Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05

April 03, 2008 issue


DON'T FORGET

A Cappella Celtic Duo at St. Mary of the Hills Thursday

Caim, the a cappella Celtic duo, will share sung prayers, along with traditional Scottish and Irish songs and stories, at a concert at Saint Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church in Blowing Rock on Thursday, April 3, at 6:30 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. A meet and greet reception will be held after the concert in the Parish Hall.

Scotland's Heather Innes and Ireland's Jacynth Hamill, who met in Belfast in the 1980s, sing together as Caim. The duo was born in 1998 when Innes invited Hamill to sing with her and to research and arrange most of the music for their first album, Caim, Sung Prayers in the Celtic Tradition.

For more info, contact Susan Fraser at 828-295-3572 or sdfraser@bellsouth.net.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Thursday, April 3
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Location: Saint Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church, Blowing Rock
Cost: $10

 

Mountaineers and Hospice Host Spirit Night at Broyhill Thursday

ASU head football coach Jerry Moore and his Mountaineers are helping raise money for the High Country Health Care System and Hospice on Thursday, April 3, with Spirit Night at the Broyhill Inn and Conference Center.

From 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., players, cheerleaders, and Yosef will sign autographs and have their pictures taken by a professional photographer to support the nonprofit agency. Tickets for the event will be sold at the door for $5 for individuals and $10 for families.

All proceeds from the event go to Hospice. For more information contact Hospice at 828-265-3926. The High Country Health Care System/Hospice office is located at 135 Furman Road, Suite #4.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Thursday, April 3
Time: 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Location: Broyhill Inn and Conference Center
Cost: $5 per person/$10 for families

 

 

Creative Nonfiction Author Karen McElmurray Reads Work Thursday

Karen Salyer McElmurray presents a reading of her work on Thursday, April 3, at 7:30 p.m. in the Plemmons Student Union Table Rock Room.

In 2004, McElmurray published Surrendered Child: A Birth Mother’s Journey, a memoir about giving up her son for adoption and the search for him as an adult. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution described it as “a moving meditation on loss and memory and the rendering of truth and story.” During her visit to Appalachian, she also will speak to a regional gathering of foster and adoptive parents. For more info, call 828-262-3098.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Thursday, April 3
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Table Rock Room, Plemmons Student Union, ASU
Cost: Free

 

Appalachian Dance Ensemble at Farthing Thursday to Saturday

The Appalachian Dance Ensemble spring concert, ASU’s annual dance showcase, presents the best dancers and choreographers Thursday to Saturday, April 3 to 5, at 8:00 p.m. each night in Farthing Auditorium.

The concert features seven new works—three choreographed by ASU dance faculty and four choreographed by students—performed by about 50 ASU dance students.

Tickets are $12 for the general public and $5 for students. For more information, call the Farthing box office at 828-262-4046.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Thursday to Saturday, April 3 to 5
Time: 8:00 p.m.
Location: Farthing Auditorium
Cost: $12 general public/$5 students

 

Swing! The Musical, Featured at Lees-McRae Thursday through Sunday

The big band music of the World War II era will be featured in five special performances of Swing! The Musical at Lees-McRae College’s Hayes Auditorium. Performances are Thursday, April 3, through Saturday, April 5, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 6, at 2:00 p.m.

“Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” “I’ll Be Seeing You” and “In the Mood” are just a few of the songs slated for this big band review.

Purchase tickets at the door, prior to curtain, up to one hour in advance; plenty of seating is available. Tickets for adults cost $12, students and children cost $5 and all veterans are admitted free. For more information, call 828-898-8709.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Thursday to Sunday, April 3 to 6
Time: 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday/2:00 p.m. Sunday
Location: Hayes Auditorium, Lees-McRae campus
Cost: Free for veterans/$12 adults/$5 students and children

 

Blowing Rock Fire Department Fish Fry Friday

The 29th Annual Trout Derby kicks off on Friday, April 4, with the Blowing Rock Fire Department’s annual Fish Fry from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the American Legion building.

Enjoy a dine-in or carry-out dinner of fish, hush puppies, French fries, coleslaw and tea for $8.

Sponsored by Storie Street Grille, all proceeds benefit Blowing Rock Fire and Rescue. The fire department will move into a new facility on Valley Boulevard later this spring. For more info, call 828-295-5220.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Friday, April 4
Time: 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Location: American Legion building, Blowing Rock
Cost: $8

 

Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast Saturday

The 23rd annual Community Pancake Breakfast, a Kiwanis Club of Boone fundraiser, takes place on Saturday, April 5, from 7:30 to 11:00 a.m. in the Watauga High School cafeteria. Come for an all-you-can-eat buffet of pancakes, bacon, sausage, coffee, milk and juice.

The annual pancake breakfast is one of the largest fundraisers for the Kiwanis Club, an organization that sponsors a number of programs for children, especially children ages 0 to 6.

Additionally, Mountain Alliance will have a silent auction in the lower level of the cafeteria from 8:00 a.m. to noon. Tickets to the breakfast are $6 for adults and $3 for children under 12. To purchase tickets, call Evelyn Johnson at 828-264-8784.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Saturday, April 5
Time: 7:30 to 11:00 a.m.
Location: Watauga High School cafeteria
Cost: $6 adults/$3 children under 12

 

Extreme Mountain Cowboy Race at New Ashe Ag Expo Center Saturday

On Saturday, April 5, the inaugural Extreme Mountain Cowboy Race will be held at the new Ashe County Agricultural Expo Center on Highway 163 in West Jefferson beginning at 12:00 p.m. The purpose of the event is to raise funds for the center.

No alcoholic beverages are allowed on the premises. Food, soft drinks, water, T-shirts and hats will be available for purchase.

Registration for the race starts at 10:00 a.m. the day of the event and costs $25 for adults, $10 for youth and $5 for peewees. Spectators will be admitted free. For more information, call 336-877-5838.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Saturday, April 5
Time: 12:00 p.m.
Location: Ashe County Agricultural Expo Center, Highway 163
Cost: Free for spectators/$25 adult/$10 youth/$5 peewee participants

 

Page Brothers To Host Star Studded Birthday Show at Canyons Saturday

For weeks, brothers Andy and Zack Page have been struggling to find a name for the band that features them, guitarist Doug James, Melissa Reaves, Nik Hope and Mike Runyon. The Page brothers and their incredible supporting cast will take the stage at Canyons on Saturday, April 5. The show is free and will start at 10:00 p.m.

P.H.R.R. will tackle material from across the brothers’ varied list of influences, including Jeff Beck, The Meters, The Commodores, The Spinners, Black Sabbath, Bob Marley and Tina Turner. In short, it’s going to be a musical mixed bag of funky, off-the-wall covers.

For more info, click to www.canyonsbr.com.

 

 

Want To Go?

Date: Saturday, April 5
Time: 10:00 p.m.
Location: Canyons
Cost: Free

 

Asheville’s Dehlia Low Plays Black Cat Saturday

In less than a year, up-and-coming Asheville roots band Dehlia Low has managed to meet, gel as a band, record a debut EP and tour beyond the borders of North Carolina. The band will make their first foray into the High Country with a show at Black Cat Burrito on Saturday, April 5.

Dehlia Low features the talents of fiddler and vocalist Anya Hinkle, guitarist and vocalist Stacey Claude, Dobro player and former Boone resident Aaron Balance and mandolin player Brian Clendenin. Leaning heavily in the bluegrass direction, the band also has an affinity for traditional country music, while also revealing progressive acoustic sounds, old-time and traces of modern singer-songwriter folk.

To preview Dehlia Low’s music, click to www.myspace.com/dehlialow.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Friday, April 4
Time: 10:30 p.m.
Location: Black Cat Burrito
Cost: $5

Blowing Rock Trout Derby Saturday to Sunday

For the 29th year, Blowing Rock celebrates the arrival of spring with the annual Trout Derby on Saturday and Sunday, April 5 and 6.

Fishing activities begin at 6:00 a.m. on Saturday and last until 5:00 p.m. Fishing resumes on Sunday from noon to 4:00 p.m. Cash and prizes will be awarded at 4:30 p.m. Sunday.

The only fish eligible for entry into the derby are freshly caught trout taken from Watauga County public trout waters.

Children 11 and younger and persons with disabilities may fish at Broyhill Park’s Mayview Lake. A limit of three fish per participant per day is in place at Mayview Lake.

For more information, call 828-295-7851.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Saturday and Sunday, April 5 and 6
Time: 6:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Saturday/noon to 5:00 p.m. Sunday
Location: American Legion building, Blowing Rock
Cost: Free with valid fishing license

 

Second Annual People of the Planet Soccer Tournament Sunday at Kidd Brewer

The second annual ASU People of the Planet Soccer Tournament kicks off this year’s ASU Diversity Celebration on Sunday, April 6, when soccer players of all ages and economic backgrounds from the United States and 35 foreign countries will gather at ASU’s Kidd Brewer Stadium for a fun, unifying and educational tournament.

The tournament takes place from 8:45 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and there is no cost to participate. All players receive a custom-made jersey and an event medallion keepsake.

Four adult teams and eight youth teams will play at the tournament.

Two adult teams from the United States will face off against two international teams that are comprised of players from 35 foreign countries. New this year, eight youth teams will compete in the tournament. For more information, a complete schedule and a list of the represented countries, click to www.cs.appstate.edu/soccer.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Sunday, April 6
Time: 8:45 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Location: Kidd Brewer Stadium, ASU Campus
Cost: Free

 

Ethnomusicologist Deborah Wong To Lecture April 7

Prior to the Diversity Celebration, ethnomusicologist Deborah Wong will speak at Belk Library Room 421 on Monday, April 7, at 5:00 p.m. Her talk is titled Looking (at Taiko, at Performance, at Alterity).

Wong indicates that Japanese American drumming suggests a new kind of visual ethnomusicology. She offers a model for visual documentation of taiko that folds the history of the colonial gaze into a mindful practice of looking.

University of California at Riverside and specializes in the music of Asian America and Thailand. For more info, click to www.honors.ucr.edu/prof_of_year03.html.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Monday, April 7
Time: 5:00 p.m.
Location: Belk Library Room 421, ASU
Cost: Free

 

Area Restaurants Gear Up for 3rd Annual Celebrity Serve April 8

Celebrity Serve is all about enjoying a unique dining experience while contributing to the community. Each participating restaurant will donate 10 percent of the day’s proceeds and celebrity servers will donate their tips to the cause. The fundraiser takes place on Tuesday, April 8.

Participating restaurants include Bandana’s BBQ & Grill, Beef O’Brady’s, Blimpie’s, Café Portofino, Casa Rustica, CiCi’s Pizza, Dan’l Boone Inn, Highlands Blowing Rock, Los Arcoiris, Makoto, The Peddler Steak House, Pepper’s, Red Onion Café and Woodlands BBQ.

Celebrity Serve 2008 will benefit the High Country Soccer Association’s Field of Dreams fundraising campaign that is raising money to build the Ted Mackorell Soccer Complex on Brookshire Road along the New River.

For more info on Celebrity Serve 2008, call Dhing at 828-264-7976.

 

Free Entertainment, Food at Diversity Celebration April 8

The seventh annual Diversity Celebration will take place on Tuesday, April 8, at the Plemmons Student Union at Appalachian State University, from 3:00 to 9:00 p.m. It

includes Native American and Appalachian folktales, gospel music, old-time mountain music, belly dancing, blues and jazz, clogging, African dance and drums, dance theatre, Celtic music, Serbian and Chilean guitars, a cappella singers, praise dancing, bluegrass, puppets, poetry, jari (Finnish music), salsa lessons and hip hop.

The Diversity Celebration also includes the 12th annual Unity Festival in the Blue Ridge Ballroom of the Plemmons Student Union, featuring presentations of arts and cultural traditions from five continents, such as henna painting; a chopsticks lesson; Japanese fans; tribal beading from Africa; Appalachian butter making; spinning and weaving; a French words game; Aboriginal face painting and zero waste cultures.

For more info, call 828-262-2144 or 828-262-6252 or click to www.celebration.appstate.edu.

 

Want To Go?

Date: Tuesday, April 8
Time: 3:00 to 9:00 p.m.
Location: Plemmons Student Union, ASU
Cost: Free