Fall 2025

 

The road from the light on 74A (at Cane Creek) up to the Henderson county line near Gerton has finally been paved--the first time in almost twenty years. Before the storm, the road was long overdue for paving and newly painted lines. It took four weeks (rain slowed the predicted three-week estimate), but now we have a new surface, new yellow lines and border white lines to help drivers negotiate their way at night, especially. Thanks to Buncombe County, who finally got this project completed. 

UHNGCC President's Letter October 2025

The past few months have proven that not having our community club building is a huge void in our area. But Hurricane Helene is behind us, debris is getting cleaned up, highways are getting fixed, and the work continues on recovery from this terrible disaster.

We must, and will, have a gathering place. During this past year, the board of the community club has worked on creating a path forward. The building committee has done some hard work talking with surveyors, planners, architects, as well as the county and state on building plans, and with Conserving Carolina on maintaining the stream. As a community, we will meet on the site of the building on Tuesday, October 21, at 6 p.m., to discuss plans.

Here’s a glimpse of the proposed idea thus far. It is not set in stone, as we have permits, permissions, and other factors to work on. The state will build a new bridge on Kelly Hill Rd., and after the state completes that, we can move forward. It’s exciting to see what can be, and what we’re working toward. Some have asked if we are still going to have a building, if we’re still considering a playground, and more. Remember that what you see here is Phase I. We dream big!

These two diagrams, above and below, show a proposal from the architects. I hope you can join us on Oct. 21 (more details in this edition of the Echo) so the community can reconvene and discuss our exciting future.

Chuck Mallory

President, UHNGCClub 

Community Meeting at the UHNGCC Site 

Tuesday, October 21, 6 p.m.

The community club will meet again on October 21 at the club site at 6 p.m. The club will provide fried chicken and we are asking the community to bring picnic sides. Keep in mind there is no water or electricity. We will set up some tables and chairs outside. Rain date will be Thursday, October 23. 

The program for the evening will be to share our plans for moving forward, to answer questions, and, of course, to be together in fellowship!

​

 One Year Since

Hurricane Helene

News from Chimney Rock State Park

It’s hard to believe that Saturday, September 27, marked one year since Hurricane Helene made landfall — the most devastating natural disaster in North Carolina’s history.

Our Hickory Nut Gorge community, still on the road to recovery, has shown extraordinary hope, patience, and resilience. Over the past year, we’ve witnessed the incredible strength of unity — from guests and staff to partners and neighbors — who have stood by during this unprecedented time.

In commemoration, Chimney Rock State Park held a Celebration of Resilience on Saturday, September 27, and Sunday, September 28. A park naturalist shared stories of the Park’s history and recovery while offering a bird’s-eye view of Hickory Nut Gorge. At 2 PM both days, a ranger outside Cliff Dwellers Gift Shop led a guided hike up the Outcroppings Trail. 

As we reflect on the past year, we are reminded that resilience is not just about rebuilding—it’s about moving forward together, stronger than before. This weekend is not only a time to remember what was lost, but to celebrate all that has been restored and the spirit that carried us through.

See the website at www.chimneyrockvillagenc.gov for information about Chimney Rock progress since Helene.

Anita Jean Owenby - 1956-2025: A Remembrance

by Barbara Earnhardt

Nita

We here in and outside Gerton were hit hard when we learned Nita, a mainstay in our community here until recently, had died.  Our world without Nita in it didn't seem possible.  "She was my buddy!" one friend wailed on learning Nita had left us.  And thinking back over the many years Nita had lived in Gerton, some of us realized that Nita had been "buddy" to probably hundreds, maybe even thousands of people who had come to know and depend on her knowledge and friendship, people we never met who stopped by Nita's store for coffee or a can of soup, or a cold drink. She and her mother Margie were in effect  "news central" for Gerton.  Summer people brought their children to the store for any number of wonderful things, the store's aisles virtual treasure caves of candy or balloons ready to blow up, or trinket toys or head scarves or post cards or pickled somethings....  Some of us still use key chains we bought at Nita's.

     She was born in 1956 and raised in Gerton.  Her mother Margie and father Roy settled in Gerton from Middle Fork, just down the road. They all knew us pretty much by our first names, and Margie kept a basket filled with our backup house keys.   Or for some of us, anyhow.

Nita is survived by her Brother Roy (Butch) and his wife who now live in Hendersonville, her niece, Tegan Goins of Georgia, her nephew, Alex Owenby of Tennessee, and her beloved partner Sharon Oxindine.  

     Nita could be gruff, but mostly, she was patient with the dunderheads among us.  She was a founding member of Gerton's Volunteer Fire Department, and loved loved loved driving those fire trucks.  When she bought her own truck to develop a lawn mowing service, how many times did we see her at work at Chestnut Hills grassy meadow, and how many times did her rig have to be pulled out of the too-wet marshy places.  Anybody else, probably, would have given up and quit.

     Another business she developed was New Moon Market Place in Fairview where locals took good used items to be resold.  

     Nita found another neighborhood to cherish--she helped establish Medicine Wheel Way, and helped restore it after Hurricane Helene.  And restored the faith of the Medicine Wheel Way members with her energy and pluck in that restoration. 

            Farewell, old buddy Nita.  We miss you might

 (Nita's memorial ceremony will be held October 12, 2025, at 2 pm at Unity of the Blue Ridge, 2041 Old Fanning Bridge Road, Mills River, NC 28759.  Donations in her memory can be welcomed at Medicine Wheel Way, 583 Morgan Hill Road, Fairview, NC 28730.)    

Soup for Hickory Nut Outreach

We delivered 195 pounds of soup to the Outreach in October. Please remember to leave only requested items at the Gerton Post Office. The food pantry does not accept dated items. Thank you for using the bins provided at the post office for your contributions.                            

Saving Dogs

by Sarah Gayle

     Sasha was just adopted, making her the 30^th dog I’ve fostered since 2018. I started fostering rescues after my Catahoula Leopard dog, Sam, died at the age of 15. He’d been in my life since he was five-weeks-old, and I was heartbroken. He wasn’t exactly a “rescue,” but I saved him from a much harder life as a working dog with my brother. After Sam’s death, I couldn’t bring myself to adopt right away, so I volunteered to foster from Blackjack, a Catahoula rescue. Blackjack is a small, regional non-profit agency that helps find homes for dogs from kill shelters in the South and Southeast. The rescue also saves other breeds if they’re in danger.

     Before I became a dog foster, I did not know the extent of the problem of unwanted pets, nor of the causes and possible solutions. I knew dogs ended up at shelters and were sometimes euthanized, but had no idea of the numbers.

     After a bit of research, I learned that 2,877,000 dogs in the U.S. entered shelters and rescues in 2024. Of the dogs taken to shelters, 60 percent were adopted, 16 percent returned to owners, 15 percent transferred, nine percent euthanized at the shelter, and one percent lost or died after intake.

     By mid-2025, data shows intake levels keeping rescue organizations at capacity, according to a national database:

“…the data tells a story…Intake is slightly down, adoptions remain strong, but stagnant, shelters and rescues continue to face mounting pressure to move animals through the system as resources are stretched thin. Even as progress is made in some areas, many of the issues…crowded facilities, limited resources…remain unresolved.” ---Stephanie Filer, Executive Director, Shelter Animals Count

     The Pandemic shutdown increased the problem of unwanted dogs. Most experts agree that affordable services for sterilization are key to controlling the dog population. In Asheville, the ASPCA Spay Neuter Alliance performs many of the surgeries for local county shelters. Prior to the Pandemic, low-cost procedures at this facility were also readily available to the public. This center shut down during the Pandemic, as did other such facilities in the U.S. Once they re-opened, there was a backlog. The result was many unwanted litters of puppies. Shelters were filled to capacity, while folks who lost their jobs found it more difficult to feed their pets. So more animals were surrendered or dumped.

     The problem of unwanted pets is also related to socioeconomic and political factors which impact mostly states in the South and West where poverty is more common. Owners may struggle to find affordable vet care for their pets. Less municipal money is available for animal control and care, with needs overwhelming resources. Where laws regulating sterilization and enforcement of leash laws are lax, pet populations are high as are intakes of strays.

     The issue of unwanted pets seems to me to be a supply distribution problem.  California and states on the East Coast have tougher animal control laws, so they don’t have as many unwanted animals and demand for adoptable dogs is high. It seems sad to me that a healthy dog euthanized in one geographic area might be treasured and loved in another. But there is hope.

     In my role as a foster volunteer, I sometimes work with local shelters. I’ve noticed a change in recent years with more shelters having a volunteer or staff person who reaches out on social media to rescues and adopters. Or they have established relationships with rescues in states with fewer adoptable dogs.

     Shelters and rescues are working with dog transport services or volunteer groups to move animals out to the areas of the country where they’re wanted. The logistics of taking an animal out of a kill-shelter and getting vaccinations and permits to move it across state lines is a process requiring local help.    

     Texas ranks highest in the number of exported dogs at 635 per year. North Carolina is third with 158 transported dogs. However, North Carolina also ranks second in shelter euthanization rates at 14.3% behind Mississippi (18.3%).

      In 2019, I felt ready to adopt again. Because I had grown up in Texas where dogs were not always treated kindly, I wanted to look there. That winter while I was visiting, I searched local shelters and social media sites. One day I saw a photo of a beautiful Catahoula female in East Texas who looked half starved. In communicating with the local volunteer, I learned the dog had been dumped along a county road with her puppy. The county was rural with no animal shelter, so volunteers had started a grassroots effort to save their abandoned dogs.

     I scheduled an appointment with the volunteer and drove to the Houston area to meet the dog. I fell in love and took Lilly home that day. She continues to be a loving presence in my world. She has been a calming influence on our fosters, acting as a surrogate mom to younger dogs. I find fostering an abandoned pet and seeing it adopted into a loving home to be amazingly rewarding. In some cases, agreeing to foster means that a rescue can literally save a dog in a kill shelter from death. Moving that dog also opens a slot in the shelter for another lost or abandoned pet. If you have room in your home and heart, you may want to investigate fostering with a local rescue.

   

      If you know someone who is having difficulty supporting the needs of a beloved pet, resources may be available to help in your community. Check with local shelters or humane societies. Some food banks and shelters offer pet food giveaways.     

·       In Henderson County, Blue Ridge Humane Society has links to low-cost spay/neuter, pet food giveaways, vaccine, and basic vet care programs. Contact them at: 828-692-2639 or https://www.blueridgehumane.org/

·       In Buncombe County, contact Asheville Humane Society or Brother Wolf.

·       The ASPCA Spay Neuter Alliance in Asheville runs a lottery system where you can call for a slot in their low-cost program. Contact them at: 855-434-9285

https://www.aspca.org/aspca-spay-neuter-alliance

     How you can help:

·       Spay or neuter your pets;

·       volunteer to help a shelter or rescue, by providing care, transporting or fostering;

·       donate funds.

July 4 All-Gerton Celebration

Without our community center to shelter the many that once celebrated our country's birthday together, we all were invited to the home of Teresa and Tommy Garrick, on Friday, July 4. Several dozen of us ate burgers, hot dogs with chili, and veggie burgers, of course, and sides offered by those who came. After games in the yard, we visited with one another and then played our traditional games of Bingo. Prizes this year were gift cards from Food Lion, Hilltop Ice Cream, Local Joint, Angelo's, and Ingles, which Teresa was able to gather for Bingo winners of Gerton. 

Neighbors gather for good traditional July 4 food.

After dinner, we visit and catch up on our summer activities.

Plenty of room at the table for more people to join!

Below, host Teresa Garrick displays an American flag cake, complete with blueberries, strawberries, and bananas!

 

Bingo Winners Tommy, Lauree, Brenda, Katie, and Lee display their prize gift cards, while caller Margaret Whitt holds up a ping pong ball with a winning number -- probably B4!

Though our group was smaller this year, and hopefully as we work toward our upcoming phases of re-building, we will continue to gather more of us together. The December holiday party will be another chance to come together. Stay tuned for date and information about this event at Laughing Waters. 

The Echo of the Gorge is the newsletter of the UHNGCClub. Until our club returns to monthly meetings, THE ECHO will be published quarterly. Photos above were provided by Chuck Mallory, Sarah Gayle,  Margaret Whitt. News and photos for the ECHO may be sent to Margaret at margaret.whitt@du.edu for publication in our March 2026 issue.

Board members for 2025: Chuck Mallory, President; Ellen Boyle, Vice President; Karen Owensby, Secretary; Teresa Garrick, Treasurer; Board Members: Stan Mobley, Mike Hamlin, Marcia Ghidina, Margaret Whitt.