To the Editor:

The Haywood Gleaners wish to express our sincere gratitude to the Mountain Research Station for their recent invitation to glean two of their beautiful fields, one of tomatoes and the other bell peppers.

Hurricane Helene was and continues to be a traumatic event for our region, but even within the worst of it, there are stories of resilience and ingenuity in ways that many had to deal with making or getting meals while having no power or water for days.

The annual Stecoah Harvest Festival will return Oct. 18-19 to the Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center in Robbinsville. 

Anyone on the internet knows that it can be a place of negativity and division. But it’s also a powerful tool for connection, and in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, Crystal Cochran harnessed that connection to build a community of volunteers that provided vital assistance to thousands in Western North Carolina. 

A beloved long-time Western North Carolina tradition, Mountain Heritage Day will spotlight its 50th anniversary from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, on the campus of Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. 

The 112th annual Cherokee Indian Fair will be held Oct. 1-5 at the Acquoni Expo Center site, located at 1501 Acquoni Road in Cherokee. 

The 16th annual ColorFest will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5, in downtown Dillsboro. 

Regional rock/jam group Arnold Hill will perform at 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, at The Scotsman Public House in Waynesville. 

What started off as a clever idea to address recidivism has grown into something more — a community-driven response to concerning and costly social ills like homelessness, mental illness and substance abuse disorder.