Part of a three-part series
The year 2025 was marked by local news ranging from tragedy to championships.
Here are some of the top stories the Cherokee Scout covered over the last 12 months.
JANUARY
A new chair
Newly picked Cherokee County Board of Commissioners Chair Dan Eichenbaum laid down some changes for the board’s coming year, saying board members will no longer be permitted to “shoot from the hip” during meetings and changing when the board will meet, among other things.
One major change Eichenbaum initiated is changing to one from two regular board meetings each month. One formal business meeting would be held on the third Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the Cherokee County Courthouse downtown, while an informal “chairman’s forum” meeting would be held on the first Monday of each month in a different district.
A new commissioner
The board of commissioners accepted the referral from the Cherokee County Republican Party Executive Committee to appoint local businessman Mark Stiles as county commissioner for District 2, which includes Marble and Peachtree. He replaced Justin Hyde, who was elected to the seat but rejected it because of conflict of interest laws as a county employee.
Once Stiles was sworn in, Eichenbaum moved to the next item on the agenda, “Direction of the Chairman on Conduct and Decorum of Commissioner Meetings, Meeting Schedule and Joint Education Committee.” Eichenbaum said he will not permit board members to bring up issues to vote on that aren’t on the agenda unless the board votes unanimously to add them.
Storm costs Ingles $34M
Ingles Markets suffered $34.9 million in losses related to Hurricane Helene, according to its quarterly SEC filing. The Black Mountain-headquartered grocery chain, which has stores in Andrews and Murphy, reported that Helene damaged or destroyed $30.4 million worth of inventory and caused an additional $4.5 million worth of destruction to property and equipment.
Company officials charged the losses in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 28, a day after Helene inundated much of western North Carolina. For the full year, net income for 2023-24 declined nearly 50%, to $105.5 million.
When a drone can help
Drucie Turner of Martins Creek lost her dog, Rumor, late Christmas Day and has been frantically searching ever since. Her 30-pound whippet short-hair doesn’t have an ounce of fat and isn’t equipped for frigid temperatures in the area at the time.
She hired a professional drone operator from Georgia to pick up the trail. The drone operator, using an infrared camera, identified what could have been Rumor curled up in the woods off Caney Creek Road. However, on the drone’s way back to have a fresh battery installed, someone shot at it. Rumor was never found.
Schools earn bragging rights
The release of U.S. News & World Report’s annual school rankings report was good news for Andrews Middle and Peachtree Elementary schools. Murphy High School has something to gloat about, too.
Peachtree Elementary ranked 579th out of 1,456 ranked elementary schools in the state; Andrews Middle ranked 247th out of 712 middle schools in the state; and Murphy High ranked higher than all other traditional high schools among Cherokee County, neighboring and nearby counties in western North Carolina.
Rest in peace, JR
Jackie “JR” Raymond Carroll, 64, of Murphy, passed away on Jan. 9, 2025. He worked in automotive sales and was a sports correspondent for the Scout.
JR was most known for announcing Murphy Bulldogs’ football games for 30 years. The press box at the school was named in his honor a few months before he passed away.
Andrews Walgreens closes
Walgreens is shuttering its Andrews store as part of a nationwide downsizing affecting around 1,200 locations around the nation. The Andrews store closed permanently on Feb. 26, according to signs attached to the store’s front-door entrances.
The Murphy Walgreens so far did not appear to be caught up in the national restructuring. Walgreens’ departure from the Andrews market leaves Turner’s Family Pharmacy as the only drugstore in town.
Winter storm
A winter storm brought 1-4 inches of snow to Cherokee County, resulting in a spike in emergency services and two temporary road closures because of traffic accidents blamed on snowy conditions. The National Weather Service’s office in Morristown, Tenn., released snowfall estimates for Cherokee County ranging from 4 inches in Andrews to 1 inch in Culberson.
After days of sub-freezing temperatures, snow descended on Cherokee County from the west, with the first real snowfall in Andrews about 10 a.m. Friday. “Dispatch received 279 calls during the 24-hour weather event, which was probably one of the easiest snow events I’ve ever worked,” said Theresa Creasman, director of Cherokee County E-911 Communications.
Appeal denied
Eric Rudolph, the man sentenced to life imprisonment for deadly bombings at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and an Alabama abortion clinic, will not get a chance at a new sentence, an appeals court ruled. A three-judge 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel ruled that Eric Robert Rudolph remains bound to the terms of his 2005 plea agreement in which he accepted multiple life sentences to escape the death penalty.
Rudolph admitted to carrying out the carrying out the deadly bombing at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and three other attacks in Georgia and Alabama. The FBI identified him as a fugitive in 1998. However, he remained on the run for five more years.
Fire at county landfill
An after-hours fire of unknown origin destroyed a 40-by-100-foot workshop at the Cherokee County Solid Waste Disposal landfill site on Jan. 14. No one was injured in the blaze, which started around 5:30 p.m., two hours after the facility closed.
There was a work truck and lawn mower inside that were destroyed, along with three 5-gallon gas cans and a pile of tires. A 600-gallon diesel tank and a shed containing lubricants and other petroleum products right beside the workshop survived the blaze; most importantly, a pump just a few yards from the workshop used to pump liquid that leaks from the landfill to a holding pond nearby was unaffected and remained in operation.
Ramsey’s latest venue
What does Murphy have in common with Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, New York, Miami and Washington, D.C.? Murphy will join these cities and others around the world that have Gordon Ramsay-branded restaurants.
Multi-Michelin-starred chef Ramsay is planning to open a Ramsay’s Kitchen, the first in North Carolina, at Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Casino & Hotel in Murphy this spring. It’s a pretty big deal for Murphy as well as for Ramsey, who The Mirror reported includes among “his ambitious goals” for the new year.
Help for Peyton
Cash prizes were awarded to the contestants with the most dingers during the Home Run Derby for Peyton Mixon at Konehete Veterans Park. Much more riveting than the where and when of it, however, is the who and why of it.
The event was conceived by 11-year-old Mason Lovingood in order to cheer up his best friend, 10-year-old Ralston Hogsed. Mason is the kind of best friend parents want their children to have. He and Ralston enjoy hunting and fishing together, but they absolutely love playing T-ball.
FEBRUARY
Old-timers
Being open for business for even more than a year is noteworthy, but one business stood out in the Cherokee Scout’s Business Honor Roll 2025 – the Cherokee Scout, the oldest business in Cherokee County, founded in 1889.
Second place went to Ivie Funeral Home, founded in 1932, with third place going to Townson-Rose Funeral Home in 1933.
A new clerk
Amanda Carroll, a lifelong resident and seasoned legal professional, officially took office as clerk of Superior Court in a swearing-in ceremony Saturday at the Cherokee County Courthouse. Carroll stepped into the role following the retirement of the Roger Gibson. Tessa Sellers, resident Superior Court judge for District 43, presided in the swearing-in ceremony.
Gibson, a Republican, was re-elected to the position in 2022; Sellers selected Carroll to serve the remainder of his term. Carroll has nearly a decade of service with the clerk’s office and more than 20 years in the legal field.
Big news on Big Lots
Cherokee County may not lose its Big Lots discount store after all. According to published reports, the asset liquidation firm assisting Variety Wholesalers acquire some assets from bankrupt Big Lots said the company would take over 200-400 Big Lots Stores, including the one on Andrews Road.
Henderson-based Variety Wholesalers Inc. owns more than 400 stores in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast, including Roses Discount, Roses Express, Maxway. Bill’s Dollar Stores and Bargain Town. Big Lots was the fourth-largest home goods retailer by the time it filed for bankruptcy in September 2024, ending the year with 872 stores after starting the year with 1,392 locations.
Space granted
The Cherokee County Historical Museum will be given room to grow following a decision by the town council to divide space inside the old Murphy Police Department downtown headquarters. The space, on the street level of the former Carnegie Library on Peachtree Street, became available when the police department moved into a newly renovated headquarters building on Hill Street in 2024.
The town council voted to allow the museum to occupy the majority of the old police station except the former conference room, evidence locker and storage room, all accessible behind the building. Other spaces would be used for storage and overstocked retail items, allowing the museum to vacate a storage unit it pays $85 per month to rent. The added space would also enable more room for Native American displays and exhibits.
Planning ahead
A divided Cherokee County school board picked a consolidation plan suggested by school board member Jeff Tatham to pitch to county commissioners at its next meeting, which focused efforts on central county schools and left Andrews and Hiwassee Dam untouched.
The board rejected a plan suggested by school board member Steve Coleman that was more wide sweeping and would affect schools across the county, leading to a higher cost. Tatham’s was one of four plans the board considered.
From HD to D.C.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.” Local athlete Payton McNabb of Hiwassee Dam, as well as other female activists, joined Trump on stage in the East Room of the White House while he talked about the executive order.
The executive order effectively bans transgender identifying women from participating in female sports. McNabb was also in attendance for Trump’s first speech to Congress during his second term on March 4.
Planning behind
The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners rejected a school consolidation plan submitted by the board of education, countering with a proposal of their own. The commissioners rejected the idea of a grades 6-12 school, saying middle school students should not be on the same campus as high schoolers.
The commissioners refused to discuss other aspects of the school board’s plan, which would close elementary schools in Martins Creek and Peachtree, move their students to Murphy, and reorganize Murphy Elementary into a primary school and Murphy Middle School into an elementary school. Commissioners said it is their job to build the schools, and the school board’s job to decide how they are organized.
Fewer homeless
An annual census of the homeless population in Cherokee County in late January and released in February showed a slight decrease over the previous year, from 218 in January 2024 to between 190 and 200 in January.
The survey, called a “Point in Time” count, was conducted throughout North Carolina in late January. Data from the count is used to determine state and federal funding to address homeless issues.
MARCH
Potty poopers
Town officials ordered that restrooms inside the Andrews Public Library be closed to the public following complaints about drug users clogging drains, damaging property and breaking the law. Andrews Mayor James Reid, on advice from town attorney Holly Christy, ordered the restrooms to be closed but available in emergencies.
Following that, Franklin Shook – director of the Nantahala Regional Library, of which the Andrews Public Library is a part – announced the decision on the library’s Facebook page. The development moved swiftly from the board of aldermen’s workshop the previous week, when aldermen complained about drug use and maintenance issues inside the library’s restroom.
Going to his reward
The Rev. Fred Bruner Lunsford, born March 7, 1925, to the late Inez Rogers and Pearlie M. Lunsford, passed to his heavenly home Saturday, March 1, 2025, six days before his 100th birthday. The author of 10 Christian books joined his beloved wife of 70 years, Gladys Greene Lunsford, who died on Aug. 14, 2014.
Fred graduated from Andrews High School in the spring of 1943, and he and Gladys were married March 17, 1944, following Fred’s induction and basic training in the U.S. Army during World War II. Fred was licensed to preach the gospel on Oct. 23, 1949, by Pleasant Valley Baptist Church and ordained in 1950.
‘Murphy survives traffic circle’
At the risk of jinxing things, the new traffic circle downtown avoided the calamity naysayers predicted. The N.C. Department of Transportation started work on downtown streets on a Monday afternoon, and by Friday had the basic structure for downtown traffic sketched out using paint and traffic cones.
Crosswalks at the intersection of Valley River Avenue and Peachtree, Tennessee and Hiwassee streets were closed. The four-lane configuration was reduced to two lanes in each direction, with a center turn lane and well-marked parking spaces. A former through-lane on Hiwassee Street was converted to a dedicated turn lane for Sycamore Street (where Main Street USA Diner is located, leading to the Cherokee Scout’s office).
Talk the walk
Murphy in Motion is a program looking at what the community already has and suggesting ways to make it safer, more walkable and easier to bike around by improving connections. The program held a public meeting at the Murphy Fire Department seeking feedback.
A good turnout expressed support for a Valley River Greenway and a pedestrian bridge over the Valley River (23 votes), with the most votes – expressed with colored stickers on a board – given to a Murphy-to-Andrews Rail Trail (27). Few votes were given to such proposals as sidewalks on Andrews Road, Hiwassee Street and several other streets around town, with a sidewalk on Texana Road drawing the most votes for sidewalks with 10. A Hiwassee River Greenway drew 12 votes.
The dog problem
The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners held a workshop to gather information about vicious dogs and what to do about them. No decisions were made.
The meeting was originally planned to be a workshop focused strictly on animal control, but morphed into a special called meeting with several unrelated issues added to the agenda. Once the dust settled from other agenda items, commissioners heard reports from Cherokee County Sheriff Dustin Smith, sheriff’s Capt. David Williams and Cherokee County Health Director David Badger; the sheriff’s office has been tagged to handle vicious dogs, while the health department’s animal control responsibility is limited to rabies control.
College gets an armory
What the county will do with its portion of the old National Guard Armory was answered – Tri-County Community College is buying it for $200,000. The facility will be used by the college’s Basic Law Enforcement Training program.
The Town of Murphy owns the other portion of the facility and uses it as a fire house for the Murphy Rural Fire Department. The town asked for the county to give it the rest of the building, but the request was rejected on a 3-2 vote earlier this month, with Commissioner Cal Stiles suggesting the town or someone else should buy it for at least $200,000.
Parking frustration
Customers complain that there’s not enough parking. Town officials complain that business owners are taking up valuable street-side parking.
There was another common complaint – no one is complying with the publicly posted three-hour parking limit. One business owner noticed construction crews working on a storefront next door to his business have been using street-side parking well beyond the three hours. However, Murphy police told him that the three-hour parking limit is unenforceable.
APRIL
Just what we thought
The National Weather Service released its report about Hurricane Helene, which ravaged the Southeast in September 2024 – six months ago – and left western North Carolina dealing with death and destruction from which it is still recovering.
Helene passed through three states before reaching North Carolina before sunrise Sept. 27, but it suffered the worst destruction, most deaths, highest rainfall, fiercest wind gusts and record flooding from the storm, according to the report. Impacts in Cherokee County were light; even power outages were uncommon, although cell phone service was knocked out for several days.
Do as I say, not as I do
Cherokee County Schools may not allow its students to use artificial intelligence to complete their assignments, but that didn’t stop the school district from using AI to evaluate proposals to consolidate schools.
The board of education received a report evaluating five school consolidation plans, with findings generated by the Claude 3.7 Sonnet artificial intelligence system. Data from a dozen sources was input for the AI analysis, including enrollment, staffing, building square footage, a draft long-range plan, funding scenarios and five consolidation plans under consideration by the board.
Voters challenged
More than 140 Cherokee County residents whose voter registration was being challenged in an unresolved N.C. Supreme Court election may have to fix problems in order for their vote to count. Republican Appeals Court Judge Jefferson Griffin is challenging more than 60,000 ballots – including 142 in Cherokee County – as part of his attempt to unseat Democratic incumbent Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs.
Riggs had a lead of 734 votes after all the 5.5 million ballots were counted, according to ncnewsline.com. A machine recount Griffin requested affirmed that 734 lead, so Griffin requested a partial hand recount. The hand recount in Cherokee County involved one voter precinct – Culberson, in which 786 votes were cast, 625 for Griffin and 161 for Riggs.
Street never opened closes
The Murphy Town Council voted to close a section of Hitchcock Street that was on town maps since 1921 but never opened. At the request of local builder Mark Kephart, with support from adjacent property owners, the town council took action to close the street right of way that was first mapped out in 1921.
The right of way, if developed into a street, would have connected Hitchcock Street to Old Ranger Road, intersecting Fort Butler Street along the way. There are no buildings on the path and its existence limited what property owners could do with their land.
Space available
Under health division orders to “depopulate” its detention center, Vance County sent 70 to 80 inmates to other counties earlier this month – including 13 to Cherokee County. The inmates, mostly with Henderson addresses, have been charged or convicted on a variety of crimes, mostly drug- and theft-related.
The Cherokee County Detention Center was built oversized for local needs in order to provide space for federal prisoners and inmates from neighboring counties with capacity limitations. Lodging inmates for outside agencies is a major income source for the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, though it’s unusual for Cherokee to have such a large onslaught of inmates from another county at one time.
Missing evidence
A judge blocked access to the evidence room at the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office because of missing evidence, and a State Bureau of Investigation probe is in progress. Presiding Superior Court Judge Tessa Sellers issued the order four minutes after the case was filed at 7:36 p.m. April 9 by District Attorney Ashley Welch.
At least one evidence item is missing from the evidence room, although public court filings do not go into details. County attorney Darryl Brown said the sheriff’s office was complying with the order, and he personally sealed all evidence locations.
Housing costs
Cherokee County experienced a significant increase in the price per square foot of a home, the ninth-highest increase among North Carolina’s 100 counties and the 293rd highest in the nation, according to a study.The study was conducted by SmartAsset, which analyzed the price per-square-foot of a home in counties throughout the nation.
With a price per-square-foot percentage change of 98.47%, Cherokee County ranked ninth highest in North Carolina, just behind Hyde County and just ahead of Richmond County. The statewide average was 66.37%.
A lesson in budgeting
Cherokee County Schools had been using proceeds from a quarter-cent sales tax many argue was approved by local voters for just that purpose. However, county commissioners took advantage of a caveat that allowed them to redirect the funds.
It was good news for county programs, workers and taxpayers, as commissioners were able to keep programs intact and give workers a raise, and they did it without raising taxes. But it was bad news for Cherokee County Schools, which lost an estimated $1.2 million per year that it was using to supplement maintenance costs for the 13-campus district.
Lines at the DMV
If you’ve had trouble getting an appointment at the local driver license office, it’s not just in Andrews; it’s a statewide challenge caused by staffing shortages. That could be a big problem for people who haven’t gotten the REAL ID upgrade for their driver license or ID cards, which take effect May 7 and will be required for domestic air travel.
The N.C. Department of Motor Vehicles will be offering 7 a.m. openings at 42 additional offices, including Franklin. Saturday hours will start June 7, including at 1440 Main St. in Andrews..
Social district gets a nod
The Andrews Board of Aldermen approved a social district, and now the town is playing a waiting game. The social district allows visitors to wander about while carrying a drink, but it’s up to the N.C. Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission in Raleigh to give the final approval.
Town officials aren’t certain how long that process will take, but are hoping the social district is up and running in time for the summer tourist season. The social district map includes the old Blue Stage venue that is being converted into an expanded Hoppy Trout brew pub, the Valleytown Cultural Arts Center, FernCrest Winery, Frankie’s Dog House, Snowbird Mountain Brewery and the Tattered Tartan Pub
New workforce housing
A cloudburst kept dignitaries from their shovels in December 2023 during the ground-breaking ceremony for Valley River Apartments, and a burst of tears punctuating the ribbon-cutting ceremony. The 56-unit affordable apartment complex offers one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments with rents based on income and ranging from $463 to $780 per month.
Successful applicants must earn 40-60% of the median income for the Town of Murphy. Applications will be accepted about 90 days before completion. No pets are allowed, and there is a waiting list.
Take that
A stumbling block over a 1.5-acre N.C. Forest Service facility besides Tri-County Community College has led the Cherokee County Board of Commissioners to withhold an $89,000 payment to the state that could jeopardize future fire protection services from the state. The parcel includes a small office building and shed and is used for forest protection, wildfire control, reforestation and forest management services in Cherokee County.
N.C. Forest Service District Forester Ruthie Edwards wrote a letter to Cherokee County Manager Randy Wiggins seeking $89,163 from the county to pay for operations at the forest service facility beside Tri-County Community College. The state would chip in $133,746 as its share.
Escape from work party
A Cherokee County inmate was captured about four hours after he escaped from a work crew at the sheriff’s shooting range in Marble. Robert Keith Revis Jr., 50, of Andrews, was being held at the jail in lieu of numerous charges, including being a habitual felon and bond forfeiture.
He was being held in the Cherokee County Detention Center in Murphy on four charges with a total bail of $8,500. Revis was spotted on the railroad tracks in the Marble area and taken into custody after a brief foot chase.
Next week: May through August.