At Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity, we don’t just build houses. Our staff, volunteers and donors change lives. At the recent home dedication for the McMillan family, Pat Henke, assistant director for Asheville City Schools Preschool and program director for Early Head Start spoke warmly and enthusiastically about one of her employees — the new … Read more
Here at Xpress, we're suggesting retro kitsch for the perfect, easily pulled together theme for your holiday parties. Last week, we recommended in all seriousness that you serve Krystal burgers on a silver tray, speared with toothpicks. OK, maybe we were joking, but if you actually do that this year, please send pictures. Now, we're … Read more
There's something about the holidays that brings out the best and the worst in each of us. Our inner Tiny Tims and Scrooges, Santa's little helpers and Grinches, George Baileys and Clark Griswolds. Of course, there's a big difference between acting out an archetype — say, a Magi or an angel with an enlightened gift … Read more
Ask Walter Harrill about his farm, Imladris, and there are two things he’ll want you to know right off the bat: No. 1, it’s a family farm (his son, Andy, is the seventh generation on the property). No. 2, it’s a sustainable farm. Both have everything in the world to do with each other. “When … Read more
Here’s the skinny on poinsettias, and why I buy mine every year instead of growing them. First, poinsettias are known as a short-day, or photoperiodic, plant. That means they can’t be exposed to more than 12 hours of daylight. If they are, they will not initiate flowering to eventually turn that beautiful red color. The … Read more
A group of alleged vandals dubbed the "Asheville 11" once again grabbed headlines last week. About 40 people gathered Dec. 1 to support the suspects in a May 1 downtown vandalism spree that resulted in damage to several locally owned businesses. In the online post "Anarchists March in Protest of APD, Gentrification," Mountain Xpress reported … Read more
Skin covered with blistering scabs, the little girl stares at the “blanc” doctor examining her wounds. An older boy, another orphan, gently unbuttons the strap on her pink dress and lifts her arm, revealing a yellow, golf-ball-sized abscess protruding from black skin. She starts to cry. To learn more about Mission MANNA and how you … Read more
Despite the rainiest, nastiest weather in recent memory, more than 80 people gathered at the W.C. Reid Center Nov. 30 for a special community meeting hosted by the Asheville City Council. Perched on folding chairs in the auditorium, the audience, mostly residents of the neighborhoods just south of downtown Asheville, had braved the weather to … Read more
