Scenic Roots

(Ian Hayhurst / Creative Commons) Richard Winham shares the first half of a conversation with poet and essayist Sherry Poff, who is also a teacher and one of the founding members of the Chattanooga Writers' Guild.      

(Scopes Festival) The Scopes Festival returns this weekend to Dayton, Tennessee. The annual gathering commemorates the July 1925 trial in Dayton of John Scopes, a high school teacher accused of violating a Tennessee law that barred the teaching of evolution in public schools.   The trial at the Rhea County Courthouse drew national attention - and lured national names of the time to Dayton:  Willia...

Rick Dye on the return of the Scopes Festival to Dayton, TN. Talking Writing:  Poet and essayist Sherry Poff, Part I. These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”

(The Foreign Landers / Facebook) Richard Winham shares the second half of a performance by The Foreign Landers - featuring folk-and-bluegrass married duo David and Tabitha Benedict - for the Mountain Spirit Acoustic Series at the Isis Music Hall in Asheville, NC.      

(All-Good Coffee Shop & Used Book Store / Facebook) In East Chattanooga, a bookshop that opened months before the pandemic is devoted to literacy and community. You can find All-Good Coffee Shop and Used Books on Glass Street. Betty Patterson started the business - and now the owner is her granddaughter, Jacquelyn Allgood-White.

(The Big 9 Street Food / Facebook) The restaurant business is a difficult one, even in the best of times. But whatever the odds, entrepreneurs embrace the challenge. In downtown Chattanooga, the Big 9 Street Food recently opened on MLK Boulevard. Matthew Davis is the co-owner and head chef.          

(River Gorge Forest School) This fall, a new school opens amid the natural landscape of the Tennessee River Gorge, just fifteen minutes away from downtown Chattanooga.      It is called River Gorge Forest School, offering preschool and kindergarten in the outdoors for children from two-and-a-half to six years old. Susanna Dodson is one of its co-founders.   Susie Grant is another co-founder and th...

A new home for outdoor learning at River Gorge Forest School. The Big 9 Street Food - and All-Good Coffee Shop & Used Books. Mountain Spirit Acoustic Series:  The Foreign Landers, Part II. These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”

(isisasheville.com) Richard Winham shares the first half of a performance by The Foreign Landers - featuring folk-and-bluegrass married duo David and Tabitha Benedict - for the Mountain Spirit Acoustic Series at the Isis Music Hall in Asheville, NC.      

(Reflection Riding / SCAPE) Here in Chattanooga, there is a new vision for Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center.  The Framework for the Future - developed with community input and in collaboration with the firm SCAPE - represents the next chapter for the conservation of native landscapes here in the Southeast, stitching together restored ecosystems as learning landscapes.   Mark McKnigh...

A framework for the future at Chattanooga’s Reflection Riding. Mountain Spirit Acoustic Series:  The Foreign Landers, Part I. These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”  

(Back Alley Productions) A few weeks ago, Back Alley Productions in LaFayette, Georgia reopened the Mars Theatre - closed due to the pandemic - for its production of “The Little Princess.” The last two shows are tomorrow and Saturday night. Kaylee Smith is executive director of Back Alley Productions.  Listen to “The Mars Theatre on the Air” from Back Alley Productions here on WUTC next Saturday,...

(Contributed by Sheila Harding Cannon) “Bye-Bye Birdie” opens tomorrow night on Signal Mountain, as our own Richard Winham tells us.      

(CTC) Tomorrow night, “The Miss Firecracker Contest” - the Southern Gothic comedy by Beth Henley - premieres at Chattanooga Theatre Centre. Scott Dunlap is the director - and Gracie Gilbert plays Carnelle Scott, the aspiring beauty queen with the flame-red hair.

(Blood Assurance) Around the country, blood centers in some cities are down to a one-day supply and the dangerously low supply of blood has forced hospitals to postpone surgeries - all due to the pandemic. Here in the Chattanooga area, Blood Assurance has felt the supply pinch for quite a while - and once again, it urges people who can give blood to give blood now.      J.B. Gaskins is President a...

(Get Vaccinated Chattanooga) Neighborhood block parties are known for free food, music and entertainment. This Saturday - and the rest of the Saturdays this month - here in Chattanooga, a series of block parties is also providing something else that’s free:  COVID-19 vaccine shots and vaccine education.   The parties - which began last month in Highland Park - are hosted by Get Vaccinated Chattano...

Get Vaccinated Chattanooga’s neighborhood block parties. The critical need for blood donations - here and nationwide. “Miss Firecracker” - “The Little Princess” - “Bye-Bye Birdie.” These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”

(Writer's Digest) Richard Winham shares a conversation with Don Bentley, author of “Tom Clancy Target Acquired:  A Jack Ryan, Jr. Novel.”      (G.P. Putnam's Sons)    

(Angela Foster / UTC) At her home on Signal Mountain, Kate Kinnear cares for dozens and dozens of squirrels. She is a wildlife rehab expert, certified by the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency - and her home is a sanctuary for squirrels from newborns to weeks or even months old.       Beyond the sanctuary, Kate is a lecturer on our campus, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. (Angela Foster...

Kate Kinnear on a sanctuary for squirrels on Signal Mountain. Talking Writing:  Don Bentley on “Tom Clancy Target Acquired.” These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”        

(Isis Music Hall) Richard Winham shares the second half of a virtual show by Kim Richey, Grammy-nominated songwriter, from her home in Nashville - along with her friend, Grammy-winning songwriter Don Henry - for the Mountain Spirit Acoustic Series at Isis Music Hall in Asheville, NC.      

(Chambliss Center for Children) These days, early childhood educators in the Chattanooga area face staffing challenges, which could impact the care they have provided during the pandemic. Katie Harbison is president of Chambliss Center for Children - and Sumer Arispe is its executive director.

When we talk about infrastructure, we talk mostly about roads and bridges - but very little, if anything, about rivers.      Tyler J. Kelley is a journalist and author who examines the Ohio, the Missouri and the Mississippi Rivers - from the people who live along them to the policies of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - in his book:  “Holding Back the River:  The Struggle Against Nature on Americ...

Tyler J. Kelley on his book “Holding Back the River.” Chambliss Center’s Katie Harbison & Sumer Arispe. Mountain Spirit:  Kim Richey & Don Henry, Part II. These voices - and more - on this edition of “Scenic Roots.”          

(Isis Music Hall) Richard Winham shares the first half of a virtual show by Kim Richey, Grammy-nominated songwriter, from her home in Nashville - along with her friend, Grammy-winning songwriter Don Henry - for the Mountain Spirit Acoustic Series at Isis Music Hall in Asheville, NC.