Robert McGee reflects on his childhood days in Marshall and the powerful hold the French Broad River still has on him.
Author: Xpress Contributor
Showing 1-21 of 883 results
Back in the Day: Strolling through downtown in the early 1960s
Deborah Austin revisits her childhood adventures in Riceville and downtown Asheville.
Back in the Day: ‘To Lord’s Drug Store!’
Barb Knight relives a childhood stroll with her father.
Back in the Day: All roads wind their way to Asheville
Charlotte Ware Epley recounts the nauseating drives she took from Wake City to Asheville in the 1950s with her grandmother.
The case for open minds and innovation in education
“Let’s prioritize the educational needs of our students over political divisions and embrace the opportunities that charter schools and other forms of public education offer.”
Back in the Day: Driving up and down the hills of Asheville in the late 1960s
Emily K. Thomas revisits her daily drives in a 1959 Rambler American and the challenges the vehicle encountered managing Asheville’s many hills.
In photos: International Women’s Day in Asheville
Hundreds gathered at Pack Square on March 8 for Asheville’s International Women’s Day march — speaking out for women’s rights, showing support for Ukraine and protesting the Trump administration.
From CPP: New Helene bill has ‘good things.’ Just one problem: It falls short of the need.
On Tuesday, the state House voted unanimously in favor of a $500 million funding package to aid Western North Carolina following the severe storm’s devastation in September 2024.
From CPP: Repaired. Replaced. Reopened. Hit hard by Helene, this is what paved the way for these NC roads to come back.
Tropical Storm Helene’s devastation included more than 600 roads and 800 bridges primarily in the western part of the state. The latest data from the N.C. Department of Transportation shows that 160 roads remain closed — 30 highways and 130 secondary roads.
Asheville residents deserve homes in resilient, sustainable neighborhoods
“Creating a greater variety of housing options would mean that more city residents’ children and friends could afford to stay nearby as their housing needs grow and change.”
From CPP: The money slated for Helene recovery isn’t nearly ‘enough’
Full recovery will cost nearly $60 billion, according to a state budget office estimation. The federal government may chip in $15 billion — far less than requested. So far, the legislature has passed three relief packages, which collectively dedicate $1.1 billion to recovery.
Reflections: A man who kept a promise to his younger self
“He told me that he was relentlessly bullied as a child and swore that if he ever had the chance, he would do everything in his power to make sure that no other person had to feel that way.”
My Story: Witnessing the fallen giants of the forest after Helene
“In the distance, I could see the demarcation line of destruction above 3,000 feet where wind shear took down most of the big trees. This was a gut punch.”
Reflections: Sternberg spoke his mind on government and more
“He always wanted what was best for the community, but like me, he felt that local government often overstepped its bounds, and he didn’t mind letting you know how he felt.”
Reflections: Jerry Sternberg, a treasure lost
“Very few people contribute as much to our community, especially for people in need, as long and as much as Asheville native Jerry Sternberg did.”
From CPP: Western NC farmers wait for Helene aid to come. And wait.
For most farmers, their money is in their land. They rely on each growing season to break even. There is no cushion after a natural disaster.
From CPP: Winter in WNC can be bad. For Helene survivors, it’s worse.
Propane is a valuable commodity in Western North Carolina these days. Helene destroyed roughly 100,000 homes and many of those people have been living in campers ever since. Keeping them warm is a struggle.
Reflections: A conversation lasting 30 years
Reflections on the life of Asheville native and longtime Xpress columnist Jerry Sternberg.
From CPP: ‘Scars of the storm.’ Helene is gone, but its impact is far from over in Mitchell County.
The rural region, somewhat isolated by the mountains, has struggled with its economic viability, and Helene has exposed some of the area’s tender points.
New beginning post-Helene or business as usual?
“So do we really want to return to maximizing profits and exploiting the beauty of our marvelous mountains and the brilliance of our creative people, while risking ever more floods, landslides and the havoc they wreak?”
My Story: Writing my obituary, a how-to manual and love note
“I’m writing this because I have some thoughts to share on the subject of dying.”
