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September 1, 2026#5
September 1, 2026
Searchable issue transcript
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foothills Foothills Digest 619 2nd St NE Hickory NC 28601 Phone: 828.475.1323 E-mail: editor@foothillsdigest.com Website: foothillsdigest.com Printed in Vietnam EDITORIAL CARMEN ECKARD JON ECKARD Chief Editor Principal Photographer COLUMNISTS Robert Canipe Calvin Reyes Kelsey Crowe Richard Eller Heather Wood Davis Granny Eckard James Thomas Shell Gabriel Sherman David Zealy-Wright Ryan Gant Tara Bland CONTRIBUTORS Carolyn Pleasants York Ashley Kirby James Thomas Shell Jeffrey Wilhelm Clayton Joe Young Michael K. Dugan Lindsay Barrick Mitzi Gellman Dr. Jessica Urzen
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Letter from Editor SPRING 2018 Visit our site, foothillsdigest.com! First, I want to say that making this magazine for you continues to be one of the greatest pleasures of my life. Secondly, I want to thank you for your readership, and your excitement. I know that Foothills Digest is growing in part because you are telling your friends, and we are very honored. Spring is here. Spring is lovely almost everywhere, but it seems particularly special here. The rebirth of nature after a long freeze is inspirational on many levels. Spring causes our ground to positively burst forth with life. This issue examines the bounty that comes from our ground. Some of the region’s greatest treasures are dug from our dirt. Emeralds, rubies and sapphires have been found here for centuries, and you can still hunt for them yourself. Catawba Valley Pottery is made from clay dug out of our river banks. With examples of our clay and craft on display at the Smithsonian, it’s easy to see the value of our land and craftsmanship. We also examine the crops that grow here, and feature a list of farmers markets and pick-your-own strawberry farms. Doc Watson always said that he built Merlefest ”From the ground up” and we’re excited to bring you information about the festival and the acts. You can even listen to music of each artist if you follow the QR codes. This land is special. I know you can feel it. I’m thrilled and honored to research and share what I find about our home. I’m glad we are neighbors. You’ll find QR codes throughout this magazine...download a free QR code reader to find out what treasures they hold. The one on this page will take you to a survey about your experience with this magazine. It’s only with your feedback that we’ll be able to make this your favorite read, which is our goal. Let us know what you think, and what you’d like to see more of! Sincerely, Carmen Eckard
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6 Contents SPRING 2018 Letter from the editor Subscription Information Daily Report The Emerald City Buried Treasure Map We Salute John Gordon Ross Fox and the Hound Staycation in Hickory Catawba Valley Pottery Burlon Craig’s Legacy 05 08 10 12 14 16 18 22 24 34 Arie Reinhardt Taylor Mountain Memories with Granny Eckard Frescos of the Foothills Trade Alley Art Hunter Speagle Laying Beneath Rain, On a Strange Roof Leaving a Legacy of Love Opulent Seating for 10 An Appalachian Cidery Foothills Farming 36 42 44 48 50 52 54 56 60 62
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7 Grounding Dear David Eventfully Yours Foothills Astrologer SofaGate Poetry of Carolyn Pleasants York Rites of Spring The Gas Station at the End of the World Poetry Photography 112 114 115 116 120 128 130 134 140 144 Farmers Markets Hickory Greenway Harvest Pick Your Own Strawberries Recipes Highland Avenue Restaurant Derby Party Merlefest Crawmoms Gardening as Therapy Resolutions Lame Duck Savior 64 68 70 74 80 86 88 104 106 108 110
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8 Subscribe Our partner company is Eckard Photographic, and you’ll notice that most of our photography is by Jon Eckard. He is a commercial photographer based in Hickory, North Carolina. He is quite good at assessing the needs of your business and delivering high quality photography quickly and at fair rates. We think the quality of his work speaks for itself, and we hope you will call as business needs arise. HTTP://ECKARDPHOTOGRAPHIC.COM | 828.475.1323 You can always subscribe online at http://foothillsdigest.com , but you can also fill out this form and send it in to: Foothills Digest/619 2nd St NE/Hickory NC, 28601. Name: Address: Phone: Subscriptions are $22 per year and we publish quarterly. Shipping is $14. Please enclose a check or your credit card information. Cards are charged $36 one time. Card Number: Expiration: CVV Code:
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9 Palate . Well Crafted. . Savor and sample well crafted spirits and farm-to-fork cuisine, all crafted in the Hickory Metro. Food shown provided by Standard Oyster Company, Highland Avenue, Fourk, and Honor Ale House. Photos by EP .
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11 Daily Report Photo by Jeff Wilhelm
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12 T h e emerald city By Car men Eckard North America’s largest cut emerald came from Hiddenit e, a hidden gem of our own, which spe aks t o our lon g hist or y of exceptional gem minin g.
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13 Hiddenite is a small town in Alexander County known for the stunning array of emeralds and other gems. The unincorporated town was named after William Earl Hidden, a mineralogist sent to North Carolina by Thomas Edison to look for platinum. Instead, he found the gem that was eventually his namesake: hiddenite. This gemstone is the only one of the precious gemstones that can’t be synthesized. Even though the town carries the name of the gem, it’s actually other gems the region is most famous for. Rubies and Sapphires are found here and draw in many rock hounds, but they are more concentrated in more western parts of the state. In fact, 63 different minerals can be found in Hiddenite, but emeralds are the pride of this land. In fact, the largest cut emerald ever found in North America came from Hiddenite. A 310 carat emerald dubbed “The Carolina Emperor” was found in 2010 by Terry Ledford and Ren Adams. The pair found the enormous gemstone 14 feet under ground in a quartz vein they were digging. Ren’s family has been hunting emeralds since 1880, and it’s easy to imagine his ancestor’s pride. In a tragic twist, Ledford was killed in a mine collapse in Hiddenite just 4 years after he found the Carolina Emperor. Geologist Ed Speer says, “Emeralds are very rare in the world and only a few countries host emerald deposits. North Carolina is lucky to have three known emerald districts, including the Hiddenite district.” Moreover, our region is the only place in the world that emeralds are found with the much rarer hiddenite. Hiddenite hosts a booming cottage industry of gemstones. Because valuable gems are still pulled from the ground quite often, it’s very exciting to seek them out. Several stones worth more than $1 million have been unearthed in the last century. In fact, it’s not uncommon for guests to find gemstones. Sometimes, blind luck even steps in to lend an hand! Graduate gemologist and accredited jewelry professional Ana Cristina Godoy was delighted to find a beautiful emerald. ”Soon after I moved to NC from sunny California, I met a man that made my love for gemology even stronger, Robert Reitzel. He told me he found wonderful emeralds in Hiddenite. I thought, ’well typical older man story.’ He said ’Well you come with me to Hiddenite and I’ll show you where I found those emeralds.” After a rainy day we went out on the field and he told me what to look for. There it was! A beautiful emerald right there on the ground and no, I didn’t even dig an inch.” In 2012, a couple found $40,000 worth of emeralds in one afternoon. Finds of this size are, of course, rare. But they aren’t impossible, which makes this place quite special. Stones from Hiddenite are displayed in the Smithsonian and the Museum of Natural History, among other places. You can visit the Nature Museum at Grandfather Mountain, where a 722 carat emerald called The Bolick Emerald is on display. It will give you an idea of the treasures hiding beneath our soil. Hiddenite is located five miles east of Taylorsville on Highway 90. The Emerald Hollow Mine is the only emerald mine in the nation open to visitors. You can visit their site at http://www.emeraldhollowmine.com/.
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14 Map courtesy of North Carolina Maps Buried Treasure Map It isn’t just emeralds that are hiding in our ground. Western North Carolina is rich in corundum and mangnesian rocks. Corundum includes sapphires and rubies, both of which are found in abundance in our hills. This 1905 map by Joseph Pratt and J. Volney Lewis highlights the locations of our more valuable gemstones. Doc’s Rocks, located at Mystery Hill in Blowing Rock, offers guided rock hunting tours of the Foothills. Doc personally takes rock hunters around our region to proven sites. This is truly the best way for beginners to get started. You can re ach Doc’s Rocks at 828-264-4499.
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16 foothills Digest is pleased to honor Maestro John Gordon Ross for his 27 years of service to the Foothills of NC. He is retiring from the Western Piedmont Symphony after bringing music to our region for nearly three decades. John has always been innovative, and has looked for ways to spread his love of music. He has never been content to keep music in the performance halls, and has brought it to the community at large. The first students that he brought the symphony to in his school program are now adults, many of whom have continued to nurture a deep and abiding appreciation of music.
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My goal in discussing this Fox and Hound material is dedicated to a thread associated with Economic Growth. The initial discussion related to my thoughts about our area’s need for a comprehensive Economic Development plan. I talked about a plan defined by transparency, accountability, and establishing benchmarks that helps build trust with the citizens. The next discussion, I addressed “Vision” for our area, trying to relate that we need to change how we view communities in the big picture. Our region, rural in nature, will succeed better by relating ourselves not as Smalltown Americana, but as several small to mid-sized communities interconnected through similar, mutual interests having a population of over a half a million people. Now, I want to talk about aligning with the marketplace. In my opinion, there is somewhat of a disconnect between what currently defines the communities of our region and where communities with robust economic circumstances stand. What constitutes the modern marketplace? 1) The Marketplace is the everyday world of trade and/or economic activity. 2) The Marketplace is where intangible values compete for acceptance; as in the marketplace of ideas. 3) The Marketplace is the interpreter of supply and demand equilibrium. Marketplaces are constantly changing. The Modern Marketplace isn’t the formal infrastructure where people gather for trade, as it could be interpreted in days gone by. In fact the internet has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that concrete, mortar, and steel aren’t necessary. In the Modern Marketplace, you still must have human engagement, at some level, to have a market. Whether it is an individual, company, or community, an economic participant cannot grow effectively and efficiently, if it isn’t fully connected and engaged with the marketplace. You must constantly engage your customers to understand their needs (demand). If those who you are looking to attract don’t perceive value in your product, then you will lose them to competent competitors. Growth comes from customer demand. Demand is understood by discovering a customer’s unmet needs. Current purchases don’t necessarily reflect future opportunity. Recognizing your current position in the marketplace requires you to understand the frustrations, attitudes, and unmet needs in the market. Proactively, you must develop your organization, products, and priorities keying on customer engagement to meet customer needs and resolve frustrations. As an example, I have been to various community meetings and events where public officials painted the rosiest of rosy scenarios about where their community stands economically, socially, and culturally; in other words, the community’s position in the marketplace. I get it, this comes part in parcel with leadership, status, and how one justifies their authority, but it does not necessarily correlate to economic reality. It does not necessarily correlate to economic success. Remember what I told you in my “Vision” article, “Economic growth correlates to quality of life.” There is a disconnect between area leadership and their understanding of the younger generations in the community. Community leadership is mostly of the Baby Boom generation. We are told about all of the community activities we have to offer and I can’t disagree. We are also told that younger people (think Millennials) say there isn’t much to do and that is why they go to Charlotte, Asheville, Raleigh, etc. for excursions. We look at the statistics and see the obvious loss (and lack of engagement) of the younger population in our community through this generation, while tellin’ everyone “nuthin’ could be fin-ah than this part of Carolina.” To me it’s obvious, if we want to attract younger folks, we’ve got to find out what they need and start addressing the problem. James Thomas Shell The Hickory Hound In Spring, hope springs eter nal. There is a fresh optimism that the new growth around us will lead to abundance and prosperity. It seems we see a disconnect all around us, when we have so much to offer one another. Older people have wisdom that younger people need as they follow in the footsteps down life’s path. The younger folks bring the freshness and energy needed to continue building upon the structure of society. The goal of mankind should be to make this place better. We all have to work together to make that happen. We need to appreciate one another. We need to understand one another. We need to connect.
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Agreed. There is a disconnect between the older population here and the younger generations, largely in conceptualization regarding the changing realities of our economy in relation to memories of a much different time. When you ask those neighbors of ours in that content age range and demographic, they are often less likely to support strong minimum wage mandates. I don’t assume folks didn’t work hard to gain their successes, I only ask that older generations to realize they may have been starting from a different spot. Not saying folks haven’t experienced hardships, but the cost of the education that fueled much of their success was substantially lower than our students face today. There is also the compensation non-college educated folks are getting now as compared to then, and that is a huge issue on this topic. When I hear of the marketplace I think of buying power, and that leads me to consider wages. One thing that makes younger folks leave are wages and lack of opportunity for increases. I waited tables for years here, while at CVCC and making 2.13 per hour plus tips, and more than once have gone home with 20 bucks or less. Because I was a single parent, there were also nights a plenty when I paid to work. I served at one place where a chef who prepared meals for our wealthiest neighbors, while struggling with tooth pain and other issues due to no insurance, could barely support his family. Had I not lived in Public Housing while getting an education it would not have been enough to maintain my family, and it certainly wasn’t enough to be upwardly mobile. I know at least five people that left because our service economy here didn’t pay enough to service their bills or maintain them while they tried to study, all of them mid to late 20’s in age. If one reads the review sites and looks up Hickory we can taut a great lineup of corporate salaries with an average just above 41 thousand. Great tech and logistics companies, lots of manufacturing, and our medical industry that is quite developed for a city our size…but jobs for those younger folks don’t keep them around if they don’t pay living wages. I have multiple friends who weren’t college bound and wanted to work, and their options for hourly wages are better in the larger cities. We do have some of the jobs to attract Hipsters, and a culture burgeoning to do so as well, and we are better for it. But, the average young person needs a market that is accessible. That’s both in a physical nature and about our lack of a strong public transportation system, and in the income disparities around us that keep some of us looking for ways out. Access is key to engagement. If we don’t give younger people jobs to pay their bills and ways to get them there without each person parking a car on the street, we aren’t offering the kind of access the average will stay for. A strong push towards a living wage for our area would not only help those here, but show others that we are concerned not only with jobs, but that those jobs can lift our citizens access to all marketplaces. Of course, there are bills in the NC General Assembly that increase the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2021, but HB2 a couple years ago also had the effect of freezing local minimum wage increases. A push against that law may be required, because frankly…we don’t want to wait another three or four years to start offering a living wage, and that’s assuming either bill passes the NAGA for a governor to sign. Gabriel Sherwood A civil di scourse
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20 Gabriel, besides raising the minimum wage and social issues, economically speaking, what can we do to make our area more attractive to the younger folks? Well, and I have mentioned this once before, we need young tradespeople ‘round here. I work with a growing plumbing company that wants to expand into total home services and the people just aren’t here to fill the jobs. CVCC is going to have a free hall soon, so why not try for plumbing, HVAC, and electrician training courses? Then internships with locals looking for young and trainable tradespeople. We can also make a statement if we focus on recruiting female tradespeople, because we have a lot of interest around here. Also, how about entrepreneurial incentives and guaranteed startup loans at lower rates for entrepreneurs that stay here after graduating CVCC or LR? When folks have some ownership in an area, they stay and build things. Perhaps an organization dedicated to supporting not only new young business owners, but also a plan that could solve two problems at once. We could treat our empty buildings like the discount travel sites treat empty hotel rooms, and rather than have them sit there empty…allow legitimate businesses the opportunity to rent to own at a low rate. This could allow businesses on the verge of expansion the opportunity to grow with a bit of a financial safety net. There are a couple of warehouses around town that we would take and start using immediately if it were not for the process of purchasing and investing in upgrades, because we know many of them will need other investments. This is restrictive to companies that can afford to purchase, but not to invest, or the other way around. If businesses on the verge of growth could move in, and increase to a financed loan after a time, that would offer a grace period and get the buildings occupied. These ideas would take investment from established businesses and local government…but when we raise the water level, our pond gets bigger and more folks can fit in it. What do you think about raising the investment expectation our business community should make in our citizenry? It won’t be easy, progress often isn’t, but it’s one way to show we care about a lot of our younger folks around here who have seemingly been left behind by the success of previous generations. The Questions Yes Gabriel, there is a disconnect and lack of understanding about a lot of things these days. When it comes to these issues, I’m just not into the label thing and can’t keep up with all the categories. Economically speaking, I know I’ve heard many of the folks that have moved into our area talk about the low cost of living as a major reason why they moved here. It’s inexpensive compared to larger metropolitan areas. They’ll flat out tell you they also like the lack of hustle and bustle of those larger cities. But folks, hustle and bustle is the result of economic commerce. There is a flip side to that equation that our older newcomers many times fail to recognize. That inexpensive cost of living many times comes at the expense of those trying to earn a living. Truly, I understand your angst about wanting to have the minimum wage become a living wage. In my background profession (Restaurant/Hospitality), we employees many times aren’t getting fairly compensated for the skills we acquire. There isn’t much difference between the pay of an entry level restaurant employee and someone with decades of experience. I just don’t think we get to better compensation levels with artificial wage constructs; higher minimum wage mandates lead to less help being hired, more workload for each worker, frazzled brains, frazzled nerves, mistakes, lower quality services and products, and burn out as you attempt to do more and more work with less and less help. Personally, I understand the need for a minimum wage, but at some point that minimum wage can rise to become more of a hindrance than a help. It can rise to the point where entry level workers don’t get hired and also keeps the experienced workers from getting the merit based pay raises they deserve. What I think will help wages is a better business environment. More people able and willing to open businesses will lead to competition. Competition between businesses leads to innovation, when fulfilling the needs of the marketplace. Competition for labor will lead to higher wages. We had hustle and bustle, in this community in the 1990s, with the internet revolution spurring worldwide fiber-optic infrastructure layout. Our fiber-optic boom created the highest employment level in our community’s history and led to the highest wages and wage growth we’ve ever seen. Yes, government can do things to better facilitate an economic growth environment, such as creating “Business Improvement Districts” and facilitating microfinance mechanisms. This helps those who don’t have the financial capability get innovative ideas/products/services off the ground. I just don’t think government will solve all the issues with the marketplace. People and their needs create the marketplace.
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Staycation in Hickory: Hickory, NC represents a lot of things to many different people. A German heritage where many ancestors settled, a family lineage of craftsmen in the furniture or textile industry. A place someone called home even though they lived just on the out-skirts of town. Growing up and still to this day, when someone asks “where are you from?” I reply in my southern style “Hickory!” This is where most of my childhood was spent, going to the movies, shopping for Easter dresses at the old Spainhour Company store on Union Square and fishing for catfish and crappies on the river (Lake Hickory.) I grew up in the rural surrounding area of Alexander County but called Hickory my “home.” Most people when they hear “Hickory” they automatically say furniture and they would be right. We had, and still have to this day, one of the nations leading furniture industries. As a child my family would visit places like the science center, we would visit Glenn Hilton Park for picnic lunches - play on tire-swings and look for crawdads and other critters in the creek. I even spent countless hours in the Hickory Furniture Mart with my Walkman and book while my parents shopped for hours. It wasn’t until I grew up a little and came back to work in this area that I found the things that I enjoyed as a child are still here, still extraordinary and something that draws locals and visitors alike to our area. Working in the tourism industry teaches you to look at things in a different light. The hotel that you stay in during vacation over the holiday is part of a grander scheme of things. It is part of the tourism industry- employees at resorts, attractions, restaurants - that work while you “visit & play” are a part of the wonderful tourism industry in that community. Hickory has a thriving tourism industry which may surprise some. With attractions like the Catawba Science Center, Hickory Museum of Art, festivals and restaurants, Hickory Motor Speedway, Crawdads baseball games, breweries, distilleries, a vibrant music scene and the Furniture Mart - we bring in hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. What, you may ask, brings those people
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to our area? A huge part of that answer is furniture but we find ourselves blessed with a great location in North Carolina located on a major interstate as well as major highway. We offer visitors a break, a stop over, and a hospitable welcome with our big city amenities and small town charm. Being a part of this industry I am constantly learning new things about this area I call home. I am sure you know who the Hickory Crawdads are… however, did you know that we are only 1 of 9 communities in NC to have a minor league baseball team? Everyone loves a good microbrew these days and it seems like there are breweries popping up everywhere but did you know that Old Hickory Brewery (OHB) was one of the first microbreweries to open its doors in North Carolina? Opening in 1994 Jason Yates & Steven Lyerly began brewing before brewing was cool. And lastly, let’s not forget the young distiller, Zach Cranford: a long time Hickory resident, that not only owns and operates Hickory’s favorite oyster bar (The Standard Oyster Company) but owns and distills North Carolina’s first Bourbon since Prohibition. Seventeen-Twelve Spirits in Conover is taking the distilling world by storm and popping up in liquor stores and restaurants throughout NC and beyond. This is where I tell you that for you to understand just how truly special these things are to our area - you have to go out an experience them for yourself. This is where I charge you to get out and explore. Take a “stay-cation.” It is important for you to invest in your own communities and support these local business like OHB & 1712 Spirits. Hike Baker’s Mountain, bass fish on Lake Hickory or the “River” as we call it in my part of Alexander County. When you finally start to immerse yourself in what’s going on in your own backyard you start to see just how unique and special this place really is. It’s what called me home, makes me excited to work here and what keeps me here to this day. **Check out the Hickory Metro Convention Center & Visitors Bureau for things to do in the Hickory Metro and the 3rd Annuakathy.prickett@visitnc.coml 31 Days of May Celebration. Celebrating Tourism the entire month of May! Alexander County native and tourism professional explains why it’s good to stay home. By Sarah Davis
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24 Catawba Valley Pottery
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25 Written by Carmen Eckard. Photography by Jon Eckard It starts in the ground, like so many of the good things in our hills. Catawba County Pottery begins with our particular variety of clay, dug from river beds and banks. From the first step, the process is wrought with tradition. Milling the clay is tedious, hard work that lays the foundation for beautiful pots. Here, potter Kim Ellington inspects his clay before beginning a new pot.
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26 Kim Ellington has invited us into his shop to watch and talk with him as he throws pots, and it’s a delight to behold. Kim’s love of pottery is apparent. As he talks about pottery, he breaks into a bright and endearing smile. He is proud to be part of this long tradition, and his meticulous yet intuitive style will leave an indelible mark on the legacy of our valley. Our particular traditional pottery style has been handed down, artisan to artisan, for 200 years. The forms of these pieces are extremely identifiable. Our earliest potters used a lead glaze, but once it became known that lead was dangerous, our potters developed new methods of glazing. Catawba Valley Pottery is known and valued the world over for its alkaline glazes. Alkaline glazes are made from simple ingredients like ash and glass. Toda y, s c i e ntific methods allow studio potters the world over to precisely control the color and texture of their glaze. To have this control, every ingredient of the glaze must be carefully measured and quantified. This simply isn’t possible with the glazes used here. Ash, one of the primary ingredients, comes from burned wood. The wood, it turns out, matters a lot. And wood really can’t be precisely measured or quantified. As Kim tells me, too many things factor into the wood. ”What kind of tree was it? How old is it? Did it have a happy life?” He smiles and picks up a piece sitting on the shelf. He points to the varied patterns of the glaze with obvious delight. This is a rare form of pottery where nature hasn’t been squeezed out of the process, and her addition is lovely. The Past Pottery in the Catawba Valley was a utilitarian craft long before it was considered an art. Pots, jugs, churns, and pitchers were made to be used. They stored whiskey, molasses, and milk. In the early nineteenth century, the first celebrated potter, Daniel Seagle, began perfecting his craft. He became well known for a method of decoration called ”glass runs.” To achieve the look he wanted, he embedded bits of glass around the rims or in the handles of his pottery. During the firing process, these melted and combined with the glaze in beautiful and unexpected ways. His children and their children continued the tradition after his death and were joined by a great many German settlers among others. The Hilton family has been making Catawba Valley Pottery for 5 generations. Beginning with John Wesley Helton’s business started in the mid-1800s, and continuing through to B.R. and Heather Hilton who are currently working potters, the family has always been an important part of our pottery traditions. Propsts, Ritchies, Hartsoes, Kennedies, and a host of other potters crafted useful, gorgeous pots for many generations. Their work fills the
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27 An aerial shot of the mill burning in 1977, provided by the author. Bud Rudisill, the last resident (and Anita’s dad) sits on his porch in the early 2000’s. Photo courtesy of Jeffrey Wilhelm. collections of many people around the world and is renowned for its beauty. The Reinhardt family left their footprints in our history as well. Their pieces are still highly sought after by collectors. By the 1930s, Harvey Reinhardt had built a pottery complex, including a pottery wheel, which added to the groundhog kiln used by Samuel Propst and another potter named Jim Lynn. The complex also included a pugmill, used to mill the clay. A hammer mill was also on site, which used the power of a creek to crush glass for glaze. The Reinhardts were the premiere pottery makers of the day, selling tremendous amounts of utilitarian wares with their own unique style. Perhaps most importantly, the Reinhardt family trained a young Burlon Craig. After his stint in the military, Burlon Craig purchased the complex and continued to hone his craft. As plastic and glass became more easily accessible, the need for utilitarian pottery vanished, and if it weren’t for Burlon, who supported himself with a job in the furniture industry, the tradition would have died out. But, he made pots for decades. And he stayed incredibly true to traditional methods. Burlon used a treadle wheel, powered by his left foot, until he was well into his eighties. In fact, the only change Burlon made from the traditional ways to replace to mule needed for the pugmill with a tractor engine.
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28 He was prolific, turning more than enough pots to fill the needs of locals. In addition to the useful wares he made, Burlon also became famous for face jugs, which are whimsical creations with a descriptive title. A face is applied to a jug-a simple concept, but incredibly popular. Burlon took pottery with faces further than any other potter before him. He added these faces to a whole host of items, including birdhouses, wall pockets, chamber pots, spitoons, and lidded jars. He also made wig stands, although they are tremendously rare. Burlon has been known to make face jugs as large as twelve gallons, a feat no one else had attempted to accomplish. At the time he began making face jugs, Burlon said that he thought most potters made them; there just wasn’t much use for them. But as the need for pottery decreased, the desire for whimsy increased, and now these face jugs are among the most valuable items in many people’s collections. Burlon Craig also helped popularize another Catawba Valley traditional style of pottery: Swirlware. This pottery is formed from two varying colors of clay, blended together carefully before throwing. Many working potters now are still using this recognizable style, and branching out by using varied colors of clay and new techniques. Slowly but surely, people stopped seeing Burlon Craig as the man who could throw you a pot to put your molasses in and started to see him as a brilliant artist. With this came many recognitions. By the 1980s, Burlon Craig had several pieces added to the collection of the Smithsonian. He also received the National Endowment for the Arts’ National Heritage Fellowship. The pottery complex was listed on the historic registry in 2008, as it was used by a great many of our region’s best folk potters, like the Propsts, Reinhardts, and Craigs (Burlon, his son Don and his grandson Dwayne). But just as important as the pottery Burlon created are the lessons he taught. Many of our finest potters have been trained by Burlon, like Kim Ellington. The relationship between master and apprentice is a time-honored and effective way to pass on artistic skill sets. Truly, the world is better because Burlon Craig shared his talents in this manner. Over many years, he taught Kim Ellington how to use the traditional methods, just as the Reinhardt
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29 Swirlware! Scan this QR code to see how Catawba Valley Swirlware is made. Elevation and ground plan for the Groundhog Kiln built by the Reinhardts and used by Burlon Craig. family taught him. But as he did with all potters he worked with, he also shared the sentiment that each potter must find his own methods. This relationship was enduring, and for many years, Kim Ellington and others participated in Burlon’s firings. The groundhog kiln at right is a drawing of the kiln built by the Reinhardts. Wood-firing is a very important step in our traditional pottery making. Electric kilns, while nice for studio potters, don’t fit the work flow, or even the actual pieces thrown in our valley. Groundhog kilns are large, fitting about 500 pieces per firing. This is because the firings are long and labor intensive...it’s much better to only have a few in the course of a year. Burlon liked to start stoking his fire about ten in the morning. This gave him a full day to get the kiln to what he called ”blasting off time.” Then, for eight to ten hours he and his helpers would add wood every few minutes until the pieces were perfectly fired. In his later years, Burlon sold out the contents of each firing within minutes, which caused the value of his wares to increase dramatically. Humble to the end of his life, Burlon said, ”I don’t consider myself an artist. I’m an old farmer that makes some pottery, that’s what I am.” The Present Kim Ellington is quite like a rolling stone...you won’t find moss on him. He is curious, and that’s the mark of a great artist. He tells me how to make the glaze. Burlon taught him the recipe. It’s apparent that he feels honored. The glaze is made of only three ingredients: ash, ground glass, and slip, which is watery clay. These three ingredients produce a lovely yet slightly unpredictable glaze. Folklorist John Burrison says of the glaze that it ”seems to distill the rustic spirit of the frontier, and speaks eloquently, if humbly, of molasses, moonshine whiskey, buttermilk and salt- In Burlon’s Words Scan this QR code to watch Burlon talk about pottery.
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cured foods that were staples of Southern living.” Kim Ellington tells us of variations to the recipe that have been used throughout our history. His knowledge is vast. He talks about cinders, a byproduct of iron smelting. For many years, iron smelting in the region left huge mounds of cinder. Some of this was useless, but some of it formed in a honeycomb pattern. Local potters quickly realized that the honeycombed cinder could be crushed and added to glaze for beautiful variations. For decades, this was the preferred method of glazing, until the cinders ran out. Once the iron smelting industry ended, potters sifted through the mounds until no usable pieces remained. Kim tells me that a conversation with his neighbor led to a breakthrough for him. It’s important to note that Kim’s shop is in Vale, a small town so well known for pottery that it was called Jugtown for many years. Most of the major potters in our history have come from this strip of land far removed from the bustle of Hickory or Charlotte. He was talking with his neighbor who had lived in Vale her whole life. She asked him if he ever looked for hematite. Curious, he told her no but asked why she asked. She told a story of her youth when the Reinhardt family paid her to search for hematite, a black stone. She would find one coffee can full, which she said was enough for one batch of glaze. Kim realized that the Reinhardts were using the hematite as a replacement for cinders, and he was able to use that information, along with science knowledge, to create beautiful patterns in his work. His work tends to stay away from the natural green color many of our pots have, leaning on the use of glass and iron to give his pots extra gorgeous details. In the pictures on this page, Kim works on his pottery wheel. His space reflects his work: close to the earth. Natural. Unassuming. His walls are coated with tiny bits of clay, spun off his wheel from thousands of pots. Shelves line the walls, each covered with finished pots, jugs, bowls and more. His own groundhog kiln is visible in the background. It’s quite like Burlon’s, but true to his style, Kim Ellington added a few twists of his own when he built his kiln in 1999. He increased the height for ”He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist.” Francis Of Assisi
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stacking space, added side stoking holes for more even temperature and tapered the rear of the kiln to the chimney. Kim uses yellow pine when he fires, and typically a firing cycle runs 18 hours. I assumed that he would use the ash from the firings as the base ingredient for his glaze, but I was wrong. He says that in the beginning, he did. But his glaze was lumpy, and he didn’t care for it. In his studies, he happened upon a sentence that changed the way he did things...the sentence said, simply, that pine ash caused gritty glaze. A simple switch to a different kind of ash solved his problems. His pieces remind me of the way Doc Watson described his own musical style: traditional plus. His curiosity allows him to constantly improve the quality of his work while honoring the Catawba Valley traditions. Kim’s work is featured in museums and collections nationwide. The glazes on his pieces are considered the best in the nation. An exceptional and enormous pot of Kim’s is on display at the Friends of Hickory Park in Downtown Hickory, and it’s worth a trip to view. But he isn’t the only person carrying on these traditions today. Charles Lisk moved to our valley from Seagrove in the early 80s. He quickly formed a friendship with Burlon Craig, who taught him the ways Catawba Valley pottery was different from the Seagrove style he was accustomed to. It didn’t take long for him to build his own groundhog kiln and take up our traditions. Over 50 potters are taking the vast knowledge assembled in our region and using it to create new and exciting pieces. Some remain quite true to our history, while others use our history as a jumping off point to create something entirely new. Michael Ball, for instance, has taken the face jug concept and explored other directions it could take him. His body of work includes many forms with eyeballs or mouths. His traditional face jugs are more detailed and realistic than most Catawba Valley Potters. Other notable working potters in the region include: Michel Bayne, Steve Abee, Walter Fleming, Albert Hodge, Joe Reinhardt, Richard Wright, BR Hilton, Heather Hilton, Gary Mitchell, and Roger Hicks, among others. ”I’ve always thought that pottery, of all the art forms, is the one that most completely combines my love of form and shape and beauty and art with the earth. Even as a very young man, I recognized that digging clay from the ground and using it to create art is a very good melding of important interests of mine.” -Robert Oren Eades, Pottery Collector
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Kim Ellington hosts two to three kiln openings a year at his shop in Vale. He also participates in the Catawba Valley Pottery Festival each March at the Hickory Metro Convention Center, as well as the Potters Market Invitational hosted by the Mint Museum in Charlotte. His website is www.ellingtonpottery.com and you can email him to be included on his lists of sale notices. QR code will take you to an excellent episode of UNCTV’s Folkways that features Kim Ellington. Photo and pottery by Kim Ellington.
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This is the door to Kim Ellington’s shop. Inside, you can see him examining a piece he’s making. His attention to detail is excellent, and the pride he takes in his work is apparent. His work is featured in the collections of Museum of International Folk Art, Hickory Museum of Art, Crocker Museum of Art, The Baron and Ellin Gordon Art Galleries, Mint Museum, Charlotte, North Carolina Museum of History, North Carolina Pottery Center, Visual Arts Center at North Carolina State University, and Everson Museum of Art. To delve deeper into our pottery history, we recommend: Turners and Burners: The Folk Potters of North Carolina by Charles Zug Valley Ablaze. Pottery Tradition in the Catawba Valley by Jason Harpe and Brian Dedmond Potters of the Catawba Valley of North Carolina by Ceramic Circle of Charlotte.
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34 Imagine a timeline of pottery-making in the Catawba Valley as an hourglass. At the top were many crafters who turned clay into churns, bowls, and jugs. The pots of Daniel Seagle are held as the oldest to still exist, but the flood of Germans into the region in the mid 18th century meant many others created jars and jugs before and during Seagle’s time. Early pots followed a utilitarian tradition with little ornamentation and were predominately for food storage. Burlon Craig’s Legacy By Richard Eller. Photography by Jon Eckard.
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35 Once mass consumerism of the 1920’s made glass, and ultimately plastic, the vessel of choice for storing items, the need for pottery dwindled. Fortuitously, a man named Burlon Craig bought the farm of an earlier pottery family named Reinhardt, and he began throwing pots, but only as a sideline. He worked daily in the furniture industry. He kept up the potting tradition, virtually singlehandedly, for 25 years. As the only practicing potter in the area his work forms the neck of the hourglass. With the 1970’s came a renewed interest in the Catawba Valley potting tradition, not as a means of storage, but as art form. A folk revival brought a wave of cultural historians and apprentices seeking Burlon Craig to study his methods. Since, the practice has grown into an industry with collectors, shows, and a new generations of fans, all part of the rebirth. The bottom of the hourglass is full with a wide variety of clay-crafted ceramics that once again strengthens and supports the tradition.
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Arie Reinhardt Taylor A Folk Artist Recreating Memories By Carmen Eckard
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38 Arie Reinhardt Taylor Arie has spent her life helping preserve the memories and history of the Catawba Valley, where she grew up. Born in 1921, she has amassed a lot of stories. I’m sitting in her living room, and I’m enthralled at the memories she carries. She is a story teller, but instead of words, she uses her paint brush. For almost a century, she’s watched the changes that have crept across our land. Some changes are wonderful...for instance, she seems truly happy that she doesn’t have to pick cotton anymore. Others less so...it’s hard to watch as traditions slip away. Arie Taylor comes from a family of influential people. She lives in Vale, on the same land that her mother was raised. Her mother was Minnie Reinhardt, a famous folk painter of her own right, and the Reinhardts have been an established family in those parts as early as the 1850s. Arie Taylor has been an artist as long as she can remember, and she tells me of art projects in elementary school. Once her teacher asked her to stay to help paint a project and she stayed so long that darkness fell and her dad came looking for her. She painted long before her mother, and her style is much more polished, although the family resemblance is obvious. Arie paints the things she remembers, and the things that stand out as important to her. These include many rural scenes, like picking cotton, making moonshine, local potters, Banoak school, Corinth Church, and traveling in wagons. The family farm is often featured. Most of her work reflects the world as it was in the 1920s and 30s. “I hope in some way I can bring back a memory to someone of their past,” she said. “A part of that life is gone forever and only
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39 footprints are left behind. My footprints are my paintings.” But she’s doing more than bringing back memories. She’s recreating a world that doesn’t exist. She’s able to share the world, as she knew it, with p e o p l e w h o w e re n ’t t h e re t o w i t n e s s i t . I’ve never lived in a time without electricity. I barely remember how to function without the internet. The world that Arie is able to show me brings the history books I’ve read to life. She’s giving me an actual understanding of the way things were, and that’s valuable and beautiful. I’m very grateful, and I know that many others echo my sentiment. The Hickory Museum of Art features some of Arie’s work, and their galleria sells both original paintings and prints. You can also find Arie’s prints many places online as well. The volume of her work is impressive. She tells me she’s painted at least one thousand paintings, each whispering of the past. Arie’s artistic talent is in her blood, and she’s passed it onto her daughter, Audrey Sherrill. Audrey is a successful portrait artist. Arie has stopped p a i n t i n g , b u t only in the last f e w y e a r s , a s i t b e c a m e t o o painful. Not one to enjoy idleness, s h e ’s t a k e n u p c ro c h e t i n g a n d she’s quite good. It reminds me of an expression I heard once: ”artists need to art.” It’s clear that Arie needs to art, and the generations that come after her owe her a debt of gratitude.
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42 MOUNTAIN MEMORIES WITH GRANNY ECKARD Granny Eckard shares stories and memories of growing up at the base of Baker’s Mountain while it was still quite isolated.
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43 Grandma’s Spring Box Way back, before the ice man came with his blocks of ice to personally deliver to our ice box on the back porch, even before the idea of an ice box came to the south side of Bakers Mountain, Grandma had a spring box. This was a necessity for keeping the family’s milk and butter cool. Grandma milked her gentle jersey cow every morning and evening. After straining the milk through a clean white cloth into an earthenware crock, she covered the crock with another white cloth tied securely around the top with a string. She then delivered it down the hill to her spring box. The spring box was a rectangular wooden box probably made from rough-sewn oak. Hers was about eighteen inches deep, maybe thirty six inches long. The bottom was open to allow the water to run freely through the trough, and this box had to have a hinged lid to keep out curious raccoons and possums. Usually she would have several crocks of milk or buttermilk and some butter staying cool in that box. The box was positioned in the spring drain a short distance from the spring that furnished the family’s drinking water. The spring was the headwater of the spring drain, that became the creek, that became the stream, that further on down the hollow became the water supply for the cows and Grandpa’s mules. After REA brought electricity in 1950, Grandpa installed a pump in the spring to supply water to the new kitchen sink. Now Grandma could have cold water with just a turn of the handle. They later purchased a house across the road and bought a fancy new refrigerator. To my grandparent’s generation, electricity provided opportunity, while that old spring box rotted and returned to nature.
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44 frescos of the foothills By Richard Eller
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45 Drive by Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Glendale Springs and you are liable to see people walking in at any hour of the day, sometime by the bus load. Are these pilgrims attending service? Seeking spiritual renewal? Folks curious about why others are flocking there? Yes to all of these questions, but they are also drawn to the work of Ben Long IV, a now renowned painter of frescos depicting biblical scenes. Some finer examples of Long’s early work reside in this and other mountain churches. It actually began at a cocktail party. Painter Philip Moose introduced Faulton Hodge, the newly assigned priest to St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in West Jefferson, to Ben Long, suggesting that Long was “looking for a place to make a fresco and would he [Hodge] like to have one?” According to Long, Father Hodge quickly replied, “Sure, I would love to have a fresco.” Then he asked, “What’s a fresco?” Dating back 4,000 years, the word “fresco” comes from the Italian word for “wet,” which is how the paint is applied, so the colors sink into the wall, going deeper than possible in a canvas painting. Using a wall as the surface for the work allows for large and impressive works that capture subjects life-sized with an “Old World” feel. “My wife was pregnant at the time, so I had a ready model,” said Ben Long as he planned his first work. “I used the heads and hands and feet of a young lady who was, at the time, I believe, going to Appalachian and worked at Pizza Hut.” That first fresco is still a feature of St. Mary’s. Long observed, “We tried out something equally as controversial as the work Faulton Hodge commissioned, which was a pregnant virgin.” Representing a very pregnant Mary is unique. It is thought that such a depiction is only one of three works of art in the world, the other two in Germany. “Mary Great With Child,” created in 1974, was the first fresco to grace the walls of the church, but was not a true fresco since it was painted within a frame and then mounted to the wall. According to Long, that was in case the work “didn’t go over.” It was followed the next year by another life-sized image titled, “John the Baptist in the Wilderness.” A full walled depiction of Jesus ascending from the cross called “The Mystery of Faith” serves as a backdrop to the alter. It was completed in 1977. As each was painted, Long worked during church services. O n e p a r i s h i o n e r s a i d t h a t “church went on as usual, but everybody kept an eye on what Ben was doing.” He also answered the questions of people who came up to talk while he painted during non- church service times. After adorning St. Mary’s Episcopal Church with three works of art, Ben Long jokingly asked Father Faulton, “Do you have
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46 any more churches?” to which the ever- energetic priest answered that he did. One of the churches was, as Long described it, “Just waiting to find it’s time to be torn down.” Long suggested the construction of a wall to not only serve as the canvas but to support the structure, thereby saving the structure. As they stood inside Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, neither had an idea of how they would pay for the wall, but as they talked, according to Long, a man stood on the sidelines listening. He spoke up, saying he would pay for the building of the wall and wrote a check on the spot, a situation Long called, “a moment of divine intervention.” The summer of 1980 saw a collection of unique individuals visit Holy Trinity. Ben Long gathered a group of young artists so that he could teach the technique of fresco painting. In addition, Long “used the locals as models, anybody who wandered in that seemed to fit the bill.” He added, “There were certainly a lot of characters around in those days.” The locals became the faces of the twelve disciples in Long’s original interpretation of “The Last Supper.”
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47 Since then, Long has painted both sacred and secular subjects. In nearby Wilkesboro, he painted the Apostle Paul in two scenes: Paul’s Damascus Road moment and his imprisonment. O t h e r s u b j e c t s a r e f e a t u r e d throughout the region, notably in Statesville and Winston-Salem, but his early works in the “Churches of the Frescos” attracts countless viewers and admirers, allowing the parish to use the draw to welcome and minister to guests. The church refers to those who come as Pilgrims, partially because many have been there more than once. Deacon Shirley Long called the circumstances “A God- incidence,” referring to the fact that when Ben Long first looked for a place to paint his frescos, most churches refused the offer. However, when Faulton Hodge jumped at the chance to host Long’s artistic experiment, a profound moment created works of art offering comfort and contemplation in the North Carolina mountains for generations to come. “Choose a Job to Transport your Career” Transportation Insight is Hiring! We value the attributes of professionalism and high-quality character. A successful candidate will value and possess these attributes: strong work ethic, strong communication skills, motivation to grow and learn, positive attitude, dependability, responsibility, honesty and integrity. If this sounds like you, please apply at www. transportationinsight.com/about/careers/.
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48 Trade Alley Art Trade Alley Art, LLC, officially opened its doors on September 11, 2017 and held its grand opening Friday, October 20th with over 400 visitors. The newest art gallery in downtown Hickory, Trade Alley Art has enjoyed a resounding “Welcome” from everyone who has had an opportunity to visit, especially residents of Hickory and surrounding areas. Trade Alley Art is a cooperative gallery formed by a group of local artists and artisans. Evan Ellis-Raymer is the business manager and a member artist at Trade Alley Art. He feels the gallery advances several goals for the arts community. Some of these include promoting local artists, working with other local arts groups, and collaborating with Catawba Arts Council and the Hickory Museum of Art. Evan feels Trade Alley can work with these organizations to promote a common mission - to help make Hickory, NC a destination for those seeking fine art. “Why drive to Asheville or Blowing Rock when you can find quality art here?” Pat Flachbart is one of the founding member artists of Trade Alley and an art instructor in the Personal Enrichment Program at Catawba Valley Community College. For over fifteen years, Pat thought Hickory needed a cooperative artist group gallery. She feels the gallery works best as a member supported place where everyone shares equally in expenses, staffing, and coordinating, The gallery opened with 24 artists working in a number of media including acrylic, oil, gouache, watercolor, alcohol ink, sculpture, pottery, digital art, glass, jewelry, textiles and furniture. There is space for 26 artists, with new members selected by a juried com\and based on needs of the gallery for diversity of art. Currently, Trade Alley has a waiting list of artists. Member artists may change out art monthly but up to 30 percent of their portfolio is cycled out every other month when they rotate their spaces. This keeps the gallery fresh and interesting according to Jim Raymer, the general manager for Trade Alley Art. The goal of TAA is to keep it a fine-art gallery that is not overly populated so we can display the art appropriately and attractively. One of the goals for the group is to find corporate sponsors to help the gallery continue to grow and promote the community for the arts. Trade Alley Art is located at 25 Second St., NW, in downtown Hickory next to Taste Full Beans Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday- Saturday. For more information, call 828-578-1706 or 828-578- 1012, or visit their website, http://tradealleyart.com. ”Twins” at left by Amy McHugh.$145 ”Summer” at right by Meg Manderson. $300
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50 Hunter Seagle is an artist local to the foothills. Speagle earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Savannah [GA] College of Art and Design in 2005 and then a Master of Fine Arts from the School of Visual Arts in New York City in 2012. His one man show will be at the Hickory Museum of Art from May 5-August 5. This piece is titled ”Grandfather Mountain.”
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52 Relatives often begin us on the most fulfilling and dangerous journeys. For me, it is the introduction to books at a very early age. To be honest, I am a book addict. I adore their look, their smell, their mere presence comforts and calms me. I wrote a lengthy paper in college about how the library is my favorite place to unwind. Not the beach or the mountains, but the library. My classmates snickered and scoffed. But I love books and have from the first ones I was given by adoring aunts and uncles, grandparents, and friends of my parents when I was a toddler. Even coloring books resonated with me, the lines of black and white figures waiting to come alive under my hand and crayon. Those Disney and superhero coloring books changed into, what I would learn at 5 were called, comics. A cousin—much older—introduced me to comics via the older 1950s horror comics like Tales from the Crypt and the Vault of Horror when I was 5 or so. Cousin Randy was also the person who gave me the largest book I had ever seen: A thick copy of Solzhenitsyn’s The Gulag Archipelago. I read it in college finally, it being completely unmanageable for an 8-year-old. But it was Randy’s mom, my Aunt Bertha, who set my book addition full blast when she gave me dozens of Hardy Boys novels by Franklin W. Dixon. These I was able to read, and Frank and Joe Hardy became my best friends. These books fascinated me. The beige and brown matching covers were adorned with matching typefaces and the paper—oh, that yellowing, rough paper—each novel was printed on, deckle edged and cheap, but built to last as I run into original copies in thrift stores. I never realized until years later that the books once had dust jackets that everyone apparently took off and tossed out. “Lay ing Beneath Rain , On A Strange Roof” A column of nost al gia , gr owing up in the footh i l ls by Rob er t Can ip e
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53 wpsymphony.org (828) 324-8603
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54 Last December, Julia Rush took her final bow. After a long illness, Hickory’s reigning diva passed away at 77. A fixture in our community for decades, Julia moved to the area in 1978. She married Beemer Harrell in their half- finished house the following year and opened Julia Rush Fine Crafts shortly thereafter. Her gallery was a mainstay of Union Square for thirty years. Growing up, I had frequented her shop. Every time my mother and I wanted to do something a little special, we would visit the place just to be surrounded by beauty. We rarely bought anything, but Julia’s personality had imbued the atmosphere, and without even knowing her yet, we enjoyed the fun spirit that invited us back time and again. I didn’t officially meet Julia until I interviewed for a job years later. At 23, I was just rediscovering my love of art in a serious way. Like many in their early twenties, I felt a little lost and was looking for something meaningful. Lana Ruffini, Julia’s long-serving store manager, could perhaps sense that about me. She sent me to meet Julia, and in about five minutes, I was hired. That moment changed my life. When she took me on, she listed one major requirement. She explained that people came into her store - not just to shop - but to find out what was happening in downtown Hickory. She insisted that her employees had to be involved in the community. We needed to be able to speak intelligently about concerts, poetry readings, art openings, plays. I took her at her word, and I immediately became immersed in Hickory’s vibrant arts scene. Thanks to Julia, I met poets, artists, thespians, musicians, and craftspeople - folks who continue to be some of the most influential figures in my life. When I first started working at Julia’s, I was soft-spoken and shy, uncertain in my artistic ability. Working with Julia awakened some untapped part of me. I knew my life would never be the same. In the years I worked at her gallery, Julia’s life changed too. Beemer - her soulmate since their first meeting at Penland School of Crafts - passed away. The economy shifted. She was getting older. After three decades, she celebrated her long-running success with a closing sale that somehow became a party. Leaving a Legacy of Lov e Written by Lindsay Barrick. Photography by Jeff Wilhelm (this page) and Jon Eckard (right).
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55 Unexpectedly, the women that Julia had hired formed a stronger bond outside of the gallery setting. A sisterhood was born and remains vibrant, if altered, even at the passing of our dynamic founder. For over a decade now, we haven’t missed a single opportunity to celebrate one another’s birthdays. Lana, Gail, Missy, and I will always be committed to honoring Julia and the friendships that mattered so much to her. In the years after her retirement, Julia continued to explore and learn. She traveled and took art classes, dated and performed, mentored and enjoyed life. In the last few months of that beautiful life, her health failed. Her sisterhood - along with dear family and old friends - gathered to express our love. We reminded her of the gift she was to so many. Lana, now the director of Unique World Gifts, recalls, “Julia had a very giving nature. She just loved to give. There are so many things around my house that came from her. Beautiful things. But she really gave of herself. She gave me life experience. She taught me everything I know about business. She was such an influence.” Julia’s daughter Barb shares, “I had no idea how many people’s lives she influenced until after she died. So many people have told me she mentored them and encouraged them to pursue careers in the arts.” Julia was an outspoken advocate for the arts. She believed in the importance of beauty and creative expression. She was a potter and singer, jeweler and business woman, mentor and entrepreneur. She never lost her fervor for making and performing. As her daughter puts it, “the world was truly her stage.” She never tired of encouraging people in their dreams. She had found the power and grace that comes from living an authentic life, and she was eager to have others experience such joy. My dad and I visited Julia a few hours before she died. She had always held a fondness for my family. She had dated my grandfather and had enjoyed being part of our lives. I’ll never forget those final moments with Julia, my dad whispering to her, “Thank you for always being true to yourself. And thank you for helping my daughter learn how to be true to herself too.” A few days before, on my own with Julia while she still had moments of clarity, she looked me right in the eyes and said, “Lindsay, I love you, Baby.” Even at the last, she gave. With her final words to me resounding in my heart, I offer this tribute to the woman who helped craft my own life as much as she influenced our community. For honest conversations and earnest enthusiasm, for long, slow walks and spur-of-the-moment concerts, for shared tears and hearty laughs, I give thanks. I rejoice in the mentor and friend who changed enough lives to fill issue after issue of this magazine with remembrances and reflections. The next time you walk in Hickory’s charming downtown or see a wonderful community theatre production or witness a powerful art reception or experience a concert, know that there was once a woman who cared and gave with her whole heart. Hickory is well crafted thanks in large part to Julia Rush. She poured her passion into others, and now we are called upon to boldly build upon her legacy. She always believed in us, and that gives me hope. Lindsay Barrick is the executive director of Caldwell Arts Council and believes much of the goodness of her life is attributable to Julia Rush.
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(828) 322-8011 Opulent Seating for Ten BY THE OUTSTANDING TEAM AT STEELE’S CONSTRUCTION The Steele family was excited to work with the Herndons of Hickory to create a luxurious dining experience with room for several guests. The Herndon family enjoys entertaining and needed space to host large dinners. After meeting with the H e r n d o n s t o d i s c u s s their needs and style, the Steele’s set to work. The team designed a custom table, handcrafted from white oak by Arthur Millworks in California. This furniture company is the brainchild of Tim Arthur, master carpenter, and it’s been featured on HGTV, DIY and House Crashers. The table fit the spot perfectly, and the design flows with the style of the space. The design team knew they wanted luxurious velvet to create the upholstered walls and the seats. Unable to find velvet to meet their high standards here in the US, the team designed a custom gold velvet and had it created and imported from England. The luxury of the fabric matches no velvet I’ve seen stateside. This fabric was used to create a vibrant and opulent hand-tufted, cushioned wall, Silver velvet, crushed with a custom designed patter n, was used to create a stunning custom bench. The pattern, a mix of triangles and lines, is modern but timeless. The bench’s scalloped edge is elegant and it fits perfectly beneath a dining room window, and even opens for storage. The piece is castored for ease of use. The chairs around the large table were custom designed to showcase both of the luxurious fabrics. The back inlay matches the silver bench, while the seats match the gold wall. Place settings of gold and silver tie together the different design elements beautifully. Their design blends nature and luxury. This custom bench was created from silver velvet and built to fit the needs of the family. Donna Steele moves the beautiful custom bench into place. The large round table fills the space completely and perfectly.
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58 The space features two globed sconces which complete the design of the tufted wall and add elegance to the whole scene. The whole room is set off beautifully by the inclusion of two chandeliers. These were chosen for their streamlined yet extravagant style. The addition of a second chandelier grabs the viewer’s attention. The table beneath the chandeliers is enormous, and the addition of the second light highlights the grandness of the design. As always, the Steeles finished the design with lush floral arrangements. T h i s s p a c e i s s u m p t u o u s , lavish, and plush. The elegance of the space is what draws the viewer. But the size and utility of the space is what makes it amazing. Entertaining many guests will be accomplished with ease. The homeowners will enjoy their new dining room, which feels cozy and French, despite having room for ten. Tim and Donna Steele and their t e a m c o n s i s t e n t l y p ro d u c e g o rg e o u s h i g h - e n d h o m e s and redesigns. They are known for their opulence, and for their ability to create upscale spaces that are beautiful and functional. Their office is located on Highway 127 North in Hickory at 1839 N Center Street. The team would love to set up a meeting with you to discuss your design needs and your wishlist.
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An Appalachian cidery I n t h e l o w l i g h t o f s u n r i s e o n a w a r m J u n e mor ning, along a s out h -f acing slop e t uc ke d away in a valley, Jus tin Fox and his f amily found w hat t hey had b een look ing for : an orc hard. T hey are t h e p r o u d o w n e r s of ove r t w o h u n d r e d t hi r t y - five year old ap ples trees in t he mount ains nor t h of Boone. T hey are gnar ly, unmanage d s hells of t heir for mer s elves, b ut wit h a lit tle tend er love a n d c a r e t h ey w ill p r o d u c e m a ny t o n s o f f r u i t . T he Fox f amily is c ar ing for t his land and t hes e trees: pr uning, pic k ing, and event ually, pres sing i n t o c i d e r, m a n a g i n g t h e o r c h a r d h o l i s t i c a l l y, t reating eac h is s ue t hat ar is e s wit h foret ho ug ht a n d p e r s i s te nce. T hey ar e now b uil d i ng a s mall cellar to fer ment the pressed fr uit into traditional, small batch ciders that represent the proper t y and t heir f amily. Jus tin is t he s econd place winner of the 2017 Edison Competition, and will bring Cider to t he Hic kor y area s oon. Be on t he lookout!
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Become a villager! Join in our weekly volunteer days, check out our schedule of upcoming events, and donate to the Henry River Preservation Fund! Find out more at henryrivermillvillage.com
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62 Foothills The foothills of North Carolina have a rich farming tradition. From the moment settlers first tilled the land, our harvests have been bountiful. While our region has its challenges, it’s proven to be a place where smaller, family farms are able to thrive, somewhat insulated from the pressures caused by the enormous food and farming industry at large. A large part of the success of these local farms comes from our elaborate network of farmers markets, which allow farmers to sell directly to their customers, instead of grocery stores buying in bulk. Another part is the geography and biology of our land. It lends itself to smaller operations much more easily. Small crops that are rotated and tended to lovingly flourish here. The produce they bear are full of nourishment, and the food isn’t stripped of nutrients like magnesium. This is a problem with the vegetables generally available at most grocery stores. In the foothills, we have biodiversity, bees, mineral rich soil and a season that rarely gets scorching hot. You can taste the difference these things make. It’s almost time for plump, vine-ripened tomatoes. Here they taste alive, vibrant and bursting with flavor. You can almost taste the sunshine. A bite of a juicy tomato from one of our farmers markets, still warm from the sun, reminds you of what food is meant to taste like, and hearkens you back to a time when everything wasn’t over processed and life was simpler.
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63 Farming Farmers here know they are doing meaningful work. Foothills farmer Shiloh Avery of Tumbling Shoals Farm tells me that farmers markets allow her to connect with her customers, to see who she is feeding. That reminds her of the importance of what she is doing. Tumbling Shoals Farm is an all organic farm located in Wilkes County, run by Shiloh and her husband Jason Roehrig. They put down roots, ”literally and figuratively,” according to Shiloh, in 2006 and have been providing the foothills of North Carolina with organic produce for over a decade. Shiloh explains that our region has it’s own set of challenges. For instance, the shape of their farm and a scientific principal called ”inversion” cause parts of her farm to be 10-15 degrees colder than other parts. The couple have been able to work with this natural phenomenon instead of against it, producing some of the region’s most delicious food. The couple is able to use a host of traditional and modern techniques to grow their produce free of pesticides. Tumbling Shoals Farm sells their produce at the Downtown Hickory Farmers Market as well as the Boone Farmers Market. Visiting farmers markets is a great way to connect with your community and neighbors. Be sure to check out our list of Farmers Markets on the following pages. We think we’ve done a pretty thorough job, but if we missed one, be sure to let us know! You can always reach us at editor@foothillsdigest.com.
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65 Alleghany Farmers Market Hwy 18 N. Crouse Park Sparta, NC 28675 (276) 655-4045 (276) 235-1413 Ashe County Farmers Market 108 Backstreet West Jefferson, NC 28694 (336) 877-5052 ashefarmersmarket.com Caldwell County Farmers Market 120 Hospital Ave, NE, Ste 1 Lenoir, NC 28645 (828) 757-1290 (828) 758-0729 Catawba County Public Health Farmers Market 3070 11th Ave. Dr. SE Hickory, NC 28602 (828) 695-5800 catawbacountync.gov/phealth Catawba Valley Farmers Market PO Box 389 Newton, NC 28658 (828) 478-2661 ces.ncsu.edu/copubs/ag/fnv/002 City of Claremont 3288 East Main Street Claremont, NC 28610 (828) 466-7255 cityofclaremont.org Conover Farmers Market 109 1st Street East Conover, NC 28613 (828) 234-7075 conoverfarmersmarket.org Dobson Farmer’s Market 302 West Folger Street Dobson, NC 27017 (336) 401-8025 surry.ces.ncsu.edu farmers markets in the Foothills Downtown (Rutherford) Farmers Market PO Box 240 Laurinburg, NC 28353 (910) 277-7860 Downtown Dobson Farmers Market Franklin Street Dobson, NC 27017 (336) 401-8025 Downtown Hickory Farmers Market Union Square Hickory, NC 28601 (828) 308-6508 hickoryfarmersmarket.com Elkin Farmers’ Market 226 N. Bridge Street Elkin, NC 28621 (336) 401-8025 elkinfarmersmarket.com Evening Farmers Market Pecan Park Statesville, NC 28677 (704) 873-3361 theeveningfarmersmarket.com Farmer’s Fresh Tailgate Market 146 N. Main Street Rutherfordton, NC 28139 (828) 288-1650 828) 429-2497 farmersfreshmarket.org Foothills Farmers’ Market 111 S. Washington Street Shelby, NC 28150 (704) 482-4365 foothillsfarmersmarket.com/ Gastonia Farmers Market 410 E. Long Avenue Gastonia, NC 28054 (704) 853-0049 Hildebran Farmers Market 202 South Center Street Hildebran, NC 28637 (828) 397-5801 hildebranfarmersmarket.com/ Historic Marion Tailgate Market 67 W. Henderson Street Marion, NC 28752 (828) 652-2215 hometownmarion.com Lake Lure Market Memorial Hwy. Lake Lure, NC 28746 Lenoir Downtown Farmers Market 385 Harper Ave. Lenoir, NC 28645 (828) 221-4935 Lincoln County Farmers Market at Denver 3633 Hwy 16 North Denver , NC 28037 (704) 736-8461 lincolncountyfarmersmarket.com Lincoln County Farmers Market-Downtown Lincolnton 225 West Water Street Lincolnton, NC 28092 (704) 736-8461 lincolncountyfarmersmarket.com Lowell Farmer’s Market 101 West First Street Lowell, NC 28098 (704) 824-3519 lowellnc.com Marion Tailgate Market 67 W. Henderson Street Marion, NC 28752 (828) 652-2215
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66 Meeting Street Farmers Market 252 Williamson Road Mooresville, NC 28117 (704) 714-3088 meetingstreetmarket.com Mooresville Farmers Market 255 E Iredell Ave - Liberty Park Mooresville, NC 28115 Morganton Farmers Market 300 Beach Street Morganton, NC 28655 (828) 438-5252 downtownmorganton.com Mount Airy Farmers’ Market 541 W. Pine Street, Ste 200 Mount Airy, NC 27030 (336) 401-8025 Mount Holly Farmers Market 130 South Main Street Mount Holly, NC 28120 (704) 372-8666 mounthollyfarmersmarket.com/ Rotary Farmers Market E. Sharpe Street Statesville, NC 28677 (704) 873-6457 Rutherford County Farmers Market PO Box 272 Rutherford, NC 28139 (828) 287-6010 Shacktown Farmers’ Market at Billet-Doux Farm 2816 Shacktown Road Yadkinville, NC 27055 336) 391-8459 shacktownnc.com Statesville Rotary Farmers Market East Sharpe Street Statesville, NC 28677 (704) 878-4371 Town of Wilkesboro 102 West Main Street Wilkesboro, NC 28697 Office Phone: (336) 838-3951 Valdese Farmer’s Market Faet St. Valdese, NC 28690 (828) 439-4460 Wilkes County Farmers’ Market 200 Chestnut Street North Wilkesboro, NC 28659 (336) 667-7129 Yadkin Farmers Market 1141 Tennessee Street Yadkinville, NC 27055
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67 People notice your smile. Oakwood Dental Arts is a full service dentistry firm based in the heart of Hickory, North Carolina in the historic Oakwood district. Our mission is to help you thrive in our town. Whether you have a troubled tooth that needs help or want to get that smile you’ve always dreamed about, we are here to serve. We will work with you to create a plan to achieve the best oral health possible. Let’s take the journey together. 828-324-6235 OakwoodDentalArtsNC.com mckinneydds@ OakwoodDentalArtsNC.com
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Carefully sown in fertile soil, every seed has a chance to bear fruit. With nourishment, the smallest germination spreads roots and sprouts life. There’s labor and toil through metamorphosis and growth. Production blooms, and a fruitful next generation is born. Seasons turn, new growth buds, and bountiful harvest multiplies. But the ground must be fertile, the live-giving necessities abundant. Marcus P. Miller sowed the first seeds of Hickory Greenway Harvest in January 2016. Conditioned by a lifetime of insight handed down a generation, the organization he nurtures alongside like-minded co-workers, community leaders, businesses and master gardeners has produced quickly. In its first growing season, a demonstration garden on Hickory’s SALT Block and large working garden in rural Catawba County provided more than 1,400 pounds of fresh vegetables – almost 3,700 meals – for Hickory Soup Kitchen, Safe Harbor Rescue Mission, The Corner Table and other food support agencies. “We’ve started these gardens as a conduit to bring together all walks of life and address some of the critical needs facing Flourishing in fertile Ground By Michael Willard
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our community,” says Miller, HGH’s President and Founder. “The metaphors you can apply to gardening are very applicable to leadership development, community collaboration, therapeutic healing – because it has really worked for me in that way.” Seedling support from Salt Block Foundation, N.C. Cooperative Extension, Catawba County Farm Bureau, Transportation Insight’s Service in Action, Hickory Rotary Club, Carolina Glove and Southern States nurtured initial projects. New volunteer, in-kind and financial help from GKN Sinter, Lowe’s Home Improvement, First United Methodist Church of Hickory and other partnerships bolster future growth: 24 new vegetable beds at partner agencies planned for the 2018 growing season. Importantly, Hickory Greenway Harvest is propagating more than seeds in the soil. Established roots dedicated to the memory of Fred D Abernethy are supporting new dialogues about larger issues plaguing the Hickory Metro. Ongoing nutrition education offered in partnerships with Conover Farmer’s Market, Catawba County DSS and Lenoir-Rhyne University’s Solmaz Institute re- enforce the important role fresh vegetables play in sustainable solutions for food shortage. Promising new crops focus on anti-bullying, therapeutic outreach, mentoring and life skills. “The gardens we’re building is part of our overall mission to work together with other organizations, but we’re not specifically about just building gardens,” Miller says. “It is one thing to come in and play in the garden, but Hickory Greenway Harvest is working to initiate a variety of new opportunities that are helpful to the community – particularly those people struggling at the margins.” For more on Hickory Greenway Harvest, visit www. hickorygreenwayharvest.org.
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70 strawberry picking
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71 T here aren’t many better ways to spend a spring or summer day than picking strawberries with people you care about. Fortunately, the foothills offer many opportunities to pick your own fruit. These are all pick your own strawberry farms in our region. You may want to call ahead to make sure the farm is open before you visit. The Farmers’ Daughter 2150 Friendship Church Road Taylorsville, NC 28681 828-312-8137 Avery Farms 615 Avery Lane Plumtree NC 28664 828-733-5052 Rock Creek Farm 6520 Rhoney Road Connelly Springs, NC 28612 (828)437-6218 (828)448-2046 Triple Oaks Farm 4731 Ike Starnes Road Granite Falls, NC 28630 (828) 396-1130 Lineberger’s Berry Hill Farm (Iron Station) 2400 Hudson Poultry Road Iron Station, NC 28080 (704) 748-1488
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73 (828) 324-1655 831 Old Lenoir Rd NW, Hickory hickorytreeconsignment.com Buy this! Sell this. R efined Finds McCurry’s Strawberry Farm 735 Wise Road Lincolnton, NC 28092 (704) 732-1802 (704) 735-0338 Rocking W. Farm 2317 Lace Knoll Road East Bend, NC 27018 (336) 961-6373 (336) 961-6640 Ira Cline Farm 4444 Lee Cline Road Conover, NC 28613 828-464-5942 Maple Springs Farm (Linebergers) 906 Dallas-Stanley Highway #275 Dallas, NC 28034 704-922-8688 704-748-1488 Carrigan Farms, LLC 1261 Oak Ridge Farm Highway Mooresville, NC 28115 704-664-1450 doug@carriganfarms.com. Howards Family Farm 250 Crater Road Harmony, NC 28634 704-539-4994.
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74 Strawberry Ginger Glazed Whole Roasted Chicken Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 1: Clean chicken and remove backbone with kitchen shears. Butterfly chicken onto aluminum lined baking sheet. 2: Prepare glaze by whisking all ingredients in a small bowl until combined. 3: Using a brush, cover chicken with 1/2 of glaze and reserve remaining half for basting during cooking. 4: Place chicken in over at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. 5: Baste chicken with remaining glaze. 6: Lower heat to 350 degrees and roast for approximately 30-40 more minutes, or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees. 7: Remove chicken and allow to rest for 10 minutes before cutting or serving. INGREDIENTS: 1 W hole C hi C ken FOR GLAZE: 2 T bsp . of soy sau C e 2 T bsp . of s T ra W berry jam , preferably seedless 1 T bsp . sesame oil 1 T sp . sal T 1 T sp . pepper 1 T sp . garli C po W der 1/2 T sp . of ginger po W der
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75 1: In a saute pan, heat sesame oil and add mushrooms to the pan. 2: Cook mushrooms until brown and add then green onions. 3: Sprinkle garlic powder and toss. 4: Add butter and soy sauce and toss until the water is reduced into a thick sauce, about 5 minutes. 5: Serve immediately with chicken. INGREDIENTS FOR GARNISH: 2 bun C hes of W hole green onions 1 C up of sli C ed mushrooms 2 T bsp . of soy sau C e 1 T bsp . of garli C po W der 1 T bsp . of bu TT er 1 T sp . of sesame oil THESE RECIPES HAVE BEEN CREATED BY CALVIN REYES. CALVIN IS IN THE MIDST OF AN ADAPTIVE REUSE PROJECT AT HENRY RIVER MILL VILLAGE. HE WILL EVENTUALLY OPEN A RESTAURANT ON SITE.
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76 Roasted Spring Radishes 1: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 2: In a bowl combine all of the ingredients and toss until radishes are evenly coated with the oil. 3: Place radishes cut side down on baking sheet or in casserole dish. 4: Bake for 14-16 minutes or until slightly golden brown. 5: Toss with parsley and serve immediately. INGREDIENTS: 2 bun C hes radishes , C leaned and halved 2 garli C C loves , min C ed 2 T bsp . olive oil 1 T sp . sea sal T 1 T sp . garli C po W der 1 T bsp . fresh parsley , C hopped
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77 Strawberry & Cabbage Slaw 1. In a stainless steel pan, toast walnuts until they just start to brown. Remove from heat and allow to cool. 2. In a large bowl, combine cabbage, strawberries and walnuts. Toss lightly. 3. In a small bowl, whisk together balsamic vinegar, sesame oil, garlic powder, salt and sugar. 4. Pour whisked mixture over cabbage mixture and toss lightly. 5. Serve immediately with optional sesame seed garnish. INGREDIENTS: 3 C ups of purple C abbage , C hopped 1 C up of W alnu T s , C hopped 1 C up of fresh s T ra W berries , C hopped 2 T bsp . of W hi T e balsami C vinegar 2 T bsp . of sesame oil 1 T sp . of garli C po W der 1 T sp . of sal T 1 T bsp of granula T ed sugar 1 T bsp s esame seeds for garnish
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79 Strawberry Cake 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 2: Mix together well. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, which depends on pan shape/size and your oven. 3: Let cool *If you add more frozen strawberries, your cake will fall. *Fresh strawberries can be used. *Instead of 1 cup oil, you can use 1/2 cup butter, 1/2 cup oil. INGREDIENTS: 1 b ox C ake m ix 1/2 C up f rozen s T ra W berrries 1/2 C up W a T er 1 b ox s T ra W berry j ello 1 C up W esson o il 4 eggs 1: Mix together. 2: Ice the Cake *Cream cheese is often added, to taste. INGREDIENTS: 1 box p o W dered s ugar , sif T ed 1/2 C up s T ra W berries 1/2 s T i C k of bu TT er ICING This cake has so many variations. How do you make it differently? Let us know at editor@foothillsdigest.com!
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80 HIGHLAND AVE Farm to table and served on handmade local pottery, this restaurant offers an unforgettable experience that’s authentic and quietly lush. By Carmen Eckard Photographed By Jon Eckard
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82 To me, Highland Avenue encapsulates the revitalization of the Foothills region, and so, it’s dear to my heart. Highland Avenue Restaurant is located on the second floor of the Hollar Mill building. Once a thriving mill, the building had fallen vacant and over time became a visual representation of the hard times the city faced. The renovation the mill jump-started several similar projects, and Hickory looks very different than it did just five years ago.
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83 The ambiance here is remarkable. The space feels expansive and like it’s dripping in history. Our food arrives on pottery plates, thrown especially for Highland Avenue by Hamilton Williams in Morganton. The ”Farmer and Chef Vegetarian” meal, seen on page 81, changes based on what’s in season. Our meal came from Koto Family Farms, Anson Mills and Jamie Swofford, a farmer who is connected to the culinary scene, providing excellent and on trend produce. Carrots, lacinto kale, Parisian scooped turnips, sweet potatoes, garbonzo beans, and sea island peas were topped with a tangy but savory carrot top verde. It was followed by a delicious flatbread (below) that’s been described as ”the best pizza in town.” With a house made crust, local sausage, peppadew peppers and mushrooms, then covered in mozzarella, this flatbread has a satisfying crunch and interesting blend of flavors. Salads at Highland Avenue are always delicious, with unexpected additions. This nutty and tart salad was an excellent balance to the bread, served with freshly blended butters and jams. The seafood at Highland Avenue is fresh and from our own coasts. This trout was served with sweet potatoes and a sherry cream. The details of these meals change frequently, as the seasons change for our farmers. Highland Avenue is part of the larger farm-to-table movement which focuses on getting farm fresh, locally grown food into the hands of experienced cooks, without middlemen slowing down the process. The recipes reflect the fluid nature of local offerings, and the restaurant is able to serve delicious, nutritious food to local audiences.
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85 Check out foothills kids
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Derby Party on the SALT Block
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Tickets are on sale for the fourth annual Derby Party and Friendraiser. Break out your big hats and bowties and join us for the best watch party in town. To be held on Saturday, May 5, 2018 from 4:00 – 9:30 pm on the SALT Block North Lawn, the party features a cash bar with beer, wine and a variety of flavored juleps, as well as Derby games, raffles, a best dressed contest, music, a southern fare buffet and a live viewing of the race. “We are proud to host this event again this year in our beautiful outdoor space. Your support of the Derby Party and the SALT Block Foundation touches five cultural organizations which reside on the Block,” said Tara Bland, Executive Director. Tickets are $40 each and available until May 4th. All proceeds go to the SALT Block Foundation (SBF), a non-profit organization which oversees the operation of the SALT Block and provides occupancy costs for the residents: Catawba Science Center, Hickory Choral Society, Hickory Museum of Art, United Arts Council and Western Piedmont Symphony. Please contact Tara H. Bland at the SALT Block Foundation, 828-324-4906 x 303 for tickets or more information, or go to www.SaltBlockFoundation.org to order online. You may also mail your check to the SALT Block Foundation, 243 Third Avenue NE, Box 7, Hickory, NC 28601. Photo by Mitzi Gellman
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89 Photograph by Clayton Joe Young
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90 Before there was Merlefest, there was the Watson family. Born Arthel Lane Watson in Deep Gap in 1923, Doc lost his vision before his first birthday, but his love of music has been apparent his whole life. Doc received his first instrument at the age of 5: a harmonica, which he played with gusto. When he was 12, his dad, who always encouraged him, told him if he could learn to play a song in one day, he’d buy him a guitar. He learned ”When Roses Bloom in Dixieland” and earned his first guitar, a Stella. Music became his way of life, and by the time he reached adulthood, he was a skilled musician by any measure. Doc Watson has spent his life creating music, helping to shape bluegrass music along the way. His unusual flat- picking style transformed guitar from a back up rhythm instrument to an instrument worthy of its own solos. One notable thing about Doc Watson was that as he was coming into his own as a musician, all around him folk singers of the day were singing protest songs, pushing every envelope they ran across. Doc Watson, true to his Appalachian roots, sang of family, God and the blues. He developed his own style, holding on to the traditions of those before him. He brought mountain music to the masses but with panache. Musician Arlen Roth writes in his book Arlen Roth’s Complete Acoustic Guitar, ”...we can attribute an entirely new style and a whole generation of pickers to [Watson’s] inspiration. He was the first rural acoustic player to truly ’amaze’ urban audiences in the early 1960s with his dazzling, fast technique, and he has continued to be a driving, creative force on the acoustic music scene.”
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91 Bob Dylan compared Watson’s guitar style to ”water running,” while Watson more humbly called it ”country pickin.” But as important as music was to Doc Watson, it never trumped family. In fact, music was always a family affair. He married the daughter of popular fiddle player Gaither Carlton. Rosa Lee and Doc went on to have two children, Eddy Merle and Nancy Ellen. In 1964, Merle joined his father on stage at the age of 15. For the next twenty years, the two men performed together, earning three Grammies and international acclaim. Unfortunately, in 1985, tragedy struck, and Merle died in a tractor accident on the family property. Doc Watson did return to music without his son by side, earning 3 more Grammies and a Lifetime Achievement Grammy as well. But he decided to work with the local college, Wilkes Community College, to produce an annual music festival in honor of his son. The name ”Merlefest” was a fitting tribute to his. He said, “When Merle and I started out we called our music ‘traditional plus’, meaning the traditional music of the Appalachian region plus whatever other styles we were in the mood to play. Since the beginning, the people of the college and I have agreed that the music of MerleFest is ‘traditional plus’.” Doc Watson died in 2012 at the age of 89, leaving behind an enormous legacy. Scan the code at right for a real treat: hear Doc Watson talk about his dad and play harmonica in a recording from his aptly titled album ”Legacy.” The whole album is enthralling and important for everyone who loves bluegrass.
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92 Merlefest started in 1988, after the death of Eddy Merle Watson. From the beginning, it’s been the primary fundraiser for Wilkes Community College. Like Doc Watson’s own music, the festival is known for representing the concept of ”traditional plus.” It is a unique mix of music based on the traditional, roots-oriented sounds of the Appalachian region, including bluegrass and old-time music, and expanded to include Americana, country, blues, rock and many other styles. Merlefest is consistently one of the largest music festivals in the nation, bringing in around 75,000 each year. This brings about $10 million annually to the foothills. There are 13 stages and 4 days of music, with so many acts it’s difficult to keep an accurate list. Merlefest is THE premiere bluegrass festival in the world. Most of the major musical artists in the field have performed at Merlefest, including Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Earl Scruggs, The Kruger Brothers, Carolina Chocolate Drops, John Prine, Alison Krauss and Union Station, Donna the Buffalo, Natalie MacMaster, Vassar Clements, Hot Tuna, Joe Smothers, Alan Jackson, Darius Rucker, David Grisman, Ricky Skaggs, Emmylou Harris, Jerry Douglas, Del McCoury, Junior Brown, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Claire Lynch, Elvis Costello, Howard Armstrong, Randy Travis, Lyle Lovett, The Doobie Brothers, Robert Plant and the Band of Joy, Sharon Gilchrist, The Avett Brothers, Tony Rice, Francois Vola, Emory lester, Old Crow Medicine Show, Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers, Zac Brown Band, Dierks Bentley, Linda Ronstadt, Levon Helm, Taj Mahal, Bruce Hornsby, Cadillac Sky and Vince Gill.
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93 O U R F A C T O R Y O U T L E T C O M F O R T F O R T H E M I N D , B O D Y & W A L L E T Shop our ever-changing assortment of factory overruns, discontinued items and market samples. All priced at an extraordinary value: a guaranteed minimum of 50% off suggested retail. Hickory Furniture Mart (level 1, west entrance) 2220 Hwy 70 SE, Hickory, NC 28602 Tel: 828.261.0051 / Monday thru Saturday 9am to 6pm like us for new arrivals and special offers
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95 Kris Kristofferson has been making things happen his entire life. Born in Texas and raised in a military family, he was a Golden Gloves boxer who studied creative writing at Pomona College in California. The Phi Beta Kappa graduate earned a Rhodes scholarship to study literature at Oxford, where he boxed, played rugby and continued to write songs. After graduating from Oxford, Kristofferson served in the army as an Airborne Ranger helicopter pilot and achieved the rank of Captain. In 1965, Kristofferson turned down an assignment to teach at West Point and, inspired by songwriters like Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash, moved to Nashville to pursue his music. “When I was in the army, I was one of the few people outside of his personal friends who knew about Willie Nelson,” Kristofferson recalls. “I listened to a disc jockey who happened to be a Willie fan. He would play Willie’s songs and talk about him all the time. By the time I got to Nashville, he was a superhero to me. For guys like me, Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson were two gods we worshiped. Then Willie and I got to be best friends. I came from a position of idolizing him to finding out he’s the funniest son of a bitch you could be around.” After struggling in Music City for several years, Kristofferson achieved remarkable success as a country songwriter at the start of the 1970s. His songs “Me and Bobby McGee,” “Help Me Make It Through the Night,” “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” and “For the Good Times,” all chart-topping hits, helped redefine country songwriting. By 1987, it was estimated that more than 450 artists had recorded Kristofferson’s compositions. His renown as a songwriter triggered Kristofferson’s successful career as a performer and that, in turn, brought him to the attention of Hollywood, leading to his flourishing career as a film actor. Kristofferson has acted in more than 70 films. In 1977 He won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in “A Star Is Born.” He’s appeared in cult favorites including the “Blade” trilogy, “Lone Star,” “A Soldier’s Daughter Never Cries,” “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” “Blume In Love,” “Cisco Pike,” and “Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid.” Recent films include “Fast Food Nation,” “Dreamer: Inspired By A True Story,” “The Jacket,” “Silver City,” “He’s Just Not That In To You,” and “Dolphin Tale.” Heralded as an artist’s artist, the three-time GRAMMY winner has recorded 28 albums, including three with pals Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings as part of the Highwaymen. Kristofferson has spent three decades performing concerts all over the world, in most recent years in a solo acoustic setting, which puts the focus on the songs. “There’s an honesty in the sparseness. It feels like direct communication to the listener,” he says. “I still have more fun when I’m with the band, but being alone is freer, somehow. It’s like being an old blues guy, just completely stripped away.” Kristofferson has reached living legend status, but that hasn’t changed or hindered his creativity. His current CD, Feeling Mortal contains eleven gems that explore love, gratitude, aging, and his ever-present theme of freedom. “If you took freedom out of the songs, you’d have very few Kristofferson songs,” he laughs. In addition to many other awards, Kristofferson is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, winner of the prestigious Johnny Mercer Award from the Songwriter Hall of Fame, and was honored with the American Veteran’s Association’s “Veteran of the Year Award” in 2002. For Kristofferson’s 70th birthday in 2006, his friends and admirers gifted him with a tribute CD, The Pilgrim: A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson. Stars including Willie Nelson, Russell Crowe, Emmylou Harris, Gretchen Wilson, Rosanne Cash, and Brian McKnight recorded 17 of Kristofferson’s compositions for the tribute. In 2007, Kristofferson was honored with the Johnny Cash Visionary Award from Country Music Television and in 2009 BMI lauded Kristofferson with the Icon Award. He received the Frances Preston Music Industry Award from the T.J. Martell Foundation in March, 2012. In 2014, Kristofferson was honored with a GRAMMY Lifetime Achievement Award and the PEN Song Lyrics of Literary Excellence Award. Photo and Bio courtesy of Kris Kristofferson.
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96 Sam Bush has performed at each Merlefest, making this his 30th performance at this venue. Sam is known as the originator of the ”Newgrass Style”, which goes nicely with the ”traditional plus” theme of the festival. In fact, the state of Kentucky passed legislation naming the three time Grammy winner the ”Father of Newgrass”. Known for his mandolin, fiddle and his vocals, Sam often collaborates with other artists and has performed with many other musicians in his years at Merlefest. Photograph by Shelly Swanger Photography
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97 The Mavericks embody the concept of Traditional Plus. They are described as ”eclectic American band, combining neotraditional country music, Latin, and rockabilly influences.” The group has won many awards including a Grammy in 1995. Their career spans 3 decades. They split in 2004 but reunited in 2011. They continue to create an eclectic blend of music. Mandolin Orange This duo consists of songwriter Andrew Marlin (vocals, mandolin, guitar, banjo) and Emily Frantz (vocals, violin, guitar). The group is known for ” strong, tight vocal harmonies and virtuosic musicianship.” The group has toured throughout the U.S and Europe, including appearances at Austin City Limits, South-by-Southwest, Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Newport Folk Festival, Pickathon, and here at Merlefest.
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99 Steep Canyon Rangers F Friends J special guest Steve Martin Steep Canyon Rangers and Friends are a Grammy winning band from Brevard, NC. Formed, in 2000, the band became widely known in 2009 when they began their collaboration with Steve Martin. The group toured widely as a quintet before beginning this collaboration and becoming a sextet. They continue to perform with Steve Martin, and on their own. Use the code to the left to listen to their Tiny Desk Concert for NPR. Bela Fleck F Abigail Washburn This duo teamed up for 2016’s Grammy winning album, Bela Fleck and Abigail Washburn. It won the award for Best Folk Album.
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Elephant Revival Merlefest has an incredible number of acts. We were curious to hear them before the festival, so we’ve compiled a collection to give a listen. If you don’t have a QR reader, you can download one at your phone’s app store, then just scan the code to hear a song from the band. Immerse yourself in the experience! Elephant Revival’s particular blend of music is often referred to as ”transcendental folk.” It’s a blend of Celtic music, traditional music, original folk music, bluegrass and indie rock. The band has announced that they are taking an indefinite hiatus, and have canceled the majority of their remaining shows. Fortunately, they aren’t canceling their Merlefest appearance, so this may be the last chance for North Carolinians to see them live for awhile.
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North Mississippi Allstars Brothers Luther and Cody Dickenson form this Grammy nominated southern rock/blues band. The group garnered national attention as the house band for several episodes of Last Call with Carson Daly, as well as appearing on Late Night with Conan O’Brien. As sons of Memphis musician Jim Dickinson, the two have been immersed in music for their entire lives. High-quality, hand-made products Available at Bottega in downtown hickory shellessentials@gmail.com 828-962-3077
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Aaron Burdett Alberti Flea Circus Andrew Collins Trio Andy May Ari Eisinger Ashley Heath & Her Heathens B Townes Balsam Range with Atlanta Pops Orchestra Ensemble Banknotes Bill Mathis Bob Hill Bryan Sutton Brynmor Cane Mill Road Cardboard Fox Carol Rifkin, Jeanette Queen, Mark Queen Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer Charles Welch Cicada Rhythm Clinton Ross David Holt David Holt and Josh Goforth Dead Horses Donna & the Buffalo Doolin Erin Harpe Fireside Collective Flatland Harmony Experiment Flattop Frank Solivan and Dirty Kitchen Gunner and Smith Hannah Shira Naiman Happy Traum Horsemen Let’s Ride Hubby Jenkins Hummingbird Crossing Jack Lawrence Jamey Johnson Jayme Stone’s Folklife Jeanette Williams Band Jeff Little Trio Jeffrey Foucault Jim Lauderdale Jody Carroll Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers Joe Smothers Junior Appalachian Musicians Band Ken Crouse Laura Boosinger & the Midnight Plowboys Lauren and Lane Lillian Chase Lindsay Lou Lori King and Junction 63 Mark Bumgarner
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Mike Aiken Band Mission Temple Fireworks Revival Mitch Greenhill My Bubba Nu-Blu Pete & Joan Wernick Peter Rowan Piper Jones Rhiannon Giddens Richard Ray Farrell Richie & Rosie Rob Ickes & Trey Hensley Robert Earl Keen Robin & Linda Williams Rodney Crowell Rosie & the Riveters Roy Book Binder Sarah Jane Scouten Savannah Smith & Southern Soul Scythian Shinyribs Sideline Smitty & the JumpStarters Steve & Ruth Smith String Madness Susana & Timmy Abell T Michael Coleman & Imagine Possums Ted Olson Tennessee Jed Fisher Terry Baucom’s Dukes of Drive The Barefoot Movement The BattleAxe Band The Devil Makes Three The East Pointers The Hackwells The InterACTive Theatre of Jef The Kruger Brothers H Lang Sisters The Local Boys The Lonely Heartstring Band The Mastersons The Midatlantic The New River Drifters The Note Ropers The Way Down Wanderers The Waybacks The Whitewater Bluegrass Company The Wildmans Tony Williamson Band Town Mountain Unspoken Tradition Wayland Wayne Henderson Wesley Bright & the Honeytones
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104 Over the years minor league baseball has developed a niche in the sports industry as boasting some of the most unique promotional schedules in the industry. Teams such as the Hickory Crawdads host 70 games from April through Labor Day Weekend and have to come up with a promotional lineup that will get fans of all ages out to the stadium each game. From the end of the season to the ‘Dads return to L.P. Frans Stadium, the front office has 220 days to plan themes, promotions, and giveaways for every game. Each year, the Crawdads include a mix of promotions with some twists every year on annual events such as Girl and Boy Scout nights, and Christmas in July while also throwing in timely or never before done promotions like Grease’s 40th anniversary or Purr in the Park, which are both on the calendar for 2018. For the first time in team history, the Crawdads will be adopting a new identity for a three game span. On Mother’s Day weekend (May 11th-13th) the team will rebrand as the Crawmoms. Players will wear Crawmoms hats and jerseys for the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday games. Friday’s game will kick off the weekend long celebration of moms and conclude with a fireworks show. Saturday will feature a pink replica jersey giveaway to the first 1,000 fans. The weekend will wrap up on Mother’s Day with a carnation giveaway, a Pink Heals Fire Truck on display, and first pitches from cancer survivors. Merchandise featuring the Crawmoms specialty logos will be available for purchase. A top draw on the calendar every year for the Crawdads is the Christian Concert that takes place in late summer. This year, Sidewalk Prophets will come to town on July 21st. The group has released five albums, with their biggest song, “You Love Me Anyway,” reaching number 1 on the Billboard Christian Single chart. They will be playing on the field following the conclusion of the Crawdads game. The event has become so popular over the years that a second Christian Concert was added earlier in the summer. Fresh off Toby Mac’s HITS DEEP TOUR, Finding Favour will be playing at L.P. Frans Stadium on April 28th. Another top annual promotion for the Crawdads is their Independence Day Celebration game. As they do not have a home game on July 4th, they will be celebrating a day early this year with a 7pm game. The night will be patriotic themed with costumed staff members and special on-field promotions and video board graphics before concluding with a fireworks show. The game will also feature patriotic jerseys that will be worn several times during the season including Memorial Day and Labor Day. The jerseys will be auctioned off on Labor Day. ZOOperstars, the fan-favorite inflatable mascot group featuring characters such as Harry Canary and Tim Tebull, will be returning to Hickory this year for two games. Their first appearance at the Frans will be on Saturday, May 26th as the ‘Dads celebrate Memorial Day weekend. They will return later in the summer on Saturday, August 25th. Throughout the games, the ZOOperstars will be participating in on-field promotions and engaging with fans and players. In addition to unique promotions and concerts, the Crawdads also have Daily Promotions, offering fans specials based on the day of the week. The week kicks off with Make a Difference Monday. Each week highlights a different local charity that asks for requested items. Fans who bring those items get a free ticket to the game. Dollar Dog Tuesdays are all about the dogs. Hot dogs are only $1 while craft pints and Pepsi products are $2. On Tuesdays fans are also encouraged to bring their dogs to the stadium to enter in the weekly dog show. Every Wednesday night game kids 12 and under receive a free ticket, free meal voucher, and free bounce house, speed pitch and carousel voucher. The ballpark classic Thirsty Thursday features discounted Pepsi products and beer. Following each Thirsty Thursday game, fans can stick around for a post-game band on the concourse. One of the most popular daily promotions is Fireworks Friday, with a fireworks show following all 10 Friday home games this year. Super Saturday features post-game concerts (Sidewalk Prophets and Finding Favour in 2018), celebrity appearances, and giveaways. After the game, fans can meet some of their favorite Crawdads in a post-game autograph session. On Sundays, anyone who brings a church bulletin to the ticket office will get a discounted $6 ticket. The Crawdads will then donate $4 of each ticket to the bulletin’s respective church. Following every Crawdads home game, kids can test their speed by running the bases. For more information on ‘Dads promotions or to order tickets call (828) 322-3000 or visit hickorycrawdads.com. Crawdads Baseball
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106 g ardening as T herapy Contributing author, Dr. Jessica Urzen, is the Medical Director of Inpatient Rehabilitation at Catawba Valley Medical Center and also serves outpatients at Catawba Valley Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. If you have been thinking about planting a garden, why not do it this spring? Spring is a great time to start a garden, and the health benefits can be as abundant as your harvest. Gardening is a rewarding experience that is also widely embraced as a therapeutic tool to help individuals of varying ability achieve a higher quality of life. Gardening therapy can be used as part of any comprehensive rehabilitative treatment program related to physical illness, injury, or cognitive impairment. Research shows that the benefits of gardening can include: -Improved physical functioning and motor skills -Enhanced memory and attention -Increased overall mental well-being and reduced stress, greater feelings of calm, relaxation and improved self esteem, a renewed sense of purpose, accomplishment, and responsibility -A coping tool for anxiety and frustration -Time for social interaction Enjoying the “Fruits” of Our Labor Not only do digging and weeding get you outside and moving, when you plant your own garden, you control what you grow. Whether you decide to grow fruits, vegetables, herbs or flowers, the bounty is all yours to keep or share. If you love fresh salads, a good place to start is by planting green leafy vegetables such as lettuce, cabbage, spinach, or kale. These hearty vegetables are easy to grow and have high levels of nutrients and fiber, which can decrease the risk of colon cancer and fill you up without the extra calories. Additionally, tomatoes are high in lycopene, which aids in disease prevention, and offers an excellent source of potassium, vitamins C and A, and fiber – a great heart-healthy combination. Tomatoes may also help reduce inflammation that can lead to a heart attack or stroke. Community Gardening If you don’t have space to garden at home, look into community gardening options in neighborhoods, nursing homes and assisted living facilities. The City of Hickory has two community gardens that offer residents a place to grow a garden of their own. Both Civitan Park, near Hampton Heights Golf Course, and Taft Broome Park, near the Ridgeview Recreation Center, have plots that can be rented by individuals or families where you can get to know other gardeners, share gardening tips, and exchange what you grow. The city tills the plots in the spring and fall and provides water so that you can grow whatever you like.
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107 Types of Gardens Healing Gardens A healing garden can include green plants, flowers, flowing water, and other aspects of nature. Often associated with hospitals and other healthcare settings, they are accessible to all and designed to provide therapeutic benefits by serv - ing as a retreat or place of respite for patients, visitors and staff. Horticultural Therapy Gardens Designed to be used as a component of an occupational, physical, or recreation therapy treatment program, a thera- peutic garden can be incorporated into rehabilitation treatment plans to achieve specific treatment goals. Enabling Gardens An enabling garden is designed for older gardeners and those with physical disabilities. These gardens often have raised beds, containers, and smooth firm pathways to accommodate for wheelchairs and other assistive equipment. Restorative Meditation Gardens This type of garden employs the restorative value of nature to provide an environment conducive to mental repose, stress reduction, emotional recovery, and the enhancement of mental and physical energy. The design of a restorative garden focuses on the psychological, physical, and social needs of the gardener.
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108 Resolutions By Ryan Gant 2018... A fresh start...A do over... A new beginning... 2018 is going to be your year! New Year, New You! The latest resolutions are probably filling your thoughts as you begin to read. Have you stayed true to them? We’ll see. When making a resolution to get in or back into shape, I want you to think about starting from the ground up. Start by giving yourself a gut check. Think about the THING that has held you back in the past; the THING that has made you quit; the THING that makes you fall back into the same routine over, and over, and over again. “Why do I continue to do this to myself?” Each person has one. CONFRONT it. Have an honest, heartfelt conversation with yourself. Make a plan, and determine what is most important in your life. This is your resolution, no one else’s. It was made for a reason. Eliminate the outside influences that continue to force you backwards. Become disciplined. Becoming disciplined is no easy feat. You may ask, where does discipline come from? This answer is simple. Discipline comes from WITHIN. It is an internal force. Self discipline comes when you break down and make the decision to DO more, to BE more than you have in the past. Finally you are willing to leave YOUR mark on the world. Isn’t that what we all crave; become the ruler of our own lives, forge our own path, have others look up to us? 75% of my job as a personal trainer is to help bring out your passion for life, and help hold you accountable to your goals. Sometimes it will be HARD; almost inevitably UNCOMFORTABLE. In those times, just remember why you started. Embrace it. Create relationships with those who have walked this walk. Working out and making healthy choices will reset your compass, and liberate you from the shackles of your past. In the end you will see what you are truly capable of. It will set you FREE. So, in 2018, set a goal. Write it down. Post it on the ceiling of your bedroom. Literally, post it on the ceiling of your bedroom. When you wake up in the morning it should be the first thing you see. A constant reminder. Have short and long term goals that aid in reaching your main goal. You’ve heard all of that before, so I wont beat a dead horse. Conquer the THING. Become DISCIPLINED. Leave YOUR mark.
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109 WWW.TIMBERCREEKMULCH.COM (704) 997-9393
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110 A c ouple of years ago, while driv ing to Winston- Salem, I was listening to NPR and kept hearing the t e r m , l a m e d u c k p re s i d e n t . T h i s w a s b a c k w h e n President Obama had announc e d Merrick G arland as the prop os e d replac ement for Anthony Scalia on the Supreme Court. What I found interesting was t h at t e r m b e i n g u s e d o ve r a n d o ve r a g a i n — l a m e d u c k p r e s i d e n t — a n d a l t h o u g h y o u ’ ve p r o b ab l y h e a r d b e fo re , I h a d n’ t re a l l y e ve r p a i d at t e n t i o n to it in the s etting of p olitics. L a m e d u c k p re s i d e n t i s a t e r m fo r, “a n e l e c t e d official or group c ontinuing to hold p olitical offic e d u r i n g t h e p e r i o d b e t w e e n t h e e l e c t i o n a n d t h e i n a u g u rat i o n o f a s u c c e s s o r.” I t i m p l i e s , t h e h a r d work is already b ehind the president and now he’s just ke eping the s eat of offic e warm until the next president is ele cte d. Anyone that has held offic e of POTUS has surely had hard work in their presidency. For Mr. Obama, who then only had 9 months remaining in his term as president, he’d done the hard work; riding out thos e final months would s e em to b e just smo oth sailing from here on out. I think if we’re honest, this can b e a little how we f e e l ab o ut t h e S u n d ay a f t e r E a s t e r. T h e S u n d ay a f t e r E a s t e r i s l i ke i t s s i s t e r S u n d ay, t h e S u n d ay following Christmas— a little less exciting, a little less c elebratory. Christmas and Easter are power-house Sundays. We all gear up for the main event on those Sundays. Truthfully if, for whatever reason, you found yourself only being able to attend church on those two Sundays, they are the best ones to attend. You will hear church music at its best—singers and musicians have been busy practicing anthems and songs; you will see more flowers in our worship spaces; the pews and rows of chairs are stuffed a little tighter on these two Sundays; and you will hear the good news that the God of the universe is intimately tied up in this thing we call life. The grand story that began in Advent has now culminated on Easter. By the time you get to the Sunday after Easter you’ve seen Christ passionately engage being human; grieving over sick friends, rejoicing over children. He surely knew the pain of a close friend’s betrayal and the feeling loneliness and defeat. But he also knew the elation of victory won, he fed hungry hearts, and surely his bracket always included a North Carolina ACC team in the Final Four. Jesus not only confronted the religiosity of his own Judaism, but also challenged the most powerful government of his day; the Roman government. Christ redefines the very the power structure of the world,and after dying a criminal’s cruel death he shows in his resurrection that the power of sin and death are no more; and THAT is THE definitive word displaying God’s un-surpassing love. But after Easter, all of that is b ehind us, right? T h e S u n d ay a f t e r E a s t e r yo u m ay f i n d a l e s s f u l l s a n c t u a r y t h a n l a s t w e e k , ; t h e c o n g re g at i o n a n d w o r s h i p l e a d e r s , t r y i n g t o mu s t e r a s mu c h j o y LAME DUCK SAVIOR? Heather Wood Davis and enthusiasm for the ris en Lord in the wake of t h e “ S u n d ay a f t e r ”. T h e h a r d w o r k o f J e s u s ’ l i f e , d e at h a n d re s u r re c t i o n i s o ve r. S o t h i s m a ke s m e a s k t h e qu e s t i o n , d o w e f e e l l i ke w e h ave a l a m e duck Sav ior? What more is there to say when the hard work has b e en done? I s t h e S u n d ay a f t e r E a s t e r a l a m e d u c k S u n d ay ? Are we just warming the s eats of thes e p ews until w e c a n f i l l t h e m a l l a g a i n n e x t E a s t e r o r e ve n wors e are we just warming the s eats s o s elf assure d that we have nothing more to do b e caus e we are already “save d”? I don’t ne e d to tell you that the hard work of Easter is far from done. D e f e at i n g d e at h a n d s i n w a s t h e d e f i n i t i ve w o r k that Christ ac c omplishe d but I wonder if it is just as hard for the Lord to stand back and watch as we struggle to rememb er that we are Easter p e ople 365 days a year, not just 1. Just to remind us that this isn’t a lame duck Sunday, there is a vers e in John’s gosp el, a story where we f i n d t h e c a l l fo r t h e re a l w o r k o f E a s t e r — a s t h e Father has s ent me, s o I s end you. (John 20:21) No, the work of Easter is anything but done. Yes E a s t e r, o ve r 2 0 0 0 ye a r s a g o h a d t h e f i n a l s ay o n s i n a n d d e at h , b ut t h e R E A L w o r k o f E a s t e r, t h e mandate that c omes from Christ on the very day he ros e, is that just as he was s ent, we are s ent; s ent out to pro claim the go o d news that the kingdom of Go d is at hand in the ris en Lord. And sp eakin g o f E aster wo rk, do yo u k now what t h e f i r s t t h i n g J e s u s d o e s a f t e r h i s re s u r re c t i o n ? A nyo n e k n o w w h at t h e s av i o r o f t h e w o r l d d i d a f t e r b re at h i n g g l o r i o u s m o r n i n g a i r i n t o t h o s e resurre cte d lungs? You might b e thinking, well he do es an app earing act for the dis ciples. Or he breathes on them. Well go back, even b efore that. What is the first things he do es? He app ears to the women, he talks to them Go back even b efore that! You know what Jesus do es? He do es laundry. Laundry! Dav id Hens on writes, “ T h e f i r s t t h i n g [ J e s u s ] d o e s i s t o fo l d u p t h e s h ro u d n e at l y a n d t o t a ke c a re w i t h h i s l i n e n grave clothes… Amid the c onfusion and fear, and mayb e a touch of elate d hop e, there is the laundry, neatly folde d in the tomb. Hens on writes, “I mean, who do es that? The first thing Jesus do es when he c o m e s b a c k i s t h e l a u n d r y ? H e fo l d s c l o t h e s ? ! I t ’ s e n o u g h t o m a ke my w h o l e h e a r t w a r m w i t h h i s p re s e n c e l i ke a l o a d o f w h i t e s s t ra i g h t f ro m t h e d r y e r. I t ’ s e n o u g h t o m a ke m e b e l i e ve i n t h e
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111 glorious weirdness of resurre ction.” Y o u k n o w, a s s o m e o n e w h o d o e s l a u n d r y, I l o ve that image. The first thing Jesus did was laundry. I t i s s o s i m p l e i t i s a l m o s t r i d i c u l o u s . A l m o s t a s r i d i c u l o u s a s c o n t i n u i n g t o p r o c l a i m t h e re s u r re c t i o n a f t e r i t h a s h a p p e n e d , t h e S u n d ay after, the 2,000 + years of Sundays after. A l m o s t a s r i d i c u l o u s a s c o m i n g b a c k , a g a i n a n d a g a i n , t o o u r p l a c e s o f f e l l o w s h i p t o h e a r t h e s t o r i e s w e ’ ve h e a r d m a ny t i m e s b e fo re — o r e ve n more profound—p erhaps s ome one will c ome for the first time, Sunday after and hear the stories for the first time. And that makes it Easter all over again. To t h i n k t h at t h e Lo r d o f t h e u n i ve r s e , t h e o n e w h o d e f e at s s i n a n d d e at h t a ke s t h e t i m e t o d o s o m e t h i n g s o m e n i a l i s p re t t y a m a z i n g . A n d i f you are like me you’d never even thought ab out it b efore. You’d never even notic e d the resurre ction in the stuff we do every we ek, or every day. But t h e re a l l y w o n d e r f u l t h i n g i s t h i s i nv i t e s u s t o e x p e r i e n c e t h e i n c re d i b l e g o o d n e w s o f a r i s e n Lord not only the sho ck and awe of the empty tomb on Easter Sunday, but we are invite d to exp erienc e the incre dible go o d news of a ris en Lord in the ho- hum days after. “…it’s almost as if Jesus is asking u s t o p ay at t e n t i o n t o t h e s l o w a n d t h e o r d i n a r y a s t h e p l a c e w h e re w e a re m o s t l i ke l y t o f i n d resurre ction, not in the he ctic busy-ness of trying to change and transform the world, our churches, and our lives.” W e a re l i ke l y t o f e e l g u i l t y ab o ut n o t b e i n g a s excite d ab out the resurre ction when it isn’t Easter S u n d ay. W e m ay t r y t o d e ny i t . W e m ay t r y t o patch it up and res olve that starting from here on out we WILL do b etter; We WILL talk up the resurre ction; we WILL have the eyes for it; we WILL b e Easter p e ople… and then Monday morning happ ens. W e l l h e r e ’ s t h e g o o d n e w s , e v e n w h e n t h at happ ens, the resurre ction will still app ear. Even when we fail, the hard work getting the b etter of us, Christ isn’t going to shame us into doing b etter. W h i c h a g a i n i s w h e re I J o h n’ s s t o r y o f t h e p o s t - resurre ction app ears of Jesus to the dis ciples has s omething to say to us (s e e John 20: 19-31). Jesus app ears to the dis ciples b ehind lo cke d do ors— do ors that are barre d out of fear. John tells us, the dis ciples are hiding b e caus e they fear the Jews, but I think they were fearful of one Jew in particular; Jesus. I m e a n w h at i f h e re a l l y w a s a l i ve ? W o u l d h e c ome lo oking for them? Would he hold a grudge? T h e i r j o b p e r fo r m a n c e o ve r t h e l a s t f e w d ays i n t h e a re a s o f l o y a l t y, t r u s t , a n d l o ve a l l g e t p o o r marks. I can’t say I blame the dis ciples for b eing s c a re d — e s p e c i a l l y i f t h e y w e re s c a re d o f m ay b e s e eing Jesus. But even in that fear, even in that failure, Christ a p p e a r s a m o n g t h e m , n o t c o n d e m n i n g ; n o t demanding p enanc e of s ome s ort; not asking for an explanation of their b ehav ior; not standing there waiting for a c onfession—none of that takes plac e. In a spac e that c ould have b e en volatile, Jesus do es what we do every day; he breathes. H e t a ke s t h at m o m e n t o f a n x i e t y w e f e e l a n d inhales de eply and exhales. Jesus breathes p eac e o n t h e m . B e fo r e t h e y e ve n h a ve a c h a n c e t o p ro c e s s w h o i t i s t h at s t a n d s b e fo re t h e m , J e s u s de clares, “Peac e b e with you.” G a n d h i w a s o n c e a s ke d , “ w h at ’ s t h e d i ff e re n c e b etwe en you and most Christians?” G andhi said, “ Well I think he meant it.” W h e n J e s u s s a i d , l o ve yo u r e n e m i e s , I t h i n k h e meant it. When he said, ‘Peac e b e with you’,I think he meant it. When he said forgive others, I think he meant it. This is not a Lame Duck Savior. The Sundays after E a s t e r a re n o t l a m e d u c k S u n d ays . W e a re n o t a c e l e b rat o r y p e o p l e o n j u s t o n e d ay, b ut w e a re Easter p e ople every day. And our task every morning that our fe et hit the flo or is to find the resurre ction in our world and tell ab out it. A n d e ve n w h e n w e f a i l t o d o s o , J e s u s w i l l s t i l l breath p eac e on us. D i d yo u e ve r s i n g a c a m p s o n g ab o ut t h e W i s hy Washy, Washer Woman? T h e s o n g s s t a r t s o ut , “ W a a a ay y y y d o w n i n t h e va l l e y w h e re n o b o d y g o e s , t h e w i s hy, w a s hy, washer woman washes her clothes.” Well, that’s how Jesus do es his laundry to o. Down i n t h e va l l e y w h e re n o b o d y g o e s ; d o w n i n t h e valley of your lo cke d do ors; down in the valley of your mundane laundry and hous e cleaning; down in the valley of our b etrayal and denial; down in the valley of our forgetting that the work of Easter is on-going; down in the valley where nob o dy go es. And the differenc e b etwe en Jesus and s ome other lame duck sav ior, a has b e en who is Easter’s news; the differenc e is that our Lord means it. As the Father has s ent me, s o I s end you. Peac e b e with you. h t t p : // w w w. m e r r i a m - w e b s t e r. c o m /d i c t i o n a r y/ l a m e % 2 0 duck h t t p : // w w w. p at h e o s . c o m / b l o g s /d av i d h e n s o n / 2 0 1 6 / 0 3 / t h e - s a c ra m e n t - o f - h o u s e w o r k - w h e n - t h e - r i s e n - l o r d - d i d - the-laundry/ ibid Sc ott Hoze e, http://c ep.calvins eminary.e du/s ermon- starters/easter-2c/ ?typ e=the_le ctionary_gosp el
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112 W ith the hustle and bustle of day to day life, sometimes it can be difficult to find ourselves in the present moment. It’s easy to think about what you were doing yesterday, or what you will be doing tomorrow. Tech- nology, with its many benefits, enables us to move seamless- ly through the past and future. Sometimes this prevents us from staying present and focused in our lives. Research shows that mindfulness, when used regular- ly, can help to alleviate anxiety, depression, and a whole host of other common mental health issues. Mindfulness helps us to be fully present in our body and helps keep us connected to the earth. Grounding is a helpful type of mindfulness, and one that you can put into practice anywhere you go. Grounding helps reori- ent you to the present moment. It requires no special equipment, recordings, or costly accesso- ries. All you need is your body and a little bit of willingness. It is recommended that you find a quiet room, have 5-10 minutes available, and sit in a comfortable seated position with your feet on the floor. Let’s begin with a simple ground- ing technique that is common across the literature. Place both feet flat on the floor Lean back into your chair, and make note of the feeling of the chair under you and against your back. Cross your ar ms over your chest. Gently tap your shoulders, alter- nating one side at a time. Alter natively, if you are in a pub- lic place such as a meeting or crowded waiting area, you can place your hands on your thighs, tapping one leg slowly at a time. Another common grounding ex- ercise addresses all five sens- es. “54321” is a common senso- ry awareness grounding exercise can be a helpful tool to relax or get through challenging moments of stress or anxiety. You can say these out loud or to yourself, whatever is most comfortable. GROUNDING Kelsey Crowe, MSW, LCSW, LCAS, CCS Describe 5 things you see in the room. Name 4 things you can feel (“the chair under my hands” or “my breath moving in and out”) Name 3 things you hear right now (“the air conditioner, traf- fic, people speaking”) Name 2 things you can smell or taste right now. If you can’t smell anything, cultivate the sense of two smells or tastes that you like. Name 1 positive quality about yourself
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113 Mindfulness is good for all ages! In chil- dren specifically, mindfulness has been found to reduce the effects of bully- ing (Zhou, Liu, Niu, Sun, & Fan, 2016), enhance focus in children with ADHD (Zhang et al., 2016), reduce attention problems (Crescentini, Capurso, Fur- lan, & Fabbro, 2016) and improve social skills when well taught and practiced in children and adolescents. The Body Scan is a technique that can benefit both children and adults! Have your child lie down on their back on a comfortable surface and close their eyes if they are comfortable doing so. The body scan can also work with eyes open. Next, tell them to squeeze every sin- gle muscle in their body as tight as they can. Tell them to squish their toes and feet, squeeze their hands into fists, and make their legs and ar ms as hard as rocks. Depending on the age of the child, you can guide them through re- laxing and tensing each muscle one at a time, or a younger child may do best tensing all the muscles at once. Adults will benefit from moving from the top of the head, through the toes in progres- sive muscle relaxation. After a few seconds, have them release all their muscles and relax for a few min- utes. Encourage them to take big deep breaths. Ask them how their body felt before and after the experience (Roman, 2015). Feel free to practice these techniques as often as you would like. Often times, after practicing these techniques dai- ly for several months, people begin to notice a difference in their overall feel- ings of anxiety, depression, and stress. Mindfulness skills can help you to move through your day with ease. Crescentini, C., Capurso, V., Furlan, S., & Fabbro, F. (2016). Mindfulness-oriented meditation for primary school children: Effects on attention and psycholog- ical well-being. Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 805. Roman, K. (2015, April 2). 7 fun ways to teach your kids mindfulness. Retrieved from www.mindbody- green.com Zhang, D., Chan, S. K. C., Lo, H. H. M., Chan, C. Y. H., Chan, J. C. Y., Ting, K. T., Gao, T. T., Lai, K. Y. C., Bögels, S. M., & Wong, S. Y. S. (2016). Mind- fulness-based intervention for Chinese children with ADHD and their parents: A pilot mixed-method study. Mindfulness, 8, 1-14. Zhou, Z., Liu, Q., Niu, G., Sun, X., & Fan, C. (2017). Bullying victimization and depression in Chinese children: A moderated mediation model of resil- ience and mindfulness. Personality and Individual Differences, 104, 137-142.
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114 DEAR DAVID, David Zealy-Wright is a Licensed Professional Counselor, a Licensed Clinical Addictions Specialist, and a Clinical Supervisor Intern. He graduated from Catawba Valley Community College in 2005 earning an Associate in Arts, Lenoir-Rhyne University in 2008 earning a BA in Psychology, and in 2010 an MA in Agency Counseling. His specialty areas include addiction, depression, anxiety, life changes, men’s issues, relationships, and LGBTQIA issues. Dear David, I am getting so depressed looking at social media lately. It seems like everybody is so negative and constantly complaining. I like using social media to keep up with old friends and family but I feel like I can only unfollow so many people. Sincerely, Bummed Browser Dear BB, I and most of our readers can likely empathize with you and I want to ask you something. What did you do before you had social media? If you have always had it let me encourage you to ask someone older than you. We know that genuine, in person exchanges offer far more than social media in the way of conversation and relationships. Social media has become a bit of an echo chamber in regards to various topics. More specifically we follow and repost the things we agree with and ignore or avoid the things we don’t. Real people and relationships both challenge and encourage us. Take some time away, it’s not going anywhere and there is lots of evidence to suggest it has similar impacts on the brain as certain addictive substances. You may find your mood increases with a break and you may also find extra time for people and things you enjoy you didn’t even realize you had. Sincerely, David Zealy-Wright MA, LPC, LCAS Dear David, I am a very detail oriented rule follower with a toddler. I am constantly worried with the impact of today’s world on their future. I want to do everything in my power to make sure that she grows up to have a good life and makes good choices. What are some suggestions on how I can help her avoid future mistakes? Sincerely, Worried Mom Dear WM The first thing I want to encourage you about is that YES parenting is super hard and very intimidating in today’s world. With the internet, school violence, and an unsteady sociopolitical environment most parents are worried about their children’s future lives. That said I would also tell you a parent’s number one job is to love and number two job is to teach. With my own four-year-old I often ask myself, what am I teaching with my decisions? In regards to mistakes, they will happen but your child will be able to figure them out, much like I’m sure you did. Trying to prevent a child from making mistakes or fixing them for them when they do only teaches them that they cannot handle adversity. So encourage your child to make mistakes while they are still in your home and focus on what they learn from them vs the fact they make them. Sincerely, David Zealy-Wright MA, LPC, LCAS
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115 EVENTFULLY YOURS, Eventfully Yours, My son is getting married in D.C. in July and we are hosting a rehearsal dinner. How can I be sure that I have followed all of the “rules” and covered the details for this special event? Rehearsal dinners are a wonderful opportunity to meet and greet with family from far and wide at the beginning of the wedding festivities. In many cases bridal party and family guests travel into town the day before the wedding to host and toast the couple prior to the larger reception held after the ceremony. This is an intimate event that is generally smaller in number and nature compared to the larger reception celebration. I feel that it is always nice to invite the bridal party and their significant others, parents of the bride and groom, grandparents of the bride and groom, any specific close family guests, as well as the pastor for the service and their significant other to the rehearsal dinner. It is often custom to extend an invitation to the musicians, readers and others that are performing during the ceremony as they are many times part of the actual ceremony rehearsal. You possibly could have a large family and friends group that you would like to welcome or meet prior to the ceremony date but you cannot find space to invite them to the rehearsal dinner. I think this is a wonderful opportunity to host a smaller meet and greet at the hotel early on the rehearsal day or even possibly to host a small cocktail social after the rehearsal dinner. Your guests will feel welcomed and ready to celebrate the wedding with you. The rehearsal dinner theme can range from being a very simple family BBQ to a more elaborate plated dinner. I feel that it is always good to deviate from what is happening and the reception. If the reception is a casual cocktail hors d’oeu- vres party you may choose to have a seated plated dinner or vice versa. Table and room décor are generally more understated than the reception as well. You should hope to create a lovely event that does not overshadow the wedding day events. Eventfully yours, Tara B Tara H. Bland is owner and event specialist of Tara B’s Eventful Planning and It’s My Party Rentals. Tara has planned and directed weddings and events for the past 18 years in the Foothills of North Carolina.
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116 foothills astrologer Astrology is the study of the relationship between the location of celestial bodies and life on earth. It’s incredibly complex, but most of what you see in magazines and newspapers is predominantly fluff. Astrology looks at the placement of the planets at a person’s birth, and also the current or future placement of planets. Typical reports like these would include a simple paragraph for each of the 12 signs-there isn’t enough room to provide helpful information in that format. Instead, I’ll explain only the current placements. What you read will be felt by everyone, so your sign doesn’t matter here. For info about your natal chart, or for custom horoscopes, email foothillsastrologer@gmail.com. foothills astrologer Most people these days can tell you their “sign”. When someone tells you they are a Virgo, they mean that when they were born, the sun was in the section of the sky we call “Virgo”, which used to be near the constellation Virgo, but has wiggled over a bit in the last several thousand years. They probably don’t realize that’s what they mean. That’s just all they know about astrology, and they open up the astrology pages in magazines to read about the forecast for their sign for the next month. But the sun isn’t the only astrological body that matters. The moon, the other planets, our angles, and nodes all are very important to personalized readings and forecast. The placement of these bodies at our births, as well as at the current time, creates an extremely detailed forecast that is much more accurate than the paragraph description you normally read that’s meant to describe 1/12th of the population. But I don’t know when you were born, and I don’t want to water these pages down so much they are useless. So I’m going to go about this in a manner most magazine columns do not. Instead of bothering with your personal nativity (that’s the planetary placements at your birth), I will write about the current configurations. They are influencing everyone in the world, and have specific start times and energetic signatures. I feel that you will find this more useful than a quick summary for each sun sign. If you are looking for more detailed information, you can purchase a chart and interpretation by e-mailing me at: theastrologer@foothillsdigest.com.
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117 april 14: jupiter sextile pluto Jupiter, the planet of expansion, is making a favorable connection with Pluto, the planet of transformation. This is an excellent time to solve a stubborn problem or capitalize on something we missed before. april 15: mercury goes direct Even people who scoff at astrology have heard of the dreaded Mercury Retrograde. It’s over now, and communications should begin to flow in a more normal and expected manner. april 15: new moon in aries New moons are the time for starting fresh. And Aries is at the start of the zodiac- it is the definition of fresh. This is such a good time to begin new projects. Go at something with GUSTO and it will go beautifully. april 17: saturn turns retrograde Saturn is the planet of responsibility, and it can be heavy. When Saturn turns retrograde, we all begin to become much more aware of our responsibilities and limitations. The weight of responsibility we carry might feel much heavier than normal. As the retrograde progresses, these feelings let up and it becomes a lovely time to reassess careers and the important decisions of our life. Slowing down feels good. Extra responsibility will likely not feel good. april 17: chiron enters aries Chiron is entering Aries, which means it’s at the beginning of the zodiac. Chiron is about our wounds, and this transit will ask us all to examine the wounds to our self-image. If we don’t fight against this cathartic energy, we will learn to put ourselves forward without fear or hesitancy. This is a long, slow ride for Chiron, so work on embracing and confronting wounds to your identity. april 19: sun enters taurus Taurus is loyal and stubborn. When the sun is here, we are more sensual and methodical. We are likely to be more active during this time when we are defending something we care a good deal about. april 22: pluto turns retrograde Any time a planet is retrograde, its energy is turned inward. Pluto retrograde forces us to examine that in us which is bursting for a transformation. We will all be turning our attention on ourselves, examining the good, the bad and the ugly. It’s best if we all acknowledge the need for transformation, and spend our energy doing it properly, instead of allowing ourselves to hide from the need. Pluto can feel quite dark, and this transit may feel like taking a hard and dark look at your own inner workings and motivations. Pluto moves slowly, so you can look to what house Pluto is located in for you right now, and that will help you understand which part of your life this will be playing out in. april 24: venus enters gemini Curiosity, variety, sociability and communication are key words here. Venus is the planet of love and our softer side, so our love style and our feminine selves will exemplify these words. Watch out for fickleness. april 29: full moon in scorpio Paired with the retrograde Pluto, this one is a doozy. This full moon, which is always a time of reaping, is demanding of us
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118 January 15 unrelenting honesty. Scorpio is sharp, and it doesn’t take no for an answer. Scorpio never stops pushing us, demanding that we listen. During this full moon, take an honest stock of yourself. It’s an important step to knowing our true selves. We may find that this analysis allows us to let go of fears that have been chasing us for years. may 13: mercury enters taurus Mercury represents our communication. Taurus is practical. This transit will bring our communication right down to earth. Our thoughts and communications will be more solid and grounded. This isn’t a time for fanciful daydreams, but of looking at reality and letting it ground us. Attention to details is high, so it’s a great time to nail down the details of projects. But we may lean into more rigid thinking during this time and we need to be aware of that. may 15: new moon in taurus This new moon is about realizing your value. New moons are times to manifest...what do you want? You have value. Again. You have value. Trust that and try to hang on to it. may 15: uranus enters taurus Uranus represents our rebellious nature and our need for chance. And Taurus is very grounding and stabilizing, and deals with our beliefs and our finances. This is slow transit, but we will all be pulled to examine these areas of our lives and see where the change needs to happen. Imposed values may fall away. may 15: mars enters aquarius Mars is passion. Aquarius is visionary and unsteady. This is a time of hit or miss methods. Of vacillating energy levels. Big ups and big downs. Hold on for the ride. Follow your passions. They will lead the way. may 19: venus enters cancer In matters of love, this is a time of extreme sensitivity. Softness, gentle love and familial bonds reign supreme. We will be devoted and more cuddly than normal. may 20: sun enters gemini Schedule a party! Everyone is more sociable when the sun is in Gemini. People will be curious and communicative. Open- mindedness will abound. may 25: jupiter trine neptune The world will be very idealistic now. It’s a great time to make connections with people of different backgrounds. Jupiter represents expansion and Neptune represents our intuition...when they blend together, it’s a beautiful time with a lot of potential. may 29: full moon in sagittarius Full moons are times of reaping, and this one is square Pluto. That means it will be tugging on your need for self transformation. It’s trining North Node, meaning that it should be easier for everyone to make positive progress towards their own personal karmic goals. The energy of the day, according to Sabian Symbols, is ”A mother leads her small child step by step up a steep stairway.” It’s a good idea to think about how that sentence could apply to your emotional life and karmic goals. If change is needed in your life, this is a good time to go for it.
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119 Salt Therapy Benefits: Asthma Allergies Acne Bronchitis COPD Cystic Fibrosis Cystic Fibrosis Eczema Ear Infections Psoriasis Snoring and more 2221 N. Center St. #3 Hickory NC 28601 828-855-9980 salinity.net Order custom sky map art to commemorate a special moment, a birthday or an anniversary. Freeze the planets in time and add style and a burst of color to your living space. Available in several styles and finishes. CustomSkyMap@gmail.com to start an order!
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120 We’ve all heard about Hillary Clinton and Emailgate. Unless they decide to enter the witness protection program, the Clintons and controversy go together, for good or ill, like peanut butter and jelly. But the most ardent Clinton Controversy trackers may not be aware of a situation that swept up the Foothills region and Henredon Furniture, located in Morganton, NC, when I was president and CEO in the early 90s. Let’s call it Sofagate. by Michael K. Dugan SOFAGATE By Michael K. Dugan
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121 The whole thing started in November 1992 when I received a phone call from Craig Shoemaker, the head at the time of Henredon’s Upholstery Division. The sound of his voice told me he was not exactly thrilled to be making this call. “Mike, what do you think about Henredon donating a sofa to be used in the White House?” “One of our sofas? In the White House?” I asked incredulously. T w o t h o u g h t s immediately came to mind. I recognized that it would be quite a coup both for Henredon and the Foothills region’s furniture manufacturing industry to have one of our pieces featured in the White House. But then I remembered the White House’s newly elected occupants, President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary. Craig’s reticent tone conveyed his distaste for the Clinton administration, which happened to be shared by many executives at the company. “I know what you’re thinking,” Craig offered. “But I’m really asking as a favor for Brad” - Brad Noe, our Vice President of Sales at the time – “who got the request from our dealer in Arkansas. We’ll get the fabric from one of our vendors, so our end of this won’t be much at all.” Politics aside, it seemed like an inconsequential request, and in the end it came down to a business decision. As Craig filled in more details behind the sofa request, I learned that the Clintons’ interior designer, Kaki Hockersmith, was renovating the private quarters of the White House at Hillary’s request. Kaki was a frequent Henredon user who worked closely with the aforementioned dealer in Arkansas, and by providing the sofa we would be accommodating both of them. More importantly, I saw how our employees might take pride in crafting this piece of furniture for the White House. So, after Craig and I spent a few more minutes discussing the Clintons and the president’s latest talk about raising taxes, I gave my approval and thought no more about it. The request was put in as a rush order. Once the fabric arrived, the sofa was summarily crafted, packed, and shipped to W a s h i n g t o n , D . C . T h e p a p e r w o r k s t a t e d t h a t it had been sold to White F u r n i t u re i n Little Rock at no charge and was designated for the “White House/Media Tour.” In December 1992, I received a “Dear Michael” letter from Hillary Rodham Clinton herself on “Office of the President-Elect” stationery. She thanked me “for the lovely gift and for thinking of me during this very special time.” She went on to say how she and Bill were “filled with hope and excitement as we begin our new responsibilities.” The following September, a special invitation came for Craig Shoemaker, Brad Noe and me to attend a reception at the White House with our wives in appreciation for the donation. By this time, President Clinton was pushing hard to raise taxes, especially for the well-to- do folks who buy Henredon, and for that reason the three of us wanted nothing to
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122 do with this event. However, our wives prevailed, so we agreed to go, just for the heck of it. At any rate, we figured it would be nice to visit Washington. Regardless of your political persuasion, the White House is very impressive. You cannot help but be captivated by its history. And the reception turned out to be quite a grand, if rather intimate, affair with roughly seventy-five guests in attendance. We were served top-shelf drinks and delicious hors d’oeuvres by white-coated attendants. When President Clinton and Hillary arrived on the scene, they deftly took charge of the room. Hillary spoke first, giving a short but eloquent speech in which she thanked her guests for their assistance in the White House restoration project. She then turned the floor over to her husband, our Chief of State. President Clinton p r o c e e d e d t o d e l i v e r a p e r f e c t l y w o n d e r f u l address, carefully tailored to his w e l l - h e e l e d audience. His remarks centered on the important role that home f u r n i s h i n g s play in our lives and how they influence our thoughts. He even went so far as to relay that he had been inspired by a particular desk while signing a peace treaty earlier that week. His comments and his radiance completely captivated the audience, including those of us on the opposite end of the political spectrum. When we formally introduced ourselves to the president and first lady in the receiving line, I pointed out to President Clinton that because both our mothers were Cassidys, he and I had a common Irish lineage to the Cassidy Clan in County Fermanagh. Once I made the connection to the Cassidy Clan, the vaunted Clinton charm kicked in, as he clearly relished talking about his Irish roots. And, I can attest to his ability to make a person feel as if there is no one else in the room. We were then given a special tour of the White House, which, besides such usual highlights as the Oval Office, included the family’s private quarters on the second floor. It was there we saw our beautiful Henredon sofa and felt tremendous pride in seeing our product’s prominent place in the official residence of the President of the United States. The décor overall was a bit flamboyant for my taste, with quasi-Victorian elements, bold patterns and strong colors, all of which s e e m e d t o d e m o n s t r a t e m o r e s e l f - c o n f i d e n c e that taste. W e r e t h e C l i n t o n s happy with our sofa? It appears they were, for when it came time eight years later for them to move out of the White House, they chose to take it with them to their new residence in Chappaqua, New York. Hillary had just been elected senator of New York, and once sworn in to office she would no longer be able to accept gifts, so she and Bill hurriedly declared a list of items given to them personally over the course of his two terms. On, Monday, February 5, 2001 the
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123 Washington Post published the list of gifts under the headline “Who Said You Can’t Take It With You?” Immediately following “Jack Nicholson, Beverly Hills, Calif. $350. Golf Driver,” I noticed the entry “Brad Noe, High Point, N.C. $2843. Sofa.” Scanning the list, I was struck by how our Henredon sofa had joined such illustrious celebrity names as Stephen Spielberg, Kate Capshaw, Mary Steenburgen, Ted Danson, Sylvester Stallone and Ken Burns. Little did I know that this itemized list of $190,027 worth of gifts would trigger a firestorm of outrage that would ultimately sweep up yours truly and Henredon in its path. On the day the gift list was reported, I had a very full schedule and planned to fly to Miami in the afternoon. My typical routine was interrupted mid-morning, however, when my assistant announced that she had MSNBC on the line. The caller was an earnest-sounding young woman who said the network wanted to interview me for The Brian Williams Show. “Interview me about what?” I asked. “It’s something to do with the sofa you gave the Clintons,” she replied. Needing time to sort out the appropriate response, I promised I would get back to her. I mainly wanted to make sure I was able to answer the network’s questions without attracting any negative publicity for Henredon. Before I had the chance to gather my thoughts, though, a call came in from another producer, this time from the NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw. I was truly at a loss to see how this was a newsworthy event. I realized how quickly the story was moving when I received my third call from yet another MSNBC producer. I figured now was an appropriate time to seek expert counsel, so I contacted Cliff Oxford, our in-house public relations expert. Cliff advised me to steer the middle ground, given the probability that our customers were evenly split between Republicans and Democrats. Then in true bipartisan spirit, Cliff came up with a neat suggestion that might defuse the whole situation: “Offer to make a sofa for the Bushes.” In addition to the media inquiries that continued to pour into my office, including a call from the New York Daily News and two follow-up calls from the TV networks, I also received calls from Betty White, our Henredon rep in Arkansas, and Kaki Hockersmith. The purpose of their calls, in contrast to the press, was to extinguish this media firestorm that threatened to burn out of control. Both women did their level best to persuade me that the sofa had always been intended for the Clintons and that, of course, they should be able to take it with them. According to Kaki, all I needed to do to make everything right was to send a fax to Mr. Clinton’s New York office stating our original intent. “Otherwise, it will just end up in a government warehouse and be of no use to anyone,” Kaki pointed out. “Just send the fax before 2:00 PM and then he can make reference to it in his press conference today.” The prospect of being quoted in a Clinton press conference did not strike me as the best way for Henredon either to maintain a low profile or steer the middle ground, so I told her I’d think about it. By now, I was increasingly nervous and unsure of how I would response to the media. On the one hand, I knew that trashing the Clintons, while tempting, was hardly warranted, and yet going on the record as openly supporting them in their looting of the White House struck me as imprudent. Since refusing comment was not an option, I decided that telling the truth was the best and safest way to go.- First, I called Tom Brokaw’s producer. “Look,” I offered by way of explanation, “this is just not that big of a deal. The request for the sofa came from our
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124 dealer in Arkansas, who simply asked if we would be willing to make a sofa for use in the redecorated private quarters of the White House. We agreed as an accommodation to our dealer as much as anyone. We were flattered that the Clintons chose our product in the first place. We are flattered they have chosen to take it with them to New York. But it’s not our call to decide whether they are entitled to it or not. More importantly, I’m worried about President and Mrs. Bush. What are they sitting on?” “I assume they brought their own sofa from Texas,” the producer replied. “Well, we’d be honored to build one for them as well.” “But, Mr. Dugan, surely you must be upset that the Clintons just took the sofa with them?” Biting my tongue, I replied, “That’s not for me to say.” “Why not?” she fired back. “What was your understanding when you made the sofa? Did you make it for the Clintons or the White House?” “I really did not give the matter that much thought,” I answered. “As I said, we were honoring our dealer’s request.” Then a thought occurred to me. “I will say this. I have a Henredon sofa in my office. It has been provided by the company. If I leave, I would not think I was entitled to take it with me.” At the sound of the producer’s furious typing, I immediately began to worry I had just furnished her with ammunition to be used against the Clintons. Even worse, the round might ricochet back on Henredon. “Thank you,” the producer said. “Let me discuss this with my executive producer. In the meantime, we’ve made arrangements to meet your flight in Miami to tape the interview.” As I was boarding the plane for Miami in Charlotte, I took another call from Bob Porte of the Daily News, who asked me to confirm a statement by Brad Noe. Apparently, Brad had not received Cliff’s “steer the middle ground” advice and had told the reporter in no uncertain terms that the sofa had been intended for the White House restoration project and not the Clintons personally. It turns out I was not the only one at the company the press had contacted, and our stories were not in sync - a public relations disaster in the making. By the time my plane landed in Miami, I felt myself more and more in the hot seat. Sure enough, a uniformed driver met me and whisked me away to the NBC affiliate station in his S Class Mercedes Benz. I was really conflicted about what to do. Should I support Brad’s contention that the Clintons had no right to the sofa? After all, he was much closer to the actual transaction than I was. Or should I modify my original statement to say that since we knew it was for the private quarters of the White House, Henredon’s assumption was that the sofa belonged to none other than the Clintons? As I waited at the studio, the producer called to apologize for not being there to meet me. It was an unusually big news night with a workplace shooting rampage in Illinois, and they had decided to cancel my segment. Whew! I admit to feeling a bit disappointed that my 15 seconds of fame had ended before they started, but I was greatly relieved that I did not have to process my conflicted feelings on national television. In thinking back on the day’s conversations with producers and reporters, the media’s angle became clearer to me. Apparently they already had someone to espouse my “middle ground” position, and they were hoping I might take up the contrary position. How typical of the media, I thought to myself, whipping up controversy by presenting two opposing views and pretending to
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125 be objective. With the cancellation of the NBC interview, I assumed the ordeal was over. But when I checked the news the following morning, I saw to my dismay that the story had only magnified in intensity. The Daily News had found their “contrary” source, and it was none other than my colleague, Brad Noe. The paper reported that due to the furor over the gifts, the Clintons had decided to return some of the furniture to the White House. All this might have blown over if the article had merely quoted Brad as saying, “It was a corporate gift to the refurbishment of the White House. The gift was to the White House restoration project.” But unfortunately he went on to say that he was greatly offended to be individually n a m e d o n the Clinton’s personal gift list that the Wa s h i n g t o n P o s t h a d printed. “I would never give a gift to the Clintons,” Brad had defiantly declared. Media blood was in the water, and sure enough, I received a call later that morning from the MSNBC producer who now wanted to set up a televised interview in Charlotte upon my return. Carefully and patiently, I repeated my well-practiced rationale as to why I felt the matter was not newsworthy. I could tell this was not what she wanted to hear, and she said she would call me back, which she did within the hour. “Mr. Dugan, we’re really sorry, but we have decided not to record your interview.” “Really?” I said. “Why not?” “Well, Mr. Dugan, we are looking for someone who is a bit more upset with the Clintons about this. And you…how shall I put this? You just aren’t pissed off enough.” I thanked her for her candor and we said our goodbyes. Once again, the media had a preconceived angle they wanted to pursue, and unless the factual story fit their angle, it was of no use to them. Eventually, “Sofagate” got caught up in larger issues. The Clintons continued to generate still more controversy with the subsequent announcement o f B i l l ’ s e x p e n s i v e M a n h a t t a n office, Hillary’s c h i n a a n d silverware haul, and the Marc Rich pardon. On Wednesday, the Daily News ran another story that once again pitted Brad Noe and me against each other. The article described Brad as “disgruntled” and quoted me as saying, “The issue as to whether it was for the Clintons or the White House didn’t occur to us back then.” At least they included my quote that Henredon would “be happy to make a sofa for President and Mrs. Bush.” By Thursday of that week, the sofa was forgotten - or so we thought. While driving home from High Point, my assistant informed me that a reporter from the New York Times had called. Yikes, just when I thought I was out, they kept pulling me back in! I returned the call to a John Leland who
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126 asked me to relate what happened. Leland seemed savvier than the other news people I had spoken with, so I felt comfortable in straightening him out, feeling quite sure I could convince him that this story in particular was one not fit to print. He informed me that the Clintons had, indeed, decided to return the sofa and certain other items “because the White House Ushers Office could not determine whether or not the gifts were the Clintons’ personal property or belonged to the permanent White House collection.” I replied by saying, “Well, that’s a shame. It would have been okay with us if they had kept it.” As we concluded our conversation, he began to ask about Brad Noe’s role in the company, and I eventually realized that this reporter, too, was looking for a quote to fit a certain angle. Nevertheless, I was satisfied that I had done my part in killing the story for good. But later that evening, I got a call from Craig Shoemaker telling me that Leland had contacted him in an attempt to uncover “trouble” between Brad and me. So much for “straightening out” the New York Times. The media really are incorrigible! That Friday the papers reported that the Clintons had returned the sofa along with $25,000 of other “gifts.” By now the sofa had traveled from North Carolina to the White House to New York and now back to the White House. If only it could tell us stories about its journey! According to the Daily News, “The gifts returned by the Clintons have been stashed in a secret government warehouse to sit in dust- controlled silence amid the discarded relics of 43 presidents.” Nevertheless, some people were not willing to let “Sofagate” die a peaceful death. With the tenacity that top- notch designers often exhibit for their important clients, Kaki Hockersmith made another valiant attempt to reclaim the sofa for the Clintons. She asked me yet again to consider sending a fax to the White House stating that the product had originally been intended for the Clintons. I respectfully declined. Two other loose ends remained, however. Was there a way for Henredon to retrieve the sofa from its warehouse purgatory, and could we get a new sofa into the hands of the Bushes? I called our dealer in Austin, Texas and asked if he had any connections with Mr. and Mrs. Bush. He told me that, as a matter of fact, he did, and it just so happened he was having dinner with the Bushes that very weekend. The dealer gladly relayed our offer to build them a new sofa. They got excited and s u g g e s t e d w e work through their interior designer, which, of course, we did. But this time, we clearly designated the Bushes as the recipient! As for the original sofa, its current whereabouts are unknown. Perhaps it still sits all alone in a dust-free government warehouse. Henredon may have ultimately been unsuccessful in getting it back, but that did not stop Kaki from calling us again, perhaps hoping the third time would be a charm, to ask if we “could please send a fax to the White House telling them
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127 the sofa was for the Clintons.” By this time, I had come across a copy of the March 1994 issue of House Beautiful that featured Hillary on the cover. The accompanying article had made it abundantly clear that the furniture had been intended for the White House restoration project and not the Clintons personally. “This is the president’s house,” Hillary even admitted herself, “and we have an obligation to care for it and to make sure it reflects well, not just on this president, but on this presidency and the country.” The story concluded with the statement that “the cost of the refurbishing was $396,429.46, and it came entirely from donations to the White House Historical Association.” Ye s , K a k i ’s re q u e s t d i d s e e m inconsequential. Then again, is anything inconsequential when it comes to the Clintons? For the last time, and without hesitation, I told Kaki “No.” Bio: Michael K. Dugan was president and CEO of Henredon Furniture for seventeen years. He is also the author of Furniture Wars, a book about the decline of the furniture manufacturing industry in the United States, particularly in North Carolina. *The opinions in this article reflect the thoughts and experiences of the author and should not be construed as political opinion by this magazine. Magical Music Ad You need to hire a professional, someone who has the experience to keep your party going so that you can enjoy each other. Magical Music DJ has over 30 years of experience in the entertainment industry and you can relax knowing that they will read your crowd, then keep them entertained. (828) 391-1388 facebook.com/MagicalMusicDJ/ This is the biggest party of your life. Our custom design will delight you and yours. Call us and let our design team create a space that makes you as happy as these little guys were! (828) 322-8011 St e elesdesign.com
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128 APPALACHIAN TAPESTRY C. Pleasants York “Until the day breathes and the shadows flee.” Song of Solomon 2 Verse 17 After she died I found her tapestry carpetbag with the cabbage roses on it – the tatting needles, the crochet hooks, the threads, the yarn, the tangled memories – that she touched with patient hands, hands moving like swift birds across the fabric of life as she sat on the divan and listened to the slow rhythm of WSJS-FM 1260 on the dial, sat with her leg under her like a contented nest hen, sorted wool, made rugs, crocheted, sewed dresses for me, did fancy work. In the carpetbag folded into a cardboard spool I found a doily – unfinished – thread dangling, needle attached. I had it framed – a fragment of forever. Do we ever finish life really?
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129 THE CORNSHUCK DOLL for Jessie May Pleasants Stearns Dora’s Daughter When the snows came the family was stranded on the mountain for weeks at a time, sequestered in the cabin with the smell of candle wax and wood smoke, drifting snow piled against the door and the wind moaning through the cracks. Icicles hung from the eves as Dora huddled in front of the fire, her brows wrinkled in concentration as she made the finishing touches on her corn shuck doll. A pile of corn silks and corn shucks littered the rag rug and spilled onto the wooden floorboards worn smooth by repeated sweepings. Her fingers were lined and sore from bending the wires to wrap tight the skirts, from fashioning the tiny sleeves gripped with tobacco twine. An apron of calico, a broom from straight twigs – Dora hummed as she worked, drawing the face with charcoal from the fire, then painting in a smile with berry juice from pokeberries she found on the mountain last fall. Dora held up the doll and viewed her critically. A slightly lopsided smile grinned back. Dora’s mother Mary Elizabeth always said, “If you don’t have barrels of happiness, you’ve just gotta make do with what you’ve got.” Dora looked again at the corn shuck doll, then gave her a hug. “Pleased to meet you, Miss Mamie Make-Do!” C. Pleasants York
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130 They were fighting again, their angry words echoing through the tiny cabin, bouncing off the log walls chinked with wadding and mud. Dora shifted uncomfortably, pulling the patchwork quilt around her to war m the night chill of the early spring in the Brushy Mountains. She moved quietly to keep the cor n shuck mattress from rustling. She didn’t want her parents to know she had heard. There was the scrape of chair to table and a sigh. “What’s this old mountain doin’ for us, KeyKey? Not a thing.” “But I thought you were happy, George. You used to be.” “Grubbing out a living ain’t my idea of happy. I didn’t think it was going to be this way. There’s jobs, KeyKey, jobs that pay down in W inston. I could work at Reynolds Tobacco Company. There’s plenty of jobs in the shipping room, sending out cartons all over the world.” Dora could hear his feet scraping as he paced up and down, up and down across the stone floor. “That means eating in restaurants and getting store-bought clothes. I could have me a good life down there and ear n good money.” There was a pause, then: “Hell, you could come with me and get Jessamin to keep the kids up here on Grandmother Mountain.” Another chair creaked and Dora heard her father’s voice faster, more pleading. “We could stay with Raven at his place for a year or two, you know, just while we’re getting started.” Her mother’s voice, soft but clear: “But we’re already started. We’ve been married eleven years come May. Have you forgotten? I don’t want our family spread out from here to yonder. I want Dora and W int and Ed to have a mother and a father all the time, not just when you feel like spending your nights here.” “Yeah, KeyKey, but I’m getting nowhere here. I got hopes and I got dreams and if I don’t go after them now, I guess I never will. I’m feeling trapped up here on this mountain, and hell, I just gotta go.” His fist hit the table, rocking the teacups. “I just been waiting for the spring thaw.” Dora heard the scrape of the chair, the click of the suitcase lock, the creak of the bedsprings in the other room, a muffled sob. For a few minutes there was silence in the cabin, and then there was a tiny quavering voice from the pallet near the fireplace. “Dora, why Daddy and Ma always fighting?” “Don’t you worry about it, W int. You get yourself some sleep.” She tur ned over and added, more to herself than to her four-year-old brother, “I’ll do all the worrying for both of us.” Rites of Spring By C. Pleasants York
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131 Dora thought about the ladies who here visiting at church a couple of weeks ago up at Fair Plains, cousins of Mint Dancy from down near Mocksville. They were flashy red heads, giggly and painted up, wearing cheap cotton dresses and carrying bags stitched with tiny black beads. And Dora had never seen shoes like Miss Ada’s before -- strips of colored leather and high heels that clattered when she walked down the church aisle. Trixie had tiny hat with feathers held on to her curls with a long jeweled pin. Was that how city ladies all looked, Dora wondered. She thought of her tiny mother with the blonde hair long enough to sit on, cascading down her back, the faded dresses, the aprons threadbare from wiping dish-wor n hands, crop-wor n hands crusted with dirt. Dora wished now she hadn’t been so rude to her mother after she came back from the church. “Why can’t we have clothes like that and pretty shoes? Seems like all I ever do around here is clean and work in the field and look after my brothers.” Dora’s voice had risen in irritation. “City girls my age get allowances and can buy clothes and they can drink sodas at the drugstore. Miss Ada and Miss Trixie told me. I was talking to them after the revival, and they told me we were silly to stay up here, growing our own food, snowed in every winter. There’s another life, and we’re missing it, just sitting up here on this mountain missing it!” Her mother reached into the stove and pulled out the pan of cor nbread, wiping the steam away with her hand. She said nothing. Dora wondered, too, about the embroidered handkerchief she found when she was putting away her daddy’s laundry. It was linen, crisp white with a bright red trim, the initial T in one cor ner. “Where do you suppose Daddy got this? And why,” she giggled, “would he keep it in his underwear drawer right there with his long underwear and union suits? Look. . .” She waved the handkerchief like a flag, but stopped mid-sentence when her mother grabbed it and threw it in the fire, standing for a long time with her back to Dora, watching the ashes and sparks drift up the chimney. Dora sighed and pulled the quilt up, trying to force her problems out of her mind. It’s all my fault, she told herself grimly. If I helped more with the boys, if I were nicer, Mama wouldn’t be so sad all the time. She and Daddy would be happy, like they were when I was little. She thought of the bar n raising over at Halls Mills with her daddy playing “Aura Lee” on the fiddle and her mother dancing on the table, her eyes wide and blue and young. Dora was just drifting off to sleep when it happened. She felt it and heard it at the same time – the impact of something heavy falling, landing, the rustle of the cor n shuck mattress, the pinprick of pain in the ar m. She screamed, tripped over the bedclothes, and stumbled into the darkness. She cowered on the bricks of the hearth, gasping.
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132 George appeared in the doorway, a candle in his hand. “What happened?” By then Dora was shivering in the cold gloom of night. “Something c-c-came from up there. Must have been on the rafters.” “Move out of the way.” He pushed her aside and peered cautiously under the bed. “Copperhead.” “Oh my God!” “Did it bite you?” “I think so.” George was gone for an instant and retur ned with a carved wooden walking stick. W ith one quick movement, he swept it under the bed. Dora saw a blur of movement and heard W int, his eyes wide with fear, whimper from his pallet. She grabbed her little brother and they cowered over in the cor ner, Dora covering his ears to deaden the sound of the crash – one, two. When she looked up again, her father was silhouetted in the doorway, huge in the flicker of the candle, his ar ms spread wide holding the snake. He tur ned and slammed it against the log wall like a bullwhip. Dora screamed and hid her eyes. She could hear Eddie wailing from his crib in the front room. Again, again. And then George picked up the limp snake, pushed open the window and tossed it out. “KeyKey, get me one of them Gillette razor blades, the one still wrapped up in the paper. Celluloid shaving case. On top of my suitcase.” He slid the shaving case across the bed, deftly unwrapped the blade. “Dora, gimme your ar m.” He cut two slits where the fang marks were. “Now you stay quiet, you hear? The more you move, the quicker the poison spreads.” George squeezed her ar m, leaving the prints of thick brown fingers. Dora was starting to feel dizzy, her mind a whirlpool of gushing blood, of flickering light. George sucked the poison from her ar m, spat explosively. Spittle trickled off the edge of the table and onto the floor. W int rushed into the kitchen and retur ned with a blue crockery cereal bowl. George tousled his son’s hair as he leaned over to spit. Dora drifted in and out of consciousness. She watched the sweat puddle on her father’s forehead and then trickle down the suncreases to his beard. She reached up once to touch the crisp wet curls.
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133 From far-off she heard her mother’s voice. “George, you know if you suck that poison wrong, it could kill you both.” “Yeah, KeyKey, but I gotta try.” Then Dora slept. It was nearly dawn when she sat up in bed, groggy, trying to figure out what had awakened her. Her mother was asleep on the pallet by the fire, her long hair spread out across the pillow, W int and the baby wrapped in the quilt next to her. Dora strained to hear. Nothing. Nothing - and then the muffled click of the latch. She grabbed her shawl from the nail near the door and slipped out into the new day. The sun was just coming up over the spring house. George was a few steps past the fork in the road, a suitcase in one hand, the walking stick in the other. A sob rose in Dora’s throat. “Daddy, where are you going?” He tur ned. “You know, Honey, I don’t rightly know.” “Then why are you going? “I guess I just gotta.” Dora started to run toward him, hungered to bury her head in his broad shoulder like she had done when she was little. But something in his face held her back. She stayed where she was, spoke slowly. “But you can’t go. You saved me from the snake.” She peered curiously at him, as if seeing him for the first time. “That means you must love me.” “Honey, I love you. I love you all.” “But, Daddy, if you love me and Mommy and W int and Eddie, why do you want to leave us?” “You know, Dora, I just wish I knew.” He shook his head and sighed. He stood for a moment, his head down and brushed his hand through his hair, his fingers clawing at the coils of black curls. “It’s just this rambling part of me. I just have to leave.” He spoke then, low and quickly, the words tumbling out. “Dora, when it’s time for you to get married, you do it up right. You wait till a good man comes along, one you can love and trust. Don’t you fall in love with the first man you see like your Ma did. And don’t you choose nobody like me, cause, girl, you deserve better.” He stood for a moment rubbing his finger over the carved wood of the walking stick. “Dore Baby, you have a good life, you hear?” He tur ned, and she watched him get smaller and smaller and then disappear on the path down the mountain.
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134 Now her car won’t start. The key was stuck in the door of the convenience store, it’s 16 degrees, and now the Celica had lay down and died. Monica put her forehead on the freezing steering wheel and cried. She cried about the present and the past. Tears fell over the mess her life was in, the poverty that plagued her like a threatening storm rumbling in the distance. She wept over student loans, dead babies, and unreturned phone calls from parents. She especially wept about the store she’d bought last year, this two-pump, lonesome package store that barely paid her rent. Were it not for cheap carbs from her own shelves, she might starve. Her father had warned her. Don’t do it, he had said. It’s too far off the beaten path, the building needs too much work, the price is too high. Her mother had stood stoically by while her father refused to help with a loan, forcing her to the savings and loan and money at 13%. Now, whenever she called her parents, they avoided her, afraid she’s looking for a bailout instead of the mentorship and advice she so dreamed of. Monica cried until the customer tapped on her window and she realized that tears were frozen on her cheeks and lips. She looked up to find Billy Zee staring at her through the fogged window. She quickly wiped her face and pressed the button to roll down the window, but it didn’t work. Of course, the car was cold and dead like a dinosaur. “You ok?” Billy said, his voice muffled. Monica noted he was shivering as he only wore a flannel shirt and a baseball cap. “We need coffee,” he said. She got out of the car. “Damned lock is iced,” Monica said. “Key is stuck and I’m afraid of breaking it. I jiggled and jiggled, but it won’t turn nor turn loose the key.” The Gas Station at the End of the World By Robert Canipe
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135 She watched Billy step over the door, a classic aluminum glass double-door whose hinges allowed the door to open in and out. He tried to door, and it opened. She looked at the lock, watched Billy bend, picking up the keyring from the icy asphalt. “Hunh!” Billy said. “You must’ve jiggled it more’n you thought.” Monica stared at the keys, took them, checked the door key. It was freezing cold but intact. She dropped the whole thing into her purse and followed Billy inside. While Billy got a pot of coffee going, she turned on the lights and counted cash into the register. A car pulled up to the gas pumps. Monica pushed a button and the pumps lit up. The drive began filling her tank. Monica listened to the store’s hum. Each machine contributed its own music to the sound of the place. The drink coolers, the slushi machine, the coffeemaker, each created a sound that played the symphony of the roadside store, a repository of expensive stuff from candy bars to soaps to cigarettes to lottery tickets. But by God it was her home for 16 hours a day, seven days a week, and she loved its language. The difference between the store and other convenience stores of its type was that it was really out in the middle of nowhere. “The Convenience Store at the End of the World” is what most folks called it. Monica was its owner, manager, and chief employee, mainly because she lived only two minutes away, buried in rural nowhere, living alone in a rental house that could never be called a home, but seemed a halfway house to something else. Each time she entered the house to fall into the bed, she felt it warning her to not get too comfortable. The temporary atmosphere kept her on edge and she could never relax. It was as though she were on tenterhooks, waiting to be dropped or jerked upward toward God knows what. The lady from the gas pumps entered. “Can I get a pack of Marlboros,” she said, pulling her wallet from her purse. Her nose and cheeks were red, her fingers peeked from fingerless gloves. “How you been, Dolores?” Monica said. “Oh, I’ve been stove up for a week. Damned winters are killing me. No wonder rich people move to Florida. I thought I’s far enough south to not have to freeze, but it’s getting like the Dakotas around here. I ever tell you about the winters in the Dakotas?” Monica nodded, running Dolores’ credit card. “Yes, you have. Your stories make me cold to my underwear.” They laughed. “By the way,” Dolores said. “Who that Indian standing out there. He’s going to freeze.” “What Indian?” Monica said. “The one at the side of the building. Left as you face it. Got to be a Indian cause he’s dark but not black. Old, too. He watched me as I walked in. Made me kind of nervous, peeking at me from the corner of the building as I opened the door. He looks old as sin, but lurking around like that is unnerving.” Monica bit her lip. “Billy, will you go see before you go? I don’t need no more trouble today. ” Billy stirred creamer into his large coffee. “OK, Mons.” He popped a lid on his coffee, took out his wallet. Monica raised a hand. “On the house, Billy. Thanks for helping me this morning.” Billy nodded and went out, returning in a moment. “Nobody there, Mons.” Dolores said, “He might be round back.”
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136 Monica shook her head. “No, it’s too steep. This building has a full basement. It’s all grown up back there. I’ll never afford to clean it up at this rate. Billy, will you--?” Billy smiled. “Yes’m. Call 9-1-1 is I ain’t back in fifteen minutes.” They laughed. He went out. “The government will disavow any knowledge of you, Billy Zee,” Monica said. Dolores smiled. “Sorry hon. I don’t mean to scare you.” She patted Monica’s hand. “Well, I got to get to work. Old man McHenry will dock me if I’m late. See you, hear?” She stopped short of the door. “Why don’t you let me see if old McHenry won’t hire you on. You look wore out and skinny. This place is going to kill you.” “Yeah, Dolores, I know. But old man McHenry can’t tell me what to do in here. I’ll see you, hear?” Monica said, and watched Dolores walk across the snowy parking lot, looking over her shoulder to her right toward where she’d saw her Indian. Other cars pulled into the lot, to the pumps; Monica got busy, losing track of time in the busy day and didn’t realize until 6pm that Billy Zee had not returned. *** During the 5:50pm lull, Monica went downstairs to get more antifreeze from inventory for the rack by the door. It was then that she realized that Billy had gone at 7am to check the back and had not come back. In fact, she’d not seen him leave the lot. She thought of the joke he’d made. She sat a case of four gallon bottles of the green chemical at the bottom of the steps and looked out the grimy door to the back lot. When she’d bought the place, she’d dreamed of building onto the store straight out back, upper and lower floors, creating a restaurant inside her store. Now, she realized it was only a dream. Her nightmare was that she did enough local business to stay covered up and working hard, but not enough to do anything but pay the bank note. She felt tears welling again, stopped and wiped her eyes. “Damn it, Monica. You’re a businesswoman. You ain’t no kid crying every time tought times come.” She scrubbed at the back door glass with her sleeve, listening for the front door’s bell that signaled a customer. She looked out. In the rolling meadow behind the store, a figure stood in the dormant kudzu. It looked like a man and he was staring directly at the store, seemingly at her. That ain’t Billy, she thought. Where is Billy? She ran upstairs, looking out the front door. Billy’s truck sat still where he’d parked it that morning. His boss at the plant would surely be madder than a hornet if Billy missed work. She went back downstairs, peered back out the back door glass. The figure was still there, yet closer, standing still, staring. She could make out his features not. He was old—ancient-looking—long white hair flowing in the cold breeze. He was dressed in what looked like a sheet, a blanket that reminded her of a shroud. She shivered and stepped back. The upstairs door jangled, so she grabbed the heavy case of antifreeze and climbed the steps. She prepared to welcome the visitor, but there was no one evident. She put out the antifreeze and looked
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137 down each aisle. No one. Not a soul. But she’d heard the door bell! Behind her, the door jangled again, opened. However, there was no one there. The door opened and closed, it’s hydraulics making the same hissing sound as usual, but no customer came in, no one to greet, no one to nod back at her as some of the customers do. Two cars pulled into the lot, a sedan and a pickup. Jerry Norman got out of the car, Ned Tillman the truck. Ned usually bought a scratch off and a piece of prepackaged pound cake with a coffee. Jerry Norman used the toilet, perused the magazine rack, and sometimes bought nothing. She didn’t mind people who bought little or nothing, but Jerry complained if the toilet wasn’t perfectly clean. As usual, Ned walked to the counter while Jerry went to the Men’s room. “Hey, Monica,” Ned said. “How’s your day? I’m about froze. No heat at the school today. Ever body was froze.” “I’m ok, Ned,” she said. “Been busy. Lots of cold weather items a selling.” Ned jumped when Jerry screamed and tore out of the Men’s restroom, trousers and drawers around his ankles, fell over his own feet and pants, taking down a potato chip display, rocking on his shoulder blades. Monica moved from behind the counter to where Jed lay, saying, “What in the world, Jerry Norman? You trying to give us all heart attacks around here?” He looked at her, eyes wide, hair askew, lower lip trembling. “There’s a man in the toilet! Put his hands on me. Coldest hands I’ve ever felt. Froze my damn soul, they did.” Monica knew no one else was in the store but the three of them. Ned Tillman walked to the toilet’s door, opened it and went in. A few seconds passed. He came out. “Ain’t nobody in there,” he said. “You’s imagining things,” he said to Jerry, reaching to help the man up while Monica picked up exploded potato chip bags from where he’d lain. “I’ll be damned if there ain’t a man in there,” Jerry said, struggling to pull up his underwear and trousers. “He’s an old man, wearing a sheet. Old and wrinkly and brown, but pale. He grabbed me from behind while I’s on the commode.” “How can he grab you from behind the commode when it’s against the wall,” Monica said. Jerry looked confused, buckled his belt. “Ain’t got no idea. But it’s what he done. He was hanging on my back and I seen him reflected in the mirror when I got up. I didn’t feel any weight from him though, like he was just a ghost. Monica, your store is haunted.” “Lord, God, Jerry! Don’t say stuff like that! My life is already hard enough without rumors of spooks in toilets getting out, Monica said, feeling tears of frustration coming to her eyes. Ned cleared his throat. “Jerry, you sure you ain’t been drinking today? You’ve been known to—“ “Hell, no, I ain’t been drinking. I’m as sober as a judge, preacher, and one of them Shariah law fellers. I seen He went out the door, turned came back. “Will you get my coar off the back of the door in there?”
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138 Ned came back with his coat. Jerry shrugged into it. “Haunted. Damn it. Haunted injuns in the crapper,” he said. He left, passing a customer wearing an overcoat and hat who went directly to the restroom before Monica could say anything. She and Ned stood there and waited for the scream. “You seen Billy Zee?” Monica asked. Ned shook his head. “He wasn’t at work today,” he said. The man exited the restroom, wiping his hands on paper towels. He moved to the coffee area and prepared a cup of Jamaica Me Crazy, grabbed a Krispy Kreme dozen box, and went to the counter. “Is that all, sir?” Monica asked. “Yes, please,” the man said, paying with a debit card. “Thank you,” he said and left. Ned shook his head. “Derned old Jerry. Showing his ass.” Monica smiled. “Yeah. In more ways than one.” She thought why he’d bolt out of that bathroom half naked unless something really scared him. Ned giggled, took his scratch off and left. *** At 11pm closing, Monica felt as though she might collapse where she stood. She was exhausted. She was still disturbed that Billy Zee hadn’t been to work. His truck still sat in the lot beside the Celica. She also realized that she’d not called anyone about her car. She’d probably have to bed down in the storeroom tonight if it didn’t start. And it didn’t. And it had started to snow again, a lazy fat flake that drifted to the ground like a down feather. That tears it, Monica thought, tears again filling her eyes, her throat feeling lumpy and closed. Now I’ve moved into the place. I’m literally here 24-hours a day, going to have to sleep on a thrift store couch in a basement storage area. She tried to make the best of it and snuggled under an afghan her great grandma has made. She slept fitfully, dreamed of foreclosure and destitution. She awoke to the sound of tapping on glass. Oh, no, she thought. Now the snow has turned to ice. Won’t be long before the power will be out and I’ll freeze to death in here. The bank’ll find my froze self laying here, unable to pay another cent. The tapping continued, and she realized it was as though someone were tapping for attention. She left the warmth of the couch and walked to the back door. Peering through the window, she was astounded that it was so light outside. Snow covered the kudzu and the trees. Standing in the same place as the man earlier was Billy Zee. And he was beckoning her to come, his hand and arm slowly rising and lowering. She threw the lock and opened the door, started at how warm it was outside. She’d expected ten degrees to smack her in the face, but it felt like forty out there. Billy Zee continued to summon her forward, into the snow, as though a hand pressed into her back and pushed her forward. The further away from the store she walked, the further Billy Zee seemed to be. Oh, I know, she thought. This is a dream! That’s why everything is so weird. She pincher herself on the arm, felt it. Pulled hair from her arm. Felt it. But she didn’t awaken. She still stood in the middle of a field of tangled weeds looking at Billy Zee gesturing to her, his mouth now working silently. His face was pale. Behind him, practically on his shoulders was an old man, wrinkled, with a head full of long white hair. Billy didn’t bend under his weight. It was as though the old man were weightless. Like a ghost, she thought. She felt the hair on her arms and the back of her neck stand up. She began to sweat in the cool. The temperature seemed to drop and she shivered, wished she had her coat. As though he were on a pull-string and rollers, Billy Zee screamed and shot toward her, grabbing her by the shoulders, an earsplitting shriek causing her eyes to go wide and her bowels to freeze. “Ih-wah-e-reh!” Billy screeched into her face. He said it at least five times, each utterance more terrifying than the last. Monica pulled away from him and ran toward the back door. How she got turned around she didn’t know, but she discovered she was running away from the building. Each time she turned to redirect to the building, she found herself deeper into the wood past the kudzu meadow, stumbling and falling over snow covered stumps and fallen trees. She stopped suddenly, thinking that the panic she was in wasn’t helping any. She turned but didn’t run, but took a moment to get her bearings. She stood in the middle of the wood at the edge of her property line. In the twilight of the snowy night, she recognized the area as she’d walked it a few times in the summer before, dreaming of building a home on it, living here forever, disappearing into the nature of it. But she was always dragged back to the store and its pressure, its hamster wheel existence of money in and out with little to call her own. All the store represented was a life of servitude without the moments of being that offered solace. Even in her sleep she dreamed of failure, her father’s words cascading through her subconscious, her mother’s look of helpless disapproval. Monica looked at the clearing she was in. It was wide and circular as though the trees had been planted to encircle the place. They were old trees, tall and healthy, but the clearing was clean of saplings and dead limbs as though it had been maintained. All that decorated the area was the loam of fallen leaves from autumns past and the snow that fell yet again through the skeletal limbs of the oaken giants. In the sudden silence of the night, she heard an owl hoot and a bird whistle and a cricket chirp. From behind the several trees appeared shadows which became people, each covered in a white shroud, each staring at her through wizened eyes.
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139 She froze and looked around her, gazing at each figure as it left its tree and stepped into the clearing. There, each joined hands with the other and a chant cracked the air. “Ih-wah-e-reh!” Over and over again, the shrouded figures sung the word, the recitation rising and falling like a mesmerizing choir. Monica watched as the snow fell harder and faster, passing through the figures and onto the ground. She felt as though she’d freeze to the spot. Her skin burned and her bones ached as the chill bit at her, but the song was so beautiful, so wonderful, that he didn’t want to run. No she wanted to join their circle, to chant and pray and do whatever it was that they did. She wept as she watched. As she gazed at each face, men and women, old and young, she felt as though she realized to what they chanted, to whom they were appearing, and the reasons why. Her soul filled as though it were a pitcher, and empty one, one bereft and neglected. And then it dawned on her. The figures ceased chanting and the woods grew quiet. Monica felt herself drifting in mind and body. Please, she thought, don’t forget. Never, ever forget this place and what you’ve learned. She was aware that she was falling unconscious as she did it, and it was strange, as though she were outside her body and inside it at the same time. She was sure she wasn’t freezing to death because she felt so safe, so loved, as though she’d been shown something amazing and miraculous that she longed to share with the world. *** She awoke in the store, on the sofa, cold and shivering. The power was out. She heard knocking on the upstairs door. She pulled on her shoes and went upstairs. She saw Billy Zee’s face through the glass and smiled. She threw back the thumb latch lock and grabbed Billy. “I’m so glad to see that you’re all right!” she said, crying into the fur of his jacket. She let him go and he looked at her. “What happened? I went to the back and saw that old man. He wouldn’t answer me, so I intended to put my hands on him and make him. Next thing I know, I’m trying to get back in here to tell you about him and the dern door is locked.” Monica wiped her eyes. “Billy, that was yesterday. You got gone and I couldn’t find you.” “Oh, man, I’m going to get fired if I missed a day’s work,” he said. Monica looked at him, smiled. “If what I think is in the woods behind my store, I’ll hire you to help me in the store,” she said. Two hours later, Monica had convinced a historian to come to the store. It had taken him three hours to get there from the state capital where the college he worked at was. Monica took him across the meadow and into the woods where he and several students he’d brought with him dug around in the snowy ground. She went back to the store, worked a very busy day, looking expectantly at the van the college folks had arrived in. Every so often, one of the kids would be at the van, open it, and take out a tool like a shovel or pickax. It was at 5pm at dusk when they came into the store. Monica was signing the invoice for that day’s newspaper delivery and paying the carrier with a cash payout from the register. She bid the carrier goodbye. The college professor, whose name was Belsun, looked as though he’d rolled through a muddy valley and back. “You look like you could use a beer and a bath,” Monica said. “How did you know?” he said. “I had a feeling,” she said. “No way,” he said. “That grave yard is old, I mean it’s the oldest Catawba Indian burial ground ever found. We’ve found evidence of high tribe members interred there. There’s tons of artifacts and historical stuff there that will connect missing data for us. It’s an incredible find.” “And it’s on my land,” she said. “And I want to stay here.” “Oh absolutely. Law prohibits removing the remains from the ground and the artifacts from the area. In fact, this land is all protected now under the state historical preservation act. People will come from all over the country to visit here. Researchers will want to see the area and the artifacts. I’m even willing to offer that the college will want to partner with you to build a museum here that compliments the find.” He smiled at her. “It’s going to get busier around here. I’ve seen commerce grow around finds like this.” She thought about the old man in the field, in the bathroom. On the backs of Jerry and Billy. The chant that translated from the Catawban language meant “Dead” and “Live” wandered through her mind like a melody. She thought about how that door got unlocked that morning, the key suddenly on the ground. She left professor Belsun standing at the counter and ran to her car, keys in hand, got in, turned the ignition. The car started, purring as though it were new. “You ok?” Belsun said. Monica shut off the car. “I’m more than ok,” she said. “I don’t feel so much like I’m at the end of the world anymore.” She got out of the Celica and saw the old man standing at the building’s corner, covered in a shroud, looking at her as though staring. She thought she saw a smile cross his lips. End
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140 The Enkindled Spring D. H. Lawrence, 1885 - 1930 This spring as it comes bursts up in bonfires green, Wild puffing of emerald trees, and flame-filled bushes, Thorn-blossom lifting in wreaths of smoke between Where the wood fumes up and the watery, flickering rushes. I am amazed at this spring, this conflagration Of green fires lit on the soil of the earth, this blaze Of growing, and sparks that puff in wild gyration, Faces of people streaming across my gaze. And I, what fountain of fire am I among This leaping combustion of spring? My spirit is tossed About like a shadow buffeted in the throng Of flames, a shadow that’s gone astray, and is lost.
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141 “… A palpable and invigorating book, mapping one woman’s lifelong efforts to discover her own sexual identity through Christianity and friendship.” Kirkus Review “Sandra Worsham’s humor and clear-eyed honesty stitch this amazing quilt of meaning and experience together in a wonderful way.” Jill McCorkle, author of Life after Life and Going Away Shoes ”The struggle of the gay Christian’s complicated effort to reconcile sexuality and faith is often overlooked by church leaders and more secular gays. But it is a complex, and deeply engaging journey. I was deeply moved by Sandra’s book, engaged by her voice, her mind, her heart. I think many will find their very human story here in the hands of a wise and compelling woman.” --George Hodgman, author of Bettyville Available for purchase at Taste Full Beans Coffeehouse in Hickory or at Amazon, using the code here.
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142 Ana Cristina Godoy Accredited Jewelry Professional Jewelry Appraisals Graduated Gemologist GIA#0010127822 Custom Fine Jewelry 828.493.3744 Anacristinagodoy.com anakadesign@yahoo.com In our next issue... Lake Living Our region is full of lakes. We look for the best swimming holes and share the tips we find. Catawba Crafters This group meets to craft for the greater good. They have produced countless hats for homeless people, and we chat with them about their goals and methods. Horn in the West Boone is home to the nation’s second oldest outdoor drama. We examine what makes it so special. Day Trips We look at the many fun day trips available in our region. We start with Tweetsie Railroad! And more! Our next issue is stuffed full of goodies, and we can’t wait to share it with you! If you don’t have a subscription, you can take care of that at: foothillsdigest.com!
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143 Spring Song Sherwood Anderson, 1876 - 1941 In the forest, amid old trees and wet dead leaves, a shrine. Men on the wet leaves kneeling. The spirit of God in the air above a shrine. Now, America, you press your lips to mine, Feel on your lips the throbbing of my blood. Christ, come to life and life a, Sweet and strong. Spring. God in the air above old fields. Farmers marking fields for the planting of the corn. Fields marked for corn to stand in long straight aisles. In the spring I press your body down on wet cold new-plowed ground. Men, give your souls to me. I would have my sacred way with you. In the forest, amid old trees and wet dead leaves, a shrine. Men rising from the kneeling place to sing. Everywhere in the fields now the orderly planting of corn.
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145 Photo by Serge Skiba
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What do these Awards really mean to You and Your Community Hospital? For the sixth consecutive year, Catawba Valley Medical Center has been named a recipient of the Women’s Choice Award as one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Patient Experience. Also, for the sixth consecutive year, a recipient of America’s Best Hospitals for Obstetrics. This Women’s Choice Award identifies the nation’s best healthcare institutions measured against the needs and preferences of women, providing her the opportunity to identify which hospitals deliver the quality patient experience she seeks for her and her family, and for her birthing experience. This credential signifies Catawba Valley Medical Center’s commitment and passion towards an extraordinary healthcare experience for all patients, and is another example of the many ways we’re working to improve the health of our community. 828/326-3000 Follow us on Facebook www.catawbavalleymedical.org facebook.com/CatawbaValleyMedicalCenter Catawba Valley Medical Center does not discriminate on the basis of sex, age, national origin, disability, or race in its health programs. Español (Spanish) ATENCIÓN: si habla español, tiene a su disposición servicios gratuitos de asistencia lingüística. 繁體中文 (Chinese) 注意：如果您使用繁體中文，您可以免費獲得語言援助服務。請致電 Hmoob (Hmong) LUS CEEV: Yog tias koj hais lus Hmoob, cov kev pab txog lus, muaj kev pab dawb rau koj. Hu