Farmers seeking assistance for crops damaged in 2009 have until Friday, July 29, to apply for help under the Revenue Assistance Payments Program (SURE).

SURE provides crop disaster assistance to eligible Swain and Jackson County producers on farms that lost crop production or quality.

To be eligible, producers must have suffered at least a 10 percent production loss on a crop of economic significance and have insurance under the Federal Crop Insurance Act or the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program.

The farm must also be in a county that was declared a primary disaster county or contiguous county by the Secretary of Agriculture or have actual production on a farm that was less than 50 percent of the normal production on the farm because of a natural disaster. For more information, visit the Swain/Jackson County FSA office or disaster.fsa.usda.gov.

Linda Seestedt-Stanford, who has been serving as Western Carolina University’s interim provost since last summer, is returning to her previous position as dean of the College of Health and Human Science to help the college make the transition into its new four-story, 160,000-square-foot building, a $46 million project featuring clinical and laboratory spaces, and offices and meeting areas for College of Health and Human Sciences programs that are currently located across four buildings.

New WCU Chancellor David O. Belcher appointed Beth Tyson Lofquist, associate provost, to serve as the new interim provost.

The Office of the Provost oversees every aspect of academics at WCU. The provost position has been held open in anticipation of a new chancellor taking the helm, with the job of hiring a permanent provost being deferred to the new administration. With Belcher now in place, the university will soon launch a national search for a permanent provost.

Lofquist became the university’s associate provost in 2008, She had been associate vice chancellor for academic affairs since 2005 and before that the head of the department of birth through kindergarten, elementary and middle grades education from 2002 to 2005.

She holds three degrees from WCU – a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, a master’s degree in early childhood education and an educational specialist degree in intermediate education.

Middle and high school students can experience various digital media through Southwestern Community College with a week-long series July 18-21 in Cashiers. Students will learn about digital photography and videography, audio capture and editing, and web media, and develop several projects using free and easily available software.

The class meets from 10 a.m. until noon and costs $55. 828.339.4497.

Macon County’s first move after buying a canary-colored bright yellow building in downtown Franklin will be to paint it, probably an inoffensive brown, Commissioner Kevin Corbin said.

The building, appraised in value for more than $700,000 was purchased for about $300,000. It is located on the corner of Palmer and Patton streets.

United Community Bank ended up with the 10,000-square-foot building as the result of foreclosure proceedings.

“They were willing to make a good deal on it to get it off their books,” Corbin said this week. “Less than 50 cents on the dollar, and we had the available funds.”

The money will come from savings.

Initially, the plan is to house sheriff’s department detectives in the downtown property. They are currently working out of rented space, Corbin said. The county will be able to save on rent money and come out ahead in the long run.

There will still be space left over, but the county has not yet figured out what else it might put in the building.

There will be some wiring and other work needed to finish the building. The building is located next to the Macon County Emergency Medical Services building.

— By Quintin Ellison

The Appalachian Trail Conservancy recently announced that Asheville resident Lenny Bernstein, plus two other North Carolinians, have been elected to the group’s board of directors.

Bernstein, an active member and past president of the Carolina Mountain Club, is an Appalachian Trail 2000-miler (someone who has hiked the entire trail), and has been a trail maintainer for more than 20 years. He is a life member of the ATC. He currently chairs the Stewardship Council’s Land and Resource Protection Committee, which advises the board of directors on trail-management policies and programs. He has a Ph.D. in chemical engineering and had a 40-year career in the petroleum industry.

Clark Wright, a lawyer in New Bern, and Rich Daileader, a vice-president with Wells Fargo in Charlotte, have also been elected to the ATC’s 15-member board, whose members are elected to two-year terms.

A guided float down the Little Tennessee River will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, July 21, as part of the Highlands Biological Foundation’s “Think About Thursdays” summer event series.

Jenny Sanders of the Little Tennessee Watershed Association and Brent Martin of the Wilderness Society will guide the canoe trip. Learn about various aspects of the river, from the diverse flora and fauna of the Little Tennessee to its rich history and deep connections to the Cherokee.

The canoe trip will begin at Jerry Anselmo’s Great Smokey Mountains Fish Camp, and take out near the Rickman General Store in Cowee.  Registration required; lunch is included in the $35 fee.

828.526.2221.

After 21 years of monitoring the health of the Little Tennessee Watershed, the group most responsible for that work will release a “State of the Streams” report.

The unveiling of this report by the Little Tennessee Watershed Association will take place Thursday, July 14, at a League of Women Voters of Macon County luncheon in Franklin.

The first edition of this report covered the years 1990-2002, and contained information about each major tributary in the watershed.  

Jenny Sanders, executive director of LTWA, will present highlights from the report and explain how citizens can be involved in watershed protection.

The program will be held at Tartan Hall in Franklin and will begin at 12:15 p.m. Lunch is available at noon by reservation, for $5. The public is invited.

828.371.0527 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Want to give your daughter a taste of what it means to be an archaeologist?

Girls ages nine through 14 can participate in an upcoming SciGirls program called “Digging Archaeology: Techniques for Finding and Preserving the Past” at The Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute in the Pisgah Forest from 6 to 8 p.m Tuesday, July 26.

It is part of the monthly SciGirls series at PARI, and is affiliated with a national effort to engage girls in science sponsored by Twin Cities Public Television.

The July SciGirls program will explore the documentation process for archaeology. Girls will examine tools and techniques used in archaeology, and have the opportunity to explore a citizen science project headed by National Geographic.

PARI hosts a SciGirls event the last Tuesday of each month. $10 per student.

www.pari.edu.

Jason Mehler of Asheville crossed the finish line as the overall winner during the MedWest Triathlon held Saturday, July 9, at the Haywood Regional Medical Center Health and Fitness Center. Nicole Crane of Asheville was the overall female winner as more than 90 racers from as far away as Florida and Iowa took part in the 300-yard swim, 10.6-mile bike ride and 5K foot race.

COMPLETE RESULTS: www.leetiming.com/HT2011OPEN_OA.HTM

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Explore Balsam Mountain Preserve with two hikes this month, including to Jackson County’s most iconic and distinctive mountaintops. The 4,400-acre private eco-development between Waynesville and Sylva has 3,500 acres in conservation and a team of staff naturalists, who occasionally offer guided hikes and programs for the public.

• The first is the Double Top Mountain hike from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 23.

The Double Top hike is a 1.2-mile jaunt that begins at 4,700 feet and ends on the peak of Double Top at 5,481 feet. This moderately strenuous hike is less than 3 miles round trip, but includes frequent nature interpretive stops and time for lunch at the summit. The hike is limited to 20 participants, and costs $5 per person. Bring drinking water, lunch and raingear. A high-clearance vehicle is suggested if carpooling to the trailhead is needed.

• The second is a Balsam Mountain Trust Tour showcasing trees from 10 a.m. until noon on July 30. The “Magnificent Trees” survey highlights the 75 or so tree species in Balsam Mountain Preserve. This will be a combination walking/auto expedition to learn about native trees, led by Ron Lance, a botanical author and forest ecologist. The group will see some record-setting tree giants, including a 78-foot serviceberry. Ages 10 and older. The trip is limited to 20 participants, and costs $5 per person.

828.631.1060.

There are opportunities abound for amateur photographers in the region, from the very youngest to those more advanced in years. Here’s a quick roundup of what’s going on:

• Monday, July 18: An outdoor photography for beginners’ class will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., covering the basics of nature photography, including how to use effective composition. The program is free and open to ages 12 and up. Spaces are limited, however, and pre-registration is required. 828.877.4423 or www.ncwildlife.org for more information and directions.

• Tuesday, July 19: Youth photography workshop from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. through the Carolinas Nature Photographers Association at the Forest Discovery Center at the Cradle of Forestry for ages eight through 12. Workshop leaders will coach participants on composition, close-up, and animal photography. They will also discuss depth of field, f-stops, lighting and landscape photography.

The workshop is limited to 12 children and will be held rain or shine. The cost is $4 per child. Bring a packed snack or lunch is welcome.

• Friday, July 29: A close-up outdoor photography class will be presented from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Designed for the advanced beginner, this class focuses on equipment and techniques. The program is free and open to ages 12 and up. Spaces are limited, and pre-registration is required. Call 828.877.4423 or www.ncwildlife.org for more information and directions.

• Once you’ve gotten all those skills, show them off through “The Wildlife in North Carolina” magazine annual photo competition. Entries are being accepted until Sept. 1.

Photos will be judged in 10 categories: birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, invertebrates, wild landscapes, wild plants including fungi, outdoor recreation, animal behavior, youth photographer 13-17, and youth photographer 12 and under. Last year’s competition included 1,270 photographers and 5,511 entries.

Winners will be published in the January/February issue of “Wildlife in North Carolina,” with the grand prize image appearing on the cover. The winners will also be exhibited at the Museum of Natural Sciences and at other science museums and wildlife education centers across the state.

www.ncwildlife.org/contest/index.htm.

Western Carolina University has won a $5,000 grant from a bicycle parts manufacturer to support construction of a multi-use, community trail system on campus.

Motion Makers Bicycle Shop in Sylva helped WCU land the grant from Specialized Bicycle Components based in California, which supports “advocacy initiatives” endorsed by its retail dealers.

“The grant from Specialized is significant because it will not only go toward the construction costs for the trail system, but also provide seed money to help us qualify for other grants,” said Josh Whitmore, director of outdoor programs at WCU.

The first phase of the project is construction of a five-mile loop trail to be built near (and connect to) WCU’s nearly completed Health and Human Sciences Building. In total, the trail will cost $80,000 to construct.

“This trail — and any new trails in Jackson County — will increase accessibility to trails right here in our community and attract walkers, hikers, mountain bikers and other trail uses,” said Kent Cranford, owner of Motion Makers Bicycle Shop.

Whitmore cited the recent formation of the Nantahala Area chapter of the Southern Off-Road Bicycle Association, a nonprofit organization committed to promoting land access, trail preservation and new trail development, as important for helping win financial support. The new chapter is focused on enhancing trails in far Western North Carolina, including the WCU area.

Creating a master plan for the WCU multi-use trail project was funded with a $14,440 grant from the Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation. As part of the initiative, the trail system ultimately would link to the planned Jackson County Greenway along the Tuckasegee River.

Before you go gallivanting about hunting or fishing on private property, be aware that a new law passed by the N.C. General Assembly requires hunters and anglers to carry written permission from a landowner or leaseholder when on posted property.

This includes private land, waters, ponds or legally established waterfowl blinds.

The new law also provides a new and perhaps easier way for landowners to post their land: vertical purple paint marks on posts or trees. Landowners can still use signs or posters declaring the land off limits to trespassing or hunting.

Written consent to hunt, fish or trap on posted lands (dated within the past 12 months and signed by the landowner, leaseholder or agent of that land) must be carried. If a hunting club is involved, you need to carry a copy of the club membership and a copy of the landowner permission granted to that hunting club.

The Landowner Protection Act goes into effect Oct. 1. View www.ncwildlife.org/HotTopics/documents/Landowner_Ad.pdf for detailed instructions on posting property with signs or purple paint.

Learn to float your boat safely at a July 18-19 boating safety course at Haywood Community College.

The program is through the college’s Natural Resources Division and the North

Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. They will take place from 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in Room 309 on the HCC campus. Participants must attend two consecutive evenings to receive certification.     

These courses are offered as a community service and are free of charge. There are no age limits, but pre-registration is required.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.627.4560.

The novel A Virtuous Woman by Kaye Gibbons is the next book up for discussion in the series Discovering the Literary South from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. on July 14 at the Waynesville Library. The book is available free of charge at the library and the scholar who will lead the discussion is Dr. Merritt Moseley of UNC-A.

Dr. Moseley’s teaching interests include English and American literature as well as the art of the novel. The discussions will be held in the library auditorium. Refreshments will be served.  

For more information call 828.456.5311 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Bob Graham, former U.S. senator and former Florida governor will be in Sylva next week to promote his first novel, Keys to the Kingdom. Graham will present the new book, a political thriller, at 4 p.m. on Thursday, July 21, in the Community Room of the Jackson County Public Library Complex.

The novel follows the murder of a fictional senator on the Sept. 11 congressional inquiry commission and subsequent hunt for justice by an ex-Special Forces operative the senator confided in.

The reading is co-sponsored by City Lights Bookstore and the Jackson County Public Library and is free and open to the public. 828.586.9499.

Cherokee cookbook author and Native American food expert Johnnie Sue Myers will be at Blue Ridge Books in Waynesville at 3 p.m. on Saturday, July 16, signing her new book, The Gathering Place: Traditional Cherokee Dishes, Wild Game Recipes & Preparation Tips and Southern Appalachian Cooking.

Myers’ cookbook contains recipes for traditional dishes such as Cherokee bean bread, apple stack cake and Indian tacos with fry bread. Myers also includes instructions on how to prepare bear, rabbit, raccoon, squirrel, groundhog and wild turkey.

828.456.6000.

Whittier resident and author Patricia Graham will read from her book, Hillbilly Tales from the Smoky Mountains, at 7 p.m. on Friday, July 15 at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva.

The book includes several short stories based on the folklore of the Appalachian Mountains. The book offers hillbilly sayings and proverbs that go hand-in-hand with mountain medicine. Part two includes “The Return to Green Cove,” a short but dramatic story written by one of the original descendants of the Crowe family, Ms. Verna Humphrey. A discussion and signing will follow the reading.

The sale features DVDs, CDs, vinyl, puzzles, books on tape/CDs, and of course books in every category. More than 50,000 books will be on sale. In addition to some specially priced higher quality, rare or unique books, most hardcover, soft covers and trade paperbacks cost $1. The children’s books range from 50 cents up. Hours of the sale are: Thursday, July 28, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday, July 29, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Saturday, July 30, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

As hard as the Friends works to try to sell everything, there are usually several thousand books left. The Friends of the Library invites non-profit groups to contact it about books they might like for their causes. Donations of gently used books may be made at any time until the first of July. Transportation may be arranged for pick up of large donations by calling Sandy Denman at 828.627.2370.

To the Editor:

American students still aren’t learning their country’s history. In the latest National Assessment of Educational Programs, only 12 percent of high school seniors knew what they should. Even with the text before them, barely 2 percent understood that Brown v. Board of Education dealt with segregated schools. Most didn’t know that we fought against China during the Korean War.

Ignorant students make ignorant voters. Worse, some of them grow up to run for public office. One is even a candidate for president.

Some of Michelle Bachmann’s oft-reported historical flubs — such as claiming to share a hometown with John Wayne or placing Concord and Lexington in New Hampshire instead of Massachusetts — might appear to be harmless. They are not. They show her not to care whether what she says is true and unwilling to admit that she might have been wrong. This is beyond ignorance; it’s a character flaw.

The worst was her claim that the founding fathers “worked tirelessly until slavery was no more.”

The reverse was true. Some founders detested slavery but the majority either approved it or went along. They even embedded it into the Constitution, which the abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison called “a convenant with death and an agreement with hell.” It took the Civil War to end slavery, more than a generation after the last of the founders had died.

People who do not know this history comprehend nothing of how the United States came to be what it is. They tend to cling to the fiction that slavery was somehow incidental to the Civil War rather than the cause of it. And thus they fail to understand the racism that rationalized slavery and haunts the nation even today. The White House is no place for such ignorance.

Confronted with the facts, on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Bachmann refused to face them. She cited John Quincy Adams as a “founding father” who fought slavery. He opposed it, yes, but he wasn’t a founder. He was a youth when his father, John Adams, became a founder.

Given the indifference to history in American schools — a neglect fostered by the overemphasis on standardized — it is not surprising to find politicians who couldn’t pass an immigrant’s citizenship exam.

So let’s test the politicians too. In every campaign, one debate should be reserved for questions on American history, with professors rather than pundits comprising the panel. Who knows? Bachmann might not be the only candidate who flunks.

Martin A. Dyckman

Waynesville

To the Editor:

As the saying goes, “if you repeat a lie often enough people will begin to believe it.” Such is the case with the fears being raised about Social Security going bankrupt because the boomer generation (born 1946-1964) will place too heavy demands on the system as they retire.

Here are the facts:

• The boomers have been paying into the system since they started working in the early 1960s. Much of the money they draw from Social Security is and will be their own money, and they are entitled to it.

• Social Security costs are funded out of its own dedicated revenue stream. It does not and by law cannot borrow money to finance its operations. There is no deficit financing. Social Security is the epitome of old fashioned American frugality!

• Social Security is extremely well managed. The administrative cost is .09 percent. That is, it returns more than 99 cents to beneficiaries on every dollar collected. What private retirement plan can boast of that? Beware of efforts to privatize Social Security!

• At the end of 2010 the Social Security trust fund had a positive balance of $2.6 trillion. From interest earned on the trust fund, its surplus will continue to expand to about $3.67 trillion at the end of 2022. Only then will the balance begin to decline.

• But reserves will still be enough to pay full benefits through 2036, and 77 percent of benefits thereafter. Since when is a program that is completely solvent for 25 years bad news?

• Thus, Social Security is decidedly not going broke! It is the most effective and most responsible government program we have. Contrast it, for example, with the waste, inefficiency and failure to care adequately for our veterans of the Department of Defense!

Doug Wingeier

Waynesville

To the Editor:

Some contrarian commentary is in order about Colby Dunn’s news and opinion piece (and it was both) in the July 6 issue of The Smoky Mountain News concerning Pastor Daniel “Cowboy” Stewart’s graduation speech at the Nantahala School’s commencement ceremony (“Cowboy preacher delivers maverick graduation speech,” www.smokymountainnews.com/news/item/4345.)

First, while I have no problem with a reporter expressing an opinion in print, I would submit that if he or she does so the article needs to explicitly be designated “opinion” or “analysis,” or alternatively that the writer make clear her or his political/ philosophical/religious convictions to enable the reader more easily to evaluate the content. By way of example, I am a fiscally and socially conservative Christian of orthodox Catholic confession who believes that the Constitution (1) both prohibits the state establishment of religion and the suppression of religiously-based speech and (2) that it contains no protection for those human touch-me-nots who can’t deal with being made uncomfortable by what someone else has to say. Such a self-identification may save fiscally and socially liberal people of unorthodox religious persuasion who believe in a “living constitution” from a rise in blood pressure caused by reading what follows, which could result in a premature and unprepared confrontation with ultimate reality.

Second, as noted in the story, Pastor Stewart was chosen by the students themselves to be their graduation speaker. Arguably, this makes him their agent rather than an “outside speaker” imposing his views on them without their consent either on his own behalf or on behalf of another external agency (such as the school administration). If so, the argument against his speech is an argument against the speech of those who engaged him, to the extent that prohibiting him from speaking would be a restraint not only of his right to free speech, but of the graduates’ right as well.

Third, the citation of former Justice O’Connor’s dictum that “we do not count heads before enforcing the First Amendment” is rather ironic, given that under current jurisprudence that is exactly what we do in determining what constitutes obscenity (another First Amendment issue).  It seems that while “community standards” (invariably ascertained by some sort of majority) are determinative in obscenity cases, they are to allowed no weight at all when religious expression on government property (maintained by the tax dollars of all citizens of whatever religion) is concerned. One might be forgiven for thinking that, on this reading, some rights recognized in the First Amendment are more equal than others.

Fourth, the article uses, both by composition and quotation, several “spin words” that go a long way from converting a straight news report into an undesignated opinion piece. For example, Pastor Stewart is represented as having been selected, not “to speak,” but rather “to pontificate.” The speakers at Macon County’s other high school graduations are described as “benign secular appointments,” which both (1) implies – I suspect intentionally – that Pastor Stewart’s was malign and sectarian and (2) associates the concept of benignity with that of secularity without bothering to examine the content of the other speeches to see if, indeed, they were “benign” (which here seems to mean “a decent speech” whose “pleasant advice fades quickly into the background”).

Fifth, it would not be outside the realm of possibility that the uproar in the local journalistic subculture — and, let’s face it, it does seem to be largely confined to that segment of the regional community — is really rooted in an objection to the implications of what Pastor Stewart said and that SMN’s editors thought outrageous enough to highlight on the page: “The devil is out to destroy you, to tie you up.” This implies something that the functionally atheistic secularist mind cannot bear even to consider, in spite of all the evidence that supports it: namely, that humanity as a whole and each member of it has a malicious, highly intelligent and personal enemy who from the beginning has been out to destroy it, usually by representing himself as the one who lights the way out what he defines as bondage into what he persuades us is untrammeled freedom and self-actualization — one who invites us to a dinner at which, only after we arrive, we realize that we are not guests but items on the menu — trussed up like a roast shoat with the apple in its teeth.

Samuel L. Edwards

Waynesville

To the Editor:

Duke Energy Carolinas (DEC) ignited a firestorm over its request to the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC) to raise electric rates an average of 15 percent in order to collect an additional $646 million from customers to pay for investments in power plants and infrastructure.

Instead of being upset with DEC, customers should be upset with President Obama and his zealotry against carbon-based energy sources like coal and oil. In January 2008, then-presidential candidate Obama told the San Francisco Chronicle, “under my plan of a cap and trade system, electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket.” That prediction is starting to come true.

Cap and trade didn’t pass Congress, but Obama’s 17,000 bureaucrats in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are accomplishing the same result by generating thousands of pages of new regulations based on new interpretations of the 1970 Clean Air Act. These new regulations add billions of dollars in additional costs for companies like DEC that generate nearly half their electricity from coal-fired plants.

For example, DEC’s new Cliffside #6 coal-fired plant, which goes on-line in 2012, has taken four years to construct and cost $2.4 billion in order to meet EPA’s stringent air quality standards. DEC is also building two new gas-fired generating plants at a cost of $1.4 billion.

So DEC has spent $3.8 billion over just four years to replace generating units which couldn’t be economically updated to meet the EPA’s new standards. This cost can be paid from one source — customers’ pockets.

Customers should also be upset with the state of North Carolina which has mandated,  that by 2021 all power companies must generate 12.5 percent of their electricity from “green” sources — wind, solar, hog and chicken waste, etc. This mandate will add additional generation costs.

DEC has been a responsible corporate citizen. Its electric rates are determined by the N.C. Utilities Commission to return a state-mandated 10 to 12 percent profit. DEC’s current electric rate is 18 percent below the Southeast’s average, and considerably below the average in many other states. In 2007, DEC lowered its rates by 6 percent. In 2009, DEC requested a 12.6 percent increase and was granted a 7 percent increase over two years. That was their first hike since 1991.

The NCUC will determine over the next six months what DEC’s rates will be through public hearings and examination of DEC’s financial data. If you don’t want your electric rates continuing to soar over the coming years, I suggest you convince your state and federal legislators, and the president, that you want regulations mandating “green” sources, and excessive EPA air quality standards be changed to make economic sense.

I have no relationship with DEC, but I will defend its right to recover legitimate costs.

Vic Drummond

Franklin

To the Editor:

In response to “Strange at best – tacky at worst” (Smoky Mountain News, June 22 edition), I was confused by the statement that read “When it was done, Democrats William Shelton, Tom Massie and Brian McMahan were gone; Elders, Cody and Debnam were in.”

I took that to mean that Shelton, Massie and McMahan were no longer on the plaque. A misreading on my part that is indicative of the confusion that can occur over these sensitive issues.

So I called County Manager Chuck Wooten this morning to ask for clarification on the plaque. The plaque will list all five commissioners who were on board in 2010 and all five who are currently serving.

I do find all of these plaques troubling, however. To me there should be one plaque only. It should read “Dedicated to the Citizens of Jackson County: Past, Present, and Future” with the date of the dedication ceremony.

This would get rid of all political connotations and give credit where credit is due.

Linda Watson

Cullowhee

The Basulto Academy of Defense in downtown Waynesville has expanded its schedule of its Brazilian Jiu Jitsu program to include more classes in the sport of Vale Tudo. Also known as No-Holds-Barred or as Mixed-Martial Arts, the term Vale Tudo means “anything goes” and its roots are part of the Brazilian fight culture from which the world-reknown martial art of Gracie Jiu Jitsu spawned in Rio de Janiero.  MMA has evolved into one of the fastest-growing sports in the world. The academy is located at 218 Branner Avenue, Waynesville, NC. www.wncbjj.com or 828.230.5056.

A new bed and breakfast has opened in downtown Waynesville. Twin Maples Farm house is located two blocks off of downtown at 65 North Hill Street. Nestled on three acres of lush country land, yet located just two blocks off historic downtown Waynesville, Twin Maples features a 1908 Farmhouse and a separate renovated stable that is the perfect backdrop for any special event. Twin Maples is available for weddings, receptions, family reunions, luncheons, corporate meetings and retreats. 828.452.4228 or www.twinmaplesfarmhouse.com

Harrah’s Casino has partnered with Southwestern Community College to provide free GED training to Harrah’s employees.

Classes are taught at the casino from 2-9 p.m. Thursdays and from 3-8 p.m. Mondays at SCC’s Cherokee Center.

Travis Boisclair, a table games host, dropped out of high school in the 10th grade.

“At Harrah’s they give you the chance to move up with the corporation, but you can’t if you don’t have your GED,” he explained. He said that he is getting his GED to set an example for his son. “Mainly what I want him to learn is don’t give up,” said Boisclair.

“It’s not your traditional classroom,” said SCC Instructor Jean Bockstahler. “Here, everyone operates on their own strengths and weaknesses — and at their own pace.” 828.497.8886

The Mountain View Garden Club held its third biannual “A Celebration of Herbs” at the Laurel Ridge Country Club on June 20. Proceeds that were raised from the event will be donated to The Homestead, an inpatient hospice center currently under construction on property adjacent to the MedWest-Haywood hospital campus in Clyde. A total of about $7,000 was raised through the brunch and the auction. The money will be used to purchase plants, shrubs and trees for the gardens at The Homestead, which will allow residents to continue to experience nature by utilizing French doors to access an outdoor patio with perennial and annual flowers and plants as well as deciduous and evergreen shrubs and trees.

The Rye Holler Boys will perform a concert of bluegrass, old-time country and gospel music at 3 p.m. on Sunday, July 17, at Swain County Center for the Arts in Bryson City. Immediately following the concert there will be a reception for 16 members of Blue Ridge Watermedia Society who have artwork on exhibit at the Center for the Arts. Both the concert and the reception free of charge.

The Rye Holler Boys is a group of four young men who have risen to local and regional fame. They will perform a concert of some of their favorite mountain music inspired by older bluegrass traditions, as well as newer sounds.

Following the concert, everyone is invited for light refreshments in the lobby of Swain County Center for the Arts provided by the 16 exhibiting members of Blue Ridge Watermedia Society.  The 47 works of art on exhibit includes watercolor, acrylic, oil and mixed media paintings, several baskets and graphite drawings.

The concert and exhibit are free and open to the public. 828.488.7843 or visit www.swain.k12.nc.us/cfta.

A cowgirl, a diva and a shameless hussy, a trio of performing songwriters, bring their combination of humor and original country, jazz, blues and pop to the Balsam Mountain Inn at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 21.

Many will recognize their singles, performed by country legends such as Garth Brooks and Alabama. These three ladies will inspire, empower and entertain with their music, wit and stories about men, love and dating, surviving cancer and the power of the spirit.

800.224.9498.

Beau Bristow, a singer-songwriter native to rural Alabama, will perform a free concert at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 14, at Western Carolina University. Bristow seeks to connect with members of the audience through candid, powerful lyrics and guitar performance. The show takes place on the lawn of A.K. Hinds University Center and is part of WCU’s 2011 Summer Concert Series.

828.227.3622 or visit events.wcu.edu.

Country music star Trace Adkins will perform at 9 p.m on Friday, July 22, at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino.

Adkins debuted in 1996 with the album “Dreamin’ Out Loud.” Since then, he has released seven more studio albums and two greatest hits compilations. In addition, he has charted more than 20 singles on the Billboard country music charts.

Adkins will perform tunes from his latest album, “Cowboy’s Back in Town,” as well as his well-known numbers.

Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.com or 800.745.3000. Must be 21 years of age or older to attend.

The second show of the Highlands Playhouse’s 73rd season is set to open on Thursday, July 17.

“Harvey,” a play about Elwood P. Dowd, who claims to have an unseen — and presumably imaginary — friend named Harvey, a six-foot-tall rabbit.  The play won a Pulitzer Prize for drama, and was made into a film starring James Stewart.

Frank Collison is starring as Elwood. Collison has been seen in recent films including “The Happening,” “The Village,” and “O Brother, Where Art Thou.”

Tickets are on sale now for this limited run, July 14 to 17 and July 19 to 24. 828.526.2695.

Come tour the Ogilvie Home, a multi-million dollar home with spectacular mountain vistas, in Highlands from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday to Sunday, July 15 to 17.

Tickets are $25 in advance, $30 at the door and include a tour, raffle and door prizes.

Proceeds will benefit the Highlands Playhouse.

Jim Curry, performing the music of the late John Denver, will take the stage of the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, July 15.

“Take Me Home: The Music of John Denver Starring Jim Curry” is a tribute performance. Curry captures the essence of Denver’s music, featuring many former John Denver band members and back-up singers. He will perform many of Denver’s multi-platinum hits like “Rocky Mountain High,” “Annie’s Song” and “Country Roads.”

Tickets are $20. 866.273.4615 or visit GreatMountainMusic.com.

The Patton String Band is set to perform at 7 p.m. on July 14, at the Macon County Public Library. The group will play old-time traditional mountain tunes, as well as country and gospel songs.

Thursdays at the Library is an eclectic mixture of programs by authors and musicians. For more information, call 828.524.3600 or visit www.fontanalib.org.

The Farewell Drifters will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 16, at the Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center. The Farewell Drifters combine elements of bluegrass with classic folk and acoustic American music.

The concert is preceded by two dinner seatings at 5 and 6:15 p.m. served family style at the Stecoah Kitchen.

828.479.3364 or visit www.stecoahvalleycenter.com.

The Haywood Community Band will present its third performance in the Maggie Valley Concert Series at 6:30 p.m. on July 17 in the pavilion adjacent to the Maggie Valley Town Hall.  

The concert is sponsored by the Maggie Valley Civic Association and the theme for this concert will be “Patriotic Tunes,” and will feature popular melodies such as America the Beautiful, Armed Forces Salute, Boogie Woogie Bugle Boys, and God Bless America.

In addition, the band will play music written by band member Mike McDonald, Pickett’s Charge, commemorating a Confederate Infantry assault on Union forces at the Battle of Gettysburg.

Concerts are free. For more information, visit www.haywoodcommunityband.org or call Rhonda Wilson Kram at 828.456.4880 or Bob Hill at 828.452.7530.

Pete Friedman will bring his music to the Jackson County Public Library at 7 p.m. on Thursday, July 14, with a program of jazz and blues tunes on electric and acoustic guitars.

Friedman has been playing guitars for 47 years and is a musician, composer and guitar teacher. For the past nine years he has been accompanying the choir and pianist at Whittier United Methodist Church. Prior to that, he played in many bands during the 60s, including underground groups and a psychedelic band called the Second Foundation in New York City. He has played lead guitar for singer/songwriter Kath Bloom and many others.

This program is free to the public and is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Jackson County Main Library. 828.586.2016.

Everyone is invited to the Haywood Dancers Ballroom Dance from 8 to 10:30 p.m. on Friday, July 15, at Angie’s Dance Academy in Clyde. A free dance class will start at 7:30.

Dress is smart casual. Admission is $10, including refreshments and door prize drawing. 828.648.6136 or 828.734.8726.

The Smoky Mountain Community Theatre presents its summer production “My Son is Crazy - But Promising” by Tim Kelly. The show opens at 7:30 p.m. on July 15, and will be the first show using the theatre’s new lighting system. The production will run from July 15 to 17 and 22 to 25. All show times are 7:30 p.m.

“My Son is Crazy - But Promising” is about Bud, a low-budget Hollywood screenwriter who gives up his career to buy a ramshackle motel, The Ritz Apache Lodge. He is in search of the fabled lost Dutchman Mine that would make him a millionaire.

The show is suited for all ages. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for children.

828.488.8227.

The grand opening of the Boomerang Brain Gym is slated for 10 a.m. on Thursday, July 14, at 81 Elmwood Way in Waynesville. Dr. Lisa Verges and Dr. Leigh Odom will be guest speakers.

The Boomerang Brain Gym is designed to do for the brain what physical exercise does for the body. Boomers and seniors who are interested in remaining cognitively fit and aging well are invited to attend the grand opening and give the Brain Gym a try.

Following the presentations, guests will be invited to enjoy refreshments and tour the gym. Staff and volunteers from the Geek Squad will be available to help attendees try out the equipment.

Historic Glenville churches, a one room school house and the Drake Cabin, parts of which are thought to be 150 years old, are three of nine stops on the Glenville Area Historical Tour set for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, July 23.

The tour is a fund-raiser for the Glenville History Project. It will reveal some of the extensive history of the area uncovered by the research and studies conducted by members of the Glenville History Project Committee. All nine sites on the tour will be tended by a knowledgeable committee member and photo story boards will be displayed at each site.

The tour launches at the Glenville Community Development Clubhouse across from the Glenville Post Office. Following the complete tour is estimated to be around two hours.

Tour-goers will visit rarely open-to-the-public sites, including the Hamburg Baptist Church, which was moved from Hamburg Township, cemetery included; the Glenville Wesleyan Church, the Old Glenville Post Office, a present-day tree farm where growing cabbage began the area’s cash-crop agricultural history; a root cellar, springhouse and smokehouse compound all in continual use since before the 1940s.

Tickets for the tour are $10 and can be purchased on the day of the tour at the Glenville Community Development Clubhouse or in advance at 828.743.6744 or 828.743.1658.

The Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands continues its fine craft tradition July 21 to 24 in Asheville. More than 200 craftspeople will fill two levels of the Asheville Civic Center selling their works of clay, glass, leather, metal, fiber, mixed media, natural materials, paper, wood and jewelry.

All exhibitors are mountain artists who are masters of their craft and have been accepted into the Southern Highland Craft Guild. The Guild is a non-profit organization which has been supporting local and regional craftspeople since 1930. Crafts rooted in Appalachian customs are featured along with the work of contemporary artists.

Throughout the show, the guild will sponsor educational craft demonstrations, including natural dyeing and spinning, throwing, trimming and assembling clay, raku firing, and doll making.

The fair will also host live entertainment beginning on Friday. Local musicians will play on the arena stage, sharing old time music and bluegrass.

What: The 64th Annual Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands

Where: Asheville Civic Center, 87 Haywood St. in downtown Asheville, NC

When: July 21 – 24, 2011; October 20 – 23, 2011

10 a.m.-6 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday

Admission: Adults $8, children under 12 free. Group discounts available

More info: www.craftguild.org or 828.298.7928

City Lights in Sylva presents a reading featuring the poetry of Kathryn Byer and Susan Lefler at 7 p.m. on Friday, July 9.

Kathryn Byer, a featured reader at the recent Flannery O’ Conner Festival, will read from her new limited edition collection titled, Southern Fictions. She will also read from her forthcoming book, Descent, due out in the fall of 2012 from LSU press.  

Susan Lefler, whose work has been featured in numerous journals, including The Asheville Poetry Review, will read from her recent collection titled, Rendering of Bones.

828.586.9499 or visit www.citylightsnc.com.

Registration for a space-limited nature writers’ intensive workshop scheduled for this fall is now open.

The Wilderness Society, a national organization with offices in Sylva, will be hosting the three-day event with author Janisse Ray. It will take place at The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center outside of Highlands from Sept. 29 to Oct. 2.   

The workshop is for writers committed to communicating the importance of place — where you live, where you hike, where your drinking water comes from — and what matters about both its present and future state.   

Participants will spend their time engaged in both dialogue and writing exercises.

Janisse Ray is the award-winning author of Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, of which “The New York Times” said, “the South has found its Rachel Carson.”   

Evenings will include special guests such as regional authors Thomas Rain Crowe, John Lane and Barbara Duncan.

Early registration fee for this workshop is $450 per person, and includes three nights of double-occupancy lodging, as well as all meals and workshop materials. mountaincenters.org.

The Plateau Fly Fishing Club will host a free casting clinic with the senior guide for Davidson River Outfitters at 7 p.m. Monday, July 11, in Cashiers.

Walker Parrott, general manager for Davidson River Outfitters, has been a guide in WNC for 12 years and is a top finisher of regional and national fly fishing competitions including the Masters Fly Fishing Championship.

The clinic will feature casting techniques for floating and sinking lines and cover characteristics of full flex, mid-flex and fast action rods. The clinic will offer all flyfishers an opportunity to determine the best rod for specific streams and species. Anyone is welcome to bring a rod for Parrott to analyze.

Held at the pond behind the Albert Carlton-Cashiers library. 828.885.7130.

As part of a new green curriculum, students from Oconaluftee Job Corps will be helping on a variety of projects in Western North Carolina.

This includes transplanting culturally significant rivercane with Western Carolina University in Cherokee; building an educational trail with the Watershed Association for the Tuckasegee River in Dillsboro; and trail revitalization on the Cheoah Ranger District in Robbinsville.

The Oconaluftee Job Corps currently serves 68 at-risk students who get a new lease on life through vocational training, education and life skills. The idea behind the new green curriculum is to expand employment opportunities for its graduates, help revitalize local economies in rural communities and enhance the mission of the agency, U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell said.

Job Corps students have fought forest fires, planted trees, improved wildlife habitat and built or maintained recreation facilities and miles of hiking trails.

Get up close and personal with wild things and wild places at the annual Mountain Wildlife Days held at Sapphire Valley Community Center July 15 and 16.

The weekend festivities are hosted by regional conservation group Wild South and are designed to introduce people to the wonders of nature and inspire a sense of responsibility to the natural world by directly connecting them with wildlife.

The speakers for Saturday’s line-up include:

• Freeman Owle, one of this year’s new presenters, who will share insights on the value the Cherokee place on wild lives and wild places — not only in the past, but in today’s society.

• Kate Marshall will share her experiences and award-winning DVDs featuring unique filming of black bears. Her video will show close-ups of bears and cubs in their natural habitat, and she’ll discuss some of the modern dilemmas bears face. She also will encourage participants to become “bear smart,” as part of an initiative currently under way that is sponsored by the Jackson-Macon Conservation Alliance.  

• Rob Gudger, a very popular presenter at Mountain Wildlife Days, will be back with his wolves. Gudger will share a new program designed to promote a better understanding of wolves, and the need to be compassionate advocates in support of our most misunderstood animal.  

• Doris Mager, often called the “Eagle Lady,” will bring an assortment of her birds of prey to perform in a flying exhibition. During the up-close look at her birds, Doris will stress the importance of being advocates for raptors, and speak to their roles in our natural world.   

• Steve O’Neill, “Wildlife Warrior” from the Earthshine Lodge, will bring small mammals and reptiles for a program designed to build compassion and inspire the protection of these wild creatures. 

On Friday, experts will lead a moderate guided hike in Panthertown and a more challenging hike to the Devil’s Courthouse on Whiteside Mountain. Cynthia Strain of Jackson-Macon Conservation Alliance and the local Audubon Society will lead a bird watching hike. To register for any of the hikes, call 828.743.7663.

Friday evening, “Creation Calls” will be presented at the Sapphire Valley Community Center with live music by the Judy Felts Trio. Bill Lea will accompany the music with photographic images of landscapes and wildlife, and a puppet team from Cashiers Baptist Church will perform.

Tickets for “Creation Calls” are $12 for adults. Saturday’s events are $7 for the entire day. Children accompanied by adults are admitted free to all events.

828.743.7663 or www.wildsouth.org.