Rotary Club of Madison County, NC

09/25/2026

🎨 SAVE THE DATE! 🎨

The Madison Heritage Arts Festival returns to Mars Hill on Saturday, October 3!

🕙 10 AM to 4 PM
📍 College Street, Mars Hill, NC

A full day of Appalachian arts, crafts, food, and mountain music, right here in Madison County. For over 25 years this festival has celebrated the creativity and spirit of our mountains, and the Rotary Club of Madison County is proud to bring it to you again this year.

Mark your calendar and tell a friend! 🍂

09/24/2026

🌲 Our Forests Need Your Voice, and the Clock Is Ticking! 🌲

A big thank you to Ms. Donovan Green, Resilient Forest Organizer with MountainTrue, for an eye opening talk at our recent meeting!

MountainTrue is a community powered nonprofit working across the Southern Blue Ridge Mountains to protect our forests, safeguard clean water, and build healthier communities. Their work ranges from river cleanups to local policy advocacy. 💧

⚠️ What's at Stake
The 2001 Roadless Rule protects our national forests from logging and mining, and it is now in danger of being rescinded.

🗺️ Most of the at risk roadless areas are in the West, with 25% in Alaska alone.
⛰️ The Southeast holds 12%, stretching along our own Appalachian Mountains with a small amount on the coast.
🚜 New roads mean damaged watersheds, harm to the natural environment, and protected lands opened up to private interests.

✍️ Rotarians in Action
We wrapped up the meeting by writing postcards in support of the Roadless Rule. Here's why that matters: the Forest Service is obligated to respond to and record written and mailed comments. An online petition, on the other hand, counts as just ONE comment no matter how many people sign it. Your personal words carry real weight!

📬 Missed the Meeting? You Can Still Help!
Visit https://roadless.org for guidance on writing a substantive comment, plus easy links to submit it directly to the Forest Service.

🗓️ Deadline extended to October 6! (It was originally September 21.)

Let's make sure the Southern Blue Ridge is heard loud and clear. This is Service Above Self for the forests, streams, and communities we love. 💙💛


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09/15/2026

What an incredible turnout! 🎉

Tim Anderson, Regional Engineer for NCDOT Division 13, gave a truly comprehensive rundown of three major projects shaping our region: the I-26 reconfiguration, the Hot Springs bridge, and Helene recovery efforts. Division 13 covers seven counties across western North Carolina, and Tim patiently answered every question from a very full room of attendees. Great presentation!!

Want to review the entire slideshow? Click HERE: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1lnAP9URja1y2pt_E05v8UFhUM4e7lEsG?usp=sharing

A few highlights from Tim's talk:

Planning for the I-26 interchange with I-240 and I-40 began 37 years ago. Section 1 added lanes to I-40. Section 2 covers the area above I-240 up I-26 toward Tennessee, including a new location for the interchange and a bridge over Patton Avenue, which will turn Patton Avenue into a surface street. Section 3 begins in November 2026 and widens I-240 to the Haywood Road exit. The final two sections are expected to finish in October 2031 and August 2031.

See all the project maps Tim walked us through here: https://www.ncdot.gov/projects/asheville-i-26-connector/Pages/default.aspx

Once "Future I-26" simply becomes "I-26," it means the shoulders and interchanges from the Broadway exit to Exit 9 have been widened to full interstate standards. Work is currently focused on the New Stock Road exit, since it was identified as the least safe exit along the corridor. Widening a shoulder there requires a new bridge, which is the source of the delay. As Tim put it, this whole project will take a long time.

Mark your calendar: there is a public meeting and open house on the New Stock Road exchange alternatives on Thursday, September 24 from 5 to 7pm at Weaverville Town Hall, 30 S Main Street, Weaverville.

Tim also shared that Helene repair totals now exceed all of NCDOT's previous repair projects combined, and gave us a helpful summary of the repairs completed right here in Madison County.

Thank you, Tim, for such a thorough and informative presentation! 👏

09/14/2026

🎓 Strengthening Our Partnership with Mars Hill University

We were pleased to welcome Mars Hill University President Dr. Tracy Parkinson to a recent Rotary Club of Madison County meeting for an update on the start of the new academic year.

Dr. Parkinson shared that one of MHU’s top priorities is making higher education more accessible. The university has doubled the amount budgeted for scholarships to help make enrollment more affordable for students.

This year, MHU is home to approximately 1,000 students, including 316 new freshmen, with students coming from 35 states and 35 countries. 🌎

Our relationship with Mars Hill University extends well beyond our meetings. MHU generously provides space for our weekly Rotary meetings, supports a Rotaract Club, and hosts the Hot Doggett 100 bicycle ride each year.

In recognition of this continuing partnership and support, our club was delighted to grant Dr. Parkinson an Honorary Membership in the Rotary Club of Madison County.

👏 Thank you, Dr. Parkinson and Mars Hill University, for your partnership and commitment to our students and community!

09/13/2026

🎓 Celebrating Our September Student of the Month!
We’re proud to recognize Aubry Coates of MHS as our September Student of the Month! 🌟

Aubry was nominated and introduced by JROTC Sgt. Major Wesley Beene and is pictured with Sgt. Major Beene and Rotary President Robert Allen.

As a dedicated member of JROTC and the Interact Club, Aubry has earned several honors and demonstrated an impressive commitment to both her school and community. She has successfully balanced work responsibilities and community service while maintaining a strong academic record.
Aubry is a wonderful example of the service, responsibility, and leadership we are proud to recognize in our local students.

👏 Please join us in congratulating Aubry on this well-deserved recognition!

09/12/2026

🎓 Celebrating Student Leadership!

With the start of a new school year, we were delighted to welcome our Students of the Month from our two local high schools to a recent Rotary meeting.
We’re pleased to recognize Ami Conate of Madison Early College High School as one of this month’s honorees! 🌟

Ami was introduced by Julie Young, MECHS Interact Advisor, and joined by new MECHS Principal Eric Blackman and Rotary President Robert Allen.

Throughout her high school years, Ami has distinguished herself through strong academic achievement while also stepping forward as a leader. Her involvement in student government and the School Improvement Team reflects her commitment not only to her own education, but also to making her school community stronger.

Congratulations, Ami! We’re proud to recognize young people who demonstrate the qualities of leadership, service, and excellence that Rotary seeks to encourage in the next generation.

👏 Please join us in congratulating Ami on this well-deserved recognition!

09/11/2026

Amanda Fuentes had a classroom full of ideas and not enough small hands' worth of tools to bring them to life. 🎓

She's a STEM Teacher at Mars Hill Elementary, and her students needed more manipulatives for building fine motor skills. So the Rotary Club of Madison County sent brain flakes and Play Doh. Now her students are turning them into crowns, Easter eggs, and shapes she never imagined.

She also told us about the teacher who made her fall in love with education, her daughter's kindergarten teacher Leslie White, who cared for her students' hearts as much as their minds.

Who was your teacher? Tell us about them below, or tag them if you're still in touch. 💙

Rotary Club of Madison County, NC

08/27/2026

All are welcome to attend this informative meeting about I 26 this evening!

Don't miss this presentation next week at the Marshall Library to learn about the latest update on the I-26 Connector Project. The Rotary Club of Madison County will host Tim Anderson, NCDOT Engineer, as he discusses the future of the I-26 project, the impacts of Helene, and how construction will impact local traffic.

08/15/2026

Inspiring day of action! Many with the heart of service came together to learn, plan and connect! Impact in the making!

06/28/2026

The time to register for Hot Doggett2026 is now! Don't be left out. This little racer is ready. Regular registration price of $65 goes up after midnight on Tuesday June 30. You can save $15 off of the late registration fee by registering between now and Tuesday night. Here is the link to register: https://www.bikereg.com/hotdoggett100