Henderson County News
There is an ugly truth that lies in the beautiful mountains in which we live. Thousands of children, and their families, are living in poverty. While the percentage varies county by county, on average 25 percent of Western North Carolina children are living at or below the federal poverty line. In Henderson County that number is 22 percent.These are children whose families are homeless or are at risk of homelessness; children who are often hungry and go without medicine, warm coats, school supplies and other essentials; and children whose mothers are abused but cannot afford to leave a violent home.Twenty years ago, the Children’s Law Project at Pisgah Legal Services(PLS) was created to help solve these devastating problems of poverty and to ensure that children in our community have what they need to thrive. Pisgah Legal is a nonprofit law firm that provides free civil legal aid to improve the lives of individuals and families in crisis in six mountain counties in our region.Over the past two decades, we estimate that Pisgah Legal staff and volunteer attorneys have helped 70,000 children. PLS assisted more than 15,000 people in WNC in the last year alone, including more than 5,500 children. In 2015, PLS helped 1106 Henderson County children avoid homelessness, escape abuse and secure their basic needs.The Children’s Law Project helps address a lack of funding for programs serving low-income women and children in our region. It’s incredible to me that these critical services continue to be underfunded when they are proven to be so successful.An attorney can be a highly effective advocate for a child in crisis. A severely autistic child who has his health care benefits wrongfully terminated can’t fight to have them reinstated, but a lawyer certainly can. When a family is living in dangerous, substandard housing, the children pay the price for sleeping in a dwelling that is filled with black mold or has raw sewage in the crawl space. An attorney can represent that family in court to compel an unscrupulous landlord to make repairs and ensure their home is safe. And for a child terrorized by domestic violence, a lawyer can help his or her mother escape safely – and take the child with her – to build a life free from abuse.Pisgah Legal Services is committed to working with partners across WNC to reduce child poverty and the terrible suffering that comes with it. Earlier this month Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of The Children’s Defense Fund, and a lifelong advocate for children, spoke at the 6th Annual Pisgah Legal Poverty Forum. During her inspiring presentation, I was especially moved by these words – “If we don’t stand up for children, then we don’t stand for much.”The month of October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. I call on you and others from across our region to join with me and Pisgah Legal Services to improve the lives of low-income children and their families who call our mountains home, because they, too, will be our future.
Eleanor Owen is a long-time supporter and former Board Chair of Pisgah Legal Services. For more information on PLS visit www.pisgahlegal.org. The Henderson County PLS office is located at 440 South Church Street, Hendersonville, NC 28792 or call 828.253.0406. Read Story »
Henderson County News
The administration of East Henderson High School has named Daniel Corhn the new head baseball coach for the Eagles, effective immediately. Corhn is presently serving as the head junior varsity football coach, and assistant baseball coach at East.
Corhn is taking control of the baseball program at East with five years of experience coaching the Eagles; he’s been the assistant baseball coach for five years, is in his fifth season coaching junior varsity football, and served as junior varsity baseball coach for three years.
Born and raised in Henderson County, Corhn grew up watching his mother, Shawn Corhn, coach volleyball, track and field at Rugby Middle, and was an athlete himself at West Henderson High. He graduated from West in 2008 and from Western Carolina University in 2012.
“My mom was an educator and a coach for 31 years at Rugby, and both of my sisters are coaches as well,” Corhn said. “It’s always been an aspiration of mine to become a head coach.”
Corhn spent the last few years working alongside former head baseball coach Sam Perry, whom he called a mentor and a friend.
“We have a lot of potential, and the baseball program in the past few years has been moving in a very positive direction,” Corhn said. “I’m very excited about this season.”
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Henderson County News
Asheville Regional Airport broke records for serving passengers this summer and continued to see strong growth even in the historical slowdown when schools reopen, the airport said in a news release.
June, July and August numbers were up year/year by 2.2%, 4.8% and 6.7% respectively. And in what is normally a "shoulder season" month, September airport use was up 16 percent over 2015, with 77,428 total passengers served.
"Air service at AVL is strong, and growing," Lew Bleiweis, A.A.E. executive director, said in a news release. "All four airlines at AVL - Allegiant, American, Delta and United - have a solid number of seats for sale in our market, they offer excellent connectivity to the world, and passengers are buying tickets."
Ticket sales are up for all airlines at AVL. Additionally, Allegiant is continuing to grow in the western North Carolina market, having added a new non-stop service to the D.C. area and more frequent flights to destinations in Florida. A new non-stop to the New York City market will start on Nov. 17. Looking ahead, Delta and United also plan increases in seats for sale to and from AVL in October through December, compared to the same period last year, with United boosting frequencies to both Chicago O'Hare International and Newark Liberty International. Read Story »
Henderson County News
Henderson County Early College, West Henderson High School and Hendersonville High School were three of 70 North Carolina schools recognized for exceptionally high 2015-16 cohort graduation rates.
Early College was one of 62 schools in North Carolina with a four-year cohort graduation rate of 100 percent in 2015-16. West Henderson High, with a rate of 96.7 percent and Hendersonville High, with a rate of 95.6 percent, were among high schools in North Carolina recognized for achieving a cohort graduation rate of 95 percent or higher. State Superintendent June Atkinson honored the schools at a special ceremony in Durham on Tuesday.
A four-year cohort graduation rate measures the number of graduates who started together as freshmen and completed high school in four years.
This is the second year in a row that Early College has been in the state’s “100% Graduation Club,” and the second year in a row West Henderson High has been recognized for a graduation rate of 95 percent or higher. All three high schools outperformed the state average graduation rate of 85.9 percent in 2016.
“Henderson County Public Schools are committed to educating leaders who are college-ready and prepared for the real world after high school,” said HCPS Superintendent Bo Caldwell. “We’re very proud of our consistently high graduation rates, which are testaments to the efforts of our students and teachers.”
According to a N.C. Department of Public Instruction news release, the state’s cohort graduation rate has climbed significantly from 68.3 percent in 2006, and students statewide are meeting higher expectations and achieving at higher levels.
“Thirty-five percent of the graduating class has college credit, 140,000 business and industry credentials were earned, and nearly 139,000 students received a diploma endorsement certifying that they achieved a high level of preparation for career, college or both,” Atkinson said in the NCDPI release.
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Henderson County News
U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows could be moving on to a higher profile role in Washington — assuming he wins re-election on Nov. 8.
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Henderson County News
Pardee Hospital will host a free UNC Cancer Network Lunch and Learn videoconference series for cancer patients, survivors and caregivers from noon to 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28, in Pardee Hospital’s video conference room.
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Henderson County News
The ArtScape Hendersonville Committee, the Art League of Henderson County, the Arts Council of Henderson County and Downtown Hendersonville is seeking sponsors for the 2017 ArtScape banners, a new public art project downtown.
The sponsors are inviting local artists and artisans to participate in the juried art competition, Where Art Meets the Sky. Selected artwork will be reproduced on 40 banners that will then hang on posts on Hendersonville’s Main Street and Avenues for a year beginning in April of 2017. The project’s objective is to create an outdoor gallery experience helping to make Hendersonville an art destination.After viewing a similar exhibit in Old Town Winchester, Va., Hendersonville artist Costanza Knight saw the display as an opportunity to showcase the arts here.Sponsorship opportunities will help finance ArtScape. The cost of the banner sponsorship is $175 if paid by Dec. 31 and $200 after that. The banners will become the property of the sponsors and will be given to them at the end of the yearlong display in March of 2018. Sponsorship applications are available online at the Arts Council website www.acofhc.org. For more information about sponsorships, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The ArtScape Hendersonville Facebook page and website is scheduled to launch next week.In December the committee will call for artists ages 18 to submit work for this project. Submissions will be juried by a panel made up of art professionals. The artwork will be photographed and digitally transferred directly onto 36x24-inch vinyl banners. The artist’s work and name will appear on both sides of the banners along with that of the sponsor of the banner.In April, in addition to the installation of the banners, the artwork used to create the banners will be displayed at two local galleries during an opening reception. The artwork will be for sale at that time.For more information contact Costanza Knight at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Read Story »
Henderson County News
The North Henderson High School Marching Band earned the “Band of the Day” distinction in the Cedar Cliffs Classic Marching Band Competition at AC Reynolds High School, claiming the Grand Champion crown among all classifications.
The band also won best Music and Drum Majors in their class and earned 2nd place in Guard and Percussion. In addition to the “Band of the Day” distinction, the Marching Knights finished 2nd in their class at Enka High School and earned 2nd overall for the 17 bands in the first four classifications, as well as tops in Guard and Drum Major. The Marching Knights competed at the Western Carolina University Tournament of Champions on Oct. 22 and will wrap up the season at home, showcasing bands from North Carolina and South Carolina at a competition at North Henderson High on Saturday, Oct. 29. Admission is $7. Read Story »
Henderson County News
Henderson County commissioners rejected a recommendation by the Henderson County School Board to move Edneyville Elementary School ahead of the Hendersonville High School in the construction schedule in a letter that also raises the possibility of closing the Edneyville school
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