Briefs: Apple Ambassador named; county man wins lottery; Veterans Healing Farm event set
Hendersonville High's Hernandez named 2023 Apple Ambassador
Jackie Hernandez, a rising senior at Hendersonville High School, has been named Apple Ambassador for the 2023 North Carolina Apple Festival, which will be held Sept. 1-4 in downtown Hendersonville.
According to a news release, the Apple Ambassador Program provides two scholarships each year and is open to all rising seniors in Henderson County. Hernandez will attend all four days of the festival and will also represent the festival at the NC Mountain State Fair as well as other events across the state throughout her senior year.
“This year we had 20 applicants for the Apple Ambassador scholarship, and it was difficult to pare it down to 10. We are excited to announce Jackie as this year’s Ambassador," said Apple Ambassador Board President Mark Shepherd in the release. "She, as well as all the applicants, will make great additions to our all-volunteer-led team and we look forward to embracing their input and participation in the 2023 NC Apple Festival."
Hernandez is the daughter of Josefina N. Ades. She will be awarded a $2,000 college scholarship upon graduation from high school in June 2024.
“I am so honored to receive this scholarship and be chosen as the 2023 Apple Ambassador. I look forward to serving the community that has given me so much,” Hernandez said in the release.
The runner-up was Destiny Simotics, a rising senior at East Henderson High School. Simotics is the granddaughter of Mike and Laura O’Connor. She will be awarded a $1,000 college scholarship.
In addition to Hernandez and Simotics, this year’s finalists included Dakota Corn and Madison Corn from East Henderson; LaShea Morlu and Emily Rhodes from West Henderson; Ramsey Ross from Hendersonville; Elizabeth Graham and Leiann Marshall from North Henderson and Maggie McCall from Mountain Gems Academy.
The scholarship is named for and honors Evelyn Lutz Hill, who served as the Secretary of the North Carolina Apple Growers for many years. She was serving as the president of the North Carolina Apple Festival when she passed away in 2004.
Veterans Healing Farm hosting Resource Fair
The Veterans Healing Farm in Hendersonville will be hosting the second annual Resource Fair from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. May 27.
According to a news release, this will be the largest veterans event in Western North Carolina, showcasing the services provided to veterans from more than 30 nonprofit organizations, including Asheville Equine Therapy, AARP, Aura Home, Blue Ridge Honor Flight, Brothers and Sisters Like These, Combat Vets Blue Ridge Sevens, Council on Aging, Eagle Rock Camp, Equinox Ranch, Healing the Hole Collective, Heart of Horse Sense, Hendersonville Elks Lodge 1616, Hook Line and Heroes, PGA Hope, Mission 22, Mothers of Veteran Suicide, NC Serves, Project Healing Waters, Soldiers Angels, Sugar Bear Foundation, The Veterans History Museum of the Carolinas, United Health Care, Veterans Healing Farm, Veterans Services of the Carolinas, VFW Hendersonville, Warrior Canine Connection and more.
The Joseph McDowell Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution will be assisting. There will be food trucks, live music, the Self-Regulation Station and also free ice cream and hot dogs for the children.
The Veterans Healing Farm is located at 38 Yale Road in Hendersonville.
Mills River man wins $2 million in lottery scratch-off
William Byrnside of Mills River bought a $20 scratch-off ticket earlier this month and won the first $2 million prize in a new game in the North Carolina Education Lottery.
Byrnside bought his $2,000,000 Riches ticket from Molly’s Market on Mills Gap Road in Fletcher.
When Byrnside arrived at lottery headquarters in Raleigh last week, he had a decision to make. He could choose to receive the prize as an annuity of $100,000 over 20 years or a lump sum of $1.2 million. He chose the lump-sum amount of $1.2 million and, after required state and federal tax withholdings, took home $855,006, according to a news release.
Four Seasons recognized as Best Places to Work in Healthcare
Four Seasons, located in Flat Rock, has been once again selected by Modern Healthcare as one of the 2023 Best Places to Work in Healthcare, according to a news release.
Four Seasons is an award-winning, nationally recognized non-profit organization providing care navigation, home care, palliative care, hospice care and grief services to 13 counties of Western North Carolina for the past 43 years. Four Seasons received Best Places to Work in 2021 and did not participate in the survey in 2022.
Four Seasons is a nonprofit healthcare service in Henderson County that has been consistently ranked in the top 10% of service providers for family satisfaction, the release said.
For more information, visit Four Seasons online at fourseasonscare.org or call (866) 466-9734.
City of Hendersonville offices closed on Memorial Day
City of Hendersonville government offices will be closed in observance of Memorial Day on May 29.
There will be no garbage, recycling, or brush collection services provided to City of Hendersonville customers on Monday, May 29, 2023, due to the Memorial Day holiday schedule. Collection for Monday customers will be delayed by one week, with the next collection taking place Monday, June 5, 2023.
For more detailed information on garbage collection and schedules, residents are encouraged to visit the City of Hendersonville website at https://www.hendersonvillenc.gov/public-works/garbage-collection. If customers have questions about their collection schedule, they may contact Hendersonville Public Works directly at (828) 697-3084.
For water sewer issues occurring on the City Holiday, residents are asked to use the after-hours number at (828) 891-7779.
Henderson County offices closed for Memorial Day
Henderson County's government offices will be closed on May 29 for the observance of Memorial Day, according to a news release. The flags of the US armed services branches will once again be displayed from the balcony of the Historic Courthouse on Main Street over this Memorial Day weekend.
All Henderson County local government offices and agencies including Solid Waste, Animal Services, all branches of the public library and the Henderson County Courthouse will be closed. These offices will resume their regularly scheduled business hours on May 30.
The delivery of emergency services will not be disrupted on May 29. All Henderson County parks are open 365 days a year.
This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: A new Apple Ambassador; county man wins lottery; Veterans Healing Farm event set
