George Real Estate Group Radio Broadcast

How An Appalachian Storyteller Keeps Tradition Alive While Our Local Housing Market Finds Its Balance

• George Real Estate Group

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Hungry for a story that feels like home? We bring together apple-pie gratitude, a clear-eyed look at Henderson County’s housing market, and the voice of Virginia “Blackfeather” King Thompson, a Cherokee Appalachian storyteller whose words turn local history into living memory. From the naming of Little Hungry and Big Hungry to the spark that keeps kids spellbound, this conversation celebrates the way stories anchor identity and help a community move with purpose.

We open with ten years on the air and a tradition of thanking clients, then cut through the noise around real estate headlines. Inventory is up, days on market are longer, and prices have softened a touch—but activity remains steady, with more homes sold over the last twelve months than the previous year. We talk strategy for buyers and sellers in a calmer landscape: realistic pricing, thoughtful presentation, and patient, well-advised decisions that protect wealth and preserve legacy. Independence isn’t behind you; it’s the next right choice, made with clarity.

Blackfeather shares her path from listening to elders to captivating classrooms, and the honor behind her name—black for strength, feather for honor—bestowed by a fellow Cherokee woman. She explains how to engage children without gimmicks, why imagination is a skill to practice, and what it would take to grow the next generation of local storytellers. Along the way, we spotlight her upcoming appearance at the Henderson County Curb Market and the lifelong friendship that nominated her as our Hometown Hero, proof that community is built on small, consistent acts of care.

If you love local culture, want a grounded view of the Henderson County market, or need a nudge to start telling your own story, this one’s for you. Subscribe, share with a neighbor, and leave a review to help more folks find these hometown voices.

SPEAKER_04:

The George Real Estate Group Radio broadcast is celebrating 10 years on WHKP. The George Real Estate Group is celebrating 10 years on the radio live every Thursday morning at 1005 on WHKP 107.7 FM and AM 1450, and streaming online at WHKP.com. Each Friday morning at 8.45, the George Real Estate Group presents the Hometown Hero Award to someone in our community who goes above and beyond to make our hometown a better place to live. Here's this week's Hometown Hero Show. How are you doing, Noah?

SPEAKER_05:

Well, so thankful and happy Friday, and just so much to be grateful for. I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday and so grateful to be here on our Hometown Hero series.

SPEAKER_04:

We had a good show yesterday. You and I chatted, and uh and I gotta tell you, he brought me an apple pie. It's as big around as one of the tires on my truck out there. But it's got a big hole in that tire right now. Right. We thank you very much, sir, for uh your pie day. That's a distribution you do every year, right?

SPEAKER_05:

We do, and it's it's a it's so fun to connect with our clients and the community and just a small gesture of thanks and uh thanking our clients and appreciating our clients that we do every uh the week of Thanksgiving.

SPEAKER_04:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05:

Well, the real estate business uh looking ahead to 2026. Well, even before we get to 2026, we're still busy. There's 2026. There's still plenty to do right now, and we're so grateful we've had the privilege of helping so many families, and we're continuing to help families, and we've helped more families this year than we did last year. And we keep growing, we keep helping, you know, we keep uh connecting with our clients and and in the market. You know, it's this is this was a conversation around the Thanksgiving table yesterday, you know, like how's the market doing? And and is it gonna what's you know, is it gonna get better and what's the story? And you know, you gotta be careful about all the headlines. You know, the headlines are you know saying the sky's falling, and you know, the the market it's softer, it's it's not certainly not uh of anything of alarm. I mean, there's more inventory, homes are taking a little bit longer to sell, days on market have increased, the prices are are soft, they've come down a couple percent, but it's not like again, they're not having dramatic drops. Uh in the inventory levels have increased. So, again, it's a the the interesting thing to note though, even in that environment, there's been more homes sold in the last 12 months versus the previous 12 months. So, I mean, it's a steady market here in Henderson County.

SPEAKER_04:

Here in Henderson County. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_05:

And so we're helping people every day. And uh, you know, we we love helping our clients, we love advocating for our clients, we love hearing our clients' stories because it's just it's the stories that connect us, and it's the stories that you know, everybody's got a story, and we love hearing our clients' stories.

SPEAKER_04:

Well, you're in luck today, my friend. You teed it up very well to welcome our uh hometown hero, Virginia King Thompson. Virginia, good morning.

SPEAKER_02:

Good morning.

SPEAKER_04:

How are you?

SPEAKER_02:

I am great.

SPEAKER_04:

Well, uh, introduce us to your guest, or wait, maybe I maybe I got that the other way around. Who's the guest?

SPEAKER_02:

Uh I have with me today uh Bernice Jones, and we grew up together.

SPEAKER_04:

She nominated you to be our hometown hero.

SPEAKER_02:

I mean, I was surprised. She gets me into trouble sometimes.

SPEAKER_04:

You two look like you could get into trouble. Well, uh the good kind of trouble is good trouble. Yeah, the good trouble. Uh Virginia, tell us about uh telling stories. You are uh an Appalachian storyteller, and we talked a little bit before we went on the air. Uh there's some great stories around rolling around these Appalachian mountains, and you you tell a lot of them, don't you?

SPEAKER_02:

I do. I tell many, many stories. Uh I'm not happy if I'm not telling stories. I grew up telling stories and listening to some very good storytellers, not only here in Henderson County, but family, but also uh storytellers in Cherokee because I am of Cherokee descent and I'm very proud of that.

SPEAKER_04:

Absolutely, yeah.

SPEAKER_02:

And I am a true native of Henderson County, though. Born, they I've been here all my life, never wanted to live anywhere else.

SPEAKER_05:

And who could blame you? I mean, I I tell people all the time I'm so biased to where we live. Was your and your family was here too in multiple generations? Yes, yes. So w who did you start listening to as a child that was telling stories that made you say, I I want to I want to do that?

SPEAKER_02:

Well, I listened to stories because back then stories were told, not like it is today. But I listened to family members and uh elders of the Cherokee tribe that told stories, and I loved all these stories, and they fascinated me. And I started creating my own stories, and my mother thought there was something wrong with me because I'd create these stories and I'd get up and tell 'em. And she told the doctor, uh, something's not right. The doctor said, You leave her alone. She is using her imagination, and you leave her alone. And I do have a big imagination.

SPEAKER_04:

Good for you. Good for you. Uh where does uh uh where where do so you started listening to I'm very intrigued by your uh your Native American heritage and the Cherokee part of this. Yes. Uh uh I grew up in Appalachia myself and and I've heard those stories and been around storytellers and and and uh but not of the of the Native American side of it. Uh maybe uh you have a a short story that uh would involve some Cherokee stories?

SPEAKER_02:

Yes, I do. And this involves not only a Cherokee person but Henderson County.

SPEAKER_04:

Oh please, please, would you, Virginia?

SPEAKER_02:

Yes. Uh here in Henderson County we have uh Little Hungry and Big Hungry. One is a creek, one is a river. And how did they get their names? Long ago, a Cherokee man was walking through the mountains and he had been walking long time and he came to this creek and he s rubbed his belly and he said, Hmm, little hungry. He walked on and he finally came to the river. He rubbed his belly and he said, Hmm, big hungry. And that's how they got their names from a cherry key man.

SPEAKER_04:

It was hungry. Thank you. I've always wondered where those names came from.

SPEAKER_01:

Now you know.

SPEAKER_04:

So you do this uh i in uh the schools?

SPEAKER_02:

Yes.

SPEAKER_04:

You still do that? Oh, yes. Really? Tell us about going to the schools and and children's eyes when you tell these stories.

SPEAKER_02:

Th I never have a misbehaving child. They all are good listeners, and teachers say I mesmerize them or I sprinkle magic powder on them, but I don't. I just I'm still kind of a child myself and I relate to them. And um, it's fun to tell stories to them, and I also encourage them, you create a story, use your imagination. And uh about sixty years I have been in schools and with other groups, and I thoroughly enjoy it.

SPEAKER_05:

It's amazing. Can you tell us about your friendship with Miss Jones? And by the way, Miss Jones nominated you with a beautiful handwritten note and uh and again, can you tell us about y'all's your your friendship?

SPEAKER_02:

Well, we grew up together, and uh her daddy and my daddy were friends, and th they would visit each other and she'd come along sometimes and we'd play and have a good time. And then when we started school, uh we were in school together.

SPEAKER_05:

You've been friends since childhood. Yes. That's incredible.

SPEAKER_02:

Never had a hard work. Never had a hard hard work.

SPEAKER_05:

That's amazing.

SPEAKER_02:

That's what you call a true friend.

SPEAKER_05:

Absolutely. Can you tell us about your name? I understand uh you're you're called Blackfeather. Yes.

SPEAKER_02:

Uh that is the name that I work under. Uh my full name is Virginia, Elizabeth, Matilda, King, Thompson. I have a long name. But uh most American Indians do not go by what people think of as an Indian name today. But if you are a performer, storyteller, powwow dancer, you might have a special name. You do not choose that name for yourself, it is given to you as an honor by another American Indian. My name was given to me many years ago by another Cherokee woman, and we had been at a school together for a week, and on our last day together as we sat and ate lunch, she said, I am going to give you your Indian name. Ooh, I was so excited. That was an honor. She said, I name you Black Feather. The meaning is black means strength, feather means honor. And she said that to work with people, you must be a very strong person, and you must be a person of honor. So that is the meaning of my name.

SPEAKER_04:

That's amazing. That is fascinating. That really, really is. I knew you were gonna be a great guest this morning. Um you know, you talking about making up stories. That's what Dolly Parton says about her song. That she just makes up stories.

SPEAKER_02:

Right.

SPEAKER_04:

And and that that's deep rooted in Appalachia, too. It is. Just like you said. Have you uh ever th written a song or talked about that?

SPEAKER_02:

I do not sing.

SPEAKER_04:

Okay.

SPEAKER_02:

I play no musical instruments, but when I hear some good music, I have to dance. I g I hit the floor. But uh I have never written I did write something one time. It was I was doing at Anderson College a program for school teachers about how to teach about American Indians in school. And I knew there was something that I wanted to say, but in a special way. And I woke up in the middle of the night and in my mind I heard, What color are you? The next morning I surprised myself, I wrote down these words, and that is the only thing I have ever written, and it is what color are you? What color am I? But I do not express myself on paper. People say, Do you write down your I said no, they're stored in my brain, in my heart.

SPEAKER_05:

Can you tell us about the next generation of storytellers?

SPEAKER_02:

We do have a few storytellers that have started, and many of them are in Cherokee. I really don't know any here in Henderson County. Now there may be some that have started, but I do not know that. I wish that somebody would take this up and continue with storytelling because there is it's entertainment, it's educational, and it's fun.

SPEAKER_05:

I can tell these two ladies have so much fun together.

SPEAKER_02:

Amen. We do.

SPEAKER_04:

What was that movie about the two ladies got in trouble? What was the name of that, Noah? Uh Thelma and Noah. Selma and Lewis.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, ours would be Virginia and Bernays.

SPEAKER_04:

Well, uh, are you uh quickly we uh about out of time? Uh you got any uh upcoming dates that folks can see and hear you?

SPEAKER_02:

I will be tomorrow at the Henderson County Curb Market. Perfect. Oh, that's awesome. Uh so if you're listening and you need something to do tomorrow, yeah, come by. It's uh Christmas, open the house.

SPEAKER_04:

Yes, it's their big day there tomorrow. So excuse me. Yeah. Uh and we've got a certificate for you. Noah that's okay. Noah's got a certificate for you, and uh and it's got a couple of free lunches around town.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh my goodness.

SPEAKER_04:

Well, I like to eat and we just you both go out to lunch, don't you?

SPEAKER_00:

We will. She will go with me.

SPEAKER_04:

Thank you so much for coming, both of you, Bernice, for nominating Virginia as uh our George Real Estate Group Hometown Hero. Noah, get us in touch with the group.

SPEAKER_05:

Again, it's an honor and privilege to sponsor the Hometown Heroes series. Give us a call, 828-393-0134. You've built a lifetime of strength, wisdom, and independence. And here's the best part: you still have it. Every decision, every step, every next chapter is yours to choose. Selling your home isn't about letting go, it's about opening the door to more freedom, more time for what you love, more energy for the people and passions that matter most. At the George Real Estate Group, we believe independence isn't behind you. It's right here, right now. Our team goes beyond buying and selling. We're here to help you protect your wealth, preserve your legacy, and make sure Uncle Sam doesn't become your biggest benefactor. We'll guide you every step of the way towards your next chapter, your next opportunity, and your freedom on your terms. Call us at 828-393-0134. Find us online at realestatebygreg.com.

SPEAKER_04:

The George Real Estate Group is located in Flat Rock, North Carolina, near Hendersonville in Henderson County. You can find them online at realestatebygreg.com. The George Real Estate Group can be reached at 828-3930134 or stop by their office at 2720 Greenville Highway, Flat Rock, North Carolina. Tune in live each week on Thursdays at 1005 AM on WHKP 107.7 FM and 1450 AM, or stream online at WHKP.com, or download these podcasts wherever you get your podcasts. The George Real Estate Group brings you the WHKP Hometown Hero Series every Friday morning at 8 45.