Around Town: Woodhull to talk about U-2 experience; Oklawaha bird walk set

This edition of "Around Town" begins with a program by a retired colonel talking about his experiences piloting a U-2 for the U.S. Air Force and also includes details of a guided bird walk set for September at Oklawaha Greenway.

The Oklawaha Brewing's schedule of entertainment is listed and there is also information about the fourth annual Fostering Communities Conference by Crossnore Communities for Children, which will be held in mid-September.

Col. Woodhull speaks about his U-2 experiences

At 2 p.m. Friday, Aug. 26, retired U.S. Air Force Col. Richard "Duke" Woodhull will be presenting a program at the Transylvania County Library called "My U-2 Years... Dancing with the Dragon Lady."

The presentation will be at the Rogow Room of the library, located at 212 S. Gaston St. in Brevard, according to a press release.

Woodhull served in the Air Force for 30 years, and his military career included eight years supporting, flying and managing world-wide operations of the highly-classified U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft.

Woodhull will talk about how two generations of the U-2 — known in the Air Force as “The Dragon Lady” — have been deployed by the United States since the mid-1950s to perform a multitude of sensitive reconnaissance missions. U-2s have conducted high-atmospheric sampling to detect evidence of nuclear testing, as well as photographing adversaries’ military installations and movements.

Woodhull was born in New Jersey and grew up in Florida. As a young man he enrolled in the Air Force ROTC program at Florida State University and was later selected by the U.S. Air Force for appointment as an Aviation Cadet. He and his wife have two children (now grown). They have been residents of Brevard for more than 25 years.

This program is offered by the Veterans History Museum of the Carolinas as part of its history series of Guest Speakers. The program will also be live streamed on the group's Facebook page. The recorded program will also be available online at  www.theveteransmuseum.org.

For more information call 828-884-2141 or visit www.theveteransmuseum.org.

Fall migration bird walk set for Sept. 17

Experienced local birder Cathy Ford will be conducting a fall migration bird walk along the Oklawaha Greenway on Sept. 17, according to a press release.

She will be guiding walkers to three of the eBird Hotspots and will talk about the birds currently migrating through Henderson County, as well as those that live on the Greenway year-round.

"The Greenway is a great place for birding, especially during the fall migration in September and October,” Ford said in the release.

Participants should meet in Patton Park at the Round Pavilion beyond the basketball court at 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 17. Walkers should bring binoculars, comfortable walking shoes, water, sunscreen and hats are also recommended. This free, two-hour event, sponsored by the Friends of the Oklawaha Greenway, is open to the public. The walk is not suitable for dogs or strollers.

Oklawaha Brewing releases entertainment lineup

Oklawaha Brewing, located at 147 First Ave. E., recently released its entertainment lineup for the rest of the month.

Below is the schedule:

Aug. 25 (7-9 p.m.): Kool Dewey Kudzu

Aug. 26 (8-11 p.m.): Kaya McKinney and The Twisted Trail Band

Aug. 27 (8-11 p.m.): Caitlin Krisko and The Broadcast (Tickets $15 in advance, $20 at the door).

Aug. 28 (3-5 p.m.): 5J Barrow

Aug. 29 (7-9 p.m.): House of Synth - Oklawaha Synthesizer Club

Aug. 30 (7-9 p.m.): Team Trivia Night

Aug. 31 (starts at 6 p.m.): Mountain Music Jam with The French Broad Valley Music Association

Crossnore Communities for Children announces Making a Way Home, its fourth annual Fostering Communities Conference

Crossnore Communities for Children will be holding its fourth annual Fostering Communities Conference entitled Making a Way Home on Sept. 16-17 at The Old Rock School in Valdese, NC.

Crossnore Communities for Children created its Fostering Communities department in 2018 to work with community partners interested in providing support for children in foster care and the families who care for them, according to a press release. Initially funded by a grant from The Duke Endowment, Fostering Communities works with churches, civic organizations, local businesses and individuals to recruit new foster parents, educate the community about foster care and provide support for foster families.

“We are grateful for these community partners who have stepped up in western North Carolina,” Crossnore’s Chief Executive Officer Brett Loftis said in the release. “Their generosity means that we can better serve children in foster care, their birth families, and foster families.”

This year’s conference features keynote speakers, Peter Mutabazi and Jaymi Lynn. Mutabazi is a foster and adoptive father and is well known on Instagram as @fosterdadflipper. Lynn is a former foster youth, foster and adoptive parent and social media influencer (@familyandcoffee).

For more information and to register, go to www.crossnore.org/fostering-communities-conference/.

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Around Town: Woodhull to talk about U-2 experience; Oklawaha bird walk set