Today's Features

Like most parents, Carrie Phipps — a mother of three and director of the Wellness Center in Galax — has begun to notice how technology has replaced the kind of active play children once knew, the sharp decline in physical activity and the lack of children's fitness programs.

"There's not a lot offered in the area for this population, except for sports," said Phipps. "And with a lot of sports, heavier kids cannot participate."

It was a political prank worthy of The Joker himself.

On Monday, motorists in Galax were startled, befuddled and — if they know their Batman comics and movies — maybe amused by a group of phony political campaigners handing out literature near Twin County Cinema III.

Three well-dressed teens held balloons and signs that read “Take Back Gotham City — Vote Harvey Dent.”

No, you haven’t missed Dent’s bid for president, and he’s not running for state office or city council.

As a team of three Galax High School students stood anxiously on stage in a hotel conference room in Reston with several other competing school teams, recent high school graduate Drew Bobbitt said he was in shock as the GHS team was announced for first place in the state Future Business Leaders of America competition.

"After we won, I called my parents, and I was so excited I was shaking talking to them," said Bobbitt. "I wasn't expecting to win. I was just along for the enjoyment."

With only one proposal on the table, Carroll officials are still marketing 91 acres owned by the county — and a partner in the venture to build the 600-seat Mayberry Opry music venue says he welcomes competition.

Marshall Lineberry of Weststar Investments met with reporters — and Carroll Supervisors’ Chairman Sam Dickson, as it turned out — at the Crossroads Institute last Thursday to discuss the status of the Mayberry Opry project, after the county supervisors and the Industrial Development Authority members decided to market the land again.