Event Goals

• Raise Funds for Recovery: Support families, displaced individuals, and local businesses as they work to rebuild their lives and communities.

• Strengthen Partnerships: Engage with local, regional, and national organizations to enhance community resilience and collaboration.

• Increase National Exposure: Share Spruce Pine’s recovery story with a wider audience, showcasing the community’s strength and determination.

• Boost Local Economy: Provide a positive economic impact through participation from local vendors and sponsorships, supporting the area’s businesses as they recover.

Together, we can help Spruce Pine, NC rise stronger than ever!

Speaker Schedule at Toe River Arts

A Time to Heal

12-12:45pm Healing on a Homestead:

After Hurricane Helene’s devastation many homesteads and farms are in recovery mode. Healing mode. This panel will be about different ways to go about the renovation and restoration of farms and homesteads. Of soil and of minds. Marianne started one of the largest and most fertile biodynamic farms in the region, but when she sold it and moved to Spruce Pine, it fell into disrepair. Last year, Oliver Anthony purchased Marianne’s old farm and is in the process of working with her to renovate it; with plans to turn it into a site for military veterans to heal through farming. Gabby is deeply passionate about healing herbs and medicines, and has a ravine at her homestead in Alberta, Canada where she grows and tends to plants that have the capability to heal both body and spirit. She will be providing insight and guidance on how people can grow their own pharmacy in a garden. 

Speakers: 

Oliver Anthony, Musician, Homesteader - Farmville, VA

Marianne Cicala, Homesteader - Spruce Pine, NC

Gabby Kova, Herbalist,  Healer - Alberta, Canada

12:45 -1:00pm - Break

1:00 - 1:45-  Faith through hard times

When hard times hit during our lives, it can be difficult to get through. Johnny, a lifelong farmer has seen more than his share of hardship, however, he has been able to not only survive, but thrive thanks to his enduring faith. When the hurricane hit last year, Pastor Mike got to work helping people, handing out supplies, providing vehicles and rebuilding homes. His faith has pushed him to serve people for a higher calling. 

Speakers:

Johnny Glosson, Farmer- Siler City, NC 

Pastor Mike Moore, Pastor- Hopewell, VA

Short Film Screening: Johnny Glosson 

1:45 - 2:00pm - Break

2:00pm - 2:45pm - Cotton of the Carolinas: How our T-shirts are made

Did you know that 97% of America’s clothing is made outside of the United States? Eric Henry is the CEO of TS Designs, a North Carolina apparel company that makes its clothes from cotton grown in the Carolinas and in other locations in America. We’ll learn the ins and outs of how the t-shirts for the Rural Revival Project are made and talk about what it would take to bring more apparel manufacturing back to create jobs in America. 

Speaker:

Eric Henry, CEO of TS Designs- Burlington, NC 

2:45 - 3:00pm - Break

3:00 - 3:45 -  An Unconventional Response

When Hurricane Helene hit, it was everyday citizens- not government agencies- that stepped up to help. Military veterans, Adam and Justin of Savage Freedoms were there for days coordinating relief efforts, recovering bodies, and transporting people to safety. After serving their nation abroad, they stepped up again to serve people in need right here at home. The storm also wiped out many homes and master builder and CEO of Wild Abundance Natalie and her team got to work rebuilding people’s homes. They used their expertise as natural builders to get people sheltered and back in homes before conventional systems were able to respond. 

Speakers:

Natalie Bogwalker, Director of Wild Abundance, Asheville, NC

Justin Neal, Entrepreneur, Charlotte, NC

Adam Smith, CEO of Savage Freedoms, Asheville, NC

Short Film Screening: Savage Response

3:45 - 4:00pm Break

4:00 - 4:45pm Strengthening North Carolina Agriculture

As the old adage goes, crisis is usually a window for opportunity. Through that lens, we’ll address the challenges faced in North Carolina’s agriculture and the ways in which stronger systems can be built so that North Carolina and other states can become more self-sufficient, so that more communities are capable of feeding themselves. Suzanne Karreman is a dairy farmer in Saxapahaw, NC who is passionate about teaching people how to grow their own food, especially how to raise their own milk cows. Greg Gunthorp is a national leader in agriculture who runs a mult-species farm in LaGrange, Indiana. He recently testified before congress to discuss how we can better setup regional food systems in the meat industry so that small farmers and processors have less regulations.

Speakers:

Greg Gunthorp, Gunthorp Farms, LaGrange, IN

Suzanne Karreman, Reverence Farms, Saxapahaw, NC

Short Film Screening: Suzanne Karreman

Note: All discussions will be moderated by documentary journalist Graham Meriwether, Director of Agriculture, Rural Revival Project.