Exploring the Valley
Discover the hidden gems, local legends, and can’t-miss experiences in Black Mountain and the Swannanoa Valley as we dive into the perks of Chamber membership and uncover what makes this mountain town a must-visit destination. Whether you're a local business or just passing through, there's something cool waiting for you!
Episodes
32 episodes
Selling Sofas While Planning A Festival And Raising A Baby
An 80-year-old furniture store doesn’t last by accident, especially in a town that’s changing as fast as Black Mountain, North Carolina. I’m sitting down with Olivia Tyson Warren, a Black Mountain native and third generation leader at Tyson Fur...
Black Mountain Parks And People
A new director walks into town and decides the best way to learn it is to get outside with everyone else. We’re joined by Jacob Guiot, Black Mountain’s Director of Recreation and Parks, who’s only a few weeks into the role but already deep in t...
What If The Person Your Town Needs Is You
A town can carry grief in its buildings and still be ready for a comeback, and Swannanoa, NC is proving it. We’re joined by Daniel Lancaster, founder of Short Sleeves Coffee, to talk about turning a 1920s gas station into a specialty coffee sho...
He Builds Houses And Blows Things Up
Fireworks look effortless from a blanket on the grass, but the work behind them is anything but. We’re joined by Jim Wright, better known as “Pyro Wright,” a local licensed pyrotechnician who’s bringing professional fireworks to Black Mountain ...
We Will Help With Almost Anything Except Snakes
A 3:45 a.m. dispatch. Flames pushing out of the Beacon Plant. And a chief who still talks about service like it’s personal because it is. We sit down with Swannanoa Fire Chief Anthony Penlin, a Swannanoa native who started as a volunteer firefi...
A Mountain YMCA With Big Energy
A place can change you when it removes the noise and gives you something real to pay attention to. That’s why our conversation with Greg Hall at YMCA Blue Ridge Assembly stuck with us: he’s building conference and retreat experiences that feel ...
Four Cats One Road Trip Zero Roaches
A new town can make you feel invisible, even when you’re surrounded by friendly faces and beautiful views. We talk with Elaine Looney, the new executive director of Black Mountain Counseling Center, about the real nuts-and-bolts of starting ove...
From Maui To Goats To Clean Windows
Maui to the mountains is a big leap, and David Carmona made it with a three-year-old, a newborn on the way, and a vision of a life built by hand. We sit down with the man many locals know as “David the Window Man” to talk about what people rare...
Yes You Can Shower In A Van
Paul Krause is the kind of person who sees a “safe” job as a launching pad, not a finish line. We talk about how he walked away from stability, moved into a van, and built a working life on the road through sports photography, weekend tournamen...
Walk And Talk Coaching In The Mountains
Coaching can feel mysterious until you hear it framed like sports practice for adulthood: clear goals, honest feedback, and small tweaks that compound. We talk with Adam Knapp of Knapp Creative Coaching about transformational coaching, how his ...
Fresh Food With Dignity
A packed Jeep, a brand-new town, and the kind of fear that comes with starting life over from scratch. That’s where Ali Casparian’s story begins, and it’s also where a radically practical idea takes root: hunger relief can look like dignity, ch...
Small-Town Pastor, Big Community Impact
A YMCA conversation in Black Mountain turns into a surprisingly deep look at what makes a town feel like home. I sit down with David Carter Florence, associate pastor at Black Mountain Presbyterian Church, and we trace his winding path from the...
New In Town, Falling For Black Mountain
A leap of faith can look like a rental signed sight unseen, a job change across state lines, and a promise to figure it out as you go. We sit down with Melissa Baker to trace how a Florida beach couple found their footing in Black Mountain, Nor...
Rooted In Bloom: How Volunteers Shape A Mountain Town
A beautiful town rarely happens by accident. We sit down with Anne Drummond of the Black Mountain Beautification Committee to pull back the curtain on how 135 volunteers design seasonal displays, care for street trees, and make public spaces fe...
Neighbors Helping Neighbors
A room lights up when the right neighbor walks back in. That’s the energy Tammy Potter brings as she traces her path from New Mexico to the Smoky Mountains and shows how a “service first” mindset turns a company into a community engine. We dive...
Love, Music, And A Town That Shows Up
Two lives intersect over paint cans, songs, and a mountain skyline—and suddenly a vacation town becomes the place you can’t imagine leaving. We sit down with Jeanie Grindstaff to follow a winding road from Tuscaloosa to Belmont, through Nashvil...
A Through Hike Led To Coffee, Community, And A Life In Black Mountain
A six-month hike from Maine to Georgia can change everything. That’s how Andy Gibbon stumbled into Black Mountain, fell for a local arts festival, and started a life anchored by family, music, and a small-batch coffee roastery that smells like ...
How A Mountain Town Shapes A Life And A Career
The most meaningful decisions aren’t made on spreadsheets—they’re made in the quiet moments when you ask, can I sleep at night with this? We sit down with Lee Ann Lewis, a lifelong Black Mountain local and mortgage banker who blends hard-won fi...
What Makes A Community Worth Never Leaving
A hurricane knocked down trees, but it lifted up something bigger: the kind of community you only understand when neighbors show up with laundry baskets, hot showers, and time. We sit down with Hope Burk—longtime local, real estate pro, and ste...
From High School Sweethearts To High Country Guides
What makes someone trade the easy path for a winding mountain road and a van full of strangers who become friends by sunset? Phil Holderman joins us to share how a high school romance, a deep love for Western North Carolina, and an obsession wi...
Love On The Corner
What happens when a single word becomes a weekly promise to your town? We sit down with Ruth Pittard to follow a winding path from childhood trips through Black Mountain’s craft scene to a tiny, solar-powered home and a public ritual that turne...
What If Home Is The Dream After All
Ever wonder what happens when a part-time high school job turns into a life’s work and a community legacy? We sit down with Lori Morris to chart a rare arc: from a 17-year-old filing papers at White Insurance to becoming an owner, mentor, and s...
A Relief Worker Arrives For A Storm And Stays For The People
What does it take to move from emergency response to real, lasting recovery—and why would a relief worker choose to stay long after the chainsaws go quiet? We sit with Operation Blessing’s Bob Burke, who arrived after the storm to clear trees, ...
What Makes A Community Taste Like Home
A hometown can change your taste—and your life. Cheryl sits down with Black Mountain native Ali Whitman to trace a winding path from teenage restlessness to culinary roots, from Atlanta classrooms to Asheville kitchens, and finally to a Japanes...