Around Town: 'New' Kite Festival coming; Lt. Col. Wilkerson to speak

This week's edition of "Around Town" features a popular local kite festival that's making a return at a different venue, a fall hike series hosted by Conserve Carolina and a retired lieutenant colonel speaking in Brevard.

Popular kite festival returns

For 25 years Barbara Hughes, owner of Narnia Studios on Main Street, sponsored an annual kite festival for the community, and she recently announced the festival is making a return this year... but at a new location and with a new sponsor.

The inaugural Flat Rock Kite Festival will be from 9-11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 17 at The Park at Flat Rock.

"I felt it was time to relinquish one of my many events, but I didn't want it to disappear," Hughes said in a press release. "The pastor at Pinecrest Presbyterian Church in Flat Rock, Rhett Carson, came to me with this idea, and I couldn't be happier to see it carry on."

Hughes said the last kite festival in Hendersonville had people young and old once again.

"Last year, our youngest was in diapers and our oldest flyer was 81. Many are first time flyers as well," she said.

For more information, call the church at 828-692-0063 or go to their website, https://pinecrestarpchurch.org/, for more information.

Lt. Col. Wilkerson to present program in Brevard

At 2 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 8, retired Lt. Col. Bob Wilkerson, U.S. Air Force, will present the free program “Winning the European Skies of WWII,” and the event will be held at the  Transylvania County Election Center, 150 S. Gaston St. in Brevard.

In his 29-year Air Force career, including service in the Texas Air National Guard, Wilkerson piloted four generations of U.S. fighters plus many other types of military aircraft. He also flew as a commercial airline pilot for 21 years. From an early age, he was drawn to flying, and he was especially influenced by the history of American air power in WWII.

Wilkerson’s program will present highlights of the premier American fighter aircraft of the WWII European theater — the P-38 Lightning, the P-47 Thunderbolt and the P-51 Mustang.

This program is offered by the Veterans History Museum of the Carolinas as part of its history series of guest speakers, and it will also be livestreamed on Facebook beginning at 2:05 p.m. Sept. 8. The recorded program will also be available later on www.theveteransmuseum.org, the museum’s website.

For more information, call 828-884-2141 or visit www.theveteransmuseum.org.

Flat Rock Village Council to hold town hall meeting Sept. 8

The Flat Rock Village Council will hold a town hall meeting for the village community from 7-8:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 8. It will be the final town hall meeting of the year and, while a variety of topics will be discussed, the focus of this meeting will be presenting to the community the Village procedure for allocating funds made possible by the American Rescue Plan, according to a press release.

For more information, contact the Village of Flat Rock at 828-697-8100.

HCEF seeking nominations for Hall of Fame

The Henderson County Education Foundation is seeking nominations for the 2023 Education Hall of Fame, according to a press release. The Hall of Fame provides an opportunity for recognition of men and women who have demonstrated measurable influence or made significant contributions to the growth and development of education in Henderson County, the release said.

HCEF's Education Hall of Fame is one of only five Education Hall of Fame programs in North Carolina. Membership involves the selection of up to five nominees for induction each year. Since its founding in 2003, over 135 teachers, administrators, support staff, school board members and donors have been honored.

HCEF is once again using an online platform for the nomination process. A paper nomination form is available upon request. Nominations must be submitted to the Foundation by 5 p.m Jan. 6. Detailed guidelines for selection criteria and

nomination instructions can be found at hcefnc.org/halloffame/.

For more information send an email  to info@hcefnc.org or call 828-697-5551. Those selected for induction into the 2023 Class will be announced in February 2023 and honored at the annual Education Celebration event scheduled for April 25, 2023, at Jeter Mountain Farm.

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Around Town: 'New' Kite Festival coming; Lt. Col. Wilkerson to speak