It’s been a full morning on top of a full week, and I’m tired when I file into the fluorescent-lighted classroom Tuesday afternoon. A large, laminated topo map of the Cashiers area is sitting on the table when I arrive at my seat, a dry erase marker and protractor tool arranged on top. 

The first time I met Owen Gibby, he immediately reminded me of my favorite television character of all time, Deputy Barney Fife, and as I got to know him, that impression only intensified. They are about the same size and are both prone to exaggerated bug-eyed facial expressions, double takes, and dramatic pauses. I suspect that they learned at a very young age that being the funniest guy in the room has a lot of advantages for smaller guys trying to find their way in the world. Not only is being funny disarming, it turns out to be a better way to meet girls than anybody could have guessed.

Southwestern Community College is seeking compensation for damage to the Balsam Center building that it believes resulted from the R-5000 road project, a 0.7-mile connector road between N.C. 107 and N.C. 116 that wound up costing $30 million. 

The first time Matt Kirby attempted the 72-mile Georgia Death Race, he almost didn’t finish. 

“I had a friend who was at the last aid station,” Kirby recalled. “She had probably pulled out every little carrot that she could to get me out of that aid station and moving again. I think I would have probably quit if it weren’t for my friend being there and pushing me so hard.”

Jackson County will spend an additional $254,000 to clean up lead contamination and plan for sound abatement at the Southwestern Community College shooting range following a unanimous vote from county commissioners Feb. 19. 

Located behind the Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority treatment plant off North River Road, Southwestern Community College’s shooting range is the go-to training ground for law enforcement officers across the region.

By Julia Hartbarger • SCC Public Relations

A little time has passed since the Great American Solar Eclipse on Aug. 21, but the memory will always be there for myself and millions of others who were fortunate enough to witness the celestial event of a lifetime.

On Aug. 21, the day of the Great American Eclipse, 50 high-altitude weather balloon teams from across the country will launch their payloads into the air to capture live images and video from the edge of space that will go straight to NASA’s website.

Jackson County Schools has found itself at the back of the line to get a piece of the quarter-cent sales tax voters passed last year.

A new health sciences building at Southwestern Community College would allow an additional 288 students to prepare for in-demand health careers in Western North Carolina, and while the Jackson County Commissioners are excited about the project, paying the $19.8 million estimated price tag will be a challenge. In the 2016 master plan that first conceptualized the building, the cost was pegged at $16.3 million, but construction costs have since risen, and the county has several other major capital projects that it’s also pursuing.