The very best part of writing the Good News posts for Flat Rock Together is the opportunity to learn more about the most interesting people, places, and events in Flat Rock.

Here is a look back at five of our favorite stories from 2020. The candidates for this distinction were numerous and choosing just five was no easy task. Ultimately, we came up with these five and hope you enjoy reliving some of the very best moments from Flat Rock Together in 2020…

Josh Stephens did not grow up in the mountains. As a child, he was raised by surfing parents and spent a significant portion of his youth with an eye towards the sea. “The ocean was where we might lose ourselves” he explains. “Riding waves or simply being humbled by the ocean's beauty and power. I still have this deep need to get outside in one way or another and to be in beautiful and wild places.”

If John Gunther’s quote is to be believed, and if the crowds that flock to Honey and Salt restaurant on Little Rainbow Row are any indication, then Flat Rock must be one of the happiest places in the world.

Now that we have finished with Thanksgiving, many of us will start to think about our Holiday shopping. Fortunately, Flat Rock is replete with wonderful options for purchasing gifts for family and friends. Here are some ideas to help you get started.

Back when European settlers first came to Southern Appalachia, wild turkeys were plentiful. By the early 1900s, however, only a few were left, a decline that continued into the mid-century. The restoration of this iconic species is considered one of the greatest conservation success stories in the world.

Many Flat Rock residents arrived in the Village from locales throughout the country and even the world. Undoubtedly, however, the single largest source of new residents in Flat Rock is the Blue Ridge Humane Society.

When Tom Fisch was 10 years old, he won a guitar in a raffle at a local high school bazaar. That guitar became the first stepping stone on a long and winding musical path that led him from his hometown of Albany, NY, to Nashville in pursuit of a childhood dream, and ultimately to Flat Rock and a career as a modern-day minstrel bringing entertainment and smiles to the mountains of western North Carolina. His story here …

On Friday night at 7:01, Grace stepped out of the kitchen and handed me the year’s very last order from the Hubba Hubba Smokehouse kitchen. With only outdoor seating, Flat Rock’s iconic Barbecue joint officially closed at 7 pm on October 30, and I was the lucky soul who received the final order of 2020.