Stepping out: Day of Visibility celebrates Asheville’­s transgende­r community

The second annual International Transgender Day of Visibility-Asheville happens Friday and Saturday, March 30-31. And while many folks may wonder why another LGBTQ pride event is necessary, our local transgender community clearly needs a day of its own. For too long, "transgender" has been limited to overpriced conferences celebrating victimhood, hot "she-male" porn sites and […]

Executive director of ABCCM to speak in D.C. about local success with helping homeless veterans

Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry executive director, Reverend Scott Rogers, will speak before the Senate sub-committee on Veterans Affairs today at 10 a.m. alongside the national coalition of homeless veterans, to share their principles and practices that are producing local outcomes above the national average.

Slow and steady

Every Thursday at 4 p.m., Michael Davis swaps the white cotton maintenance uniform with his last name stitched on the chest for a silky jacket with a dragon embroidered on the back. Then he hurries to the activity room at the Asheville Terrace Apartments on Tunnel Road, where he teaches a one-hour tai chi class. […]

All smiles

When Asheville dentist Katherine Jowers sees a child with special needs, a little make-believe goes a long way. She calls the dental chair a beach chair, the bright overhead light the sun, and the sharp dentistry tools funny-looking silverware. “You’ve got to make it familiar or else it will be scary,” Jowers explains, even if […]

Changes celebrated at Buncombe County Health and Human Services Department

About 75 department heads, staffers, elected officials and others gathered Feb. 15 to celebrate recent renovations to the Buncombe County Health and Human Services Department building in downtown Asheville.
(Pictured here: Board chair David Gantt and Commissioner Carol Peterson try out a new kids play area in the building’s lobby. Photos by Bill Rhodes)

Never forget

It’s known as the silent killer, capable of annihilating a person’s cognitive function within a matter of years. Destroying brain cells and wiping memories, Alzheimer’s disease affects more than 5.4 million Americans each year. It affects people as young as 35, though they’re usually past 65. In short, this is a killer that must be […]

Not blowing smoke

A painful memory cloaked in cigarette smoke fires Owen High School junior Savannah Henderson’s determination to help extinguish tobacco use. “My grandfather started using at a very young age, and just years later, he suffered a major stroke related to his smoking,” she reveals. Three other girls sitting with her nod knowingly: They’ve all witnessed […]

Healthy knowledge: whooping cough and you

Earlier this week, North Carolina health officials confirmed eight cases of whooping cough and suspect 23 more at an Almanace County elementary school. Though Alamance County is about three hours away from Asheville, the fears about this infectious disease are not isolated to county lines. Disease control supervisor of the Buncombe County Health Department, Sue Ellen Morrision, tells us more.

UNC Asheville’­s Health Fair attracts about 450, informs and educates in the process


A set of lungs breathed on the table, but one more easily than the other.  One was a soft pink and expanded and contracted with ease. The other was larger, darker and showed a tumor as a result of tobacco use. The booth, set up by Mission Respiratory Therapy, was one of about 40 at yesterday’s second annual UNC Asheville Health Fair organized by UNCA health and wellness student Emily Pineda. (photos by Megan Dombroski)

UNC Asheville to host second annual Health Fair this Thursday, open to the public

After 370 students showed up to the first UNC Asheville Health Fair, senior health and wellness student Emily Pineda decided to not only organize the event again, but to open it to the Asheville community this year. The fair will feature about 40 local health organizations and businesses in addition to about $500 worth of free health assessments ranging from therapeutic massages to eye care.