News

LOCAL BRIEFS: National essay winner, senior expo, Garden Jubilee speakers, wildlife photos

Lia Martinonis

By Lightning Reports, Published: May 3, 2025

DAR contest winner

Lia Martinonis, a sixth grader at French Broad River Academy, has been named the second place winner nationally in the DAR’s American History Essay Contest.

The daughter of Andrea Martinonis, Lia was sponsored by the Joseph McDowell Chapter. She competed with winners from 3,000 chapters nationwide, winning at the chapter, district, state and Southeastern U.S. levels before being named the national second place winner. She will receive $1,000 for her NSDAR second place award.

The essay prompt was “Enjoying A New Kind of Tea Party! Question: In the 1770s there was a movement of protest from the Colonists against the British due to taxes and laws. Along the eastern coast a growing number of patriots held “tea” parties. The Boston Tea Party was on December 16, 1773, and the Charlestown, S.C., Tea Party and the Chester Town Tea Party followed in 1774. In October 1774, 51 women in Edenton, North Carolina, decided to refuse to buy tea from the British because of their high taxes and laws. In 1775, women in Wilmington, North Carolina, burned their tea for the same reasons. Imagine you are one of these women boldly participating in one of these Tea Parties in North Carolina. Give details of either the Edenton Tea Party or Wilmington Tea Party, describe the tea party, and why you would choose to join them. Then explain if you think it was a good decision.”

'Swing into Spring Active Aging Expo' is May 15 at mall

The fourth annual “Swing into Spring Explore Active Aging Expo,” featuring health screenings, local resources, dancing, exercise options and more, will take place 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Thursday, May 15, at Blue Ridge Mall, Aging Projects Inc. announced.
“Swing into Spring Explore Active Aging Expo” is interactive, encouraging seniors, caregivers and local communities to get out and get active.
More than 50 local exhibitors will be on hand to inform, educate and build attendee’s knowledge of aging resources in our local communities. Presentations include:
• “Developing a Timex Vitality: Resilience in the Second Half of Life” presented by Fe Avis founder of PEAK, a SPEAK Awareness Trainer & Recovery Coach.
• “How your Homes Environmental Health Status Impacts Your Health. Let’s Improve Your Health” presented by Rick Bayless founder of A Healthier Home.
• “Disaster Preparation for Older Adults & Their Caregivers” presented by James. H. Kelly, president of Aging Projects Inc.
• “Creating Sustainability for Aging Services” presented by Elizabeth Williams, executive director of Council on Aging for Henderson County, and executive director of Mountain Care.

There is no cost to attend due to the generous contribution of community partners. For more information visit AgingProjectsInc.org.

Garden Jubilee announces Speaker Showcase lineup

The Speaker Showcase at the 33rd Garden Jubilee, presented by Osceola Lake Inn, will be held on Saturday, May 24, and Sunday, May 25. The Speaker Showcase begins at 10:15 a.m. each day at the Historic Courthouse Plaza.
The Showcase will feature keynote speaker Brie Arthur plus Jordana Chalnick, Scott Davis and Kay Campbell and Brenda Rosbrook, the Shady Ladies of Raymond’s Garden Center.

A bestselling author and national leader of the Foodscape Movement, Arthur brings 20 years of horticultural experience to the stage. Her practical, inspiring guidance helps home gardeners cultivate beauty and abundance in any landscape.

A seasoned horticulturist at the Biltmore Estate since 2006, Chalnick now serves as the landscape manager. Her in-depth knowledge of landscape design and seasonal displays offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at one of America’s most iconic gardens.

A certified master beekeeper and owner of Garren Creek Apiaries, Davis shares insights from 14 years of experience in beekeeping. He champions the use of Varroa Sensitive Hygienic queen stock to support healthy pollinator populations across Western North Carolina.

A Clemson-trained horticulturist with decades of experience, Campbell joins forces with Rosbrook, the self-taught grower who is manager of Raymond’s Garden Center. Together, they deliver fresh, fun and informative talks on perennials, native plants and four-season gardening.

Saturday, May 24
• 10:15 a.m. Opening ceremony with Stuller Power Solutions
• 10:30 a.m. Jordana Chalnick. Biltmore: Exploring Olmstead’s Horticultural Design Intent
• 11:30 a.m. Brie Arthur. Summer Foodscape Containers: Effortless Beauty & Bounty in Every Pot!
• 12:30 p.m. The Shady Ladies of Raymond’s Garden Center. It’s All Sun and Games: New, Unusual & Native Sun Loving Perennials to Brighten Any Garden
• 1:30 p.m. Scott Davis – Bees & Pollinators: Why It Matters

Sunday, May 25
• 10:15 a.m. Opening remarks with Stuller Power Solutions
• 10:30 a.m. Jordana Chalnick – Perennials at Biltmore: Creating Year-Round Interest
• 11:30 a.m. Brie Arthur - Summer Foodscape Containers: Effortless Beauty & Bounty in Every Pot!
• 12:30 p.m. The Shady Ladies of Raymond’s Garden Center. Funky and Fun: Multi-Season Interest in Your Garden – Bring Year-Round Interest Through Foliage, Color & Textures with Shrubs and Perennials including Deer Resistant Varieties
• 1:30 p.m. Scott Davis– Bees & Pollinators: A Year in the Life – A Beekeeper’s Journey

One of the largest gardening festivals in the South, Garden Jubilee features more than 200 vendors, including regional nurseries, orchards and artisans offering everything from rare perennials and edibles to home décor and handcrafted treasures.

Habitat at Home wildlife photo contest now open

Conserving Carolina invites the public to enter the sixth annual Habitat at Home spring photo contest, which celebrates the beautiful and wild things we can see right outside our door.
The purpose of the contest is to inspire people to cultivate natural areas around their homes, expanding much-needed habitat for wild creatures from bees to bears. The deadline to enter is June 1.
Conserving Carolina is looking for photos that show ways that people are supporting wildlife, such as native wildflower gardens or bird boxes. They are also looking for photos of animals spotted around your home or other places in your community, such as your school, business, or house of worship. This includes both small and large animals. In past years, people have shared photos of bees, butterflies, beetles, birds, lizards, toads, turtles, snakes, deer, foxes, bobcats, bears, squirrels and more.
“We live in a time when so many wildlife populations are plummeting because there’s not enough habitat,” Communications and Marketing Director Rose Lane says. “That means that when you create habitat at your home, you are offering a very real lifeline for wild creatures. And we want to see the beautiful, hopeful change that you are creating in this photo contest.”
Here are some tips for making a more nature-friendly yard or garden:
• Avoid pesticides. Killing insects harms all the creatures that depend on insects for food.
• Grow native plants. They are a much better source of food than introduced plants.
• Replace invasive plants like English ivy or Bradford pear with native plants that support wildlife.
• Let plants and trees grow around your streams, instead of mowing to the water’s edge.
• Provide resources like birdhouses, bat houses, bee hotels, and birdbaths.
The contest is open to both advanced photographers and people who are just having fun. Youth entries are encouraged. The primary goal is to celebrate nature near home and inspire others, so all levels of photography are celebrated.
This year, Conserving Carolina is welcoming photos from all four seasons, as long as they were taken in either 2024 or 2025. To be eligible for prizes, photos must be taken in Western North Carolina or Upstate South Carolina. People may enter multiple times, up until June 1.
Enter the contest either through social media or email. To enter via social media, share your photo on Facebook or Instagram and tag @conservingcarolina. You must make your photo a public post or Conserving Carolina won’t be able to see it. Or you can email your photo to rose@conservingcarolina.org. Describe in the social media post or email when and where it was taken.
After the entry deadline, a panel of judges will select five finalists. The grand prize winner will be chosen through online voting. The grand prize is a professional landscape consultation by Mark Byington of Byington Landscape Architects, who is an expert in sustainable landscapes. The other four finalists will win $25 gift cards to their choice of local businesses that sell native plants. Find full contest rules at conservingcarolina.org/contest2025.