Like salads, smoothies are what you make of them — and you can easily make them into a high-fat, high-calorie mess barely better than a Big Mac.

Located amidst the ice cream shops and candy stores in Maggie Valley’s Market Square is a different kind of establishment — Wild Market.

Ron and Chrissy Hill were all set for their retirement in the Cumberland Mountains of Tennessee, having bought a house and moved themselves north from their longtime home in Macon, Georgia. Then they took a quick visit to Haywood County, and things changed pretty quickly. 

“We came over here for the weekend, and I said, ‘OK, this is it,” said Chrissy Hill, 57.

A new health sciences building at Southwestern Community College would allow an additional 288 students to prepare for in-demand health careers in Western North Carolina, and while the Jackson County Commissioners are excited about the project, paying the $19.8 million estimated price tag will be a challenge. In the 2016 master plan that first conceptualized the building, the cost was pegged at $16.3 million, but construction costs have since risen, and the county has several other major capital projects that it’s also pursuing.

January is universally recognized as the time to make a fresh start, throw away last year’s used-up calendar and dream up a new set of aspirations for the 12 months ahead. And when it comes to New Year’s resolutions aimed at becoming more active in 2017, Western North Carolina offers a dazzling array of options.

Western North Carolina is ablaze with 22 wildfires currently burning through more than 50 square miles in the seven most western counties. Smoke from the fires is posing health hazards while continued severe drought conditions are leaving many communities with a limited water supply.

• Holding the line
• Arson suspected in WNC fires
• Fleeing fire
• Local water supplies drying up
• Wildfires torment residents, tourism
• Dangerous smoke hazard persists throughout WNC

Two dozen or so forest fires in Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, and Western North Carolina have forced mandatory evacuations in WNC, but the impact is being felt and smelt far beyond the remote coves where they smolder. 

By Shannon Icenhour • Guest Columnist

Fall is almost over, but October was not just for trick-or-treating; it also represented National Physical Therapy Month. This year’s campaign was “Choose Physical Thereapy.” With advancements in the medical field, medications are readily available and often seem to be the easiest option to treat pain. However, the American Physical Therapy Association encourages you to seek physical therapy as a way to heal your pain, not just mask it.

Southwestern Community College is gearing up to start work on a $17 million health sciences building, with its trustees last week spending hours listening to pitches from four different companies before selecting the firm LS3P to design the project.

As a yoga instructor and a massage therapist, Candra Smith knows that staying healthy requires a sound mind and body, which is why her business — Maggie Valley Wellness Center — provides services for both.