whizzing by us with a couple of feet to spare on either side — but in this familiar place of giving up control.

When we left her at the daycare for the first time. When we left her with a sitter, chancing a night out. When we sent her off to school. Every time we gave her over to someone else’s care, we gave up a little bit of control, and every time it was frightening.

The best opportunity for health insurance

health status if that person has not had continuous coverage. Therefore, the report concludes, “Premiums would vary significantly according to health status and the type of benefits provided, and less healthy people would face extremely high premiums … people who are less healthy, (including those with preexisting or newly acquired medical conditions) would ultimately be unable to purchase comprehensive non-group health insurance at premiums comparable to those under current law, if they could purchase it at all — despite the additional funding that would be available under HR 1628 to help reduce premiums.”

HR 1628 was opposed by conservative, moderate and liberal health care experts, including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Hospital Association, the American Nurses Association, The American Cancer Society, The American Diabetes Association, The American Lung Association, The American Heart Association, The March of Dimes, and the AARP. A majority of Americans now favor a single-payer system. Join us. If you would like to see Medicare for All put into place as our health care plan, please be in touch with your legislators. Call Rep. Mark Meadows, (202.225.6401 or 828.693.5660) to tell him the time has come for a single payer health insurance system. Tell him if you do not like HR 1628, and ask him to support instead HR 676, the “Medicare for All Americans” bill. The Senate is currently working on its own plan behind closed doors. If you are a Republican and have voted for Senators Richard Burr and Thom Tillis in the past, but do not like the direction the Republicans are now taking health care insurance, please call Sen. Burr (202.224.3154) and Senator Tillis.

(202.224.6342) and tell them so.

Tell them you will not be able to continue to vote for them if they cut American’s access to health care insurance.

Tell them that the time has come for a Medicare for All single payer health insurance system. At the very least, ask your senators to conduct open public hearings about their developing plan, and to get an analysis by the Congregational Budget before they vote on it.

Thank you.

(Joyce Hooley, MD MPH FAAP, is a former Haywood County pediatrician now practicing in Mars Hill.)

Smoky Mountain News

an organization of physicians who have been advocating for this type of health care insurance for decades.

Don’t let anyone tell you that single payer is “government run health care.” That would be like the Health Department or the Veterans Hospitals or the British Health Care system, all of which provide good care but in each of these systems the government directly pays the salaries of doctors and the costs of hospitals. Under single payer, doctors would not be employees of the government and we would all get a health care card that would allow us to go to any doctor or hospital in the U.S. Don’t let anyone tell you that you a single payer plan will take away your right to choose your own doctor.

Currently private health insurances tell you which doctor you must go to, which are “in network” or “out of network.”

Medicare for All Americans would not do this.

Don’t let anyone tell you that a single payer plan would lead to “rationing like in Canada.” We already have “rationing.” Currently, it is private health care insurance that rations your care, telling you and your doctor what services they will and will not cover. And currently our health care services are rationed even more by income. If you can’t afford insurance, you don’t get care. No one dies or goes bankrupt from lack of access to health care insurance in Canada.

Unfortunately, the House narrowly passed a very different kind of health care reform bill in May. According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, this bill would increase the number of Americans without health insurance by 23 million within nine years. That would make 51 million Americans under age 65 who would not have health insurance if this law goes into effect, almost double the number who would not have insurance if the current Affordable Care Act would stay in place. Fourteen million of those additional uninsured people would already be without insurance by next year.

Republicans in the House are claiming that their bill, HR 1628, protects people with pre-existing health conditions, but the CBO’s report reveals that this is not true.

Their bill allows states to waiver two current federal requirements: they could modify the “essential health benefits” that must be covered under approved health insurance policies, and they could set premiums based on a person’s

June 14-20, 2017

To the Editor: How many people do you know who are old enough to be eligible for Medicare insurance but decline to enroll?

Likely none. If there are any, they would have to be extremely rich to be able to afford to forego this great program. People simply do not decline to enroll when they become eligible at age 65, because Medicare is, and has been, the best deal available for health insurance coverage in the U.S. since its inception in 1965.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if at birth, every U.S. citizen could get a health insurance card, like a Medicare card, giving them access to any doctor or hospital in the country? It turns out this scenario is quite achievable. “The Expanded and Improved Medicare for All Act,” HR 676, was introduced in Congress in January and currently has 111 cosponsors. It would guarantee high quality coverage for all medically necessary services for every single American. It would cover doctor visits, hospital care, prescriptions, mental health services, nursing home care, rehab, homecare, eye care and dental care. Instead of paying premiums, copays, and deductibles, we would pay a similar or smaller amount in taxes. (Just as we pay taxes so that every American can receive the basic public education that we as Americans believe to be a right and a necessity for a modern civic society.)

The Medicare for All Americans plan is the only health care reform that will cover everyone and control costs.

Under such a system, private health insurance companies could still offer supplemental plans, as they do currently for Medicare beneficiaries, but only for services not covered by the public plan, such as cosmetic surgery. Unlike Medicare, private health insurance companies operate to make a profit and they have huge overhead. Expanding a government plan like Medicare would save billions in administrative costs and profits, and thus drive overall costs down. A single payer system would also drive down prescription drug costs.

To become more informed, go to the website for Physicians for a National Health Program, www.pnhp.org,

But this is much different. Now, she is taking control of herself and, to an extent, taking control of me. I can give her tips and teach her how to drive defensively, but I cannot do it for her. There is no steering wheel or brake on my side of the car. Out here on the wide open road, it is up to her to pay attention and make the right choices to get where she wants to go. She is learning about freedom and about responsibility. And I am learning that this may be the most daunting challenge yet, the recognition that we have done the best we can to prepare her — and ourselves — for this moment. It is time for her to take the wheel, of this car and of her own life.

Inspired by this insight, we decided to buy her a car for her birthday. I spent a few weeks shopping around for a reliable, reasonably priced used car that would not be too terribly expensive, but would also not spend half of its remaining years in the shop or, worse, leave her stranded out on I-40 somewhere. We also wanted a car that was bigger than a can of soda, but also got pretty decent gas mileage.

opinion

should have been ready for it, but I wasn’t. My daughter’s sixteenth birthday couldn’t have come as a shock to me, and yet it did. I have had all these years to prepare for this day, but I am not sure there is any way that you can really prepare for it, that day when your child places one foot squarely into the swampy chaos of adulthood, with the other foot all too soon to follow. Because, brothers and sisters, once they get their driver’s license, it’s the beginning of the end.

She doesn’t have her license just yet, just to be clear. She got her learner’s permit last year and still needs a few hours more driving experience before she can qualify to take the test. Nothing that I know of on this earth can compare to the abject terror and the severe dissociation that results from sitting in the passenger seat for the first time when your 15-year-old child, the one who is wearing mismatched socks and singing songs from random Disney movies, turns the key in the ignition and begins backing out, not yet sure which way to turn the wheel to make the car go in the correct direction.

Pretty soon, she’ll be merging onto I-40

First, I had to dodge a couple of scams on Craigslist. Did you know that there is a divorced woman who JUST moved to Topeka, Kansas, who is selling her ex-husband’s pristine Honda Accord for dirt cheap just to get back at him for cheating on her and their two kids? All I needed to do was to set up a payment to Amazon — she would send me the form to complete electronically (I would provide my bank information or credit card number, of course), and then the car would be shipped from Topeka to me and my daughter would have a great car with low mileage and her nasty husband would get his just desserts! When I told her that my father-in-law lived in Topeka and would be glad to meet her and buy the car on the spot, she vanished into the ether.

We found her a car just in the nick of time, and in the eight days she has had it, she has driven either me or her mother (or both of us) somewhere every day. I am breathing a little easier now when we are out on I-40, learning the lyrics to several Disney songs, and mile by mile, finding a little more peace in the idea of her being in charge of things, mismatched socks and all. I guess I am going to have to get used to that.

(Chris Cox is a writer and teacher who lives in Haywood County. jchriscox@live.com.)

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tasteTHEmountains

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 AMMONS DRIVE-IN RESTAURANT & DAIRY BAR 1451 Dellwwod Rd., Waynesville.

828.926.0734. Open 7 days a week 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Celebrating over 25 years.

Enjoy world famous hot dogs as well as burgers, seafood, hushpuppies, hot wings and chicken. Be sure to save room for dessert.

The cobbler, pie and cake selections are sure to satisfy any sweet tooth.

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.

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 SUNDAYS NOON to 8 P.M. Monday-Saturday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

243 Paragon Parkway | Clyde 26

828-476-5058

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; slow-simmered soups; flame grilled burgers and steaks, and homemade signature desserts.

Blue-plates and local fresh vegetables daily.

newsdesk crafts

June 14-20, 2017

APPLE ANDY’S RESTAURANT 3483 Soco Road, Maggie Valley located in Market Square. 828.944.0626. Open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed Wednesday and Thursday.

Serving the freshest homemade sandwiches, wraps, and entrees such as country fried steak and grilled flounder. Full salad bar and made from scratch sides like potato salad, pinto beans and macaroni and cheese. www.appleandys.com

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

BOGART’S 303 S. Main St., Waynesville. 828.452.1313.

Open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Carry out available. Located in downtown Waynesville, Bogart’s has been long-time noted for great steaks, soups, and salads. Casual family atmosphere in a rustic old-time setting with a menu noted for its practical value. Live Bluegrass/String Band music every Thursday. Walking distance of Waynesville’s unique shops and seasonal festival activities and within one mile of Waynesville Country Club.

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.

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 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 to 9:30 a.m. – with eggs, bacon, sausage, grits and oatmeal, fresh fruit, sometimes French toast or pancakes, and always all-you-can-eat. Lunch menu every day from 12 to 2 p.m. Dinner becomes a gourmet experience this year with the arrival of our new Chef CJ, whose training and skills include French, Mediterranean, Asian, Middle Eastern and, of course, New Age Southern cuisine. Saturday night will feature an evening cookout on the terrace, with choices such as Korean barbecue and shrimp.

On all other nights of the week, the chef will prepare gourmet plated dinners with locally sourced vegetables, homemade breads, jellies and desserts. We also offer a fine selection of wine and beer. The evening social hour starts at 6pm, and dinner is served starting at 7 p.m. 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 hand-cut 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, 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.

WAYNESVILLE’S BEST BURGERS

✁

3.

2.

1.

4.

#193 - free table leveler

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

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

tasteTHEmountains 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.; Sunday 12 to 8 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.

FRANKIE’S ITALIAN TRATTORIA 1037 Soco Rd. Maggie Valley.

828.926.6216 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Monday-Saturday. Father and son team Frank and Louis Perrone cook up dinners steeped in Italian tradition. With recipies passed down from generations gone by, the Perrones have brought a bit of Italy to Maggie Valley. frankiestrattoria.com

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

Open for dinner at 4:30 to 9 p.m., Tuesday

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 Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Sunday brunch 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Hand-tossed pizza, steak sandwiches, wraps, salads and desserts.

All made from scratch. Beer and wine. Free movies Thursday trought Saturday. Visit madbatterfoodfilm.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.

PAPERTOWN GRILL 153 Main St., Canton. 828.648.1455 Open 7 days a week 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Serving the local community with great, scratch-made country cooking. Breakfast is served all day.

Daily specials including Monday meatloaf, chicken and dumplings on Thursdays and Friday fish.

PATIO BISTRO 30 Church Street, Waynesville.

828.454.0070. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Breakfast bagels and sandwiches, gourmet coffee, deli sandwiches for

lunch with homemade soups, quiches, and desserts. Wide selection of wine and beer.

Outdoor and indoor dining.

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, JCreek 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.

SALTY DOG’S SEAFOOD & GRILL 3567 Soco Road, Maggie Valley.

828.926.9105. Open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday. Full service bar and restaurant located in the center of Maggie Valley.

Featuring daily $6 lunch specials and daily dinner specials such as $1 Taco Tuesdays and 45¢ Wednesday Wings.

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.

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 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 home-made soups, salads and sandwiches.

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.

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. 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.

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.

June 14-20, 2017

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.

through Saturday; serving lunch and dinner beginning at 12 p.m. on Sundays. Worldfamous prime rib, steaks, fresh seafood, gorgonzola cheese and salads. All ABC permits and open year-round. Children always welcome. Take-out menu. Excellent service and hospitality. Reservations appreciated.

Smoky Mountain News

APPÉTIT Y’AL N L BO

Pint Night & Pairing with Highland Brewing Tuesday, June 20th, 5-8PM $4 Pints, Free Tastes and $8 Pint/Plates 3 E JACKSON ST. • SYLVA, NC

www.CityLightsCafe.com

207 Paragon Parkway, Clyde

828-456-1997 blueroostersoutherngrill.com Monday-Friday Open at 11am

Real Local Families, Real Local Farms, Real Local Food

Serving Lunch & Dinner at BearWaters Brewing 101 PARK ST. CANTON 828.492.1422 PIGEONRIVERGRILLE.COM

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Smoky Mountain News

Cataloochee Ranch welcomes Chatham County Line

BY GARRET K. WOODWARD STAFF WRITER f you want to understand the history of bluegrass music, you need to look at its entire spectrum — of sound, of intent — as one large tree. With the deep, sturdy roots that are Bill Monroe, Jimmy Martin, Dr. Ralph Stanley, and so on, the trunk is the culmination of those roots, with each growing branch another avenue of creative possibility and sonic exploration.

Formed in Raleigh in 1999, Chatham County Line has emerged as one of those unique branches of tone and approach in bluegrass. Whereas other popular groups may focus on lightning-fast finger pickin’ or a thunderous foot-stomp, Chatham County Line adheres more to the songwriting, ballad roots of the genre.

Their songs find solidarity with the ancient traditions of the British Isles, with, perhaps, even a pinch of the melodic styles echoing from north of the border in Canada. When you listen to Chatham County Line, you’re hearing the hardships, heartache and headstrong attitudes of those who came before us, those with us now, and those to appear in the future — it’s

I

SMN: 2017 marks the 18th anniversary of Chatham County Line. What does that number 18 mean to you, personally and professionally?

DW: It’s a very interesting thing being in a band with the same guys for that long.

We’ve experienced so many great moments, both professionally and personally, and they’ve all kept us strong and working together. Through our work ethic and the catalog of songs we have created, we feel like we’ve built a house out of brick that can stand the test of time, no matter how hard the wind blows.

SMN: What sets bluegrass apart from other genres?

DW: I used to feel that a good portion of bluegrass fans felt like they had ownership of the genre and anything that went against it, or sounded too modern, was “not bluegrass.” At

“I feel like [bluegrass] is experiencing what it always should have, and that is unfettered growth.

A horse only becomes tame when we build a fence around it.”

— Dave Wilson, Chatham County Line

Bluegrass group Chatham County Line will play Cataloochee Ranch on June 18. Garret K. Woodward photo

Want to go?

Acclaimed bluegrass act Chatham County Line will perform on Sunday, June 18, at the Cataloochee Guest Ranch in Maggie Valley.

Cocktail hour will be at 5:30 p.m. Dinner will be served thereafter, with the show beginning at 8 p.m. The dinner will be a gourmet cookout.

Tickets for the show are $35, with separate tickets for the gourmet mountain dinner also available for purchase. For reservations, which are required, call the ranch at 828.926.1401. www.cataloocheeranch.com or www.chathamcountyline.com. as evocative and captivating as it gets in the world of bluegrass.

Smoky Mountain News: What was the original idea behind the group? And how has that idea and intent grown and evolved in the years since?

Dave Wilson (lead singer/guitar): The band was born out of very informal jam sessions held at a historic Raleigh rental house. I had bought a book of “150 Bluegrass Songs” and we would flip through the pages and try and play all the songs we could, occasionally playing a song I had written. During this time, I had the pleasure of seeing the Del McCoury

Band at the Carolina Theatre in Durham.

Their approach to stage performance with the single mic and everyone wearing suits completely blew my mind. When Chatham County Line rose up out of the ashes of those informal jams, I decided that the McCoury style of performing would be how we would do it.

Through the years, our mission has always been to pay tribute to the sounds that built bluegrass, but to stay true to ourselves and the songs we write. None of us were born in a vacuum, so all that exposure to modern sounds has continually and perpetually informed our music and the way we write and approach the songs we write.

this point in the evolution of music, all of this “ownership” is a lost ideal. Music is a beautiful, heartwarming, joyful and embracing thing that no single word can hold within definition.

All genres are busted, and at some point someone will create a new terminology to address this. I never thought we sounded like “bluegrass,” I always thought we sounded like Chatham County Line.

SMN: With bluegrass, some might say there are two camps: neo-traditional and progressive. What do you see currently going on in the genre?

DW: I feel like the genre is experiencing what it always should have, and that is unfettered growth. A horse only becomes tame when we build a fence around it.

SMN: And what is the importance of bluegrass and string music, in sound and tradition, as we push further into a modern world of technology and distraction?

DW: Folk music was always a well to tell a story and an excuse to spend time together making music and singing. All those ages ago before the 78 rpm, the music they made was the music a family had to dance to on a Saturday night. I feel there will always be a part of the population that experiences music through creation rather than Memorex so as long as they continue to make strings this will continue.

BY GARRET K. WOODWARD

Put down the phone, pick yourself up

The Classic Wineseller (Waynesville) will host The DuPont Brothers (Americana/folk) at 7 p.m. Friday, June 16.

CAROLINA BLUE

Saturday, June 17th • 7 p.m. • Tickets $15 / $7.50 for Children Carolina Blue is a Brevard, NC based band whose roots run deep in the tradition of Bill Monroe and Flatt and Scruggs. The band was formed in 2007 after the release of the album ‘Nothing So Blue’ by Bobby Powell and Tim Jones.

Carolina Blue won the South Carolina state bluegrass championship at Renofest in 2011. The band’s repertoire consists of original songs, including Tim Jones’ ‘Spring Will Bring Flowers’, which was recorded by 2014 IBMA entertainers of the year Balsam Range, as well as many bluegrass favorites, and gospel, all done in the traditional style. In 2016 Carolina Blue recorded a set on ‘Song of the Mountains’ in Marion, VA. Available recordings are Bobby Powell & Tim Jones’ ‘Nothing So Blue’ (2007), produced by Steep Canyon Ranger Woody Platt and featuring Platt, Graham Sharp, Shannon Whitworth, and Roy Chapman), ‘Carolina Blue Live at Renofest’ (2011) as well as self-produced ‘Goin’ Home Today’ (2016).

“Carolina Blue is one of my favorite acoustic bands!! The vocals are superb, their playing is flawless, and their song-writing styles are enviable.

These men present a fresh approach to performance simply by being unique individuals and down to earth people. They represent bluegrass and American folk traditions in classy ways that make me proud to call Carolina Blue good friends. I’d buy a ticket to see them pick any day of the week. If you get a chance to watch a Carolina Blue show, I bet you’d agree.” –Marc Pruett, Balsam Range

Food Served beginning at 5pm.

Smoky Mountain News

Three up. Three down.

Three weddings in the last The annual Taste of Scotland & Celtic three months. Nashville.

Festival will be held June 15-18 in downtown Knoxville. Sylva. A childhood Franklin. friend, a best friend, and a dear friend. All taking the next step in Saturdays on Pine (Highlands) will host Goldie their lives. And there I was, & The Screamers (soul/funk) at 6 p.m. adorned in a suit underneath an Saturday, June 17. unforgiving southern sun on each occasion. Beads of sweat forming The NC Writers Network West are sponsoring on my forehead, but never once “The Literary Hour,” an hour of poetry and dampening the smile from ear-toprose reading, held at 7 p.m. Thursday, June ear on my face, witnessing people 15, in the Keith House on the John C. who make your life complete, Campbell Folk School campus in Brasstown. and filled with meaning, where Honky-tonk act Confederate Railroad will love isn’t a four-letter word — it’s perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 16, at a living, breathing thing, ready to The Strand at 38 Main in Waynesville. pick you up whenever you fall.

I awoke this past Sunday my heart was (and aims to always be) when I morning in the back of my truck. Tailgate reenter the world below, from whatever popped down. Feet dangling out, kissed by physical or emotional mountaintop I may the early sunshine amid the crisp mountain retreat to whenever reality gets, well, a little air — the perfect temperature. Emerging “too real.” from the truck, I stretched and scanned the The world can be a scary place, as we all large mountaintop property. Several tents know. But, I believe the majority of this planfilled with blissful rest along the tree line.

Countless empty beer cans on nearby tables. et — the people, place and things — are beautiful, meaningful, and welcoming. This Instrument cases strewn about on the band is fact from my travels and interactions, and stage from the midnight jam session. All from those of others who have wandered indications of a raucous and unforgettable toward and beyond the horizon. wedding and reception.

And with all the noise, finger-pointing And it is in those moments, happening in real time and in fond memory, where I try to and political upheaval we’re currently seeing, it’s no wonder I look forward to events like a chisel the scene and how I felt into the walls of my mind. I don’t want to forget the serene friend’s wedding, where I can toss my phone onto the front seat of my truck, shut the silence, the way the breeze felt against my door and go on with my life in that space, no skin, and how full of love and appreciation

June 14-20, 2017

HOT PICKS 1 2 3 4 5

uncomfortably sticks to your daily existence.

Back home, I grab my headphones and throw on some Steely Dan on a lazy, quiet Sunday afternoon. The iconic 1970s rock act is — and will always be — the soundtrack of humanity. The music is about layers, some staggeringly beautiful, others haunting in nature, where you’re constantly discovering something new each time you let their records spin.

Steely Dan is the ideal balance of the human condition, where one of their sugarcoated catchy AM radio hits contain some of the most raw and relatable lyrics. They created music with such depths (complex simplicity), that you uncover more with each immersion — the music grows old with you, exposing and soaking in as much wisdom as it radiates.

Who knows, eh? Some days I wake up and it seems the world is on fire, other times I cross paths with moments that renew my faith in the universe. But, I’m a “glass halffull” kind of guy, so I’ll always hold out hope that we as a species will figure it out before it all goes to hell in a handbasket. For, if you thought otherwise, what would be the point of it all, of doing anything, of being anywhere, and with anyone?

The only true currency we have in this world is how we value family and friends, and also how we approach those unknowns — of people and situations — where we can either take the high road or the low road.

Take the high road, the view is much more pleasing from up here.

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

arts & entertainment

This must be the place

device dinging or vibrating with work obligations or breaking news of another worrisome thing that’ll keep me up at night.

With a wedding, you tend to find yourself on common ground with folks from all walks of life, where you’re connected simply by the kinship to the bride and/or groom.

You sit at tables, across from strangers, aiming to have a genuine conversation, hopefully not about the matters of the day, but about similar tastes in joyous things like music, art, books or travel destinations.

You smile, with a little mist in your eyes, watching the happy couple say “I do” under the eyes of God and in the presence of loved ones. In that instance, as with several other past weddings, I find myself taking inventory of my long line of failed relationships and backfired attempts to find true love. It’s not till you see happiness in its purest form that you begin to question just what your definition of it is, and if you’ve been under the wrong impression since day one.

But, as you loosen your tie, take off your shoes, and begin the find yourself in the nearest dance circle during the reception, a feeling of acceptance and gratitude washes over you. Nobody knows how to properly navigate this thing called life. But, to those with true selflessness, with hopes and dreams all pursued with a childlike wonder, you can at least be pointed in the right direction.

Come morning, you dust yourself off, hop into the old, rusty, musty pickup truck, throw it into drive and head down the mountain — back to civilization, to responsibility, to monthly bills, and whatever else

29

On the beat arts & entertainment

David Holt headlines Stecoah show

Carolina Blue to play Cowee There will be a performance by bluegrass act Carolina Blue at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the Cowee Arts & Heritage Center in Franklin.

Tickets are $15, which includes admission. Half-price discount for children. Hot dogs and hamburgers will be available for purchase. www.coweeschool.org.

June 14-20, 2017

NEXT CONCERTS ON THE CREEK IS JUNE 16

The Highlands-Cashiers Chamber Music Festival will host a rare performance of Alfred Lord Tennyson's classic poem, “Enoch Arden: A Melodrama,” at 3 p.m. Sunday, June 25, in the Bardo Arts Center at Western Carolina University.

The performance will be set to the virtuosic solo piano music of Richard Strauss performed by George Brown, Dean of WCU's College of Fine and Performing Arts, and pianist William Ransom, the Anna & Hays Mershon Artistic Director of the HighlandsCashiers Chamber Music Festival.

Ticket holders will enjoy wine and cheese at intermission and are encouraged to come early to experience the WCU Fine Art Museum's summer exhibitions. This event is sponsored by WCU's Friends of the Arts.

Tickets are $35 and include the wine and cheese reception. Limited seating is available.

For further information, visit bardoartscenter.wcu.edu or call 828.227.ARTS. Tickets are available online, over the phone, and in person at the WCU Bardo Arts Center box office, located at 199 Centennial Drive in 30 Cullowhee.

Smoky Mountain News

DuPonts to play The Classic Wineseller The DuPont Brothers (Americana/folk) will perform at 7 p.m. Friday, June 16, at The Classic Wineseller in Waynesville.

Based out of Burlington, Vermont, the sibling indie-folk-rock duo has kept busy on the road since 2013. Their two records, “Heavy as Lead” (2015) and “A Riddle For You” (2016), have taken them all over the Eastern Seaboard and beyond.

The DuPont Brothers have made festival appearances at Grand Point North and South-By-Southwest (SXSW) and have supported a wide array of national acts including Grammy award winning artists like Sturgill Simpson, Jerry Douglas and Blake Mills.

828.452.6000 or www.classicwineseller.com.

Concerts on the Creek will host Topper Voices of Rock (classic rock/soul) at 7 p.m. Friday, June 16, at Bridge Park in downtown Sylva. The Buchanan Boys (rock/country) will play June 23.

Free. 828.586.2155 or www.mountainlovers.com.

‘Enoch Arden’ performance is June 25

The “An Appalachian Evening” summer concert series will kickoff with Grammy winner David Holt & Josh Goforth at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, June 24, at the Stecoah Valley Center.

The annual bluegrass/mountain music series will also feature Buncombe Turnpike (July 1), Balsam Range (July 8), Helen White & Wayne Henderson (July 15), The Synder Family (July 22), Michael Cleveland & Flamekeeper (July 29), The Bankesters (Aug. 5), The Freight Hoppers (Aug. 12), The Jeff Little Trio (Aug. 19) and The Kruger Brothers (Aug. 26).

Tickets for the Holt/Goforth performance are $25, grades K-12 $10. Tickets are a preshow dinner are also available for purchase. www.stecoahvalleycenter.com.

Community band performs in Maggie The Haywood Community Band will present its second concert of the summer on at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, June 18, at the Maggie Valley Community Pavilion.

Mary Thomas, one of the band’s conductors, has selected music that reflects many aspects of flying, whether it’s in a plane, or a spacecraft, or just riding the emotions.

The Maggie Valley Civic Association sponsors the monthly concerts, held on the third Sunday evening of each month from May through October. The open-air pavilion is covered with seating inside and additional benches along the sides. Some concert goers also bring sandwiches and lawn chairs.

The performance is free and open to the public.

Sylva Library hosts roots music show The Jackson County Public Library will host a musical concert featuring Sarah Elizabeth Burkey at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 15,

in the Community Room in downtown Sylva.

Burkey has been the assistant director of music for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Cherokee Historical Association, a performer at “Unto These Hills” and currently lives in Cherokee.

This program is free and open to the public. The event is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Jackson County Public Library. For more information, please call the library at 828.586.2016. The Jackson County Public Library is a member of Fontana Regional Library (www.fontanalib.org).

Want to hear the Kora?

Sean Gaskell will perform on his Kora at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Thursday, June 22, at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City.

The Kora is a richly melodic 21-string harp that has been prominent in West African musical culture for 300 years. Some of the traditional songs played on the Kora can be traced back as far as 800 years.

Gaskell has studied extensively under Gambian masters. He has been featured at musical festivals in the United States, Gambia and Senegal. He has released two albums.

The 4 p.m. performance will be presented

as a youth program, with the 7 p.m. show for all ages. Both events are free and open to the public.

828.488.3030 or www.fontanalib.org/brysoncity.

Bryson community jam is June 15

A community music jam will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 15, at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City.

Anyone with a guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle, dulcimer, anything unplugged, are invited to join. Singers are also welcomed.

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.

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On the beat

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Isaacs return to Franklin

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June 14-20, 2017

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The Isaacs will play Franklin on June 23-24.

The Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts in Franklin will once again host Musication Nation, a two-day musical festival organized by multi-award winning southern gospel family group The Isaacs.

Workshops will be Friday, June 23 and Saturday, June 24. Each day will begin at 10 a.m. and participants may choose to attend one or both days. Tickets are $25 per participant, per day.

A special concert will be open to the public each night following each workshop. On Friday, The Isaacs will welcome special guest Mark Lowry and on Saturday they will welcome special guests Mountain Faith. Concerts will begin at 7 p.m. Tickets start at $20 each.

• Day one of the workshop will begin with morning glory devotions with accomplished songwriter, singer, and musician Becky Isaacs Bowman. A live sound and recording session with Mark Capps and Ben Isaacs will follow. After a break for lunch, participants will be treated to a Teay’s Valley

cooking class and a question and answer session with The Isaacs. Bowman and Sonya Isaacs Yeary will then share the stories behind the songs of The Isaacs family band. Day one will end at 4:15 p.m.

• Day two of the workshop will begin with morning devotions and life stories with Lily Isaacs, matriarch of the Isaacs’ family. It will include readings from her autobiography, You Don’t Cry Out Loud. A Teay’s Valley cooking class and a question and answer session with The Isaacs will follow. After a lunch break, there will be a Fan Jam session with the Isaacs and Mountain Faith Band. Workshop attendees who wish to participate in the Fan Jam should contact the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Art’s box office at 828.524.1598 to register as a singer or musician. Day two will end at 4 p.m.

To purchase tickets for workshops and concerts, or to find out more about this or any other event at the theater, visit www.greatmountainmusic.com or call 866.273.4615.

Get on the Confederate Railroad

genre’s expansion of the 1990s. The accolades kicked off with the Academy of Country Music’s Best New Group award in 1993 and have included a Grammy nomination and a host of nominations from the Country Music Association and the British Country Music Foundation.

Tickets are $65 per person. To purchase tickets, click on www.38main.com. For more information on Confederate Railroad, click on www.confederaterailroad.com.

Legendary honky-tonk act Confederate Railroad will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 16, at The Strand at 38 Main in Waynesville.

Few acts have carved as distinctive a niche in modern musical history as Confederate Railroad. With their high-energy combination of honky-tonk rockers, sensitive ballads, and offbeat humor, they have created a unique identity that has brought them chart success, multi-platinum sales, and continued popularity as a road band.

Nearly five million albums later, songs like “Queen Of Memphis,” “Trashy Women,” “Jesus And Mama,” and “Daddy Never Was The Cadillac Kind” have become major hits and established Confederate Railroad as a key part of country music’s landscape during the

Bo Spring Band to groove on the Green

Americana/folk act The Bo Spring Band will perform during the Groovin’ on the Green concert series at 6:30 p.m. Friday, June 16, at The Village Green in Cashiers. Free. www.visitcashiersvalley.com.

On the beat

• Bogart’s Restaurant & Tavern (Waynesville) will host Carolina Express (bluegrass) June 15 and Eddie Rose & Highway 40 (bluegrass) June 22. All shows are free and begin at 6:30 p.m.

• The Classic Wineseller (Waynesville) will host The DuPont Brothers (Americana/folk) June 16, Joe Cruz (piano/pop) June 17, Dulci Ellenberger & Kevin Williams (piano/guitar) June 23 and The Jazz Cats June 24. All shows are free and begin at 7 p.m.

828.452.6000 or www.classicwineseller.com.

• Concerts on the Creek (Sylva) will host Topper Voices of Rock (classic rock/soul) June 16 and The Buchanan Boys (rock/country) June 23 in Bridge Park. All shows are free and begin at 7 p.m. 828.586.2155 or www.mountainlovers.com.

• Concerts on the Square (Hayesville) will

host The Red Wine Effect (singer-songwriter) June 16 and Lee Holland (jazz/standards) June 23. All shows are free and begin at 7 p.m. www.cccra-nc.org.

• Currahee Brewing (Franklin) will host Brady Clampitt June 17 and The Blacktop Laurels (Americana/folk) June 24. Shows are free and begin at 7:30 p.m. www.curraheebrew.com.

• The Cut Cocktail Lounge (Sylva) will host an open mic night at 8 p.m. on Mondays. All welcome. 828.631.4795.

• Derailed Bar & Lounge (Bryson City) will have music at 7 p.m. on Saturdays. 828.488.8898.

• Friday Night Live (Highlands) will host Johnny Webb Band (country/Americana) June 16 and Silly Ridge Round Up (Americana/mountain) June 23. All shows are free and begin at 6 p.m. www.highlandschamber.org.

• Frog Level Brewing (Waynesville) will host Hunter Grigg (singer-songwriter) June 16, Bradley Carter (singer-songwriter) June 17, Troy Underwood (singer-songwriter) June 23 and Somebody’s Child (Americana) June 24.

All shows are free and begin at 7 p.m. www.froglevelbrewing.com.

• Groovin’ on the Green (Cashiers) will host Bo Spring Band (roots/folk) June 16 and Rockell Scott (jazz/soul) June 23 at The Village Green. All shows are free and begin at 6:30 p.m. www.visitcashiersvalley.com.

• Heinzelmannchen Brewery (Sylva) will have live music and a potluck from 6 to 8 p.m.

June 15 and 22. www.yourgnometownbrewery.com.

• Innovation Brewing (Sylva) will have an Open Mic night June 14 and 21, and a jazz night with the Kittle/Collings Duo June 15 and 22. All events are free and begin at 8 p.m. www.innovation-brewing.com.

ALSO:

• Lazy Hiker Brewing (Franklin) will host and open mic night at 7 p.m. June 15 and 22.

828.349.2337 or www.lazyhikerbrewing.com.

• The Macon County Public Library (Franklin) will host a “Musicians of North Carolina Showcase” with DJ Justin Moe at 5:15 p.m.

June 23. Free and open to the public.

• Music on the River (Cherokee) will host AM Superstars (alternative) June 16, Will Hayes Band (classic country/rock) June 17, Eastern

Blues Band (jazz/blues) June 23 and Stereospread (techno) June 24 on the Oconaluftee River Stage. All shows are free and begin at 7 p.m. www.visitcherokeenc.com.

• Nantahala Brewing Company (Bryson City) will host Chicken Coop Willaye Combo (Americana) June 16, Rick Rushing & The Blues Strangers June 23 and The Get Right Band (rock/soul) June 24. All shows are free and begin at 8 p.m. www.nantahalabrewing.com.

arts & entertainment

• Andrews Brewing Company (Andrews) will host The Pressley Girls (Americana/mountain) June 16, The Maggie Valley Band (Americana/folk) June 17 and Marshall Ballew (Americana/folk) June 23. All shows are free and begin at 6 p.m. There will also be a “Bluegrass Jam with Heidi” at 6 p.m. on Tuesdays. www.andrewsbrewing.com.

• No Name Sports Pub (Sylva) will host Alex Culbreth & Stevie Tombstone (folk) June 16, The Colby Deitz Band (Americana/rock, $2 cover) June 17, Chris Monteith (karaoke) June 23 and The Fumblebuckers (psychedelic/bluegrass) June 24. All shows are free and begin at 9:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted. www.nonamesportspub.com.

• The Oconaluftee Visitor Center (Cherokee) will host a back porch old-time music jam from 1 to 3 p.m. June 17. All are welcome.

• Pickin’ on the Square (Franklin) will host Michael Reno Harrell (singer-songwriter) with Conrad & Donnie (Americana) June 24.

All shows are free and begin at 7:30 p.m. www.townoffranklinnc.com.

June 14-20, 2017 Smoky Mountain News 33

arts & entertainment

On the beat

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• The Rendezvous (Maggie Valley) will host Randy Flack 6 p.m. June 16, Sound Investment 6 p.m. June 17, Super 60s 3 p.m.

June 18, and Stone Crazy (rock/pop) 3 p.m.

June 25.

• Satulah Mountain Brewing (Highlands) will host “Hoppy Hour” and an open mic with Susan at 6 p.m. on Thursdays and live music on Friday evenings. 828.482.9794 or www.satulahmountainbrewing.com.

• Saturdays on Pine (Highlands) will host Goldie & The Screamers (soul/funk) June 17 and Andalyn (Americana) June 24. All shows are free and begin at 6 p.m. www.highlandschamber.org.

• Southern Porch (Canton) will host Cody Siniard June 15, Bryce Denton June 16, Kevin Spears June 17, Mark Bumgardner (singersongwriter) June 20, Keil Smith & Randy Mason June 22 and The Fumblebuckers (psychedelic/bluegrass) June 23. All shows are free and begin at 7 p.m. www.southern-porch.com.

ALSO:

June 14-20, 2017

• Sneak E Squirrel Brewing (Sylva) will host line dancing every Friday at 7 p.m. and contra dancing every other Friday at 8 p.m.

828.586.6440.

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

• The Taste of Scotland (Franklin) will host The BorderCollies (Celtic) at 10 a.m. June 17 at the Gazebo in downtown. Free.

727.463.1077.

• Tunes on the Tuck (Bryson City) will host Juniper (Celtic/alternative) June 17 and Twelfth Fret (Americana/folk) June 24 at Riverfront Park. All shows are free and begin at 7 p.m. www.greatsmokies.com.

Smoky Mountain News

• The Ugly Dog Pub (Cashiers) will host Log Noggins (Americana) June 16. All shows begin at 9 p.m.

• The Ugly Dog Pub (Highlands) will host Goldie & The Screamers (soul/funk) June 17 and Log Noggins (Americana) June 24. All shows begin at 9:30 p.m.

• Water’n Hole Bar & Grill (Waynesville) will host The Blacktop Laurels (Americana/bluegrass) June 16, The Dirty Soul Revival (rock/blues) June 17, Scoundrels Lounge June 23 and Hustle Souls June 24. All shows begin at 9:30 p.m.

• The Waynesville Public Library will host Rob McHale (Americana/folk) at 3 p.m. June 24.

Free. www.haywoodarts.org.

34

On the street

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park will host the annual “Women’s Work” festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the Mountain Farm Museum at the Oconaluftee Visitor Center.

This event honors the vast contributions made by the women of Southern Appalachia showcasing traditional work led by women on mountain farms in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Demonstrations among the historic buildings will include hearth cooking, soap making, corn shuck crafts, and spinning. The Davis-Queen house will be open and available

for touring and will highlight an audio presentation of memoirs collected from last child born in the house.

Visitors will also be treated to a music jam session on the porch of the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. Music jam sessions are held every first and third Saturday of the month on the porch from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

All activities are free to the public. The Mountain Farm Museum is located on U.S. Highway 441 adjacent to the national park’s Oconaluftee Visitor Center, two miles north of Cherokee. For additional information, call the visitor center at 828.497.1904.

Taste of Scotland is June 15-18

After several years of residing in Waynesville, BearWaters relocated to Canton in late 2016, overtaking an 11,000square-foot, two-level building in downtown right on the Pigeon River.

Featuring new/beloved craft beer selections and live music , the “Grand Opening” will be from noon to 10 p.m. Friday, June 16.

The brewery will kick things up a notch on its new 20-barrel system, which includes five 20-barrel fermenters and three brite tanks.

“I think this new location is going to work well. We have a great partnership with the Town of Canton,” said owner/brewer Kevin Sandefur. “And, with the recreational side of things, we’ll be building a dock on the river for tubing and kayaking.”

Sandefur also noted that there will be a food component with the new brewery.

Haywood County businessman Richard Miller (of The Classic Wineseller and Church Street Depot in Waynesville) will open a gastro-pub within the facility.

“And with our cellar below, we’ll start a barrel-aging program, with our saisons being available soon,” Sandefur said. www.bwbrewing.com.

Innovation Brewing to open Dillsboro location The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad (GSMR) has announced that Innovation Brewing will be the new tenant of the GSMR Dillsboro Depot Complex.

Many locals enjoy the variety of

Innovation’s 30-plus beers or ginger ale made from fresh organic ginger at their current location in Sylva, but as a major testament to their success, seating and parking have become limited night after night, especially on their outdoor patio overlooking Scotts Creek. This love for Innovation by locals and tourist alike is what initially inspired this next step.

Train passengers repeatedly request Innovation’s beer on the popular Fontana Trestle Train featuring BBQ & Brews, where GSMR partners with local breweries to showcase their beers during an evening train ride to the Fontana Trestle. Brewers are able to meet one-on-one with passengers and answer their questions and describe their process to the final product they are sampling. Innovation Brewing’s St. Patrick’s Day BBQ & Brews was a huge success, thus solidifying the need for expansion.

Innovation will keep its primary location at 414 West Main Street in Sylva, but plan on expanding their sour and barrel aged production as well as a new pilot batch system at the Dillsboro location.

“We are excited about the space because it allows us room for growth while keeping our business in the local economy,” said Innovation owners Nicole Dexter and Chip Owen.

They are also planning on having another tap room with large outdoor seating to include street and creek views. The target for opening at 40 Depot Street in Dillsboro is this fall, if everything goes as planned.

Want to follow their progress? Visit thei website at www.innovation-brewing.com.

For more information about the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad and reservations visit www.gsmr.com or call 800.872.4681.

June 14-20, 2017

The annual Taste of Scotland & Celtic Festival will be held June 15-18 in downtown Franklin.

Although there will be a ticketed Clan Dinner celebration Thursday evening, there will be a free Ceilidh with Scottish bands from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday and an all-day free street festival Saturday. Other events include sheep herding, heavy athletics, clan parade and tours of the nearby Scottish Tartan Museum. www.tasteofscotlandfestival.org or www.scottishtartans.org.

BearWaters Brewing to reopen

arts & entertainment

GSMNP hosts ‘Women’s Work’ event

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

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• The BBQ & Brews Dinner Train will be departing at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in Bryson City. Slow-cooked barbecue and local craft beers. www.gsmr.com or call 800.872.4681.

• There will be a free wine tasting from 1 to 5 p.m. June 17 and 24 at Bosu’s Wine Shop in Waynesville. www.waynesvillewine.com or 828.452.0120.

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Smoky Mountain News

new traveling exhibition, “Native it by including additional content and proVoices: Native Peoples’ Concepts of grams that reflect their local Native culture Health and Illness,” which examines and history.”

“This exhibition honors the Native tradiconcepts of health and medicine among contemporary American Indian, Alaska Native, tion of oral history and establishes a unique and Native Hawaiian people is opening at the collection of information,” said Donald A.B. Lindberg, MD, director emeritus of the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva.

A special opening ceremony at 6 p.m. National Library of Medicine. “We hope visiFriday, June 23, will kick off the exhibit. Tom tors will find Native Voices both educational Belt will speak about the holistic idea of Tohi. The Tohi approach integrates physical, mental, and spiritual interventions into a wellness package: three legs of a stool.

The traveling exhibition, produced by the National Library of Medicine, explores the connection between wellness, illness, and cultural life through a combination of interviews with Native people, artwork, objects, and interactive media. The exhibition will be open to the public from June 23 to July 31.

The National Library of Medicine Code talker Thomas H. Begay and his wife Nonabah has a history of working with Native Begay who were interviewed as part of the Native communities as part of the Library’s Voices exhibit.t commitment to make health information resources accessible to people no matter where they live or work. The Native and inspirational, and we hope Native people Voices exhibition concept grew out of meet- will view it with pride.”

The Jackson County Public Library will ings with Native leaders in Alaska, Hawaii provide Cherokee-centric programming along and the Lower 48.

“We hope that visitors in communities with the exhibit. Some of the speakers lending across the country will learn from the ideas, their expertise to Native Voices will be Sarah practices, and traditions shared here,” said Sneed, Julie Reed, and Vickie Bradley.

For more information, go to Betsy L. Humphreys, acting director of the National Library of Medicine. “We hope, too, www.fontanalib.org or call JCPL at that those who host the exhibition will enrich 828.586.2016.

A J U N E 1 6 T H I S F R I D AY N I G H T

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On the street

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Saturday, June 17

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

Eat samples and taste house wines for $3 a glass. www.countrytraditionsnc.com.

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• The Academy of Model Aeronautic’s “Intro to R/C Flight School” will be held at 10 a.m.

Saturday, June 17, at the Otto Aerodrome Field on Tessentee Road. The event is sponsored by the Macon Aeromodelers Club. The event is free and open to the public.

828.508.4201.

• Boojum Brewing will host a Friends of the

Smokies “Pint Night” on Wednesday, June 14, at the brewery in Waynesville. The brewery has created a specialty batch of “Little Critter IPA.” Proceeds from the brew will benefit projects and programs in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

• There will be a dance at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the Yellowhill Activity Center in Cherokee. Food concession available. Free line dancing lessons at 6:30 p.m. $6 per person, with proceeds to benefit the Appalachian Community Dance Association.

828.788.0502.

• The Glenville Area Historical Society’s annual “Old Fashion Ice Cream Social” will be from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the museum in Glenville. The event celebrates the 2017 Grand Opening of the Museum. For more information call 828.743.1658, email historicalsocietyglenvillearea@yahoo.com or go to www.glenvillecommunity.com.

• The “Speak to the Mountain” car show will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 23-24 at the Cherokee Indian Fairgrounds. Free, donations welcome. www.greatsmokies.com.

On the wall

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Highlands Art & Craft Show

A Subsidiary of Catch the Spirit of Appalachia, The Appalachian Mural Trail Group will dedicate a mural at 10 a.m.

Saturday, June 17, in downtown Dillsboro. The event will coincide with the Front Street Arts & Crafts Show (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.), which showcases local and regional artisans and vendors Painted by Doreyl Ammons Cain, the 16foot-long “On Hallowed Ground” mural took one year to paint. The mural trail group will present an enactment of this historical mural, telling its unique story to the tune of Jane Thompson Gurley on audo harp and Jeanette Queen on guitar. Another mural to be dedicated on June 17 is a youth mural titled “ColorFest,” which was also painted by Doreyl Ammons Cain.

For the Front Street Arts & Crafts Show, live music will be provided by The Maggie Valley Band (11 a.m.), Betty Brown & The JAM Kids (12:15 p.m.), The J. Creek Cloggers (1:30 p.m.), Twelfth Fret (2:15 p.m.) and Susan Pepper (3 p.m.). www.visitdillsboro.org or www.muraltrail.org.

Stecoah plans arts tour The annual “Stecoah Arts & Crafts Drive About Tour” will be from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

June 23-24 in Bryson City, Stecoah and Robbinsville.

With their studios open to the public, the self-guided driving tour highlights artisans who have built a livelihood with their creative talents. Media include pottery, bee’s wax lanterns and pillar candles, original paintings and drawings, fiber, quilts, photography, artisan cheeses and more.

The tour includes the Charles Heath Gallery, Pincu Pottery, Sawmill Creek Pottery, Wild Fern Studios & Gallery, Bee Global Studio Gallery, Stecoah Artisans Gallery, Junk N’Style, Southwestern Community College (Nantahala School for the Arts), Yellow Branch Pottery & Cheese, Cottage Craftsman, Wehrloom Honey & Essentials and Taylor’s Greenhouse The Schoolhouse Café at Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center will be open during both days of the Artisans Drive About. www.stecoahvalleycenter.com.

Swain photo contest seeks submissions The Swain Arts Center will host its first Open Juried Photography Competition on Aug. 19. The theme is “Nature Photography.”

Submissions should be made online no later than July 17 (jpg format). Participants will be notified on July 22 if their submissions have been accepted for the competition.

The submission fee is $15 per single entry.

If you submit four or more images, the fee is $60. The application is available at www.swainartscenter.com.

Photographs accepted for the competition should be delivered to the Swain Arts Center on Aug. 12. The Photography Competition Judging and Reception will be held at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 19, at the Swain Arts Center in Bryson City.

Prizes are: First Place, $200 and invitation to display photographs at Gallery Zella in Bryson City. Second Place, $100. Third Place, $50. Two Honorable Mention Awards will be given.

For additional information, please contact Rachel Lackey, director of the Swain Arts Center.

June 14-20, 2017

The 28th annual Mountain Artisans “Summertime“ Arts & Crafts Show will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 24-25 in the Ramsey Center at Western Carolina University.

Over 60 local artisans are participating. This year’s show will include heritage demonstrations featuring quilting, spinning and glass blowing. Live music by Ronnie Evans.

Admission is $4.50 for adults with children under 12 free. Concessions available and free econvenient parking. www.mountainartisans.net. l g g h The Highlands Village Square Art & Craft Show will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 o p.m. on June 24-25 in the Kelsey-Hutchinson Founders Park in downtown. t Local and regional artisans, live music, demonstrations, food, and more.

Admission is free. Sponsored by the Rotary of Highlands Mountaintop.

For more information, call 828.787.2021.

Dillsboro hosts art festival

arts & entertainment

Mountain Artisans show set for WCU

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On the wall arts & entertainment

• Acclaimed Bryson City painter Elizabeth Ellison’s newest exhibit, “Spirit of Place,” will run through Sept. 4 at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville. Exhibit support is provided by The North Carolina Arboretum Society and Smoky Mountain Living magazine. www.smliv.com.

• The Jackson County Cooperative Extension will hold their monthly craft class from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Thursday, June 15, at the Sylva office. Local artist Lawrie Williams will be showing participants how to make wire jewelry with a fun "4th of July — Red, White, & Blue" theme with basic techniques and just a few materials. Participants will make a set of hammered wire earrings and matching pendant suitable for 4th of July celebrations.

Williams is a local skilled paper artist, jewelry artist and educator with over 35 years teaching and has been a featured artist at Southwestern Community College. Call the extension office at 828.586.4009 to register and for the supply list

ALSO:

Arts grants available in Jackson

June 14-20, 2017

The Jackson County Arts Council is now accepting applications for Grassroots Sponsorship for 2017-18.

Grassroots Sponsorships are awarded to organizations in all cultural disciplines through a competitive application and review process. This sponsorship program is funded in part by the North Carolina Arts Council and by the fundraising efforts of the Jackson County Arts Council. The deadline for applications is June 30, 2017.

Grassroots sponsorships are intended to:

• Provide modest funding for events/projects and publicity/advertising for artist groups/artist organizations that will enhance the presence of art events in Jackson County.

• Support opportunities for Jackson County residents to participate in new and thought-provoking art events in music, visual art, theatre, dance and literature.

• Celebrate the traditional arts and cultures of Jackson County as well as the multicultural aspect of arts in general.

Visit www.jacksoncountyarts.org to download the application.

Please contact Jackson County Arts Council at info@jacksoncountyarts.org or 828.507.9820 if you have questions.

28TH ANNUAL MOUNTAIN ARTISANS

ARTS & CRAFTS SHOW 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Smoky Mountain News

DEMONSTRATIONS AND LIVE MUSIC Ramsey Center, Cullowhee (WCU) $4.50 Adults Children Under 12 Free Pressed Flower Art by: Roberta Brown-Roberts

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• “Paint Nite Waynesville” will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays at Frog Level Brewing in Waynesville. There will also be “Painting at the Porch” at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesdays at the Southern Porch in Canton.

Sign up for either event on the Paint Night Waynesville Facebook page (search event: Brush N. Brew) or call Robin Smathers at 828.400.9560. paintnitewaynesville@gmail.com.

• There will be a “Thursday Painters Open Studio” from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 6 to 9 p.m. at the Franklin Uptown Gallery. Bring a bag lunch, project and supplies. Free to the public. Membership not required. The gallery will also present “Art Adventures,” a handson demonstration creating textures with Carol Conti, from 1 to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, May 21. For information, call 828.349.4607.

• There will be an art and wine night from 6 to 8 p.m. June 14 at the B&C Winery & Maggie Valley Gift Shop at 2499 Soco Road. $35 per person, which includes all materials to paint, a glass of wine and finger foods.

Open to guest ages 14 and up. Other beverage options will be available for those under age 21. To RSVP, call 828.550.3610 or maggievalleygifts@gmail.com.

• “Movies on Everett” will screen the film “Grease” at 8:30 p.m. Friday, June 16, at the Caboose in downtown Bryson City. “The Fugitive” will be shown on June 23. Free and open to the public. www.greatsmokies.com.

Library holds wreath workshop The Creating Community Workshop will host a wreath-making class at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, June 17, in the Atrium of the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva.

Local crafter Sherri Roper will be showing participants how to make a 4th of July themed wreath with red, white, and blue paper flowers. Roper is an avid local crafter who specializes in paper crafts. She has been teaching for several years since retirement afforded her the time to pursue her true artistic passion.

The class is limited to 10 people. For further information and to sign up for the class, call the library at 828.586.2016. This program is free of charge. All materials will be provided.

This event is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Jackson County Public Library. The Jackson County Public Library is a member of Fontana Regional Library (www.fontanalib.org).

• There will be a Gallery Talk on “Spot the Fake — The Pleasures of Art Crime” featuring writer/artist member Thomas Thibeault at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 15, at the Haywood County Art Council’s Gallery & Gifts in downtown Waynesville. Thibeault will delve into the lucrative business of art crime and the dangers therein. Free and open to the public. www.haywoodarts.org.

• A “Youth Art Class” will be held from 10:30 a.m. to noon every Saturday at the Appalachian Art Farm on 22 Morris Street in Sylva. All ages welcome. $10 includes instruction, materials and snack. Email appalachianartfarm@gmail.com or find them on Facebook.

• “Art Adventures” with Jean Blackmer will be held from 1 to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, June 18, at the Franklin Uptown Gallery. Blackmer will demonstrate the fun of painting with alcohol ink. Each participant will paint a ceramic tile and take home a finished painting. The demonstration is free to all and supplies are included. 828.3489.4607.

• The Groovy Movie Club will screen “Hidden Figures” at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 18, in the Dellwood neighborhood of Waynesville. Open to all, with a discussion on the film to follow.

RSVP to johnbuckleyx@gmail.com or call 828.646.8602 or 828.454.5949.

@SmokyMtnNews

HART holds Shakespeare Camp

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On the stage

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Shakespeare’s Globe of London, he has performed in and directed nearly two dozen Shakespearean productions. For the past 20 years, he has served as co-director for the Green Room Summer Institute in Newton, North Carolina.

• David Anthony Yeates was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, where he obtained his Higher National Diploma in Theatre and Performing Arts from Colaiste Dhulaigh in 2012. After graduation, he moved to London to further his training in acting. For four years he continued to work in theatre and television in both Ireland and the United Kingdom. Yeates moved to America last April and is now on staff at HART. For more information or to register, contact HART at 828.456.6322 or go to the HART webpage for more information and to download a registration form. www.harttheatre.org.

HART presents ‘The Fantasticks’

Tickets are $46 for adults, $44 for seniors and $30 for students. Side stage table for four is $224 and a side stage table for two is $112.

For more information or to purchase tickets, click on www.harttheatre.org or call 828.456.6322.

Unto These Hills plays through Aug. 19 The Unto These Hills stage production will be held at 8 p.m. Monday-Saturday through Aug. 19 at the Mountainside Theater in Cherokee.

This acclaimed outdoor drama traces the Cherokee people through the eons, through the zenith of their power, through the heartbreak of the Trail of Tears, finally ending, appropriately, in the present day, where the Cherokee people, much like their newly rescripted drama, continue to rewrite their place in the world, a place based on traditional Cherokee values and modern sensibilities.

For more information and to purchase tickets, click on www.cherokeehistorical.org.

Smoky Mountain News

A dinner theatre of the musical “The Fantasticks” will hit the stage at 7:30 p.m. June 16-17, 22-24, 29-30 and July 1 (with dinner buffet at 6 p.m.) and 2 p.m. June 18, 25 and July 2 (with a brunch buffet at 12:30 p.m.) at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.

The musical is an allegorical story, loosely based on the play “The Romancers” (“Les Romanesques”) by Edmond Rostand, concerning two neighboring fathers who manipulate their children, Luisa and Matt, into falling in love by building a wall between their gardens and pretending to feud. The fathers hire a “professional abductor” and traveling actors to stage a mock abduction in the hopes that Matt may “save” Luisa heroically, in turn ending the supposed feud.

When the two children unveil the fathers’ deception, they reject their arranged love and separate. In their separation the children see the world for what it really is, in parallel sequences of fantasy. On their return, they renew their vows in their newfound maturity.

June 14-20, 2017

Kids ages 10-17 of Haywood and surrounding counties have an opportunity to experience Shakespeare up close and personal from June 26-30 at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.

“We are extremely fortunate to have a faculty of experienced professionals,” said Sheila Sumpter, artistic director of Kids at HART. • Jonathan Ray, visiting artist, grew up at Flat Rock Playhouse, where he discovered his love for theatre. He now teaches in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Appalachian State University. He has led Shakespearean performance workshops all over the region for both schools and teacher training. A graduate of Western Carolina University, he holds an MFA in Drama from UNC-Greensboro. Since studying classical performance in the Shakespeare Lives! program at UNC School of the Arts and

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Books

Smoky Mountain News

Remarkable story of corruption and murder “The whites have bunched us up down here in the backwoods, the roughest part of the United States, thinking ‘we will drive these Indians down to where there is a big pile of rock and put them there in that corner.’” Now that pile of rock has turned out to be worth millions of dollars; now everybody wants to get in here and get some of the money.”

— Osage Chief Bacon Rind erhaps the most remarkable aspect of David Grann’s Killers of the Flower Moon is the fact that despite the author’s painstaking research and his marvelous use of period photographs and documents, this factual account of historic events attending “The Osage Murders” contains the atmospheric suspense and tension that is normally associated with a classic Writer murder mystery. In fact, Grann has written a murder mystery — one that asks who methodically killed hundreds of Osage Indians during a four-year reign of terror (1920-24). Osage history reveals the tragic details of how and why.

Forced to move from Kansas to Oklahoma, the Osage tribe seemed to be destined to lives of abject poverty when they suddenly found itself catapulted into a world of excessive wealth. Oil is discovered on tribal land.

Suddenly, every member of the tribe is potentially wealthy. In an attempt to control the chaos that ensued, the federal government created a document called a “headright” which gave each Osage household legal rights to the oil on their land. After a period of uncontrolled spending in which members of the Osage tribe acquired mansions and fleets of automobiles, the government attempted to control the excessive spending by establishing a “guardian system” which assigned a “legal guardian” to each Osage family.

This “guardian” (usually a white banker, businessmen or “civic-minded citizen”) was given the power to approve or deny all expenditures for the Osage tribal member (who had been judged to be “incompetent”) by the government. The system was badly flawed, and

Gary Carden

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schemes for exploiting the tribe. Hundreds of criminals were drawn to the region with schemes designed to acquire a portion of Osage wealth. Many of these new arrivals openly stated that they had come to Oklahoma “to marry an Osage squaw.”

It was a method that frequently succeeded.

However, some of these opportunists sought a more direct method: murder. Author Grann’s research discovers one individual, William Hale, who had arranged for the murder of 24 members of the Osage tribe. By soliciting the help of associates, Hale became one of the wealthiest men in Oklahoma.

The astonishing catalogue of slaughter is carried out by men willing to resort to any means to accomplish Hale’s goal.

Dozens of victims were poisoned with tainted moonshine and corrupt medical personnel performed autopsies that listed “acute alcoholism” as the cause of death.

Others were dispatched with a bullet to the back Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann. Doubleday, 2017. 339 pages. of the head or between the eyes and the victim’s guardian documents became bargaining chips body was found in his new car on a remote in investing in business ventures. Hundreds of road. One family was killed by a dynamite blast that demolished their home. Often, Hale guardians used their position as a means of simply paid an assassin to kill a designated acting as a “middle-man” who would purvictim. Then, Hale would frequently hire a chase items on behalf of Osage tribal members. The guardian would then sell the item to second assassin to kill the first. In those instances in which murderers were apprethe Osage for an inflated price. For example, hended, Hale bribed juries and law officials guardians could purchase automobiles on and, if all else failed, he simply paid another behalf of the Osage tribal member for $250 killer. and then sell them to the Osage member that Time and time again, government agents they represented for $2,500.

As the wealth of the Osage grew, so did the are assigned to investigate and in some many of the guardians used their position to embezzle huge sums of money. In time, the

instances, just as they uncover significant evidence, they are murdered and the evidence destroyed. One dedicated investigator called the FBI headquarters to report that he was on his way back with conclusive evidence against Hale. The next day his mutilated body is found near a railroad track. He had been murdered and thrown from the train. Another investigator’s body was found in another state, hundreds of miles away. What is most disquieting about the crimes in Killers of the Flower Moon is the awesome extent of corruption that is revealed in the book. State and government officials, medical personnel and lawyers — all are contaminated with the vice of greed. The corruption is so pervasive, the few moral and courageous individuals seem helplessly outnumbered.

However, there are two remarkable people in this gruesome tale. One is Molly Burkhart, and Osage who survived the systematic murder of her family ... murders in which her husband was implicated. Molly was diagnosed as a diabetic by two doctors who poisoned her insulin injections in an attempt to slowly kill her. Molly survived and divorced her husband.

The second remarkable character is Tom White, the FBI agent that pursued Hale until he brought him to justice. Much of the credit of for this amazing piece of investigative work went to the director of the newly-created FBI agency, Herbert Hoover, who turned out to be a man dedicated to his own self-interest.

Through much of the investigation conducted

by Tom White, Hoover managed to take credit for White’s courageous work. Jealous of any publicity directed toward agents other than himself, Hoover invariably succeeded in manipulating the factual data to his advantage.

This is a remarkable work. Most noteworthy is Grann’s comprehensive account of the primitive nature of investigations in a time before forensics emerged. As a consequence, much of Tom White’s heroic pursuit of a villain who seemed to have the protection of most of Oklahoma’s judges, lawyers and public officials. However, Grann’s greatest achievement is the fact that he uncovers evidence that the total number of victims in the Osage murders was much greater than the original 24 and possibly exceeded over 200.

Poets to read at Folk School

The NC Writers Network West is sponsoring “The Literary Hour,” an hour of poetry and prose reading, held at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 15, in the Keith House on the John C. Campbell Folk School campus in Brasstown.

Poets and writers Karen Paul Holmes and Brenda Kay Ledford will be the featured readers. n Holmes was selected for Best Emerging Poets, 2015 (Stay Thirsty Media), and her full-length poetry collection, Untying the Knot, was published by Aldrich Press in 2014 (available on Amazon.com). Her poems have appeared in journals, such as Prairie Schooner, Poet Lore, Poetry East, and Atlanta Review, and anthologies such as The Southern Poetry Anthology, Vol 5: Georgia. Holmes serves as the Towns County Representative for the North Carolina Writers’ Network and is a member of the Georgia Poetry Society. n Ledford’s work has appeared in many journals including Our State, Woman’s World, Country Extra, Chicken Soup for the Soul, Angels on Earth, 30 Old Mountain Press anthologies and Blue Ridge Parkway Silver Anniversary Edition coffee-table book. Aldrich Press published her poetry book, Crepe Roses, that won the 2015 Paul Green Multimedia Award from North Carolina Society of Historians.

This event is normally held the third Thursday of the month unless otherwise notified. The reading is free of charge and open to the public.

Coffee with the Poet The Coffee with the Poet series continues with Robert Lee Kendrick at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, June 15, at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva.

A Clemson, South Carolina, resident, Kendrick will read new poems and present his collection, Winter Skin. His poems have been featured in Tar River Poetry, Xavier Review, Louisiana Literature, South Carolina Review, Kestrel, The Cape Rock, The James Dickey Review, The San Pedro River Review, The Sow’s Ear Poetry Review, and The Main Street Rag. The Coffee with the Poet series gathers the third Thursday of each month and is cosponsored by the North Carolina Writers Network. To reserve copies of Winter Skin, please call City Lights Bookstore at 828.586.9499.

• Noted Asheville author Michael Havelin will read from his mystery novels/short stories and answer questions about his writing at 3 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva. Havelin has written eight novels and is hard at work on another in his Ben Bones series. For question or to reserve copies of his books, call City Lights Bookstore at 828.586.9499.

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The original “Unto These Hills” is soaring again.

• The “Let’s Talk About It” book series will discuss Letters of a Woman Homesteader from 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday, June 22, at the Waynesville Public Library. Julie Cartner will lead the discussion. Refreshments to be served.

• A biography of the late Kathryn Stripling “Kay” Byer, the first woman and longestserving (2005-2009) Poet Laureate in North Carolina, is featured in Six Notable Women of North Carolina by Jack J. Prather of Hendersonville, founder of the Young Writers Scholarship at Warren Wilson College. The 43-page biography includes poems selected by the Hall of Fame poet from Cullowhee, who passed away at age 72 on June 5, plus photos that reflect her life journey. prathergroup@aol.com or www.amazon.com/books.

The NetWest program of the North Carolina Writers Network is an open mic night at 7 p.m.

Friday, June 16, at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva.

Folks are encouraged to bring their poetry or short pieces to share. Sign-ups begin at 6:45 p.m. for 10-minute reading session. The North Carolina Writers’ Network connects, promotes, and serves the writers of this state. They provide education in the craft and business of writing, opportunities for recognition and critique of literary work, resources for writers at all stages of development, support for and advocacy of the literary heritage of North Carolina, and a community for those who write. www.ncwriters.org.

For the th first fi t time i iin over a dec d ade d , the th orig iginal i l Kermit Hunter version of “Unto These Hills” is being perfor o med live again, under the stars, at Moun ntainside Theatre. Nightlyy, except Sundays.

V isitCherokeeNC.com | 828.359.6490 0

Smoky Mountain News

Open mic at City Lights

June 14-20, 2017

• The annual book clearance will be held June 14-17 at the Albert Carlton Cashiers Community Library. All books are free, but donations are accepted.

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Outdoors

Smoky Mountain News

Trails that dance Cherokee opens 10.5-mile trail system with plans to expand

Jacob Wildcatt, of Birdtown, takes a ride down one of the newly opened trails. Holly Kays photo

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER he snip of a ribbon declared the destination that mountain bikers are hailing as “amazing” and “world-class” to be open for business last week, when Cherokee officially opened its new 10.5-mile Fire Mountain Trail System.

“There’s been a lot of hard work and dedication to make this a reality, to make this trail system a reality — and the reality we’ve created is a premier trail system for the region,” said Jeremy Hyatt, secretary of administration for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Jumping off from the upper parking lot of Oconaluftee Indian Village, Cherokee’s Fire Mountain Trail System winds the slopes of Mount Noble in a web of trail intended to satisfy trail runners, hikers and mountain bikers ranging from novice to expert. The opening trail — Tinker’s Dream, named after the visionary behind the trail system, Tinker Jenks — rises quickly from the parking lot and twists around the slope, blocking the human sounds below. The thick greenery of summer in the mountains swaths the trail in a silence peppered with birds chirping and breeze tousling the treetops. It’s peaceful. Or, if you happen to be hurtling downhill on a mountain bike, adrenaline-inducing.

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bility of building a new trailhead on the Long Blanket Tract — a piece of undeveloped commercial property — and with the existing trail system nearly abutting the Cherokee Indian Hospital campus, Hyatt’s already in talks with the hospital’s CEO, Casey Cooper, to build a connector that would allow people to enter the trails from the hospital. A fall mountain

biking race is also in the works.

“This is really a leaping-off point for Cherokee and our move into ecotourism,” Principal Chief Richard Sneed told the crowd of 50 gathered for the ribbon-cutting.

Though more than 2 million people pass through Cherokee each year on their way to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park,

NOTHING SHORT OF AMAZING

A LEAPING-OFF POINT A 10.5-mile system is a big system, and it wasn’t cheap. The tribe spent $356,000 on the effort. But this is just the first phase of a much larger endeavor.

“We’re hoping to expand,” Hyatt said.

“We’re hoping to create more trailheads.”

Discussions are underway about the possi-

most of them — especially those not interested in gambling — zip right through rather than pausing to spend some of their tourism dollars in town. Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort is by far Cherokee’s biggest draw for out-of-towners, but tribal leaders have long recognized the need for economic diversification. With a rich culture to draw from and mountain land all around, Cherokee could fill the ecotourism niche quite nicely.

“Ecotourism is my biggest push, trying to get not more gamers into town but people that want to camp, do biking trails, do skate parks, do maybe zip lines in the future — different things that families can enjoy,” said Councilmember Adam Wachacha, of Snowbird, who attended the ribbon-cutting along with four other councilmembers.

“That’s really the focus I want to look at. This trail has been a starting point.”

“It’s about the outdoors,” agreed former Principal Chief Michell Hicks, who also attended. “That’s one thing we’ve worked really hard on — promoting the outdoors, staying fit. And it’s a great way to use this property and still keep it fairly pristine.”

If the initial reaction is any indication, the change could be rapid. Hyatt’s already been bombarded by bloggers from across the country wanting to check out the trails and write about them. And Sneed himself was blindsided when some photos he posted on Facebook a month ago, following a test ride he took on the trails, garnered more than 300 shares and spurred myriad calls to the Cherokee Welcome Center from people wanting to know where they could find the trailhead.

“I see Cherokee as a golden opportunity because of where this is located, because of how beautiful it is,” said trail builder Ed Sutton, of Brevard-based Trail Dynamics.

The ribbon is cut on the new Fire Mountain Trail System. From left to right are: Snowbird Councilmember Adam Wachacha, Principal Chief Richard Sneed, trail builder Ed Sutton, Cherokee Preservation Foundation program associate Tinker Jenks and (in back row) Secretary of Administration Jeremy Hyatt and trail designer Zeke Cooper. Holly Kays photo

Work on the trail system began during Hicks’ administration, in 2014, when Jenks — who was then working for the diabetes prevention program Cherokee Choices — began to discuss the idea with Damon Lambert, who was the tribe’s building construction manager at the time. In 2014, the Cherokee Preservation Foundation awarded a grant Jenks had applied for to fund planning for the project, with the tribe providing matching funds. Around the same time, Tribal Council approved a resolution from the youth-driven Junaluska Leadership Council pledging tribal funds to develop hiking and biking trails in Cherokee. Funding for the construction itself was approved by the tribe’s Capital Committee in June 2016.

Cherokee-based Aniwaya Design & Planning collaborated with trail specialist Valerie Naylor to design the trails, with Trail Dynamics engaged to construct them. The effort faced plenty of challenges, from political turbulence to a wildfire that swept through the area after Aniwaya and the Bureau of Indian Affairs

Ranger-guided Parkway hikes return

A disc golf tournament will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 24, at the Cullowhee Recreation Center.

All ages and skill levels are welcome. Fee is $5 for singles and $10 for doubles. Additional tournaments will be held July 15 and Aug. 19.

Register at rec.jacksonnc.org.

The Blue Ridge Parkway’s weekly rangerguided hikes will resume for the season with a 1.5-mile excursion at 10 a.m. Friday, June 16, to Frying Pan Fire Tower.

The area is famous for its wildflowers, wildlife and wildfires, with the Frying Pan trail offering an introduction to what the Parkway has to offer as well as the chance to take in fabulous views. Located at milepost 409.6, the trailhead is 1 mile south of the Pisgah Inn. Hikers should park at the gravel Forest Service Road but not block the gate.

Every Friday through October, the weekly hikes explore a different section of the Blue Ridge Parkway on its way through North Carolina. Hikers should always bring water, good walking shoes and clothing for changeable weather.

For information about upcoming hikes, call 828.348.3400.

Bellyak the Tuck A bellyaking trip starting 11 a.m. Saturday, June 24, will give participants a chance to enjoy the Tuckasegee River lying down.

A bellyak is a lay-on-top kayak that is designed to be ridden lying down, without restricting straps or a confining spray skirt. The trip will travel the Tuckasegee River Gorge from the C.J. Harris River Access Park to the Barkers Creek River Access Park. No experience is necessary, but the route will pass through Class 2 whitewater. Comfort in moving water and ability to swim in moving water are required.

Offered through Jackson County Parks and Recreation. $30, with online registration at rec.jacksonnc.org. Open to ages 14 and up. Additional dates are July 8, July 22 and Aug. 20.

Check out the trails

A six-week course in wildflower identification will begin at 9 a.m. Monday, June 19, exploring the blooms at various places around Jackson, Macon and Haywood counties.

Horticulturist Adam Bigelow of Bigelow’s Botanical Excursions will teach the class, going beyond simple identification to tell the stories that go with each plant — how they

Jean Ron Hunnicut photo

Search for Stewartia Horticulture expert Jack Johnston will lead an annual hike in search of the rare Stewartia 9 a.m. to noon Friday, June 23, near Franklin.

The group will meet on Mainspring Conservation Trust’s Queen Branch Property and then carpool to locations Johnston will scout beforehand. Johnston has been hunting — and finding — the flower for more than 20 years. He also collects seeds and takes cuttings to grow the flowers himself.

Free, with RSVP requested by June 15 to Sharon Burdette, 828.524.2711, ext. 301.

AYSO YOUTH SOCCER CAMP JUNE 26TH - 30TH

American Youth Soccer Organization will offer a variety of programs for children aged four to eighteen years old at Vance Street Park in front of the Waynesville Recreation Center. Half day camps are avalible from 9AM to noon for $149 or a full day camp for $205.

“Fun in the Sun” - (Ages 4-6) Program focuses on physical literacy and confidence building along with fundamentals. Players will be taught ball familiarization, small group dynamics, motor skill development and social interaction.

“Skills ‘N Thrills” - (Ages 7-10) This program enhances player’s technical development and skill building in a stimulating and positive environment. Players are challenged to consider key tactical components at an age appropriate level.

“Compete With Your Feet” - (Ages 11-18) This program is aimed to progress players both technically, tactically and develop their ability through challenging gamerelated situations. Players are coached to improve their decision making, positional awareness and soccer specific fitness.

Smoky Mountain News

had spent days flagging the trails’ planned routes. But now, the project is done and drawing praise from even the most seasoned of mountain bikers.

“This is nothing short of amazing in that out of the box from that ribbon-cutting right now these trails are perfectly broken in and ready to go,” said Larry Norman of Motion Makers Bicycles in Sylva, a partner of the EBCI. “That usually takes months.

You get the trail open but there’s all these little problems you have to go out and fix and maintain or worry about. This is just perfect.”

Add that to the trails’ easy proximity to downtown Cherokee — just a mile or two, depending where you’re going — and the tribe’s got itself a winning combination, Norman said.

“A day in the life of a bike shop employee, if it’s not, ‘Hey where are your inner tubes? Can you fix my flat?’ the second question is, ‘Where can I go ride?’ and being this close to town is a huge thing because usually we’re like, ‘Well you need to drive for two hours to the middle of nowhere,’ and then you spend 45 minutes giving directions and pray they don’t get lost,” Norman said.

With the Cherokee trails, the directions are simple: turn at the movie theater, drive

Meet the neighborhood wildflowers

Mountain camellia, also known as Stewartia ovata.

June 14-20, 2017

Cherokee’s new Fire Mountain Trails are now open, the 10.5 miles of multi-use trail offering opportunity for all ability levels. The trailhead is at the upper parking lot of Oconaluftee Indian Village on Drama Road.

To get there from U.S. 441, take Hospital Road (the intersection is beside the Cherokee Phoenix Theater) to its intersection with Drama Road. Turn left on Drama and follow signs through Oconaluftee Indian Village to the uppermost parking lot. A trail map is posted at the entrance, with wayfinding signs scattered throughout the trail system.

Jeremy Hyatt, 828.736.3839.

until you see a stop sign, and make a left.

The trail is at the end of the road.

Having been involved with trail maintenance and construction since the 1990s, Norman added that he’s just flat-out impressed with the subtle features of Sutton’s handiwork that will make the trails fun to ride and easy to maintain for years to come.

“The main thing that tears up a trail is water, and so a clever trail builder will build trail in such a way that water is constantly running off of it so it doesn’t collect on the trail,” Norman said. Later, taking a short jaunt up the mountain, he pointed out how even flat pieces of trail were slightly slanted so that water could roll off. Then, he mounted his bike and sighed aloud over the perfectly contoured turns as he made his way downhill.

When Sutton looks back on the six months he spent in Cherokee, turning vision to reality, it’s emotional to see the trails completed, the people gathered and the bikes ready to ride. His whole goal was to “make the trails dance, and try to create that feeling” — each day, the largely Latino workforce that helped with construction would choose the music to drive the dance, whether that be salsa or tango or anything else.

“I guess the significance of building a trail doesn’t really hit you until you finally get to the end and you see the people come arrive,” Sutton said. “It’s sometimes emotional. But I know what trails can do for communities.”

When Sutton moved to Brevard 15 years ago, he said, the town was in a “downspin,” and the biking scene was shaky, with only one struggling bike shop in the whole place.

Since then, Brevard has become a mountain bikers’ Mecca, and Main Street holds three thriving bike shops as well as an array of restaurants and retail shops.

“Basically the moral is when you hear a great idea for the community, don’t give up,” Jenks said. “Jump over those road blocks that come at you. Just keep going, because persistence pays off.”

got their names, their various uses and their relationships with each other.

Classes will be held 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Mondays through July 24, with rain dates scheduled for weekend afternoons. $40 per day or $150 for the series. Space is limited.

Register by emailing Bigelow at bigelownc@gmail.com.

outdoors

Disc golf coming to Cullowhee

WAYNESVILLE

PARKS AND RECREATION

more info or to register call: 828.456.2030 For 888.857.6222 or aysosoccercamps.org

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outdoors

New photo contest seeks entries The submission deadline for the inaugural Highlands Nature Center Photo Contest is coming up June 21.

This year’s theme, “Natural Wonders of the Highlands Plateau,” will include four categories: mountains and valleys; waterways; small wonders; and winged creatures, each with winners in youth and adult categories.

Entries will be displayed at the Highlands Nature Center, with winners receiving a gift card from sponsor Highland Hiker or an item from the nature center gift shop. $10 per photo, with a maximum three submissions per person. Email photos and a release form to highlandsbiological@gmail.com by midnight June 21. Complete rules are available at www.highlandsbiological.org/photo-contest/.

June 14-20, 2017

Tour Macon County gardens A day full of workshops and garden tours will come to Franklin when the Macon County Master Gardener Association holds its open house 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 24.

Presenters will offer diversion throughout the day, with Slug Gourmets 10:30-11 a.m., Easy Composting 11:15-11:45 a.m., World of Daylilies 12:30-1 p.m., Everything Iris 1:151:45 p.m. and Secrets of Growing Asparagus 2-2:30 p.m.

In addition, visitors will get a chance to tour the gardens Master Gardeners tend, with door prizes and light refreshments to follow the presentations.

The gardens are located at 1624 Lakeside Drive in Franklin. Held rain or shine.

Take a magical firefly tour A firefly tour will explore the natural mystery and history of these summertime icons 7:30-9:30 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the Cradle of Forestry in America.

The program will begin at the Cradle’s outdoor amphitheater, where naturalists will discuss firefly biology and behavior. As night falls, participants will traverse the paved Forest Festival Trail searching for fireflies, exploring the surrounding forest and discussing forest ecology. $6 for adults, $3 for youth 15 and under, with Friends of the Cradle, America the Beautiful, Golden Age and Every Kid in a Park passes accepted. Wheelchair-accessible.

The Cradle of Forestry is located along U.S. 276 in the Pisgah National Forest, about 35 miles south of Waynesville.

828.877.3130 or www.cradleofforestry.com.

courses and led bird watching, wildflower and photography trips for more than 30 years. He resides in Balsam. $35; open to ages 10 and up. Register at 828.452.5414 or lvthompson@earthlink.net.

Hold a wild bird A series of bird banding days will offer a chance to see the Smokies’ winged residents up close this summer at the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont.

Each event begins at sunrise — 6-7 a.m.

— and lasts through noon. Anyone is welcome to come help, regardless of experience level, for a chance to hold a real wild bird in

Begin to bird An introductory bird-watching workshop will teach the basics of birding from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, May 20, at the Balsam Community Center.

The course will cover how to use binoculars, identify common birds, use a field guide and attract birds to your yard.

Larry Thompson, who served as the National Audubon Society’s Southeast Regional Vice President for 20 years, will teach the course. He has taught nature

Rose-breasted grosbeak.

Larry Thompson photo

Swain greenway team wants input Swain County is looking for public input in its effort to create a greenway, with a public meeting planned for 6 p.m. Thursday, June 15, at the United Community Bank conference room in Bryson City.

The meeting is hosted by the Swain Health Department’s Community Wellness Action Team, which is working to make the greenway dream a reality. The team wants to share its vision with the community and get feedback in return.

Light supper provided, with door prizes — including a Fit-Bit — given.

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Smoky Mountain News

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their hand. Participants can drop in anytime within the bird-banding window with no RSVP necessary.

Dates are: June 16, July 6, July 7, July 13, July 26, July 31 and Aug. 2.

Bird banding offers a way to educate the public about bird conservation and has also allowed Tremont to monitor the breeding bird population in Walker Valley for more than 16 years. For an up-close look, watch the video by Caleb Carlton and Tremont Institute at vimeo.com/220345535.

Tremont is located within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Townsend, Tennessee.

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outdoors

A volunteer demonstrates with an old-time sewing machine. NPS photo

Celebrate women’s work The annual Women’s Work Festival will return to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 17, at the Mountain Farm Museum near Cherokee. The festival celebrates the vast contributions that Southern Appalachian women made on mountain farms during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The historic buildings comprising the

museum will be filled with demonstrations in hearth cooking, soap making, corn shuck crafts and spinning, with exhibits of artifacts and historic photographs offering a glimpse into the many roles rural women filled during that time. The Davis-Queen house will be open for touring, complete with an audio presentation of memoirs collected from the last child born there.

Simultaneously, an old time music jam session will be held on the porch of the nearby Oconaluftee Visitor Center 1-3 p.m.

Jam sessions are held the first and third Saturday of the month.

Free. The Mountain Farm Museum is located on U.S. 441, 2 miles north of Cherokee. 828.497.1904.

An introduction to the wild world of worms will come to the Waynesville and Franklin libraries next week. n 4 p.m. Tuesday, June 20, at the Waynesville Public Library n 5:30 p.m. Thursday, June 22, at the Macon County Public Library in Franklin Vermiculture — or worm composting — helps keep food scraps out of landfills while also creating a rich compost. For that reason, worm castings are often called “black gold.”

Free, with no registration required. Programs presented by The Balsam Mountain Trust.

Get a taste of farm life

Find some frogs at Highlands A frog-focused night will come to the Highlands Biological Station at 8:30 p.m. Thursday, June 22, in Highlands.

The Feelin’ Froggy program will begin with a short presentation on distinguishing between frogs and toads, identifying common species and protecting declining populations. Afterward, the group will hike through the Highlands Botanical Garden to look for frogs and listen to their calls.

Open to ages 6 and up with $3 per person fee. Space limited. Register at 828.526.2623.

Smoky Mountain News

A farm tour June 24-25 will give participants a chance to get hands-on at more than 20 farms in Western North Carolina.

The Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project’s tour includes opportunity to milk dairy goats, care for heirloom tomatoes and everything in between. The farms are located in seven different clusters in Buncombe, Henderson and Madison counties.

In addition to the tour itself, the weekend will include a tour kick-off dinner at Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, an exclusive farm-to-table event with tickets avail-

able for $100 apiece to benefit ASAP. In addition, 5 percent of net sales at Whole Foods Market and Greenlife Grocery will go to ASAP June 22.

Farm tour passes are available for $30 online, with day-of passes available at any farm on the tour for $40. Tours include a map, driving directions, tour tips and descriptions of participating farms.

Tour volunteers are needed as well.

Volunteers spend one of the tour days welcoming visitors at a farm and receive a free pass for the other day.

Sign-ups and ticket sales for the above items are available at www.asapconnections.org.

June 14-20, 2017

Welcome the worms

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outdoors

New forest planning materials released A slate of open houses this summer will gather input on the latest draft documents released in the management planning process for the Pisgah and Nantahala national forests.

Smoky Mountain News

June 14-20, 2017

n 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, July 11, at Tartan Hall in Franklin. n 6-8 p.m. Thursday, July 13, at the Pisgah Ranger District Office in Brevard. n 3-6 p.m. Tuesday, July 25, at the Cheoah Ranger District Office in Robbinsville. n 3-6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 8, at the Brasstown Community Center in Brasstown.

The U.S. Forest Service has recently released planning documents focused on geographic areas — 12 distinct landscapes with-

in the forest, each with its own goals related to opportunities for restoration and recreation, and connections to nearby communities and organizations — as well as plan components related to management areas. In addition, results of the required Wild and Scenic River Evaluation and information on possible Special Interest Areas are posted on the website.

The forest planning process, ongoing since 2014, has so far included 30 public meetings in communities throughout Western North Carolina.

Over the past year, the Forest Service has been releasing pieces of what will become a draft plan, with the goal of adjusting the plan’s building blocks to public feedback before a formal draft is presented. Nearly all materials will be public by fall 2017, and a complete draft plan will be published in spring 2018.

The Forest Service is currently accepting input on newly released materials via email to NCplanrevision@fs.fed.us with the subject line “Spring 2017 material Plan Building Blocks” or by mail to Attn: Plan Revision, National Forests in North Carolina, 160A Zillicoa St, Asheville, NC 28801. Comments will be most useful if received before Aug. 31.

Forest planning documents are online at www.fs.usda.gov/goto/nfsnc/ncprevision.

{Celebrating the Southern Appalachians}

Blue Ridge Parkway Superintendent Mark Woods has announced his retirement from the National Park Service following four years in the position and a 37-year career with the agency.

“It has been such a privilege to have a career in the National Park Service,” Woods said. “The National Park Service serves to protect and tell the stories of some of our country’s most amazing places from presidential homes and sacred battlefields, to natural resource treasures like we have along the Parkway. National Park Service sites truly represent the best America has to offer.”

Over the course of his career, Woods has worked at 10 different National Park Service units in positions ranging from interpretive ranger to law enforcement ranger to superintendent. He came to the Parkway in September 2013, focusing on restoring services in previously closed facilities, ensuring

Mark Woods. NPS photo high-quality visitor service and building strong working relationships with Parkway communities.

Woods’ retirement will be effective July 3, with the search for an interim superintendent currently underway. A selection is expected soon.

Dig into Panthertown geology Panthertown Valley’s unique geology and natural features will be the topic of discussion during Friends of Pantherown’s membership event 5:30-7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 18, at the Albert Carlton Cashiers Community Library.

Bill Jacobs will deliver the talk on the geology of the Cashiers plateau, and experts will be on hand to answer questions about Panthertown and the work Friends of Panthertown has accomplished over the past year. friends@panthertown.org.

Invest in WNC’s great outdoors The National Forest Foundation has named the Pisgah-Nantahala National Forest as a Treasured Landscape, a designation that unlocks funding to better maintain and restore the forests.

The designation marks the beginning of NFF’s Investing in the Great Outdoors Campaign, which aims to raise private contributions to supplement limited federal funding for restoration work in these unique, regionally renowned sites. Popular sites in the Pisgah-Nantahala see some of the highest visitation of any national forest in the Eastern U.S. and play an important

role in overall forest health.

Leveraging private donations and support from community organizations, NFF’s collaborative approach aims to rally everyone around the goal of improved forest health and sustainable recreation.

Proposed activities include improved boating access and trail construction on the Chattooga River; access improvements along the Nantahala River and trail maintenance, invasive species treatments and campgrounds improvements at Tsali Recreation Area.

The NFF is the nonprofit partner of the U.S. Forest Service. To donate to Investing in the Great Outdoors, visit www.nationalforests.org/donate/support-treasured-landscapes.

A.T. plates fund conservation Smoky Mountain Living celebrates the mountain region’s culture, music, art, and special places. We tell our stories for those who are lucky enough to live here and those who want to stay in touch with the place they love.

Subscribe or learn more at smliv.com MAGAZINE

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Parkway superintendent to retire

Proceeds from North Carolina Appalachian Trail license plates resulted in $30,000 worth of awards to 12 projects intended to preserve and protect the A.T. in North Carolina.

Recipients include Friends of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, MountainTrue and the Forest Fire Lookout Association. Projects include funding wildlife interns to help construct and maintain bear cable systems in the Smokies and collecting data to protect ash trees from invasive emerald ash borers.

Since the Appalachian Trail Conservancy launched the license plate program in 2005, N.C. plateholders have raised more than $1.2 million for the ATC. With each license plate purchase, $20 goes to various ATC projects around the state. www.appalachiantrail.org/plates.

WNC Calendar COMMUNITY EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS • The Southwestern Commission is seeking a qualified consultant to conduct a community broadband assessment for the seven western counties of N.C. RFP: www.regiona.org. Proposals due: 5 p.m. on July 6. rharris@regiona.org.

•The Cherokee Bonfire & Storytelling will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays through Oct. 28 at the Oconaluftee Islands Park. Sit by a bonfire, alongside a river, and listen to some of Cherokee’s best storytellers. The bonfire is free and open to the public. www.visitcherokeenc.com.

• A Private Well Owner Workshop will be presented by the Southeast Rural Community Assistance Projects from 4-6 p.m. on June 15 at the Haywood County Library in Waynesville. For any well owner with questions or concerns about their well or water source. Info: jtatum@sercap.org or 984.222.4304.

• Nominations for Western Carolina University’s Mountain Heritage Awards are being accepted through Friday, June 30. Nomination letters may be hand-delivered to the Mountain Heritage Center at its new location in the Hunter Library building, Room 240; mailed to Mountain Heritage Center, 1 University Drive, Cullowhee NC 28723; or emailed to pameister@wcu.edu.

BUSINESS & EDUCATION • Registration is underway for a summer institute for educators that will be offered July 10-14 at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian. 40-hour, interdisciplinary course on Cherokee archaeology, history, anthropology, geography, folklore and literature. 497.3481, ext 306, bduncan@cherokeemuseum.org or www.cherokeemuseum.org.

• Vivianne Metzger Antiques will hold its 20th anniversary open house from 10:30 a.m.-5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, June 16-17, at 31 Canoe Pt. in Cashiers.

743.0642.

• Cowee Arts & Heritage Center hosts a Media Night at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, at Cowee School, 51 Cowee School Drive, Franklin. Tour the facility, meet the board of directors and enjoy a bluegrass concert by Carolina Blue. RSVP: coachkuppers@frontier.com or 371.1650.

• A meeting of current and former employees of the Waynesville plant of Champion/Blue Ridge/Evergreen is held at 8 a.m. on the first Monday of each month at BoJangles near Lake Junaluska’s entrance.

• Leap Frog Tours will have a ribbon cutting from 4-6 p.m. on Thursday, June 22, at 419 N. Haywood St. in Waynesville. RSVP: cday@haywoodchamber.com.

• A course in “Conversational French” will be offered from 6-7 p.m. on Tuesdays, through June 27, in Room 139 of WCU’s Cordelia Camp Building in Cullowhee. $79. fjmalissen@wcu.edu or http://go.wcu.edu/speakfrench.

• “Get Real: A Creative Nonfiction Workshop with Marjorie Klein” will be offered from 6-8:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, through July 5, at the Thomas Wolfe Memorial at 52 North Market Street in Asheville.

Offered through UNC Asheville’s Great Smokies Writing Program. $152.50 for state residents. $20 nonrefundable application fee for new students. Info or to register: http://unca.edu/gswp or 250.2353.

• “Let It Flow: Genius Creativity Strategies for Writers, a Workshop with Linda Lowery” will be offered from 4-6:30 p.m. on Wednesdays through July 5 at Hanger Hall School for Girls in Asheville. Offered through UNC Asheville’s Great Smokies Writing Program. $152.50 for state residents. $20 nonrefundable appli-

All phone numbers area code 828 unless otherwise noted. cation fee for new students. Info or to register: http://unca.edu/gswp or 250.2353.

• Registration is underway for the Western Women’s Business Center’s third annual conference entitled: “Her Story, Her Journey,” which will be held from 8:30 a.m.3:30 p.m. on June 22 at the U.S. Cellular Center in Asheville. Includes performance by Asheville artist Leeda “Lyric” Jones as well as a variety of speakers.

Register or get more info: www.carolinasmallbusiness.org/initiatives/wwbcconference2017 or 633.5065.

• Registration is underway for a personal branding workshop with author Nancy Blanton. The workshop is scheduled for 3-5 p.m. on Saturday, June 24, at Blue Ridge Books in Waynesville. $39 registration fee includes refreshments and a signed copy of Blanton’s book: “Brand Yourself Royally in 8 Simple Steps: Harness the Secrets of Kings and Queens for a Personal Brand that Rules.” 456.6000.

• One-on-one computer lessons are offered weekly at the Waynesville and Canton branches of the Haywood County Public Library. Lesson slots are available from 10 a.m.-noon on Tuesdays and Thursdays in Canton and from 3-5 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Waynesville Library. Sign up at the front desk of either library or call 356.2507 for the Waynesville Library or 648.2924 for the Canton Library.

FUNDRAISERS AND BENEFITS • A Friends of the Smokies Pint Night is set for Wednesday, June 14, at Boojum Brewing in Waynesville.

A specialty batch of “Little Critter” IPA will be on tap to benefit projects and programs in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

• Donations are being accepted to help renovate the piano in the Elementary building of the old Fines Creek School. 593.7042.

• Waynesville First Presbyterian Church will hold a yard sale from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturday, June 17. 452.2460 or 926.4739.

• Registration is underway for the 2017 Charitable Golf Outing, which is July 7 at Springdale Country Club. Cost per player is $75. Proceeds support the Life Transformation Program, which helps men and women go from homelessness to independent, productive citizens in Haywood County. Register: www.haywoodpathwayscenter.org or 246.0332.

Smoky Mountain News

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 through June 22, Aug. 3, Aug. 24 and Oct. 12-Nov. 2 at Haywood Regional Medical Center.

452.8440 or MyHaywoodRegional.com/ParentClasses.

• “Ready … Set … Baby” prenatal breastfeeding class will be offered at 6 p.m. on Monday, June 19, at the Haywood County Health and Human Services Agency.

Pregnant mothers-to-be and support persons welcome.

Registration required: 356.2207 or 452.2211.

• The American Red Cross will hold a blood drive on Thursday, June 22, at First Baptist Church in Waynesville. redcrossblood.org or 800.RED.CROSS (733.2767).

• “Native Voices: Native Peoples’ Concepts of Health and Illness” will be on exhibit from June 23-July 31 at the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva. Opening ceremony at 6 p.m. on June 23 featuring Tom Belt speaking about the holistic idea of Tohi.

• Registration is underway for a Youth Mental Health First Aid training, which is from noon-4 p.m. on June 26-27 at the Hurlburt Juhnson Homeless Shelter in Murphy. Learn the skills needed to help a young person who’s experiencing distress due to mental health or substance abuse. Register: http:/tinyurl.com/lec20yl.

RECREATION AND FITNESS • A dance will be held at 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, at Yellowhill Activity Center in Cherokee. Free line dance lessons at 6:30 p.m. Dance is $6 per person; proceeds benefit the Appalachian Community Dance Association.

788.0502.

• An opportunity the Bellyak (prone paddling/lay-on-top kayaking) will be offered through the Jackson County Parks & Recreation department at 11 a.m. on June 24, July 8, July 22 and Aug. 20. $30. Rec.jacksonnc.org or 293.3053.

• Diggin’ the Mountains Grass Volleyball Tournament, sponsored by the Black Bears Volleyball Club, is June 24 at the Rec Park in Cullowhee. Divisions are 13U and 15U. Fee is $45 per team plus $5 per non-member of USA Volleyball. blackbearvb@gmail.com, 506.4676 or 514.1949.

• Jackson County Rec Department will have disc golf tournaments at 10 a.m. on June 24, July 15 and Aug. 19. Cost is $5 for singles or $10 for doubles. www.rec.jacksonnc.org.

VOLUNTEERS & VENDORS • Haywood Pathways Center is seeking volunteers and will host one-hour meetings at 9 a.m., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on June 26 in the center’s dining room at 179 Hemlock Street in Waynesville. Haywood Pathways Center is a faith-based nonprofit that provides shelter, food and short-term life transformation for ex-incarcerated and homeless men, women and families.

246.0332.

• 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. The last 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

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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 p.m. on Tuesday, June 20, at party headquarters on Mill St. in Sylva. http://jacksondems.com.

• The Swain County Democratic Party Whittier/Cherokee precinct meeting is at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 20, at the Birdtown Gym in Cherokee. Guest speaker is Matt Coffay, a candidate to oppose Mark Meadows in 2018.

488.1118.

AUTHORS AND BOOKS • The Albert Carlton Cashiers Community Library will have its annual book clearance from June 14-17 in Cashiers.

• The John Campbell Folk School and N.C. Writers Network West will host “The Literarary Hour” featuring poetry and prose reading at 7 p.m. on June 15 at the Keith House on the JCFS campus in Brasstown. Poets Karen Paul Holmes and Brenda Kay Ledford will be featured.

• Daniel Pierce, UNC Asheville history professor, will present and discuss his book “Hazel Creek: The Life and Death of an Iconic Mountain Community” at two upcoming events: 7 p.m. on June 16 at Malaprop’s Bookstore in downtown Asheville; and at 3 p.m. on July 15 at Blue Ridge Bookstore in Waynesville. www.SmokiesInformation.org or 888.898.9102, ext. 254.

• The Coffee with the Poet series continues with Robert Lee Kendrick at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 15, at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva. Kendrick will read new poems and present his collection, “Winter Skin.” 586.9499.

• Asheville author Michael Havelin will read from his mystery novels/short stories and answer questions about his writing at 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva. 586.9499.

• Monica Collier will hold a signing for her third novel, “Kissing Hollywood,” on Saturday, June 24, at Books Unlimited in Franklin. mac@monicalcollier.com.

• The Swain County Genealogical and Historical Society is seeking anyone who’s written or compiled books about the history, genealogy, stories and historical fiction of Western North Carolina to participate in a Book Day from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on July 15 at the Swain County Business Center. Call 488.2932 between 8 a.m.-noon.

SPIRITUAL • A Lake Junaluska Summer Youth event will be June 18-21 for grades six-12. Morning and evening worship sessions, guest preachers, mission components, focus on giving. Free afternoons. http://tinyurl.com/yalehcto.

• A Lake Junaluska Summer Youth event will be June 22-25 for grades six-12. Morning and evening worship sessions, guest preachers, mission components, focus on giving. Free afternoons. http://tinyurl.com/yalehcto.

POLITICAL • The Jackson NAACP Branch’s June Membership Meeting is at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 17, in the Basement Parrish Hall of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Sylva. 743.9747 or jacksonncnaacp.org.

• The Jackson County Democratic Party meets at 6:30

KIDS & FAMILIES • 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.

• “ScienceTellers” program is at 11 a.m. on Friday, June 16, in the Community Room of the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva. Part of the Summer Learning Program. Explore the science behind clouds, flash paper, air pressure, inertia and more. 586.2016.

• A Youth Art Class is held from 10:30 a.m.-noon every Saturday at 22 Morris St. in Sylva. $10 includes instruction, materials and a snack. appalachianartfarm@gmail.com.

wnc calendar

• A Youth Fishing Day will be offered for ages 5-12 through the Jackson County Parks & Recreation department from 9-11:30 a.m. on June 17, July 15, Aug. 19 and Sept. 16. Introduction to freshwater fishing. $5 per day. Rec.jacksonnc.org or 293.3053.

• Marianna Black Library will present “Build a Better World” – a summer learning program – through July 30 in Bryson City. Children will be awarded prizes for reading (or being read to) 15 minutes each day.

488.3030.

• “Camping with Jesus” Vacation Bible School will be offered from 5:30-8 p.m. on Monday through Friday, June 19-23, at First United Methodist Church in Sylva.

For ages 4-12. Dinner served nightly. 586.2358.

• As part of the “Build a Better World” summer reading program, Marianna Black Library will have movies at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesdays, story time for ages 3-5 at 10:30 a.m.on Wednesdays and a summer learning program each Thursday. Professor Whizzpop will be there on June 15. www.fontanalib.org or 488.3030.

• “Science Week – Macon County Gem Mining” – a Summer Relief Activity through the Macon County 4-H – is from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on June 21 at the Cooperative Extension Office in Franklin. For ages 518, with parent or guardian. 349.2046 or macon.ces.ncsu.edu.

• Registration is underway for kids’ fishing events, which will be offered from 9-11 a.m. on June 24, July 15 and Aug. 5, at the Mountain Research Station in Waynesville. Presented by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. Learn how to cast, put on bait and remove fish from a hook. Tanya.poole@ncwildlife.org or 329.3472.

• Rob McHale (folk-Americana) will perform and share stories of the mountains at 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 24, at the Waynesville Library. HaywoodArts.org.

• A fishing clinic is scheduled for 9-11 a.m. on Saturday, June 24, at the Haywood County Test Farm in Waynesville. Kids will learn how to cast, bait a hook and remove a fish from the hook. Additional fishing clinic dates are July 15 and Aug. 5. Space limited.

Register with Tanya Poole, tanya.poole@ncwildlife.org or 828.329.3472.

• “Science Week – Experiments” – a Summer Relief Activity through the Macon County 4-H – is from 9 a.m.-noon on June 22 at the Cooperative Extension Office in Franklin. For ages 10-18. 349.2046 or macon.ces.ncsu.edu.

• Highlands Nature Center will hold a Wildlife Warriors summer day camp for ages 11-14 from June 27-30 in Highlands. 526.2623.

• The Jackson Soil and Water Conservation District will hold Camp WILD (Wilderness, Investigating, Learning, Discovery) for rising seventh and eighth graders from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. on July 10-13 at the Jackson County Recreation Center. $35; scholarships available on as-needed basis. Register by June 16.

586.5465 or janefitzgerald@jacksonnc.org.

KIDS FILMS • “Wonder Women” is playing at 7 p.m. on June 14 and 4 p.m. & 9:20 p.m. on June 15 at The Strand on Main in Waynesville. See website for prices, 38main.com.

“Cars 3” will be shown at 7 p.m. on June 15, 12 p.m. on June 16, 1 p.m., 4 p.m., 7 p.m., and 9:15 p.m. on June 17-18, and at 7 p.m. June 19-22 at The Strand in Waynesville. See website for pricing, 38main.com.

• Chicken Coop Willaye Combo (Americana) performs at 8 p.m. on June 16 at Nantahala Brewing Company in Bryson City. www.nantahalabrewing.com.

• “Beauty and the Beast” will be playing at 6:30 p.m. & 8:30 p.m. on June 17 at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free. Madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• The DuPont Brothers (Americana) will perform at 7 p.m. on Friday, June 16, at The Classic Wineseller in Waynesville.

• “Power Rangers” will be shown at 6:30 p.m. on June 30 and 7 p.m. on July 1 at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free. Madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• The Pressley Girls (Americana/mountain) perform at 6 p.m. on June 16 at Andrews Brewing Company in Andrews. www.andrewsbrewing.com.

• A family movie will be shown at 10:30 a.m. every Friday at Hudson Library in Highlands.

• “The Fantasticsks” will be on stage June 16-July 2 at HART Theatre in Waynesville. www.harttheatre.org.

Showtimes are 6 p.m. on Thursdays through Saturdays and 12:30 p.m. on Sundays.

A&E

• A Trekkers Day Camp will be offered for ages 11-14 from June 20-23 at Highlands Nature Center.

526.2221.

• Haywood County Public Library’s summer reading program, themed “Build a Better World,” runs through Monday, July 31. Register at any of the library system’s branches. www.haywoodlibrary.org.

on June 15 at Bogart’s Restaurant & Tavern in Waynesville.

• “The Lego Batman Movie” will be showing at 6:30 p.m. on June 16 at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva.

Free. Madbatterfoodfilm.com.

• Registration is underway for this summer’s Adventure Day Camp at Lake Logan. One-week camps start on June 19. For grades 1-5. $225 weekly fee.

Snacks, crafts, activities, guest speakers and adventure. Susan@lakelogan.org or 646.0095.

• “Science Week – Cloverbuds Way Cool Science” – a Summer Relief Activity through the Macon County 4-H – is from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on June 20 at the Cooperative Extension Office in Franklin. For ages 5-8.

349.2046 or macon.ces.ncsu.edu.

• Woodsy Owl’s Curiosity Club meets from 10:30 a.m.3 p.m. on Thursdays, June 15-Aug. 10, at the Cradle of Forestry in Pisgah Forest. Outdoor-oriented activity each day explores a different forest-related theme. For ages 4-7. $4 per child per program; accompanying adults admitted for $2.50. http://tinyurl.com/yc7u5unk.

June 14-20, 2017

SUMMER CAMPS • The first Lake Junaluska Summer Youth event is June 15-18 for grades six-12. Morning and evening worship sessions, guest preachers, mission components, focus on giving. Free afternoons. http://tinyurl.com/yalehcto

• A “Father’s Day Cookie Extravaganza” is scheduled for noon-4 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, at Commerce St. Mercantile in Waynesville. $12 box includes two cookies and use of cookie-decorating station.

Porcelaintub@aol.com.

• A Junior Forester Program is scheduled for 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, through Aug. 9, at the Cradle of Forestry in Pisgah Forest. http://tinyurl.com/y87c3gqn.

Smoky Mountain News

• A “Week in the Creek” program for ages 6-10 will be offered from 9 a.m.-noon on June 26-30 at the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education in Brevard. Registration required: http://tinyurl.com/jq4r6x3.

• Brady Clampitt will perform at 7:30 p.m. on June 17 at Currahee Brewing in Franklin. www.curraheebrew.com.

• The Maggie Valley Band (Americana/folk) performs at 6 p.m. on June 17 at Andrews Brewing Company in Andrews. www.andrewsbrewing.com.

FESTIVALS AND SPECIAL EVENTS • A Taste of Scotland and Celtic Festival is scheduled for June 15-18 in Franklin. Ceilidh with Scottish Bands, sheep herding, heavy athletics, clan parade, tours of the Scottish Museum.

Tasteofscotlandfestival.org or 727.424.8901.

• “Musicians of N.C. Showcase” will be presented at 5:15 p.m. on Friday, June 23, in the Macon County Public Library Living Room in Franklin. Justin Moe will DJ, playing records of musicians with roots and ties to this state. Refreshments.

• The annual “Women’s Work Festival” is scheduled for 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Oconaluftee Visitor Center near Cherokee. Honors contributions made by women of Southern Appalachia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. 497.1904.

• 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.

FOOD & DRINK • Sierra Nevada Brewing Co will host a Brews and Barns Dinner ASAP Farm Tour kickoff at 6 p.m. on Thursday, June 22, in the brewery’s High Gravity Room in Asheville. $100 per person. taproomeventsnc@sierranevada.com.

• Chef’s Demo with Jay Horton is being offered for free at 7 p.m. on June 27 at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva, Come learn the basic ingredients of 5 sauces.

ON STAGE & IN CONCERT • Tickets are on sale for a performance of Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem “Enoch Arden” set to piano music.

Performance is at 3 p.m. on June 25 at the Bardo Arts Center at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee.

Tickets: $35 each; includes wine and cheese reception. 227.ARTS or bardoartscenter.wcu.edu.

• Tickets are on sale now for a 3 Doors Down performance as a fundraiser for the Better Life Foundation on Oct. 21 at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort. Tickets available at ticketmaster.com or 800.745.3000.

• “Unto These Hills” drama will be performed at 8 p.m. nightly through Aug. 19 at 688 Drama Road in Cherokee. A reimagining of the Cherokee Story. http://tinyurl.com/ycm83jwv.

• Tickets are on sale for Leslie Jones’ comedy performance, which is July 1 at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino. www.ticketmaster.com or 800.745.3000.

• Chatham County Line (acoustic. American roots, rock-n-roll) will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 18, at Cataloochee Guest Ranch in Maggie Valley.

SUMMER MUSIC SERIES

• Joe Cruz (piano/pop) performs at 7 p.m. on June 17 at The Classic Wineseller in Waynesville. 452.6000 or www.classicwineseller.com.

• Music on the River will continue with Trippin’ Hardie Band (acoustic) preforming on June 9 and Aaron Jones (honky-tonk) at the Cherokee Welcome Center Kiosk in Cherokee. 7-9 p.m.. 359.6490 or travel@nc-cherokee.com.

• Carolina Express (bluegrass) performs at 6:30 p.m.

• The Catamounts Singers and Electric Soul from the

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School of Music at Western Carolina University will perform from noon-1 p.m. on Saturday, June 10, at Sylva’s Bridge Park.

wnc calendar

• The “Concerts on the Creekâ€? series at Bridge Park in Sylva will host Topper Voices of Rock (classic rock/soul) on June 16 and The Buchanan Boys (rock/country) on June 23. Both shows are free and begin at 7 p.m. www.mountainlovers.com. • AM Superstars (Alternative) will perform from 7-9 p.m. on June 16 at the Cherokee Welcome Center Kiosk in Cherokee. Part of “Music on the Riverâ€? series.

359.6490 or travel@nc-cherokee.com. • Will Hayes Band will perform Classic Country and Rock from 7-9 p.m. on June 17 at the Cherokee Welcome Center Kiosk in Cherokee. Part of “Music on the Riverâ€? series. 359.6490 or travel@nccherokee.com. • Clay County Community Revitalization will host a Friday Concert Series with The Red Wine Effect (singer-songwriter) on June 18 and Lee Holland (jazz/pop) on June 23 at the Town Square in Hayesville.

All shows begin at 7 p.m. www.ccra-nc.org. • The Haywood Community Band will present its second summer concert with the theme “Flying Highâ€? at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, June 18, at the Maggie Valley Community Pavilion. • The “Friday Night Liveâ€? concert series at the Town Square in Highlands will host Johnny Webb Band on June 16 and Silly Ridge Round Up on June 23. Free and begins at 6 p.m. www.highlandschamber.org. • “Saturdays on Pineâ€? will host Goldie and The Screamers on June 17 and Andlyn on June 24 at KelsyHutchinson Park in Highlands. All shows are at 6 p.m. www.highlandschamber.org. • The “Groovin’ on the Greenâ€? concert series at The Village Green in Cashiers will host The Bo Spring Band on June 16 and Rockell Scott & Friends on June 23.

Both shows are free and begin at 6:30 p.m. www.villagegreencashiersnc.com.

• The “Tunes on the Tuckâ€? concert series will host Juniper on June 17 and Twelfth Fret (Americana) on June 24. All shows are free and begin at 7 p.m. www.greatsmokies.com. • Larry Barnett and Blue Smith will kick off the Marianna Black Library’s summer music series at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 8, in Bryson City. Traditional music. 488.3030.

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CLASSES AND PROGRAMS • The Smoky Mountain Quilters Guild will also host a sewing party titled “A New Ageâ€? at 6:30 p.m. Monday, June 19, at Tartan Hall. All are welcome to attend either event. www.smokymtnquilters.org. • Jacson County cooperative Extension will hold its monthly craft class from 1:30-3:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 15, in Sylva. Wire jewelry with a “4th of July – Red, White & Blueâ€? theme. Register: 586.4009. • An iPhone/iPad users group will meet at 2 p.m. on Thursday, June 15, at the Macon County Public Library in Franklin. • A program on art forgery featuring author Thomas Thibeault will be presented at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 15, at the Haywood County Arts Council at 86

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Smoky Mountain News

• Eastern Blues Band (jazz & blues) will perform from 7-9 p.m. on June 23 and Stereospread (Techno) will perform from 7-9 p.m. on June 24 at the Cherokee Welcome Center Kiosk in Cherokee. Part of “Music on the Riverâ€? series. 359.6490 or travel@nccherokee.com

June 14-20, 2017

• The “Pickin’ On The Squareâ€? concert series will host Dancing Bear Productions (Michael Harrell, Conrad & Donnie) on June 24 and Moonshine Creek (country) on July 1. All shows are free and begin at 7:30 p.m. www.townoffranklinnc.com or 524.2516.

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49

wnc calendar

North Main Street in Waynesville. Thibeault wrote “Spot the Fake.” 452.0593 or HaywoodArts.org.

• “Let’s Talk About It,” an opportunity to discuss “Letters of a Woman Homesteader” by Elinore Pruitt Stewart, is set for 4-6 p.m. on Thursday, June 22, in the Waynesville Library auditorium. Future sessions will feature Zora Neale Hurston’s “Dust Tracks on a Road” (July 8) and Beryl Markha’s “West With the Night” (July 20).

• A program on “Vermiculture” featuring Bethany Scheffer of Balsam Mountain Trust is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 22, at the Macon County Public Library in Franklin.

• Speak to the Mountain Car Show is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, June 23-24, at the Cherokee Indian Fairgrounds in Cherokee. Show is from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. each day. Info: 727.439.8010 or 770.713.1760.

• Highlands Village Square Art & Craft Show is from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on June 24-25 and Aug. 26-27 at KH Founders Park at Pine and N. 5th St. in Highlands.

Local and regional artisans, demonstrations, live music, food. 787.2021.

• The 28th-annual Mountain Artisans “Summertime” Arts & Crafts Show is June 24-25 in the Ramsey Center at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee.

10 a.m.-5 p.m. each day. $4.50 for adults; children under 12 get in free. djhunter@dnet.net or www.mountainartisans.net.

• “Simple Steps to Sustainability” – a program on zero-waste, plastic-free living – is set for 2 p.m. on June 29 at the Waynesville Library. Led by Tatia Elizabeth Childers.

Smoky Mountain News

June 14-20, 2017

• The Town of Canton is accepting submissions for the 111th Labor Day Festival “A Celebration of All Things Made in Western North Carolina” until 4 p.m. on Aug. 21. Send artist bio, photos and sample of work to: Town of Canton, Attn.: Canton Labor Day; 58 Park Street; Canton, NC 28716. 648.2363.

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• Penland School of Crafts has open spaces in its first summer session available at half tuition to area residents. Complete information is available in the workshops section of the Penland website: www.penland.org. 765.2359, ext 1306.

• The Jackson County Arts Council is now accepting applications for Grassroots Sponsorship for 2017-18.

Grassroots Sponsorships are awarded to organizations in all cultural disciplines The deadline for applications is June 30, 2017. www.jacksoncountyarts.org or info@jacksoncountyarts.org or 507.9820.

• “The Illuminated Moment: A Flash Fiction Workshop with Beth Keefauver” will be offered from 6-8:30 p.m. on Thursdays through July 6 at the Thomas Wolfe Memorial in Asheville. Offered through UNC Asheville’s Great Smokies Writing Program. Students explore the tension and resonance between narrative and lyrical elements. $152.50 for state residents. $20 nonrefundable application fee for new students. Info or to register: http://unca.edu/gswp or 250.2353.

• An Art & Wine Night will be held from 6-8 p.m. on June 14 at B&C Winery in Maggie Valley. $35 per person includes all materials to paint, a glass of wine and finger foods. RSVP by June 11: 550.3610 or maggivalleygifts@gmail.com.

• Registration is underway for Cullowhee Mountain Arts’ workshop entitled “Abstracted Portraiture – a Photographic Water Journey,” which is from 9:30 a.m.3:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 15, at the Western Carolina University School of Art and Design. Led by photographic artist Barbara Tyroler, whose exhibit “Water Portraits” will have an opening reception from 5-7 p.m. on the same day. $45 for the workshop. Info and to register: cullowheemountainarts.org or 342.7899.

• “Paint Nite Waynesville” will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays at Frog Level Brewing in Waynesville.

There will also be “Painting at the Porch” at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesdays at the Southern Porch in Canton. Sign up for either event on the Paint Night Waynesville Facebook page (search event: Brush N. Brew) or call Robin Smathers at 828.400.9560. paintnitewaynesville@gmail.com.

• “Build a Better Community: What Could Be!” – a community building workshop – will be offered from 1-3 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, at the Pigeon Community Multicultural Development Center in Waynesville. Featuring two TED talks followed by discussion.

• A “Viking Shield” workshop will be offered June 1718 at the Green Energy Park in Dillsboro. For ages 13up. Register: 631.0271 or chelseamiller@jacksonnc.org. www.JCGEP.org.

• “Summer Writing Workout: A Fiction and Creative Nonfiction Workshop with Heather Newton” will be offered from 6-8:30 p.m. on Mondays from June 19July 17 at the West Asheville Flatiron Writers Room at 5 Covington Street in Asheville. Offered through UNC Asheville’s Great Smokies Writing Program. Course focuses on practical ways to make writing an integral part of life. $152.50 for state residents. $20 nonrefundable application fee for new students. Info or to register: http://unca.edu/gswp or 250.2353.

• The Swain Arts Center will host its first Open Juried Photography Competition on Aug. 19. The theme is “Nature Photography.” Submissions should be made online no later than July 17 (jpg format). Participants will be notified on July 22 if their submissions have been accepted for the competition. The submission fee is $15 per single entry. If you submit four or more images, the fee is $60. The application is available at www.swainartscenter.com. For additional information, please contact Rachel Lackey, director of the Swain Arts Center.

ART SHOWINGS AND GALLERIES • Shady Ladies show is through July 1 at the Haywood County Arts Council. 452.0593 or www.haywoodarts.org.

• Appalachian Mural Trail dedications will take place at 10 a.m. on June 17 on Depot Street next to town hall in Dillsboro. One mural was painted by Doreyl Ammons Cain; the other by the youth of Jackson County led by Cain. www.muraltrail.com.

• Several exhibitions are on display this summer at the Western Carolina University Fine Art Museum at the Bardo Arts Center. “Water Portraits: Barbara Tyroler” is on exhibition until Aug. 25 “Print Plus One: Beyond the Glass Matrix” by various artists at Harvey K. Littleton Studios in Spruce Pine has a closing reception from 5-7 p.m. on July 27. “Ancient Forms, Modern Minds: Contemporary Cherokee Ceramics” is on display through Nov. 10. 227.ARTS or bardoartscenter.wcu.edu.

• “Spirit of Place: Artwork by Elizabeth Ellison” – an art exhibit – will be on display through Sept. 4. at the Asheville Arboretum.

• The inaugural Shelton House Crafter Showcase is on display at the Shelton House and the Museum of North Carolina Handicrafts in Waynesville. www.sheltonhouse.org or info@sheltonhouse.org.

• The graduating class of Haywood Community College’s Professional Crafts program will exhibit their best work from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. daily through Sept. 24 at the Southern Highland Craft Guild Folk Art Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Asheville. 627.4673 or haywood.edu.

• A new exhibition titled “Within the Margins: Contemporary Ceramics,” curated by Steven Young Lee, will be on display at Penland Gallery off Penland Road near Spruce Pine in Mitchell County. 765.6211 or penland.org/gallery.

• 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. Southwestern Community College instructors Ed McIlvaine and Susan Coe as well as SCC student Kari McIlvaine have their pottery on display through July.

• New artist and medium will be featured every month at the Haywood County Senior Resource Center in Waynesville. 356.2800.

FILM & SCREEN • In international film starring Marion Cotillard will be screened at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, June 14, at the Canton library. Info: 648.2924.

• “John Wick: Chapter 2” will be shown at 7:30 p.m. on June 15 at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free.

• The Groovy Movie Club will screen “Hidden Figures” at 2 p.m. on June 18 in a private home in the Dellwood area. RSVP: JohnBuckleyX@gmail.com, 454.5949 or 646.8602.

• “From the Ashes” will be shown at 7:30 on June 22 at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free.

• “Life” will be playing at 7:30 p.m. on June 24 at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free.

• “T2 Trainspotting” will be playing at 7:30 p.m. on June 29 at Mad Batter Food & Film in Sylva. Free.

Outdoors • WATR (Watershed Association of the Tuckasegee River) will release results of its bacteria monitoring (from Scotts Creek at its confluence with the Tuckasegee) at 6 p.m. on Thursday, June 15, at Sneak E. Squirrel in Sylva.

• A Greenway Public Input Meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Thursday, June 15, at the United Community Bank Conference Room in Bryson City.

• An “Intro to Radio-Control Airplanes” is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 17, at the Macon Aeromodelers Club’s field on Tessentee Road in Otto.

508.4201.

• The Highlands Plateau Greenway will have its monthly work day on the Greenway Trail from 9 a.m.noon on Saturday, June 17. highlandsgreenway@nctv.com or 526.2385.

• A cycling ride leaves at 8 a.m. on Saturdays from South Macon Elementary School. Routes vary with distances typically 15-25 miles. Road bikes only. A no drop ride. Organized by Smoky Mountain Bicycles, 828.369.2881 or info@smokymtnbikes.com.

• A “Winged Wonders” butterfly exhibit is on display through Oct. 29 at the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville. http://www.ncarboretum.org/event/winged-wondersstep-world-butterflies/all.

• A six-week course on “Wildflowers of Southern Appalachia” with guide Adam Bigelow meets from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. every Monday from June 19-July 24. $150 for the series or $40 a single hike. bigelownc@gmail.com or www.facebook.com/BigelowsBotanicalExcursions.

• “Wilderness Scouts: Soil Buddies” program will be presented by Jane Fitzgerald at 2 p.m. on Monday, June 19, at the Jackson County Public Library.

586.2016.

• A “Week in the Water” program for ages 10-15 is scheduled for 9 a.m.-noon on June 19-23 at the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education in Brevard.

Weeklong series of hands-on classes focusing on the art and skill of fly-fishing. Registration required: http://tinyurl.com/jq4r6x3.

• Franklin Bird Club will have a bird walk along the greenway at 8 a.m. on June 14. Meet at Big Bear Shelter parking area. 524.5234.

• “Wine in the Garden” is on Thursday, June 15, at the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville. http://www.ncarboretum.org/event/wine-in-the-garden/2017-06-15.

• A birding experience with Brock Hutchins is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on June 17. Meet at Founders Park in Highlands. Presented by Highlands Plateau Audubon Society.

• A birding experience with Brock Hutchings to Jones Gap and Turtle Pond Road will be offered by the Highlands Audubon Society at 7:30 a.m. on June 17.

Meet at Founders Park in Highlands. www.highlandsaudubonsociety.org or 526.1939.

• “Firefly Twilight Tour” is scheduled for 7-10 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, at the Cradle of Forestry in Pisgah Forest. $6 for ages 16-up; $3 for ages 5-15 and passport holders; free for 4-under. https://cradleofforestry.com/event/firefly-twilight-tour.

• The Nantahala Hiking Club will take a moderate-tostrenuous hike on Saturday, June 17, to Water Rock Knob from the Blue Ridge parkway. The trail to the 6,400-foot summit is only a half mile, but steep and rutted. Total hiking distance is 4.5 miles, with elevation change of 600 feet. Info and reservations: 524.5298.

• Carolina Mountain Club will have a four-mile hike with an 840-foot ascent on June 18 from Cherry Gap Overlook to Skinny Dip Falls. Info and reservations: 707.6500 or cpallen@icloud.com.

• Mainspring Conservation Trust will host a “Family Float Trip on the Little Tennessee” from 3-5 p.m. on June 18 in Macon County. http://tinyurl.com/ybme7tmm.

• Birds & Beer is set for 5:30 p.m. on June 20 at the Ugly Dog in Highlands. Presented by Highlands Plateau Audubon Society.

• A program on “The Wild World of Worms” will be presented at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, June 20, at the Waynesville Library. Vermiculture. Presented by Balsam Mountain Trust.

• The Franklin Bird Club will have a bird walk along the Greenway at 8 a.m. on June 21. Meet at Salali Lane; parking is off Fox Ridge Road south of Franklin Flea Market on Highlands Road. 524.5234.

• Carolina Mountain Club will have a 7.5-mile hike with a 1,500-foot ascent on June 21 from Purchase Knob to Hemphill Bald. Reservations and info: 337.5845 or laurafrisbie@gmail.com.

• A “Snorkeling in the Stream” program for ages 8-up will be offered from 9 a.m.-noon on June 21 at the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education in Brevard.

Registration required: http://tinyurl.com/jq4r6x3.

• A birding experience with Curtis Smalling, director of Conservation, NC Audubon, along Rich Gap Road on June 24 in Highlands. Meet at Founders Park at 7:30 a.m. in Highlands. www.highlandsaudubonsociety.org or 526.1939.

• The Nantahala Hiking Club will take a five-mile, moderate-to-strenuous hike, with an elevation change of 600 feet on Saturday, June 24, from Gorges State Park to Windy Falls on the Horse Pasture River.

Reservations: 743.1079.

• An “Introduction to Fly Fishing: Lake Fishing” will be offered for ages 12-up from 8 a.m.-1 p.m. on June 28 at the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education in Brevard. Registration required: http://tinyurl.com/jq4r6x3.

• “Hello Mister: A Birding Tour Adventure in Indonesia” featuring Romney Bathurst is scheduled for 7 p.m. on June 27 in the rear meeting room of the Hudson Library in Highlands. www.highlandsaudubonsociety.org or 526.1939.

• The Franklin Bird Club will have a Bird Walk along the Greenway at 8 a.m. on June 28. Meet at the Macon County Public Library parking area. 524.5234.

PRIME REAL ESTATE Advertise in The Smoky Mountain News

ANNOUNCEMENTS

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

2 SMALL ESTATES Brought to 1 Convenient Location 10 Commerce St., Waynesville.

Thurs., Fri. & Sat. 10a.m. - 4p.m.

Furniture, Dishes, Art, Tools & Everything Between!

Presented by Frog Pond Estate Sales and Downsizing

ANTIQUES ‘MY BIRTHDAY’ YARD SALE Saturday June 24th, 9:00 a.m.

15 Dealers Featuring: Antiques, Furniture, Wicker, Glassware, Tools, Fishing, Jewelry, Buttons, Quilts, Old Windows, Flower Garden Carts & Singer Featherweights.

Antique Antics, 1497 S. Main St., Waynesville. Call to Reserve a $10 Space 828.452.6225. Come Join the Party!

AUCTION DODIE’S AUCTION Again Having Sales @ New Location: Aunt Fanny’s Flea Market, West of Dillsboro - on US/74 (Across from Uncle Bill’s Flea Market). Every Thursday Night @ 7:00p.m. Selling Estate & Consignment Merchandise.

Dodie Allen Blaschik NCAL#3410 828.586.DODI(3634)

AUCTION

ONLINE AUCTION w/ Bid Center, Lake Tillery Lots, Acreage & More, Montgomery, Rockingham & Scotland Counties, Bid Center at The Ford Place Restaurant, Begins Closing 6/28/17 at 2pm, ironhorseauction.com, 800.997.2248, NCAL3936 ONLINE ONLY AUCTION, 8,480+/- SF Commercial Building & Family Dollar Retail Lease in Norwood, NC, Stanly County, Begins Closing: 6/26/17 at 2pm, Property at 103 N. Main St., Norwood, NC, ironhorseauction.com, 800.997.2248, NCAL3936 PUBLIC AUCTION 6-20-17 Lumberton, NC. 100 Cars-Construction-Trucks. www.meekinsauction.com.

10% Buyer's Premium. NCLN 858

CONSTRUCTION/ REMODELING HAYWOOD BUILDERS Garage Doors, New Installations Service & Repairs, 828.456.6051 100 Charles St. Waynesville Employee Owned.

ACORN STAIRLIFTS. The Affordable Solution to your stairs! **Limited time -$250 Off Your Stairlift Purchase!** Buy Direct & SAVE. Please call 1.800.615.4064 for FREE DVD and brochure.

ONE MONTH

FROG POND ESTATE SALES

WITH 12-MONTH CONTRACT

DOWNSIZING ESTATE SALES CLEAN OUT SERVICE • COMPANY TRANSFER • DIVORCE • LOST LOVED ONE

FREE

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Conveniently located off 19/23 by Thad Woods Auction

HELPING IN HARD TIMES

WE ARE KNOWN FOR HONESTY & INTEGRITY 828-734-3874 18 COMMERCE STREET WAYNESVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA 28786 WWW.FROGLEVELDOWNSIZING.COM

CONSTRUCTION/ REMODELING DAVE’S CUSTOM HOMES OF WNC, INC 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 SAFE STEP WALK-IN TUB #1 Selling Walk-in Tub in North America. BBB Accredited. Arthritis Foundation Commendation. Therapeutic Jets. MicroSoothe Air Therapy System. Less than 4 Inch StepIn. Wide Door. Anti-Slip Floors.

American Made. Call 800.701.9850 for up to $1500 Off. SAVE MONEY WITH SOLAR! Custom Designed Systems, Free Maintenance, Free Quote & Design. No Out of Pocket Costs.

Call now! 855.466.2931 SAVE THOUSANDS On Surprise Costly Home Repairs!!

With Nations Home Warranty We Pay 100% Of Covered Home Repairs! Call For A Free Quote Today!! 855.895.9434 WATER DAMAGE In your Home? Call now for a free, fast quote. Insurance approved.

Help restore your piece of mind!

844.889.4905

PAINTING JAMISON CUSTOM PAINTING & PRESSURE WASHING Interior, exterior, all your pressure washing needs and more.

Specialize in Removal of Carpenter Bees - Cedar or Log Homes or Painted or Siding!

Call or Text Now for a Free Estimate at 828.508.9727

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 855.418.0760.

WNC MarketPlace

CARS 2003 ACURA 3.2TL V6 166K Miles, Fully Loaded, Burgundy with Tan Interior. Asking $2,400 for more info call 864.940.5338 PAYING TOO MUCH FOR Car insurance? Not sure? Want better coverage? Call now for a free quote and learn more today!

888.203.1373 CARS/TRUCKS WANTED!!!

Top Dollar Offer! 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 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

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

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES HOME WORKERS!!

Easy Legitimate Work, Great Pay! Assemble Products At Home And Other Mystery Shopping Opportunities Galore - No Experience Needed.

For More Details, Send $2.00 With A Self-Addressed, Stamped Envelope to: Publishers Market Source, P.O. Box 11272, Merrillville, IN 46411.

KISS (KEEP IT SO SIMPLE) Fed up with selling pills/powers/ crap your mom wouldn’t buy? Start making money while you sleep! www.Quickmoneybuilder.com

EMPLOYMENT LOCAL DRIVERS WANTED! Be your own boss. Flexible hours.

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Must be 21 with valid U.S. drivers license, insurance & reliable vehicle. Call 855.750.9313 SAPA 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

EMPLOYMENT

EMPLOYMENT

DRIVERS: Fantastic Weekly Pay! Monthly Bonuses! Medical, Dental, Vision & More! Excellent Equipment w/APU’s, Plus - Get Home More!

1yr. CDL-A: 855.842.8498 FTCC Fayetteville Technical Community College is now accepting applications for the following positions: Print Shop Technician II, Security Field Supervisor, Sergeant (NonSworn), Part-time Biology Instructor, Part-time Chemistry Instructor, Part-time Welding Instructor, For detailed information and to apply, please visit our employment portal https://faytechcc.peopleadmin.com Human Resources Office Phone: 910.678.7342 Internet: http://www.faytechcc.edu An Equal Opportunity Employer HOUSEKEEPING STAFF NEEDED Jonathan Creek Inn in Maggie Valley is Currently Hiring for Housekeeping & Front Desk.

Year-round Position, Background Check Req. Must be able to Work Weekends. Apply in Person 4324 Soco Rd., Maggie Valley, NC NUCLEAR POWERPaid Training, great salary, benefits, $ for school. Gain valued skills. No exp needed. HS grads ages 17-34. Call 800.662.7419.

www.smokymountainnews.com

June 14-20, 2017

SPECIAL OPS U.S. NAVY. Elite training. Daring missions.

Generous pay/benefits. HS grads ages 17-30. Do you have what it takes? Call Mon-Fri 800.662.7419.

FRANKLIN - A HANDSOME-TO-THE-MAX CATAHOULA MIX BOY, WITH A MERLE COAT THAT IS BLUE AND BLACK--JUST GORGEOUS. AND THEN THERE ARE HIS BRIGHT BLUE EYES THAT ADD EXTRA PIZAZZ TO HIS APPEARANCE! HE'S ALSO GOT A GREAT PERSONALITY, HAS BEEN WELL CARED FOR AND HAS TERRIFIC SOCIAL SKILLS. HE'LL BE A WONDERFUL FAMILY PET PURRCY - A HANDSOME FLUFF BALL KITTY, ESTIMATED TO BE ABOUT FIVE YEARS OLD. HE WAS GIVEN THIS NAME IN THE COUNTY SHELTER, BECAUSE HE IS SO SWEET AND AFFECTIONATE, LOVES ATTENTION FROM HIS HUMAN COMPANIONS, AND PURRS CONSTANTLY. HE WILL BE A WONDERFUL COMPANION

AIRLINE MECHANIC TRAININGGet FAA Technician Certification.

Approved For Military Benefits.

Financial Aid If Qualified. Job Placement Assistance. Call Aviation Institute Of Maintenance 1.866.724.5403 SAPA 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 SAPA

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

EARN $500 A DAY: Lincoln Heritage Life Insurance Wants Insurance Agents - Leads, No Cold Calls - Commissions Paid Daily - Agency Training - Life License Required. Call 1.888.713.6020

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 HAVE 10K IN DEBT? National Debt Relief is rated APlus with the BBB. You could be debt free in 24-48 months. Call 888.478.6515 now for a free debt evaluation.

PAYING TOO MUCH FOR Car insurance? Not sure? Want better coverage? Call now for a free quote and learn more today!

888.203.1373 SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY? Up to $2,671/mo. (Based on paid-in amount.) FREE evaluation!

Call Bill Gordon & Associates.

1.800.670.4805. Mail: 2420 N St NW, Washington DC. Office: Broward Co. FL., member TX/NM Bar. YOU DON’T HAVE TO LIVE With Bad Credit and High Interest Rates! Get a FREE Consultation Today, and Start Improving your Credit Now. Call 855.705.7246 Today!

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 MOUNTAINS OF NC Log sided 1,340 sf cabin on 1.84 acres $159,900 Great views, lg loft w/ pict windows, fpl, huge deck 828.286.1666

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.

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

Blow out sale... everything must GO!!

SERVICE SPECIAL OIL CHANGE

$

1895

with service appointment

TL’S

Includes Free Multi-point Inspection

(828) 298-4911

Judy Meyers

Metal Art & Home Decor

860 Tunnel Road, Asheville, NC

52

GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS RAILROAD IN BRYSON CITY Is currently hiring! We currently have vacancies for Train Cleaning Attendant, Property Maintenance Worker and Part-Time Sales Associate. Earn train passes, retail and food discounts, passes to area attractions and more!

Full job descriptions and applications are available at www.gsmr.com/jobs You may also get an application from the Bryson City Depot located at 226 Everett Street in Bryson City.

EMPLOYMENT

Always Fast, Fair & Friendly!

www.hyundaiofasheville.com

Great treasures for the home and garden.

Fun gifts for that special someone or occasion. www.tlsmetalart.com

2723 Soco Rd. MAGGIE VALLEY

Store: 828-944-0701 Cell: 828-734-1665

26 N. MAIN STREET • WAYNESVILLE (O) 828-564-9393 (C) 828-734-2899 JAMEYERS@CHARTER.NET

remax-waynesvillenc.com

REAL ESTATE ANNOUNCEMENT

OUR HUNTERS WILL PAY TOP $$$ To hunt your land. Call for a Free Base Camp Leasing info packet & Quote. 1.866.309.1507 www.BaseCampLeasing.com

HOMES FOR SALE BRUCE MCGOVERN A Full Service Realtor, Locally Owned and Operated mcgovernpropertymgt@gmail.com McGovern Property Management 828.283.2112.

MOVING OUT OF STATE? Best Interstate Moving and Storage offers a FREE Quote and A Price Plus Promise. Call 877.648.6473 Now! 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 the Help You Need 855.282.4732

VACATION RENTALS FLAGLER BEACH FLORIDA Oceanfront Vacation Rental, Tripadvisor Award, Furnished Studio, 1-2-3 BR’s, Full Kitchens, WiFi, TV, Pool. Seasonal Specials.

1.386.517.6700 or www.fbvr.net SAPA

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

PETS HAYWOOD SPAY/NEUTER 828.452.1329

RESIDENTIAL BROKER ASSOCIATE E-PRO, CNHS, RCC, SFR

828.400.9463 Cell

Haywood County Real Estate Agents

michelle@beverly-hanks.com

74 North Main St. • Waynesville 828.452.5809

Beverly Hanks & Associates 401-25

BROOKE PARROTT BROKER ASSOCIATE 828.734.2146 bparrott@beverly-hanks.com Visit beverly-hanks.com/agents/bparrott

to see what others are saying!

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!

FOR SALE FOR SALE (Pennies on the Dollar): Large Collection of decorative wreaths, swags, wall art, coconut & fiber mats, tabletop & patio statues, yard stakes, garden flags.

New in Original Packaging. Call for more info 828.246.9393 METAL ART & HOME DECOR SALE Yard/Garden Art, Signs, Flags, Suns & Other Collectibles. Everything must be Sold. Whole Sale Buyers Welcome. Ping Pong & Foosball Table, Michelob Tiffany Lamps, Neon Signs, Displays, Birdhouses & Chimes. 828.734.1665.

SFR, ECO, GREEN

828.506.7137

aspivey@sunburstrealty.com

www.sunburstrealty.com/amy-spivey

Commitment, consistency, results.

mydoterra.com/blueridge wellness

• Phyllis Robinson - lakeshore@lakejunaluska.com mountaindream.com • Cindy Dubose - cdubose@mountaindream.com

McGovern Real Estate & Property Management • Bruce McGovern - shamrock13.com

Carolyn Lauter Broker/ABR 1986 SOCO ROAD, HWY 19 • MAGGIE VALLEY, NC 28751 carolyn.lauter@realtyworldheritage.com

realtyworldheritage.com • Carolyn Lauter realtyworldheritage.com/realestate/viewagent/7766 • Martha Sawyer realtyworldheritage.com/realestate/viewagent/7769

• • • • • •

Realty World Heritage Realty

RE/MAX — Mountain Realty

MEDICAL WELLNESS ADVOCATE

Lakeshore Realty

Mountain Home Properties

- WANTED TO BUY -

SELL YOUR STRUCTURED Settlement or annuity payments for CASH NOW. You don't have to wait for your future payments any longer! Call 1.800.316.0271

• Steve Cox - info@haywoodproperties.com

kellerwilliamswaynesville.com • Julie Lapkoff - julielapkoff.yourkwagent.com • Yvonne Kolomechuk - yvonneksells.yourkwagent.com • The Morris Team - www.themorristeamnc.com

147 WALNUT STREET • WAYNESVILLE

U.S./ Foreign Coins! Call Dan

828.421.1616

Haywood Properties - haywoodproperties.com Keller Williams Realty

828.734.4822 Cell • www.carolynlauter.com

WANTED TO BUY

beverly-hanks.com Ann Eavenson - anneavenson@beverly-hanks.com George Escaravage - gescar@beverly-hanks.com Randy Flanigan - randyflanigan@beverly-hanks.com Billie Green - BGreen@beverly-hanks.com Michelle McElroy - michellemcelroy@beverly-hanks.com Marilynn Obrig - marilynnobrig@beverly-hanks.com Brian K. Noland - brianknoland.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

ERA Sunburst Realty - sunburstrealty.com • Amy Spivey - amyspivey.com • Rick Boarder - sunburstrealty.com

Hours:

Tuesday-Friday, 12 Noon - 6 pm 182 Richland Street, Waynesville

• • • • • • • • • • • •

remax-waynesvillenc.com | remax-maggievalleync.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

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.

HEMLOCK HEALERS, INC. Dedicated to Saving Our Hemlocks. Owner/Operator Frank Varvoutis, NC Pesticide Applicator’s License #22864. 48 Spruce St. Maggie Valley, NC 828.734.7819 828.926.7883, Email: hemlockhealers@yahoo.com

Michelle McElroy

June 14-20, 2017

MOUNTAINS OF NC Chalet Style 1,340 sf cabin on 1.84 acres $159,900. Great views, lg loft w/ pict windows, fpl, huge deck. Call Now for more information 828.286.1666 SAPA

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

WNC MarketPlace

BUYING A HOME And need a mortgage? Or, have a home and want to lower your monthly fees and refinance? Getting a mortgage is quicker and easier than ever. Call now!

844.251.5563

LAWN & GARDEN

Rob Roland Realty EQUAL HOUSING

• Rob Roland - rroland33@gmail.com

OPPORTUNITY

find us at: facebook.com/smnews

TO ADVERTISE IN THE NEXT ISSUE 828.452.4251 | ads@smokymountainnews.com 53

www.smokymountainnews.com

June 14-20, 2017

WNC MarketPlace

Super

54

CROSSWORD

PLANE PEOPLE ACROSS 1 Charlotte of “Diff’rent Strokes” 4 Champion 10 Insect feeler 14 Slight smell 19 North Dakota’s tree 20 Farewells 21 Regal Norse name 22 Sharpening device 23 Talk show host with three Emmys 25 Best Actor nominee for “Hotel Rwanda” 27 Giant in retail furniture 28 “— be my pleasure” 29 Cold cubes 30 Childishly trivial 31 “Quantum Healing” author 35 Cause a floating log to spin by walking on it 36 Direct (at) 37 Sorority letters 38 Apt. units 39 30-day mo.

40 Writer Rice 41 Very familiar (with): Fr. 44 Irked greatly 46 He played Clark Kent on “Lois & Clark” 48 Ending of some pasta names 49 Gestures from 4Acrosses 51 Start to fall 53 Juice brand 54 “Designing Women” co-star 57 Kickoff prop 59 Catholic leaders 63 Univ. helpers 64 MD’s gp.

65 Jim who played Gomer Pyle 67 Psychic glows 68 Rats on 70 Jet airliner model that’s an apt alternate title for this puzzle 71 Talks glibly 73 Zones 74 Fit for — (regal) 76 Small, like Abner 77 Building wing 78 They bray 79 Slimy stuff 80 Sixth actor to play James Bond 84 Pop music’s — Lobos 86 Ending for Brit 88 What you might call a cool cat 89 4 p.m. social 90 She played Frenchy in “Grease” 94 — -ski party 96 Landscaping tools 98 Kiwi cousins 99 “— cool!”

100 “Kill bill” vote 101 Brit’s prison 102 Red Cross skill, for short 103 Big birds of myth 104 “How to Win Friends and Influence People” author 110 Selma locale 112 32nd prez 113 Cur’s threat 114 Nada 115 “Wayne’s World” costar 117 She played Alice in “Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice”

47 Attack like a playful pup 50 Sean Penn drama 52 Slews 55 Galilee residents 56 Assessed 58 Eyed 60 High-ranking cleric 61 Previously 62 Mil. draft gp.

DOWN 66 Sudafed alternative 1 Made over 68 Goat’s call 2 Not different 69 Pt. of NBA 3 Show host 70 Threads 4 Dust buster, for short 72 Not closing seasonally 5 Boise loc.

75 Five womb-mates 6 Social studies class 76 Pan covers 7 Canines, e.g.

81 Scot’s denial 8 Defeat 82 Nucleotide triplet 9 Pre-U queue 83 With 118-Down, fuel 10 Shows to be downcontainer loaded 85 Wine region in 11 Burn soother California 12 PC linkup 87 Like batik fabric 13 Many a sewer-line 90 Century parts tube, briefly 91 Embed firmly 14 Tire holder 92 Comic Jimmy 15 Winter frost 93 Extreme diet rule, per16 Gary’s state haps 17 Filmmaker Federico 95 Jack of early TV 18 Ex-slaves 97 Beck of radio 24 Sorority letter 101 January gem 26 Cry from a 4-Across 29 Old TV’s “My Friend — 103 Relay athlete 105 Nile locale ” 106 Heavy lifter 32 “— always said ...”

107 Lost cause 33 Tastelessly artistic 108 Hole — (ace) 34 Being there 109 Itsy-bitsy 35 Harass 111 Undecorated 40 Equip 112 Gala 41 Give relief 116 Big shot 42 Ally makers 117 Beaver work 43 Obsesses 44 Farming-related prefix 118 See 83-Down 119 Simile part 45 Leveling stuff 120 — nous 121 Snack 122 Breathing problems 123 USN officer 124 Navigate 125 Zoomed 126 E. Sicilian volcano 127 King, to Juan

answers on page 48

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Answers on Page 48

Perhaps ‘possums are figuring it out

I

George Ellison

EXECUTIVE

BACK THEN the most adaptable.

They may have small brains and can be a touch dim-witted, but ‘possums can find food. And they can remember exactly where they found it in the first place, which — to my way of thinking —are sure signs of intelligence.

One researcher tested various animals for ability to remember which of four runways was connected to a food box. The ‘possum scored better on average than cats, chickens, dogs, goats, pigs, rabbits, rats, goldfish, and turtles, although somewhat less than the average crow. Being outsmarted by a crow is to be expected.”

Here are the closing sentences of a ‘possum column I wrote awhile back: “The only menace ‘possums — the ultimate survivalists — have been unable to adapt to is the automobile. Caught in the headlights’ glare they freeze and are thereby doomed.

But this time around, let’s look on the bright side. Maybe

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their decline as roadway fodder indicates they’re starting to figure out what the lights indicate.

George Ellison is a naturalist and writer. He can be reached at info@georgeellison.com.

June 14-20, 2017

bless my lucky stars that I’m a columnist assigned the pleasant task of writing about this region’s natural and human history. At a time when the constitutional underpinnings of this nation are eroding at an alarming rate due to the irrational and possibly treasonous shenanigans of a political nimcapoop, I get to consider the burning question: “Are ‘possums finally catching on?”

I just don’t see many of them dead in the highways and byways anymore. In days gone by there were times after a long moonlit summer night when they would seemingly be littered with the critters.

I’ve always liked ‘possums. My interest dates to when I was a boy running a trap line that consisted of wooden box traps and a couple of jump traps. Even though they Columnist weren’t my prime target, it was a ‘possum that I wound up trapping about 90 percent of the time. I learned to show respect for their sharp teeth by getting them out of the box traps the right way: turn the trap up on its closed end; shake it; reach your arm through the open door; grab he or she by the long bare tail; extract he or she with care; and hold it at arm’s length until you decide what to do with it now that you’ve got it.

An article appeared in a Smithsonian magazine in the 1970s titled “A Few Miles of Land Arose From the Sea — and the World Changed” by John F. Ross that I read with interest because it explained how the ‘possum got to North America in the first place.

Ross’ primary interest was establishing the significance of the appearance of a land bridge (the Panamanian isthmus) between North and South America approximately three million years ago. Of the numerous critters that trekked northward over the isthmus, the lowly ‘possum has been the most successful because it became

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