To recognize their exemplary contributions to Western Carolina University and the local and regional community, WCU’s Board of Trustees is honoring Phil and Connie Haire with an honorary naming designation.  

 Elizabeth (Betty) Waldroop’s ties to Southwestern Community College go way back to the very beginning and they run deep. 

Legal Aid of North Carolina announced it has been awarded a $500,000 grant from the Governor’s Crime Commission, the chief advisory body on crime and justice issues to North Carolina’s Governor and Secretary of Public Safety, to support survivors of domestic violence, while also increasing awareness and education statewide. 

The 13th annual Dazzling Dahlia Festival will be held Saturday, Sept. 9, in Highlands.

Indian Boundary Campground in the Cherokee National Forest near Tellico Plains, Tennessee, is now closed due to damage from a flash flood on Aug. 14.

Delve into the captivating world of wildlife during a 60-minute interactive experience starting at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 2, at the Nantahala Outdoor Center in Swain County.

The hunting season for mourning and white-winged doves opens Saturday, Sept. 2, and will be separated into three segments.

Advance tickets are now on sale for the N.C. Mountain State Fair, slated for Sept. 8-17 at the Western North Carolina Agricultural Center in Fletcher.

Learn how to fly fish with the Tuckasegee Chapter of Trout Unlimited 4-8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 5, at East LaPorte Park in Jackson County.

The Waynesville Recreation Center will close for its annual maintenance week Monday, Sept. 4, through Tuesday, Sept. 12.

Look behind the scenes of a land conservation project with a presentation at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 6, at Manheimer Auditorium at the University of North Carolina Asheville, and via Zoom.

Support Haywood Waterways Association and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Haywood County during the annual Trout Race slated for 2 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 9, at BearWaters Brewing in Canton.

A community jam will be held from 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7, at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City.

A new collaboration is poised to make a large impact by providing new housing options for Jackson County seniors, low-income families and business professionals. 

BBB Scam Tracker has numerous reports of unscrupulous contractors who trick homeowners with supposedly good deals.

The Safe Passage Fund Coalition is hosting The Crossing, a free event and screening of films highlighting road ecology in Southern Appalachia and beyond.

Western Carolina University’s Highlands Biological Station will be hosting a book signing event to benefit the Highlands Botanical Gardens from 2-6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 16, at the Highlands Community Building. 

Haywood County Recreation is hosting a series of events throughout September. Here’s a look at what lies ahead

Join Haywood Waterways for its annual “Big Sweep” cleanup event, which will remove tons of trash from local waterways and roadways.

The Town of Franklin has modified the basketball court at Memorial Park to include two new pickleball courts.  

Friends of Panthertown has two events coming up in September that will give people a chance to get involved.

Jackson County Recreation will host a series of events throughout September.

The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation recently welcomed Bronwyn Lance to the nonprofit organization’s Council of Advisors. 

The N.C. Forest Service is now accepting tree seedling orders for its annual sale.

Long-time Audubon staffer Curtis Smalling has been named interim executive director of Audubon North Carolina.

NCDOT awarded a $6.2 million contract to replace a bridge, build a roundabout, new sidewalk and new bike lanes in Cullowhee.

In a single-day BioBlitz aimed at documenting biodiversity in the Craggy Mountains, 100 people photographed 1,603 organisms representing 647 species.

Kids in the Creek is putting out a call for volunteers for events on Sept. 11-12.

Panthertown Map Association, nonprofit publishers of Burt Kornegay’s “A Guide’s Guide to Panthertown,” has made a $7,500 donation to Friends of Panthertown in support of their ongoing conservation, education and stewardship work in Panthertown Valley.

A trout tournament offering $20,000 in prizes will hit Cherokee’s pristine streams Aug. 26-27.

Maintenance crews will implement temporary, single-lane closures along the northbound and southbound Spur through Aug. 17 and again Aug. 21-24.

The National Park Service issued a decision and a Finding of No Significant Impact for the Gatlinburg Spur Improvements Environmental Assessment.

Haywood Community College’s Department of Arts, Sciences, and Natural Resources and the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission will offer a variety of hunter safety courses this fall.

The Franklin Bird Club leads weekly birding walks along the Little Tennessee River Greenway in Franklin at 8 a.m. Wednesday mornings, with the public welcome to join.

The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission (WRC) is offering six free hunting-related webinars September through December.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park officials welcomed two new members to the Park Management Team.

MADE X MTNS announced grant recipients of its Outdoor Equity Fund.

Get ready for softball season with an organizational meeting for an adult co-ed league at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 21, at the Vance Street Park pavilion in Waynesville.

The N.C. Department of Transportation is beginning to evaluate projects for its next 10-year capital plan and wants the public to be involved.

A series of meetings this month in seven communities along the Blue Ridge Parkway will help formulate an action plan for Blue Ridge Rising, a regional planning effort uniting gateway communities along the Parkway.

 Rich Mountain Road in the Cades Cove area of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is closed to all traffic until further notice after a bear scratched a visitor over the weekend.

Help Haywood Waterways Association celebrate its 25th birthday with trivia and reminiscing 2-5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 19, at BearWaters in Waynesville.

A Cherokee Preservation Foundation grant awarded in March is allowing the N.C. Arboretum’s ecoEXPLORE program to deliver monthly environmental programming for kids at locations throughout Cherokee.

Help the Carolina Mountain Club rehabilitate the trail to the Sam Knob summit during a workday Saturday, Aug. 19.

The N.C. Tomato Growers Association will conduct an August referendum on assessments per harvested commercial tomatoes.

Go birding at Buck Spring along the Blue Ridge Parkway with an expedition meeting 8 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 17, at Jukebox Junction in Bethel.

Howard Browers will lead the walk. Loaner binoculars are available. Cost is $10. Sign up at bit.ly/haywoodrec.

Halfway through the season for its weekly E. coli sampling program in Western North Carolina swimming holes, MountainTrue reported 11 sites in the Hiawassee and Little Tennessee river basins that passed all seven tests and six locations that failed all tests.

Following two months of cooler-than-average temperatures, July came in hot in North Carolina. According to the N.C. State Climate Office, it was the state’s 20th warmest July since 1896.

Four years ago, the Carolina Mountain Club identified the “forgotten 14” as an unsafe section within its 155-mile maintenance responsibility on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail.

Learn how to stay safe in the woods with a course 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 17, at Standing Rock Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway.