Smoky Mountain News | September 2, 2020

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Western North Carolina’s Source for Weekly News, Entertainment, Arts, and Outdoor Information

September 2-8, 2020 Vol. 22 Iss. 14

WCU manages pandemic as first cluster is reported Page 4 Rogers inducted to WNC Agricultural Hall of Fame Page 30

CONTENTS

STAFF

On the Cover: The housing market in Western North Carolina is reaching a boiling point as homes are selling at record speed and at record prices and inventory remains critically low. Brian Cagle, new chairman of the Waynesville Housing Authority, hopes the organization’s new strategic plan will allow the board to assist in the development of more affordable housing units. (Page 6) Cory Vaillancourt photo

News WCU manages pandemic as first cluster is reported ............................................4 Sylva expands outdoor seating downtown ..................................................................8 WCU students call for policy changes after racist videos ....................................9 Haywood Pathways Ministry to launch food truck ..................................................11 Cherokee seeks to amend election ordinances ......................................................13 Haywood Arts Council to request COVID relief funds ........................................15 Former NYPD detective provides crisis training for cops ....................................18 Business News ..................................................................................................................23

Opinion What to expect as you prepare to vote ....................................................................24

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A&E Rising country star Justin Wells releases ‘The United State’ ..............................26

Outdoors Terry Rogers inducted to WNC Agricultural Hall of Fame ..................................30

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WCU manages pandemic as first cluster is reported

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER he third week of classes is now underway at Western Carolina University, and the Jackson County Department of Public Health has identified the first cluster on campus.

One Sept. 1, the health department announced that 17 residents of Harrill Hall, which houses a total of 301 students, had tested positive for the virus. The students are in isolation and the investigation is ongoing as officials seek to identify close contacts of those positive cases.

“We expected there to be cases related to our campus as more than 9,000 students returned for residential in-person instruction this fall,” said Chancellor Kelli R. Brown. “We have extensive protocols in place and will continue to execute our quarantine and isolation procedures. Public health is a shared responsibility — and it is one that we take seriously.”

In a series of interviews conducted on campus Aug. 24, students had an overall favorable response when asked how well they believe the university is handling the pandemic.

“I think that Western’s been doing a really good job,” said Preston Pyatt, a Franklin resident and fourth-year student who is beginning his first year at Western. “They provided us with hand sanitizer and face masks. They have all the regulations, like whenever you’re inside you have to have a mask on and they recommend whenever you’re (outdoors on campus) to have a mask on, which a lot of people do keep up with. I feel like a lot of the regulations they’ve put in place really do prevent the spread.”

In addition to the mask mandate, the university has also lowered classroom density, erected outdoor tents throughout campus, adopted extensive personal protective equipment cleaning procedures and created many other protocols as well.

Still, Pyatt said, he’d be surprised if COVID-19 doesn’t eventually shut things down.

“I’m hoping that we get to be here for a good while, but I’m not expecting to be here the whole semester, unfortunately,” he said.

Smoky Mountain News

September 2-8, 2020

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4

For freshman Khadija Davis, the typical first-year challenge of finding one’s place in a campus of 10,000 people has loomed larger than the fear of COVID-19.

“I was very nervous because when I first got here, I was kind of by myself,” said

Even outdoors, masks are a frequent sight on the Western Carolina University campus.

Holly Kays photo

Davis, who came from Charleston, South Carolina. “My friend wasn’t able to move in until the 14th. It was new meeting new people and just having an experience of being

on campus and everything. I just felt like this is going to be my new home, and I have to get used to it. So far I’m adjusted.”

Having to wear a mask everywhere still feels a little weird, she said, but after spending the last part of her senior year of high school behind a computer screen, it’s “liberating” to be on campus, even if many classes still take place online.

This semester is junior transfer student Janeissa Romero’s first year at Western, but COVID-19 didn’t scare her away.

“I work in health care, so I know what it’s like,” said Romero, who is a medical assistant.

“I’m not too nervous about it because I know how to deal with it at this point.”

For senior Trace Cook, the hardest part has been foregoing some of the social aspects of campus life that make WCU such a great place to be — especially given that this is his last semester.

“The most difficult thing is resisting the urge to be overly social, because it’s just a jovial place,” he said. “You have all these young people and you want to go out and fist bump and you want to get in close groups and do stuff. That’s been a little disappointing that part of it has been reduced, but other than that, my classes are fascinating as usual, studying what I love.”

Instead, he spends his evenings out by the fountain playing guitar, or else participating in worship with the Campus Catholics — the group has a good social distancing system, he said.

“I feel pretty safe with the parameters the university has set up,” he said. “However, I am a little disappointed in the way some of my fellow students are disregarding those parameters, and that concerns me, but the fact that I’m following those parameters and social distancing makes me feel secure. My largest concern is that everyone who is not paying attention is going to get us sent home, and I’d like to finish my final semester here on campus.”

As of Tuesday, Sept. 1, a total of 83 students, three employees and four subcontractors had tested positive for the virus since July 1. The number of positive cases was actually lower in the second week of classes than in the first, though, with 26 students, zero employees and one subcontractor testing positive Aug. 24-30, while 28 students, zero employees and three subcontractors tested positive the week of Aug. 17-23.

However, the discovery of the cluster may well cause that trend to reverse in the current week. On Tuesday, Sept. 1, 12 student cases were confirmed in a single day.

Despite the lower number of cases, the positivity rate Aug. 24-30 was slightly higher than that of Aug. 17-23, with 13.2 percent of 220 tests coming back positive last week as opposed to 12.4 percent of 177 tests the previous week.

As of Sept. 1, 19 of 55 on-campus beds for isolation and quarantine were in use, with 78 students in quarantine or isolation off-campus.

Current data about COVID-19 numbers at WCU is available at www.wcu.edu/coronavirus/reporting.aspx.

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Haywood COVID cases on downward trend

order to stop the corruption of school system servers and computers. Since many technology services transmit through system servers, related technologies including telephones and internet were rendered inoperable.

“While some technology services are still not operating, we felt it was important to return to teaching and learning as soon as practically possible,” said Superintendent Bill Nolte.

Teachers are being provided with information about resetting their passwords.

Students can now use Chromebooks, iPads, and other devices to connect to Google Classroom for instruction. Initially, teachers and students will have internet filtering set at the student filtering level.

“School devices that were corrupt or potentially corrupt have been collected and removed from campus,” said Dr. Trevor Putnam, Associate Superintendent. “All remaining devices are safe for use on school networks and at home.”

Several Macon County Schools — Franklin High School, Mountain View Intermediate School, Macon Middle School and Union Academy — stopped in-person instruction Aug. 26 due to several positive cases occurring among students and staff. A press release from the school system on Aug. 28 stated that positive cases had “stabilized” and that all schools would be remote learning the week of Sept. 7-11. The school system will release plans moving forward at that time.

As of Tuesday morning, Macon County only had 15 active positive cases confirmed, 111 tests pending and seven COVID-related deaths.

Swain County has only six active cases, 46 pending tests and three deaths. Jackson County is reporting 50 people currently in isolation and seven deaths.

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BY J ESSI STONE N EWS E DITOR aywood County Public Health received notice of 19 new cases of COVID-19 in the last week. As of 5 p.m. Aug. 27, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has recorded 493 cases in Haywood County.

Some of the cases are still in the contact tracing process. Of those that have been processed, one is a resident of a long-term care facility, one is travel-related, two are close contacts of someone who is COVID-19 positive, one is a student in another county, and two do not know how they acquired the virus.

As of 5 p.m., Aug. 27, Haywood County’s COVID-19 working number, representing individuals who are in isolation or quarantine due to exposure, is 184 people. Of these, 94 cases are in isolation after testing positive and 90 people are in quarantine, having been identified as a close contact of a known case during contact tracing. All are being monitored by the Haywood County COVID-19 contact tracing team.

“We continue to see a downward trend in new case numbers this week and hope to see that trend extended. It remains important to stay vigilant, continue to practice social distancing, wear face coverings, and isolate if sick,” said Public Health Services Director Patrick Johnson.

Haywood County Schools returned to remote instruction Monday after a significant cyberattack last Monday forced the school system to take down most technology services in

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Ingles Nutrition Notes written by Ingles Dietitian Leah McGrath QUESTION: Would it be healthier for me to use honey instead of cane sugar?

ANSWER: White granulated sugar can be made from (sugar) cane or beets.

Honey is of course from bees.

Both of these types of sweeteners are "natural" in that they come from plants or insects.

• Both sugar and honey are composed of glucose and fructose.

• Honey is already pre-digested by bees (some call it "bee spit") it is slightly easier to digest and performs slightly differently as it is being digested.

• Honey has a slightly lower glycemic index (effect on your blood sugar) compared to sugar - but both will raise blood sugar. If you have diabetes, substituting honey for sugar would NOT help control or lower your blood sugar.

• Honey has 21 calories in 1 tsp; Sugar has 16 calories in 1 tsp • Honey and white or brown sugar are both classified as added sugar, i.e. a carbohydrate, on the nutrition facts panel.

• Honey and sugar have different taste profiles and also perform differently in baking.

For a more detailed explanation: https://cals.arizona.edu/backyards/sites/cals.arizona.edu.backyards/files/b13fall_pp11-13.pdf

Bottom Line: Whether you choose to use honey or sugar as a sweetener may depend on your taste or cooking/baking preference but your body does not recognize much difference between the two. Since both are considered "added sugar"; it is best to use both mindfully and in moderation.

Leah McGrath, RDN, LDN

Smoky Mountain News

bitions on the opening of bars, nightclubs, movie theaters, indoor entertainment venues and amusement parks.

On Aug. 31, Cooper extended the state’s 11 p.m. curfew on alcohol service to Oct. 2.

Cooper initially issued a “stay home” order on March 27; at that time, there were 763 cases in North Carolina. The state entered Phase 1 of Cooper’s three-phased plan on May 5 while reporting 12,511 cases and followed that declaration with a quick shift to Phase 2 on May 20, despite caseloads topping 20,000.

On June 24, with 56,238 cases reported, Cooper announced that there would be no immediate transition to Phase 3. Since then, Cooper’s continued to reopen the state at a measured pace.

As of press time on Sept. 1, the state had reported 169,425 lab-confirmed cases, with 136,630 fully recovered and 2,741 deaths.

To learn more about the most current state of coronavirus restrictions in North Carolina, visit www.governor.nc.gov/news/press-releases.

IT’S TIME TO STOCK YOUR POND!

September 2-8, 2020

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER rends in several key coronavirus metrics are stabilizing or declining, leading North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper to let up on some restrictions that have been in place for months.

“After a summer of hard work, we’ve seen North Carolina’s key indicators for COVID19 remain stable or even decrease in some cases. Our pause in phase 2 was necessary,” Cooper said during a press conference Sept.

1. “We’re encouraged, but cautious.”

On Friday, Sept. 4, at 5 p.m., the state will enter into what Cooper calls “Safer at home phase 2.5.” The new phase will include several notable changes.

The limit on mass gatherings will increase to 25 people indoors, and 50 people outdoors. Playgrounds will be allowed to open. Museums and aquariums will be allowed to open at 50 percent capacity.

Gyms and other indoor fitness facilities can open at 30 percent capacity.

Restrictions on restaurants and personal care services remain unchanged, as do prohi-

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New players join affordable housing fight

BY CORY VAILLANCOURT STAFF WRITER he affordable housing crisis in Western North Carolina isn’t anything new, but it is entering a dangerous new phase due to ever-increasing home values, limited supply and a red-hot real estate market that has refused to use the Coronavirus Pandemic as an excuse to cool down.

Redoubled efforts by a pair of players — one long dormant, the other brand new — couldn’t come at a better time, because if something isn’t done soon, according to vice president and managing broker at Waynesville’s Beverly Hanks and Associates Brian Cagle, there will be serious repercussions that could change the very landscape of the region.

“This community is going to become a trailer park,” said Cagle. “My hope is that we can come together as a community and have a common vision to address it, because it’s going to take everybody working together.”

T

THE PROBLEM

Smoky Mountain News

September 2-8, 2020

For more than a century, Western North Carolina’s scenic vistas have drawn visitors from across the region, the state and indeed the world.

As outdoor recreation-based industries quickly sprang up to serve them, lodging, hospitality and entertainment venues soon followed and were in turn followed by all the industries that support them, from nail salons to retail shops.

In any such service-oriented economy, those workers — many seasonal and most among the lowest earners in any industry — need affordable places to live near their jobs, but WNC’s mountains can be both blessing and curse; developable land is at a premium and substantial portions of many counties in the region are owned by the state or the federal government.

Increasingly, visitors become locals, many through second and third homes. That’s kept supply low and driven up prices, which also translates to the rental market. The largest city in the region, Asheville, has had a notoriously quick real estate market for years now, which then exerts pressure on rural neighboring counties.

“We’re selling the most real estate we’ve ever sold,” Cagle said. “The market, I’ve never seen anything like it. It really makes me keenly aware of the need for housing. And it’s not just a local problem. I think that’s important to point out. Everybody’s like, ‘Oh, well, if you can’t find anywhere to live that’s reasonable and you can go somewhere else and look.’ You can’t. It’s a national crisis.”

Economic uncertainty since the March outbreak of COVID-19 merely served as a speedbump for the local real estate economy.

“Closed business took a nosedive as you might expect, which translated into May and June,” said Cagle. “We were all sitting there thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, are we ever going to sell a house again?’ Written business started 6 cranking back up in May and June. June was

Affordable housing is coming to the Historic Haywood Hospital, but it’s not nearly enough. Cory Vaillancourt photo

Housing affordability by county County

Avg. monthly Avg. home Monthly 28% rule monthly Affordable income sale price payment payment home price Buncombe.............$2,620.............$388,315.............$2,010.................$734 ..............$133,300 Burke ....................$1,956.............$272,548.............$1,430.................$548 ...............$96,800 Haywood ...............$2,454.............$285,050.............$1,492.................$687 ..............$124,500 Henderson.............$2,488.............$349,052.............$1,813.................$697 ..............$126,200 Jackson.................$2,006.............$354,025.............$1,839.................$562 ...............$99,400 Madison................$2,111.............$328,960.............$1,713.................$591 ..............$105,100 McDowell ..............$1,894.............$266,683.............$1,400.................$530 ...............$93,000 Mitchell.................$1,992.............$253,960.............$1,337.................$558 ...............$96,500 Polk.......................$2,224.............$298,338.............$1,559.................$623 ..............$111,500 Rutherford ............$1,874.............$309,414.............$1,615.................$525 ...............$92,100 Swain....................$1,749.............$211,550.............$1,124.................$490 ...............$85,300 Transylvania .........$2,254.............$422,080.............$2,179.................$631 ..............$113,100 Yancey ..................$1,939.............$250,147.............$1,317.................$543 ...............$95,500 Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Canopy MLS, Aug. 14, 2020, Bankrate.com, Smoky Mountain News *Calculation includes principal & interest, homeowners insurance and property taxes based on a 30-year fixed mortgage at 4% interest with 10% down.

an all-time record sales month. July beat that.

August was another over-the-top kind of month. It’s just mind blowing.”

Data from Charlotte-based Canopy Realtor Association bears that out; in Canopy’s 13-county western region, 10 counties saw more homes sold in July 2020 than in July 2019.

“I think it’s COVID-related. I think it’s concerns about violence in urban areas,” Cagle said. “I think those things mixed together make rural America look pretty darn cool. We’re seeing them come from all different areas. Definitely people that have means that live in urban areas are buying second homes or third homes. They’re buying homes all over the place.”

Two properties listed at more than $3 million went under contract in Brevard last week

according to Cagle; although those aren’t the kinds of properties locals are usually looking for, they do diminish supply and push down on the rest of the market.

Cagle said he’s also seeing more people relocating to the area permanently, especially as work-from-home becomes the new norm for many white-collar employers.

“Even the areas from $500,000 to $700,000, they’re getting multiple offers, first day,” he said.

Canopy’s data bears that out, too. In the 13-county region, 10 counties saw an increase in average sale price this past July as compared to July 2019.

Mitchell County’s was a whopping 50 percent. Rutherford County was 47 percent.

Even Haywood’s modest 11 percent year-overyear increase was notable in that it’s great for

homeowners and landlords, but bad for buyers and renters.

“There’s too much buyer demand,” said Cagle. “You’ve got interest rates at historic lows. The high-end market is cash, but that does help affordability for some people.”

Some, but not all — a common rule of thumb is that borrowers should expend no more than 28 percent of monthly income on a mortgage payment. When comparing prevailing wages and average home sale prices, there’s not a single county in Canopy’s western region in which an average worker could afford a home on their own.

In fact, there’s no county in Canopy’s western region where someone earning twice the average wage could purchase an affordable home. In Jackson, Rutherford and Transylvania counties, it would take triple the average wage to purchase something under 28 percent of income.

With more and more homes selling for more and more money, the supply-side of the market is weakening.

“Right now, we are running out of inventory at an alarming rate. We just crossed over a very interesting number in the last month,” Cagle said. “We now have more properties under contract than are available for sale.”

As of Aug. 28, there were 271 Haywood County properties under contract and 260 units available for purchase, from all price ranges. For buyers looking to spend less than $250,000, only 63 homes were available; buyers looking to spend less than $150,000 could choose from just 13 homes, many of which are trailers.

“We’re not keeping up,” said Cagle.

“That’s a real problem. We’ve got to build houses and that’s not something that’s going to happen real quick.”

F

HELP IS ON THE WAY

The statute containing those descriptions of North Carolina’s housing conditions, known as The Housing Authority Law, was written in 1935.

In addition to describing the reasons for its creation, the Housing Authority Law empowers duly constituted housing authorities like Waynesville’s to exercise a broad range of powers. The WHA, Cagle explained, has been in “maintenance mode” for some time now, managing the projects it’s currently responsible for, but little else.

“I think they do a pretty good job keeping the facilities up,” he said. “We’re certainly way ahead of most of the slumlords in town. I mean, you look at our stuff and you look at their stuff, ours looks pretty good.”

Funded almost exclusively by rental fees received from residents and subsidies from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the WHA has a healthy balance sheet and significant cash reserves. The most recent yearly audited financials, from September 2019, show the WHA with more than $3.8 million in total assets against $1.3 million in liabilities.

“We get money from all these different governmental entities. There’s two different pots we deal with. One is what’s at the Waynesville Towers, which is USDA, then we have Section 8 site-based housing, which are all the other houses we’ve got around town, down in Nineveh, Pigeon, down on Boyd,” he said. “They send us these big chunks of cash and we’ve got to follow all their guidelines in how that goes out to folks.”

While Waynesville’s relatively progressive approach to public housing has helped thousands over the years, it’s not currently meeting the needs of the community in terms of demand.

“I’m not sure public housing is the solution for our housing crisis,” Cagle said. “It’s government subsidized housing, on and on, forever. We need some of that, but there’s a balance to that for sure. There are housing authorities in the country that have created kind of a separate arm that’s a nonprofit that have been much more involved in building affordable housing. And so that’s certainly something that we’d want to look into, like owner-occupied affordable housing.”

Going back to Cagle’s “trailer park” comment, given current market conditions and WNC’s topography, the market attempts to solves the affordable housing crisis through the use of small manufactured housing units on small rental lots. Cagle doesn’t have a problem with trailers per se, except for a less obvious consequence of their proliferation.

“I’m glad we have them because think of what a crisis we would have in America without them,” he said, noting a low barrier to

Canopy Housing Foundation to announce inaugural grants Six local nonprofits will receive funding support totaling $18,700 to address unmet housing needs in Western North Carolina, thanks to the Canopy Housing Foundation.

Grant recipients will be announced at the Canopy Housing Foundation’s Community Awards Celebration on Tuesday, Sept. 8 at 11 a.m. To watch the presentation live via Zoom, register at www.bit.ly/CanopyAwards.

For more information on the Canopy Housing Foundation, visit www.canopyhousingfoundation.org. ownership. “The thing that saddens me about that is that people do not build wealth. They pay sometimes almost the same amount of money for 20 or 30 years, and they have nothing left. They have nothing for their kids versus if they had bought a little house.”

A home is one of the most commonly owned assets by Americans, and as such is one of the largest contributors to personal and generational wealth of American families.

“Those families never had the American dream,” said Cagle. “They’ve never been able to have a place where they could build wealth for their family through home ownership.

They build wealth for other people.”

As the WHA moves into a more active role

Smoky Mountain News

“You almost think, ‘When was this written?

Was this written like last week?’” Cagle said.

HOME SALES AVERAGE SALE PRICE County July, 2020 vs. July, 2019 Avg. sale price vs. July, 2019 Buncombe ...................884..................+7.0%..........................$388,315 .................+7.0% Burke............................68 ..................-15.0%..........................$272,548 ................+39.1% Haywood ......................144..................+9.1%..........................$285,050 ................+11.0% Henderson ...................230..................+6.5%..........................$349,052 .................+5.1% Jackson.........................24 ..................-14.3%..........................$354,025 ................+17.4% Madison........................34..................+21.4%.........................$328,960 ................+16.2% McDowell ......................29..................+39.3%.........................$266,683 .................+8.7% Mitchell ........................15..................+25.0%.........................$253,960 ................+50.0% Polk...............................44..................+25.7%.........................$298,338..................-9.0% Rutherford ....................78...................+6.8%..........................$309,414 ................+47.0% Swain.............................8...................+60.0%.........................$211,550..................-3.8% Transylvania .................83..................+23.9%.........................$422,080 ................+26.9% Yancey ..........................17 ..................-26.1%..........................$250,147 .................+0.7% Source: Canopy MLS, Aug. 14, 2020.

September 2-8, 2020

It is hereby declared that unsanitary or unsafe dwelling accommodations exist in urban and rural areas throughout the State and that such unsafe or unsanitary conditions arise from overcrowding and concentration of population, the obsolete and poor condition of the buildings, improper planning, [and] excessive land coverage … many persons of low income are forced to reside in unsanitary or unsafe dwelling accommodations … there is a lack of safe or sanitary dwelling accommodations available to all the inhabitants … these conditions cause an increase in and spread of disease and crime and constitute a menace to the health, safety, morals and welfare of the citizens of the State and impair economic values … these conditions cannot be remedied by the ordinary operation of private enterprise … there is a serious shortage of decent, safe and sanitary housing in North Carolina that can be afforded by persons and families of moderate income … that it is in the best interest of the State to encourage programs to provide housing for such persons without imposing on them undue financial hardship …

Homes sold in the Asheville Metropolitan Statistical Area in July, 2020

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It’s not as if Cagle is the only one paying attention; a number of local organizations have tried to address the affordable housing crisis in WNC, with little or no results to show for the effort.

In early 2016, Haywood County established an Affordable Housing Task Force, which met, issued a report and outlined some goals, including a call for 400 new affordable housing units to be built over the next decade. Little has come of that.

In early 2019, the Town of Waynesville took concrete steps to address the crisis by designating its Board of Aldermen a redevelopment authority and outlining a “blighted area” near the old hospital on North Main Street.

Those initiatives resulted in tax credits from the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency that made redevelopment of the old hospital into affordable housing units financially feasible for a private developer, but the 54 units — for veterans and the elderly, not working-class residents — will barely make a dent in the dearth of supply.

Throughout that time another entity sat on the sidelines, doing almost nothing to help mitigate the supply issue.

“I think the Waynesville Housing Authority has done good things in the past. Obviously, they’re providing some public housing for people that need it, but as far as providing some leadership in that area we just have kind of abdicated their responsibility. Frankly, that needs to change,” said Cagle, who was recently sworn in as WHA’s new chairman.

The Waynesville Housing Authority’s been around for quite some time. Its mission is to promote and preserve a variety of housing choices for the citizens of Waynesville and to increase public awareness of housing opportunities, needs and concerns.

Comprised of a nine-member board with five-year terms, the WHA is empowered by North Carolina General Statute 157-9 which reads in part:

under the leadership of Cagle, it’s not yet clear what approach the organization will take, because you haven’t told them yet.

In July, the WHA signed a letter of engagement with Aprio, a CPA-led advisory firm, to begin working on a strategic plan. Much like the Town of Waynesville’s new strategic plan — set for approval on Sept. 8 after more than two years of work — WHA’s plan will allow for substantial public input.

Unlike Waynesville’s plan, it should be complete in 90 days or so.

“COVID has made it a strange time to do a strategic plan with public involvement, but they’re contacting our stakeholders right now and doing interviews via Zoom,” Cagle said.

Stakeholders include the usual milieu of local groups like Mountain Projects, Habitat for Humanity, REACH, EACH and the Town of Waynesville.

Once that’s complete, the WHA will search for a permanent executive director to replace interim Belinda Kahl.

“That’s the next order of business,” Cagle said. “We felt like we needed to complete the strategic plan before we even knew how to build a job description for somebody. We felt like we wanted to bring the community to the table first.”

Another segment of the community is also coming to the table — local Realtors.

Back in January, the 300-member Haywood Realtor Association merged with the Charlotte Regional Realtors Association to form Canopy Realtor Association.

“We actually have a larger voice now within the state,” Tom Mallette, a Realtor with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Heritage in Maggie Valley told The Smoky Mountain News on Dec. 17, 2019. At the time, Mallette was president of the Haywood Realtor Association. “We’re a very small county, so when I go to a state board meeting, maybe I’m the only voice for Haywood County. Now that we’re joining Canopy, we have 20 times that, basically.”

Another advantage of the merger is that western counties will benefit from all the charitable work Canopy does to promote affordable housing.

“One of the goals was to establish a formal grant program,” said Terri Marshall, executive director of the Canopy Housing Foundation, the charitable arm of CRA. “We already had that program in Mecklenburg and Iredell counties, and when we merged with Haywood, that was one thing they were interested in. The purpose is to fund and address unmet housing needs, and we’ve left that fairly broad intentionally because lots of grassroots efforts not being looked at — everything from helping fix someone’s home, to critical repair needs or new home builds. It really runs the gamut so it’s interesting to see how each group defines that need.”

Cagle serves as the western regional chair of the foundation, which will announce more than $18,000 in funding for local housing advocacy groups on Sept. 8.

“There’s no one organization that can fix this, but I think there are enough people, enough organizations here,” he said. “I think there’s enough wealth here that if we can come together with a clear vision, I think we can make a difference. I really do.”

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Sylva expands outdoor seating downtown

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER andemic-induced public health rules are severely impacting bottom lines for restaurants nationwide, but members of the Sylva Town Board hope that an effort to expand outdoor seating opportunities downtown will help ease the pain on Main Street. The town has passed two ordinance changes this summer to pave the way for increasing the outdoor table space available to downtown eateries.

In a unanimous vote July 27, commissioners created a temporary amendment to the zoning ordinance that allows restaurant tables on right-of-way property downtown.

Under the temporary rules, businesses can receive temporary zoning permits at no cost to seat guests in previously off-limits areas like sidewalks and parking areas so long as they meet social distancing and capacity restriction requirements. Final approval from the N.C. Department of Transportation is required before restaurants can start placing tables on sidewalks, however. The town is still working with the DOT to gain that approval.

The ordinance states that a 50 percent reduction in Innovation Brewing has turned its onsite parking into an off-street parking is allowed expanded outdoor seating area. Holly Kays photo to accommodate outdoor dining, but ADA parking To ensure safety for diners, the town is must be maintained, and disturbance of purchasing 25 jersey-style traffic barriers vehicular traffic flow is prohibited. The and 25 metal crowd fencing panels to place policy will expire 30 days after Gov. Roy around those areas. The purchases will be Cooper ends capacity restrictions for funded using $10,372 of the $411,583 the indoor restaurant seating. town received in CARES Act funding. There “The bottom line is we’re trying to do are strict limits as to what those funds can something that will allow our restaurants to be used for, but one of the allowed categories expand their seating, expand their business is economic support. Morgan believes the so it will help them in this economic downbarriers fall into that category. turn,” Interim Town Manager Mike Morgan “This opens up many other doors,” he told commissioners July 27. told the board July 27. “After the pandemic On Aug. 27, commissioners passed a secis passed, we will still be able to have the ond ordinance change that outlines some additional rules for sidewalk dining. Like the barricades, and (Public Works Director Jake Scott) can use them for other festivals and first, this ordinance will expire 30 days after downtown events that we have. It’s a golden capacity restrictions for indoor restaurant opportunity for us to reuse the barricades.” seating end.

Most of Sylva’s CARES Act money — Under the ordinance, tables and chairs $391,846 — will reimburse the town for must be at least 6 feet away from any travel lane, be placed so as to leave at least 5 feet of dollars it spent on police officer salaries between May and August, meaning that the unobstructed sidewalk width and avoid funds will ultimately roll over to the general obstructing entrances, exits, driveways, fire fund. An additional $4,737 will go to purhydrants and the like. Sidewalk dining would not be allowed on roadways where the chase two laptop computers complete with all the necessary software licenses and posted speed limit exceeds 45 miles per hardware, and $4,628 will be used for perhour, and restaurants must have adequate sonal protective equipment in the police liability insurance and agree to hold the DOT and the town harmless in any potential department.

The barriers have been ordered and lawsuit originating from sidewalk dining should arrive soon, Morgan said. activities. The ordinance also requires

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September 2-8, 2020

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restaurants to cease sidewalk dining should the DOT or the town need to access the area for any construction or maintenance project.

Finally, the ordinance makes it clear that permits will be granted on a case-by-case basis and additional requirements can be imposed on individual businesses if needed.

The town also has the right to refuse to issue any requested permit if it concludes the proposed activity cannot be conducted safely.

“We hope to get something going fairly quickly for our restaurants,” Morgan said in a follow-up interview.

Several restaurants interested in taking advantage of the new rules have contacted the county, which contracts with the town to provide planning and code enforcement services. Senior Planner John Jelenewski said that White Moon Café has been approved for sidewalk seating and Ilda has been approved to construct an outdoor seating area on its property. Innovation Brewery has already repurposed its onsite parking area for expanded outdoor seating.

Several other establishments have made requests or inquiries but are still working through the process.

‘Whee want change’ WCU students call for policy changes following racially charged videos

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER ive Western Carolina University students are no longer enrolled at the school after appearing in a pair of videos that featured racial slurs and surfaced on social media the first weekend after classes began. The university community showed overwhelming support for the students’ departure from campus during a march held Wednesday, Aug. 26, drawing more than 800 people.

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CALLS FOR CHANGE

Western Carolina University athletes led a march through campus Aug. 26 calling for an end to racism and more clarity in university policies addressing it. Holly Kays photo

VIOLATION, APOLOGY AND DISCIPLINE The videos in question appeared on social media over the weekend of Aug. 22.

The first featured three white female WCU students and began with one of them performing a rap that includes the ‘n’ word. It then cuts to a second person, who says that, ‘(if they can) call you a c____, you’re allowed to call them a n___.” The third woman states that it’s acceptable to use the word as long as you end it with an “a,” not with an “er.”

The second video showed two white male students explaining that when they use the OK symbol, all they mean is “damn, that’s nice,” and that they’re not “being f*in racist” and using it as a symbol of white supremacy.

However, they appear to do this while making ample use of the ‘n’ word and conclude by saying “if you do know some n__ gals who want to come over and f**k man, let me know.”

However, the first speaker in the video — not the one who made degrading comments about Black females — said in a Twitter post that he was not saying the “n” word at all.

Rather, he averred, he’d been saying “Negus,”

the name of the Snapchat user he was addressing.

The post appeared on a newly created profile using the handle @johnsmith61224 along with a 95-second apology video. It came hours before the university announced that the students were no longer enrolled.

“The video was my grossly inappropriate reaction and response to a fellow student about a post I made using a symbol that I genuinely did not know meant anything racist,” the man said. “It was absolutely wrong of me to laugh and smile when the other person in the video spoke inappropriately. I am not a racist nor do I support racist beliefs or actions whatsoever. This was a horrible mistake of mine that I will forever regret.”

The videos that included the racist language appeared on the students’ personal accounts and were later shared by others who tagged WCU in those posts. Brown was quick to issue public statements condemning the contents. On Aug. 25, WCU Communications Director Bill Studenc said that the matter would be investigated and disciplined through the process outlined in the Code of Student Conduct.

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A sea of purple gathered around the fountain area on campus that day to participate in the Whee United March organized by the WCU Football Team, with participants marching in a column that took nearly 10 minutes to pass by as it moved east on Memorial Drive, down Killian and then looped around the Bardo Performing Arts Center via Centennial Drive on its return to the fountain, where student leaders and Chancellor Kelli R. Brown delivered comments during a brief speaking program. In addition to students, the marchers included faculty, staff, alumni, administrators and trustees.

Students held signs bearing slogans such as “No room for racism,” “Silence is compliance,” “BLM” and “Expel racism,” and chanted two key slogans — “Whee want change” and “We’ve had enough.”

Event organizer Donnavan Spencer is a senior criminal justice major and running back on the football team. He initiated the march after seeing how his teammates reacted to the contents of the social media videos.

One particular teammate, he said, was reduced to tears by what he saw.

“After I saw that it made me want to start something and be not just a reactive person but a proactive person,” said Spencer.

So he talked to Head Coach Matt Spier,

and the team decided it would sit out of training and team meetings until change started happening on campus. The students who appeared in the videos “are no longer enrolled at WCU and will not return” — the university stopped short of specifically stating they had been expelled — and that’s a development that Spencer applauds. He envisioned the march as a way to forge unity on campus while also advocating for more permanent changes.

“Now we want to start attacking policies,” said Spencer.

In particular, Spencer wants to see changes to the university’s policy on unlawful discrimination and to sections of the student code of conduct that deal with hateful and harassing speech. The policies need to be a lot clearer, he said, both in terms of what is and is not allowed and in terms of what the consequences are for violation.

“We know we have the Creed and we have the Student (Code of ) Conduct, but it’s very vague,” said Kourtnee Harris, chief of the Intercultural Affairs Council, during the speaking program. “It allows for people to have a lot of loopholes, and that’s not what we want. If we want our voices to be heard and we want justice to be served every single time, there needs to be something written.”

A petition from ICA is now circulating online, asking supporters to sign on in agreement with the statement that, “The students of WCU NEED for Western Carolina University to implement a written policy that states clear and concise guidelines on what the consequences will be for any physical and/or mental harm due to racial actions.

We also ask that students be notified that if harm is done, the student body will be informed that the participants of those actions will be going through a due process and will be punished.”

In an interview earlier that day, Brown expressed support for that request.

“We’re going to continue to look at everything on campus to make sure that this is a place where people feel safe, regardless of your race, the color of your skin,” she said.

“And we’re going to continue to do that. This could be a catalyst for that, and we’ll continue on.”

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VIDEOS, CONTINUED FROM 9 That document outlines a hearing process for alleged violations. The process begins when a student receives notification via email of his or her potential involvement in an alleged violation. After that, a conduct meeting occurs between the student and the hearing body during which student rights and responsibilities are reviewed, the report is reviewed, the student shares additional information and the hearing body makes a decision regarding responsibility.

The matter can ultimately be resolved either through mutual resolution — this occurs when the violator waives the option to go to a hearing and accepts any recommended

“I don’t think in this environment, anyone is in a place where they don’t know that these behaviors are not acceptable.”

September 2-8, 2020

— Michael Naylor, president of the WCU African American Alumni Society

sanctions delivered for the violation — or through a formal hearing, during which the Hearing Board receives testimony and evidence, deliberates and hands down a finding of responsibility and recommended sanctions.

There are specific timelines attached to this process. According to the Student Code of Conduct, a student alleged to have violated the code has five days to set up a conduct meeting. The student is then entitled to at least 10 days’ notice before a hearing is held, unless he or she waives the 10-day preparation period in writing.

In light of these timelines, university action in response to the videos occurred swiftly. At 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 25, the university announced that all five students who appeared in the videos “are no longer

enrolled at WCU and will not return” — just three days after the first video surfaced. The university declined to comment specifically as to whether the students were formally expelled, whether hearings were held, and which aspects of the Student Code of Conduct they violated. Student disciplinary records are protected as education records under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

UNIVERSITY ACTION GARNERS PRAISE Reaction to the students’ departure has been overwhelmingly positive, particularly among students of color who attended the Aug. 26 event.

“Everybody’s feelings are valid about what happened,” said Black Student Union President Brittney Windham during her public comments at the event. “We’re all a little angry and upset, and I’m so proud of this university for actually stepping up and expelling the students.”

Freshman Adam Naylor said that, in his opinion, there’s just no place on campus for that kind of racially charged language. He’s glad the students are gone.

“By now you’re expected to live on your own, you’re expected to do your laundry, you’re expected to keep track of your balance and your money and your classes and time,” he said. “You should have known by now that this is unacceptable. This is not something you should say. If we’ve heard you say it, if there’s proof that you’ve said it, there’s no excuse.”

For Naylor, the use of the “n” word was deplorable, as was the “carefree” attitude of the students using it.

“It seemed to me that it was in their everyday vocabulary that they felt so comfortable saying it while they could clearly see they were being recorded,” he said.

Senior Thomas Golden, who serves as secretary for the Black Student Union and president of the Nu Zeta chapter of Alpha Phi

Alpha, said that he believes in free speech, but also in due consequences.

“You have to be a man or a woman and take your consequences,” he said.

Senior Michael Minder, who is majoring in chemistry, biology and forensic science, agreed that expulsion was the right call in this circumstance but said that developing a rocksolid policy as to what crosses the line and what does not will be difficult. The lines are blurred, and things aren’t always cut and dry.

However, he said, it’s a goal worthy of whatever effort it takes to get there.

“We know how hard it is to make a policy, but we also understand that policies have been made for other things,” he said.

Michael Naylor, a 1982 graduate who is president of the WCU African American Alumni Society, said that the consensus among Black alumni is that they’re “disappointed, but not surprised,” about the videos.

He applauds the university’s reaction and hopes to see student activists ride the momentum they have beneath them to “see if we can get some pretty swift and hopefully positive results out of this.”

“I don’t think in this environment, anyone is in a place where they don’t know that these behaviors are not acceptable,” he said.

FIRST AMENDMENT INVOLVEMENT The discussion necessarily involves questions as to how the First Amendment applies when it comes to racially charged speech.

That amendment, among other provisions, prohibits the government from “abridging the freedom of speech.” The American Civil Liberties Union has long taken the position that “restrictions on speech by public colleges and universities amount to government censorship, in violation of the Constitution.”

“To be clear, the First Amendment does not protect behavior on campus that crosses the line into targeted harassment or threats, or that creates a pervasively hostile environ-

HealthPATH

ment for vulnerable students,” reads an article on the ACLU website titled “Speech on Campus.” “But merely offensive or bigoted speech does not rise to that level and determining when conduct crosses that line is a legal question that requires examination on a case-by-case basis. Restricting such speech may be attractive to college administrators as a quick fix to address campus tensions. But real social change comes from hard work to address the underlying causes of inequality and bigotry, not from purified discourse.”

The value we place on the right to free speech is “put to its severest test when the speaker is someone we disagree with the most,” the article states.

“Speech that deeply offends our morality or is hostile to our way of life warrants the same constitutional protection as other speech because the right of free speech is indivisible: When we grant the government the power to suppress controversial ideas, we are all subject to censorship by the state,” it continues.

The article clarified that speech that constitutes a “true threat of physical violence” is not protected, and that if a particular student is being continually harassed so as to be unable to “participate fully in the life of the university,” the school “must” take action.

However, the article warns, it’s dangerous to rely on speech restrictions to fight generalized bigotry.

“Although drafted with the best intentions, these restrictions are often interpreted and enforced to oppose social change,” the article reads. “Why? Because they place the power to decide whether speech is offensive and should be restrained with authority figures — the government or a college administration — rather than with those seeking to question or dismantle existing power structures.”

In response to a request for comment on this perspective, WCU replied that the university supports “all First Amendment rights enjoyed by our campus community.”

“The university continuously evaluates campus speech pursuant to the most current, available jurisprudence,” said the WCU General Counsel Office.

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BY BOYD ALLSBROOK y CONTRIBUTING WRITER ince its opening in 2014, the Haywood Pathways Center has become a lifechanging place for people in Haywood County. Originally founded as a shelter for people experiencing homelessness or getting y out of jail, it is now a holistic care and rehabilitation program. Residents are given warm beds, good food, and most importantly, resources for returning to the workforce.

As a nonprofit, Pathways relies heavily on t donations to support its work. While churches and members of the community have been generous, this funding model can be inconsistent. Pathways Director Mandi Haithcox t spoke recently about a new project to generate regular income.

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Last year’s HHF Annual Golf & Gala event netted $74,000, and those funds, as well as net proceeds from other HHF fund raising events, were dedicated to the expansion of Haywood Community College’s (HCC’s) Health Sciences Education Center and Programs.

When the expansion is complete, HCC would serve up to 100 additional health education students per year, thus providing many necessary healthcare professionals for our communities.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we regret to inform you that the “29th Annual Charitable Classic Golf & Gala” must be canceled. The safety and wellbeing of our golfers and guests is tremendously important to the Foundation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the forefront the important role our healthcare heroes play in our community. Your support is needed now, more than ever, to ensure we can support the critical healthcare our community needs. Your generosity, will help us complete the expansion of HCC’s Health Sciences Education Center, and dramatically increase its capacity as outlined in the enclosed information.

Being a part of the community, we hope you will be able to support this important initiative. The need is critical!

We look forward to the time when we can all be together again for our Annual Charitable Classic Golf & Gala. Thank you for your partnership Donations can be made to: HH Foundaton, 262 Leroy George Drive, Clyde, NC 28721.

Credit Card donations may be made by calling our office at 828-452-8343.

Smoky Mountain News

are we really going to open food service in the middle of COVID? But then it’s outdoors, which seems to be the only thing that works.”

The truck will serve hot dogs, hamburgers, and similar cook-out dishes. All money spent at the Holy Cow will go directly toward helping those staying at the center.

“The goal is to be able to provide some funds for our general operating support. But then also the big picture is moving towards helping residents with employment and job skills once we’re established,” she said.

“Things like culinary, customer service — helping folks who have spotty resumes get some job experience and transition them into the community workforce. That’s kind of the big-picture vision but right now we’re just trying to get going.”

The food truck will operate at several different locations, including the Bethel Professional Building, Waynesville’s South Main Street, and Canton’s First Baptist Church. Follow the Holy Cow Facebook page for updates.

Pathways is more than halfway to meeting its $5,000 fundraising goal to install a new walk-in freezer to use for food storage.

To donate, visit www.facebook.com/ haywoodpathwayscenter.

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September 2-8, 2020

“One thing we’ve wanted to do from the very beginning is to have some sort of social enterprise so we can help fund ourselves,” she said. “We had a donor say “I’ll give you the money for a food truck. Find the matching U funds and we’ll go from there.’ We were able to do that.”

Pathways bought a run-down carnival trailer from McLeod Concessions. Jackson County’s Tuckasegee Wesleyan Church worked every weekend on restoring the truck, remodeling it inside and out. In July, they finished and brought it to the Pathways Center.

“Cute as beans,” interjected Haithcox when describing the finished truck. “They named it Elsie, and it’s called the Holy Cow because it serves hamburgers.”

Pathways assembled a team to crew the truck. Serendipitously, the line cook had already worked seven years on the Holy Cow truck when it had been a carnival trailer.

“It had been his grandmother’s, so he knows the ins and outs of it. And now he’s here, working on it as his job,” Haithcox said.

The food truck has been at New Covenant Church, where the congregation got to test out the food and give feedback. Although they had planned to launch the truck last week, they were delayed by technical difficulties at the Pathways commissary kitchen.

Despite this minor setback, Haithcox said they still plan to open in September. She laughed about the timing, saying, “It’s like,

A golf tournament slated for Friday, Sept. 25, in Cruso will raise funds for Haywood Pathways Center and The Community Kitchen.

The event will take place at Springdale at Cold Mountain. Golfers will enjoy Holy Cow breakfast burritos, access to the driving range, 18 holes of golf, cart rental and a boxed lunch from Black Bear Café. This will be a Captain’s Choice tournament in which each team will start at an assigned tee time from 8 a.m. to noon so that health precautions can be observed. All players must wear masks.

The event will be the first Unified Charitable Golf Outing for the two independent nonprofits, which help people experiencing food insecurity and homelessness in Haywood County. COVID-19 has affected both organizations’ traditional fundraising plans while also increasing demand for emergency assistance. As partners in service, the groups agreed to further their partnership in creating this unified fundraising venture.

Register by Sept. 18. The fee is $150 per golfer or $600 per team. Advantage packages and raffle tickets are available with registration or on the day of the event.

Register online at www.haywoodpathwayscenter.org or in person at Haywood Pathways Center in Waynesville or The Community Kitchen in Canton.

Event sponsors are wanted, as are local businesses and individuals willing to donate an item or service to the raffle.

Contact mandy@haywoodpathways.org or thecommunitykitchen@gmail.com, or visit www.haywoodpathwayscenter.org.

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Smoky Mountain News September 2-8, 2020

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Cherokee seeks to amend election ordinances

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER he Cherokee Tribal Council is likely to vote this week on proposed changes to several sections of the tribe’s election ordinance.

The body has been discussing the changes in a series of work sessions this summer but must finalize any amendments before Oct. 1. Tribal law states that the election ordinance cannot be amended during an election year, which is defined as a period from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30 during which an election is held. Tribal elections will take place in September 2021.

The election ordinance was last amended in December 2018, with that Tribal Council first passing an ordinance that amended the definition of “election year” to allow changes through Dec. 31. The definition was later changed back to the original Oct. 1 to Sept.

30 period.

The ordinance amendments are on the agenda for the Tribal Council meeting set to start at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 3. If the proposed changes are adopted, the following provisions would go into effect.

T

QUALIFICATIONS FOR OFFICE

With tribal elections coming up next year, Tribal Council has until Oct. 1 to pass any changes to the current election ordinance. Holly Kays photo

CERTIFICATION OF CANDIDATES • The filing period would shorten from the previous window of March 1-15 to run from the first Monday to the first Friday in March.

• The Board of Elections would have the power to require any candidate to appear before it and answer questions about his or her application for candidacy.

• The law would affirmatively state that the board “shall” certify any candidate who meets all the qualifications for office and is not disqualified for running.

• Currently, the Board of Elections sends notice to each candidate after the filing period ends stating that it has either certified or declined to certify that candidate, and candidates who are not certified can appeal the decision. Under the proposed changes, the board would be required to hold a hearing before making a decision on certification in any cases in which eligibility is unclear.

• In the case of a certification hearing, the applicant would have the right to ask the Board to issue subpoenas on his or her behalf. The board would be able to issue subpoenas on its own behalf as well.

• The applicant would bear the burden of proof to prove “by a preponderance of the evidence” that he or she meets the qualifications for candidacy.

• The Board of Elections must publish a list of candidates in the Cherokee One Feather by April 15, and if any additional candidates are certified after that date, the entire list must be republished with the new name included as soon as possible.

• In decertification hearings, the burden of proof would be on the moving party, not the candidate, to prove “by a preponderance of evidence” that the person is not qualified to run for office.

ELECTION REGULARITIES AND PROTESTS • Only enrolled members who are registered to vote in tribal elections would be able to file a protest alleging election irregularities.

• The board could decide not to order a hearing if it determines that the protest fails to meet the minimum requirements set forth in Cherokee Code 161-16(b); or if the alleged regularities “even if taken as true in the light most favorable to the protestor” cannot be shown to have affected the election’s ultimate outcome. The current ordinance states that the board can decline to hold a hearing if it determines that it can render an “informed decision” based on the written protest and supporting materials; • If the decision is appealed to the Cherokee Supreme Court, notice of appeal must be given no later than three business days after the final decision is served.

MISCELLANEOUS • The board can apply to the Cherokee Court for an order requiring compliance with subpoenas should any person or entity

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refuse to obey a subpoena the board issues.

• Write-in candidates must file with the Board of Elections between the first Monday and the first Friday in April preceding a Primary Election. Currently the window extends from April 1 to April 15.

• A candidate may voluntarily withdraw from the race by submitting a written letter to the board stating that desire. The candidate’s name will be removed from the ballot if the ballots have not yet been printed. If the ballots have been printed, all votes for that candidate will be considered null and void.

• The immediate family members who reside in the household of a tribal member serving active military duty would be eligible for an absentee ballot.

• It would be illegal to photograph or otherwise record the image of any voter within the voting closure, or to photograph or otherwise record a voted ballot.

• Email and text messages would be listed as acceptable methods for official communication from the board.

• Language stating that parties to hearings before the board have the right to a lay advocate represent them would be stricken, but language stating the right to an attorney would remain.

September 2-8, 2020

• Chief and vice chief candidates would be 35 years old by the date of the General Election and tribal council candidates would be 18, whereas currently candidates must reach the qualifying age before the Primary Election.

• Tribal Council candidates would reside in the township they seek to represent for at least 90 days before the General Election and chief and vice chief candidates would live on tribal trust lands for at least two years, whereas currently candidates must meet the residency requirement by the date of the Primary Election.

• The list of items making a person ineligible to hold office would change so as to make the law better align with the tribe’s Charter and Governing Document. Under the proposed changes, removal by impeachment from an elected office would make a person ineligible, but removal by impeachment from an appointed office would not.

The proposed changes remove a provision stating a person would become ineligible to run after resigning from office while under criminal investigation or pending charges for fraud. A provision adopted in 2018 would also be removed, which states that someone who is more than 90 days in default of a debt to the tribe would be disqualified.

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Haywood Arts Council to request COVID relief funds

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serve more than seven arts organizations and hundreds of artists countywide. The arts in Haywood County enrich the lives of county residents, educate our children, and reach our disenfranchised. What’s more they have both healing and inspirational effects.”

The letter asks for $160,000 of Haywood County’s $2,473,363 in CARES Act funding.

If granted, the HCAC would be responsible for distributing funds to artists in need.

Making sure the money is distributed quickly is vital. The longer an organization stays closed, the harder it is to reopen.

“All funds will be distributed by December 31, 2020,” wrote Forrester. “Time is not our friend here.”

In the meantime, the HCAC will continue moving forward under the new normal.

Community members are strongly encouraged to support the arts safely, and to give generously.

“We need your support if the Haywood County Arts Council is to survive this year,” said Forrester. A calendar of their upcoming events is available at www.haywoodarts.org/events.

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WCU library expands historic Swain photo collection

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of Special and Digital Collections. “They also offer the only views of the village of Hewitt, in Swain County, that I have ever seen, which makes the collection very exciting.

“We are so fortunate to be able to share these fascinating images and owe a debt of gratitude to both their donor, Mrs. Jean Douthit, and to the Friends of the Bryson City Cemetery, who helped facilitate the donation and identified people and places in the photographs,” Brady said.

The collection can be viewed at digitalcollections.wcu.edu. For more information, contact Hunter Library’s Special and Digital Collections at 828.227.7474 or specialcollections@wcu.edu.

Smoky Mountain News

Western Carolina University has obtained a rare photographic glimpse of Bryson City and Swain County in the early 1900s, thanks to a recent donation to Hunter Library’s renowned Special and Digital Collections.

The nearly 100 images from early 20thcentury Swain County were taken by Frank Emmett Fry, a mining superintendent and later hotel operator who lived from 1877 to 1939. The black and white photos come from glass plate negatives and have been digitized for online viewing.

The collection was donated to Hunter Library by Jean Sandlin Douthit, a granddaughter of Fry. Douthit also is a member of the Friends of the Bryson City Cemetery, a nonprofit group that helped facilitate the donation.

The photos taken by Fry include his family, friends and neighbors; the unincorporated community of Hewitt, where he was superintendent of the North Carolina Talc and Mining Company; and the county seat of Bryson City, where he and his wife, Martha “Mattie” Pender Fry, later owned and operated the Entella Hotel, as well as mountain landscapes and agricultural scenes.

“Frank Fry’s photographs have lovely composition, are expertly executed, and remain in near-perfect condition after well over a century of existence, which makes them quite rare and of great value to researchers,” said Jason Brady, interim chief

news

BY BOYD ALLSBROOK CONTRIBUTING WRITER uring the Haywood County Arts Council’s annual meeting, Executive Director Leigh Forrester recently outlined the extensive losses the art community has suffered due to COVID-19.

“We find ourselves in the red,” said Forrester during the Zoom meeting. Limited funding from the Tourism Development Authority, canceled events and gallery closings have contributed to especially tough times for artists in Haywood County. A midAugust survey of nine Haywood County arts and culture organizations showed $973,000 lost for pandemic reasons.

Even more devastating — more than 365 artists had contracts terminated in recent months. These losses prompted the HCAC to pen a letter to the Haywood County Board of Commissioners requesting CARES Act funding.

“The arts develop and supply a creative workforce that is essential to Haywood County’s economy, employing 365 people.

This sector is too vital to lose,” Forrester wrote in the letter. “On your behalf we

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Best in the West: A two-day N.C.-11 candidate forum Republican Madison Cawthorn and Democrat Moe Davis, candidates for the North Carolina congressional seat left vacant by White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, have both agreed to appear at a two-day joint forum hosted by Moe Davis three of the district’s largest media outlets.

On the evenings of Friday, Sept. 4, and Saturday, Sept. 5, candidates will join moderator Cory Vaillancourt and a diverse panel of guests for “Best in the West: North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District Forum.”

The first event, to be held at Western Carolina University’s Biltmore Park instructional site, will feature questions by Lenoir-Rhyne University Equity and Diversity Institute program developer Aisha Adams, former Asheville Citizen-Times political reporter and current

Mountain Xpress contributor Mark Barrett and Pete Kaliner, longtime N.C. political reporter, radio host and podcaster.

Topics will include international, national, state and urban issues.

The second event, to be held at Western Carolina Madison Cawthorn University in Cullowhee, will include WCU political science and public affairs department chair Chris Cooper, WCU professor of economics and director of WCU’s Center for the Study of Free Enterprise Edward Lopez and Principal Chief Richard G. Sneed, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Topics will include rural issues, native issues and education.

Due to venue capacity limits currently in place, events will not be open to the public, but will be livestreamed. Watch live at 7:30 p.m. both nights at www.facebook.com/blueridgepublic.

Despite pandemic, WCU sets new enrollment record For the ninth time in the last 10 years, Western Carolina University is starting the year with a record high enrollment — despite earlier concerns that the Coronavirus Pandemic could cause a decrease in enrollment.

“I believe that Western Carolina University’s reputation for offering a highquality college education at an affordable price has helped us weather the storm that many institutions across the nation are facing this fall because of the pandemic,” said WCU Chancellor Kelli R. Brown. “We also are seeing a larger than usual number of applications for the coming spring semester, which I believe indicates that some students have opted to stay on the sidelines this fall to see how things shake out with the pandemic.”

As of the 10th day of classes Aug. 27, 12,243 students were enrolled at the school, a slight increase over the 12,167 students enrolled at the same point last year.

The growth is driven in part by an alltime high retention rate, with 81.57 percent of last year’s freshman class returning for the fall semester, up from the previous record retention rate of 80.06 percent.

An increase in graduate and distance learning students has also contributed to the high enrollment. The number of dis-

tance learning students rose from 2,460 in fall 2019 to 2,594 this year for a 5.45 percent increase. Meanwhile, graduate enrollment increased by 1.65 percent, a boost that is likely due in part to the new master’s degree program in experiential and outdoor education, which now enrolls 21 students.

Increased graduate enrollment is likely to continue through the spring. Currently 521 graduate students are enrolled for the spring semester, 80 more than at the same point last year.

The overall increase in enrollment comes despite a substantial drop in firsttime, first-year students and transfer students. The number of first-time, first-year students plummeted 14.5 percent from last year’s tally to 1,780, and transfer student enrollment dipped by 7 percent to 929.

The enrollment numbers are from official census statistics compiled by WCU’s Office of Institutional Planning and Effectiveness and released late Friday, Aug. 28. Although classes began Monday, Aug. 17, enrollment is not official until after the 10th day of classes, referred to as “census day.” Even then, the numbers are not considered final until any errors have been corrected and the files have been submitted to the University of North Carolina System offices.

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Former NYPD detective provides crisis training for cops

BY J ESSI STONE N EWS E DITOR et. Sgt. Ron Martin often uses a popular Star Trek anecdote to make a point about making difficult changes when the current ways aren’t netting the best results.

When Starfleet Academy cadet James Kirk did the Kobayashi Maru training exercise — one that is considered a “no-win scenario” test — he failed the first two times. But the third time, he did what no one else had thought to do; he reprogrammed the test simulator so he could meet the challenge without having to face the consequences. It was essentially cheating, but in the end he was the first person to beat the test and was commended for “original thinking” that saved the civilian vessel from the Klingons.

It probably didn’t seem like the right or the popular thing to do, but the soon-to-be Capt. Kirk did it anyway and turned a certain loss into a win-win situation. That’s what needs to happen within the criminal justice system, Martin said.

“If we want a different result, we have to do things differently,” he said.

Martin has more than 20 years of experience as a law enforcement officer, including his time working for the New York Police Department. At the NYPD, he trained officers to a highly proficient level of community patrol, enforcement and public security. He supervised narcotics teams conducting street level buy and sell operations and warrant executions, and managed mid- to high-level narcotic cases involving pen wires leading to extensive criminal prosecution. He also consulted directly with the chief of police and the mayor of New York City on issues of internal misconduct and worked as a narcotics supervisor for the last three years with the department. Martin said something shifted after Sept. 11, 2001. As New York City and the rest of the nation tried collectively to pick up the pieces, priorities among law enforcement and other first responders in the city had to change. He said it became clear to him that policing practices also needed to change in response to that change.

“I had an epiphany I guess, that there needed to be a better balance between living and dying,” he said. “We needed to reprioritize who we arrest and ask ourselves what’s more important than the value of lives.”

Knowing his expertise in law enforcement and also his willingness to re-evaluate how law enforcement reacts to issues of addiction and homelessness, Martin said his wife put his name forward to someone working to ramp up harm reduction programs in North Carolina.

While the North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition was already up and running with programs happening in the more urban areas, Martin could bring more credibility to convincing others of the positive outcomes of these programs, especially Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training for fellow law enforcement.

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“My voice in the matter is just heard differently. Some (harm reduction advocates) may get push back from first responders and law enforcement officers but it’s easier coming from me,” he said.

That’s been true in Haywood County lately. Even though Haywood is one of a few counties in the state with full-time harm reduction boots on the ground, these advocates have been unable to convince some residents and a couple of county leaders of the benefits of programs, with the syringe program being the most controversial.

After many months of discussion and debate over the effectiveness of harm-reduction measures — including impassioned pleas from NCHRC representatives Jesse-Lee Dunlap and Becca Goldstein — Haywood

Det. Sgt. Ron Martin.

County commissioners finally voted to extend its contract with the coalition for another six months. However, Republican Commissioners Brandon Rogers and Mark Pless (who is running for state representative) voted against it. Through this contract to utilize federal grant money, the coalition works to link people to resources for substance use disorder and temporary housing.

Martin admits it can be a hard sell because people think providing clean needles to addicts is enabling them to use, creating more dirty needle pollution in the community and leading to more crime, even though the data shows otherwise. But if he can get in front of a room of law enforcement and share his experiences, it can bring about a greater opportunity for police buy-in when it comes to using harm reduction models.

“Some of that comes from me selling myself and being credible, but also it has to do with common sense and getting them to understand the consequences of what we do,” Martin said. “When you arrest someone at the scene there’s a ripple effect throughout the entire community.”

It’s understandable for officers to focus solely on their obligation

— Det. Sgt. Ron Martin

to enforce the laws, but Martin said he tries to get LEOs to think more about the impact of an arrest after the person is booked. He wants them to question the outcomes — if I arrest this woman for drug possession, what happens to her kids? If I arrest this man for loitering because he’s homeless, who does that benefit?

Sometimes arresting a person is in the best interest of the community, especially if they are a danger to themselves or others or they committed a violent crime. On the other hand, an arrest can make a bad situation worse for everyone involved and doesn’t do anything to enhance the safety of the community. The most important point Martin makes to officers is that something has to change if they want something to change. If communities want better outcomes, society has to change the processes.

“The whole buy-in comes from any paradigm changing and that just comes with time,” he said.

Harm reduction has made major headway in North Carolina from 2012 through 2019, but then 2020 came with some unexpected challenges. With COVID-19 and a resurgence

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The lack of mental health crisis services across the U.S. has resulted in law enforcement officers serving as first responders to most crises. A Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) program is an innovative, community-based approach to improve the outcomes of these encounters.

CIT programs: • Give police officers more tools to do their job safely and effectively. Research shows that CIT is associated with improved officer attitude and knowledge about mental illness.

• Keep law enforcement’s focus on crime.

Some communities have found that CIT has reduced the time officers spend responding to a mental health call. This puts officers back into the community more quickly.

• Produce cost savings. It’s difficult to estimate exactly how much diversion programs can save communities, but incarceration is costly compared to community-based treatment.

For more information, visit www.nami.org. a problem. He wants to see a greater sense of professionalism return to agencies.

“Having a knee on someone’s neck is bad policing and not calling it out is defending it,” Martin said. “I want to teach officers about all

September 2-8, 2020

Finding A Way

of civil/racial unrest, law enforcement has had to adapt to the best of its ability. Trying to limit public interactions and keep the virus from spreading in the jails, certain types of arrests have decreased and jail populations are down to manageable numbers because officers are being more mindful about who they arrest and judges are being more mindful about who stays in jail. These are both positive steps from a harm reduction standpoint.

As far as Black Lives Matters protesters taking to the streets, looters destroying property, rioters tearing down Confederate monuments and counter-protesters murdering innocent protesters, well all that puts a bad taste in law enforcement’s mouth.

“Now cops are thinking, ‘the public has declared war against us, why am I gonna save anyone’s life?’ At the same time we’re seeing a spike in overdoses and it’s more problematic than it was before,” Martin said. “I think some things will revert back to how they were before and some will be new changes we move forward with.”

He is not a believer in “defunding” the police, but he is a proponent of police reform because he understands that “bad policing” is

What is CIT Training?

the mini-judgments they make that get them to that point. The number one police power will be discretion and that will mean the difference between liberty and incarceration for people.”

CIT training is educating first responders to think through the discretion they have and using their power in a way that is for the greater good of the community — that’s at the heart of community patrolling. This is what Martin teaches to more than a thousand officers a year through his part-time position with the North Carolina Harm Reduction Coalition. He also serves on the board of directors. The harm reduction model is something he’s passionate about and something he gravitated toward because of his experience in law enforcement.

While he finds himself more on the advocate side of the fence these days, he understands it’s a fine line to walk on both sides. As former law enforcement, he sees how some harm reduction advocates tend to have “all or nothing” thinking. They want all the change to happen immediately and the change to happen in a certain way, but that’s not how progress occurs. It’s more like a pendulum that swings back and forth before finding balance in the middle.

“CIT would be a tremendous benefit to any agency. I’ve watched police departments be transformed,” Martin said. “The bottom line is how they incorporate themselves in the community and that they have the ability to do things differently, but they need to know they’re supported if they try stepping out of the norms.”

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“I had an epiphany I guess, that there needed to be a better balance between living and dying. We needed to reprioritize who we arrest and ask ourselves what’s more important than the value of lives.”

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Smoky Mountain News

Share your memories!

Submit your favorite recipe to be featured in our inaugural holiday cookbook. We’re looking for all types of dishes, from traditional homestyle favorites to farm-to-table delights.

www.tastethemountains.com Appetizers Beverages

Soups Salads

Main Dishes Side Dishes

Breads Desserts

*If you would rather write out your recipes, you can mail them in. Please include your name, email or phone, dish name, ingredients and instructions. PO Box 629 • Waynesville, NC 28786 While we thank you for submitting your recipes, due to space all recipes may not be printed in this year’s edition.

22

Business

Smoky Mountain News

Terrace Hotel wins Tripadvisor Award The Terrace hotel at Lake Junaluska has been recognized as a 2020 Travelers’ Choice Award winner. Based on a full year of Tripadvisor reviews, award winners are known for consistently receiving great traveler feedback, placing them in the top 10 percent of hospitality businesses worldwide.

“We are honored to receive a Travelers’ Choice Award,” said Ken Howle, executive director of Lake Junaluska.

“We pride ourselves in being The Terrace hotel at Lake Junaluska. hospitality leaders and exceedLake Junaluska photo ing guests’ expectations every day at our scenic lakeside location.”

The 2020 Travelers’ Choice award marks the fifth award Tripadvisor has bestowed on The Terrace in recognition of excellence since 2016.

New preschool The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce Ambassador team recently held a ribbon cutting and grand opening ceremony on Thursday, Aug. 27 for Tiny Toes Learning Center.

Located at 60 West Sylva Shopping Center (beside Harold’s Supermarket), Tiny Toes is a preschool for children 3 to 6 years old. The center is committed to teaching children the skills they need to enter kindergarten and be successful. It is state accredited with a state approved curriculum.

Subsidies are accepted. For more information, call 828.631.9545.

WCU named to Forbes’ list Western Carolina University was recently named to Forbes’ second annual ranking of America’s “Best-In-State Employer.”

Forbes partnered with market research company Statista to pinpoint those organizations liked best by employees. The list is divided into 51 rankings — one for each state, plus the District of Columbia. Out of top 100 organizations to make the North Carolina list, WCU ranked No. 66.

“This is tremendous recognition for Western Carolina University and is a testament to the hard-working, dedicated faculty and staff who make WCU such a special place,” said Cory Causby, WCU’s associate vice chancellor of human resources.

The respondents were asked to rate their employers on a variety of criteria, including safety of work environment, competitiveness of compensation, opportunities for advancement and openness to telecommuting. Statista then asked respondents how likely they’d be to recommend their employer to others and to nominate organizations in industries outside their own.

Health business launches in Franklin Above and Beyond Nutrition recently opened a new location in Franklin at 217 Highlands Road in Franklin.

The store offers herbal tea, high quality protein shakes and homemade protein waffles. Dance fitness classes are offered at 6 p.m. The cost is $7 with tea and a shake included.

For more information, contact Jazmin at 402.885.5531.

Fine Things open in Sylva The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors recently held a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony for Fine Things Furniture.

The store carries new furniture for living rooms, dining rooms and bedrooms. It also has rustic furniture and wood rocking chairs. Catalog orders can be taken as well. Fine Things is located at 259 West Main Street in Sylva, just behind Speedy’s, beside Creekside Oyster House. For more information, call 828.631.0795.

WCU offers online two-day certificate Western Carolina University’s Office of Professional Growth and Enrichment will be offering a live two-day online Effective Organizational Change Management Certificate, from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 21 and Monday, Oct. 26.

Todd Creasy, director of accounting, finance, information systems and business law, in WCU’s College of Business and Betty Farmer, professor of

communication at WCU and communications consultant, will serve as workshops instructors.

This two-day workshop will include a big picture view of change management on the first day with proven pathways, ideas and tips to make your change effort successful. On day two, the training will focus on change communication including the importance of communicating a compelling vision, understanding employee perspectives and developing messages that are tailored both to the audience and the situation.

Registration fee for the program is $549. For more information and to register, visit pdp.wcu.edu and click on “Certificate Programs” or call 828.227.7397.

Franklin welcomes fitness center The Franklin Chamber of Commerce recently held a ribbon-cutting celebration recently for Gwynn Lindler Fitness.

Gwynn Lindler takes personalized fitness training to women age 55 and above — both in-home and online. “Your lifestyle, activities, and interests are the foundation for developing a fitness plan that enhances you and improves your life,” said Lindler.

Call Gwynn for a consultation at 704.236.1319 or email at gwynnlindlerfitness@gmail.com.

WCU offers digital marketing certificate Western Carolina University’s Office of Professional Growth and Enrichment will be offering a live online Digital Marketing & Public Relations Certificate program from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Fridays starting Sept. 18 through Nov. 6.

Over the course of the program, participants will create an online marketing communications strategy and powerhouse digital toolbox by completing six full-day workshops taught by expert marketing and public relations professionals.

Participants will learn the new rules of marketing and public relations and explore the advantages of digital communications and gain new insights into public relations and marketing strategy, branding, online content creation, video creation and use, social media and how to effectively track marketing and public relations results.

Registration fee for the full program is $640, individual workshops are $119 each.

For more information and to register, visit pdp.wcu.edu or email Jill Thompson, WCU’s associate director of professional development at jcthompson@wcu.edu.

New outdoors business in Haywood Maggie Valley residents Steve and Beth Kasper opened The Happy Campers online store recently from their workshop in Maggie Valley.

Décor is themed to fit our lives here in the Smokies. The Happy Campers celebrate the great

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outdoors, family, and fun in this amazing playground they call home.

The Campers invite you to visit their online store at www.thehappycampersigns.com. The Happy Campers will also happily design custom signs for your business at wholesale prices.

The Kaspers have been Haywood County residents since 2009.

Shelnutt promoted to real estate manager United Community Bank recently announced the promotion of Lisa Shelnutt to Commercial Real Estate Division Manager.

In this expanded role, Shelnutt will manage all commercial real state efforts throughout the bank’s five-state footprint, partnering with local markets to ensure clients receive quality solutions that meet their needs.

“Lisa’s leadership and success has been, and continues to be, a key driver of growth for United Community Bank and our clients,” said Dixon Woodward, State President of South Carolina and Coastal Georgia and the bank’s Commercial Real Estate Executive. “Her experience, credit skill and relationship-oriented approach make her the ideal banker to lead our CRE team.”

Shelnutt joined United in 2012. She holds nearly 30 years of experience in commercial real estate Lending, having been involved in over $2 billion worth of real estate loans throughout her career. Her background also includes a variety of relationship management and credit approval roles for TD Bank, Carolina First Bank and the former Wachovia Bank and First Union Bank.

Habitat helps Macon businesses The Macon County Habitat for Humanity came to the aid of the Franklin Chamber of Commerce, a local nonprofit business, recently by building awnings for their two rear entrances.

Habitat is instrumental in helping many nonprofits and homeowners with needs. The Chamber wishes to publicly thank them for their kind service.

Business owners expand in Waynesville J Gabriel opened an additional location in Downtown Waynesville in August.

The downtown shop will open the backdoors to a new store called J Gabriel Embroidery.

Customers will be able to enter through Main Street or Wall Street. The parking lot has been updated with new gravel and paint on the Wall Street entrance.

If any customer buys from any vendor downtown and wants that item embroidered or monogrammed, bring in your receipt and get 10 percent off.

All downtown vendors will get 15 percent off their own personal items.

The shop will soon be able to do stickers and shirt printing as well.

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Opinion

Smoky Mountain News

Southern pride has a dark history To the Editor: Haywood County 2020: I can’t drive down the street without seeing a representation of a Confederate flag. It’s flying in my neighbor’s yard, waving from the backs of unnecessarily jacked up trucks, and on T-shirts, hats and bumper stickers.

Let’s be honest, you can’t swing a possum without hitting the stars and bars.

All views are not going to align with mine in the world.

That’s acceptable. I understand the complexities of the Confederate flag/Southern pride argument. Like most issues, it is not simple. There are nuances. But folks need to be willing to embrace the entire story of the flag’s history. If you are comfortable with the entire story, after that, then more power to you. But don’t walk into it blindly.

A person who is a Civil War buff, battlefield reenactor, or devoted historian might not be seeing beyond their “attachment” to the flag. It was created in the 1800s as part of Southern rebellion against the United States. The deep, deep racism that is a part of slavery is so much a part of that flag and what is represented. As a collective, we should all be able to recognize that the flag represents racism, hate and negativity for many peoples of all backgrounds. We should put people first and care for others (this include people’s “feelings”).

Sidenote: I’m not sure when caring about other people’s feelings became stigmatized. Being nasty and downright cruel has become such a mainstream ideology with insults such as “snowflake” attached to any person who shows the least bit of humanity. Stop demonizing sensitivity. Geez.

When someone says “my family fought for the South” as if that somehow entitles them to this symbol ... yep, so did my ancestors. It is not something we’ve celebrated. It’s part of our

Not all police are bad To the Editor: In response to Margaret Abel’s rhetorical question “what would our Founding Fathers do?”

To quote from the First Amendment to our Constitution: “Congress shall make no laws …. Abridging the right of people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

I believe the key word here is “peaceably.”

The protests going on around our country now are in no way considered “peaceful.”

What has happened to the rights of the people not protesting? Why do their rights not matter? At least that is what it looks like, that protestors have taken over and destroyed whole city blocks, police departments as well as government buildings, stores, food establishments that those same people now no longer have access to. Again, what about their rights? What about the many people (business owners, employees, senior citizens, and neighbors) that used these now destroyed businesses? Where are their rights?

This is not just a one-sided amendment that only caters to those who wish to protest — and therein lies the rub. What about those that aren’t redressing grievances with the government? Why do those people now have to live with the destruction and aftermath of those exercising their First Amendment rights?

family history, sure, but no one has ever said “this is the best we’ve done”. If your family’s biggest point of pride was being on the losing side of history 155 years ago then perhaps your family has larger problems to evaluate.

I realize there were conscription laws in place. If you were told to serve the CSA and you refused, you’d be killed. Sheriff John Noland of Haywood County was famously shot down and ambushed on a remote mountain pass by men who were escaping their “duties” to fight in a war they didn’t believe in.

If you know Western North Carolina’s history, you’d recognize most mountain folks were poor before the war, hardly hit during, and suffered the brutal aftermath. Mountain folks were fighting a rich man’s war that had nothing to do with them personally (much like modern wars). The Confederacy did nothing for people of this region but leave families devasted. Generations of men folk — fathers and sons dead, women/children destitute and alone, and it opened up our world to carpet baggers who could buy property cheap and afford paying taxes on our homesteads which many couldn’t do after the war.

But I truly believe it’s important to understand where the “other side” is coming from. For you, it might be a symbol of history or Southern pride, but others do not view it through the same lens. Maybe it’s time to re-examine what you want to represent you, your family and your personal history. I’d also wager that the majority of those people who say this is a valuable symbol could probably not pass a middle school level history examination on the subject. During critical moments of reform, people cling to imperiled ideologies as a means to fight back. We see the same people criticizing athletes for taking a knee — disrespecting the flag — but defend flying the

LETTERS The Fourth Amendment states that, “The right of people to be secure in their persons ... against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated.” You state that the president’s use of “storm troopers is a flagrant violation of these amendments” and further state he is “only targeting those states and cities with Democratic governors and mayors.”

Forgive me if I’ve heard it wrong, but It seems these cities and states are the ones still being overtaken by the protestors and still burning.

These cities and states are also wanting to defund the police. This scenario is turning into real life “The Purge.”

Are their Fourth Amendment rights being disregarded? Obviously, yes, it has happened.

Do I condone this? Absolutely not. Do the majority of police condone this? Absolutely not. But is this the way to protest and call to defund all police when the vast majority of police are there to serve and protect? Who are you going to call when someone breaks into your house and threatens your family? I am from a police family, my husband worked as a detective, head of child abuse and vulnerable adults, dealing with the worst of the worst and even these worthless individuals had rights.

What I am saying is be careful what you ask for. I for one support the police. As I stated earlier, most police deal with bad people all

traitorous “rebel flag” or holding onto statues that were only erected years after the war during the Jim Crow era.

It’s time to move on and do the “right” thing. The future will look much different. By 2044, white America is predicted to fall below half the population and lose majority status. If this signifies some kind of doomsday clock for you, then it’s probably a good opportunity for you to have an honest self-inventory of your character. For those who adamantly argue it is not a symbol of racism or hate, then why would you bring it to a Black Lives Matter rally? Why have you allowed your meaningful symbol to be hijacked by hate groups? Have any of ya’ll Southern pride individuals ever confronted one of these racist individuals and said, “I’m taking back my flag. It’s heritage not hate” or “Black lives matter if all lives matter and that’s my flag!

Get on somewhere!” Nope. You know why. I know why. That flag represents something to you that maybe you can’t even explain to yourself. Self awareness is a sobering tool.

Our younger generations are thankfully a different breed.

They’ve access to a wealth of knowledge available at their fingertips. These kids are savvy. These kids are “woke.”These kids will change the world. My hope is these kids are going to save us from ourselves, show us a better way, accept others’ differences and embrace diversity to build better communities.

There’s plenty of reasons to have Southern pride. Be proud of a good work ethic. Be proud of building community and helping your neighbors. Be proud of our famous Southern hospitality, how we welcome in a stranger. Be proud of how we can relish our slow-downed lifestyle. Be proud of innovation and creativity. Be proud of perseverance in the face of adversity.

Come on y’all, can’t we just make cornbread a symbol of Southern pride? Crumble it up in milk, folks. It’ll change your life.

Heather Hyatt Packer Waynesville

day, every day. Bottom line is that a lot of people are their own worst enemy. Listen and do what the police instruct you to do. Don’t run, don’t reach into your pockets, or car or do anything that may be construed as dangerous for the officer. They are husbands/wives, fathers/mothers, sons/daughters, just normal people doing a job they love. They want to go home after work also. Not all police are bad so why are they all being portrayed as such?

Just my opinion, and contrary to popular belief, we are all entitled to our own opinions.

Vickie DeStefano Sylva

Restore sanity to the White House To the Editor: The White House is a broken train wreck.

The only way we Americans can restore sanity to the presidency, restore constitutionality to our democracy and restore integrity to the Oval Office is to use the hard-earned power of our votes. Look carefully at the antics we’ve witnessed in the last four years (and continue to observe daily on social media). Ask yourself if you are ready to have an experienced statesman with true character, faith, intelligence, diplomacy, decency, and respect for women and their abilities lead our beloved United States of America for the next four years?

Then do the only thing you can do to change it — vote!

Diane Davis Waynesville

We all have the right to be heard To the Editor: I have had the pleasure of reading many a fine editorial from SMN Editor Scott McLeod over the years, but the tone and the substance of last week's opinion piece “If you stay home, just keep quiet,” is one of the worst pieces I have ever read, from any source.

The Scott McLeod that I have read and enjoyed is a generally reliable source of sensitive, well-reasoned opinions that illuminate and educate on important matters, but this example distorts constitutional reality and states an actual falsehood, which is that, and I quote, “If you don’t vote ... you don't even really deserve the right to be heard.” The truth is that the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States gives me the right, as an American citizen, to express my self in any way I want to, subject only to the rights of others, and this right is not in any way tethered to an act of voting.

And exactly to that point, you cite numerous examples in your editorial of those who did not have actual vot-

Racism at WCU is reason to vote

Vote to end this insanity To the Editor: When I was a young girl studying my catechism we would read aloud in unison: “Who Loves You ... God Loves You, Who Made You ... We Were Created In The Image And Likeness Of God.” It was my understanding that it was true. God loved me and I was created in his image. However I didn’t think it applied only to me. In my childlike devotion I took it for granted that those statements applied to all humankind.

Now that I look back on those days, I realize there were areas of town where only Black people lived. The movies I saw and loved treated people of color poorly, made them subservient or objects of ridicule.

As I grew and became more aware of the world around me such things were no longer acceptable.

Once again, we are at a turning point in our society. It is time to take a good hard look at our country. Too many Black men and women have been sacrificed because of the color of their skin. Get honest, examine your conscience and think about it.

Donald Trump saying he has done more for Black people than any other president is just more of his baseless rhetoric. In the past four years he has torn this country apart. From the very beginning he espoused a policy of fear and distrust. As a result we have unrest in our streets and lost our standing in the world.

I’ve had enough of you “Mr. Great Deal Maker,” so I say, “no deal!” Vote to end this insanity!

Kathy Lang Waynesville

Best West IN THE

Smoky Mountain News, Blue Ridge Public Radio and Mountain Xpress PRESENT A TWO-DAY

NC CONGRESSIONAL

DISTRICT 11

Candidate Forum Republican Madison Cawthorn & Democrat Moe Davis Fri., Sept. 4 · 7:30 p.m.

Sat., Sept. 5 · 7:30 p.m.

WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY BILTMORE PARK

WESTERN CAROLINA UNIVERSITY CULLOWHEE

Questions by Lenoir-Rhyne University Equity and Diversity Institute program developer Aisha Adams, former Asheville Citizen Times political reporter and current Mountain Xpress contributor Mark Barrett and Pete Kaliner, longtime N.C. political reporter, radio host and podcaster.

Topics will include international, national, state and urban issues.

Questions by WCU political science and public affairs department chair Chris Cooper, WCU professor of economics and director of WCU’s Center for the Study of Free Enterprise Edward Lopez and Principal Chief Richard G. Sneed, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

Topics will include rural issues, native issues and education.

Due to venue capacity limits currently in place, events will not be open to the public, but will be livestreamed.

www.facebook.com/blueridgepublic

We were safer before Trump To the Editor: Trump is fine with the violence and looting. He thrives on drama and chaos. He can continue to drive home his law and order rhetoric and convince people that Democrats are responsible for it all.

Truth be told, this kind of violence never happened under an Obama/Biden administration. There weren’t riots and vigilantes in the streets killing people. We didn’t see Black men brazenly beaten and killed in broad daylight. We didn’t see white supremacists marching through the streets with torches and AR-15s. More than 180,000 Americans didn’t die from a virus.

Fact is, we were a helluva lot safer before Donald Trump took office.

Annette Bell Otto

Smoky Mountain News

To the Editor: As a student of color at Western Carolina University, I was angered and disheartened by the racist videos made by former classmates which recently came to light, but I can’t say I was surprised. As many Black students and students of color know, racism is not something new on our campus.

Now, I hope that these videos and the national news attention that came with them can be the wake-up call our community needs. The truth is that the racist acts of a few students are symptomatic of the widespread and systemic racism plaguing our nation, and we must address it and root it out at all levels of our society — from campus life to local government to our national elected officials.

That’s why I’m serving as a WCU campus fellow with NextGen North Carolina, which is committed to registering and mobilizing young North Carolinians to vote. My generation is calling for an end to the racism and violence that has been so deadly to Black and POC communities, and we’re leading the call by protesting in the street and casting our ballots at the polls. I

urge my peers and all readers: don’t let your activism stop at sharing your outrage at a racist video — register to vote and request your mail-in ballot to vote for meaningful change today.

Eli Horne Cullowhee

September 2-8, 2020

ing rights, and through the exercise of their voices and numerous and various sacrifices, eventually prevailed in their efforts and secured the additional right to vote. In essense, you are pretending that all of the protestors that are currently pouring through the streets demanding respectful treatment of various marginalized folks are only worth attention if they can pass, in some unnamed way, a litmus test that first gives them the status of “voter.” This is completely ridiculous and false, and in those moments of protest on matters of considerable importance, completely irrelevant.

It is exactly this kind of mangled reasoning that is being used by the conservatives of this country to justify police brutality and racism, and the societal structures that support them, and actual examples of this are quite easy to find. In short, the reasoning goes like this: George Floyd deserved what he got, because he was alleged to have committed a crime, and did not complacently and quietly go along with arrest.

Similarly, “Stop and Frisk” policies are justified, because, after all, black men walk down sidewalks, and do so in a way that white folks find threatening.

Precisely because we have a deep cultural and political divide in this country, you and all of us that have a voice and a podium to use it have a responsibility to be be careful in what we say and write, lest we do the causes we believe in a profound disservice. It is not effective to mangle facts of law to fit our goals. If we truly want what we want, it is incumbent upon us to avoid distortion and exaggeration. If we refuse to discipline our behavior and communication, we are actually contributing to the discord, dissension, and violence that permeates our culture.

Rick Wirth Bryson City

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A&E

Smoky Mountain News

WHEN THE WALLS FALL DOWN Rising country star Justin Wells releases ‘The United State’

BY GARRET K. WOODWARD STAFF WRITER itting in a booth upstairs at The Water’n Hole on North Main Street in Waynesville one recent evening, Justin Wells takes two sips: one from his beer and one from his shot of bourbon.

A towering figure, in physical size and in sonic prowess, Wells is a proud Kentucky singer-songwriter, one whose latest album, “The United State,” is already making a rumble through the backwoods of Southern Appalachia and the bright lights of Nashville.

That afternoon, he stood in the rain (guitar in hand) in front of The Grey Eagle Music Hall in Asheville, filming a clip for his latest single and video “Walls Fall Down” — a call to action for the current #SaveOurStages recovery bill currently making its way through Congress (www.saveourstages.com).

With a staggering voice at the crossroads of George Jones and Hank Williams, Jr., Wells aims to bridge societal gaps with his presence, onstage and off. It’s about dissolving division and blurring the lines between “us and them,” to find common ground between friends, neighbors and strangers alike.

Relaxing into the dimly-lit barroom, he raises his head and smiles with a devil-maycare grin when asked about the life of a troubadour in uncertain times.

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Smoky Mountain News: So, what is “The United State”?

Justin Wells: “The United State” is not boundaries on a map. It’s the state of being a human being. This isn’t new in 2020.

Unfortunately, it’s ramping up. Sadly, this has always been the case — dehumanizing your opponent or dehumanizing the other, the things you don’t understand. When did it become so incredible to be in the room with somebody you don’t agree with?

SMN: See, I revel in that, because it’s the idea of learning something about not only myself, but society that maybe I didn’t realize.

JW: Of course. How would you ever find music, cuisine, verbiage and speech patterns if you weren’t around people different than you?

I feel like it’s always adding clay to the basis.

We don’t come in and vacuum: artists, writers, politicians, whatever. It’s always built on the backs of whoever else.

And it’s OK to improve or try to improve.

It’s OK to be unique. But, we don’t have to break down the other. I’m just trying to point out that we are human beings. There’s an end and there’s a beginning, and it’s OK to disagree.

SMN: Where back in the day it was, “I disagree with you, but I still respect you.” And nowadays it’s, “I disagree with you, so I automatically hate you.”

JW: Yeah. What is that? Where did that come from? How did we get here? As a student of history, this has come before and it’ll come again. We’ve been polarized before, but we’re going to come back. It will come back.

I’m not speaking to any specific thing in politics. We were all raised by mothers, grandmothers, fathers — people who taught us to care for our fellow humans. It’s kind of what we learned in preschool, man. This isn’t new ground. We’re going to get back, we got to quit letting the screens dictate.

SMN: This album was already written and recorded before COVID. Has that title emphasized more to you now? Whether you wanted to or not, it’s a political statement.

JW: Yes. Well, I can’t pretend like it’s not a political statement. I would like to think that it’s an apolitical statement. This isn’t taking a side — it’s humanism.

SMN: “You’re all welcome in my tent.”

JW: It’s not even my tent. It’s “our tent,” you know what I mean? Can we get back to the fact that this enemy you oppose — your goddamn neighbor — you don’t have to agree on anything, but that’s a human being over there.

That’s a mother or a father trying to keep the roof over their heads, their children’s heads.

Maybe their wrong. Maybe you’re wrong.

But, it has to start with humanism — talking like we are right now, eyes to eyes, face to face, you’re a human, I’m a human — [and if it does], I don’t think it ends up in that madness. And it’s ended up in that madness by necessity or otherwise, by social media, by 24-hour [news]. This isn’t sitting around a campfire. This a new normal, we’re going to be on screens. But, on the other side of that screen is a human being, someone figuring it out same as you.

SMN: So, where does that love in our heart come from? Because a lot of people are disenfranchised with where we’re at right now.

“When did it become so incredible to be in the room with somebody you don’t agree with?”

— Justin Wells

JW: [Love]. That’s the one word if I had to put one word on [this album]. I’m promoting the way I was raised. What I know is that if it starts with love, it will not fail you. It’s sitting down at this table with love for one another as a human being.

I come from two grandfathers that fought for this country in [World War II]. Flying the flag was a thing growing up. I also come from traveling all over this country and obviously seeing where things don’t work, things [that]

specifically don’t work for people that don’t look like me.

Having said that, I do think that the cats that got together and decided, “Hey, we’re going to try this thing on this piece of land between Canada and Mexico,” I think they might’ve been onto something. What they were onto is that this [country] is an evolving thing. This is something we can figure out if we lay this groundwork a certain way. And I think we’re figuring it out right now — people need to be heard.

arts & entertainment

This must be the place

BY GARRET K. WOODWARD

Do you believe in what you see, motionless wheel, nothing is real

S

Cataloochee Divide Trail. there and have possessed ever since.

Summer 2020 has come to a close, at least is does for me once Labor Day rolls around. Chaos and madness aside, I was able to not only find silver linings in my travels, but also within myself in the process.

I rediscovered the things that make me happy: writing, hiking, listening to (and learning to play) music. And, most importantly, circling back to quality time with friends and family, for that’s all that really matters in our universe: the love and memories you make and share with others.

I walk away from this summer with images of my niece blowing out the candles on her sixth birthday cake, my little sister walking down the aisle at her wedding, going for an afternoon hike in the Adirondacks with my parents, having a mar-

garita with my mother, trail running with my father, picking up a vintage guitar and learning how to play a few chords (over and over), and so forth.

The air is getting cooler outside my front door here in Southern Appalachia. Summer is slowly, but surely, transitioning into fall, as it has for all of time on this hurtling rock through space. Summer to fall, onward to winter and back around to spring. The seasonal cycle. The circle of life.

The clock keeps ticking, but who is even listening to that sound anymore? Step away from your computer. Go outside. Embrace the beauty around you. Immerse yourself in Mother Nature. Jump into a cold river. Raise your head towards the sunshine falling upon your harmonious vibration.

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

September 2-8, 2020

tepping out of the muddy truck, I laced up my trail running shoes and disappeared down the Cataloochee Divide Trail for a few miles of trotting, wandering and pondering.

About a mile and a half up the ridge, there’s this small opening looking down into Cataloochee Valley. I always stop there and gaze out, wondering who else is, perhaps, looking back at me from one of those faraway peaks. Last Friday, I stood at that spot and felt the first crisp breeze of an impending fall.

It seems fall has been following me ever since I left Upstate New York after a whirlwind summer of nothing and everything. A couple weeks ago, I found myself in the depths of the Adirondack Mountains and the same crisp breeze greeted me while standing atop Coney Mountain near the small community of Tupper Lake.

On that summit of Coney, I couldn’t help but reflect on this past summer: of what was, what is, what could have been, and what did come to be. None of us on this planet could have forecasted what 2020 would turn out to be. There’s been this sense of confusion and sadness, like an endless stream of ghosts roaming the streets, trying to not only make sense of what has happened, but also grasp some form of normalcy in one’s daily life.

And yet, so many of us have been spending our days and our energy trying to seek out the silver linings in “all of this.” I know that I have been. I’m aiming to focus on what makes me happy, those simple things and situations in my existence that ground my mindset in happiness, passion, optimism and personal growth.

Luckily, I’m someone who had pretty much tied up all those loose ends in my mind many years ago, whether that be in ref-

erence to my personal and professional dealings. Case in point, it was exactly 11 years ago when I found myself in the Black Rock Desert of rural northwest Nevada for the Burning Man gathering.

This was 2009. I was 24 years old. With the U.S. economy in shambles and political fervor tearing the country apart, I found myself scraping by as a freelance writer, trying desperately to find creative and financial footing in the industry I wanted to work and thrive in. Living in my parents’ Upstate New York farmhouse, I took off for Nevada in hopes of finding myself: somewhere, anywhere, within, without.

I remember strolling the massive festival grounds amid a dust storm, barely able to see out of my goggles, and yet who cares?

Wherever I landed or wound up, I would be OK, so long as there was a song in my heart and a kick in my step. If the intent is pure, then everything else is just a minor detail, eh?

There was a moment right when that dust storm passed, as the sun was falling to the horizon. I was standing atop this Carolina fishing trawler (that was trucked out into the desert as an art installation), just watching the tens of thousands of buzzing dots of humanity bounce off each other in every direction. The dots were now all glowing in darkness, and I couldn’t wait to meet and interact with every single one: in due time, in some place.

I realized back then what I felt justified this summer: I’m a writer and I want to share the beauty of the world around me with others through the written word. That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do and, thankfully, have kept doing these last 11 years (the last eight in Western North Carolina).

When I tied up that loose end in my mind back in 2009, in that Nevada desert, I knew that my mind, body and soul could push through any and all obstacles. Cue 2020. Here we are, and I return to that fishing trawler in my mind often, remembering the strength and persistence I discovered out

Smoky Mountain News 27

September 2-8, 2020

arts & entertainment

On the street WCU virtual art events Although the Bardo Arts Center at Western Carolina University is closed to the public during the WCU fall semester due to COVID-19 restrictions, audiences will have the opportunity to enjoy a selection of virtual events and experiences, with a line-up of streaming events beginning in September.

The WCU Fine Art Museum is currently offering an interactive 360-degree virtual tour of the exhibition, Cultivating Collections: Paintings, Ceramics, and

Works by Latinx and Latin American Artists. This multi-year series of exhibitions highlight specific areas of the WCU Fine Art Museum’s Collection, which includes over 1,800 works of art in a wide range of media by artists of the Americas.

In addition to the virtual exhibition 360-degree experience, enjoy a streaming video tour of the exhibition and a Q&A led

by Museum Curator, Carolyn Grosch, at noon Wednesday, Sept. 2, live on Facebook

Grassroots Arts Sub-grants

Smoky Mountain News

The Jackson County Arts Council is now accepting applications for Grassroots Sub-grants.

The JCAC administers the Grassroots Arts Program Grant in accordance with current guidelines, policies, and requirements outlined by the North Carolina Arts Council. Funding for these subgrants come from the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of Natural & Cultural Resources.

The Grassroots Arts Program Subgrant provides financial support for Jackson County community groups and nonprofit organizations that offer programs and projects that enhance the arts for county residents. Grassroots Subgrants are awarded to organizations in all cultural disciplines through a competitive application and review process.

The applicant organization must be based in Jackson County and produce its programming in Jackson County. Sub28 grants are not awarded to support

and YouTube. Throughout the fall more virtual events will be available, learn more at arts.wcu.edu/cultivatingcollections.

The BAC Performance Hall has partnered with the Southarts Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers to present a free documentary film series that audiences can watch in the comfort of their home. The films this fall are available to watch on browsers through computers and mobile devices, along with Rokus, Amazon Firesticks, SmartTVs and more through the app, “Eventive TV.” Each stream is followed by a post-film interview with the film’s director and/or other member of the film crew. The film series opens with the documentary, Coded Bias, streaming at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, and 4 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 20.

Coded Bias explores the fallout of MIT Media Lab researcher Joy Buolamwini’s startling discovery that facial recognition systems do not see darkskinned faces accurately, and her journey to push for the first-ever legislation in the U.S. to govern against bias in the algorithms that impact us all. Shalini Kantayya, the film’s producer and director, will be interviewed immediately following each stream. Learn more about this film, the entire series, and how to register for a free ticket by visiting arts.wcu.edu/filmseries.

Discover further virtual WCU arts events and experiences by visiting arts.wcu.edu/blog.

fundraising activities. Grassroots grants are matching grants that must be matched dollar-for-dollar by the receiving organization.

The JCAC is required to spend a set percentage of our Grassroots funding on Multicultural programming that reflects African American, Asian American, Latino, and Native American cultures.

To qualify for a Grassroots Multicultural Sub-grant, the artist or presenter and the content of the art material should both belong to one of the groups listed above. Any organization can apply for multicultural funds to conduct art programs/events that meet these standards.

Fill out the regular application for multicultural funding.

Interested organizations can obtain application information at www.jacksoncountyarts.org or by email at info@jacksoncountyarts.org. The deadline for acceptance of applications is Sept. 15.

For more information, contact the Jackson County Arts Council at 828.507.9820 or by email at info@jacksoncountyarts.org.

Roots, rock at Frog Level

Brad Heller (right). Lennie Duensing photo Singer-songwriter Brad Heller & The Fustics will perform at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at Frog Level Brewing in Waynesville.

Based out of Wilmington, Heller has resumed some touring in support of his criticallyacclaimed 2019 album, “The Sentence.” The group was voted Wilmington’s “Best Original Rock Band.”

The show is free and open to the public. www.froglevelbrewing.com.

Cashiers Designer Showhouse The annual Cashiers Designer Showhouse will run through Sept. 5 at 144 Cove Drive in Highlands.

Interior designers representing the Southeastern region will not only bring trending design to Cashiers, but will again create the magic that is the Cashiers Designer Showhouse.

Leading area landscapers are involved in redefining the areas surrounding the home and in turn creating serene and evocative late summer mountain gardens for showhouse strolling.

Throughout the week, showhouse attendees will admire the work of the talented designers; enjoy a variety of workshops, book signings and panel discussions from beloved creatives across the country.

Admission is $30. www.cashiershistorical society.org/showhouse.

• Elevated Mountain Distilling Company will host Outlaw Whiskey 8 p.m. Sept. 5 and Western Carolina Writers w/Cody Siniard, Jesse Frizsell & Nick Mac 8 p.m. Sept. 12.

Free and open to the public. www.elevatedmountain.com.

• Frog Level Brewing (Waynesville) will host Bona Fide Band 6:30 p.m. Sept. 4 and Brad Heller & The Fustics (roots/rock) 6:30 p.m.

Sept 5. Free and open to the public. www.froglevelbrewing.com.

• Lazy Hiker Brewing (Franklin) will host Larry Joe Lambert 7 p.m. Sept. 5 and Will James 7 p.m. Sept. 19. For a complete schedule of events, click on www.lazyhikerbrewing.com.

• Nantahala Brewing (Sylva) will host semiregular live music on the weekends. Free and open to the public. www.nantahalabrewing.com.

• The Great Blue Farms Brunch & Blooms will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays through Sept. 12 at 1101 Briartown Church Road in Nantahala/Topton.

Admission is $75, which includes a tour, brunch, all flowers, supplies and container to take home your floral masterpiece. To register, click on www.greatbluefarms.com or call 828.508.1502.

ALSO:

• There will be a free wine tasting from 2 to 5 p.m every Saturday at The Wine Bar & Cellar in Sylva. 828.631.3075.

• The “Haywood County Medical Exhibit: 1870-1950” will be held at The Shelton House in Waynesville. The showcase will run through October. Admission is $7 adults. $5 students. Children ages 5 and under free.

Admission includes Shelton House.

828.452.1551 or www.sheltonhouse.org.

On the shelf

“We are here on this earth separated from God, so that we might learn and grow.”

— Jedidiah Robbins

Thomas Crowe

I

“The troupe has settled into a comfortable pattern during its weeks at the Springs. There is ample rest and hot food, even for the roustabouts. Gabe and his crew repaint the words and images on the sides of the two trains.

Boss and Fingers refresh their supplies of

The last half of the book is more focused on Jedidiah’s spiritual evolution in the midst of his adventures and travails here in our western counties as well as the love interests between his daughter and her new beau and himself and a woman named Cassandra. We journey to Asheville to the Masonic Temple on Broadway where Jedidiah gives the “I say unto you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God” sermon to an unsuspecting and angry audience of welldressed and well-to-do Ashevillians.

Then on to Morganton where we meet the famous Baltimore journalist and agnostic H.L. Mencken as he and Jedidiah spend a night in deep conversation over several glasses of brandy. Then on to Hickory and a fiery encounter with the KKK; a respite again in Hot Springs and then on to Johnson City, Chattanooga and Knoxville before traversing the Blue Ridge in a hurricane-like winter storm, only to arrive in a flooded Asheville and a heroic scene where Jedidiah risks his life to save several tannery workers from drowning in a collapsing building amidst a raging French Broad River. Finally we end up in Swannanoa “in the first flirtation of sun following the morning’s rain. The clouds are breaking, and they take pleasure in the clean rays of light striking down on the mountains” and words of deep-set scripture that say: “That which has been is now. And that which is to be hath already been. Love beareth all things. Now and then. In the truth endureth all things.

The truth.”

Thomas Crowe is a regular contributor to The Smoky Mountain News and author of the award-winning non-fiction memoir Zoro’s Field: My Life in the Appalachian Woods. He lives in Tuckasegee in Jackson County and can be reached at newnativepress@hotmail.com

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Smoky Mountain News

liquor sales. With the prosecuting attorneys with goods-in-hand and certain of conviction, Jedidiah proceeds to wow both judge and jury with an intoxicating sermon that ultimately leads to a verdict of not guilty and his release from custody with an enduring legacy and fame which will always be referred to as the “Courthouse Saloon Sermon.”

As part con-man and part spiritual seeker, Jedidiah soon has us on our way over to Hot Springs for a bit of a reprieve after all the courtroom drama, to a side-rail where the railroad cars are being re-painted and he and the crew are enjoying baths at the warm mineral springs. In fact, a lot of the action in this book takes place on railroad sidings or in old railroad barns — for purposes of both rest and refuge. Here, in Roberts’ own words:

whiskey and brandy and lay in baskets of ginseng roots. Bridget accepts delivery on a shipment of new Bibles, which join the liquor in the Bible car ... she brews Jedidiah a cup of ginseng tea each evening, liberally laced with sugar and a teaspoon of whiskey, which she insists he drink before bed.”

September 2-8, 2020

f there’s anything to the bumperstickers that read “Buy Local” (and I think there is), then that not only applies to the food produced in our region but the literature too. Here in the mountains of the Blue Ridge, we have a poke full of writers who have gotten national, if not international recognition.

I don’t even have to name them as they are now household names. And some of these names just Writer happen to grace the covers (front and back) of Terry Roberts’s novel, The Holy Ghost Speakeasy and Revival, as endorsements for this fine book. “Beautifully and vigorously written” (Charles Frazier).

“Immensely gifted writer” (Ron Rash).

“Delights and surprises ... in this picaresque narrative of loyalty and love in the mountains of North Carolina” (Robert Morgan).

Need I say more? Yet I will.

In a novel that does, indeed, take us on a train ride and “picaresque narrative” through the mountains of Western North Carolina, by someone who has deep roots here, The Holy Ghost Speakeasy and Revival (great title) gives us a panoramic glimpse of life here in these mountains during the 1920s and during the Prohibition period in American history. Jedidiah Robbins is a revivalist preacher who heads up a big-tent revival train caravan he calls “The Sword of the Lord.” In an annual circular route through the various counties in Western North Carolina and surrounding states, he and his band of “roustabouts,” as he calls them, bring his version of the Christian gospel and his brand of local corn liquor to these thirsty mountain communities while making a lucrative living in the process.

While being something of a “walking contradiction” as Bob Dylan phrased it, Jedidiah is not a charlatan, but a savvy businessman and devoted Christian — even if he is selling illegal bootleg liquor.

With his jerry-rigged train going from county to county like a carny show — with big top tent and the whole shebang — Jedidiah is more creative than he is criminal.

Despite his nomadic “outlaw” lifestyle, he has good taste — in both how his railroad vehicles and tents look, as well as his interest in great literature. Early on, he’s already citing The Call of the Wild by Jack London and Horatio Alger to his 25-year-old daughter, Bridget, who is for all intents and purposes his business partner and “right-hand woman.” Later in the book, there is mention of Shakespeare and Aristotle, among others.

Roberts’ storyline — which is local, readerfriendly and evocative of real and believable characters of “souls woven into souls”— starts off early near Marion, where Jedidiah soon finds himself in a McDowell County courtroom having been charged with illegal

arts & entertainment

A train ride through Prohibition-era NC

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29

30

Outdoors

Smoky Mountain News

Rolling hills and forested mountains characterize the Rogers Cove land that Terry Rogers has farmed his whole life.

Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy photo

Legacy in the land Terry Rogers inducted to WNC Agricultural Hall of Fame

BY HOLLY KAYS STAFF WRITER obody who knew Terry Rogers was surprised by the sprinkling of jokes that pervaded his acceptance speech.

One was a story about a friend who came upon a frog that promised a kiss would turn it into a beautiful princess — “At my age,” the friend purportedly said, “I’d rather have a talking frog than some beautiful princess” — and another recounted what happened when Roger asked his pastor to pray for his hearing.

The pastor laid hands on him, prayed and asked how his hearing was now, to which Rogers replied that it wasn’t now — it was “next week down at the courthouse.”

“Those few who know Terry know that when you see him, every time he’s going to tell a joke,” said Kyle Miller. “He may tell a lot of jokes, but I can assure you one thing. This man ain’t no joke. He’s the real deal. He’s selfless with his time and resources, and his intentions are sincere.’

Miller, who is president of the Haywood County Cattlemen’s Association, spoke while introducing Rogers at the 30th annual Western North Carolina Agricultural Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony held Aug. 21 at the Mountain Horticulture Crops Research and Extension Center in Mills River. Earlier this year, Miller nominated Rogers for induction to the prestigious WNC Agricultural Hall of Fame, and Rogers was selected as one of two people to receive the honor in 2020. The other was N.C. Secretary of Agriculture Steve Troxler.

N

A FARMER FROM BIRTH Rogers, 79, represents the fifth generation of his family to have farmed the same fields in the upper Crabtree area of Haywood County.

Family ancestor John H. Rogers, son of Revolutionary War soldier Hugh Rogers and Fines Creek native Nancy Thornton Rogers, first purchased the land nearly 200 years ago, and it’s been passed on to various Rogers descendants ever since. Rogers’ father Cassius McCracken Rogers was born in a one-room log cabin on the property, built right after the Civil War, and in 1941 Cassius and his wife Pauline Noland Rogers welcomed their son Terry into the world.

“Terry became a farmer soon after he came home from the hospital as a newborn,” Miller said. “His mother would carry him while still an infant to the barn and place him in a feeding trough while she milked the cows.”

As Rogers grew, so did his interest in agriculture and his involvement on the family farm. At age 10, he joined 4-H and began showing calves, a skill he continued to develop after becoming an FFA member in high school.

“We’ve raised corn on the farm all my life,” said Rogers. “We used it for silage and horse feed, cornmeal and grain. I guess the young people here probably don’t realize what a blessing it is to walk behind a horse and a cultivator for weeks on end.”

Rogers remembers what it was like to harvest corn without a tractor. They’d cut it one stalk at a time, lay it in a pile, combine the piles into shocks, then run it through the silage cutter to store as food for the livestock.

They raised wheat, too. Rogers remembers how his grandfather would hire a neighbor to come in with a binder, cutting the wheat and packaging it into bundles. Threshing day would come months later, when the wheat had dried, and that was a community affair. A threshing machine would separate the wheat from the chaff. Then the men would bale the

straw and take the wheat to the granary. It was hard work, and lunchtime — then referred to as “dinner” — was always an undisputed highlight of that eventful day.

“The dinner that the threshers had was outstanding,” Rogers recalled. “The women of the community would come in, fix dinner, and that was an outstanding part of the day.”

COMMITMENT TO COMMUNITY Rogers has always been a farmer, but he hasn’t always been a fulltime farmer.

After graduating from Iron Duff School in 1959, Rogers enrolled at Western Carolina College — now called Western Carolina University — and attended for one-and-a-half years before deciding that he’d rather work with his hands. He returned home, became a carpenter’s apprentice and enrolled at the sawmilling program at Haywood Technical Institute, now Haywood Community College.

After he graduated, the school hired him to teach band saw classes, but two years later Rogers accepted a position as superintendent of the new company Carolina Log Homes.

Two years after that he decided to open his own construction business. Rogers was the owner and operator of that custom homebuilding company until 1997.

But, even as his career evolved, Rogers never lost his connection to the land in upper Crabtree. While he operated the construction business, Rogers also helped his dad farm burley tobacco, corn, hay and beef cattle. And when his father could no longer work the land himself, Rogers quit the carpentry business and began farming fulltime. That remained his occupation until 2018, when he decided to retire and lease out the land for someone else to farm.

Rogers’ life is marked by commitment to

family, but also to community.

“When this first began, I thought that I knew Terry Rogers,” said Miller. “But little did I know it was just the tip of the iceberg. The more I dug, the more I found. Why did this surprise me? I don’t know. Terry has such a humble spirit. He’s not one to go around bragging.”

Rogers served on the Haywood Community College Board of Trustees from 2003 to 2007 and was also a member of the Haywood County Planning Board. He has been a member of both the Haywood County Cattlemen’s Association Board of Directors and the Haywood County Farm Bureau Board of Directors for more than 30 years, serving as president of both organizations for significant periods of time.

Rogers didn’t just lend his name to those organizations’ rosters. He also lent his passion and energy toward fulfilling their missions.

Rogers has attended every N.C. Farm Bureau Convention as well as many national conventions. In the 1990s he organized the effort that resulted in the founding of the WNC Preconditioned Cattle Marketing Association and eventually evolved into the WNC Regional Livestock Center in Canton. The center has greatly increased local cattle farmers’ ability to command competitive prices for their cattle, and in 2018 the facility marked $100 million in sales since opening in 2011.

He’s also spent many hours in Raleigh and Washington, D.C., meeting with lawmakers to discuss agriculture issues.

“Terry has always been on the front end of agriculture issues and farming practices,” Miller said.

Rogers is an outspoken proponent of agricultural research, because he’s seen the impact of it firsthand over his lifetime.

“I had a cousin about 1952 that had a corn test plot, and the farmers went in and shucked his corn and he had 100 bushels an acre,” said Rogers. “Now, that was pretty good at that time, 1952. Well, I just read recently in 2019 a farmer had 600 bushels on an acre.

Now this is amazing. And this was accomplished through research.”

The cattle business has also benefited significantly from agricultural research, he said.

“You young people, you need to remember a few years ago they tried to sell the research station, and we got together some farmers and political people and got it stopped,” he said. “You better keep your ears and eyes open, or they’ll try that again. But don’t let it happen, because research is the most important thing we can have to have food to eat in this country.”

EYES ON THE FUTURE The older Rogers has become, the more he’s realized the importance those young people have to the future of food in America.

Over the last 100 years, the average age of farmers in North Carolina and nationwide has risen sharply, while the total acreage of agricultural land has fall-

F

Golf against hunger and homelessness

also on the preservation of land for them to tend. That’s why, in 2018, Rogers placed a conservation easement on his property that will prevent it from being developed for housing, commerce or some other invasive use after he no longer owns it.

The easement was part of a 385-acre project the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy completed at Rogers Cove, protecting the 160 acres owned by Terry and Fran Rogers as well as the land of family members Edwin and Lucene Rogers and Mark and Laura Rogers.

“I’ve worked this land all my life,” Rogers told the conservancy at the time, “working with both my paternal and maternal grandparents, as well as my own parents. I’ve seen the hard work my ancestors put into being good stewards of the properties, never holding a public job, but depending on the farm and woodland to make a living for their families. Like them, I have tried to be a good steward of what God has blessed me with, Terry celebrates his induction to the WNC Agricultural Hall of and I don’t want this Fame surrounded by family, including his wife Fran, granddaugh- beautiful property turned ter Jessica Todd and three great-grandchildren. Donated photo into a housing development in the future.”

Nomination to the WNC Agriculture Hall of Fame requires past 30 years he’s been involved with organonly two recommendation letters, but izing the Haywood County Cattleman’s Rogers’ file contains four such letters, all Association Annual Beef Roast, which raises extolling his agricultural expertise, quiet money for youth activities and scholarships. leadership, investment in youth, support of He and his wife Fran endowed two college science and all-around deservedness of scholarships and gave generously to other recognition. There could be no better addischolarship efforts, and he’s a common tion to the Hall of Fame than Rogers, Miller sight at county and state fairs. said.

“If you went to the Mountain State Fair, “As you can see,” Miller concluded, you saw Terry,” said Miller. “He was always “Terry has devoted his life to being an advohanding out the youth participation cate for agriculture. He’s an important part awards.” of shaping modern agriculture in Western The future of agriculture relies not only North Carolina.” on the development of young farmers, but

outdoors

A golf tournament slated for Friday, Sept.

25, in Cruso will raise funds for Haywood Pathways Center and The Community Kitchen.

The event will take place at Springdale at Cold Mountain. Golfers will enjoy Holy Cow breakfast burritos, access to the driving range, 18 holes of golf, cart rental and a boxed lunch from Black Bear Café. This will be a Captain’s Choice tournament in which each team will start at an assigned tee time from 8 a.m. to noon so that health precautions can be observed. All players must wear masks.

The event will be the first Unified Charitable Golf Outing for the two independent nonprofits, which help people experiencing food insecurity

and homelessness in Haywood County. COVID-19 has affected both organizations’ traditional fundraising plans while also increasing demand for emergency assistance. As partners in service, the groups agreed to further their partnership in creating this unified fundraising venture.

Register by Sept. 18. The fee is $150 per golfer or $600 per team. Advantage packages and raffle tickets are available with registration or on the day of the event. Register online at www.haywoodpathwayscenter.org or in person at Haywood Pathways Center in Waynesville or The Community Kitchen in Canton.

Event sponsors are wanted, as are local businesses and individuals willing to donate an item or service to the raffle. Contact mandy@haywoodpathways.org or thecommunitykitchen@gmail.com, or visit www.haywoodpathwayscenter.org.

en dramatically.

“Terry realizes that the future of anything — whether it be a church, profession, anything, is the younger generation — so he made that his focus,” said Miller.

Rogers helped start the heifer training program at Tuscola and Pisgah high schools by donating a calf to each one, and for the

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outdoors

AmeriCorps members complete trail work West Ashville’s Largest Open Air Music & Food Venue

The CCNC crew consisted of five 18 to 24-year-old AmeriCorps members led by a trained crew leader. The group worked Aug. 3-12, together with volunteers completing 7.3 miles of trail maintenance from the base of Celo Knob at Bolen’s Creek to Deep Gap. The group constructed large drains to

on for the United States Forest Service. The crew also spent seven weeks doing trail construction and maintenance in the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests. Other projects included completing 3 miles of trail maintenance on the Sassafras Creek and Snowbird Creek trails in the Cheoah

District and removing 62 fallen trees while doing trail maintenance on Shinbone Ridge in the Tusquitee District. It’s work that never would have gotten done with staff and volunteers alone.

“These young adults worked incredibly hard, often amid all kinds of weather conditions, to restore and improve trails in the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests so they are sustainable and offer visitors a more safe, welcoming and enjoyable hiking experience,” said Jan Pender, CCNC program manager.

Conservation Corps North Carolina is a program of Conservation Legacy, a national program that supports CCNC and other local programs across the nation. This crew is sponsored by the Forest Service with additional support from the Duke Energy Foundation and Fred and Alice Stanback.

“CCNC has been a remarkable opportunity for me to work one last time in the wilds before I head out into the business world,” said CCNC Crew Member Peter Chege, of Raleigh, a recent college graduate.

This was Chege’s second stint with CCNC. “The first time around helped pay for my college, but now I just want to enjoy these mountains, which remind me so much of my native home of Kenya,” he said.

In addition to Chege, the crew consisted of Alysha Pennachio of Boone; Drew Edelson of Charlotte; Chase Perren of Oxford; Travis Bosler of Spirit Lake, Iowa; and crew leader Luke Knight of Erie, Pennsylvania.

More facilities reopen in the Smokies

n Picnic areas at Heintooga and Look Rock n Little Greenbrier Road The Appalachian Clubhouse remains closed for public health reasons, as do group campsites at all campgrounds.

Due to storm damage, Upper Crabtree Valley Road is closed beyond Palmer Chapel, and Upper Greenbrier Road is closed preventing access to Greenbrier Picnic Pavilion, Porters Creek Trail and Brushy Mountain Trail.

For campsites, fees are not currently accepted onsite — visitors must make reservations online. The only exceptions are Cades Cove, Elkmont and Smokemont,

where credit card payments may be processed onsite.

Visitors should also help prevent spread of coronavirus by choosing trails and overlooks without congested parking areas, visiting early in the morning, staying in vehicles while viewing wildlife to avoid crowded conditions, maintaining physical distance and wearing face coverings when physical distancing cannot be maintained.

For the most up-to-date park information, visit www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/conditions.htm. Park rangers are available to answer questions at 828.497.1904 or grsm_smokies_information@nps.gov.

High-priority trail work on the Black Mountain Crest Trail in the Nantahala National Forest is now complete thanks to a crew of young adults with Conservation Corps North Carolina that worked with volunteers from the N.C. High Peaks Trail Association.

reduce erosion and cleared the corridor with brush cutters to make the trail more accessible for hikers. The crew camped in the backcountry near the project site the entire time they worked.

The Black Mountain Crest Trail project was one of several projects the crew worked

Outdoor Stage Outside Dining Patio Live Music | Amazing Eats

September 2-8, 2020

CCNC Crew Members Alicia Pennachio and Peter Chege use a crosscut saw on a downed tree. Donated photo

Smoky Mountain News

Previously closed facilities in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will reopen on Thursday, Sept. 3, for the first time since the Coronavirus Pandemic began.

The reopenings include: n Campgrounds at Abrams Creek, Balsam Mountain, Big Creek, Cataloochee and Cosby n Horse camps at Big Creek, Cataloochee, Round Bottom and Tow String

32

MST celebrates 43 years

743 HAYWOOD RD WEST ASHEVILLE ISISASHEVILLE.COM 828.575.2737

The Mountains-to-Sea Trail turns 43 this month, and Friends of the MST has put forth four new challenges to help hikers celebrate in a safe and socially responsible way. n Challenge No. 1: Take a great day hike on one of the many notable segments of the MST. n Challenge No. 2: Hike one of three designated 43-kilometer stretches of the MST in 24 hours. In the mountain region, the designated stretch is the section from Jumpingoff Rock Overlook to Brinegar Cabin. n Challenge No. 3: Complete each of the three 43K hikes in a 24-hour period this month to claim the 43K Triple Crown. The other two sections are located in the Piedmont and Coastal Plain regions of the state. n Challenge No. 4: Raise funds for the MST using the peer-to-peer campaign system Friends has created. Funds help build, maintain, protect and promote the trail.

These hiking challenges use Great Day Hikes on North Carolina’s Mountains-to-Sea Trail as a reference. The guidebook features 40 different day hikes on the trail of varying lengths, showcasing its many natural and cultural gems. It is published by UNC Press and edited by Jim Grode.

The MST runs for 1,175 miles across North Carolina, from Clingmans Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to Jockey’s Ridge on the Outer Banks. For more information about the trail’s 43rd birthday festivities, visit www.MountainstoSeaTrail.org.

Bucket Brigade kits are available upon request.

Donated photo

Nutrition Facts serving size : ab out 50 p ag es

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Classified s

100%

* Percent Weekly values b ased on Hayw ood, Jackson, M acon, Sw ain and Buncom b e d iet s.

Join the Bucket Brigade The Bucket Brigade is looking for people who are tired of passing by the same trash each day and want to get outside to make a difference in the community.

Organized by Haywood Waterways Association, this stream cleanup movement is an army of small groups, families and individuals working to pick up trash and protect local waterways. Haywood Waterways provides kits in a bucket containing trash bags, grabbers, gloves and safety vests for groups to borrow.

To schedule a pickup time or learn more about the program, contact Christine O’Brien at 828.476.4667, ext. 11, or christine.haywoodwaterways@gmail.com.

SALE PRICES END SEPT 12

19 YEAR ANNIVERSARY SALE

CELEBRATION CONTINUES • TILE 12”X12” 49C SF 4 COLORS • VINYL TILE 89C SF 3 COLORS • ROLL CARPETS FROM 49C SF • ENGINEERED WOOD 1/2’ X7” $2.49 SF • CORK 2 COLORS $1.99 SF • CARPET REMNANTS SPECIALS 12X12 UP TO 12X18 FROM $49 UP TO $99

227 Muse Business Park • Waynesville, NC

Smoky Mountain News

The U.S. Forest Service wants to add two additional stands to the existing BBQ Project now undergoing treatment in the Nantahala National Forest and is accepting public comment through Sept. 21.

On Sept. 22, 2016, the Nantahala Ranger District authorized 225 acres of two-aged regeneration harvests in 16 separate stands and 23 acres of thinning treatments in three separate stands. During implementation, the team identified two additional stands that would meet the management objectives of the analysis area but were not included in the plan approved in 2016.

On stand 69/7, the Forest Service proposes to remove white pine, plant oaks and release oaks with herbicide in an area totaling about 20 acres. In a second area, the Forest Service plans to expand stand 70/15 to include stands 70/13 and 69/18, totaling 16 previously approved acres and 15 new acres. The intent of the action is to harvest merchantable forest products using ground-based skidding, which would release existing advanced hard mast and ash regenerations while retaining a component of older, larger trees in the overstory.

Email comments to comments-southernnorth-carolina-nantahala-nantahala@fs.fed.us or mail them to Steverson Moffat, NEPA Planning Team Leader, Nantahala Ranger District, 123 Woodland Drive, Murphy, NC 28906. Oral comments can be delivered by calling 828.837.5152.

THRU OUT THE STORE Too many to mention Come see for yourself

September 2-8, 2020

Additional acreage proposed in BBQ timber project

OUR SPECIALS ARE

828-456-7422 “YOUR FLOORING SUPERSTORE”

www.CARPETBARNCAROLINA.COM HOURS: M-F: 8:30AM-5PM • SAT 9AM-3PM

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newsdesk crafts

outdoors

1.

2.

3.

4.

# 314 - free hat

A Cub Scout fires an arrow in the archery range. John Mills photo

Scouts practice shooting skills

September 2-8, 2020

After a weeklong virtual campout in July, Cub Scouts from Haywood, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties converged at Camp Daniel Boone in Haywood County Sunday, Aug. 23, for Shooting Sports Day — an afternoon of hiking, fishing and target practice with BB guns and bows and arrows.

The event was carefully controlled to comply with public health guidelines, and the Cub Scouts will continue to use virtual events, such as an online Family Fun Fest

Learn to play tennis

mobile technology to help you get a lot less mobile.

Smoky Mountain News

Log on. Plan a trip.

And start kicking back.

34

slated for Sept. 22. However, when parents and volunteers feel it’s safe, meetings and activities will be held in person in accordance with local, state and national guidelines. Planning is currently underway for a Cub-Parent Weekend this fall at Camp Daniel Boone.

Cub Scouts is open to boys and girls ages 5-10 or in grades kindergarten through fifth grade. Youth ages 11 to 17 can join Scouts BSA. Learn more at www.danielboonecouncil.org/join.

Puzzles can be found on page 38 These are only the answers.

Tennis lessons for kids age 5 to 12 are available this fall from the Jackson County Parks and Recreation Department.

Lessons will be on Tuesday evenings from Sept. 22 to Oct. 27, taught on the tennis courts at Mark Watson Park in Sylva. Ages 5 to 8 will attend from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. and ages 9 to 12 will attend from 6:45 to 7:45 p.m.

Fee is $45, with a registration deadline Sept. 15. For more information, contact Andrew Sherling at 828.293.3052, ext. 6, or andrewsherling@jacksonnc.org. Spots are limited.

Donate to the Power of Pink The 14th annual Power of Pink 5K is canceled due to COVID-19, but funds are still needed to help low-income people in Haywood County pay for breast cancer screenings, the cause that event proceeds typically support.

To contribute to the Power of Pink, call 828.452.8343 or visit www.haywoodhealthcarefoundation.org.

Next year’s race will take place on Sept. 25, 2021.

Get started with deer hunting Seminars on deer hunting and processing will be available free online this month, offered through the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and N.C. Wildlife Federation.

Each seminar will be held from 7 to 8 p.m. with a 30-minute question-and-answer opportunity afterward. Introduction to Deer Hunting will be offered Sept. 14, 16 and 18. Practical Deer Processing will be offered Sept. 15 and 17.

Topics at the deer hunting seminars will include whitetail habits and habitats, scout-

ing techniques, essential equipment, tree stand safety, effective shot placement, tracking techniques and field dressing. Topics at the deer-processing seminar will include field dressing, skinning, safe meat handling and basic home processing.

The seminars are open to everyone but were created for people who have never hunted before or are new to hunting, and don’t have a mentor to help them. Those who are not able to attend the seminars live can access a recorded version.

Registration is required at www.ncwildlife.org/sbs.

Walter “Deet” James, 984.202.1387 or walter.james@ncwildlife.org.

WNC Calendar COMMUNITY EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS • Southwestern Community College students will host four debates this fall. The first debate will be held at 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 9 when students will guide conversation in a debate between candidates for U.S. House of Representatives: Republican Madison Cawthorn and Democrat Moe Davis. The following debates will take place Sept. 24, Oct. 8 and Oct. 22 between candidates for Jackson County Board of Commissioners, N.C. House of Representatives and M.C. Senate respectively. SCC will provide live streaming video at https://livestream.com/southwesterncc/congress2020.

• The North Shore Cemetery Association will be hosting a downscaled version of the Reunion from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 20, at the Deep Creek Picnic Shelter north of Bryson City. There will be no organized services or agenda. Participants should bring lawn chairs and other items necessary for an outdoor picnic while maintaining social distancing.

• Fontana Regional Library now offers anyone with a library card free access to eMagazines, for reading on any mobile device or computer. This new service joins our popular eBooks and digital audiobook`s selection — all available 24/7 from the library’s digital collection. To get started enjoying digital magazines as well as eBooks and audiobooks, visit e-inc.overdrive.com or download the Libby reading app. www.fontanalib.org.

BUSINESS & EDUCATION • The Board of Trustees of Western Carolina University will hold its quarterly meeting at 9:30 a.m. Friday, Sept.

4, on center stage in the performance hall of the John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center. The board also will hold committee meetings and discussions beginning at 1 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 3, in various locations in the Bardo Arts Center. The meetings will be streamed live over WCU’s YouTube channel.

• Western Carolina University’s Office of Professional Growth and Enrichment will be offering a live online Digital Marketing & Public Relations Certificate program Sept. 18 – Nov. 6 (six Fridays) from 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Registration fee for the full program is $640, individual workshops are $119 each. Register at pdp.wcu.edu.

• Get schooled in the Smokies with one of the varied programs offered through the University of Tennessee’s Smoky Mountain Field School this fall. Programs will be held on Saturdays through Nov. 7. Courses cost $69 apiece with the exception of Fall Nature Photography, which costs $99. Register at aceweb.outreach.utk.edu/wconnect/ace/ShowSchedule.

• Employment assistance is offered by NC Works Career Center from 1:30-4 p.m. on the first Friday of every month at Marianna Black Library in Bryson City.

488.3030 or www.fontanalib.org.

• Registration is underway for several session of a Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician program through Landmark Learning. Upcoming sessions include Sept. 5-13, Sept. 18-20, Sept. 26-27 and Oct. 3-30. www.landmarklearning.org.

FUNDRAISERS AND BENEFITS • Haywood Pathways Center and The Community Kitchen will hold their first Unified Charitable Golf Outing on Friday, Sept. 25 at Springdale at Cold Mountain. Register at www.haywoodpathwayscenter.org or at Haywood Pathways (179 Hemlock Street, Waynesville) or The Community Kitchen (394 Champion Drive, Canton).

Smoky Mountain News

n All phone numbers area code 828 unless otherwise noted. n To have your item listed email to calendar@smokymountainnews.com

HEALTH AND WELLNESS • Waynesville Yoga presents a “Two Week Journey to Self Discovery” with Amber Kleid beginning Sept. 13.

The program will explore setting boundaries, designing your future, your creative self, simple acts of self-care and kindness, mindful eating and more. Register at waynesvilleyogacenter.com.

A&E • The WCU Fine Arts Museum will host a streaming video tour of the exhibition Cultivating Collections: Paintings, Ceramics, and Works by Latinx and Latin American Artists and a Q&A led by Museum Curator, Carolyn Grosch, at noon Wednesday, Sept. 2, live on Facebook and YouTube. Throughout the fall more virtual events will be available, learn more at arts.wcu.edu/cultivatingcollections.

• Frog Level Brewing (Waynesville) will host Bona Fide Band 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4. Free and open to the public. www.froglevelbrewing.com.

• Lazy Hiker Brewing (Franklin) will host Larry Joe Lambert 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 5 and Will James 7 p.m.

Sept. 19. For more information and a complete schedule of events, click on www.lazyhikerbrewing.com.

• Singer-songwriter Brad Heller & The Fustics will perform at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, at Frog Level Brewing in Waynesville. The show is free and open to the public. www.froglevelbrewing.com.

• Elevated Mountain Distilling Company will host Outlaw Whiskey 8 p.m. Sept. 5 and Western Carolina Writers w/Cody Siniard, Jesse Frizsell & Nick Mac 8 p.m.

Sept. 12. Free and open to the public. www.elevatedmountain.com.

• Nantahala Brewing (Sylva) will host live music semiregularly on the weekends. Free and open to the public. www.nantahalabrewing.com.

• The annual Cashiers Designer Showhouse will be held Aug. 5 - Sept. 5, at 144 Cove Drive in Highlands.

Admission is $30. For more information, click on www.cashiershistoricalsociety.org/showhouse.

• The “Haywood County Medical Exhibit: 1870-1950” will be held at The Shelton House in Waynesville. The showcase will run through October. Admission is $7 adults. $5 students. Children ages 5 and under free.

Admission includes Shelton House. 828.452.1551 or www.sheltonhouse.org.

• Part of the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville, the Kids at HART program will offer classes in acting, directing and musical theatre dance.

Registration is currently underway. Classes will run Sept. 14 through Nov. 16. To register, go to www.harttheatre.org or visit the Kids at HART Facebook page. If you need further information, email Kids at HART at kidsathartwvl@gmail.com.

• Artists in all disciplines are eligible to apply for grants to support their professional and artistic development. Applications are available www.haywoodarts.org/grants-funding. The deadline is Sept. 30. Grants will range in awards from $500 to $1,000. For information or questions, contact Leigh

Forrester, executive director of the Haywood County Arts Council, at www.haywoodarts.org or 828.452.0593.

• The Jackson County Arts Council is now accepting applications for Grassroots Sub-grants/ Interested organizations can obtain application information at www.jacksoncountyarts.org or by email at info@jacksoncountyarts.org. The deadline for acceptance of applications is Sept. 15.

FOOD & DRINK • The Great Blue Farms Brunch & Blooms will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays through Sept. 12 at 1101 Briartown Church Road in Nantahala/Topton.

Admission is $75, which includes a tour, brunch, all flowers, supplies and container to take home your floral masterpiece. To register, click on www.greatbluefarms.com or call 828.508.1502.

• There will be a free wine tasting from 2 to 5 p.m. every Saturday at The Wine Bar & Cellar in Sylva.

828.631.3075.

• Bosu’s Wine Shop in Waynesville is offering lunch on Saturdays, “Lunch with us” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. featuring fresh seasonal menu with outdoor seating weather permitting. 828.452.0120 or www.waynesvillewine.com.

• Bryson City Wine Market offers a glass of wine and a Market Plate Monday through Saturday as well as special flight tastings from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. every Friday and Saturday.

Outdoors

• Seminars on deer hunting and processing will be available free online this month, offered through the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and N.C. Wildlife Federation. Each seminar will be held from 7 to 8 p.m. with a 30-minute question-and-answer opportunity afterward. Introduction to Deer Hunting will be offered Sept. 14, 16 and 18. Register at www.ncwildlife.org/sbs.

• A free seminar on ginseng production will be offered 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 3, via Zoom. The program is offered through the Macon County Extension Center.

Register on Eventbrite at www.eventbrite.com/e/ginseng-production-tickets-115231454382.

• Tremont Institute is offering support and resources for schools this year as they prepare for teaching and learning during a pandemic. The annual Teacher

35

Visit www.smokymountainnews.com and click on Calendar for: n n n n

Complete listings of local music scene Regional festivals Art gallery events and openings Complete listings of recreational offerings at health and fitness centers n Civic and social club gatherings Escape Weekend will this year be offered as a virtual workshop, with sessions Sept. 11-12 and Sept. 25-26 at a cost of $50 per weekend. Register at gsmit.org/educators/teacher-escape.

• A new weekday drop-off program for children ages 6 to 9 will begin this fall at the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville. Outdoor Adventure Kids — or OAK — is a safety-first approach to exploring the natural world with other kids. The Sassafras Class meets three days per week — 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, Sept. 8 to Nov. 19. The ecoEXPLORE Class meets Fridays only, 12:30 to 4:30 p.m., Sept. 11 to Nov. 20. Space is limited and registration is required at www.ncarboretum.org/education-programs/youth-familyprograms/oak-drop-off-program.

• Tennis lessons for kids age 5 to 12 are available this fall from the Jackson County Parks and Recreation Department. Lessons will be on Tuesday evenings from Sept. 22 to Oct. 27, taught on the tennis courts at Mark Watson Park in Sylva. Ages 5 to 8 will attend from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. and ages 9 to 12 will attend from 6:45 to 7:45 p.m. Fee is $45, with a registration deadline Sept. 15.

• Registration for the fourth annual Cades Cove Loop Lope is now open, with plans moving ahead to hold the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s only footrace on Sunday, Nov. 8. The event will offer 5K and 10-mile options, with participation limited to 750 people. A virtual race option will be offered as well, allowing runners to complete the mileage at the time and place of their choosing. Sign up to run or volunteer at www.looplope.org.

• The annual Winter Lights event at the N.C. Arboretum in Asheville will be offered as a drive-thru experience this year due to COVID-19. To better accommodate guests, the Arboretum has extended show dates and times, with the event running daily 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. from Nov. 20 to Jan. 10, 2021. Incoming gates close at 10 p.m. When purchased in advance, tickets are $25 per vehicle and $30 at the gate. Tickets go on sale Tuesday, Sept. 1 at ncwinterlights.com.

Market WNC PLACE

Announcements

MarketPlace information:

The Smoky Mountain News Marketplace has a distribution of 16,000 copies across 500 locations in Haywood, Jackson, Macon and Swain counties, including the Qualla Boundary and west Buncombe County.

Visit www.wncmarketplace.com to place your ad!

Rates: • • • •

• •

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$15 — ClassiďŹ ed ads that are 25 words, 25¢ per word after.

Free — Lost or found pet ads. $6 — Residential yard sale ads.* $1 — Yard Sale Rain Insurance Yard sale rained out? Call us by 10a.m.

Monday for your ad to run again FREE Legal N otices — 25¢ per word $375 — Statewide classiďŹ eds run in 170 participating newspapers with 1.1+ million circulation. (Limit 25 words or less) Boost Online — Have your ad featured at top of category online $4 Boost in Print Add Photo $6 Bold ad $2 Yellow, Green, Pink or Blue Highlight $4 Border $4

Note: Highlighted ads automatically generate a border so if you’re placing an ad online and select a highlight color, the “add border� feature will not be available on the screen.

Note: Yard sale ads require an address. This location will be displayed on a map on www.wncmarketplace.com

CASH FOR CARS! We buy all cars! Junk, highend, totaled – it doesn’t matter! Get free towing and same day cash!

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Business Opportunities NEW AUTHORS WANTED! Page Publishing will help you self-publish your own book. FREE author submission kit! Limited offer! Why wait? Call now: 888-910-2201

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THE JACKSON COUNTY DEPARTMENT Of Social Services is recruiting for a Foster Care Social Worker in Child Welfare. This position will work with foster children and provide services to families where needs have been idenWL¿HG 5HTXLUHV OLPLWHG availability after hours as needed. The starting salary is $41,276.54, if fully TXDOL¿HG 0LQLPXP TXDOL¿FDWLRQV LQFOXGH D IRXU year degree in a Human 6HUYLFH ¿HOG 3UHIHUHQFH will be given to applicants with a Master’s or Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work and/or experience

providing Social Work services. Applicants should complete a NC State application form (PD-107) and submit it to the Jackson County Department of Social SerYLFHV *ULIÂżQ 6WUHHW Sylva, NC 28779, or to NCWorks Career Center

by September 4, 2020.

AIRLINES ARE HIRING Get FAA approved hands on Aviation training. FiQDQFLDO DLG IRU TXDOLÂżHG students - Career placement assistance. CALL Aviation Institute of Maintenance 866-441-6890.

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SPACIOUS PROFESSIONAL OFFICE SUITE AVAILABLE TO RENT $1595 Featuring 4 private offices and conference room on main level. 3 private offices with conference room on ground level. Includes 2 restrooms and kitchenette. Available NOW 256 N. Main Street, Waynesville

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p: 828.452.4251 ¡ f:828.452.3585 classads@smokymountainnews.com www.wncmarketplace.com 36

Employment

*Single independent office available top floor $300 - 258 N. Main Street

(828) 452-1688 www.haywoodrentalsnc.com 58 Pigeon Street • Waynesville, NC

September 2-8, 2020

WNC MarketPlace

INSTALLER TECHNICIAN Carolina Mountain Cablevision, Inc., located in Waynesville, NC, is a privately-owned telecommunications company and is currently seeking resumes for an Installer Technician. We are looking for experienced cable TV or FTTP Installer or Cable Technician to help us grow our network and subscriber base. The applicant must: • Have experience installing TV, phone, and internet services for residential and commercial accounts • Have experience with hand tools, power tools, K\GUDXOLF HTXLSPHQW ladders, etc. • Have a good driving record • Be self-motivated and dependable with the ability to work independently ‡ %H TXDOLW\ DQG VHUYLFH focused • Be able WR GHDO ZLWK GLIÂżFXOW customers and members of the public in a professional, courteous manner • Be available for “On Callâ€? Duty on weekends and overtime as needed with little notice • Live in or close to Haywood County, NC • Be able to pass a drug test and background check This person will be responsible for the installation of telephone, cable, and internet service from the utility pole into a customer’s home, will install and set up PRGHPV GLJLWDO HTXLSment, etc. in a customer’s home, and be able to detect, troubleshoot, DQG Âż[ SUREOHPV DV they occur with the services offered to a customer. We will be accepting resumes until August 31, 2020. Salary is dependent on level of experience. Anyone interested should e-mail their resume to sanders@ccvn.com or fax it to 828-536-4510. We DUH DQ (TXDO 2SSRUtunity Employer and encourage veterans to apply. sanders@ccvn. com

WORK FROM ANYWHERE You have an internet connection? 13 positions available. Start as soon as today. As simple as checking your email.

Complete online training provided. Visit for details: https://bit.ly/2yewvor MEDICAL BILLING & CODING TRAINING. New Students Only. Call & Press 1. 100% online courses. Financial Aid Available for those who TXDOLI\ &DOO 0354 CLEANING ASSOCIATE- PT Haywood & Jackson County Mountain Projects Inc. is currently accepting applications for part-time cleaning associates at Head Start centers in Haywood & Jackson Counties. Applicants must have a valid driver’s license, High School Diploma or GED UHTXLUHG $ELOLW\ WR FOHDQ sweep mop, vacuum ÀRRUV RSHUDWH ZDVKLQJ machines and dryer; perform routine cleaning of classrooms/toys/classroom furniture and do laundry daily for center classrooms. Experience cleaning and doing launGU\ UHTXLUHG 0RQGD\ )ULday 11am-4pm. Please apply at www.mountainprojects.org. AA/EOE

Amy Boyd Sugg

Haywood Co. Real Estate Agents

Broker/ REALTOR

Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate- Heritage

828.558.1690

• Carolyn Lauter - carolyn@bhgheritage.com

amyboydsugg@gmail.com HaywoodHomesForSale.com

Beverly Hanks & Associates- beverly-hanks.com

71 N. MAIN ST. | WAYNESVILLE, NC | 828.564.9393

RE/MAX

EXECUTIVE

Ron Breese Broker/Owner

71 North Main Street Waynesville, NC 28786 Cell: 828.400.9029 ron@ronbreese.com

www.ronbreese.com Each office independently owned & operated.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Ann Eavenson - anneavenson@beverly-hanks.com Billie Green - bgreen@beverly-hanks.com Michelle McElroy- michellemcelroy@beverly-hanks.com Steve Mauldin - smauldin@beverly-hanks.com Brian K. Noland - brianknoland.com Anne Page - apage@beverly-hanks.com Brooke Parrott - bparrott@beverly-hanks.com Jerry Powell - jpowell@beverly-hanks.com Catherine Proben - cproben@beverly-hanks.com Ellen Sither - ellensither@beverly-hanks.com Mike Stamey - mikestamey@beverly-hanks.com Karen Hollingsed- khollingsed@beverly-hanks.com Billy Case- billycase@beverly-hanks.com Laura Thomas - lthomas@beverly-hanks.com John Keith - jkeith@beverly-hanks.com Randall Rogers - rrogers@beverly-hanks.com Susan Hooper - shooper@beverly-hanks.com Hunter Wyman - hwyman@beverly-hanks.com

• Rob Roland - robroland@beverly-hanks.com

Christie’s Ivester Jackson Blackstream • George Escaravage - george@IJBProperties.com

ERA Sunburst Realty - sunburstrealty.com • Amy Spivey - amyspivey.com • Rick Border - sunburstrealty.com

Jerry Lee Mountain Realty Jerry Lee Hatley- jerryhatley@bellsouth.net

Keller Williams Realty - kellerwilliamswaynesville.com See Virtual Tours of listed homes at

MaggieValleyHomeSales.com Market Square, 3457 Soco Rd. • Maggie Valley, NC • 828-926-0400

• The Morris Team - www.themorristeamnc.com • Julie Lapkoff - julielapkoff@kw.com • Darrin Graves - dgraves@kw.com

Lakeshore Realty • Phyllis Robinson - lakeshore@lakejunaluska.com

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Climate Control

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TO ADVERTISE IN THE NEXT ISSUE 828.452.4251 | ads@smokymountainnews.com

SUPER

CROSSWORD

ELEMENTAL RECOMPOSITION ACROSS 1 Like Pisa's famed tower 8 On the mark 16 Dangle 20 Adequate for the job 21 1974 Billy Joel hit 22 Pastiche 23 Phone alert sound whose waves travel best through element #7?

25 Refuse to 26 Expert 27 Submission encl.

28 Disney sci-fi film of 1982 29 Ukulele's kin 30 Exams 33 Skyscraping 36 Instrument whose pipes are filled with element #18?

39 Opening bits 41 Classic Fords, briefly 43 Peddle 44 Mistake while trying to mine element #55?

46 Bargain on the export of element #82?

50 What some cuts do 51 Make cherished 53 City on the Alabama 54 With 32-Down, nobody 57 Home of the philosopher Zeno 59 Oven knob 61 Swiss peaks 62 -- Gay 64 Sideshow barkers peddling element #33?

69 Munich loc.

70 I-75, e.g.

73 74 75 76 80 82 83 84 87 88 90 94 96 98

103 104 105 106 110 112 113 114 116 118 119 120 126 127 128 129 130 131

Heavy winds Binary base Expert Cigar holder made from element #45?

It may follow "Long time" Chaplin of "Game of Thrones" Sort of sword Zero Not as much -- -Grain cereal bars Harangue Peyotes, e.g.

Dark film about people who forge element #26?

Internal body parts that have absorbed too much of element #47?

Floor cover Tilting type Crooked Clog-clearing stuff found to have element #86?

Reach over Poets' Muse Old Apple laptop Impact noise Floor cover Mean dog A.J. of Indy Half-moon-shaped deposit of element #34?

Deanna on the USS Enterprise Collectors of lots of stuff Dutch painter Jan Flabbergast Rates Unity

DOWN 1 Really absurd 2 Not gendered, as a noun 3 Vouches for 4 "... -- a lender be" 5 Bit of NYSE news 6 Pesters a lot 7 Wonderful 8 IRS filing mo.

9 Nero's 102 10 Is unable 11 Not marked, as an exam 12 Turbine parts 13 In a crowd of 14 Earthy shade 15 Austin-to-Atlanta dir.

16 1991-2003 Vermont governor 17 See 42-Down 18 Masked warrior in black 19 Boarded 24 "How clever" 29 Links 31 Like clans 32 See 54-Across 34 16-oz. units 35 Pet pests 37 Be hammy 38 Pro-learning org.

40 "Hook" pirate 42 With 17-Down, scram 45 Actor Gibson 46 Secular 47 Orbital curve 48 Current units 49 Rodeo ropes 52 Vitascope inventor 54 Cocktail of gin, vermouth and Campari 55 Sixty minutes 56 Ontario's capital

58 60 63 65 66 67 68 71 72 77 78 79 81 85 86 89 91 92 93 95 97 99 100 101 102 104 106 107 108 109 111 115 117 120 121 122 123 124 125

Person quarreling Enactment Meyers of "Think Big" Raimi of film Yale alum Actor Sparks Politico Paul Voting day, often: Abbr.

More devoid "Heck yeah!"

Prince, e.g.

500 vehicles Literary Twist Women's patriotic gp.

Org. for free speech Using a pen Flabbergasts Jorge's "day" Some annexes Part of a fork Obsolete Bigwig One fleeing a flood, maybe Adjusts the pitch of again Noisy sleepers Cry after "Psst!," perhaps Fissures Call off, as a mission "What -- mean?"

Rand McNally reference Jorge's "new" Goes kaput Fed. agents "Na Na" preceder Canon camera line Suffix with strict Orig. copies State of fury K-O center

ANSWERS ON PAGE 34

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38

www.smokymountainnews.com

September 2-8, 2020

WNC MarketPlace

Snakes, really, are beautiful creatures Editor’s note: This George Ellison column first appeared in an August 2005 edition of The Smoky Mountain News.

S

George Ellison

nakes are among the world’s most beautiful, fascinating, and ominous creatures. We are at once attracted to and repelled by them.

The ancient Cherokees focused several of their myths about the close relationship of good and evil upon the Uktena (“the keen-eyed”). This was a monster serpent 30-feet long Columnist that was as large around as a tree trunk, with horns on its head and a diamond-like crest in its forehead. The light that blazed from this crest attracted humans to sure death like moths to a flame.

On the other hand, by slaying the monster and extracting the crest, a courageous member of the tribe could obtain visionary powers.

Here in the Blue Ridge country, Uktenas are no longer reported in the deep passes like the Nantahala Gorge where they once lurked. We do have, however, the serpent

BACK THEN that inspired the Uktena myth — the timber rattlesnake. And we do have northern copperheads, the only other poisonous snake found in the southern mountains.

Cottonmouth moccasins are always being erroneously reported here, but that species is, in fact, found no farther inland than about the fall line, which demarcates the eastern piedmont from the western edge of the coastal plain.

As poisonous snakes go, the rattler and the copperhead are quite sufficient in regard to both their wondrous beauty and their ability to inflict pain or death. Nothing else quite focuses your attention and sets all your nerves on end as suddenly encountering one of these critters in a blackberry patch or high up on a cliff side.

My now-grown children remember and still laugh about the time their father set the world record for the standing broad jump.

We were camping in the remote Rainbow Springs marsh in the Nantahala Mountains.

To make a campfire so as to prepare breakfast, I pulled a limb out of some underbrush that had a 48-inch timber rattler on the other end. Who says humans can’t fly?

To this day, I vividly recall the serpent's powerful, near-black body, which showed just the slightest bit of yellow, and the gleaming, totally fearless eyes. Coiled with its tail buzzing a scintillating warning, it was in every sense the wildest and most beautiful creature I’ve ever encountered.

And it was also the most ominous and potentially dangerous.

The copperhead is the most common by far of our poisonous snakes, being found in a variety of habitats from the lowest elevations up to perhaps 3,000 feet.

They often hide in rock walls or beneath boards and pieces of tin around rural dwellings. Most sawmills have resident copperheads because they are fond of sawdust piles. Bryson City resident Charles Willis, who used to catch copperheads and rattlers with his hands as a hobby, sometimes finds them in parking lots here in town.

“Well, they’re everywhere," he observed when asked about where to look for copper-

heads. “I’ve pointed out copperheads in the woods to people who couldn’t see them at all until I picked the snake up and showed it to them. It’s a puzzle folks don’t get bit more often, especially in places like the Nantahala Gorge, where those rafters get out and ramble around in the brush in shorts and sneakers. I guess they just step right over them without seeing them and keep on trucking.”

William Hardy, long-time director of the “Unto These Hills” outdoor drama in Cherokee, told me about an evening when a nest of copperheads was discovered at one end of the outdoor stage. The remainder of the production was performed at the other end.

Reports of copperheads coming into homes are not unusual. Asheville CitizenTimes columnist Bob Terrell was told by Michael Medlin about the time his sister was being married at his home on Wolf Creek in Graham County and a copperhead showed up.

“Happened in my living room,” Medlin reported. “Right in the middle of the shebang, out from under the couch crawled this big copperhead. The room cleared like somebody had thrown a live grenade in the window.”

(George Ellison is a writer and naturalist who lives in Bryson City. info@georgeellison.com.)

September 2-8, 2020

July 1 - November 1

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