Ashton Owens was the only speaker to receive a standing ovation after his address to the Clay County Republican Party.
While most candidates were allotted five minutes to rally the crowd, he got fifteen. And he’s not even running for office.
Ashton, 14, is an eighth grade student at Hayesville Middle School who has delivered speeches at [...]

Listen to the interview with Executive Director Brenda Cormack
If you’re using this newspaper to keep warm, there’s a better place for you.
Plans are underway for the region’s first homeless shelter for women. The shelter, New Life Women’s Center, is the result of executive director Brenda Cormack’s vision to open a faith-based center for women in [...]

Gov. Perdue Establishes Motorsports Advisory Council to Help Create and Sustain Jobs in North Carolina
CONCORD – Gov. Bev Perdue today signed an executive order establishing the North Carolina Motorsports Advisory Council.  The council will advise the Governor on ways to strengthen the industry and recruit new motorsports jobs to North Carolina.
“Just days away from the [...]

For those who are unfamiliar with Internet terms, a brief glossary is provided at the bottom of the article.
Janet Messex visits Murphy to get away from the rest of the world; her Cherokee County home has no cellular service and no Internet access. But now that the Florida resident is eyeing a permanent move to [...]

HAYESVILLE, N.C. – Safety and appearance are the impetus behind the town council’s latest efforts to clean up congestion at the Hayesville post office and restrict signage on local highways.
Mayor Harrell Moore said he recently discussed the post office with Congressman Heath Shuler’s regional field representative, Boyce Deitz.
“He said it was a dump,” Moore reported. [...]

Child maltreatment in Clay County is on the rise, according to a new report from the local Department of Social Services.
The department investigated 159 reports in 2009, a 50 percent increase since 2007. Abuse or neglect was found in 19 of the reports.
Social Services stated that 14 children entered foster care, nine were adopted, one [...]

Clay County’s 150th anniversary is only a year away but the Historical and Arts Council is already preparing to celebrate the sesquicentennial event.
President Sara J. Smith told Hayesville’s town council and county commissioners that she was giving them a “one year heads-up” last week to ask for support in preparations.
“We believe it is only fitting [...]

A rockslide shut down portions of Highway 76 between Young Harris and Hiawassee, Georgia last week.
The slide is the third to hit the region in recent weeks, following in the wake of larger disasters on I-40 to Knoxville and Hwy. 64 to Chattanooga.
The rockslide, which was due to heavy rainfall, should be cleared from the [...]

Listen to the January 25, 2010 School Board Meeting.
Clay County Schools has ranked as the most parent-friendly school system in North Carolina, according to a new report from the John Locke Foundation.
Superintendent Scott Penland said he stumbled across an article about the study in “Carolina Journal” and thought he should share it with the school board.
Clay [...]

Clay County will have more growth in the next 20 years than any other county in Western North Carolina, the Southwestern Commission stated in its latest report.
The county has a projected 56.2 percent growth rate (15.5 percent higher than Cherokee County) according to the report, which is based on U.S. Census and N.C. State Demographer [...]