by Amanda E. West | Dec 11, 2025 | Feature
CHRIS BROWN slid his card into the ATM and punched in his PIN. As he’d done many times before, he selected the amount of cash he wanted to withdraw from the bank in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Gears whined inside the machine before a receipt printed, and a metal...
by Amanda E. West | Dec 11, 2025 | Feature
THE UNITED States Army, the largest branch of our military, was established on June 14, 1775. Two years later, on the same exact date, the Second Continental Congress passed the Flag Resolution. This declared that “Old Glory,” the flag of our then-fledgling country,...
by Amanda E. West | Nov 13, 2025 | Feature
THIS LITTLE piggy went to market. This little piggy stayed home. And this little piggy was a Bedford County 4-H project? Founded more than a century ago, 4-H began with a mission of teaching rural youth practical skills in agriculture and home economics. The four Hs...
by Amanda E. West | Nov 13, 2025 | Feature
HIS SIZE and gentle demeanor were those of a Labrador retriever, but the shape of his muzzle resembled a hound’s. Like most of the dogs at New Destiny Dog Rescue (NDDR), he was a mystery. His coat was the shade of dark chocolate, and a bristly layer of white hair...
by Becca Roberts | Oct 9, 2025 | Feature
A SMATTERING OF sepia-toned photographs lies on the coffee table in Tracy Vannatta’s den. The pictures feature an old piece of farming equipment dating back to the 1920s. The Red River Special, a thrashing machine for harvesting wheat, is the thread that ties the...
by Amanda E. West | Oct 9, 2025 | Feature
WOOD SMOKE teases your nostrils. Buttery yellow, bright orange, and cranberry leaves rain down from the mature trees overhead. Rays of golden sunlight dance on Thompson Creek, beckoning you to spend the day fishing instead of being squeezed into your school desk,...
