It has been a busy few weeks in Haywood County, and everywhere I go I’m reminded of how many people care deeply about this place and are willing to roll up their sleeves to make it better.



This weekend brings one of my favorite opportunities to see so many of you in one place: the Haywood County Fair.

Haywood County Fair: Sept. 24th - 27th

I’m looking forward to reconnecting with old friends and making new ones at the Haywood County Fair this weekend.

With agriculture in the spotlight on several fronts, it’s a good time to appreciate what we have here in Haywood County — and few events reflect that heritage better than our county fair.

Along with the traditional livestock shows and exhibits, fair-goers can enjoy the rodeo, truck pull, demolition derby, entertainment, carnival rides and plenty more.

Please stop by my booth Sept. 24–27. I’d especially like to hear your thoughts about county government, the challenges facing our community and ideas for making Haywood County better — particularly things we can accomplish by bringing people together without adding costs for taxpayers.



As always, I’ll have my notebook handy.

There’s been a lot of interest in bringing people together to think big about what could replace the good-paying jobs lost with the closing of the Canton mill.

We’re now looking at holding a community brainstorming session in early October. The goal is simple: get people with different experiences, connections and ideas in the same room and see what possibilities emerge.



Watch social media for details. You can also find more background in my Sept. 18 newsletter.

A Few Great Haywood Events

A picture from the 2026 Kids in the Creek program, hosted by Haywood Waterways.

The past couple of weeks have been another reminder of what a great community we live in.



I helped out at the Haywood Waterways Association's Kids in the Creek event, where the kids were having so much fun it almost didn’t count as learning.

I also enjoyed running into old friends Marcia Tate and Lisa Ferguson at Haywood Regional Medical Center’s Power of Pink event, a major fundraiser supporting breast cancer screenings in our community. Both Marcia and Lisa took top honors in their age groups.

The Farm Bureau Insurance annual barbecue was another wonderful place to see old friends and make new ones. Thank you to our agricultural community for continuing to remind us how important farming is to Haywood County’s economy and way of life.

And the Haywood County Chamber of Commerce annual dinner showcased our business community and the importance of investing in our local workforce. The Chamber also continues its work around skilled trades, bringing together professionals from construction, electrical, plumbing, HVAC and other trades to strengthen that part of our local economy.

These are practical, locally needed careers — and we need more young people to see the opportunities they offer.

Looking for Attainable Housing Solutions

Housing continues to come up in conversations all over Haywood County.

The commonly used federal affordability benchmark considers housing cost-burdened when a household spends more than 30% of its income on housing. For many local households, finding housing within that range is increasingly difficult.

That’s why more than a dozen people on a housing working group are turning over every stone we can find—looking at housing alternatives, financing options, partnerships, and ideas that have worked elsewhere.

A couple of my "housing working group" members recently visited with Brandon Wilson, a Canton resident who is now the chief financial officer with Asheville Buncombe Christian Community Ministry.

He started out as a veteran services officer in Haywood years ago. He is now on speed dial with dozens of high-level government officials as he advocates for veterans nationwide and helps others get on their feet through the seven broad programs of ABCCM.

It was great to see Keri Hill, a Canton resident who has been promoted to Chief Heart Officer at the organizaiton.

My goal in visiting Brandon was to learn more about transitional housing, a need I heard as I conducted interviews across Haywood. This type of housing is scarce for victims of domestic violence who need a place to stay after leaving a dangerous situation, by those who have saved enough money while stabilizing their lives at the Haywood Pathways Center and even those who are leaving jail.

The problem is that the average rental prices in Haywood are beyond the reach of those needing a fresh start.

We learned so much from Brandon. If you're interested, let's chat.

As the election gets closer and I spend more time campaigning, you’ll probably see fewer newsletters from me.

I hope you’ve found these newsletters educational — or at least interesting. I’ve enjoyed using them to show you a little different approach to campaigning.

I never wanted this campaign to be primarily about catchy slogans, hundreds of signs or simply telling you about things I’ve done in the past. I wanted to listen.

We started by asking people what concerns them most. We held focus sessions to dig deeper into those priorities. Then, rather than just talking about the problems, we began bringing people together to look for solutions.

Over the past nine months, volunteers have contributed their time, experience, contacts and ideas to issues they care deeply about. We’ve explored economic development possibilities, attainable housing, farmland preservation and other community priorities — without relying on county government funding or staff.

Some of these efforts may lead somewhere. Others may not. But I believe there is value in bringing good people together, asking good questions and seeing what we can accomplish.

As I’m out asking for your support on the campaign trail, that’s the approach I’ll continue to talk about: listen carefully, understand the problem, bring people together and get to work.

Good government — transparency, responsible use of taxpayer dollars and accountability to the public — remains the foundation. But I also believe county leadership can help connect people and ideas and encourage good things to happen.

If that approach resonates with you, I’d appreciate your help spreading the word. With seven people running for three positions, we will need your help in reaching your friends and neighbors. 

If you see me at the fair, please stop and say hello. I’ll have my notebook ready.

We’re starting to see a little more political division creeping into conversations on social media, so let me be clear about where I stand.

I’m focused on the issues where we can actually make a difference — and that starts right here at the local level.

During all my years covering the Haywood County Board of Commissioners, I saw relatively few votes that truly broke along partisan lines. Most of the work of county government isn’t about being Republican or Democrat. It’s about housing, public safety, economic opportunity, responsible spending and taking care of the place we call home.

I’m not interested in sowing division, and I won’t build a campaign around it.

I want this community to work together to make sure Haywood County has a bright future. We can disagree. We can ask hard questions. We can see things differently. But political polarization wastes time and energy that could be spent solving problems.

Ugly comments on social media may score political points, but they don’t move Haywood County forward. I’d rather spend my time listening, bringing people together and working on the issues where we can make a difference.

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