Briefly, it seemed like the coronavirus pandemic had turned a corner. “People were starting to feel a little bit optimistic this summer,” says Ariel Shumaker, an Asheville therapist in private practice, about COVID-19. “And now, it’s not feeling optimistic.” Fatigue, sadness, anxiety, rage, fear, exhaustion — these are the emotions area behavioral health professionals report […]
Losing a loved one is one of the few truly universal life experiences. Despite its universality, however, grieving can feel totally unpredictable — and totally isolating. Some bereaved people might already have mental health care providers or be able to rely on community resources like a school counseling office. But for many others, finding help […]
It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic is causing belts to tighten. But even at the best of times, the cost of a higher education can be out of reach for many. While college costs in Western North Carolina are generally lower than the nationwide average of $35,720 per year, according to EducationData.org, sticker shock […]
Amid signs reading “My body, my choice, my right” and chants of “We won’t go back!”, supporters of reproductive rights gathered at Pack Square on Sept. 6 as a local response to Senate Bill 8, a ban in Texas on abortions of pregnancies of more than about six weeks. The Speakout for Reproductive Freedom, organized […]
On June 26, just over two months ago, Buncombe County recorded just one new case of COVID-19. The county’s coronavirus state of emergency had ended earlier that month, and just 16 people were hospitalized due to the disease across Western North Carolina. As of Aug. 18, the emergency is back. WNC hospitals are caring for […]
Update, Sept. 6, 2021: This piece was updated to reflect that Natasha Tretheway’s book Native Guard is a collection of poetry. Growing up in Leicester, Erica Abrams Locklear imagined becoming a pediatrician one day. She loved to read, though, and remembers enjoying Southern authors Jill McCorkle and Clyde Edgerton. But Abrams Locklear didn’t become aware […]
“ABCCM knows that people who are houseless or experiencing homelessness are smart, motivated and often courageous persons who want the skills that lead to careers,” the Rev. Scott Rogers, the nonprofit’s executive director, wrote in a statement to Xpress. “They want to earn enough income to rent or buy a home close to their work and school for their children.”
Western North Carolina is grappling with a controversial part of its history: monuments erected in commemoration of Confederate figures. In May, after months of debate and consideration by a specially appointed task force, Asheville began removing the Vance Monument, an obelisk honoring the late Confederate military officer and former Gov. Zebulon Baird Vance. And in […]
Asheville city government’s decision-making should happen in the sunlight. At least, that’s the principle Liz Harper brings to her work as the city’s public records officer. Anyone who has asked for public information about permit violations, purchase orders or police reports since October 2020 has been assisted by Harper. Until recently, Harper kept track of […]
Lawsuit alleges Mission Health monopoly Six residents of Western North Carolina filed a class-action lawsuit against HCA Healthcare and Mission Health System on Aug. 10, alleging restraint of trade and unlawful monopolization. The plaintiffs say they have paid higher health insurance premiums, copays and deductibles than have residents of surrounding areas due to Mission’s ability […]
Every Saturday morning, nurse practitioner Amy Beane can be found at the Ebbs Chapel Community Center in Mars Hill. The building is home to the Outland Family Clinic, which opened June 5; it’s where Beane volunteers weekly to provide free health care to anyone in need. “I had someone come in who has not seen […]
Western North Carolina prides itself on its “live and let live” ethos. From the moonshiners of yore to back-to-the-land homesteaders to the sprawling artistic community, many people feel they can make their living differently here. That independent streak often runs through people’s personal lives, too. For that reason, some consider Asheville to be an accepting […]
Working in the National Park Service has taken Tracy Swartout all around the country. But in many ways, her new role as superintendent of the Blue Ridge Parkway, based at the service’s office in Asheville, is a homecoming. Swartout grew up in Columbia, S.C., and has many fond memories traveling along the park’s 469-mile route […]
Facial feminization surgery and voice lessons for transgender people are now covered by the largest health insurance provider in the state. On July 1, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina updated its policy to recognize these gender-affirming health care procedures as medically necessary. The national nonprofit Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund led […]
Buncombe County Homeowner Grant Program accepting applications Eligible homeowners in Buncombe County can now apply for the Buncombe County Homeowner Grant Program. The new initiative, funded by the county, city of Asheville and town of Woodfin, offers up to $500 in relief tied to the increase on a homeowner’s property tax bill. Grants are available […]
Certain activities are closely associated with Asheville: sampling local craft brews, tubing down the French Broad River, eating one’s own weight in barbecue. If Demp Bradford, president of the Asheville Buncombe Regional Sports Commission, has his way, professional sports will become quintessentially Asheville, too. Bradford, a native of the North Carolina Piedmont, became interested in […]
MAHEC sees uptick in antibody infusion treatments The Asheville-based Mountain Area Health Education Center has experienced an increase in patients receiving antibody infusion treatments — the antibody cocktail called REGEN-COV — in recent weeks. During the week of July 19, the center’s infusion team served 21 people, says Keelan Dorn, a family medicine nurse practitioner […]
Western North Carolina residents who want to change the health insurance they receive through the Affordable Care Act, or who want to sign up for a plan through the health insurance marketplace, can do so during a special enrollment period ending Sunday, Aug. 15. And local nonprofits urge people to explore their options for potentially […]
The murder of George Floyd, a Black man, by white Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin on May 25, 2020, spurred nationwide Black Lives Matter protests. In Asheville, Floyd’s murder had the immediate effect of religious institutions looking inward and engaging with their congregations around racial justice. More than a year on from those events, many […]
It’s impossible to walk in downtown Asheville without receiving the message loud and clear: This city supports its local businesses. Locally based brands like Spicewalla, Roots Hummus and Buchi Kombucha appear regularly on store shelves. Stickers promoting Go Local Asheville (formerly the Asheville Grown Business Alliance), a locally focused economic alliance, adorn window fronts. A […]
Blue Ridge Pride, a nonprofit supporting the LGBTQ community in Western North Carolina, launched an online business directory for LGBTQ-owned and inclusive businesses called the Blue Ridge Pride Business Alliance on June 25. The directory, available at BlueRidgePride.org/Business, includes retail, food and drink, leisure and services and other categories. Businesses listed in the BRPBA directory […]
