By Gina Malone
Gina Malone, editor
In between hikes and walks on the beach, picnics and family get-togethers, or moments spent lounging with a good book, has Western North Carolina got things for you to do in June! It’s all here—art, music, literature and film. Not to mention festivals, food and gardening.
The Bluff Mountain Festival, in Hot Springs, began as a grassroots effort 27 years ago to save a mountain, and today continues its good work in raising funds for the Madison County Arts Council. Also, on the great sounds front, Brevard Music Center announces its summer season.
Exhibitions and art strolls abound. Check out Art on 7th, Mark Bettis Gallery, Momentum and Lucy Clark Gallery, for starters, but our pages are filled with many more can’t-miss art events.
One of the best things, to me, about living in WNC is the cultural richness of so many voices with so much wisdom to share. The Center for Cultural Preservation premieres its new documentary Nature’s Wisdom Thru Native Eyes and Las Flores, in Henderson County, serves as an educational and recreational space honoring the Hispanic community. Asheville artist Andrea Kulish has formed AVL4Ukraine, and Brevard’s Sarah Justice recently received the Governor’s Volunteer Service Award for her Magic Book Bus.
And, of course, with this being June, we have birds, blooms, trails and camping.
As always, there are some important days to acknowledge this month: Father’s Day (18), Juneteenth (19) and World Environment Day (5).
It’s also Pride Month, and Pollinator Month, with a packed calendar of fun and educational events all over the region.
There’ll be so many invitations and opportunities, that you may need Renee Trudeau’s list of ways to—gracefully—say “no” in order to preserve some me-time and your sanity. But here’s hoping that you’ll be able to find a few extra hours to take in all of the delight that is June in the Southern Appalachians!
Gina Malone can be reached at gina@thelaurelofasheville.com
