As a lad growing up in a small town in the North Carolina foothills, I dreamed of one day living in the magical cities of Atlanta or New York or Chicago. As a man growing older in the same small …

Rebecca Myrick Poteat is currently serving as Organist/Accompanist at First Baptist Church of Morganton. She has had extensive service in music ministry at a variety of churches before FBCM. Becky …

The Friends of the Library Spring Book Sale will be held on Friday, April 19, and Saturday, April 20, at the Collett Street Recreation Center at 300 Collett St., in Morganton. Volunteers are needed …

Last Monday, the Atlanta Braves celebrated the 50th anniversary of the legendary Hank Aaron’s 715th home run. Hank’s homer a half-century ago eclipsed Babe Ruth’s record of 714 dingers, a mark …

My culture has always been an important part of who I am. Recently someone asked me what makes me me. I responded by saying my culture. My Mayan parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. have …

Yes, we know the name of the franchise is “Hickory Crawdads.” And yes, we know that part of L.P. Frans Stadium, the home of the ‘Dads, sits in Catawba County. But we’re not afraid to claim …

I went to Morganton Day School, a K-8, tiny, private school. And by tiny, I mean microscopic. Everyone in the grade was always in one classroom together, and my grade was the biggest the school …

The Friends of the Library Author’s Luncheon will be on Thursday, April 18, at noon, at the Morganton First Baptist Church. The speaker for this year will be the publisher of The Paper, Allen …

One of the great things about my late-life return to newspapering is the pleasure of covering the Rutherford College Town Council. Want drama, tension, and a fair amount of fussing and fuming? Go to …

EDITOR’S NOTE: The following is the complete text of Dr. Gerald Nieters’ address at the Vietnam Veterans Day service held recently on the Old Courthouse Square in downtown Morganton. A story …

This might be a good moment to talk about The Drexel Barber Shop and its history in town. While much has come and gone in Drexel over the years, the barber shop has remained a constant. Lawrence …

College is a topic I have written about a couple of times in this column, possibly because of how soon I will apply (in the fall), or because seniors have just finished getting their decisions. I …

Burke County’s newest high school, Longhaul High, home of the Longhorns, is about to open. This badly needed expansion to our fine education system would not be possible without the support of our County Commissioners who voted in 2005 to purchase land for our campus. We extend our thanks. 

In what promises to be a memorable gala concert that she herself calls “a dream come true,” musical artist Alfreda Gerald returns to her hometown after a stellar performing career to headline the …

Burke County Manager Brian Epley has likened the development of the industrial megasite at the western edge of the county to a nine-inning baseball game. Right now, he says, we’re only in the …

Occasionally, a generation will experience an exceptional person who has the needed innate talents for the time.  Such a person was Henry Knox.

Several church youth camping/rafting trips blend together in a kaleidoscope of images, some of them regrettable, but there is one I that will live in infamy. We had enjoyed a trip down the Nantahala …

Politics is a touchy subject. Everybody has ideas on how everything should be run, and generally, people are not especially kind to each other regarding politics. And we can all agree that, as a …

TO THE EDITOR: Home is where your heart is and Morganton/ Burke County has been my heart for 55 years. Attention: Residents of Burke/McDowell and all over North Carolina, we need to be vigilant of …

Growing up in the 1970s and ’80s was, for the most part, an enjoyable experience. We were largely a generation of relatively autonomous, latch-key kids, unsupervised more often than not, and left …

TO THE EDITOR: Have you ever dealt with an indecisive person and just wanted to scream, “JUST MAKE UP YOUR DAMN MIND!”   I had just such a reaction when I read in the New York Times …

The Masters Golf Tournament is coming up and I am sure that I will watch some of the excitement if I have A LOT of time to burn.  I’ve never attended The Masters, but I have been to other …

“Politics,” the late Sen. Robert Kennedy once declared, “ought to be a noble adventure. An adventure based on the desire to help others, to serve others, and to do what is right.” Much of …

Readers’ correspondence to The Paper increases weekly and encompasses what you’d expect with an engaged local community newspaper: Story ideas; comments on performance; questions about placement …

In my many years of youth ministry, I organized and supervised numerous youth-led mission trips: From the town in Pennsylvania where they play the Little League World Series to the town in New Jersey …