A new type of pet adoption agency allows cats to live in a cage-free environment and interact with visitors and prospective adopters openly. Cat cafes have popped up in Morgan and Marion counties, with another on the way in Charleston.
Hurricane Helene Comes To The Mountains, Inside Appalachia
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Hurricane Helene dumped nearly 30 inches of rain in parts of western North Carolina and east Tennessee. Communities are reeling from the devastation. We check-in with Lilly Knoepp at Blue Ridge Public Radio in western North Carolina.
Also, a new book illustrates the tiny worlds of mountain critters, like a lizard that changes color.
AndWhite potters co-opted the African art of face jugs in the 1800s. A modern-day Black potter says his art can’t be replicated.
In This Episode
Hurricane Helene Hits Appalachia
Rosalie Haizlett Explores “Tiny Worlds”
Reclaiming An African Art
Hurricane Helene Hits Appalachia
As we were working on this week’s show, Hurricane Helene hit the Southeast. The storm washed away roads and bridges, knocked out power and cell service and left a trail of devastation. Many people are still missing, and the number of confirmed dead continues to rise. Mason Adams spoke with Blue Ridge Public Radio reporter Lilly Knoepp, who lives in western North Carolina, near where the storm caused the most damage.
Helene also rocked southwestern Virginia. Radio IQ’s Roxy Todd reported.
Rosalie Haizlett Explores “Tiny Worlds”
In 2022, nature artist Rosalie Haizlett set out on a trip to illustrate some of the tiny “critters” of the Appalachian mountains. Her illustrations became “Tiny Worlds of the Appalachian Mountains, an Artist’s journey.” Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Haizlett about the book.
Reclaiming An African Art
You’ve probably seen pottery with a face on it.
There are lots of examples of face-shaped vessels out there — from cheap souvenir shop knick-knacks to museum-quality pieces that can sell for millions of dollars.
Some are connected to African Face Jugs, an artform made by enslaved people in the deep South in the mid-1800s.
In 2023, Folkways reporter Zack Harold traced the story of Face Jugs, beginning in the basement pottery studio of West Virginia artist Ed Klimek.
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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Dinosaur Burps, Sierra Ferrell, Sean Watkins, Joe Dobbs and the 1937 Flood, Paul Loomis, Blue Dot Sessions
Bill Lynch is our producer. Zander Aloi is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Kelley Libby is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from folkways editor Chris Julin. You can find us on Instagram and Twitter @InAppalachia.
You can send us an email: InsideAppalachia@wvpublic.org.
In this special post-election episode, Us & Them host Trey Kay reflects on America’s deepening divisions, marked by unprecedented events and President-elect Donald Trump’s “us versus them” rhetoric. Kay explores what Trump’s victory means for unity and how Us & Them’s mission of fostering empathy might evolve in this new era.
On this West Virginia Morning, pet advocates say subsidies to spay and neuter strays can help reduce overpopulation, and so can creative efforts to find cats a home. Also, a look at what the results of the recent election mean.
After Helene, an Asheville guitar maker grapples with how to help her neighborhood when there’s so much need.
A church in West Virginia is helping turn unwanted guns into garden tools.
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