Eligh Ros, a dual-enrollment 12th grader at Martin L. Nesbitt Jr. Discovery Academy, is on track to graduate as part of the class of 2020 with both a high school diploma and some college credit from A-B Tech. Early this spring, he was busy with classes and multiple club activities, his sights set on studying computer science or engineering at Rochester Institute of Technology in New York in the fall, when he suddenly found his life upended by Gov. Roy Cooper’s March 14 executive order to close schools.
Author: Gina Smith
Showing 22-42 of 618 results
Quarantine creates hard choices for a single parent
Meagan Taylor and her seven-year-old daughter, Fred, are missing out on hugs and cuddles right now. The two have found themselves forced to face the challenges of the pandemic while living physically apart.
Oakley residents plant seeds of community resilience
Since late March, Michael Stratton, his wife, Amanda, and a small, hardworking steering committee have managed to transform a 4,000-square-foot grassy field near Fairview Road into 15 neat garden beds, which in mid-April were already speckled with green sprouts of onions, potatoes, kale, chard and more. The group plans to donate the produce to food pantries and neighbors in need due to COVID-19.
Kimberly Hunter weaves strong community webs through cooperative development
“I’m trying to convene people who care in a way that will help the folks who are being left out, because there’s a high percentage of our friends and neighbors who won’t make it.” says Hunter about her work in response to the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.
Marissa Percoco sees a ‘new hunger’ for permaculture knowledge
“I feel like right now this COVID virus is forcing people to slow down and, hopefully, look internally and not just at their phones,” says Percoco, the Firefly Gathering’s new executive director. “It’s interesting how something like this can come in and show us how vulnerable we are.”
Quarantined residents rush to get growing
Kristin Weeks, managing partner and co-owner of the Asheville location of Fifth Season Gardening Co., says business is booming in the wake of COVID-19. “People are coming in and spending a lot more money; the average invoice has gone up, too,” she says. “People are kind of just coming in and going for it.”
Isa Whitaker builds community resilience through gardening
As coordinator of Bountiful Cities’ Asheville Buncombe Community Garden Network, Whitaker manages communication, educational programming and resources such as free seed and tool libraries for more than two dozen local gardening efforts. And after COVID-19 began impacting life in Western North Carolina, he’s seen an increase in the number of local residents interested in starting new community gardens.
Organic Growers School Spring Conference ushers in the WNC growing season
Now in its 27th year, the Organic Growers School Spring Conference welcomes growers and sustainability-minded folks of all types for a weekend of region-specific educational offerings, a trade show, seed exchange, guest speakers and opportunities for socializing and networking. This year’s conference takes place Friday-Sunday, March 6-8, at Mars Hill University.
Chef J. Chong offers Asheville the Cantonese cuisine of her childhood
Beyond cooking, the Toronto native says her greatest passion is supporting the LGBTQ community.
Haywood County Extension hosts Master Gardener Plant Sale, Jan. 31-Feb. 27
Press release from Haywood County Cooperative Extension: The annual Haywood County Extension Master Gardener plant sale has begun. Edibles (berries and asparagus) and hard-to-find native plants (perennials to attract pollinators) are available at exceptional prices. Order forms are available at the Cooperative Extension Office on Raccoon Road, by calling the office at 828-456-3575, on the […]
Fur-menting fundamentals: Local experts discuss fermented foods for pets
Local vets and pet nutrition experts say there are affordable, easy ways to improve pet gut health.
(HUMOR) Asheville’s fast-food chicken sandwich smackdown
In the Popeyes vs. Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich war, the biggest question is: Why all the chicken?
Chill Cereal Bar & Cafe is a mother-and-son venture
Patricia and Elijah Waters take their cereal-focused pop-up concept to events from bridal showers to volunteer group meetings.
WNC shops share tips for turning your yard into a bird-watching haven
Winter is the ideal time to begin planting and planning to create a hospitable wild bird habitat.
New draft horses join Warren Wilson College’s sustainable farming program
Queen and Doc recently relocated from an Amish community in Ohio to serve as the horsepower behind the college’s sustainable agriculture program.
WNC school food pantries and programs fill gaps in student food access
Federal free and reduced-price lunch and breakfast programs help ensure that the 53% of public school students who qualify are fed when they’re at school. But what happens when those kids go home for the evening or the weekend?
Chef Silver Cousler dishes on love, authenticity and Filipino flavors
On Sunday, Oct. 27, the Gan Shan West chef de cuisine and their partner, Cherry Iocovozzi, will present the final installment of the Filipino food and natural wine pop-up series, Love Songs.
Nonprofit launches hemp testing services for WNC farmers, processors
The U.S. Botanical Safety Laboratory’s new gas chromatography equipment and a specially developed testing methodology are poised to bring stability and convenience to Western North Carolina’s burgeoning industrial hemp industry.
Mark Cohen presents a workshop on regenerative agriculture
“Healthy soil and the biodiversity that generates and maintains it is key in simultaneously improving food security, watershed health, preventive medicine and climate mitigation,” says farmer, ethnobotanist and educator Mark Cohen.
Monarch Butterfly Day at The N.C. Arboretum
The Sept. 28 event will offer a milkweed plant sale, children’s educational activities and a monarch gardening workshop for adults.
Hickory Nut Gap Farm hosts networking dinner for young and beginning farmers
Hickory Nut Gap Farm will join forces with the National Young Farmers Coalition to host a free dinner and networking evening for new and future farmers on Thursday, Sept. 26.