Laurel Magazine

Beth Poindexter Luxe Trunk Show at Josephine's Emporium
2025-07-12 11:00 - 17:00 (America/New_York) | Josephine’s Emporium, 40 Burns St,, Cashiers, NC, 28741, United States
“Vintage Fashion At Its Best”
THURSDAY, July 10, FRIDAY, July 11, SATURDAY, July 12 11a – 5p
at Josephine’s Emporium at 40 Burns St., Cashiers. bwpoindexter1217@gmail.com, 336-420-6054

Pickleball on the Plateau Tournament at Highlands Rec Park
2025-07-13 08:00 - 17:00 | Highlands Recreation and Civic Center, 600 N 4th St, Highlands, NC, 28741
Get ready for an exhilarating weekend of competition, camaraderie, and community spirit at the Second Annual Pickleball on the Plateau tournament, hosted by the Mountaintop Rotary Club and many of our local sponsors!
Join us on July 12 & 13 at the Highlands Rec Park. Play will be going on from 8am-5pm on Saturday and Sunday.

Sacred Sundays at Unfurl Wellness Spa
2025-07-13 13:00 - 14:30, 2025-07-20 13:00 - 14:30 | Unfurl Wellness Spa, 454 Dillard Rd, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Sacred Sundays is a 90 minute class of mindfulness movement and poses accompanied with an acoustic sound meditation held by Robert John Malone.
This is an all levels class focused of a variety of wellness practices to assist in raising our mind/body awareness through conscious movements and poses (1:00 – 2:30 each Sunday this season)

StoryTime at Highlands Nature Center
2025-07-15 10:30 | Highlands Nature Center, 930 Horse Cove Rd, Highlands, NC, 28741
Join local storyteller Ms. KK at the Nature Center this summer as she reads fun books & sings silly songs all about the great outdoors.
This program is geared towards elementary-aged children, but all nature explorers are welcome!

Nature Center Nights | Salamander Meander at Highlands Nature Center
2025-07-15 20:00 - 21:00 | Highlands Nature Center, 930 Horse Cove Rd, Highlands, NC, 28741
Join our Naturalists on a nighttime search for our secretive salamander friends.
All ages welcome
FREE | Registration required
(Weather dependent)

Origins of Rock and Roll - The Early 1960s (Part 1) at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-16 10:00 - 12:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Focusing on the early 1960s, prior to the British invasion by the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and others, this twopart presentation will look at the slow demise of Rockabilly, whose stars included Ricky Nelson, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, The Everly Brothers, and Jerry Lee Lewis. We will listen to the “safe” performers like Fabian, Bobby Darin, Frankie Avalon, Annette, Paul Anka , Connie Francis, and Neil Sedaka. These performers did not represent the “threat” to our teenage years and ears that Little Richard, Link Wray, and Bo Diddley did with their raucous sounds and questionable lyrics.
We will trace the rise to prominence of Berry Gordy’s Motown sound, “The Sound of Young America”. William Robinson, Mary Wells, The Primettes, The Temptations, Martha and The Vandellas, Marvin Gaye and other Motown acts brought a fresh sound to white America. Rhythm and Blues performers like James Brown, B.B. King, Albert King, Jackie Wilson, Little Richard, Rufus Thomas, Carla Thomas, and the Mar-Keys and Bar-Kays performed on the Chitlin’ Circuit and in major venues around the world. R & B, once known as Race Music, Sepia Songs, and Bronze music made its presence known in homes across the country.

Tinker Time for Tots at The Literacy and Learning Center
2025-07-16 11:00 - 12:00, 2025-07-23 11:00 - 12:00 | The Literacy & Learning Center, 675 S 4th Street, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
The Literacy & Learning Center is excited to bring back another season of engaging workshops tailored for preschoolers and their parents. The aim is to empower parents by demonstrating inventive ways to utilize everyday household items for their children’s educational benefit.
These sessions will showcase practical activities that parents can seamlessly incorporate into their daily routines, fostering a rich learning environment at home.

Garden Tour at Highlands Nature Center
2025-07-16 12:00, 2025-07-23 12:00 | Highlands Nature Center, 930 Horse Cove Rd, Highlands, NC, 28741
Join in for a free guided tour of the Highlands Botanical Gardens! Led by our Horticultural Specialist, a naturalist, or a guest expert, these weekly tours explore the fascinating native plants, ecosystems, and seasonal wonders of the Southern Appalachians. No two tours are ever the same!
Meet at the Highlands Biological Station Amphitheater. Come take a walk with us and see what’s blooming!

Roots of Conflict: The History Behind Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-16 14:00 - 16:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 created a global shockwave which threatened the stability of Europe and created food and energy security risks globally. This lecture will focus on the twentieth-century history of RussianUkrainian relations with an eye to the deeper historical factors behind the recent conflict. Beginning with an assessment of Russia’s two main justifications for war— ideas about Ukraine in Russian nationalist ideology and the role of NATO in Eastern Europe—the lecture will review Ukraine’s Soviet history from the revolution to the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
This more recent history—why the Soviets drew borders the way they did, why Ukraine suffered under Stalin, how Ukraine became an independent country in 1991, and where the West fits in—provides the critical context for the war.

Family Storytime at Hudson Library
2025-07-17 10:30 | Hudson Library, 554 Main St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Join us for stories, music, and movement at Family Storytime, every Thursday morning at 10:40AM.

Cashiers Quilters at St Jude's Catholic Church
2025-07-17 11:30 | NC
Come join us for lunch each Thursday at 11:30 at a local restaurant and then quilting at the church.
Held at St Jude’s Catholic Church in Cashiers.

Summer Writing Workshop at Albert Carlton Cashiers Community Library
2025-07-17 13:00 | Albert-Carlton Community Library, 249 Frank Allen Rd, Cashiers, NC, 28741, United States
Beginning on June 5 at 1:00 p.m. and continuing every Thursday until August 28, ACCCL staff member Michael Redman will lead a writing workshop that is free and open to everyone, regardless of previous writing experience.
The workshop will be a place to be introduced to techniques, perspectives, and exercises to help you develop your writing. It will also provide a safe,welcoming environment for you to share your own thoughts, ideas, and questions.

Revolution or Terror? Unpacking the Roots of Political Violence at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-17 14:00 - 16:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
“One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom-fighter”– so begins the debate about terrorism as a political concept and legal definition. While terrorism has plagued the modern world since the “long nineteenth century,” it remains deeply misunderstood. Seeking to understand terrorism as a sociopolitical phenomenon, this session investigates the full emergence of terrorism in Europe during the second half of the nineteenth century, when anarchist revolutionaries hoped that “propaganda by the deed” would inspire revolutions and create a new and more equitable and peaceful world.

Kids Zone at Hudson Library
2025-07-17 15:30 | Hudson Library, 554 Main St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Kids Zone features a variety of fun and interesting programs where kids can explore art, nature, science & more! Best for ages 5 and up.

Zahner Conservation Lecture Series | Lesser Known Medicinal Mushrooms of the Southern Appalachians at Highlands Nature Center
2025-07-17 18:00 - 19:00 | Highlands Nature Center, 930 Horse Cove Rd, Highlands, NC, 28741
Lesser Known Medicinal Mushrooms of the Southern Appalachians
Featured Speaker – Christopher Parker, Mycologist and Co-Owner The Forest Farmacy
Discover the medicinal properties of six lesser known mushrooms native to our eastern woodlands. A few mushrooms being discussed in this class are Schizopyllum, Maitake, and Birch Polypore where participants will learn what species have antibiotic, antioxidative, and anti-inflammatory properties from an experienced mycologist.
Sponsored by Vicki & Donny Ferguson.

Carolina Concert Series at Trailborn Highlands
2025-07-17 18:00 - 21:00 | Trailborn Highlands, 96 Log Cabin Ln, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Join us in the Trailborn Highlands backyard for live music and drinks during our Carolina Concert Series!

Shifting Alliances: Navigating the Future of U.S. Foreign Policy in a Changing World at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-18 10:00 - 12:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
The global world order is at a potential inflection point, shaped by a new U.S. presidential administration, a rising China, and a surge in global conflicts. What do these developments mean for the future of U.S. foreign policy, peace, and security? This presentation examines the critical issues that lie ahead, drawing insights from within and beyond the U.S. security community. Can the United States sustain its leadership on the world stage, and if so, what strategies will be most effective? Will the U.S. continue to wield its power as it has since the Cold War, or are we on the brink of a new paradigm?
Moving beyond partisan politics, Professor Matthew Auer will offer a forward-looking analysis of emerging flashpoints and areas of concern, providing a nuanced perspective on the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of the U.S. and the global community

Author Talk | Maggie Bailey at Hudson Library
2025-07-18 14:00 | Hudson Library, 554 Main St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Atlanta/Highlands author Maggie Bailey will introduce her recent cozy mystery, Quilty as Charged, on Friday July 18 at 2:00 PM. Books will be available for purchase and signing at this free program.

Lydia Barnes has made the picturesque town of Peridot, Georgia her home. As the new owner of the Measure Twice fabric store, she invites her regular customers to a sewing retreat at her friend Fran’s Cherry Log mountain home. In between sewing lessons and quick lunches, a severe winter storm approaches. When Fran’s body is discovered, murder is the only explanation, and the remaining six attendees are all suspects. In a daring plan to uncover the killer, Lydia must risk it all, including her life, before she is cut asunder and the bobbin runs out.
An enthusiastic sewist and maker, Maggie Bailey is a graduate of Stanford, Oxford, Brown, and Sewanee Universities. She has previously published two volumes of poetry and a previous Measure Twice mystery. Maggie lives in Atlanta and Highlands with her husband, two young children, her dogs, and a growing fabric stash she can’t help but add to on a regular basis. Quilty as Charged is her second mystery novel.
For more information or to request an accommodation, please call the library at 828-526-3031.

CLE | “The Canonic Phenomenon of Stravinsky's Rite of Spring: Primitivism, Myth, and Modernity” at CLE Lecture Hall
2025-07-19 10:00 - 12:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Dr. Ben Arnold serves as the Acting Director of the University of Kentucky School of Music, a position he served in previously from 2003 to 2012. He has written extensively on music in response to war and the composer Franz Liszt. In addition to writing for and editing The Liszt Companion, he is the editor of the Journal of the American Liszt Society. Prior to UK, he taught at Emory University for sixteen years, serving as Director of Graduate Studies in Music and two terms as Chair of the Music Department.

The Canonic Phenomenon of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring: Primitivism, Myth, and Modernity at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-19 10:00 - 12:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
This course will explore arguably the most outstanding orchestral work of the twentieth century: Igor Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. Following the enormous success of his earlier ballets, The Firebird (1910) and Petrushka (1911), Stravinsky unleashed a new era of modernism with Le Sacre du Printemps and its primitive subject matter, barbaric dissonances and rhythms, and radical style.
This lecture will discuss the Rite of Spring’s controversial premiere and innovative musical characteristics that influenced generations of composers, choreographers, chroniclers, poets, and artists

CLE |Trump 2.0: A Conversation with Andrew Weissmann and Benjamin Wittes at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-21 10:00 - 12:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Andrew Weissmann, a CLE favorite, and Benjamin Wittes, editor in chief of Lawfare, will discuss the Trump 2.0 administration’s impact on the United States Department of Justice, the FBI, the Intelligence Community and national security. Has the threat to liberal democracy and authoritarian capture that many predicted prior to the election materialized? If not, what “guardrails” have held, and can they continue to do so? If so, what strategies remain available to push back given the extraordinary legal powers delegated to the President in the Constitution and by Congress? How successful has Trump been in “reining in” the media and silencing those opposed to him, either by initiating criminal investigations or chilling their speech through civil proceedings? Weissmann and Wittes will assess the response of the courts to Trump’s assertions of executive power and his administration’s attempt at “structural deregulation” of administrative agencies.
Expect a deep dive into the activities of the President, the administrative state and the courts by two of the country’s foremost thinkers about democracy, national security and the rule of law.

College Essay Boot Camp at The Literacy & Learning Center
2025-07-21 14:00 - 16:00 | The Literacy & Learning Center, 675 S 4th Street, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
High School Seniors
College Essay Boot Camp is an intensive, hands-on workshop designed to help students craft standout college application essays. Led by Cameron Alexander, who taught high school English at Wesleyan School for eight years, this camp covers the differences between essay types, analyzes successful examples, and guides students through brainstorming, drafting, peer review, and editing. By the end of the week, students will have a polished, ready-to-submit college essay!

Henry Ossawa Tanner, America’s First Internationally Recognized African-American Artist at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-22 14:00 - 16:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
In this lecture Dr. Harvey sketches the career of Henry O. Tanner, from his roots in the AME Church to his studies with Thomas Eakins in Philadelphia and his blossoming career in Paris. Although he is best known for his religious subjects, painted after his arrival in Paris in 1892, Tanner has an important connection to Highlands, where he spent the summer of 1888 during a teaching stint in Atlanta at Clark University. His experiences here influenced two of his widely admired paintings of the African-American community, The Banjo Lesson (1893) and The Thankful Poor (1894), both exhibited to wide acclaim in Europe.
This program is in collaboration with the Highlands Historical Society.
Join us after Dr. Harvey’s presentation from 4:30 – 6:30 for a wine reception at High Country Wine & Provisions!

Nature Center Nights | What Bat is That? at Highlands Nature Center
2025-07-22 20:00 - 21:00 | Highlands Nature Center, 930 Horse Cove Rd, Highlands, NC, 28741
Stretch your wings and tune into the sounds of the many special bats of the Highlands area! Join our Naturalists on a walk through the Botanical Garden to watch them in flight.
All ages welcome
FREE | Registration required
(Weather dependent)

Sky Valley Garden Club Annual Arts & Crafts Show at Sky Valley Country Club
2025-07-23 10:00 - 14:00 | Sky Valley Country Club, 568 Sky Valley Way Box#1, Sky Valley, GA, 30537, United States
Held at the Sky Valley Country Club located at 568 Sky Valley Way, there will be vendors selling a variety of products, including jewelry, nature photography, wreaths, wool felting, suncatchers, encaustic art, quilts, cards, totes, folk art, pottery, several types of paintings, smocked clothing, painted wine glasses, embroidery, purses, cutting boards and, new this year, roasted nuts. Many of the tables will be set up indoors for a cool shopping experience.

Unearthing the Past: Geologic Foundations and the Quest for Lithium in the Carolinas at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-23 14:00 - 15:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
The geologic history of the Carolinas spans over one billion years. The forces that built the foundation of the Carolinas have shuffled us between super continents and provided us a wealth of mineral resources. Human history is a tiny fraction of geologic history; however, we have learned to exploit geology beginning with favored rocks for stone tools through lithium resources for batteries. Research into lithium in the Carolinas is significantly impacted by local, State, and national politics, as well as the global market. Even over the past few years, there have been significant swings in the enthusiasm surrounding exploration for, and extraction of, lithium in the Carolinas. Presently, the US Geological Survey is taking new stock of historically mined products across the USA searching for resources once cast aside as waste but now valuable.
The talk will summarize the geologic history of the Carolinas and link the formation of economic deposits to their origin story. We will see the role of dating rocks in mineral exploration.

Understanding Generative AI: Demystifying the Technology Shaping Our Future at Center for Life Enrichment
2025-07-24 10:00 - 12:00 | Center For Life Enrichment, 348 S 5th St, Highlands, NC, 28741, United States
Generative AI is reshaping industries and redefining what’s possible in technology, creativity, and decision making. In this talk, we will demystify the terms surrounding AI, explain the current AI landscape, and explore its exciting possibilities. From breakthroughs in art and science to its integration into business and healthcare, generative AI is a transformative force. However, with great power comes great responsibility.
This session will also delve into the risks, including over reliance, biased decision-making, and ethical concerns, offering a balanced perspective on what AI might mean for the future.
