CEDAR MOUNTAIN NEWS FOR THURSDAY 6-1-23

MCGAHA CHAPEL SUMMER SINGALONG In the September 25, 1903 edition of the Sylvan Valley News, Totsy reported in the Loftis Locals column that “Rev. Stephenson will preach at Little River Chapel next Saturday night and Sunday at 11 am. There will also be baptizing at 10 a.m.” The churches in small rural counties often shared pastors and would have a pastor at the church perhaps once or twice a month. The McGaha Chapel, located on US Hwy 276 in Cedar Mountain, was earlier known as the Little River Chapel and the Church of the Dividing Ridge.

On Saturday, June 3 at 2:30 pm we will gather at this beautiful old chapel of 1872 and sing songs that our grandparents and great-grandparents enjoyed. Shuttles will be available beginning at 1:30 at the Robin Hood Center in Sherwood Forest. After 45 minutes of song, we will enjoy watermelon on the grounds. This event is sponsored by the Transylvania Historical Society and the Sherwood Forest and Cedar Mountain communities. Please join us.

SHERWOOD FOREST FRIENDS Summer Series opens on June 9 with a presentation on the history of Brevard Music Center (BMC). Since its origin in 1936, this premier summer music institute and festival teaches some of the world's most talented young musicians to play at the highest artistic level, offering the soundtrack to our summers. This year, the ten-week festival will offer close to 100 free and ticketed orchestral, chamber, voice, jazz, bluegrass, opera, and pop performances. Join BMC Manager of Grants and Community Engagement Kalen Lawson and Friends for this free event in the Robin Hood Barn at 7 p.m. Wine, water, and raffle tickets to benefit the Greg Allikas Scholarship Fund will be available for donation beginning at 6:30 p.m. The Summer Series will continue in August with presentations on the great flood of 1916 and summer camps and a special appearance by beloved author Sharyn McCrumb!

FAITH MEMORIAL CHAPEL welcomes folks of all denominations to our services, held on Sundays at 11:00 AM. We meet only in the summer and have no membership roll so you won’t feel like a guest. Each Sunday, we have clergy from different churches that visit us to lead the service and we are blessed also to have great music to accompany the great message!

This Sunday, Faith Memorial Chapel welcomes The Rev. Shelly Webb. Shelly currently serves as the Executive Director of Sharing House, Transylvania County’s faith collaborative ministry for crisis assistance with low-resourced neighbors. Britney Siemon will provide wonderful selections of music.

LOCAL GHOSTS THAT YOU SHOULD GET TO KNOW

What, has this thing appeared again tonight?

Horatio, from Shakespeare’s Hamlet

When we were collecting information about area turnpikes for the book The Village Turnpike: A Whimsical Cedar Mountain Historical Adventure from Then to Now (Charles Burden, Doug Pace, Patty Stahl), we interviewed a lot of people. Tangentially, some folks in conversation would mention a ghost story from the area. Irresistible! These remembrances of local apparitions, often 3 rd or 4th hand, perhaps had varying degrees of veracity, but all were fascinating. These stories were the inspiration of our work, i.e., some we fluffed up or toned down a little. We thank all who shared your stories with us. So, be on the alert for the ghosties and ghoulies and long leggedy beasties hiding a behind a nearby tree or bush. Call them by name. Many are friendly. Others, not so much. (Oh well, we reckon you’re pretty much on your own here.) By Patty Stahl and Charley Burden

GHOST STORIES, Tales From US HWY 276 is currently available in Cedar Mountain at the Cedar Mountain Café, Studio 276 Cedar Mountain Moonshine, Creekside Market and Grill and in

Brevard at Highland Books.

BBQ FUNDRAISER ON MEMORIAL DAY

The BBQ was very busy and deemed a tremendous success. We ran out of coleslaw though. Thanks to all who participated.

SHERWOOD FOREST LADIES GOLF LEAGUE results for May 29. What a great turnout for what started out as a chilly holiday morning. By the time the round was over, the sun was shining brightly on a beautiful spring day. Twenty women played a game of Blind Partners on the back nine. Winning pair: Nancy Waclawek and Georgia Osterc. Low net: Carolyn Navarra. Low Gross: Roz Banks. Next Monday, June 5, is a scramble and a good way to introduce yourself to the league if you haven't joined us yet. We will play the front nine, with registration at 8:30 and tee off at 9. We've had several new players join us this year. Don't miss out on the fun. Come be a part of our group.

THE ANNUAL 5-DAY AKC DOG SHOW was held at the Western North Carolina Agricultural Center Davis Arena and Expo Buildings in Fletcher, NC this past weekend. Candy Gray from Cedar

Mountain is getting Border Collie, “Rain”, qualified in Advanced Rally! Rain won her 3-day trial to become certified as Rally Advanced! Rain enjoys dog shows, as do most dogs! (Photo)

AROUND THE HOUSE by Linda Packer Young

Well, we wish we could brag about all the fish we caught the past few days, but the fish had nothing to worry about. While we were at Lake Blue Ridge my honey caught 5 leaves and 2 snags. A nearby swimmer was kind enough to come over and save one our “rigs” by pulling it free. I got 2 snags and lost my bobber on the first try. My reel kept jamming. It hadn’t been used for over 20 years so it wasn’t surprising. We purchased a new one at a local supercenter and it was a snagged-up mess after two tries. I did “catch” someone else’s fly on the Taccoa River that was stuck in the same bush as mine. It was nearly impossible to separate the mess.

All was not lost. We visited a great craft fair in Blue Ridge, GA. (I neglected to put on some sunblock and my neck got fried.) My honey likes to buy something for me at craft shows but I didn’t find anything that thrilled me. As we were leaving I walked into an antique store and found a beautiful tiger eye or cat’s eye necklace for only $12.00. Similar ones online were much more expensive. What was so interesting about this antique store was the quantity of “crafts” that had been donated that apparently didn’t sell at the craft shows. There were thousands of handcrafted items, art, and vintage neckwear. The necklaces were hanging on hooks a dozen deep.

The KOA campground in Blue Ridge, GA was great and right on the Toccoa River. Despite being nearly full the atmosphere was very quiet and the grounds were scrupulously maintained. Kids on bicycles, skateboards, and scooters quietly circled the area all day and into the evening. It was a sharp contrast to what we see on the news every day. The last thing we observed our last night was endearing. We observed a man outside his motor home moving his picnic table and chairs enough to make a clearing. He started some music so low we couldn’t hear it, but his wife came out and they danced together in near darkness. It was so sweet.