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High school students and recent graduates have until June 6 to submit their applications for the Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts’ summer art portfolio program.
Classes for this program will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 11-29. The program will allow 30 high school students and 2012 graduates to enhance their art skills and prepare a portfolio for college admissions into a fine arts program.
Students will be divided into three groups of 10 and will rotate through printmaking, drawing and sculpture. In each of these areas, students will work with college instructors and generational instructors from Cherokee.
There will be a $50 charge for each student. Payment will be due during the day of registration. Students who need financial support can submit a one-page letter of request with the registration form stating your current situation, future plans and how they think they would benefit from the experience.
Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.497.3945.
Highlands Performing Arts Center will perform a two-weekend run of the play “Vincent.” Performances are at 7:30 p.m. June 7-9 and June 14-16 with 2:30 p.m. matinees on June 10 and 17.
Written by Leonard Nimoy, the play is about the life of Vincent Van Gogh based on more than 800 letters he wrote to his brother Theo. The multi-media production features images of Van Gogh’s work.
Ralph Stevens will be staring in the production, directed by Bart Patton. After the performance, the members of the Art League of Highlands will show the audience to an art exhibit. Works of art will be available for purchase with a portion of the sales to benefit the performing arts center.
Tickets are $20.
www.highlandspac.org or 828.526.9047.
The Lorraine Conard Band will play a free concert at 7 p.m. June 14 at the Jackson County Public Library.
Conrad’s songwriting style has been influenced by a mix of artists, from country-fried Americana to folk-tinged blues, and is anchored by rich, earthy vocals. The band members are Conard on vocals and rhythm guitar, Ed Kelly on mandolin and dobro and Greg Kidd on bass.
The Friends of Jackson County Public Library will sponsor this concert.
828.586.2016 or www.fontanalib.org.
Western Carolina University’s 2012 Summer Concert Series will start June 7.
The shows will take place at 7 p.m. each Thursday through June and July on the lawn of the A.K. Hinds University Center. The concerts are free and the audience is invited to bring blankets, chairs and snacks. The rain location is inside the university center.
This year’s acts include:
• June 7, Brandon Kirkley and the Firecrackers, a Charlotte-based rock group.
• June 14, StereoFidelics, a high-energy, indie-funk-shred-rock duo out of Asheville.
• June 21, The Back Pages, a little-bit-of-everything Asheville band that plays folk and southern rock, psychedelic and hard rock classics.
• June 28, Duende Mountain Duo, the Asheville group mixes live instrumentation, computer-based production and DJ-inspired transitions.
828.227.3622 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Haywood County-based band Rafe Hollister will perform in Sylva from 7:30-9:30 p.m. on June 8 as part of Concerts on the Creek.
The five-member band specializes in “mountain rock.”
“We use bluegrass instruments and drums and mix it with rock-and-roll,” said lead singer Sam Brinkley of Maggie Valley. “Our sound is inspired by Doc Watson, Johnny Cash and The Rolling Stones. If you mix those three together, that’s kind of what we sound like.”
Concerts on the Creek is a 10-week series of free concerts each Friday at the Bridge Park Pavilion beside Scott Creek in downtown Sylva.
The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce, town of Sylva, and Jackson County Parks and Recreation produce Concerts on the Creek.
800.962.1911 or www.mountainlovers.com.
The Fine Art Museum at Western Carolina University will open a new exhibit “RE+ constructed” with a reception at 5 p.m. June 7.
The exhibit brings together four artists — Heidi Field-Alvarez of Henrico, Va.; Jeana Eve Kelin of Boone; Carolyn Nelson of Elon; and Jen Swearington of Asheville — who explore the connection between cloth, history and narrative. While their works are technically quilts, they break from the traditional notions of quilt making.
The works in this exhibition represent a variety of materials and processes, including recycled fabric, paint, dye, digital printing and screen-printing, and hand- and machine-stitching. Common among the artists is their manipulation of cloth to tell a story.
“RE+ constructed” will remain on display until Aug. 3.
The WCU Fine Art Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday (and until 7 p.m. Thursdays). Admission and parking are free.
Textile artists and fashion designers working within a 100-mile radius of Asheville are invited to submit entries for Project Handmade, a fashion show dedicated to showcasing contemporary garments made with local materials and traditional handcrafted detail. Entries are due July 15.
The goal is to inspire textile artists to use regional resources and to encourage innovation. The fashion show will be fall 2012 at the Asheville Art Museum.
The show is a joint project of Local Cloth: Farm/Fiber/Fashion Network and the Asheville Art Museum. Local Cloth is a Western North Carolina-based organization that encourages and supports collaboration among textile artists, designers, fiber producers, suppliers and related small businesses.
Entry guidelines and a list of local resources are available online. www.projecthandmade.org or 828.505.2958 or 828.399.1713.
The Bascom, a visual arts center in Highlands, will hold a Family Fun Day from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on June 9. The event is free and open to everyone.
The day will include a scavenger hunt, presentations about The Bascom Nature Trail, self-guided birding activities and a performance by the musical group Heed the Warning. Bring a picnic and a blanket and enjoy lunch on the grounds. Light refreshments will be served.
While at The Bascom, visitors can also view the center’s exhibits, including Alex Matisse: Ometto (through Oct. 21); Tim Curtis Suspended (through Aug. 26); Green Art (through July 8); From Mud to Art, Highlands High School Ceramics (through July 8); and Chicks! It’s All Gone to the Birds (through June 17).
The Bascom is open year-round from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
828.787.2898 or www.TheBascom.org.
Haywood Community College and the American Bladesmith Society will hold an “Introduction to Bladesmithing” course from 6-10 p.m. June 18-19 in Building 3300.
The American Bladesmith Society is a nonprofit educational entity striving to preserve the art of the forged blade, tools and other implements. The goal of the course is to provide the beginning student with the knowledge and skills necessary to forge, grind, heat treat and finish a carbon steel blade during the course. Students should acquire the knowledge to finish the blade to the degree that it is ready to apply guard and handle material.
Bill Wiggins will teach the class. The Haywood County resident is treasurer of the American Bladesmith Society.
Cost of the course is $475.
828.565.4244.
Kelly Jewell-Timco will lead a hula hooping class at 4 p.m. June 13 at the Jackson County Public Library.
This event will be a part of the library’s summer activities for children and teens. The instructor will provide hula-hoops for the one-hour class.
Timco is a fitness trainer from Sylva who specializes in hooping. Half of the class time will be spent on waist/core hooping and the other half on “off the body hooping” such as keeping the hoop going around an arm, hand or ankle.
828.586.2016.
Cullowhee Mountain ARTS is gearing up for its Youth Week art workshops for children ages 5 and up from July 2-6.
The week is part of the Cullowhee Mountain ARTS’ first Summer Visual ARTS Series at Western North Carolina. From June 24 to Aug. 5, the organization will offer five-day workshops in painting, printmaking, book arts, mixed media, sculpture, ceramics and digital photography.
The three children’s programs for the week of July 2 are:
• Art Camp for ages 5-8: The “Friendly Monsters and Created Creatures”-themed camp is from 9 a.m. to noon. Young artists will spend the week exploring creatures – real and imagined - from literature, mythology and the imagination. A multitude of materials will be used to bring these “imaginary friends” to life as art objects.
• Art Camp for ages 9-12: From 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., the older youth will make art from materials that might be considered “unconventional.” They will use drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, and collage to explore recycled art. Students will learn how reusing materials is a cost-efficient, environmentally friendly art practice that also produces unique imagery.
• Teen workshops: Teens will be immersed in various disciplines of art. Students will be guided to make images that they can explore and change each day with a different medium: drawing, painting, book making, printmaking, and photography.
Class sizes are limited. Registration and details for all of the workshops can be found on the organization’s website.
The Highlands Nature Center is holding a series of summer nature camps for children from ages 4 to 14 with varying themes. Preregistration is required. For more information go to highlandsbiological.org/nature-center or contact 828.526.2623.
“WOW! – a World of Wonder” is for ages 4 to 6 and will be held from 10 a.m. to noon from June 5 to 8, from July 10 to 13 and from Aug. 7 to 10 for $55 per child. Children will learn nature games, hike, search for critters, and explore ponds and streams.
“Amazing Animals” is for ages 7 to 10 and will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. from June 12 to 15 and from July 17 to 20 for $85 per child. Children will study different animal groups through hands-on activities and field observations.
“NatureWorks” is for ages 8 to 11 and will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. from June 26 to 29 and from July 31 to Aug. 3 for $85 per child. Children will learn about the workings of Mother Nature through various interactive games and activities.
“Junior Ecologists” is for ages 11 to 14 and will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 19 to 22 for $120 per child. Children will discover what field biologists do as they conduct real science, both at the biological station and at various off-site locations in the Nantahala National Forest. They will study stream life, assess forest habitats, collect insects, examine salamander communities, perform bird counts, and inventory small mammals.
“Mountain Explorers” is for ages 10 to 13 and will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 24 to 27 for $120 per child. Students will travel off the beaten path to go on all-day hikes to a variety of off-site locations in the Nantahala National Forest. The group will observe nature and wildlife, keep field journals, learn to read maps, learn to use a compass and develop teamwork skills through trail activities.
Friends of the Smokies met a challenge grant from the Aslan Foundation of Knoxville to raise $4 million for the Trails Forever endowment.
A small group of donors hiked the Forney Ridge Trail with the Trails Forever crew and volunteers to experience the results of this major trail reconstruction program. Nearly 1,000 donors from 37 states have contributed to the endowment so far.
A half-million dollars in gifts and pledges from the friends and family of Knoxville wellness advocate Tom Cronan were instrumental in meeting Aslan’s initial challenge match. Local hikers who make annual donations to Friends of the Smokies in memory of Margaret Stevenson added another $42,000 to the Trails Forever balance.
Since they have finished the reconstruction of Forney Ridge Trail the new priority project will be Chimney Tops Trail.
www.SmokiesTrailsForever.org or www.FriendsOfTheSmokies.org.
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is starting a new program beginning this summer to create a Youth Leadership Class of 2016.
Ten students that will graduate from high school in 2016 will be chosen to be a part of the Youth Leadership Class of 2016. These students will participate in a series of educational expeditions and opportunities in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park that will culminate with the National Park Service centennial in 2016.
The goal is to recruit a diverse group of students who are willing to commit to involvement with the program over the next four years and who have potential for becoming tomorrow’s conservation leaders. The students will commit to one week each summer for an active outdoor learning expedition within the park and be willing to attend additional outings and education opportunities at other times throughout the program. Tremont is looking for program sponsors to cover the annual costs for the students. In addition, each student will be expected to help identify a community sponsor that will fund them for $100 each year. www.gsmit.org or 865.448.6709.
Volunteers are needed to assist Tremont and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park by monitoring birds through bird banding on June 14, July 22, July 5, July 25, Aug. 2 and Aug. 8.
Scientists estimate that there are nearly 230 different species of birds in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Thirty-four species considered endangered, threatened or of conservation concern have been observed in the park.
The Smokies is considered one of the most important habitats for birds in the Eastern U.S. For the past 12 years, the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont has been assisting the park in monitoring these birds through bird banding.
Bird banding sessions typically last 5 to 6 hours beginning with set-up a half hour before sunrise. Participants do not have to attend the entire session. Dress should be weather appropriate and participants should bring snacks, water, and rain gear. Participants should also be prepared for bugs, poison ivy and the occasional stream.
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 865.448.6709.
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission is hosting three free fishing events in early June at its Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education in celebration of National Fishing and Boating Week 2012.
“Fly Fishing Skills: Casting for Beginners” will be held at Lake Imaging in DuPont State Forest from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 2. The class is open to participants 12 and older and is ideal for novice anglers who will learn a variety of casting techniques. All equipment and materials are provided.
“Introduction to Fly Fishing: Lake Fishing” will be held at Lake Julia in DuPont State Forest from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 6. Instructors will teach the basics of fly-fishing on the lake and will cover topics such as equipment, knots, casting techniques and aquatic insects. The class is limited to six people and is open to participants 12 and older who have completed the “Introduction to Fly-Fishing” class or have some casting experience with fly rods and reels.
A “Catch and Cook” class will be conducted at the Pisgah Center from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 7. Participants will spend the first part of the class fishing in the Davidson River and finish the class by preparing their catch using some favorite local recipes. The class is open to participants 12 and older.
Pre-registration is required for all three classes, and a $25 pre-registration fee for the two fly-fishing classes is fully refundable upon class attendance. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.877.4423.
The public is invited to the bird-banding project at Tessentee Preserve in Otto at 8 a.m. June 2.
Participants will join Mark Hopey as he captures and bands birds for his long-term migratory bird study. Participants will be hiking a short distance to the bird banding station, so bring water, binoculars if you have them, and wear closed toe shoes. Beginning birders and children are welcome and can stay as long as they want. A carpool will be available from Highlands at the Town Hall parking lot at 7:30 a.m.
This field trip is a follow-up to biologist Mark Hopey’s lecture about this environmentally-important project which is scheduled for Friday, June 1 at the Bascom Museum in Highlands at 7:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. 828.369.2261 or www.highlandsaudubonsociety.org.
The Dillsboro River Company will offer free unguided rafting trips down the Tuckaseegee River from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 3.
Participants only have to donate 10 cans of food per person. The food will be donated to United Christian Ministries of Jackson County. The ‘Tuck” averages at about 70 degrees and offers Class II rapids, which is mild moving water.
The minimum weight requirement for rafting is 40 pounds for kids at least 4 years of age. 866.586.3797.
The Jackson County Golf Club has planned its summer schedule, which will include rounds at Mill Creek, Sequoyah National, Bear Lake, and Smoky Mountain.
Members of the club will be able to play each of these courses at a reduced rate. The club has about 60 members, however there are usually about 20 to 30 participants on Mondays. The membership dues is $45 and it includes a membership in the Carolinas Golf Association that maintains handicaps for players and provides other useful information, and membership to the Jackson County Golf Club. The club plays every Monday, weather permitting, and holds a golf tournament once a month on the fourth Saturday of the month.
828.631.0683, 828.399.0030, or www.jacksoncountygolf.com.
Western Carolina University is offering an online course beginning June 1 on topics related to surviving accidents and dangerous encounters in the wilderness.
The 10-hour course “Wilderness and Disaster Emergencies” will cover topics such as animal dangers, environmental dangers, natural and man-made disasters, and other miscellaneous survival information. This course is designed to benefit volunteer emergency service personnel, hiking clubs, scout groups and anyone else who spends time in the woods.
Instructor David E. Bradley has more than 20 years of experience in teaching survival and physical training subjects to civilian and military groups.
Course fee is $49. To register, visit learn.wcu.edu and click on “conferences and community classes.” 828.227.7397.
The Cradle of Forestry will hold a nature and educational series titled “Woodsy Owl’s Curiosity Club” from 10:30 a.m. to noon every Thursday this summer from June 7 to Aug. 2.
The Curiosity Club allows kids ages 4 to 7 to participate in a variety of outdoor-oriented activities. The children and their parents will explore a forest-related theme that engages young children in the natural world around them. This blend of investigation and creativity will help children “lend a hand, care for the land,” which is the mission of Woodsy Owl.
Each child will receive a copy of the book, Woodsy Owl’s ABC’s, and will make a topic-related craft to take home. Children can try the scavenger hunt inside the Forest Discovery Center and explore paved interpretive trails, perfect for strollers and wheelchairs. Children can also visit the Adventure Zone, designed for children with autism, as well as historic cabins, antique logging locomotive and sawmill, and gift shop. Families can bring a picnic and spend the day in the forest.
The Cradle of Forestry is located on U.S. 276 in the Pisgah National Forest. Each child costs $4 and adults are $2.50 for each program. 828.877.3130 www.cradleofforestry.org.
Robert Coleman won the Kids in the Creek T-shirt design competition and will have his design printed on 785 T-shirts for Kids in the Creek.
Robert is an eighth-grader at Haywood Middle Academy. Andrew Woody from Bethel Middle School was the runner-up for the competition.
This year was the second year Haywood Waterways Association offered the competition to students who participated in Kids in the Creek. The program has educated thousands of students in Haywood County since 1997. Every September, students, teachers, and volunteers meet at the Canton Recreation Park to learn about the water resources in their county. They learn about watershed hydrology, collect fish and aquatic bugs, and have an experience they will never forget.
This year’s Kids in the Creek students will be invited to enter the contest to produce next year’s winning design.
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.631.2823.
The Franklin Open Forum will discuss “Is alternative energy a viable alternative?” at 7 p.m. on June 6 at the Rathskeller Coffee House and Pub in downtown Franklin.
The Franklin Open Forum is a moderated discussion group that meets on the first Wednesday of every month at the Rathskeller. Everyone that wishes to participate in this exchange of ideas is invited to attend the discussion. 828.349.0598.
Mast General Store and the Appalachians Highlands Conservancy will celebrate Land Trust Day on June 2 by encouraging customers to become members of the conservancy.
Representatives from the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy will be on hand at the Mast Stores in Waynesville to share with guests the activities they are undertaking to conserve the open spaces in the region. Mast will donate 20 percent of sales on that Saturday to the conservancy.
This is the 10th year Land Trust Day has been held at Mast Store.
View the transit of Venus from 5:30 p.m. until sunset Tuesday, June 5, behind the Albert Carlton-Cashiers Community Library.
The transit of Venus is when the planet Venus passes directly between the earth and the sun. This is seen as a small black dot traveling slowly across the sun’s disk.
The actual transit begins at 6:04 p.m. and will last until the sun disappears behind the horizon. This viewing event is weather dependent.
828.743.0215.
Ron Rash, Charles Frazier and Wayne Caldwell will be among a group of southern writers to speak at the Summer Authors Speakers Series in the Manheimer Room at UNC-Asheville’s Reuter Center. The sessions are from 3 to 4:30 p.m. on Sundays, starting July 1 and are open to the public, free of charge.
• Tommy Hays begins the series with a talk on July 1. Hays is best known for his acclaimed novels, In the Family Way and The Pleasure Was Mine.
• Charles Frazier, a Western North Carolina native who gained fame with his novel Cold Mountain, will speak on July 8. Cold Mountain won the National Book Award for Fiction and was adapted into an award-winning, critically acclaimed film. His subsequent novels Thirteen Moons and Nightwoods are also set in the Appalachian Mountains.
• Wayne Caldwell, also a native of Asheville, will speak on July 15. His novel Cataloochee is part of a post-Civil War saga followed by Requiem by Fire, which chronicles a close-knit mountain village’s fight to keep its land.
• Ron Rash, whose novel Serena is being adapted for film, will speak on July 22. Serena was a 2009 PEN/Faulkner Award finalist. His latest novel is The Cove.
• Erica Abrams Locklear, who focuses on Appalachian women and literacy, will speak on July 29. Locklear is the author of Negotiating a Perilous Empowerment: Appalachian Women’s Literacies.
Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.251.6140.
UNC Asheville’s Great Smokies Writing Program is offering “A Feast of Memories,” a course in Waynesville that will help local writers hone their skills in poetry and prose. The event will take place from 5 to 7:30 p.m. June 5, 12, 19, 26, and July 10 at Blue Ridge Books in Waynesville.
Classes are open to all interested writers, but class size is limited. Jennifer McGaha, will lead participants through an exploration of food memories. McGaha is a nonfiction editor for the Pisgah Review. Her work has appeared in Blue Mesa, The North Carolina Literary Review, New Southerner, Smoky Mountain Living Magazine and the Portland Review.
The course qualifies for one UNC Asheville credit hour in literature and language. UNC Asheville tuition and fees apply.
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.250.2353.
Folkmoot USA has changed the date of its popular International Festival Day celebration to July 21. The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in historic downtown Waynesville.
More than 100 artists, craftsmen and international guests will be selling a wide range of arts and crafts, from Russian nesting dolls and Vietnamese embroidery to Seagrove pottery and traditional Appalachian baskets. There will be food from several cultures at each end of Main Street including Greek gyros, Asian spring rolls, French crepes, beignets, Caribbean Shawarmas, Fajitas and pulled pork barbeque.
A children’s area will be located in the United Community Bank parking lot. They will be issued fake passports to expedite travel to countries like Austria, Togo, Ecuador and Japan.
The scheduled entertainment will include the Celtic Rock group, Uncle Hamish and the Hooligans, as well as international dancers and musicians from Folkmoot USA, student performers from the Haywood County Arts Council’s Junior Appalachian Musicians program, the Smoky Mountain Stompers, Honey Holler, and Appalachian dance and music.
www.haywoodarts.org or 828.452.0593.
Since it is the 150th anniversary of Civil War, the Waynesville library has decided to make the momentous war the subject of one of its “Let’s Talk About It” series.
The series begins June 6 with meetings from 4-6 p.m. every three weeks in the library auditorium.
In the books chosen for this series, the novelists use their imaginative powers to recreate the greatest upheaval in our history in a way that touches emotions and senses as well as intellect.
The novels are as follows: The March by E.L. Doctorow (June 6); On the Occasion of My Last Afternoon by Kay Gibbons (June 27); The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (July 18); Enemy Women by Paulette Jiles (Aug. 8); and Lincoln’s Dream by Connie Willis (Aug. 22).
The books are available at the Waynesville branch. Ask for Teresa Glance to sign out a book. There is no charge for the books.
“Let’s Talk About It” is made possible by a grant from the North Carolina Humanities Council in partnership with the North Carolina Center for the Book.
828.456.5311 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The world premiere of Outlander, a play written by Gary Carden of Sylva and Horace Frank Lee of Bryson City, will take place from June 2 to June 16 at the Parkway Playhouse in Greensboro.
Outlander tells the story of Horace Kephart, a travel writer who was a key figure in the creation of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It chronicles how he arrived in North Carolina, and what he did for the region in terms of preserving it. The play combines traditional storytelling, mountain music and humor.
828.682.4285 or www.parkwayplayhouse.com
Registration has begun for the “Dream Big – Read” summer reading program at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City and the Macon County Library in Franklin.
The programs start on June 4 with different events for all ages.
The theme for this year’s teenagers is “Own the Night.” There are a variety of programs for children from preschool to high school seniors. All participants will receive a reading log to record their books. Prizes will be given at the end of the program in July. 828.488.3030 or 828.524.3600.
Jackson County Visual Arts Association will present two workshops on book arts from 9 a.m. to noon on June 2 and 23 at City Lights Bookstore in Sylva.
Phyllis Jarvenin will teach “Introduction to Book Arts” on June 2 and “Long Stitch Binding” on June 23. There is a fee for materials, but no experience is required. Jarvenin describes long stitch binding, “the signatures (groups of folded pages) of the book’s text block are stitched directly to the cover material along the spine. The long binding stitches are exposed, and the text pages are open fully when the book is finished.”
828.337.3468.
The Jackson County Arts Association will hold an artist reception as part of “Sylva After Dark” from 6 p.m. to 9.m., June 8, at Gallery 1.
At the event, visitors can walk through the streets of Sylva and enjoy a night of arts, dining, music, refreshments, shopping and more. The reoccurring event is held during the first Friday of each month from May to December.
Gallery 1 will have an exhibit called, “The Peep Show: New Works for Spring,” where the public can enjoy light refreshments as they meet artists Tim Lewis, Robert Clayton, Perry Kelly, Joe Meigs, Daniel Murch, Tadashi Torii, Corina Pia and Jim Smythe. The gallery will also display artistic expressions from participants of the recent “Healing the Heart through Art” class.
828.337.3468.
The 10th annual Gourd Artists Gathering and Art Festival will be held at the fairgrounds in Cherokee from 1 to 4 p.m. on May 31, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on June 1 and 2, and 9 a.m. to noon on June 3.
The festival has attracted a large amount of interest from artists and organizations worldwide, and this year’s theme is “Celebrating the Gourd Life.” Hundreds of artists from around the country will be meeting to share ideas and experiences about gourd art and techniques. There is no admission fee to attend the festival, but there will be classes with a small registration fee. Visitors are encouraged add their own artwork to gourds that will be auctioned. The auction will take place at 8 p.m. on June 2. There will also be a musical instrument project that includes constructing and decorating a gopiyantra, which is an instrument with a gourd drum from India and Bangladesh.
The Leapin’ Frog Gallery in Waynesville will host a workshop on mixed media abstract collages from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., June 9.
Local artist Silvia Cabrera Williams will teach participants how to create a mixed media abstract collage. Williams has been an artist for several years and will be featured in an upcoming publication by North Light Books called A Walk Into Abstracts.
There will be a $35 fee to attend the workshop. Pre-register.
828.456.8441.
A World War II exhibit from the Museum of Military Memorabilia in Naples, Fla., will travel to Franklin in June.
The mini-museum will be open to the public in Franklin’s Tartan Hall from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 6 through June 8 and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 9.
Greg Garcia, the curator of the collection, will showcase everything World War II from weapons and uniforms to an authentic Army Jeep. A movie presentation of “The Last Bomb” and “The Japanese Surrender” will play at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on June 6 and June 8; 2 p.m. on June 7; and 11 a.m. on June 9. Ted Logan, author of Jump Damn It Jump, will sign books and speak to visitors about his experiences as a World War II pilot at 11 a.m. on June 7.
Admission to all events is free. Any donations received will go to the Macon County Historical Society Museum.
“Thunder On the Parkway,” a new motorcycle ride from Gainesville, Ga., to Maggie Valley, will take place from June 8-10.
The ride will follow part of the Blue Ridge Parkway and end up at the Maggie Valley Festival Grounds. There will be vendors, a magician, lots of music and a bike show.
All proceeds will go to “Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway,” an organization dedicated to preserving the parkway.
A large part of the event will be a “Battle of the Bands” competition. Up to 20 artists will be selected to participate with an entry fee is $25 per band. The winner will receive a cash prize and a spot as the headliner for Saturday night.
Haywood County Arts Council’s will host an artist reception for its new exhibit, “Celebrating Appalachia,” from 6-9 p.m., June 1, at Gallery 86 in conjunction with Waynesville’s Art After Dark.
The new exhibit will be display from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., May 31 to June 30, at the Main Street gallery in Waynesville. It will feature musical instrument maker, Molly McCurdy, in the gallery from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on June 2, and it will include pottery, basketry, weaving, blacksmithing, and woodwork by more than a dozen Western North Carolina artists.
The Cherokee Voices Festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on June 9 at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian.
All are welcome to come attend,and meet with Cherokee people and learn about their history and culture. This year’s festival kicks off the 250th anniversary of the journeys of Timberlake and Ostenaco. Visitors can meet Ostenaco and Timberlake and watch the Warriors of AniKituwha present the dance that greeted Timberlake when he arrived in the area.
The festival is a free event sponsored by the North Carolina Arts Council and the Museum of the Cherokee Indian. There will be more than 25 demonstrations of traditional Cherokee arts and crafts. Food and drinks will be available all day by Harvey and David’s Catering.
www.cherokeemuseum.org or 828.497.3481.
Catch the Spirit of Appalachia awarded the Elmer and Irene Hooper Civic Leadership Scholarship to Autumn Skye Baird.
The scholarship was established in memory of Elmer Hooper by his wife Irene Hooper and Catch the Spirit of Appalachia. The fund provides financial support for students from Jackson, Macon, Haywood and Swain counties in North Carolina.
This year, the committee selected Autumn Skye Baird from Blue Ridge School in Glenville. She has demonstrated excellence in volunteerism and leadership and is committed to making a difference in the community.
Autumn has worked with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department, in nursing homes, with the Cashiers Humane Society, with the Glenville-Cashiers Rescue Squad and in her church, among other places. She is a takes part in many activities, including the Beta Club, Interact Club, Student Government, Debate Club, Student Ambassador, Upward Bound and is the senior class president. She is heading for Western Carolina University to major in Forensic Science.
The Haywood County Quilt Trails project is bringing tourists to Haywood County with the colorful display of traditional quilting patterns.
The Quilt Trail joined several other trails in Western North Carolina in November 2010. That made WNC the largest concentrated area of quilt trails in the nation. The trails give tourists an opportunity to see rural areas that they would not have seen before. Vacationers are traveling to Clyde, Canton, Waynesville and Maggie Valley to see bright quilt squares while getting a taste of the heritage as they explore the county, according to the county Tourism Development Authority.
Haywood County has 14 squares, with about 9 more going up in the coming weeks. A walking quilt trail is planned for Downtown Waynesville.
The Midtown Men will take the stage at The Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m., June 2.
The Midtown Men are made up of Christian Hoff, Michael Longoria, David Reichard and J. Robert Spencer — four members from the original cast of Broadway’s Tony Award-winning musical Jersey Boys. The concert will feature top hits from the 1960s and 1970s. They will do renditions of the hits by the Four Seasons, Beach Boys, Four Tops and The Beatles.
Tickets start at $35 and can be purchased online or at the theatre’s box office in Franklin.
www.GreatMountainMusic.com or 866.273.4615.
The Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts will welcome two comedy acts to its stage at 7:30 p.m., May 31.
Jimmy Travis and comedy duo Bean and Bailey will offer good, clean, wholesome fun for audiences of all ages. Tickets start at $12 each.
Travis mixes comedy and music. His special blend of humor relates to audiences of all kinds. His clean and refreshing performances are family-friendly, and since he frequently interacts with the audience, no two shows are ever them same. Travis has performed in all 50 states and made more than 50 national television appearances on such networks as Odyssey, The Family Channel, TNN, The Inspirational Network, and NBC.
Bean and Bailey also have a clean, family-friendly comedy act that includes everything from stand-up comedy to songs and musical parodies. Bradley Bean, who is organized and conservative, and Jackson Bailey, who is random and free-spirited, have been performing together for more than 12 years. They have entertained audiences all across the US and Canada, sharing spoofs on such topics as Walmart Greeters, doughnuts, and Elvis Presley.
www.GreatMountainMusic.com or 866.273.4615.
Smoky Mountain Brass Band will perform a free concert at 2 p.m., June 2, on the lawn of the historic Haywood County Courthouse in Waynesville.
The group is a 30-member brass band conducted by John Entzi, a trumpet professor at Mars Hill College. The band has presented great concerts for music lovers throughout Western North Carolina for thirty years. The band performs marches, British band music, jazz and swing favorites, hymns and pop selections.
By Paul Clark • Contributing Writer
A village that attracts residents because of its spectacular beauty has attracted a film festival that celebrates mountain splendor and exploration.
Mountainfilm in Telluride, one of the country’s oldest film festivals, is bringing its 2012 documentaries to town for an event that raises money for the Cashiers Village Council and its work making Cashiers a beautiful place to live.
Curated from the Mountainfilm in Telluride’s Memorial Day Weekend festival in Colorado, these are films of outstanding physical beauty, of icy rivers, flower-carpeted meadows, white-capped mountains and people climbing them, biking through them and parasailing over them. Buddhist prayer flags flutter against impossibly blue skies, and haunting music provides the serenade.
“They say these are ‘movies that matter,’” said Jim Sibley, executive director of the Cashiers Village Council. “The message that each movie is telling inspires people to improve their surroundings. The beauty is that in watching them, you are entertained. Without even knowing it, you are moved to do good.”
The festival is an excellent fit for Cashiers, he said, because of its natural beauty, world-class trout streams and hiking and biking.
The Mountain Film Festival 2012 will occur over two nights, each of which will have different lineup of films. Ranging in length from five to 20 minutes and totaling about 90 minutes each night, they’ll be shown on the sculpted hillside behind Tommy’s Coffee Shop, a business near the intersection of U.S. 64 and N.C. 107 in the center of town. The backdrop to the large movie screen will be Whiteside Mountain, behind which the sun sets.
“It’s a pretty incredible site,” Sibley said. And it’s a pretty cool thing for Cashiers, too, evidently.
“Film festivals are a great way to publicize a city,” said Jack Sholder, director of the motion picture and television production department at Western Carolina University. “It raises the profile of Cashiers and brings a little culture to the area. There is glamor associated with films. They create a lot of buzz.”
The films are a collection of documentaries that capture the spiritual and physical power of mountains and the people who do great things in them. Power and empowerment are the hallmarks of the films selected by Mountainfilm, a film festival started in 1979 by mountain climbers who climbed by day and watched films about mountains by night. The festival there evolved and has come to include explorers, environmentalists, artists and activists, photographers and filmmakers.
Mountainfilm came to Cashiers three years ago at the behest of a private developer. Steve Zoukis hosted the event because he believed the kinds of people the films would attract – younger people active in the outdoors – were the type who would buy the clever, highly designed cottages he wanted to build at Cashiers Village.
“The event was really well received,” Zoukis said. The audience included people from outside Cashiers, including some filmmakers. The films ran the gamut of outdoor adventure and adventure travel and included one about some older barbers from North Carolina’s coast who spend time between haircuts picking bluegrass in their shop. The barbers came to Zoukis’ event and picked until Zoukis was ready to go home. And then they picked some more, at their hotel.
“People commented to me that this was a different collection of visitors than Cashiers usually gets,” Zoukis said. “People came out of the woodwork and told me ‘I didn’t know that there were people like this around here.’”
Some of the visitors came from Brevard, which every year sells out the BANFF Mountain Film Festival World Tour and its mountain adventure films. There is a modest number of film festivals held each year in Western North Carolina. Despite the scaling back of the city-run Asheville Film Festival, Asheville has several festivals this year, including Actionfest (April), Asheville Jewish Film Festival (April), Twin Rivers Multimedia Festival (May 25-27) Qfest (fall, dates to be announced), the Asheville Cinema Festival (Nov. 1-4) and the Asheville International Children’s Film Festival (fall).
The city-sponsored Asheville Film Festival didn’t make money for the city, but it brought national exposure, Sholder said. He’s been a judge at film festivals in Asheville, Belgium, Portugal and Spain. “They feed you well, put you up in a nice place, there are a lot of fans,” he said. “You have to watch a lot of movies, and not all of them are good.”
But that’s not the reputation of Mountainfilm, he said. It is know for excellent cinema, he said.
Brookings’ Cashier Village Anglers is a festival sponsor because, like many of its Cashiers’ clients, it is concerned about conservation, said Boone Walker, a fishing guide and employee at the shop.
“Our clientele and the Cashiers community are environmentally aware and don’t mind donating time and money to making improvements around town,” he said, noting the work the council is doing to plant 55 trees in the village.
“Mountainfilm in Telluride screens films that convey a message,” said Henry Lystad, director of the worldwide tour that’s bringing the films to Cashiers. “Whether that message is social justice, mountain culture or incredible personal feats of tragedy or victory – if the story is strong, inspirational and gets people motivated to do something, we will consider screening it.”
And that will bring to Cashiers not only conscientious residents but also people from elsewhere concerned about the environment and cultural preservation.
Should make for a fascinating weekend in Cashiers.
“They’ll end up bringing in some interesting, artistic people, and it’ll be fun,” said Sholder, an award-winning director and editor. “People ask me what’s the best part of making a movie. It’s going to a festival after it’s over. The film is done, and everyone is shaking your hand instead of busting your balls.”
The Cashiers festival begins at 6 p.m. both evenings with food, drink and music (The Honeycutters on Friday, Zorki & Friends on Saturday) presented by the Greater Cashiers Area Merchants Association At sunset, everyone will spread their blankets, set out their chairs and watch the films.
Mountain Film Festival
When: 8:30 p.m. June 8-9.
Where: The hillside behind Tommy’s Coffee Shop.
Cost: $20 adults and $10 children under 13 each night. Two-night pass is $35 adult and $15 child. Other packages available.
More: www.cashiersvillagecouncil.org.
Also: Music from 6:30-8:30 p.m.
The listed films (others will be a surprise):
• “Chasing Water”
• “Dark Side of the Lens”
• “Mr. Happy Man”
• “Waiting For a Train”
• “Kadoma”
To the Editor:
At the most recent Jackson County commissioner meeting at the Balsam-Willets-Ochre Hill Volunteer Fire Department, Commissioner Mark Jones once again showed his true colors. His siding with an anti-capitalist, anti-commerce group like the Occupy Movement is consistent with his voting record as a commissioner.
One would think in a county, which has experienced a negative growth rate and an unemployment rate in double digits (potentially due to Commissioner Mark Jones strict construction ordinances), he would take a more pro-business stance. Sadly, he has instead chosen to side with a movement that endorses the destruction of capitalism and seeks to promote the entitlement society.
Fortunately, this is an election year. The voters of Jackson County will have an opportunity to give Mark Jones more time to spend railing against the evils of corporations and capitalism while his opponents can get back to work, growing Jackson County’s economy and providing for their families.
Ginny Jahrmarkt
Sapphire
To the Editor:
According to recent letters to the editor, Christians, or anyone else, should not be allowed to vote on amendments the “tolerant left” does not support. This form of discrimination and attacks on Christianity continues to grow in this country and people will continue to defend their right to make individual choices at the ballot box according to their beliefs.
Our basic laws are derived from the book of Leviticus, for those not familiar you can find that in the Holy Bible. Our Constitution states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion; it does not say that religious people can’t participate in government and elections.
We did not hear mournful cries when President Obama supported the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman before he needed to raise money for reelection. Gays and lesbians are lobbying for special rights that are not necessary. They already have equal rights. Our laws also prevent same sex heterosexuals from marrying, period.
The LGBT are protected in our constitutions as individuals and rightfully can’t be discriminated against for their lifestyle, nor should they receive special status and privileges. For those living an alternative lifestyle, there are alternative resources to provide for each other, same as those used for heterosexuals who choose to live together.
Many churches publicly supported the marriage amendment, some remained silent and some were against it. How can one say it was “Protestant’s forcing their religious beliefs on the populace” when churches clearly supported different views? Were there only Protestants voting for it? Were all the 38 percent that voted against it secularists? What name should we give to the 65.34 percent of registered voters that did not vote?
In contrast, the LGBT are trying to force their beliefs on the majority who continue to stand against changing the definition of marriage. Thirty one states so far have felt it necessary to exercise their 10th Amendment rights in this battle to affirm and defend the definition of marriage. In those 31 states the amendment has passed with a majority ranging from 52-86 percent. Six states and the District of Columbia allow same sex marriage through legislation or the judicial system, but have not done so by a referendum or amendment, ignoring their constitution and denying the people a vote. In North Carolina 92 out of 100 counties voted for the amendment. Over 50 percent of the states’ Defense Of Marriage Amendments have passed with 62 percent and higher majority. Every time a state has put this issue on a referendum-type ballot, the attack to redefine marriage has failed, twice in California.
There is nothing hateful, fearful or ignorant about standing firm that marriage is between a man and a woman. How could maybe 3 percent of the population have the right to redefine marriage for everyone else? Liberals are always in favor of majority rule, taking a stand and every vote counts, except when they lose.
Carol Odom
Cullowhee
To the Editor:
Sometimes misunderstandings can get completely out of hand. Such was the case at the last meeting of the Jackson County Commissioners at which a group of citizens, including myself, again attempted to offer and gain the passage of a resolution for a constitutional amendment that would take money out of politics and bring back fair elections to our nation.
One misunderstanding took place when I spoke during the public comment period at the end of the meeting, after the commission had already voted to reject the resolution. Commissioner Doug Cody had stated that he voted against the resolution because it singled out corporations without also mentioning limitations on campaign contributions from labor unions, non-profit organizations and other groups. He viewed this as discriminatory.
I began my statement by mentioning that the actual amendment we are supporting did, in fact, include limitations on all these groups, including labor unions. Perhaps I rushed over this point too quickly because I was limited to a 3-minute comment. Commissioner Cody apparently thought I was referring to the resolution we had offered originally and on which they had just voted (not the amendment itself). Commissioner Cody and the Board can verify this by reviewing the video recording of the proceedings on the Canary Coalition webpage, www.canarycoalition.org.
Cody was correct that the resolution only referred to limitations on corporations. He was very upset because he thought I was lying to him and to all who were present. He was so upset that he would not allow me to explain myself after the meeting.
The wording of the resolution voted on that night was also a result of a misunderstanding. From previous conversations with Commissioner Cody, he and I agreed that the resolution could and should address limitations on campaign contributions from labor unions and other groups as well as the issue of corporate personhood. The problem here was that I and other proponents did not expect the resolution to be placed on the agenda that night, and we were not prepared. At the previous commissioners meeting on May 9, Chairman Jack Debnam had indicated he was not ready to place it on the agenda for the next meeting, even if Commissioner Cowan asked for it.
I had assumed that if/when this issue was placed on the agenda, I and others would have a chance to talk with the commissioners, exchange ideas and find language for the resolution that would be agreeable to all. But, that chance never materialized. The original resolution was put on the table, with no opportunity for me or any other member of the public to address it until after the vote.
It’s nobody’s and everybody’s fault. Lack of communication and the resulting misunderstanding is the real culprit here. If we had been notified that it would be on the agenda, this misunderstanding could have been avoided and we would gladly have modified the resolution to be more inclusive as expressed by Commissioner Cody.
Likewise, if I or other members of the public had bothered to review the county government’s website prior to the meeting, we would have seen our item on the agenda.
I hope the commissioners can view the sequence of events at the last meeting in a different light after reading this. For the sake of government of, by and for the people, in a non-partisan manner, let’s work together and start this process over again. I’ll be at the next commissioners meeting with a revised resolution in hand.
Avram Friedman
Executive Director of the Canary Coalition
To the Editor:
I commend Becky Johnson and The Smoky Mountain News for providing the facts to its readers regarding the non-payment of the Settlement of 2010. It is a bad situation.
By all appearances the National Park Service is going out of its way not to pay Swain County. In 2011 and 2012 Rep. Heath Shuler, D-Waynesville, got $4 million appropriated by Congress each year. In 2011 NPS stalled paying until the money was rescinded as part of the budget cuts Democrats and Republicans agreed to.
Now they are stalling again. If it is not paid to Swain this time it will be spent for something else. The project list that specifically designated Swain County disappeared from the legislation and NPS got a lump sum identified only as “construction”. They have insisted all along that Swain’s payments be put in the construction account. Their budget request for 2013 does not include any money for Swain County.
I have requested a meeting with Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar about this. Several of us heard him give his strong commitment to seeing that Swain County was paid. His commitment obviously is not shared by the National Park Service. Rep. Shuler, Sen. Richard Burr and Sen. Kay Hagan have been invited to attend this meeting, if it happens. Salazar has not agreed to meet with us yet, but I’m hopeful. He can direct the NPS to make the payment.
The position taken by NPS is irrelevant. There may not be specific legislation for the payments that can be pointed to that says “authorized.” The Settlement Agreement signed by Salazar, $4 million paid up front before the agreement, and $8.8 million paid upon signing of the agreement demonstrate in fact authorization by the administration and Congress.
Moreover, authorization is not required. Every year Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has a press conference detailing billions of dollars appropriated and spent that were not “authorized.”
The Senate and the House operate differently. Each makes rules binding itself to certain procedural requirements they should follow in deciding how to spend money. According to the Harvard School of Law, when Congress violates one of its own rules, someone in Congress must challenge it, get that challenge voted on and win the challenge. This has to happen at the time of the appropriation. Otherwise the appropriation is legal whether or not authorized. The appropriation is the authorization. The proof that the appropriation was legal is that the money has been transferred to NPS.
On top of that, one Congress cannot bind a later Congress with these rules. That’s why we see Sen. McCain railing about it. He cannot get Congress to uphold his objections so he goes public.
Please notice who it is that must raise the objection. It has to be a member of Congress, not an employee of NPS. The money for Swain was not objected to or challenged by anyone in Congress. It is inappropriate now for someone at NPS to wave that flag. Actually they do not have the standing to make the issue.
Rep. Shuler, Sen. Burr and Sen. Hagan are all aware of this issue and in varying degrees all trying to help us. Some of us thought that this Settlement Agreement could end nearly 70 years of animosity between NPS and Swain County and could be the turning point for a new era of cooperation and good relations. Now it looks as if the animosity from the past will continue into future generations. Hopefully we’ll get the meeting with Sec. Salazar, all our congressional delegation will attend, he will order the payment and take appropriate corrective measures at NPS. We are investigating what legal recourse is possible, if any.
Thanks again to The Smoky Mountain News for their careful investigation and accurate reporting on this situation.
Leonard Winchester
Chairman, Citizens for the Economic Future of Swain County
A seminar intended to help small businesses in Canton develop the town’s potential will be held from 5:30 to 8 p.m. on Monday, June 4, at the Colonial Theater Annex in Canton.
“Developing Canton Businesses: Where Are We Now?” will be a facilitated discussion that will focus on organization, such as how business, government and community can work together, and design, including the philosophical question of what feel and experience downtown Canton wants to convey. There will also be a discussion of economic restructuring and promotion.
The workshop is sponsored by the Haywood Community College Small Business Center.
Russ Seagle will be the facilitator. Seagle holds a degree in marketing from Appalachian State University and a MBA from Western Carolina University. He has served as small business center director for Southwestern Community College for 11 years. He is now an independent consultant and speaker.
828.627.4512.
