Oskar Blues Brewery is hosting its first East Coast “Burning CAN Beer Fest” on July 5 in Brevard, and WNCA will receive a portion of proceeds from this amazing event, which will feature live music, more than 30 breweries and upwards of 100 different fresh craft brews.
The Western North Carolina Alliance needs volunteers to help staff Burning CAN, and all volunteers will receive free admission to the festival.
Available volunteer duties and shifts are:
• Set up: 10 a.m.-1 p.m.; two volunteers needed
• Parking: 11 a.m.-1 p.m..; one volunteer needed
• Recycling: 12:45-3 p.m.; one volunteer needed and from 2:45-6 p.m.; two volunteers needed
• Water stations: 2:45-6 p.m.; one volunteer needed
• Beer Pourers: 2:45-6 p.m.; four volunteers needed
To sign up for free admission and a volunteer shift:
Email WNCA Volunteer Coordinator
Allie Nightingale at Allie@WNCA.org or call
(828) 258-8737, ext. 207.
NOTE: Please do not leave a comment below to sign up. You must contact Allie as stated above to sign up for a ticket and shift. Thank you!
The Western North Carolina Alliance, as a partner of the Southern Appalachian Cooperative Weed Management Partnership (SACWMP), needs volunteers to participate in an Invasive Exotic Plant Control Event on Saturday, June 28 along the Appalachian Trail at Mill Ridge.
The outing will be from 9 a.m.-4 p.m., and its purpose is to protect native plants from exotic invasions along the A.T.
We’ll give instruction on how to identify invasive exotic plants of concern in the Mill Ridge area, as well as how to use manual and chemical control methods. Then we’ll put these skills to work treating invasive plant species found along the Trail.
SACWMP will provide all equipment needed for the event. Volunteers are asked to bring lunch, water, and rain gear, as well as sturdy hiking boots, long pants and a long-sleeved shirt.
Carpooling is available from the Westgate shopping center in West Asheville, leaving at 9 a.m. and returning by 4 p.m.
Individuals or groups interested in volunteering may sign up by clicking HERE.
If you have questions, contact WNCA Assistant Volunteer Coordinator Allie Nightingale at Allie@WNCA.org or at (828) 258-8737, ext. 207.
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The Southern Appalachian Cooperative Weed Management Partnership members include the Western North Carolina Alliance, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Equinox Environmental Consultation & Design, National Forests in North Carolina, National Park Service, North Carolina Division of Forest Resources, and Mountain Valleys Resource Conservation and Development Council.
From the Transylvania Times:
Oskar Blues Brewery has announced that the first East Coast Burning CAN Beer Fest will take place at the North Carolina Oskar Blues brewery in Brevard July 5. Partial proceeds from the festival will benefit Western North Carolina Alliance.
Thirty-plus breweries that can will be pouring more than 100 different fresh craft brews from 1-6 p.m. Live music will start off with the guitar-driven blues of The Marcus King Band then segue into the rocking vocal harmonies of the charismatic Atlanta-based Shadowboxers. The day will culminate with a performance by hometown funky favorites The Jeff Sipe Trio.
Burning CAN will take place outside on the west side of the brewery and will also include local food offerings, such as beer-dunking homemade pretzel concoctions from Underground Baking Company, amazing delicacies from Little Bee Thai, and other food truck deliciousness.
Land of The Sky Mobile Canning will be operating on-site during the festival. Oskar Blues staff will offer several educational sessions, including a hops and grains class with brewers Noah Tuttle and John Silver, a tasting class with lab guy Dave Morris, and a Best of the Hops tour of participating breweries with Anne Fitten Glenn. Tours of the Oskar Blues brewery will be offered at 2, 3, 4 and 5 p.m. The Tasty Weasel will be open as normal from noon to 10 p.m. on the day of Burning CAN.
The Oskar Blues REEB Ranch-based Bike Farm will lead a bike ride to the festival from downtown Brevard, leaving the courthouse at noon, and picking up a crew of bikers at Lowe’s before heading to Oskar Blues. Sycamore Cycles will have a bike corral at the festival. A paddle trip down a short section of the French Broad River, led by WNC Alliance, will also finish at Burning CAN in time for all festivities.
The festival originated three years ago in Lyons, Colo.
To kick off the inaugural Burning CAN weekend, Oskar Blues will offer a free concert with high-energy, party-inducing Charleston boys Sol Driven Train at the brewery Friday, July 4. Music starts at 7 p.m ., but beer will be pouring in the Tasty Weasel starting at noon on the Fourth.
Join us for a Full Moon Paddle on the French Broad River Friday, June 13th.
Sunset is 8:28 p.m. We will meet at 7:20.
Put on the river about 8 p.m. and then paddle down from there.
WNCA’s Assistant French Broad Riverkeeper Kirby Callaway will lead this moonlit paddle trip.
Please join us to cap off the night with a delicious spread of Wine, Cheese, and Beer!
June is the month of the Full Strawberry Moon.
“The Algonquin tribes knew this Moon as a time to gather ripening strawberries. It is also known as the Rose Moon and the Hot Moon.” – The Old Farmer’s Almanac
Pricing:
- WNCA members and paddlers bringing their own boats and gear, $20
- WNCA members needing to borrow gear, $30
- Non-members and paddlers bringing their own boats gear, $35, includes a WNCA membership
- Non-members and paddlers needing to borrow gear, $45, includes a WNCA membership
TO RSVP & REGISTER:
Contact Education and Outings Coordinator Isabelle Rios at Isabelle@WNCA.org or (828) 258-8737, ext. 201.
(Please do not leave a comment below to register. You must contact Isabelle as stated above to ensure your RSVP is accepted. Thank you!)
The Volunteer Water Information Network (VWIN) is a stream monitoring program coordinated by the Environmental Quality Institute (EQI).
Volunteers collect stream water samples that are analyzed at the EQI laboratory in Asheville. Buncombe County stream samples are collected at established sites on the first Saturday of each month. After collection, the volunteers take the samples to a designated drop point (usually a gas station cooler) where the samples are refrigerated.
The volunteer coordinator picks up the samples from the drop point and delivers them to the EQI laboratory Monday morning. EQI tests the samples for pH, alkalinity, conductivity, orthophosphate, ammonia-nitrogen, nitrate-nitrogen, turbidity, and total suspended solids each month.
Buncombe County VWIN Locations – Summer 2014
North Buncombe: Flat Creek near I-26 at Exit 17 (1 site, #27)
Fairview: Cane and Ashworth Creeks at Hwy 74 and Cane Creek at Mills Gap Road (3 sites, #15A, 15B, & 16A)
If you’d like to get involved, contact Ann Marie Traylor at amt@eqilab.org or (828) 333-0392.
Join us in the Warren Wilson College Chapel from 1-8 p.m. on June 16 for a forum on climate change and faith, sponsored by the Food, Faith, and Religious Leadership Initiative at Wake Forest U. School of Divinity, WNC Green Congregations, Western North Carolina Alliance, N.C. Interfaith Power & Light, and host congregation Warren Wilson Presbyterian Church.
Given the realities of climate change, what unique role can faith communities play in North Carolina? In this half-day workshop, we’ll learn from local and national leaders about a wide array of topics related to faith and climate.
This solutions-oriented gathering will explore not only what challenges we face with climate change, but also the unique role faith communities can play in finding creative solutions.
Tired of another guilt-tripping environmental workshop that bums you out and leaves you feeling overwhelmed? This one is different.
We’ll focus on theological reflection, ecological resilience, and that much-neglected biblical virtue of hope. Our evening keynote will be given by biblical scholar and activist Ched Myers.
This forum is free, however, you must register in advance. (Click here to register.)
Note: If you register for the five-day Sabbath Economics and Watershed Discipleship course, you’ll automatically be registered for the forum on June 16.
Tentative Schedule:
1 – 1:30 p.m. Welcome
1:30 – 4 p.m. Workshops (2 tracks, 1 hour each)*
4 – 5:30 p.m. Outings: We will offer three options:
Forest Garden Tour at Warren Wilson’s Permaculture Garden
Birding Walk Along the River
Prayer Labyrinth Walk
5:30 – 7 p.m. Dinner/Fellowship (local BBQ and vegetarian options)
7 – 8 p.m. Keynote with Ched Myers (open to the public)
*We’ll feature two workshop sessions with three offerings each time. Subjects are:
• Climate Change 101 (including regional impacts
• Climate Change, Scripture, & Theology (including justice emphasis)
• Climate Change – Hope, Solutions, & Action
• Climate Change, Food, and Faith
• Climate Change and Congregational Life
• Being a Good Witness: Climate Change Advocacy
If you want to go deeper into these issues, we encourage you to sign up for the course linked to this forum, from June 17-20 with Ched Myers and others in Swannanoa. “Sabbath Economics and Watershed Discipleship” will combine classroom learning, worship, eating together, and hands-on learning. Morning sessions will be led by renowned biblical scholar and activist Ched Myers, who will focus on “watershed discipleship” as a guiding metaphor and theological frame of reference. Afternoons will feature outdoor experiential education in local food gardens. Each day will be bookended with a short service of Psalms, music, and silent prayer (Lauds and Vespers) as a contemplative frame to begin and end our days together. Find out more.
Register here.
Questions? Contact:
Fred Bahnson | Director, Food, Faith, and Religious Leadership Initiative
Email: bahnsoff@wfu.edu
Phone: (828) 553-3564
