If you’re planning to pass through Waterloo, Ala. on Saturday, Sept. 21, best of luck with that.

Hundreds of members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) lined up inside and outside of the Cherokee Indian Fairgrounds exhibit hall on the afternoon of Thursday, Aug. 29 to receive a free book to help start them on a journey towards Cherokee language fluency. 

If the current long-range weather forecast of close-to-normal weather conditions pans out, the mountains of Western North Carolina should produce a typically bright display of fall leaf color this year – enough to satisfy both the region’s residents and the thousands of visitors who travel in for nature’s annual show.

Fifteen pairs of shoes take the stage. A butterfly festival inside, and beads of sweat running past their eyes as they gaze out at 1,500 people.

Jasper Thomas Garrett Jr. sat in testing at United States Navy Boot Camp when he heard a familiar sound. It was something that he had learned from his father while growing up and was now about to change his life.

In addition to sites along the Quanassee Path in Hayesville, people now have two more places to go to get information about the Cherokee and their communities, thanks to the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) partnership with Clay County Communities Revitalization Association (CCCRA).