High Country Press

Aug. 23, 2017. Looking to stay up-to-date on what’s happening in your neighborhood? Want to keep an eye on criminal activity in your area? Take a look at these recent incident and arrest reports from the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office and the Boone Police Department. Read more…
Compiled by Katie Benfield

Aug. 23, 2017. The Downtown Banner Elk Walking Tour will take place on Saturday, Sept. 2. It’s about a mile long and will begin at the Banner House Museum at 10 a.m. with tours leaving every half hour until 1 p.m. Throughout the walk, sixteen prominent buildings will be pointed out, such as The Cheese House to the Old Town Hall and Jail, for participants to learn about and understand the history behind each and every one of them. / Read more…

Aug. 23, 2017. The following are recent obituary notices from Austin and Barnes and Hampton funeral homes in Boone and Reins-Sturdivant in Newland. Send obituary notices to jesse@highcountrypress.com. Compiled by Jesse Wood / Read more…

Aug. 23, 2017. You didn’t have to enter the path of totality to capture a great eclipse photo. The lighting from the partial eclipse and clouds made for a striking image. See a couple images, one from Zionville taken by Bill Liebman and another from High Point taken by Phil Gibbs. Photo by Bill Liebman / Read more…

Aug. 23, 2017. The 2018 season of American Idol is fast approaching, and the reality TV talent show is on the search for the nation’s next American Idol. Could it be you? Let’s find out! Open auditions are being held this Sunday in Asheville, or you can submit your audition video online.
Good luck! / Read more…

Aug. 23, 2017. In a 3-1 preference vote, the Boone Town Council appointed Quint David to fill the vacant seat on the Boone Town Council created when Jennifer Teague resigned earlier this summer because of an out-of-town move.  By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Identity Evropa activists dropped a banner at Appalachian State University (Boone, NC). pic.twitter.com/N6W5vQWI3i

— IDENTITY EVROPA (@IdentityEvropa) August 22, 2017

Aug. 23, 2017. On Monday evening, two white men hung a banner on the pedestrian crossing over Rivers Street on the campus of Appalachian State University that stated, “A New Dawn is Breaking, Rise and Get Active, Identity Evropa.” This organization, Identity Evropa, “focuses on recruiting college-aged, white students in order to discuss ‘race realism’ and white interests, targeting disaffected young men by branding itself as a fraternity and social club,” according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks white supremacist groups.  By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Aug. 23, 2017. Approximately 200 girls in third through eighth grade will participate this fall in GOTR-HC programs, which inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using a fun, experience-based curriculum that creatively integrates running, according to Council Director Mary Sheryl Horine. The GOTR-HC program is being offered at schools in Watauga, Wilkes and Avery counties. Schools in Ashe and Alleghany counties may also register to start sites. The program is sponsored by the Beaver College of Health and Science at Appalachian State University and according to Horine, has opportunities for volunteers. / Read more…

Aug. 23, 2017. The High Country celebrates the Tenth Annual Beer Fest at the High Country Fairgrounds on Saturday August 26, 2017 from 3:00 p.m.- 7:00 p.m. By Kate Herman / Read more…

What’s going on in your community? Here’s a brief update on the emails we received today. Check back each day for an updated list of events going on in the area. As always, please feel free to email us about your event or update.

ASU Fall Open House to be Held Sept. 16

Baird’s Creek Presbyterian Church Fundraiser, 8/16

Lees-McRae College Awarded for Extraordinary Programming by the Colleges of Distinction 

Carolina Renaissance Festival Hosts First Job “Faire”, 9/8-9/9

BRAHM Presents the Vivaldi Project

BRAHM is Hiring for an Education and Outreach Director Position

On the Same Page Literary Festival, September

Read more…
Compiled by Katie Benfield

Aug. 22, 2017. Matt Moore, the son of Doug Moore and a software engineer from Chicago, visited his parents during the solar eclipse. Moore brought his DJI Mavic Pro, a quadcopter equipped with a camera. He programmed the drone to fly in a circle 100 meters above the backyard to film the 360-degree sunset and sunrise caused by the eclipse. By Ken Ketchie | Video by Matt Moore / Read more…

Aug. 22, 2017. Eric Medley took home the $1000 winner’s share on Saturday evening at Mountain View Speedway in the Demolition Derby. A huge crowd was on hand the final night of the Watauga County Fair to witness Medley outlast 8 other competitors in the derby and was the last car still running in the end. / Read more…

Aug. 22, 2017. On Thursday, Aug. 17 the staff and board of Blue Ridge Conservancy (BRC) hosted an intimate donor appreciation party to celebrate BRC’s 2016-2017 accomplishments, and honor John and Faye Cooper:  Owners of the Mast General Store, well-known leaders of the community, and longtime conservationists, by awarding them the Inaugural Stanback Conservation Leadership Award. The event site was well suited for the celebration, as it was hosted behind the Original Mast General Store on the farm that the Coopers donated to BRC in 2016. / Read more…

Aug. 22, 2017. High Country Crime Stoppers and Watauga County Probation and Parole are requesting the public’s assistance in locating the following absconders: Frances C Yancey, 58, white, female; and James T Harless, 37, white, male. / Read more…

Aug. 22, 2017. Monday, Aug. 21 marked the first day of classes for students at Watauga County Schools. Across the county, more than 4,600 students attended one of the system’s nine schools – an increase of 200 from the same time last year. Superintendent Dr. Scott Elliott, continuing his standing tradition, visited each school across the county to welcome students back to class. / Read more…

Aug. 22, 2017. High Country Crime Stoppers and Boone Police seek the public’s assistance in solving the following crime: On July 24, 2017, two black females used a stolen debit card to make purchases at Sak’s Grill, 450 E King St. The two females were seen leaving in a silver passenger car. / Read more…

Carolina Ramble and Reunion, 2017 from Rob Brown on Vimeo.

Aug. 22, 2017. There are only a few days left to get your hands on Early Bird Tickets to the 4th Annual Carolina Ramble & Reunion. The family-friendly fall music festival will take place from Friday to Sunday, September 22-24, 2017 at the Brayshaw farm near Boone.  / Read more…

Aug. 22, 2017. Western Youth Network, in conjunction with the Sonny Sweet Scholarship Fund, will present “A Sweet High Country Salute” at the Harvest House on Thursday, Aug. 24. The event features Tim Decker, a performance speed painter who will demonstrate his impressive and awe-inspiring speed-painting skills, and a fast-paced auction of his paintings from the night. By Katie Benfield / Read more…

Aug. 22, 2017. Banner Elk-based photographer Todd Bush summed up the total solar eclipse on Monday as a “once-in-a-lifetime moment.” The Great American Total Solar Eclipse, which was the first coast-to-coast eclipse since 1918, occurred along a 70-mile wide path – the path of totality – from Oregon to South Carolina. By Jesse Wood • Photos by Ken Ketchie and Todd Bush / Read more…

Aug. 22, 2017. Remember your high school prom and not being able to go with who you really wanted to? Well, your second chance is finally here. The High Country’s first, Second Chance Prom takes place Saturday, August 26th 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. at Meadowbrook Inn in Blowing Rock. Presented by the Lauren Jaquays LGBTQ Youth Alliance (Lauren’s Youth), a local nonprofit committed to the acceptance, awareness and support of LGBTQ youth in the High Country, “A Midsummer Night’s Second Chance Prom will include heavy hors d’ oeuvres, slider bar, DJ, dancing and cash bar. / Read more…

Aug. 21, 2017.The second annual CowBelle Classic bike ride takes place Saturday, August 26. This unique event, ridden by women only, is a Boone Area Cyclist club organized road ride. One hundred and fifty riders will depart from the Old Cove Creek School in Sugar Grove at 8:00 a.m. All riders travel Old 421 to Zionville and then split into four different routes of 15, 18, 35 and 64 miles. Routes were chosen by considering the difficulty of the terrain and average traffic volume. All routes enjoy some of the most beautiful countryside that the High Country offers. / Read more…

Aug. 21, 2017. It’s the spookiest time of the year again at Tweetsie Railroad! The Ghost Train® will return on Friday and Saturday nights from September 22 to October 28, 2017, transforming North Carolina’s first theme park into a delightfully frightful destination. Each year, visitors travel from all over the Southeast to enjoy this family-friendly Halloween celebration and take in the gorgeous fall leaves in the Blue Ridge Mountains. / Read more…

Aug. 21, 2017. While some people may see cussing as a cheap way to get a laugh or engage the audience, ‘The Hitman’s Bodyguard’ uses it in a way that does both. In the hands of Jackson, Reynolds and Hayek, the string of cuss words amidst intense action seem perfectly placed as the world’s greatest hitman and a mediocre bodyguard come together for an entertaining movie.By Bob Garver. / Read more…

What’s going on in your community? Here’s a brief update on the emails we received today. Check back each day for an updated list of events going on in the area. As always, please feel free to email us about your event or update.

Appalachian Rollergirls Hold Doubleheader in West Jefferson, 8/26

Workshop to Expand Your Creative Voice

Watauga Library Presents : Wild Food Talk and Taste, 8/26

Ranger Guided Walk, 8/19 and 8/26

Blue Ridge Parkway Ranger Programs, 8/23-8/27

Happy Valley Fiddler’s Convention, 9/1-9/3

Tweetsie Railroad Ghost Train Auditions

Weekly Events at Lost Province Brewing Co., 8/22-9/2

The Community Music School at ASU Announces Opening of Online Registration, Now – 8/25

Watauga County Public Library Presents: Small Business Bootcamp

Read more…
Compiled by Katie Benfield

Aug. 18, 2017. High Country Community Health and The Colon Cancer Coalition are partnering to make potentially life-saving cancer screening resources, education and patient support available to the community, the uninsured, and those who may be unable to access the screening otherwise in Watauga, Avery and Burke Counties.. / Read more…

Aug. 18, 2017. Last Saturday morning, as white nationalists gathered for their march of hate in Charlottesville, a very different group of people were gathering less than a mile away. On that city’s Charlton Avenue, members of seven local churches had joined together to lay the floor trusses on the foundation of the community’s newest Habitat home. / Read more…

Aug. 18, 2017. America’s Navy is coming to Boone, North Carolina, one of five cities in two states to host a performance by the United States Navy Band during a 2017 tour — one of the signature outreach programs of the U.S. Navy. The United States Navy Band Brass Quintet performance is scheduled for Sept. 18, 2017, at 8 p.m. at the Hayes School of Music’s Rosen Concert Hall at Appalachian State University. / Read more…

Aug. 18, 2017. The summer months have seemed to fly by with excessive speed, and the beginning of fall classes at Appalachian State University is approaching just as fast. With classes beginning on Aug. 22, there will be an increase in traffic over the next week as students begin to move back into dorms starting on Aug. 18. Welcome back Mountaineers! / Read more…

Aug. 18, 2017. Appalachian Regional Healthcare System (ARHS) was awarded that honor on August 3rd. Specifically, ARHS is being recognized for excellence in employee engagement. This category awards those who sustain high employee engagement scores or demonstrate significant improvements in the area of employee engagement. These scores matter because employee engagement-along with leader, physician, and patient engagement-is linked to clinical quality, the patient experience, and various aspects of organizational performance.  / Read more…

Aug. 17, 2017. As Watauga County Schools prepares to open its doors to students Monday, Aug. 21, teachers and staff came together to celebrate the system’s annual convocation. Held at Watauga High School, the event gave WCS teachers — both new and returning — a chance to meet and connect with community partners, attend health screenings and a benefits fair and prepare to start the new school year together. / Read more…

Aug. 17, 2017. The Watauga County Fair opened on Tuesday and runs through the evening of Saturday, Aug. 19 at the High Country Fairgrounds on Roby Greene Road. Presented by the Mountain View Speedway, this year’s fair features plenty of racing action and other activities around the track, a Watauga County Fair Pageant and rides for the kids. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Aug. 17, 2017. Soon all of the road construction work through Blowing Rock will be an afterthought. The final paving continues through the town section of U.S. 321 in Blowing Rock. Crews have begun laying the final layer of asphalt along U.S. 321 in Blowing Rock, but the rain has delayed the construction schedule. By Jesse Wood • Photos by Ken Ketchie / Read more… 

Aug. 17, 2017. The new gigantic scoreboard at Kidd Brewer Stadium is currently being installed. When the project is completed later this summer, Appalachian State University will be host to the largest display in the Group of Five collegiate athletic conferences. While the overall scoreboard will measure 50 feet high by 90 feet wide, the 2,500-square-foot LED display will measure more than 37 feet high by 67 feet wide. By Jesse Wood • Photos by Ken Ketchie / Read more…

Aug. 17, 2017. When the New Rivers Blues Festival takes place on Sunday, Sept. 3, Penny Zamagni and Rob Baskerville will celebrate two anniversaries. Their band, the King Bees, has been touring the world for 30 years, while Ashe County will host the 15th annual New River Blues Festival, which the couple founded. By Jesse Wood / Read more…

Aug. 17, 2017. A look at the recent deed transfers in Watauga County. The information comes courtesy of the Watauga County Register of Deeds. Compiled by Debbie Carter / Read more…