The Mountain Winds Community Band will present a concert of holiday music at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Coulter Recital Hall at Western Carolina University. The concert is free and open to the public. The band is comprised of musicians from Jackson and surrounding counties and students from WCU…

By Beth Lawrence

By Tyler Davis

Smoky Mountain Student Council, FCA more than double goal

The Smoky Mountain Brass Quintet will be playing seasonal music at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6, at Innovation Station, Dillsboro. There is no fee, however contributions to support the Sylva American Legion Post 104 are invited. Post 104 is dedicated to helping veterans in need, supporting youth pr…

Mary Ricketson will visit City Lights Bookstore at 3 p.m. Saturday. She will read poems from “Mississippi, The Story of Luck and Marian.”

Zack Stockbridge peers under a blanket at a laptop connected to a telescope Monday in the Southwestern Community College parking lot as he views Mercury making its way between Earth and the sun. Astronomy enthusiasts from around the region brought eight telescopes to watch the Transit of Mer…

The Western North Carolina Pottery Festival came to Sylva’s Bridge Park on Saturday. Potters and visitors from around the country came to see the 46 potters, the Clay Olympics and featured potter Joy Tanner. The event moved from Dillsboro to Sylva due to construction on the Scotts Creek brid…

By Tyler Davis

By Tyler Davis

America Recycles Day promotes recycling nationwide and will be celebrated this year on Friday, Nov. 15. Recycling advocates should spread the word and share the benefits of recycling with friends, family and neighbors.

Humorist and NPR correspondent David Sedaris will be speaking at Western Carolina University’s Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 19.

By Tyler Davis

On Friday, Oct. 18, the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors held a grand opening/ribbon cutting ceremony for new members The Farmhouse Mercantile and Coffee Bar. Located at 582 W. Main St. in Sylva, The Farmhouse features handmade farmhouse pieces, purses, jewelry, clothing and mo…

Each year the Champion Credit Union donates $500 for cash prizes for crafters and artists participating in the Colorfest Festival in Dillsboro. Other winners are: first place art, Suzanne Summers; second place art, Jason Rizzo; first place craft, Debbie Douglas; and second place craft, Nancy Smith.

Michael Lounsbury, of Sylva, recently published “Never Accept Defeat,” a memoir.

Eight Jackson County crafters brought home awards from the N.C. Extension Community Association meeting held Oct. 20-23 at Lake Junaluska. Elaine Haskett, who served as county cultural arts coordinator, won second with her knit shawl and hat, and third with her cross stitch Christmas picture…

North Carolina Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green works with freshman from Jackson Community School at City Lights Bookstore Tuesday afternoon. She told the students that stories are important and “everyone’s story is precious and has dignity.” In an exercise she called “What we keep, keeps us…

Southwestern Community College’s Advertising and Graphic Design students are adding a new twist to their Halloween display, open to the public from 5:30-8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 31 in the Burrell Building.

Halloween can be one of the most fun nights of the year for children across America, but for parents, it can be the most nerve-wracking as well. On average, twice as many kids are killed while walking on Halloween than on any other day of the year. The Jackson County Department of Public Hea…

By Jim Buchanan

“Forever a Catamount” will be the theme for Homecoming 2019 at Western Carolina University, with a schedule of public events that includes a concert by country music star Lee Brice, a parade down West Main Street in Sylva, award presentations to exemplary alumni and the traditional football game.

Celeste Headlee, author of “We Need to Talk: How to Have Conversations That Matter,” will visit Western Carolina University at 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 28, for a facilitated conversation, book signing and reception.

By Tyler Davis

Pam Ashe, owner of Pam’s Daycare Center, surprised Sylva’s Police Department with a handmade American flag, burnt into wood. It features the Police Department’s shoulder patch. Police Chief Chris Hatton described what Ashe said before giving them the flag. “She said some nice things about us…

The Rooted in the Mountains theme of “Giduwagi – Appalachian Historical Ecology” struck a resounding note with the record number of attendees at this year’s symposium.

U.S. Air Force Airman Brianna Monteiro graduated from basic military training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, San Antonio, Texas, completing an eight-week program that included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness, and basic warfare princip…

Paintings feature views from WNC

Ramona Eddy, woodcarver and member of Dogwood Crafters in Dillsboro, shows off the second-place ribbon she won at the N.C. Mountain State Fair for her woodpecker carving. Twenty crafters from Dogwood entered items for judging, and 18 of them won a ribbon.

Theatre producer Brian Clowdus invades Unto These Hills this October when “The Sleepy Hollow Experience” takes the stage. The classic Washington Irving tale takes a new spin as the audience becomes part of the action.

The 2019-20 season of the First Thursday Old-Time and Bluegrass Series at Western Carolina University will get underway at 7 p.m. today (Thursday), with a concert featuring the Queen Family of Jackson County’s Caney Fork community.

Author Diane McPhail will visit City Lights Bookstore at 3 p.m. Saturday to present her historical novel, “The Abolitionist’s Daughter.” In the tradition of “Cold Mountain,” her book eschews stereotypes of the Civil War South, instead weaving a story of survival, loyalty, hope and redemption…