The Town of Sylva, Jackson County Parks and Recreation Department and Jackson County Chamber of Commerce are proud to present the 16th season of the annual “Concerts on the Creek” music series. 

• Friday, May 23 at 6 p.m. – Peter McDade presents his novel “King Cal” in conversation with Christy Alexander Hallberg. Set in the world of music, the novel explores the creative journey of Calvin, a fast-food worker and aspiring musician, as he loses everything in a single day and must decide if chasing his dream is worth the cost. 

With a new middle school on the horizon, Jackson County Public Schools is budgeting for a changing school system. On May 6, JCPS made its official request for local funding from the Jackson County Commission.  

Back in the 1940s, while World War II was still raging in Europe and the Philippines,  Charlie Kilpatrick and I used to entertain ourselves by prowling through the kudzu thickets near his house. 

I’m sitting alone in the cockpit of the boat anchored at Cape Lookout National Seashore off the coast of North Carolina in the early morning, and I’m about to write a column about tourism. Sipping my coffee, though, I’m distracted as a cool May breeze rattles the halyards. 

Prior to its appropriation by communist regimes, International Workers Day — May Day — was first commemorated in honor of Chicago workers killed while striking for an eight-hour workday.

Gary Carden has accomplished a great deal in his life. But by his own estimation, none of it compares to his most recent endeavor — donating a treasure trove of books to the Jackson County Public Library that took him a lifetime to collect. 

To the Editor:

I am 91 years old. For close to 50 of those years we lived at 116 Cowan Street in Sylva. We were active members at First Baptist Church; our five children attended Fairview Elementary and Sylva-Webster High School. My wife, Barbara, taught piano, dulcimer, guitar and other instruments to dozens of people throughout Western North Carolina. We Osments will always consider Sylva to be our hometown. 

The Jackson County Board of Education this month took an in-depth look at per pupil spending across the school system, prompted by recent discussions about Jackson Community School and its viability for the future. 

To The Editor:

I appreciate your straightforward and informative coverage of the removal of the plaque over Sylva Sam’s Confederate flag. I am a 21-year resident of Jackson County, and have enjoyed positive relations with fellow citizens here during all those years, no matter what our political views were.