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Mountain Heritage Center to present ‘mini’ Mountain Heritage Day-style event

Mountain Heritage Center, a museum of Appalachian culture at Western Carolina University, will hold a crafts demonstration and music performance on campus Wednesday, July 21. 

The 1-3 p.m. event will be held on the lawn between the Forsyth and Killian Annex buildings, in the style of Mountain Heritage Day, the university’s popular fall community festival. And like Mountain Heritage Day, it is free and open to the public.

Among the scheduled performers is traditional musician Sarah Elizabeth Burkey. Crafters include Betty Maney with Cherokee rivercane basketry and Mickey Sizemore with broom making, corn shuck toys and art. Demonstrators will be Mattie Davenport with weaving, Windy Gordon with Scottish tartans and discussing historical influences, Luther Jones with woodworking tools, and Richard Tichich showing quilting and old-time sewing machines.

Members of Dogwood Crafters in Dillsboro will demonstrate nut head doll making while Mountain Heritage Center staff will show Western Carolina College’s old beanies and lead participants in making corn shuck dolls and traditional pottery stamps. 

The event is sponsored by the Mountain Heritage Center, the Office of Mentoring and Persistence to Success, and Hunter Library.

The 47th annual Mountain Heritage Day is scheduled to return to campus Saturday, Sept. 25, with a full slate of music, family activities and the region’s finest arts and crafts. Nominations are being sought for Mountain Heritage Awards presentations and there are some remaining slots for vendors. The festival features free admission, parking and shuttle service. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 festival was a virtual event.

For more information, contact the Mountain Heritage Center at 828-227-7129.

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