June 18, 2021. Sugar Mountain has repurposed a kiosk located at 156 Sugar Mountain Drive and will be using it as a place to provide tourism and community information for visitors and year-round residents. Items that will be located at the kiosk include the new Sugar Mountain brochure and map, the Avery County Chamber Guide, High Country Host Visitor Guide, North Carolina Visitor Guide and brochures from many local attractions. The Sugar Mountain Tourism Development Authority funded the renovation of the kiosk that had been there for a while, and the TDA will be updating the brochures and information throughout the year, according to Sugar Mountain TDA Coordinator Mary Kate Litchfield. “We have two bulletin boards that contain flyers for local events and we also keep brochures in regards to things to do in the area and other general travel magazines,” Litchfield said. By Nathan Ham

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June 18, 2021. Piedmont Federal Savings Bank has spent a lot of 2021 coming up with ways to help people in their community. The bank’s Zero Carbon Footprint Mortgage requires no additional cost, paperwork or obligations and pays for carbon offsets over the first year for all mortgage customers. Offsets such as these will pay for programs that are working to produce energy from renewable, greener resources, programs that are handling methane gas at farms and landfills and even programs that are working to improve forest management. “One of Piedmont Federal’s lynchpins of our mission is to nurture a better quality of life for our community. As the environment becomes a bigger issue, we started to think about what were some ways we could make a difference. The carbon-neutral mortgage was born out of looking at this,” said Ginger Salt, the Chief Experience Officer for Piedmont Federal Savings Bank. By Nathan Ham

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June 18, 2021. It takes a lot to keep a good community club down, and the pandemic was no match for the energy and dedication of the Deep Gap Ruritan Club. While its members at large were unable to meet every month during the last year due to mandated restrictions and necessary safety precautions, the club as a whole stayed strong. Much work was accomplished behind the scenes, especially by the committed officers and board of directors which met routinely in members’ homes and volunteered valuable time via phone and email conferences. No, there was no huge fundraising steak dinner, as has been the club’s custom for many years, but there was a successful raffle, private donations and other contributions that helped to keep their efforts afloat. As proof of the club’s ongoing and unwavering desire to serve its community, four recent graduates from Watauga High School were honored on Thursday evening, June 10, with club-supported scholarships to help with their college education. By Sherrie Norris

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June 17, 2021. Summertime is already in the air even if the calendar doesn’t officially say it’s summer yet. The summer season in the United States officially starts at 11:31 p.m. on Sunday night, June 20, with the summer solstice. Monday will be the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere with sunrise at 6:09 a.m. EST and sunset at 8:47 p.m. EST., a total of 14 hours and 38 minutes of daylight. The changing of the season from spring to summer is marked by the day that the sun reaches its highest and northernmost point in the sky. This day is also when the earth is the farthest from the sun. Strangely enough, however, even though it is the longest day of the year, it does not have the earliest sunrise of the year or the latest sunset of the year. The week prior to the summer solstice always has the earliest sunrise time. The week after the summer solstice has the latest sunset times. The sun will set at 8:48 p.m. June 26 through June 30. By Nathan Ham

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June 11, 2021. Four teams of community members competed to fundraise as much money as they could to support safe and affordable housing for Watauga Habitat for Humanity’s 2021 Big Kahuna Campaign. After a 10-week period that began April 1, 18 advocates raised a total of $54,242 to benefit Habitat’s affordable housing program. “I’m just so overwhelmed,” said Allison Jennings, Director of Development for Watauga Habitat for Humanity. “That’s the second highest Kahuna Campaign we have ever had. It was record breaking!” The team who raised the most money was crowned Watauga County Habitat’s Big Kahuna on June 10 at Booneshine Brewing Company. Watauga County Habitat’s Big Kahuna for 2021 is team Wonder Women including members Ella Jennings, Traci Royster, Nikki Crees and Allyson Medlin. Together, they raised $26,296 with Ella Jennings raising the most individually at $20,383. By Harley Nefe

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June 11, 2021. The first phase of construction for the long-awaited skatepark in Boone has been approved and scheduled, according to the latest update from JP Pardy at Recess Skate & Snow. Site preparation and grading will begin in June and July with the expectation that the construction of the park will begin in August. Based out of Kitty Hawk, Artisan Skateparks was chosen as the company to construct the Boone Greenway Skatepark. They are currently completing a park project in Richmond, Virginia. Once they are done there, Boone is the next stop on the list. The design for the skatepark was created by Pillar Design Studios based out of Chandler, Arizona. They have designed numerous parks across the country. By Nathan Ham

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