Petition effort seeks Tribal Council term limits
 

Petition effort seeks Tribal Council term limits

A petition drive is underway in Cherokee aiming to place term limits on Tribal Council members and give tribal members…
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Books always make a thoughtful gift
 

Books always make a thoughtful gift

You’re stuck.  It’s your boss’ birthday, your nephew’s graduation from high school, your cousin’s promotion at work, and you need…
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Monteith leaves a lasting legacy in Swain
 

Monteith leaves a lasting legacy in Swain

It was July or August of 1999, best I remember, and the Swain County Commissioners at that time were meeting…
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From beauty pageants to soccer fields
 

From beauty pageants to soccer fields

It’s not my proudest accolade, but I spent a significant portion of my childhood in a pageant dress.  The doctors…
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Enjoy the articles by Chris Cox
 

Enjoy the articles by Chris Cox

To the Editor: I sure enjoy the opinion columns by Chris Cox in The Smoky Mountain News. I enjoy reading…
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You just can’t fix stupid
 

You just can’t fix stupid

To the Editor: First off, no anonymous person here. My name is Sandy Sanders. I read Chris Cox column a…
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We all need to speak up
 

We all need to speak up

To the Editor: Does opening your email or Facebook feed or nightly news programs make your blood pressure go up?…
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Departing Trump’s alternate universe
 

Departing Trump’s alternate universe

To the Editor: As a journalist and former member of the working press, I continue to be appalled and frankly…
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Dawg days of bluegrass: David Grisman picks on WNC
 

Dawg days of bluegrass: David Grisman picks on WNC

He’s the common denominator. When you look back at the career of iconic bluegrass mandolinist David Grisman, you’re diving deep…
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This must be the place: We won, but what’s the real prize?
 

This must be the place: We won, but what’s the real prize?

Once they announce your name, you stand up and move towards the bright lights. Meandering around a sardine can ballroom…
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Increased need prompts change in shelter management
 

Increased need prompts change in shelter management

Correction: In the March 1 issue, The Smoky Mountain News incorrectly reported that Jackson Neighbors in Need requested funding from…
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Increased need prompts change in shelter management
 

Increased need prompts change in shelter management

Correction: In the March 1 issue, The Smoky Mountain News incorrectly reported that Jackson Neighbors in Need requested funding from…
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New apartment complex received in Sylva
 

New apartment complex received in Sylva

A 48-unit apartment complex could be built along Savannah Road in Sylva if town commissioners give the green light at…
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Perhaps school board has learned a lesson
 

Perhaps school board has learned a lesson

Since it is, after all, the Haywood County School Board, I can only hope they’ve learned a lesson. Last week…
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Trump’s rise has some similarities to Hitler
 

Trump’s rise has some similarities to Hitler

To the Editor: Among the many sources available to explain current events in Washington is an excellent recent book that…
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Trump tweets himself back into the muck
 

Trump tweets himself back into the muck

As near as I can tell, the readers of this newspaper are pretty evenly divided on whether I should continue…
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River park would boost visitation, tax revenues
 

River park would boost visitation, tax revenues

Kelly Custer has been a lifelong lover of the outdoors, from playing sports as a kid to mountaineering adventures in…
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N.C. Arboretum upgrades facilities, increases parking fee
 

N.C. Arboretum upgrades facilities, increases parking fee

The N.C. Arboretum in Asheville recently completed several upgrades to its facilities, including conversion to LED lights in all indoor…
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Blue Ridge Breakaway off for 2017
 

Blue Ridge Breakaway off for 2017

The Blue Ridge Breakaway, which would have celebrated its eighth year in August, has been canceled for this year with…
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Polar plunge raises $30,000 education
 

Polar plunge raises $30,000 education

The 2017 Polar Plunge Benefit-t-t-ting Kids in the Creek and Environmental Education surpassed its goal to raise $30,600 this year,…
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‘Doc’ Bennett was truly a man of the mountains
 

‘Doc’ Bennett was truly a man of the mountains

I have files in my computer containing articles I’ve forgotten that I wrote until, by chance, I run across them…
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Through the fingertips, echoes the history
 

Through the fingertips, echoes the history

“You know, history becomes personal,” Reggie Harris said to a silent auditorium last Sunday afternoon. “These are our stories, and…
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This must be the place: I remember you, the one in the dusty photos
 

This must be the place: I remember you, the one in the dusty photos

It came out of the blue. Sunday morning. My smart phone dinged next to my bed. I groaned, rolled over…
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Portrait of WCU’s Belcher unveiled
 

Portrait of WCU’s Belcher unveiled

A future addition to Western Carolina University’s gallery of presidential portraits was recently unveiled for the first time as the…
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Burke’s writing shines in The Jealous Kind
 

Burke’s writing shines in The Jealous Kind

In The Jealous Kind (Simon and Schuster, 2016, 400 pages, $27.99), novelist James Lee Burke drops his readers into Houston,…
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WNC communities help redesign their five-lane highways
 

WNC communities help redesign their five-lane highways

Waynesville, Sylva and Franklin’s main commercial thoroughfares are getting a makeover in the coming years that could reshape the fabric…
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Over and out: a Southern Loop retrospective
 

Over and out: a Southern Loop retrospective

With a redesign of N.C. 107 officially in the works, the controversial Southern Loop appears to be toast.
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A windshield tour of the new 107
 

A windshield tour of the new 107

Years in the making, design options for a new N.C. 107 in Sylva were recently unveiled by the North Carolina…
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Death of the five lane, birth of the boulevard
 

Death of the five lane, birth of the boulevard

Waynesville, Sylva and Franklin’s main commercial thoroughfares are getting a makeover, reshaping the fabric of these communities for decades to…
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DOT spares part of Walnut Street, for now
 

DOT spares part of Walnut Street, for now

A message sent by opponents of the Russ Avenue widening project’s Walnut Street segment appears to have been received loud…
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Canton businesses rebound from crash
 

Canton businesses rebound from crash

A lot is going right in Canton these days, but a driver going left — right into a downtown building…
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Economic diversification continues in Canton
 

Economic diversification continues in Canton

Canton is the archetype of a small southern mill village: the river running through it helps churn the gears of…
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Early college is Haywood’s ‘hidden gem’
 

Early college is Haywood’s ‘hidden gem’

A collaborative program designed to help students overcome the familial, financial and social obstructions of attending college lacks room to…
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Cherokee impeachment efforts will continue
 

Cherokee impeachment efforts will continue

Some tribal members are saying their rights were violated after three pieces of legislation that would curtail impeachment proceedings against…
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Calvary Street lots to become Waynesville park
 

Calvary Street lots to become Waynesville park

A new park in Waynesville’s Pigeon Street community can finally move forward thanks to an agreement reached between Haywood County…
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Possible shots fired near Haywood school
 

Possible shots fired near Haywood school

At approximately 11:40 a.m., Haywood County Schools Superintendent Anne Garrett received a call from the Haywood Community Learning Center in…
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Cherokee council overturns impeachment veto
 

Cherokee council overturns impeachment veto

Tribal Council will proceed with its efforts to impeach Principal Chief Patrick Lambert following votes to overturn Lambert’s veto of…
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Let’s keep a little separation between God and politics
 

Let’s keep a little separation between God and politics

He’s a respected member of the community, a physician, and we ran into each other unexpectedly.  “I really have to…
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For me, there is real joy in solitude
 

For me, there is real joy in solitude

My favorite time of day is quiet time. Every morning before the hustle and bustle of the day begins, before…
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Time to solve problems
 

Time to solve problems

To the Editor: Obviously, the GOP has won control of government for a brief while. The use of such language…
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The big lie about immigration
 

The big lie about immigration

To the Editor: Everyone wants to feel safe. We want to protect our lives, our property and our jobs. When…
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Let’s just get people back to work
 

Let’s just get people back to work

To the Editor: People do not appear to understand how important it is that Obamacare be repealed with no replacement.…
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Rep. Mark Meadows has gone missing
 

Rep. Mark Meadows has gone missing

To the Editor: As a constituent of Rep. Mark Meadows, R-Asheville, I am disappointed that he did not use this…
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How the mountain towns died
 

How the mountain towns died

To the Editor: Once there was once a busy, thriving community nestled in beautiful mountains that surrounded the town on…
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Protecting privacy in two steps
 

Protecting privacy in two steps

To the Editor: North Carolina state Sen. Jim Davis, Franklin, in a recent newspaper interview indicated he opposes the repeal…
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In rural Scotland, lessons on the power of books
 

In rural Scotland, lessons on the power of books

Readers of this column know I am a sucker for books about books. Novels like The Little Paris Bookshop, collections…
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The race is on: Police investigate Pinnacle trail spiking as Assault on Blackrock sees record registration
 

The race is on: Police investigate Pinnacle trail spiking as Assault on Blackrock sees record registration

News spread fast last week after the Sylva Police Department removed more than 50 spikes from hiking trails at Pinnacle…
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Prescribed burns planned for national forests
 

Prescribed burns planned for national forests

Over the next few months, prescribed burns will be conducted on all four of North Carolina’s national forests.
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Grant dollars will help WNC farms grow
 

Grant dollars will help WNC farms grow

A total of $201,000 has been awarded to 35 farm businesses in Western North Carolina as part of this year’s…
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Drought increases in Western N.C.
 

Drought increases in Western N.C.

Drought is creeping back into the area, with the number of counties designated as experiencing severe drought growing from four…
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