For veterans, service doesn’t stop when uniform comes off
 

For veterans, service doesn’t stop when uniform comes off

On Veterans Day, we commemorate the service of members of the armed forces of the United States, past and present.…
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Popular tool retailer coming to Waynesville
 

Popular tool retailer coming to Waynesville

The vacancy on Waynesville’s Russ Avenue left by big-box retailer Kmart in late 2019 is about to be filled with…
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No pun not intended: Dave Waldrop, small-town sage
 

No pun not intended: Dave Waldrop, small-town sage

It’s said that the pun is the lowest form of humor — unless it’s yours. 
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Tribal officials cut the ribbon for the Valley River Casino and Hotel on its opening day in 2015. Holly Kays photo
 

Cherokee announces record casino profits, plans for expansion

In the space of two days last week, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians announced its biggest per capita distribution…
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Haywood County Schools modifies quarantine policy
 

Haywood County Schools modifies quarantine policy

Haywood County Public Schools has implemented a new COVID-19 quarantine policy change. In certain cases, students will be required to…
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John deVille speaks outside Franklin’s old jailhouse. Cory Vaillancourt photo
 

Movement to memorialize lynching victim in Franklin gains momentum

Exactly 123 years to the day after a Black man was dragged from his cell in Franklin and hung from…
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Steven Augustine (left) and Ben King.
 

King, Augustine elected to Bryson City board

Only 10% of Bryson City residents cast a ballot in this year’s municipal election, which is not unusual for the…
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Stacey Guffey (left) and Rita Salain.
 

Franklin elects incumbent, two newcomers

The Town of Franklin elected one incumbent and two newcomers to the town council board during the Nov. 2 municipal…
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Natalie Newman (left) and Mary Kelley Gelbaugh.
 

Newman, Gelbaugh triumph in Sylva elections

Beating out two incumbent board members, Natalie Newman took the top spot in last week’s Sylva Board of Commissioners election…
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6 Winter Fashion Tips for Everyday Women
 

6 Winter Fashion Tips for Everyday Women

Many folks enjoy fashion and relish the thought of putting a fun outfit together, but not everyone has the money…
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Newcomers sweep Maggie Valley election
 

Newcomers sweep Maggie Valley election

Municipal elections in Maggie Valley drew a record number of voters in a contest that boiled down to growth and…
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New electoral maps approved
 

New electoral maps approved

The North Carolina General Assembly passed new House, Senate and congressional maps last week, but if the lawsuits — some…
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North Carolina's 13th Congressional District
 

Cawthorn won’t run for re-election in current district

During his brief political career, Western North Carolina Congressman Madison Cawthorn has become known for saying some surprising things to…
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Haywood man wins $668,202 Cash 5 jackpot
 

Haywood man wins $668,202 Cash 5 jackpot

Jason Clark of Canton tried his luck on a Cash 5 ticket and won a $668,202 jackpot.
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Haywood reports seven COVID-19 deaths
 

Haywood reports seven COVID-19 deaths

In the last week, Haywood County has mourned the loss of seven more people to COVID-19. They ranged in age…
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Suspicious Buncombe fires draw attention in Haywood
 

Suspicious Buncombe fires draw attention in Haywood

A series of suspected arsons in Buncombe County has drawn the attention of multiple law enforcement agencies, and due to…
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Lessons Learned from The Happiness Trap
 

Lessons Learned from The Happiness Trap

I’m a sucker for books on the human psyche. I’ve journeyed through several different careers, but my original bachelor’s degree…
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Gratitude: Giving Equal Airtime to the Good
 

Gratitude: Giving Equal Airtime to the Good

I’m hard on myself. I never think I do enough. I think I don’t work hard enough. I think I’m…
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Linda Plunkett to Speak at Women Enlightened Lunch
 

Linda Plunkett to Speak at Women Enlightened Lunch

Haywood Chamber of Commerce is hosting an event for Women Enlightened with guest speaker, Linda Plunkett, from 11:30 a.m. to…
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WCU’S Farmer Awarded UPCEA Instructor of the Year Award
 

WCU’S Farmer Awarded UPCEA Instructor of the Year Award

Betty Farmer, professor of communication at Western Carolina University and communication consultant, has been named Instructor of the Year, South…
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Harvest Tabbouleh
 

Harvest Tabbouleh

Tabbouleh is a delicious, fresh Lebanese salad made with parsley, mint and a little bit of bulgar. This “Harvest Tabbouleh”…
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It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas
 

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

By Sabrina Matheny • Rumble Contributor | Go into any retail store and you will feel that you are already behind…
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Veterans Day Events
 

Veterans Day Events

• The Jackson County Veterans Day Parade will be held on Thursday, Nov. 11, on Main Street in Sylva. Line…
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Emergency loans available for flood-affected farms
 

Emergency loans available for flood-affected farms

Twelve counties in Western North Carolina have received disaster declarations from U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack due to…
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Wildlife Commission heightens monitoring for chronic wasting disease
 

Wildlife Commission heightens monitoring for chronic wasting disease

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is increasing its monitoring efforts for chronic wasting disease this deer season after a deer…
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Maranda Bradley and her crew pose for a picture at the Trail of Tears Heritage Center in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Donated photo
 

‘Stronger than I thought’: Wheelchair-bound tribal member takes cycle trip along Trail of Tears route

As the September start date for Maranda Bradley’s long-planned bicycle ride along the Trail of Tears  approached, its carefully woven…
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Smokies Superintendent Cassius Cash leads a ribbon-cutting ceremony  for the new trail. NPS photo
 

Wheelchair-accessible trail comes to Cades Cove

A new wheelchair-accessible trail in the Cades Cove area of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park offers a half-mile pathway…
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Featuring a stuffed black bear, a new exhibit tells visitors about the vast array of life that can exist inside a fallen log. BRP Foundation photo
 

Waterrock Knob gets new interactive exhibits

New interactive exhibits are now up at Waterrock Knob Visitor Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway, highlighting elements of the…
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Those who served: a review of ‘The Twenty Year War’
 

Those who served: a review of ‘The Twenty Year War’

As of this year, around 19 million Americans are veterans, which is less than 10% of our population. Currently, 1.4…
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MC Taylor. (photo: Chris Frisina)
 

It will if we let it: MC Taylor of Hiss Golden Messenger

In a modern world of meaningless priorities, constant distraction, finger pointing and incessant white noise, Hiss Golden Messenger remains a…
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Billy Strings at the Asheville Civic Center. (photo: Garret K. Woodward)
 

This must be the place: Ode to Billy Strings, ode to breaking down musical barriers

Standing in a sea of thousands of music freaks at the Asheville Civic Center (aka: Harrah’s Cherokee Center) on Sunday…
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Karly Driftwood.
 

Driftwood to make WNC debut

Nashville country/indie act Karly Driftwood will hit the stage at 9 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 6, at The Water’n Hole Bar…
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‘Little Mermaid.’
 

‘The Little Mermaid Jr.’ at HART

There will be a special stage production of “The Little Mermaid Jr.” by Kids at HART at 7:30 p.m. Nov.…
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Mental Health in Motion
 

Mental Health in Motion

The Haywood County Arts Council (HCAC) is honored to announce they are sponsoring three performances at their downtown Waynesville gallery…
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Rep. Mike Clampitt, R-Swain.
 

Clampitt’s Oath Keeper membership an embarrassment

I know Rep. Mike Clampitt, R-Swain, and he’s a likeable, personable guy whom I disagree with on a lot of…
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The circle of life for Main Street commerce
 

The circle of life for Main Street commerce

For several years, The Smoky Mountain News has partnered with the Haywood Chamber of Commerce to publish its annual magazine. 
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No big money from outsiders
 

No big money from outsiders

To the Editor: My name is Carrie McBane and I was a candidate for Town of Sylva Council 2021 in…
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Non-conservatives won’t accept fascism
 

Non-conservatives won’t accept fascism

To the Editor: A recent letter purports to represent conservatives but contains mostly platitudes and hardly anything substantive. The writer’s…
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Haywood Chamber celebrates 50 years of development, engagement
 

Haywood Chamber celebrates 50 years of development, engagement

It’s not the first thing people usually think of when they try to recount the relative prosperity of a community…
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BearWaters co-owner Kevin Sandefur. (photo: Margeaux Boles)
 

Following devastating August flood, BearWaters Brewing reopens

Sitting at a picnic table on the banks of the Pigeon River in downtown Canton, Kevin Sandefur turns around and…
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Between the lines: new districts, new dynamics
 

Between the lines: new districts, new dynamics

After more than a dozen public hearings and substantial study by the North Carolina General Assembly, the decennial redistricting process…
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As Delta wave recedes, hospitals see consequences of deferred care
 

As Delta wave recedes, hospitals see consequences of deferred care

COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are continuing to fall to the lowest levels seen in months, but hospitals say that staffing…
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Macon votes for optional masking, universal testing in schools
 

Macon votes for optional masking, universal testing in schools

The Macon County School Board decided last week to make masks optional for all K-12 students. The decision came on…
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Dogwood Health invests in Native Health
 

Dogwood Health invests in Native Health

Dogwood Health Trust recently awarded more than $1 million over three years to the Center for Native Health to further…
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From renewable energy to electric vehicles, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians will pursue multiple avenues to reduce its carbon emissions over the coming years. File photo
 

Cherokee aims to reduce carbon emissions

In a unanimous vote Oct. 11, Tribal Council approved a resolution that aims to drastically reduce the tribe’s carbon emissions…
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Pandemic is financial bonanza for HCA
 

Pandemic is financial bonanza for HCA

By Peter H. Lewis • Asheville Watchdog | Nashville-based HCA Healthcare, which operates Asheville’s Mission Hospital and five other hospitals in Western…
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Bogart’s Restaurant owner Tim Hall decided to close the Sylva institution after learning — shortly after a grease fire damaged the building — that newly revised N.C. 107 plans would take down the structure. Holly Kays photo
 

N.C. 107 footprint expands

July 15 was a busy Thursday night at Bogart’s Restaurant  in Sylva. The dining room was full of people and…
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Maggie Valley elects Hinton, Owens with record turnout
 

Maggie Valley elects Hinton, Owens with record turnout

John Hinton and Jim Owens have secured seats on the Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen beating out incumbent Alderwoman Twinkle…
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Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers (left) leads Sen. Thom Tillis through Canton, touring the damage  caused by deadly flooding this past August.
 

Incumbents carry Canton

The mountain mill town known for its downtown rejuvenation as well as its “ grit and grace ” in the…
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Newman, Gelbaugh win Sylva election
 

Newman, Gelbaugh win Sylva election

The 2021-2025 Sylva Board of Commissioners will feature one new face, according to unofficial results from today’s municipal election.
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