The passing of Rob Neufeld, a friend to writers in western North Carolina

Western NC has lost a friend to writers. 

Rob Neufeld, RIP

Rob Neufeld

The literary community lost a longtime friend and supporter this week with the passing of Rob Neufeld. The beloved author and historian was sixty-five.
A veteran columnist for The Asheville Citizen-Times, Rob continued writing his “Visiting the Past” column up until the week he died.
He was diagnosed with ALS in the summer of 2018 but remained productive, focusing not only on his newspaper stories but also on a narrative poem for the stage, which he excerpted on his website, The Read on WNC.

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North Carolina Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green reads at Western Carolina University Wednesday, October 30th, at 7:30 p.m.

North Carolina Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green will be reading at Western Carolina University next Wednesday evening, October 30th, at 7:30, in Blue Ridge Conference Room A. I've sent out press releases and WCU publicity venues have the information, but I know that kind of thing can be very easy to miss. This is a rare opportunity to hear a sitting poet laureate--they often don't make it this far west--and Jaki's poetry is accessible and enjoyable. Jaki is also North Carolina's first African-American poet laureate and only our third female poet laureate.  Parking on WCU's campus can be a bit dicy, but there are pay lots near McKee, behind the University Center, and behind Reid Gym.