Shiyo nagad, my name is Ilayani Blake Wachacha, and I am the newly crowned 2015-2016 Teen Miss Cherokee. I would like to take a moment to send a sincere thank you to all those who supported me with reaching one of my lifetime goals.

Siyo, on Oct. 7, I was crowned Little Miss Cherokee 2015-2016. I am still filled with excitement and look forward to representing the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians with great pride.

I was discussing doing a story, with a friend from Big Cove, on the unexplainable happenings that incite fear and puzzlement here on the Boundary, stories usually revisited this time of year.

Thank you Chief Lambert for opening that “blind eye”

The family of Nannie “Bunny” Sampson Morris would like to express sincere gratitude to all friends and relatives who stopped by to be with us; offered prayers, hugs, comforting words and sang during Bunny’s illness and passing.

I just wanted to say that after reading the article about Rob Bishop (House Natural Resources Chairman calls Native American artifacts ‘bull crap’), in my opinion he had a lot of gall to say what he said about Native artifacts!

I am writing to let you know that I think your idea (Commentary: Support Miss Cherokee…and, a new pageant format) of having several days in between the main parts of the contest, the interview and the crowning to possibly eliminate any scoring issues is a great idea.

One of the most neglected areas of tourism development is customer service training; not just on the Qualla Boundary, but in western North Carolina.