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Today’s Email Announcements

This Week’s Events at Lost Province Brewing

Tuesday, March 3

Get Lost for a Cause benefiting Boone Greenway Skatepark. Lost Province is helping raise money for the Boone Greenway Skatepark! Tuesday, March 3rd Recess will be taking over the brewery from 6 pm-10 pm to show some skate videos and raise money for the park! All day Lost Province will be donating 10% of sales to the park. Make sure you get over there and grab some food and a beverage and support the cause!

Wednesday, March 4

7 pm-9 pm Trivia Night: Beginning at 7pm, Lost Province will be hosting Trivia Night. Compete on your own or on a team! The competition gets started at 7pm so come a little early for a pizza and a pint and get your seat!

Thursday, March 5

$3.00 Thursday and College Night-$3.00 pints on all Lost Province brewed beers (except high gravity).

7:30-Close: Chris McGinnis. Chris McGinnis is a singer-songwriter from the foothills of North Carolina. Resting between heartaches and hiccups, his songs are often narrative-driven snapshots of everyday life.

Friday, March 6

7:30 pm -Close: Tim McWilliams Band. Tim McWilliams is an accomplished flat-picking and finger-style guitarist, embodying the diverse roots music traditions of Western North Carolina. Upon receiving his M.A. in Appalachian Music: Roots & Influences from Appalachian State University in 2014, Tim launched his professional music career with a three-month cross-country tour. Since then, he has performed full-time as the leader his group, The Tim McWilliams Band, as well as a solo artist. While continuing to grow and evolve as a musician, Tim already has notable achievements which include: receiving an endorsement by Larrivee Guitars, performing more than 800 shows on stages throughout the greater Southeast, and performing at many iconic regional festivals, such as MerleFest, LEAF, Fall for Greenville, and the Downtown Asheville Independence Day Celebration.

Saturday, March 7

7:30 pm -Close: Swing Guitars. Boone’s own gypsy band “Swing Guitars” has been active for almost a decade performing acoustic “Hot Club” style jazz in area restaurants, music festivals and civic concert series. Playing a mix of gypsy jazz standards, swing classics, originals and modern jazz tunes, the acoustic group focuses on the music of Django Reinhardt and other early jazz pioneers. Guitarists Andy Page, Jim Schaller and Jay Brown along with Ben McPherron on bass are experienced musicians widely known to High Country music fans. An evening with Swing Guitars promises a variety of sounds perfect for socializing, eating, drinking and dancing!

Watauga County Commissioners’ Meeting Canceled

The Watauga County Board of Commissioners’ Board Room serves as an official voting place on Election Day. Due to the date of the primary election, the Watauga County Board of Commissioners’ regular meeting scheduled for Tuesday, March 3, 2020, has been canceled.

Therefore, the Watauga County Board of Commissioners will hold only one regular meeting in March which is scheduled for Tuesday, March 17, 2020, beginning at 5:30 P.M. in the Commissioners’ Board Room in the Watauga County Administration Building located at 814 West King Street, Boone, North Carolina. For information or questions, please call (828) 265-8000.

Leon Lewis Presents to High Country Writers on March 12

Leon Lewis

High Country Writers welcomes ASU Professor Leon Lewis as presenter at our meeting of Thursday, March 12th at the Watauga County Library at 10 a.m. His topic is “Wandering in the World of Words.” Programs are co-sponsored by the Library and the public is invited.

Dr. Lewis has published extensively in the area of 20th century American and British Literature and film. His works include books, Of No Interest to the Nation: A Jewish Family in France, 1925-1945 (Wayne State University Press, 2004) and Eccentric Individuality in William Kotzwinkle’s The Fan Man, E. T., Doctor Rat, and Other Works of Fantasy and Fiction (The Edwin Mellen Press, 2002), and critical essays on the works of Robert Frost, Salmon Rushdie, John Updike, William S. Burroughs and E. E. Cummings. He edited Robert M. Young: Essay on the Films (2005) and John Alton: Essays on the Cinematographer’s Art and Craft (2020).

He holds degrees from Oberlin College, University of Pennsylvania, and a PhD from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Before coming to Appalachian State in 1974, he taught at Long Island University in Brooklyn, NY; at New York University in Manhattan, NY; and at the University College of Wales at Aberystwyth.

High Country Writers has been “energizing writers since 1995!” Regular meetings are at the Watauga County Public Library on the second and fourth Thursdays of most months from ten until noon and speakers’ presentations are co-sponsored with the Library. HCW members present writing skills workshops at Blue Ridge Artspace the first Thursday of the month, and partner with the Watauga County Arts Council in hosting these workshops. For more information and a current calendar, visit the website: http://www.highcountrywriters.org. Guests are welcome.

The Walker Center Presents The Haggard Brothers Tribute to Merle Haggard with Special Guest Emi Sunshine

The Walker Center, on the campus of Wilkes Community College, will present The Haggard Brothers Tribute to Merle Haggard with special guest Emi Sunshine on Friday, March 13, at 7:30 p.m. This performance is sponsored by Wells Fargo.

The sons of Merle Haggard are carrying on their father’s legacy with a tour dedicated to his impact on the country music world. Having toured and played with their father for years, Ben and Noel will join together with Merle’s band for a great evening of memories and music. With the same natural phrasing and richly sonorous voices that one would expect, Ben and Noel add their own fresh takes on Merle’s legendary songs like “Silver Wings,” “Mama Tried,” and “The Fighting Side of Me.”

EmiSunshine has already graced some of the most prestigious stages–from the “Today Show,” to the Grand Ole Opry (over a dozen times) and most recently, “Little Big Shots starring Steve Harvey” last April. Additionally, EmiSunshine stars in and performs three songs in her latest film appearance on “The King,” alongside such celebrities as Roseanne Cash, Emmylou Harris, Ethan Hawke, Alec Baldwin and more. The film featured at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and premiered at Cannes Film Festival, where Emi performed.  

A limited number of tickets are available for this performance. For more information, or to purchase tickets, contact the Walker Center Box Office at 336-838-6260 or walker.boxoffice@wilkescc.edu. Visit the Walker Center online at www.walkercenteronline.org or on Facebook.

The John A. Walker Community Center is dedicated to being this region’s primary venue for cultural experiences and to serving as the preferred gathering place for meetings, receptions, conventions, banquets, and parties for our community. The Walker Center and Wilkes Community College are 100% Tobacco-Free.

Wilkes Community College, a member of the North Carolina Community College System, is a public, two-year, open-door institution serving the people of Wilkes, Ashe, and Alleghany counties and beyond. Established in 1965, WCC continues to build on a strong history of meeting the educational needs and cultural interests of our students, community, and workforce. WCC prepares learners for success in a dynamic world.

FloydFest 2020 Vision Quest Adds 39 More Acts to Lineup

Tickets are on sale now for FloydFest 2020~Vision Quest (July 22-26, 2020, at Milepost 170.5 on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Floyd, Va.), and Across-the-Way Productions & Blue Cow Arts welcome 39 more acts to the FloydFest 2020~Vision Quest lineup:
• The FloydFest 2020~Vision Quest On-the-Rise Competition Class of 2020, sponsored by Peluso Microphone Lab, Ferrum College, and Press Press Merch49 WinchesterAshley Heath & Her HeathensBailey BiggerBig AtomicCasey NoeldarzoDr. BaconFree UnionGrizzly GoatInto The FogMusic Road CoNicholas JamersonRestless Leg String BandSexbruise?Shay Martin LovetteShort & CompanyTaylor Scott BandThunder and RainUnaka Prong, and West End Blend
• FloydFest 2020~Vision Quest Local Love Artists: The AmbassadorAndrew Winn TrioAPEXBlue MuleChupacabrasThe Dead ReckoningDharma BombsEmpty BottlesExit 109 BluegrassThe FloorboardsGOTEIsaac Hadden ProjectThe JamJohn McBroomJordan HarmanLazy Man Dub BandMark Nicholson and The DistanceMy Radio, and Orange Culture
Today’s announcement also includes a detailing of ‘Road to FloydFest’ shows, which take place at various venues from March to June. FloydFest ticket prices increase April 1, 2020. 
 
This week’s 39 lineup additions join previously announced artists for 2020: The String Cheese Incident (2 nights), Umphrey’s McGee, Grace PotterMoon TaxiTURKUAZ w/ Jerry Harrison & Adrian Belew REMAIN IN LIGHT Turns 40Toots and the MaytalsLeftover Salmon, Cory Wong of Vulfpeck, Cory Henry & the Funk Apostles, Keller Williams, Robert Randolph & The Family Band, Devon Gilfillian, Brent Cobb, Molly Tuttle, The Soul Rebels, All Them Witches, Southern Avenue, Andy Frasco & The U.N., Illiterate Light, Keller and The Keels, Doom Flamingo, L.A. Edwards, The Nude Party, Futurebirds, Acoustic Syndicate, Buffalo Mountain Jam v5, Consider the Source, Hogslop String Band, The Broadcast, Travers Brothership, Big Daddy Love, L Shape Lot, Mama Said String Band, Stephen Lewis & The Big Band of Fun, Johnny Conqueroo, and FloydFest 19~Voyage Home On-the-Rise Competition winners DownTown Abby & The Echoes (winner) and Mason Via & Hot Trail Mix (Runner-Up). (with even more to come!)

Shane Calvert Named Director of Coaching at High Country Soccer Association

Shane Calvert

High Country Soccer Association proudly announces that Shane Calvert has been named the Boone-based soccer club’s new Director of Coaching. Calvert, who is also the Head Men’s Soccer coach at Lees-McRae College, will be serving both positions. He will follow former Director of Coaching Ben Birdsong who resigned in January. Calvert will become HCSA’s forth full-time DOC since the club’s inception in 1986.

“I’m extremely proud to name Shane to this very important position,” says Rick Suyao, HCSA’s Executive Director. “The HCSA board of directors and I vetted many qualified candidates in a one-and-a-half month evaluation process before the group unanimously voted to offer the position to Shane. His head coaching experience at both the club and collegiate levels, and his extensive knowledge of how youth soccer operates, makes him very valuable. Shane has many contacts among college coaches and tournament administrators, which is important to those players looking to play soccer beyond high school. But his vision doesn’t end there. His mission is to instill a love of the game with all of HCSA’s kids and to further develop the club’s entire coaching staff.”

In addition to his role as the Head Men’s Soccer Coach at Lees-McRae, he has served as an assistant at Wofford College (2015-2017), Clemson University (2014-2015), and his alma mater, Tusculum University (2005-2007). At Clemson, Calvert helped coach the Tigers to the 2014 ACC Championship and to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament. During his time with Tusculum, Calvert helped coach the team that reached No. 1 in the NCAA Division II national rankings.

As a coach in the high school ranks, Calvert also has a decorated resume with over 100 victories. He has been the head soccer coach at Morristown West High School (Morristown, Tenn.), Dobyns Bennett High School (Kingsport, Tenn.), Spartanburg High School (Spartanburg, SC), and Darlington School Academy (Rome, Ga). Additionally, Calvert has earned multiple District Coach of the Year, Regional Coach of the Year, and State Coach of the Year honors as a prep head coach to go along with multiple state tournament appearances. Furthermore, Calvert guided his team at Spartanburg High School to the No. 1 ranking in the state of South Carolina.

“I am extremely excited to serve High Country Soccer Association and the local community in the role of Director of Coaching,” says Calvert. “Throughout my career, youth soccer has help mold me into the coach that I am, and more importantly, the person that I am. We as a staff look forward to growing impactful relationships with our players, families, and community.  With the tremendous facilities and wonderful families involved in the club, I know we will be able to accomplish great things and move the club to new heights.”

Calvert currently holds a United Soccer Coaches Advance National Diploma, a United Soccer Coaches Goalkeeping Level 3 Diploma, and a USSF “C” License. He is a graduate of Tusculum University. Shane and his wife, Karen, are looking forward to moving to Boone.

In other news…

Erin Barcal

Erin Barcal has been hired as the Director of Club Operations at HCSA. In addition to coaching travel teams, she will also oversee our youth Academy and Challenge programs.

Barcal’s experience includes coaching collegiately, for North Carolina Olympic Development Program, club, and high school. Currently, she serves as the Assistant Women’s Soccer Coach at Lees-McRae College. Formerly, she coached at University of North Alabama as the Graduate Assistant coach responsible for game and travel operations and training goalkeepers. Barcal was a three-time captain in her four years of undergrad at Lees-McRae College and captured a conference championship.

Upcoming events…

U10 Academy starts March 13
U8 Academy starts March 17
U6 Academy starts March 23
U10-U15 Challenge (Rec) starts March 18
Adult League starts March 18
 
High Country Soccer Association, which opened in 1986, offers soccer training to youth ranging from U6 to U18 and competes in the North Carolina Youth Soccer Association. HCSA also operates adult leagues, winter futsal youth training, summer camps, and two annual tournaments. In all, HCSA has more than 600 youth players and more than 300 adult players from Avery, Ashe, Caldwell, Wilkes, and Watauga counties.