(In the previous column, I talked about a Vacation Bible School that was modeled after a marketplace in New Testament times. It was a creative venture that was a total success, but went amuck at the …

The 79th anniversary of D-Day, which occurred on June 6, 1944, passed quietly this week. Indeed, World War II seems to be fading from the national consciousness as the conflict retreats further into …

If you work in a small business chances are that you work in a small office with doors open to customers. Customers are, after all, why the business is in business in the first place. Nothing kills a …

Leaving the past behind has never been easy for me.  When you suffer devastating losses at a young age (in my case, losing both my parents in a span of two and a half years when I was a …

When I arrived in Morganton in January 2017, I had one goal in mind — launching a second campus of the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (well, that and locating a home for my family …

People who didn’t live back in the day roll their eyes when they hear people who did live back in the day talk about things, “Back in Day…” The day back then was fascinating when comparing …

Even though he had finished his victory speech to a wildly enthusiastic crowd in the Embassy Ballroom of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, the TV cameras remained focused on Sen. Robert Kennedy as …

I’ve been a reporter for 30 years, and I’m still waiting for a story like Carl Kolchak used to cover to fall into my lap. Kolchak, in case you don’t remember, was the protagonist of a …

I love Vacation Bible School! It is a delightful summertime tradition of many churches. It is five or so evenings of teaching/learning Biblical truths in creative ways and fun activities. Some …

Growing up I was always a daddy’s girl. No matter what my father did or said, he could do no wrong in my eyes. I’m very proud to have had the dad I did. He took care of his family and was a …

EDITOR’s NOTE: This is an American history educational moment of those who made a difference during the Revolutionary War era and how they served our country. Most people do not recognize his name, …

I’m not one to judge other people. Especially if they’re still within ear shot, are carrying weapons, or might be strong enough to twist me into a pretzel. But how can anyone with a brain larger …

The sun hadn’t yet worked up the courage to show its face on a frigid, stormy, fog-drenched, morning in early January, 2023, and I was absolutely terrified. Only days earlier, I had undergone a …

Even though I got to play 18 holes of golf with my dad and papa a few weeks ago and I'm outside kicking the soccer ball almost every day, I wanted to write about something different this week. We …

September 2004 – I’ll always remember that particular month in time. I was working then with Burke County Emergency Services as 911 Communications Manager. We were smack-dab in the middle of …

An Assassination at Rutherford College Beneath this arresting headline, the newspaper story: “The unusually quiet little village of Rutherford College, 10 miles east of Morganton, was the scene of …

Kurt Reid laid out the pathway to a secure financial future pretty simply for a class of social studies students at Patton High School one afternoon this week: Earn Save Invest Repeat. By the time …

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first in a short series of columns detailing Publisher Allen VanNoppen’s alleged recent vacation. My wife, known around the house as TheBeloved, or TB, and I have been …

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Rev. George Logan is pastor of New Day Christian Church in Morganton. You recently had an incredible trip to Ghana. What did this experience mean to you and to your ministry? This …

If you’re prone to speaking ill of today’s young people, don’t start spouting that negativity in front of Draughn High School’s reigning super-sub, 83-year-old Linda Huffman, ‘cause she …

Once in a great while, if you’re really lucky, you write a column that touches someone in a meaningful way. You never expect your words to actually save a life, so you can imagine how shocked – …

I’ve been awarded a few honors in my professional career. Hang around in any job long enough and somebody will say, “Hey, let’s give the old guy asleep in the corner a plaque.” I’ve …

I recall that many years ago, Bob Shepherd and I were returning from a cemetery, having finished the graveside portion of one of the many funerals that we shared in my early years as Senior Minister …

Editor’s Note: Publisher Allen VanNoppen is vacationing. In light of all the recent changes on the Broughton properties he felt a walk down memory lane was appropriate with this updated column from …

In the first part of this tale, I told of waving to a young lady in high school across a breezeway and getting no response. A few years later I saw her again and wrote her a letter making light of …