Lynn Hotaling - Editor

Hotaling brings 20-plus years of newspaper experience to the Herald's newsroom. In addition to editing and page design, she covers the school board and Sylva town government, writes many editorials and shares authorship of the Ruralite Cafe, a popular weekly column about local people and places. A Georgia native, Hotaling has lived in Jackson County since 1970 and holds both bachelor's and master's degrees from Western Carolina University.

Carey Phillips - Sports Editor

Phillips has been employed at the Herald since 1982 and serves as sports editor and assistant editor. In addition to covering local sports, his duties include reporting on the Sylva Police Department and the Jackson County court system. A lifelong resident of Jackson County, he is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Justin Goble - News Reporter

Justin Goble, originally from Lenoir, North Carolina, graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in May 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism/Mass Communication. He counts playing guitar and watching “bad horror movies” among his hobbies. Goble has worked on a volunteer basis for the Lenoir News-Topic working general assignments. At the Herald he covers the towns of Sylva and Dillsboro as well as TWSA. He also writes features and serves as coordinator for the Newspapers in Education initiative.

Derek Hodges - News Reporter

Hodges, originally from Morganton, NC, graduated from Mars Hill College in May, 2004, with a bachelor’s degree in religion. While at Mars Hill he served as Editor of the Hilltop, the MHC newspaper. During his time with the Hilltop, Hodges gained recognition and awards for his investigations of the college’s trustees and for his work on the Baptist State Convention. He has worked for theBiblical Recorder, news journal of North Carolina Baptists, where he was also awarded for his work on a dispute in the Tuckaseigee Baptist Association. At the Herald he covers the school board, county commission, Dillsboro town board, and handles the obituaries, among other duties.

Margo Gray - Advertising Manager

After graduating from WCU with a degree in art, Margo was employed by The Sylva Herald as advertising manager. "I love my job . . . working with people and designing ads that will get their message to our readers. Call our award-winning design team and let us make your business our business!"

Jan Extine - Advertising Representative

A native of Jackson County, Jan has been employed at the Sylva Herald since 1984. She began work in the Herald Darkroom. In this department she worked on printing jobs such as posters, business cards, letterheads and general business forms, including the mechanical tasks involved in preparing a job for the press. She joined the Advertising Staff in 1991. Having attended WCU, and being an '82 graduate of SCC with an Associates Degree in Advertising Design, she looks forward to meeting you and helping with your advertising needs.

Kelly Timco - Advertising/Photography

Kelly was born the son of a construction worker. Raised in Western Pennsylvania, the need arose to find better work when the mines gave out. Street fighting and moonshine whiskey were the only source of money for his first years. Upon moving to Western North Carolina, he took on many jobs: Restaurant work, carpentry, welding, moving/hauling, sandblasting, bridge building & restoration work. He even became a liscenced auctioneer. Kelly has always played music. He likes all kinds of music and through the years has grown fond of bluegrass and folk music. Now that he works at the Sylva Herald, his mission in life is to bring his experiences into the ads he helps build for the many hard working business owners here in Jackson County. Kelly wants you to know this: "I am proud to be an American. Rock On!"

Cindy Turpin - Typesetter/Layout Artist

Cindy Turpin, a 10-year employee, builds real estate ads and keys in classifieds for the newspaper. She also handles layout of brochures, business cards, business forms and more for the commercial printing department.

Nick Breedlove - Webmaster/Graphics/Tech Support/Photography

Nick Breedlove joined the crew in May of 2003. He provides computer tech support to The Herald Staff while juggling many other tasks. As webmaster, he maintains this website, and designs graphics for it. There's the occasional jobwork, i.e. business cards, letterhead, etc. and also the layout of real estate ads. He also does photography for the Sylva Herald. Breedlove is a 2002 graduate of Smoky Mountain High School. After attending WCU's Honor College for a year, he became interested in photojournalism and that brought him here to the Herald. Breedlove has also been featured as an annual winner in our Spring Photo Contest.

Jeff Harlow - Graphic Design/Printing Sales/Production Coordinator

Jeff Harlow has been an employee of the Herald since 1986. He handles printing sales, design and production issues. An honors graduate of SCC in Commercial Art/Graphic Design, Jeff brings more than 15 years experience in the print field to the Herald.

Art Altman (no email) - Accounts Receivable

Art has been a Jackson County resident since 1976. A WCU graduate with a BS in Industrial Technology, Art runs the Accounts Receivable department. He is responsible for billing and recording payments to The Sylva Herald.