Cleveland County Launching Massive New Marketing Campaign – Charlotte’s Backyard

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Cleveland County Launching Massive New Marketing Campaign – Charlotte’s Backyard

What’s in Cleveland County?

Your first thought might be Knobby (North Carolina’s own Bigfoot), Red Bridges (voted the best BBQ in America), or just that place you stop at on your way to Asheville…but a massive new marketing campaign is now hoping to change that.

The Cleveland County Economic Development Partnership just launched an online campaign to attract young “millennial” talent into what officials are now calling “Charlotte’s Backyard NC.”

“The development of this campaign was something that we became convinced that we needed in order to position our community in a way that would strategically connect millennial talent to the manufacturing careers in our community,” noted Kristin Reese, Executive Director of CCEDP. “Charlotte is projected to have the highest rate of millennial growth in the nation, and so by leveraging and strategically marketing our close proximity to that growing city, we feel it will help to fuel Cleveland County’s talent pipeline.”

Cleveland County is more affordable, has the “relaxed vibe” of a smaller community, and is now home to over 170 manufacturing companies, says Reese. Since 2008, 75 companies have moved to the county or expanded their local facilities. That represents 4,000 new jobs and $6 billion in investment.

The new marketing campaign is focused on highlighting 4 main aspects of life;

“Find Your Village” (living in Cleveland County)

“Find Your Craft” (working in Cleveland County)

We are so excited to introduce you to Emily Bolton. When Emily graduated from high school, she realized pretty quickly that working in retail wasn’t going to pay the bills or be fulfilling long-term. The answer to this realization, as it turned out, was a career in manufacturing, which, not only pays well, but also gives her the resources to learn on the job and the flexible hours to continue her education. Emily started with part-time work through a temp agency and within a couple of months was hired full-time at Greenheck, a leading manufacturer of air movement, control and conditioning equipment with Cleveland County operations in Kings Mountain and Shelby. Today, she works first shift as an assembly worker and takes classes in the evenings toward her Associate’s Degree in Business Administration at Cleveland Community College. • As a young woman with no prior experience in manufacturing, Emily had a lot to learn in her first several weeks of work. “I had zero experience with power tools,” she said. “The first two weeks was all hands-on training—learning proper safety and technique. It was intimidating at first, but now I know what I’m doing and I really like it.” Emily was a fast learner and is now an integral part of the assembly team. Despite the eight-hour days, she has been able to balance time for school. “[Greenheck] is really on board with me continuing my education,” she said. “They really encourage us in general to continue to learn.” Born and raised in Shelby, North Carolina, Emily enjoys Cleveland County’s small-town character, coupled with its proximity to major metros like Charlotte. “I love the environment,” she said. “It’s small-town without feeling too small. You run into people you know around town, but you don’t have to travel far to get to places like Charlotte, Spartanburg and Asheville. Any direction you go, you’ll find things to do.” . . . #featured #findyourcraft #make #makeitcount #workinghard #manufacturing #greenheck #smart #tough #skills #crafts #tools #women #jobs #careers #womenempowerment #workhere #live #livehere #instagood #instadaily #love #story #herstory #millenials #photography #photooftheday #factory #beautiful #strong

A post shared by Cleveland County, NC (@charlottesbackyardnc) on

“Find Your Rhythm” (playing in Cleveland County)

and “Find Your Voice” (getting involved in Cleveland County)

“I moved to Cleveland County from Tucson, Arizona and soon realized that even though the pace of life here is slower, there is still a real energy and vibrancy. I’ve also realized the benefit of the low cost of living, and I appreciate how Charlotte’s Backyard NC authentically reflects the essence of what makes our community so great – and why people like me enjoy working and living here,” commented Nick Wiebelhaus, Plant Manager of Greenheck.

You can find out more about the new campaign on charlottesbackyardnc.com or on their Instagram page here.

Top 10 (Mostly Christmasy) Things To Do Around Charlotte This Weekend

Steve
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Top 10 (Mostly Christmasy) Things To Do Around Charlotte This Weekend

The weekend is almost here!

There will be Christmas shows, parades, festivals, basketball, and tons of concerts!

Here are the top 10 things happening around the Charlotte region this weekend:

#1 2017 ACC Championship Game – Miami vs. Clemson

The 13th annual Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game is set for a primetime kickoff and will be nationally televised at 7:45 (on ESPN) or 8 p.m. (on ABC). Bank of America Stadium, home of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers and the Belk Bowl, will serve as the host venue for the seventh time in last eight years.

This year The University of Miami will be taking on Clemson University.

For more information or tickets click here.

If you don’t want to go to the game itself, you can watch College Game Day being filmed live in Romare Bearden Park in Uptown Charlotte.

On Saturday, SportsCenter will begin filming at 7 a.m., with College GameDay airing live on ESPN from  9 a.m. to noon.

In addition to Saturday’s show, ESPN will be at Romare Bearden Park throughout the day on Friday, Dec. 1, for SportsCenter hits. College Football Live will take place beginning at 3 p.m.

For more info click here.

#2 Weihnachtsmarkt

OMB’s legendary Weihnachtsmarkt Christmas Market will host their grand opening this coming Friday.

This year, they will have over 40 vendors – their largest market to date. Some vendors will be in traditional wooden huts, but all will be decorated to the max and full of local crafts and baked goods. Like the Christmas Markets of Nuremburg, Germany, OMB’s Weihnachtsmarkt will also have fresh beer on tap (including our winter seasonal brews Dunkel & Yule Bock) and Gluhwein (pron. “Gloo-vine”), a mulled red wine served hot and fresh.

For more info click here.

#3 A Huntersville Christmas

Free activities include: rides, ice carving, holiday performances on stage from a variety of local groups, Carolers of Christmas Past, airbrush tattoos, balloon twisters, Live Nativity at Huntersville Presbyterian Church (5:30pm, 6:15pm), pictures with Santa in Fire Station 1, letters to Santa, Davidson Jugglers, stories with Mrs. Claus, horse drawn carriage rides, Bounce Boot Camp, Springfree Trampoline, free hot chocolate, and more! Food will be available for purchase by Smokey J’s BBQ, Old Buddy’s Oinker Express, New Wrap Order, Bleu Barn Bistro, Fun Oh Cakes, Son of the American Legion Squadron 321, Vito’s Pizza, LKN Teen Council & Kiwanis Club. Skate on the ice rink for $6 per person! 

For more info click here.

#4 Davidson Wildcats vs. UNC Tarheels in Uptown Charlotte

This coming Friday night starting at 8pm, the Davidson Wildcats will be taking on the UNC Tarheels at the Spectrum Center for one of Charlotte’s most highly anticipated college basketball games of the year.

For more information or tickets click here.

#5 Robert Earl Keen

Robert Earl Keen is an American singer-songwriter and entertainers. Debuting with 1984’s No Kinda Dancer, the Houston native has recorded 18 full-length albums for both independent and major record labels, while his songs have had cover versions recorded by several country, folk and Texas country music musicians, including George Strait, Joe Ely, Lyle Lovett, The Highwaymen, Nanci Griffith, and the Dixie Chicks.

He’ll be playing live at the Knight Theater in Uptown Charlotte this coming Friday night starting at 8pm.

For more info or tickets click to learn more.

#6 Fort Mill Christmas Parade

This year’s themed parade “Christmas In The South,” will be held on Saturday, December 2nd at 11 am on Tom Hall Street.

The Grand Marshal will lead the parade beginning at Tom Hall and Unity Street and continue through historic downtown Fort Mill, exiting at Walter Elisha Park.

For more info click here.

#7 Gaither Christmas Homecoming

Join the Gaither Vocal Band, Mark Lowry, Buddy Greene, the Martins, the Isaacs, Charlotte Ritchie and many others during this year’s Christmas tour. Concert tickets for this meaningful night of music would be a wonderful gift or Christmas outing for friends, family, staff or choir members.

They’ll be coming to the Cabarrus County Arena this coming Saturday night starting at 6pm.

For tickets or more info click here.

#8 Xscape

The legendary R&B band will be performing live this coming Saturday night at the Spectrum Center starting at 7:30pm

For tickets or more info click here.

#9 Christmas in Gastonia

Join the Gaston Jaycee’s, Keep Gastonia Beautiful, and the City of Gastonia and celebrate Christmas in the City. A day of shopping, eating, parades, Christmas trees, your children’s favorite Christmas characters.

The festivities will take place Sunday afternoon from 2pm-7pm in downtown Gastonia.

For more information click here.

#10 Indian Trail Christmas Parade

IT’s that time of year again! Join us this December 3rd as our community comes together for IT’s annual Christmas parade. Following the parade, we will have a Winter Wonderland of free activities and entertainment.

Festivities start at 4pm this Sunday afternoon.

For more info click here.

If you think other events should be on this list or future lists, let us know – Scott@CharlotteStories.com

FBI Increases The Urgency in Search For Missing NC 3-Year-Old

Steve
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FBI Increases The Urgency in Search For Missing NC 3-Year-Old
Two days ago, an Amber Alert was issued in North Carolina for an abducted 3-year-old girl, and now the FBI has stepped in to heighten the alert, saying that “every second counts”.

Mariah Kay Woods first went missing since Sunday night after her mother put her to bed. She lives with her mother and her mother’s boyfriend at 2405 Dawson Cabin Rd., Jacksonville NC.

Mariah is about 2 feet 9 inches tall, weighs 30 pounds, and has brown hair, and blue eyes.

Yesterday, the FBI released new photos of what they say could be Mariah with an unknown woman, taken by a Walmart surveillance camera in Morehead City around 9:30 a.m. Monday;

via FBI

Authorities are now trying to determine who the woman in the picture is, and if the child is in fact, Mariah. In yesterday’s press release, the FBI stressed the fact that “No information is too small or insignificant when looking for a missing child.”

If you have any information regarding who is in the Walmart photos, or any possible clues about Mariah’s whereabouts, please call the Onslow County Sheriff immediately at (910) 455-3113, or 911

Please help spread the word!

Gastonia’s Massive $20 Million Lake-Side ‘Warlick Family’ YMCA Set For Grand Opening

Steve
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Gastonia’s Massive $20 Million Lake-Side ‘Warlick Family’ YMCA Set For Grand Opening

Yesterday afternoon, the Charlotte region’s newest and biggest YMCA facility unveiled its new name in preparation of next month’s grand opening. The massive 60,030 sq ft, 115 acres complex, set on the banks of a 34 acres lake will now be called the ‘Warlick Family YMCA’ in honor of the facility’s lead donor family.

Parkdale Mill’s CEO Andy Warlick helped to spearhead the new YMCA and its fundraising campaign. His family’s roots run deep in Gaston County, having built one of the best yard spinning facilities in the world over the past 100 years.

“Andy would say that he acted as a co-chair with Richard [Rankin], George [Henry] and me. If we are equals then Andy has been first among equals in our group,” said Gene Matthews, campaign co-chair. “No matter how much Andy deflects attention away from his leadership, he has been the single person who has carried one theme throughout this process as he continually asked, ‘What does GREAT look like for this new Y and Gaston County?’”

Steve Huffstetler, Chair of the Gaston County Metro Y Board, added, “We couldn’t have selected a more deserving family name to place on this YMCA that will welcome families for generations to come.”

robwood-lake-ymca

The new $20 Million facility on Robinwood Lake will feature a boathouse, an open-air chapel, several waterside athletic fields, and 2 full-sized indoor pools.

The new boathouse will allow members to rent canoes, stand-up paddle boards, kayaks, as well as fishing boats with electric motors. Artificial reefs are being installed in the lake, that will be stocked with roughly 40,000 large-mouth bass and bream for fishing.

Two miles of trails are being built through the nearby woods, as well as a day camp village with the ability to camp in tents and secluded spots to meditate in peace.

The facility will also include a 2-story climbing wall and app-accessible cafe that will serve shakes, smoothies, juices, salads, wraps.

The new Warlick Family YMCA will replace 2 outdated facilities – the YMCA Central Branch on Franklin Blvd. and the South Gastonia YMCA on Union Rd.

Grand opening is now scheduled for the middle of next month.

new-gastoina-ymca-map

new-gastoina-ymca-chapel

new-gastoina-ymca-lake

What do you think about Gastonia’s new Warlick Family YMCA?

Charlotte Family Needs Another $124,000 By Tomorrow For Cancer Surgery

Steve
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Charlotte Family Needs Another $124,000 By Tomorrow For Cancer Surgery

The Giraudo family is pleading with the Charlotte community to help save their Monica’s life.

Their insurance company denied a surgical procedure that was scheduled by the hospital, and now, if they aren’t able to raise $150,000 by November 29th, the surgery will be canceled. They’ve raised just over $11,000 in the past couple days through their GoFundMe campaign…now they’re praying for a miracle.

“Monica Mitchell-Giraudo, was diagnosed in April of 2016 with Stage III Fallopian Tube cancer. After 18 rounds of intensive chemotherapy and surgery, and a 7-month remission, the cancer has returned with a vengeance. She is now considered Stage IV, with very aggressive tumor growth, and is in dire need of our help. Two days before Thanksgiving, she and her family learned devastating news. Monica’s cytoreduction surgery (CRS), HIPEC procedure, and hospitalization, scheduled for next Monday, November 27 was 100% completely denied by their insurance because it was deemed as investigative and experimental. Unfortunately, this treatment is the very best option at this time, and will give her the best possible outcome. Without this surgery and procedure, the outcome will be grave. At this time, the surgery has been pushed back until Monica and her family are able to come up with $150,000.00 (estimated cost) to allow for this entire surgery. If they are unable to come up with this money in 6 days (Wednesday, November 29), the surgery, rescheduled for December 5, will not happen.”

In yesterday’s campaign update, Monica’s husband posted, “We are now into our 3rd day of fundraising to reach our goal of $150,000.00 by NOVEMBER 29. YESTERDAY’S fundraising gifted us with $2,500.00, providing us a total of $11,000.00 in the last two days! THIS IS A HUGE BLESSING, AND WE ARE HUMBLED WITH GRATITUDE!! Of course, we still have a very long way to go.”

You can read more on their GoFundMe campaign here.

Please help spread the word!

Lake Norman’s Highly Anticipated ‘Hello Sailor’ Restaurant Opening This Weekend

Steve
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Lake Norman’s Highly Anticipated ‘Hello Sailor’ Restaurant Opening This Weekend

The Charlotte region’s most anticipated new restaurant just announced their official opening date.

After months of unexpected construction delays, The Kindreds (owners of Kindred’s of Davidson – voted one of the best Restaurants in America) will be opening Lake Norman’s new ‘Hello Sailor’ this weekend – a dock-side seafood restaurant at the old Rusty Rudder location.

Their official soft-opening will be this coming Sunday, December 3rd;

While Joe Kindred will still oversee the restaurant, he hired 2-time James Beard Award finalist Craig Deihl from Charleston to be Hello Sailor’s head chef.

The decision to hire the world-renowned chef sets up the new lake-side eatery to become one of the Charlotte region’s best restaurants, especially considering the Kindred’s success at their Davidson restaurant, and that Hello Sailor was ranked as one of The Most Anticipated Resturant Opening in America for 2017.

The new restaurant will feature dockside dining and drinks, seafood, and a unique focus on smoking meats.

“We want people to be able to park their boat and grab a quick meal or come with friends and family and linger and share. So the menu will reflect that balance,” according to their website.

NC State-Wide Amber Alert Issued For Abducted 3-Year-Old Girl

Steve
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NC State-Wide Amber Alert Issued For Abducted 3-Year-Old Girl
An Amber alert was issued across North Carolina yesterday for an abducted 3-year-old girl

Mariah Kay Woods has been missing since Sunday night when her mother put her to bed.

Mariah lives with her mother and her mother’s live-in boyfriend at 2405 Dawson Cabin Rd., Jacksonville NC.

She is about 2 feet 9 inches tall, weighs 30 pounds, and has brown hair, and blue eyes.

The FBI is now assisting local police across the state with the investigation.

If you have any information regarding this Mariah’s whereabouts, please call the Onslow County Sheriff immediately at (910) 455-3113, or call 911

Charlotte Rallies Around Rock Hill Student Suffering From Rare Spinal Stroke

Steve
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Charlotte Rallies Around Rock Hill Student Suffering From Rare Spinal Stroke

natalie-rock-hill-cancerOn Jan. 13, 11-year-old Natalie Bentos-Pereira woke up with pains in her upper back, as the day progressed, the pain only worsened. Before the end of the school day, her left leg was completely numb.

She was then rushed to the emergency room where lab tests showed serious neurological problems. Natalie was then flown by helicopter to the Levine Children’s hospital, where she went through a series of additional tests.

Before the end of the day, doctors gave the Bentos-Pereira family the bad news – Natalie had suffered a full spinal stroke – a rare condition for anyone, but especially for an 11-year-old girl.

The next month some of Natalie’s friends set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for her medical and living expenses.

The description reads:

“Natalie is a sweet girl who is outgoing, spunky, and enjoys making other people around her laugh. As of last month, things took a turn for this sweet girl and her family. She had a stroke in her spine which is causing no function from her ribs down. She has been at Levine’s for almost a month. Things are slightly improving with intense therapy everyday. Most of you know that she will be going home soon, but with that, comes all the equipment and therapy she is going to need. Insurance only does so much right now and they will need a lot more money to continue to provide the care Natalie needs.”

Since setting up the page, they have raised over $6,000, but the family says they still need help paying for on-going physical treatment.

In one of the recent campaign updates, her mother noted, “Natalie is doing so good and beating all the odds! She goes to Therapy all week long. Some of the therapy is not covered….We appreciate all your help and prayers for our daughter and family! God bless you!”

Another campaign update includes a picture of Natalie from this past Halloween;

Please join the fight by praying for Natalie, donating to her GoFundMe page, posting #FIGHTNATFIGHT on social media, and by sharing this article!

Top 10 Best Cyber Monday Deals on Amazon

Steve
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Top 10 Best Cyber Monday Deals on Amazon

Post-Thanksgiving day savings continue today on what many economists think will be the biggest online shopping day of the year – Cyber Monday 2017.

Amazon is now, by far, the biggest online retailer for crazy Cyber Monday deals, but sometimes it’s hard to find quality products that truly are being sold at a deep discount today.

We’ve sifted through Amazon’s massive amount of Cyber Monday deals, and cherry-picked the top 10 deals of 2017;

#10 Briggs & Riley’s Wide-Body Upright Carry-On

Was $500 – Cyber Monday Price $450

#9 Runme Fitness Tracker w/ Sleep Monitor

Was $89.99 – Cyber Monday Price $34.99

 

#8 Naipo Shiatsu Back and Neck Massager

Was $79.99 – Cyber Monday Price $43.88

#7 Sennheiser OCX 686 Workout Headphones

Was $75 – Cyber Monday Price $35

#6 Echo Dot

Was $50 – Cyber Monday Price $30

#5 Aicok 8-Inch Chef Kitchen Knife

Was $49.95 – Cyber Monday Price $11.29

#4 VEEKO Hoverboard

Was $299 – Cyber Monday Price $189 

#3 Nightvision Wireless Security Camera

Was $140.99 – Cyber Monday Price $65.99

#2 4K Waterproof Action Camera

Was $99.99 – Cyber Monday Price $58.99

#1 Ancheer Electric Mountain Bike

Was $999.99 – Cyber Monday Price $579.00

You can browse hundreds of other deals on Amazon’s Cyber Monday deal page here.

Panthers Beat Jets With First Defensive and Special Teams Touchdowns of The Season

Charlotte Stories
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Panthers Beat Jets With First Defensive and Special Teams Touchdowns of The Season

The Carolina Panthers just won their 4th straight game yesterday afternoon, beating the New York Jets 35-27.

Newton led the team to a powerful start with 2 of the first 3 drives ending a 40-yard field goal for 3 points, but after our second-quarter touchdown, we stagnated.

We ended the first half with a marginal lead of 12-10. The Jets then scored early in the third quarter to take a 17-12 lead, which seemed to awaken the cardiac cats.

Devin Funchess soon caught a 35-yarder from Newton, who then pitched the ball to Jonathan Stewart’s for a 2-yard score.

Our defense scored their first touchdown of the season when Kuechly recovered a stripped ball and ran for 34 yards into the end-zone.

Not to be outdone, our special teams then scored their first touchdown of the season when Kaelin Clay ducked and weaved for a 60-yard end zone run to give us a 32-20 lead.

Wide receiver Devin Funchess led the offense with 108 receiving yards on seven receptions, including one 35-yard pass. Newton ended the game with just under 40% of his passes completed and zero touchdown passes.

The 35-27 win improves our record to 8-3. We’ll now be taking on NFC South division leaders in New Orleans next Sunday.

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