To the Editor:

Had I been a student at Western Carolina Teachers College (WCTC) in the late 1920s, I might have taken a walk down the hill from my dorm on the “old campus,” down the road to the campus entrance on Highway 107, on down past Brown’s Store,  Battle’s Grocery (subsequently the Village Store), which also housed the Cullowhee Post Office, on to what is now  Monteith Gap Road, at that time a dirt road running parallel to the railroad track that ran parallel to the Tuckaseigee River. 

Pushing on, I would have crossed a rickety bridge across Cullowhee Creek and, if continuing along the railroad, merged onto another dirt road, which is now Ledbetter Road. After some 200 yards, I would have come upon a field with players engaged in various games. In fact, I would have arrived at what was then WCTC’s athletic field.

To bring a part of this history full circle, had college students of the mid-1970s era traced the route the student of the 1920s took,  they would have walked along paved roads, seen no trace of the railroad tracks, but would have felt safer crossing the sturdier bridge that had been built across Cullowhee Creek. Proceeding along Ledbetter Road, they would have observed that the former athletic field had now become a small mobile home park, River Park.

Fast forward to today when pedestrians, cyclists, or anyone picking up litter along Ledbetter Road literally take their lives in their hands due to the large volume of traffic moving along this road, some travelling at double the posted speed limit, some drivers being distracted by texting or cell phone use, thereby drifting into the opposing lane of traffic. All of these circumstances are made much more hazardous due to an imposing guard rail about two feet from the edge of the roadway that can trap any potential victim — pedestrian or motorist — attempting to take evasive action.

Having wandered dream-like through the last number of decades, let me describe the Ledbetter Road of today: During the last decade, the small mobile home park that was once the athletic field of the college has now more than tripled in capacity with three entrances onto Ledbetter Road, all three near or in dangerous curves. And within the last six or so years, we have seen built on Ledbetter Road three large housing complexes: University Suites, Maples Apartments and Cullowhee Villas, altogether accommodating a total of 381 bedrooms. 

Ledbetter Road, prior to the building of these three complexes, already served as the ingress/egress for Sleepy Hollow Cottages, the 46-home University Heights subdivision, and various other single- and multi-family homes in the vicinity of where Ledbetter Road dead ends. We now have being planned (the land currently is being cleared) the Western Carolina Apartments complex that is to have an additional 490 bedrooms.

Monteith Gap Road leads to another housing complex, various apartments and other single- and multi-family homes, as well as the university’s landfill.  This road ends near the acreage recently purchased for one of the end-point anchors to the Greenway.

There is also a second housing complex being considered for South Painter Road opposite the current Community Garden site, and a bed and breakfast planned for Monteith Gap Road between the Laundromat and the Cullowhee Creek bridge. These come when the university is considering the discontinuance of the off-campus shuttle bus service, and the fall opening of “The Pub” at the former Papa Pizza/Hardies building.

With the impending increase in the volume of traffic, we have circulated a petition signed by sixty-four of the occupants of all but four of the homes of our subdivision asking that DOT address several safety issues. Among these are: widening the lanes, leveling and resurfacing, constructing a sidewalk, installing guard rails where the road parallels the river closely, making provision for bicycle traffic, implementing a reduction in speed limits, installing rumble strips to both slow the traffic and keep traffic from crossing the center line into the opposing lane, and installing additional signage warning of the intersections to these soon-to-be five housing complexes.

In addition to compiling the petition which was addressed to Mr. Joel Setzer, Fourteenth Division Engineer, we sent copies to Mr. Jonathan Woodard, District Engineer for the six westernmost counties of which Jackson is one; Mr. Jack Debnam, Chairman of the Board of County Commissioners; Mr. Chuck Wooten, County Manager; and Mr. Gerald Green, County Planner.  We followed up by meeting with Mr. Woodard for additional discussion and exploration.  

During this discussion Mr. Woodard noted that Jackson County is part of the Southwestern Rural Planning Organization (SWRPO), which has a role in ranking potential transportation projects. The DOT Fourteenth Division Office in Sylva also has a role in ranking projects for this area.  Mr. Woodard then emphasized that the RPO ranking is based largely on the needs expressed by local government officials.  

Woodard assured us that DOT will share our concerns with Jackson County officials and the SWRPO, and that his office intends to submit a request to improve these roads  in the next project ranking cycle that is scheduled to begin in January 2014.

So, in conclusion, our work is ongoing as we attempt to bring our concerns to the attention of those who are in position to effect change. We pledge a cooperative effort as we continue to move along this path.

Ralph Willis

Cullowhee

To the Editor:

I am old enough to remember the time before Roe v. Wade was passed. Almost every family I knew back then had a horror story about some member of their extended family dying from a botched illegal abortion or an attempted do-it-yourself abortion. Just because abortion was illegal in most states did not stop abortions from taking place. It just made them very risky for the health of the person seeking them. We also tried to legislate abstaining from consuming alcohol, and most of us know how that turned out.

I respect the right of anyone to have a strong personal belief that abortion is wrong, and guess what — so does Roe v. Wade! That law does not tell anyone they have to have an abortion, but it does say that anyone who chooses the abortion option has the right to a legal and medically safe procedure. I do not know anyone who has made a decision to abort that has done so without careful consideration of all her circumstance and a great deal of soul searching.    

Suppose a group of people that believed anyone on any kind of welfare should not have more children while collecting it got the legislature to consider a bill like this: “If you are already a parent of two children and you are receiving subsidized childcare so you can work, subsidized housing and food stamps because you do not get paid a livable wage, and your children, at least, qualify for the Children’s Health Insurance program, and you become pregnant, this law will require you to either have an abortion or lose all subsidies that you have been receiving to support your family and will not be eligible for any help in the future.”

I ask all of you who want to legislate your personal belief on the rest of us, “would you want that group trying to legislate a choice like I just made up on you?”  I can almost hear the outcry, “I don’t want the government, or anyone else, telling me what I need to do. I get to decide what I do with my body. I should have the freedom to choose.”   

Well that is exactly what people who are pro-choice believe, what Roe v. Wade supports, and what Dr. Jeanne A. Conry, president of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and Dr. Haywood L. Brown of Durham, Chair of District IV of ACOG, said in the Charlotte Observer on July, 16, 2013:

“… Medical decisions must be based on scientific evidence and made by patients in consultation with physicians, not the state or federal government.

“… ACOG respects our members’ deeply held personal beliefs on abortion. While we can agree to disagree about abortion on ideological grounds, we must draw a hard line against any legislation that threatens women’s health. That’s why we’re setting the record straight for all politicians: Get out of our exam rooms.”

We tried having abortion be illegal and there is abundant data that proves it did not prevent abortion but only made them unsafe. If the legislature was truly concerned about women’s health safety, and not trying to make abortion illegal, they would be working to make sure all women had access to all needed health care based on scientific fact, not political ideology. Make sure all women have access to the correct knowledge and contraception to prevent unwanted pregnancy and the abortion issue becomes mute, and the governor would not have to lie about what he would sign.

Jane Harrison

Waynesville

To the Editor:

We are thankful for The Smoky Mountain News coverage of the Lake Junaluska-Waynesville merger process. I am a full-time resident at the Lake and have served as president of the Lake Junaluska Assembly Property Owners Organization. I also served on the Municipal Study Task Force which studied in depth the pros and cons of merger. My concern is Rep. Michele Presnell, R-Burnsville, and her involvement in the merger process.

Obviously, Rep. Presnell has not bothered to read any of the material and studies related to this proposal. Nor has she investigated both sides of this matter. Rather, while she represents a part of Haywood County, she has chosen to interject herself into a very local issue involving parts of Haywood County that are not in her legislative district, nor is it a matter of state or even regional concern. It is a local issue that has sufficient and appropriate representation by Rep. Joe Sam Queen, D-Waynesville, and Sen. Jim Davis, R-Franklin. Rep. Presnell says those few people opposed to annexation asked her to intervene because they felt that they were not getting what they wanted from their elected representatives.

Rep. Presnell avows that somehow she knows “in her heart” that annexation is not in the best interests of Lake Junaluska. Never mind the will of the majority of property owners. Her assertion about the Lake and Waynesville making an “end run” around the official process is ludicrous, and Rep. Presnell knows it. 

The actions taken by the Lake and by Waynesville have been open to the public, subject to a survey by resident and non-resident property owners (which showed 65 percent of owners want annexation) and vetted in every way by our elected state legislators. Now, Rep. Presnell has decided she is above all that, that she “knows” better about the future of Lake Junaluska — even though she has not been elected by the persons she is seeking to represent and has no jurisdiction or stake in this conversation.  

The future of the Lake is indeed at issue here. Should not the persons who have the most at stake make the decisions in concert with their duly elected legislators?

 Don Rankin

Lake Junaluska

Towns across the mountains will hold elections for their mayors and town board leaders this fall. Some town races are shaping up to be hotly contested, like Maggie Valley with a deep bench of challengers, while others like Dillsboro have no challengers at all.

Retired tennis stars Andy Roddick and Jim Courier will play a charity exhibition match, the UCB Mountain Challenge, on Saturday, July 27, at Cedar Creek Racquet Club in Cashiers. Roddick is a new homeowner in Cashiers.

Proceeds will benefit the new non-profit organization Mountain Youth Charities.

The marquee match-up brings together players who have been ranked No. 1 in the world. Roddick held that position following his victory in the 2003 U.S. Open. Courier was the world’s No. 1 player four times in the 1990s.

The UCB Mountain Challenge will also include a match between top-ranked juniors Thai Kwiatkowski of Charlotte, and Korey Lovett of Brevard, and a doubles match between the Roddick and Courier and the winners of a local pro-am tournament. Roddick and Courier will host a gala dinner Friday evening, July 26, at Lonesome Valley’s Canyon Kitchen in Cashiers. 

The VIP breakfast and the junior match begin at 10 a.m., followed by the doubles match at 11 a.m. Roddick at Courier begin play at 11:30 a.m. Tickets range in price from $100 to $5,000 for box seats. They can be purchased online.

828.743.3411 or www.cashiers.com.

A $3 million federal grant will help protect 8,000 acres of working forestland in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina from development.

The tract contains the East Fork of the French Broad Headwaters and connects to more than 100,000 acres of existing conservation lands in North Carolina and South Carolina, including the Jocassee Gorges Management Area.

The project will also expand public recreation by protecting the last privately-owned section of the Foothills Trail, opening more than five miles of trout streams to the public, and securing access to Sassafras Mountain, South Carolina’s highest point.

The project will also preserve more than 60 miles of streams and protect endangered plant species and other plant and animal species of concern.

The project is one of 16 conservation projects in 15 states that received a total of $44.2 million in grants. The grants are part of a U.S. Forest Service program called the Forest Legacy Program.

“Since 1990, the Forest Legacy Program has prevented the loss of more than 2.3 million acres of private forest lands for future generations of Americans,” said Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell. “In an era of continued sprawl, this program protects land and keeps working forests working.” 

A project to help federally-listed aquatic species in Macon County has received $142,500 from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The money will be used to acquire 39 acres, of which about 2,600 feet is frontage on the Little Tennessee River. The purchase aims to protect habitat and reduce sedimentation to benefit the threatened spotfin chub, the endangered littlewing pearlymussel and the endangered Appalachian elktoe. 

The award was part of a recent round of nearly $32 million in grants given out in 20 states to help conserve rare species. The grants enable states to work with private landowners, conservation groups and other government agencies to initiate conservation planning and acquire and protect habitat that benefits threatened and endangered fish, wildlife and plants.

The competitive grants were issued through the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund. 

“Private landowners play a vital role in conserving our most imperiled species, but they need our help,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe. “These grants provide a lifeline to species on the brink [of extinction] by fostering partnerships between federal, state and local governments, private organizations, and individuals.”

Mystic Lands Property Owners Association has dedicated a bridge to honor Rob Kelly, a whitewater rafting guide who saved a woman who became trapped under a tree while paddling the Nantahala River last September.

Backpackers in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park can continue to keep their food and packs out of reach of bears, thanks to specialty license plate funds. 

Tyler Pace is expected to report to the U.S. Marshals Service office in Asheville next week to start serving his 90-day sentence for vandalizing parts of Max Patch, a scenic area in the Pisgah National Forest near the Tennessee-North Carolina border.

Ethnobotanist David Cozzo will lead an eco tour on July 30 to the Tessentee Bottomland Preserve to discuss how the Cherokee select river cane, an important artisan resource, and restoration efforts for this once abundant bamboo-like plant.

Chef Jen Pearson of Guadalupe Cafe will be showcasing eggplant in an original recipe during a local foods cooking demo at the Jackson County Farmers Market at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 20, near Bridge Park in downtown Sylva. 

Cooking demos are a regular event at the farmer’s market, intended to foster healthy eating and increase the sale of locally-grown fruits and vegetables in Western North Carolina. The cooking demonstrations feature a locally-grown products, the farmers who grew it and a local chef to demonstrate how to cook with fresh homegrown ingredients. 

828.631.3033 or www.jacksoncountyfarmersmarket.org.

Legendary Broadway musical “Brigadoon” runs at 7:30 p.m. July 18-20, 25-27, Aug. 1-3, and at 3 p.m. July 14, 21, 28 and Aug. 4, at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.

The 10th annual Franklin Folk Festival, a “Celebration of Appalachian Heritage,” runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, July 20, in downtown Franklin.

Members of Voices in the Laurel Children’s Choir have just returned from the Crescent City Choral Festival in New Orleans.  

The festival featured a 200-voice mass choir, which consisted of Voices in the Laurel and nine other choirs from across the United States. The singers rehearsed two to three hours for four days ending with a gala concert at the historical St. Louis Cathedral. For the concert, each choir performed individually, followed by a stunning performance by the mass choir.

Voices in the Laurel is pleased to announce that the choir has recently received a personal invitation to sing at Carnegie Hall in New York at the end of the upcoming season. The group is also holding its fourth annual Summer Voice Music Camp, which will be held July 29 to Aug. 2, at First Baptist Church in Waynesville. The camp is open to any interested musicians who are entering first through ninth grades. 

www.voiceinthelaurel.org or 828.734.8413.

Acclaimed singer/songwriter Kathy Mattea will perform at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 20, at the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts in Franklin.

Mega-country star Miranda Lambert hits the stage at 9 p.m. Friday, July 19, at Harrah’s Cherokee Event Center.

To the Editor:

An article in a local paper stated that the Macon County Airport Authority met in early July to get an update on the widening of runways to allow for use by larger aircraft. The news that the widening is on the way is shocking, as the people who will again be most impacted, those living in Iotla Valley, had no information whatever that it was even being planned. With the county having property records and all the information means available, it is obvious that neighbors were not informed because the power brokers know they can move ahead with their schemes without the bother of hearing from people who might object and whose voices will not be listened to anyway. 

The Authority chairman takes pride that representatives from Harrah's Casino had flown in the previous week and were happy they could fly into Franklin instead of Asheville. The comparison is ludicrous, as the Franklin airport cannot ever reach the traffic the Asheville airport has because Asheville is much more centrally located, its airport already has large carrier flights, and its location on a flat plain is conducive to further growth which Franklin's airport being hemmed in by mountains precludes. 

It is also mentioned that people staying at Old Edwards Inn were pleased flying into Franklin. The widening will allow larger jets to fly in and more flights to come in daily. So gamblers for the casino and some wealthy folks will reap the benefits while the neighbors bear the brunt of more pollution, more noise, more traffic on our curvy roads, and the eventual irreplaceable loss of our beautiful Valley.

Much is made of the economic windfall the airport presently brings to our county with the untested promise being that more airport growth will result, of course, in more jobs, more business opportunities, and economic ripples to benefit all Maconians. 

I would like to know how many local people were and will be hired by W. K. Dickson, the engineering firm that did the runway extension and now will do the expansion. With all the rosy predictions, are the jobs going to be created by turning N.C. 28 into another fastfood lane and by widening and straightening Airport and Iotla Church roads and all other access roads into our community? It is frighteningly sad that this may be the nightmarish vision that airport and county officials have for Iotla Valley.

Living in a democracy should mean that people, especially common citizens, have a say on their destinies. How can we influence what happens to our lives when decisions are made without notice by a powerful few? Trying to be heard by government these days is a futile and demeaning pursuit as those of us who protested against the runway extension painfully know. That is why citizens don't attend meetings, that is why we are called apathetic, that is why we are silent now. 

Last question: is the widening going to take the runways closer to Iotla Valley School?

Olga F. Pader

Franklin

Folkmoot is a Western North Carolina tradition, and this year, the festival is tapping into the growing craft beer industry that has become a thriving part of the WNC cuisine scene.

Japan: Quichar Paradise

The name Quichar Paradise means “Be Happy Anytime.” This performing group is from Tokyo, Japan, but represent dance of the Okinawa region. The group has participated in numerous folklore festivals including Hohhot Inner Mongolia in China, Yilan International Children’s Folklore and Folkgame (YICF), and the 21st International Folklore Festival VARNA. 

The Community Foundation gave two $75,000 grants to Region A Partnership for Children and Southwestern Child Development Commission.

One of the grants will expand the Parents as Teachers program, which benefits participating families by offering home visits, group connections, child screenings and a resource network. The other grant will be used to improve access to quality, affordable early childhood care and education that is provided by the Southwestern Child Development Commission.  

The Community Foundation is a permanent regional resource that facilitates $11 million in charitable giving annually.

www.cfwnc.org.

Bethel Rural Community Organization released its CD of the Cold Mountain Heritage Driving Tour.

The CD provides a guided journey to nine of the most popular historic sites in the Cold Mountain region of Bethel, the oldest human settlement and the oldest white settlement in Haywood County. Sites include Bethel Presbyterian Church, Bethel Cemetery, Lenoir’s Creek Devon and Blanton/Reece Log Cabin, among others. The CD also provides narrations about topics, sites and people who were prominent in Bethel’s history.

Doug Chambers produced the CD, and Haywood EMC sponsored the production. It is for sale at Blue Ridge Books and on the organization’s website. 

www.bethelrural.org.

N.C. Broadband — a part of the N.C. Department of Commerce — is collecting data on the number of Jackson County households and businesses currently lacking Internet service that are interested in purchasing it. The information will be used to entice business to move into those areas and invest in Internet infrastructure.

The survey can be accessed online. Hard copies are available at the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva, at the Albert Carlton Library in Cashiers, at the Jackson County Recreation Center in Cullowhee, at the Cashiers-Glenville Recreation Center in Cashiers and at volunteer fire department stations throughout the county.

828.631.2295 or www.ncbroadband.gov.

The body of a kayaker who was reported missing in the Pisgah National Forest late afternoon July 4 was found the following night.

Richard Scott Bradfield, 36, of Lexington, Ky., was found near a riverbank in the Shining Rock Wilderness area around 7:20 p.m. Friday, July 5. Rescuers carried him in a heavy downpour from rugged terrain near the Looking Glass Falls overlook. He was transported to MedWest Haywood after midnight, where he was pronounced dead.

Bradfield was one of a group of seven people who were visiting the area together. He was reported missing shortly after other members of his group saw his kayak capsize and be swept downstream. His kayak was found earlier Friday afternoon.

“This was a tragic incident,” said Haywood County Chief Deputy Jeff Haynes, “and our deepest condolences go out to his family.”

Bradfield was not a novice kayaker, but due to recent storms and heavy rainfall over the past several days, the river was higher than normal and rapids were treacherous, according to Haynes.

“We ask that visitors and residents please be mindful of high water,” Haynes said.  “Please exercise extreme caution when participating in wilderness activity during hazardous conditions.”

Jono Bryant will present a talk called “Headhunters and Toothbrushes” at 7 p.m. Thursday, July 18, at the Macon County Public Library. Bryant is the director and founder of MedicForce, a medical charity that specializes in expeditions to remote jungle communities throughout the world. He will talk about his experience working on a TV show in the remote jungles of Borneo and how MedicForce was formed after a chance meeting with a group of tribal natives called the Penan.

Bryant is a paramedic and also runs a wilderness medicine school out of the Nantahala Outdoor Center. He was born in the UK, and before landing in Bryson City, he spent 12 years as an expedition leader and jungle specialist, leading trips for scientists and college groups and appearing in TV shows.

The talk is part of Thursdays at the Library. Sponsored by the Friends of the Macon County Library, the weekly program is an eclectic mix of presentations by authors, musicians, and educators on varied topics. 

Free.

The Conservation Trust for North Carolina recently purchased a 31-acre property that adjoins the Mountains-to-Sea Trail and the Blue Ridge Parkway near milepost 446. The tract contains a portion of Bear Creek in the headwaters of the North Fork Scott Creek in Jackson County. 

The Lens Luggers photography club of Western North Carolina is holding a special photography clinic featuring wide angle perspective and control. 

Roll out the green welcome mat for the annual Cullowhee Native Plant Conference coming Wednesday, July 17, through Saturday, July 20, at Western Carolina University.

Tuckasegee poet Thomas Crowe won the George Scarborough Prize for Poetry during the recent Mountain Heritage Literary Festival at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tenn. 

The winning poem was “Here With Who-Shot-John.” Judge Maurice Manning has this to say about the poem: “I love the language and the music of this poem; it’s funny and searching at once. As an ars poetica, it puts me in mind of similar poems by Ted Hughes and Seamus Heaney.” 

Crowe’s poem was selected from a small group of poems that Manning said paid careful attention to craft. 

 “This is a real honor, coming from a regional festival that honors those poets living in and being inspired by these Southern Appalachian mountains,” said Crowe. “And further that it is in the name of one of our region’s most accomplished poets, George Scarborough. I am especially gratified that my poem ‘Here With Who-Shot-John’ was the poem selected as the winner of this year’s prize, as it is a poem dense with what Jim Wayne Miller called ‘Southern Mountain Speech’ — referring to the dialect that is spoken here by longtime European native/immigrants. Was a bit of good luck, I think, that Maurice Manning, as someone who understands the musicality and metaphorical implications of our mountain language, was the judge for this year’s award, as he clearly understood what I was doing in this poem. I am honored to have received this award and will take great pride in this.”

Crowe is the author of 13 volumes of original poems, including most recently his collection of place-based poems Crack Light with photos by photographer Simone Lipscomb. His Thoreau-like nature memoir Zoro’s Field: My Life in the Appalachian Woods has won several awards and has just been translated and published in France by Phebus Books based in Paris. Crowe is also the publisher of New Native Press, a small literary press focusing on the publication of poetry and translations of endangered languages around the world. 

HERE WITH WHO-SHOT-JOHN*

for Jim Wayne Miller

Come here where the nary and the never minds

don’t give a shuck or a jive

‘bout the bees in the branch or

the billies in the blind that

come clear, come hell or high water

and dabble down at the spring house

where the ducks lay their eggs

and I write.

Here where the burnt-out dog lies

on the porch bull-raggin’ the bugs

til he is bit and bawls like a lunk-head

and lopes down the yard and

through the garden greens and taters

til he is out of sight.

Here where the beauty of the hills

holds sway over my pricey thoughts and

my puny pen makin’ its way across paper

like it was a goat in the grass

goin’ nigh into the new ground that

we cleared this week for more hay.

Here where the night in my noggin

names notions that no furriner ever knew

and no gabby gal ever let slip from

her sweet tongue that wouldn’t melt butter

or swaller no shine.

Here in this creekbed of moonlight whar

a wetrock won’t even sharpen my words,

woozy and wrangled from Who-Shot-John

and I wrastle with the devil in the winder

like an old windbag

who is pert-nigh petered out

and wild outen his eyes. 

*colloquialism of Southern Mountain Speech for “moonshine”

Two artist-in-residence mini-workshops will be offered as part of the Cullowhee Mountain ARTS programs at Western Carolina University.

Showcasing the dramatic retelling of Cherokee history and culture, “Unto These Hills” has hit the mid-point in its 10-week summer run, playing nightly at 7:30 p.m. through Aug. 17 (except Sundays) at the Mountainside Theater in Cherokee.

Claymates, a “Paint-Your-Own-Pottery & Glass Fusing Experience,” is celebrating its one-year anniversary from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, July 13, at its Waynesville studio, with a free hotdog lunch, games, activities and crafts, and a 20 percent discount on DIY pottery and fused glass projects. The Macaroni Kids will also be on hand.

Upcoming events at Claymates include Margarita Night on Friday, July 19 in the Dillsboro studio; Ladies Night on Thursday, July 25 in the Waynesville studio; a Painting Techniques Class on Saturday, Aug. 3 in Dillsboro; and Ladies Night on Thursday, Aug. 22 in Waynesville.

www.claymatespottery.com or 828.631.3133 (Dillsboro) or 828.246.9595 (Waynesville).

Two hula-hoop jams will be held at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, July 17, at Marianna Black Library in Bryson City.

Kelly Jewell Timco, a hula aficionado from Sylva, will be sharing a variety of hula-hooping techniques with lots of hands-on activities. The preschool to fifth grade jam will be held at 11 a.m., with a special teen jam at 2:30 p.m. Timco will also be showing off her fire-hooping skills during the teen jam.  

Free. 828.488.3030.

Due to record-breaking rainfall throughout Western North Carolina, Cashiers, Dillsboro and Highlands Fourth of July fireworks were canceled and moved to a later date.

Cashiers has been changed to Sept. 1, to coincide with the Labor Day weekend events. Dillsboro will host theirs on Dec. 14 in conjunction with their holiday Luminary Festival, while Highlands will be on Aug. 31, also during Labor Day weekend.

The 19th annual Swannanoa Chamber Music Festival continues at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, July 14, at the Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville.

By John Beckman • Columnist

I’ve had quite a few cars on the road in the past 40 years, and I’ve noticed that they all start to fall apart when the odometer begins showing nervously higher figures. The breakdowns that happen depend largely on how hard the operator has been on the pedals and buttons and how diligent they have been in preventative maintenance and regular upkeep. 

A citizen drop-in meeting to discuss the progress of Waynesville’s North Main Street Complete Streets Study will be held from 4-6 p.m. on July 16 in the second floor boardroom at Town Hall.

The town is developing a plan to make North Main more pedestrian and bike friendly, a project contracted to Teague Engineering, Brooks Engineering Associates, and Kostelec Planning. Input is being sought to shape the plan.

Or email comments to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by Friday, July 12. 828.456.8383.

An all-night search Monday along Richland Creek in Waynesville for a possible missing child turned out to be a false alarm.

Waynesville Police got a call around 7:30 p.m. Monday from someone who thought they heard a children’s screams coming from the direction of Richland Creek.

“We did an exhaustive search and even put a swift water rescue boat in the water,” said Waynesville Police Chief Bill Hollingsed. “We went door-to-door to all the houses in the neighborhood to make sure everybody’s children were accounted for. We didn’t find anything. We’ve had no reports of anybody missing.”

The search was called off at 6 a.m. Tuesday. Several agencies assisted in the search, including Haywood Emergency Management, Haywood Rescue Squad, and the Waynesville, Saunooke, Clyde, Center Pigeon and Junaluska fire departments.

Hollingsed said caution is always the best policy and would go to the same lengths each time to ensure a child isn’t in danger. Richland Creek was running full tilt with high and swift waters due to the heavy unrelenting rains in recent days.

Towns across the mountains will hold elections for their mayors and town board leaders this fall. The sign up period for candidates began last week. Below is a list of who has signed up to run for office as of press time Tuesday. The candidate sign-up period runs until noon Friday, July 19. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is awarding more than $950,000 to 28 states for projects to combat and study white-nose syndrome, the deadly disease that is decimating bats. North Carolina is set to receive $45,000 through the program; Tennessee is slated for $47,500.

The money will help state wildlife officials fund and support research, monitor bat populations and detect and respond to white-nose syndrome. The disease is spreading rapidly. First discovered in upstate New York in 2006, it is now prevalent in 22 states and five Canadian provinces as of this year. The fungus-caused disease has also found its way into Western North Carolina. It is one of the most devastating diseases affecting wildlife. Estimates pace the bat death toll at more than 5.7 million.

The N.C. Wildlife Federation has released its list of the Top 10 wildlife species struggling to survive. These critters are victim to habitat loss, disease, over-harvest and other challenges that make the outlook for their kind bleak. 

Determining the Top 10 list took into consideration the species’ abundance, habitat scarcity, popularity, potential for successful restoration and other threatening omens. The list includes species from different animal classes and geographic locations — from the mountains to the piedmont to the coastal plain.

Several are also high profile species affected by different divisive issues such as development and climate change. 

Tim Gestwicki, CEO of the federation, wants the list to call attention to the environmental problems of our day and prompt action to be taken by political and community leaders to solve the problems.

 “We believe the Top 10 list will bring further attention to the diversity of species and wild places — from the mountains to the seas — that North Carolina is blessed with,” said Gestwicki.

www.ncwf.org

Aquatic enthusiasts have the chance to tag along with the scientists for a lesson on stream sampling.

The Highlands Biological Station staff will be exploring streams, conducting aquatic sampling and learning about the state of the area’s streams from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Thursday, July 11. Participants can join in and help sample and identify macro-invertebrates in Caney Fork, a tributary to the Tuckasegee River, and learn how scientists use these macro-invertebrates for biomonitoring. 

Participants will meet at the Highlands Nature Center at 9:30 a.m. for carpooling or meet at East LaPorte Park in Jackson County at 10:15 a.m. The program is part of the Highlands Biological Foundation’s “Think About Thursdays” summer activity series. All ages are welcome, and the cost is $10 for members, $15 for non-members. Registration is requested.

828.526.2221.

Test your kick-ball skills this summer in the big leagues.

Registration is underway for the 2013 Haywood County Recreation and Parks Adult Co-Ed Kickball League. Games will take place at 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays from July 16 through Aug. 20 at the International Paper Sports Complex in Canton. The league is co-ed for players 18 years and older. The cost is $200 per team and teams have until July 8 to sign up. Each team must have no more than 15 players and keep two female players on the field at all times. 

828.452.6789 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Jon boats and canoes are a common sight on the water at Lake Junaluska. But a water ski team stacked three people high?  

Yes, and it will be quite the show — two, in fact — when the Carolina Show Ski Team performs at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Friday, July 5, at Lake Junaluska. The best viewing for the free show will be from the Rose Walk.

The team is comprised of 30 to 40 skiers ranging in age from 4 to 60 who perform stunts individually as well as with multiple members on the same line. Spectators at the Lake Junaluska performance can expect to see barefoot skiing at 40 miles per hour, synchronized ballet skiing and swivel skiing, where the bindings of the skis turn 360 degrees. 

It is one of many special events and festivities being held at Lake Junaluska this week in honor of its 100th anniversary.

www.lakejunaluska.com/july4 or 800.222.4930. 

The summer Zahner Conservation Lecture Series will kick off in Highlands next week with a talk on biodiversity in the Southern Appalachians.

A nearly all-downhill hike will be held in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on Tuesday, July 16, with Friends of the Smokies hike leader and guide book author Danny Bernstein.