TopPodcast.com
Menu
  • Home
  • Top Charts
  • Top Networks
  • Top Apps
  • Top Independents
  • Top Podfluencers
  • Top Picks
    • Top Business Podcasts
    • Top True Crime Podcasts
    • Top Finance Podcasts
    • Top Comedy Podcasts
    • Top Music Podcasts
    • Top Womens Podcasts
    • Top Kids Podcasts
    • Top Sports Podcasts
    • Top News Podcasts
    • Top Tech Podcasts
    • Top Crypto Podcasts
    • Top Entrepreneurial Podcasts
    • Top Fantasy Sports Podcasts
    • Top Political Podcasts
    • Top Science Podcasts
    • Top Self Help Podcasts
    • Top Sports Betting Podcasts
    • Top Stocks Podcasts
  • Podcast News
  • About Us
  • Podcast Advertising
  • Contact
Not in our directory?
Add Show Here
Podcast Equipment
Center

toppodcastlogoOur TOPPODCAST Picks

  • Comedy
  • Crypto
  • Sports
  • News
  • Politics
  • True Crime
  • Business
  • Finance

Follow Us

toppodcastlogoStay Connected

    View Top 200 Chart
    Back to Rankings Page
    Arts

    Life In the Carolina’s Podcast

    Welcome to the Life in the Carolinas Podcast. Our show features a blending of stories that are primarily based on the syndicated TV show, Carl White’s Life in the Carolinas and newspaper columns written by Carl White.

    Like Carl often says, “It’s never a bad time for a good story!”

    The podcast is hosted by Carl and features specials guests as they share the stories behind the stories. All too often we simply do not have enough time to share everything we would like during broadcast. This podcast will allow us the opportunity to share more information and allow our viewers and readers a chance to get to know our guests more intimately.

    The Carolinas offer some of the finest people, landscapes, and opportunities to explore.

    We have traveled to the high elevations for the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games which are considered to be among the best in the nation.

    We discovered the beauty of the brackish Waccamaw River and learned about the massive live oaks that predate the founding of America.

    In Gold Hill, NC we made a connection with the past and learned about the early days of gold mining in America.

    We were more than intrigued with a visit to the historic Wilcox Hotel in Aiken, SC and the stories of the Roosevelt Suite. Are the stories true? It’s fun to think about the possibilities.

    Did you know Edgefield, SC was the home of ten South Carolina Governors and that the world-renowned Jazz musician Dizzy Gillespie was from Cheraw, SC?

    What about those mysterious Brown Mountain Lights in the North Carolina Mountains? They have kept people guessing for hundreds of years. Do you know what they are?

    The stories are abundant and only limited by how many tomorrows we have for their telling.

    Join us as we share our stories, traditions, charm, and southern hospitality.

    Advertise
    • Apple Podcasts
    • Google Play
    • Spotify

    Latest Episodes:
    It's Don Miller Time Dec 02, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Don Miller, who served as the former President of Penske Racing South, alongside founding the N.C. Auto Racing Hall of Fame in Mooresville.

    Originally hailing from Chicago, the American automobile enthusiast was attracted by the rich history of motorsports in the Carolinas, which led him to join Penske Racing in 1972 to work on the team’s stock car and IndyCar programs. Don takes a trip down memory lane, reflecting on the series of events that culminated in the legacy he left for the industry before retiring from Penske.

    Tough love, humbling lessons, and the resulting changes from within dominate today’s conversation with Don. Asked of his decision-making framework throughout his storied career, he replies: “People, as they go through life, tend to wonder whether what they are doing is really the right thing for their family or simply out of ego. They would ask, ‘Should I rethink it?’ or ‘Should I have thought more about it?’ As time goes on, you have those thoughts if you are human.”

    Don recalls that, years ago, he desired nothing more than to win races, each and every time. His business partner Rusty Wallace, on the other hand, who had just come off of a racing career in his own right, had more of an ambition to entertain through the company rather than to win at all costs.

    Don and Rusty’s vision came to a head when a certain individual told them that they “were in the entertainment business. If somebody comes along and wins all the races, nobody is going to come to the show. I really do not care how many races you win, but if you win too many, it is not going to make me happy.” It was at that moment when Don realized that he needed to temper his ego with “the science of it all”—that is, the business of running an auto racing organization—if he wanted the business to thrive for the long haul.

    Don also speaks on the inspiration behind the creation of the Stocks for Tots program in Mooresville in 1989. Initially conceived as a one-day event to collect gifts and donations as well as to bring race industry celebrities together with fans, Stocks for Tots very quickly grew into an established charitable foundation that is still going strong to this day.

    Don remembers thinking, upon establishing Stocks for Tots, that “this is an opportunity for us, as part of the racing community, to give back to those who allow us to do what we do. It is what we should have been doing all along.”

    MORE FROM LIFE IN THE CAROLINAS:

    Award Winning Segments — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Brown Mountain Lights — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Car Culture in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carolina Theater Trail — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Christmas in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Taste of the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Honoring Veterans — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    On Route 74 — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outdoors — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outer Banks — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Video Podcasts — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carl's Syndicated Columns — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas


    Mason Via: A Music Man Nov 24, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with singer-songwriter Mason Via.

    Mason grew up in a musical household. Both his mom and dad supported his affinity for music growing up: His mother regularly took him to festivals and his father, a well-known bluegrass musician in his own right, introduced him to the genre via fiddler conventions which Mason likes to call his “stomping ground” for learning how to play bluegrass music in his youth. He wrote his first song when he was 12 years old called “Jack O’Boy, a ripoff made up of other children’s rhymes”.

    Mason loves the stage. Using words such as captivating and contagious, he relishes in the reality of having an audience in the palm of your hand, and that it is completely up to you (and your band members) to mold their experience with your music. Music clearly came naturally to Mason from the start, and this calling allowed him to develop his own style that helped him to establish a brand apart from that of his famous father.

    Music, of course, is also a collaborative art. Mason enjoys co-writing when putting together a new song. It is an experience that he believes gives the piece a new dimension, and a guarantee that someone other than him can resonate with the piece. Co-writing, to Mason, gives him more confidence that if at least two people like the song, then it is probably worthy of performance to a crowd of people.

    For new or aspiring musicians, Mason suggests investing in a home studio if you have the budget for it. If COVID-19 taught him anything, it is that livestreams and other digital solutions are pivotal to staying top-of-mind with your listeners (and potential listeners). Having a home studio that you can comfortably record or at least perform for the camera is the best way to adapt to the new normal brought about by the crisis.

    What is equally important is to stay in touch with other musicians, bandmates, and co-writers and do things that get your creative juices flowing, whether that is creating new music, sharing inspiring videos, or just jamming virtually.

    Keep up with Mason’s latest gigs and albums on masonvia.com

    MORE FROM LIFE IN THE CAROLINAS:

    Award Winning Segments — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Brown Mountain Lights — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Car Culture in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carolina Theater Trail — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Christmas in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Taste of the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Honoring Veterans — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    On Route 74 — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outdoors — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outer Banks — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Video Podcasts — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carl's Syndicated Columns — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas


    A Little Magic with Caleb Sigmon Sep 21, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with illusionist, comedian, director, and producer Caleb Sigmon to discuss his journey as a performer. “There’s strength in creative people coming together around a campfire,” says Caleb. He combines his passion for storytelling with his love for the Carolinas by bringing local stories to life.

    Caleb and his wife Katie partnered up to create Sigmon Theatrical. For much of the year, they collaborate with various talents to put historic pieces together. Aside from history-themed stories, they perform family-friendly productions such as The Cat in the Hat. They travel their shows “into schools, libraries, performing arts centers—anywhere folks gather, to suspend their disbelief and let them remember that the world that we live in is full of wonder, and when we use our imagination, anything is possible.”

    One can create powerful moments and raise spirits as a visual storyteller without the need for large auditoriums or theaters. Having performed in children’s hospitals since high school, Caleb started a program dubbed “Giggle Box Circus”. Here, Caleb would come into a hospital as a clown doctor, diagnose the children with “ridiculously goofy problems” to “bring distractive play into the hospital.” He shares that laughter doesn’t only physically affect people on the outside, but on the inside as well. The more someone laughs, the greater their physical improvement within.

    “We believe in the transformative power of a live theatre experience,” says Caleb, where everyone—the audience and the performers themselves—feels like they are part of the show.

    MORE FROM LIFE IN THE CAROLINAS:

    Award Winning Segments — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Brown Mountain Lights — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Car Culture in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carolina Theater Trail — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Christmas in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Taste of the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Honoring Veterans — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    On Route 74 — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outdoors — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outer Banks — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Video Podcasts — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carl's Syndicated Columns — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas


    Kyle Jenks and James Madison Sep 16, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with historical performer Kyle Jenks, who portrays Founding Father and fourth U.S. president James Madison.

    The Constitution was drafted amid a weak confederacy under the Articles of Confederation. In the early 1780s after the victory of Yorktown and the official surrender with the Treaty of Paris, nothing was actually certain until the papers were signed in early 1784, marking the official existence of the United States of America.

    This is a fascinating period that Kyle enjoys reflecting on as he explores the maturation of the character of James Madison. He continues the conversation by taking us through what defined the original colonies and how they came together, their vision immortalized through the Declaration of Independence.

    According to Kyle, because the U.S. is a Representative Republic, the preamble, “We the People” requires “that the citizens be informed and interested; otherwise, the countrywill disintegrate, sometime.” This was precisely James Madison’s conclusion after looking through the histories of past confederacies. “In the end, even though we have the Electoral College, the citizens must be aware enough to ensure that people in positions of responsibility do their job properly, and they remember that they are servants of the people. People are not servants of their representatives.”

    Kyle goes on to recount the life of James Madison, from being known in his childhood days as “Little Jimmy Madison” to his becoming a Founding Father and, shortly after, the fourth president of the United States. Kyle also goes into detail regarding Madison’s relationship with fellow Founding Father and presidential predecessor Thomas Jefferson, with whom he placed a great deal of respect for in spite of a good number of political disagreements. He then explores the all-important yet complicated circumstances around the drafting and signing of the Declaration of Independence, as well as how the Founding Fathers convinced the citizens of all the different states to embrace the Constitution of the United States following the Revolutionary War.

    Finally, Kyle takes us through the love story between James Madison and his wife, North Carolina native Dolley Payne. Kyle concludes: “My studied opinion is that James Madison is our most virtuous Founding Father. If you want to look to a guy as a role model who upheld the principles of the United States Constitution and its added Bill of Rights, remember that he always only had a single thing on the top of his list: ‘What’s best for the country?’ He knew there were compromises to be made. You could not universally satisfy everyone. But he would make a decision and noodle it, noodle it, noodle it until he could say he did the best he could.”

    MORE FROM LIFE IN THE CAROLINAS:

    Award Winning Segments — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Brown Mountain Lights — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Car Culture in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carolina Theater Trail — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Christmas in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Taste of the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Honoring Veterans — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    On Route 74 — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outdoors — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outer Banks — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Video Podcasts — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carl's Syndicated Columns — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas


    A Visit with Wayne Taylor Aug 19, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with former Navy musician Wayne Taylor. After a 21-year military career, Wayne went back to school at Berklee College of Music in Boston with ambitions to become a recording engineer.

    As a musician in the military, Wayne had his share of memorable experiences, all of which were made more exciting since he never did know what his next gig would be. One day, he would be playing at an elementary school; the next day, he would be called to perform at the White House. More recently, Wayne started the bluegrass band Wayne Taylor & Appaloosa. His long career in music saw him traveling around the world, bringing him to countries such as Canada, China, Sweden, Scotland, and Ireland.

    “There is a wide spectrum of bluegrass,” says Wayne. There is an attitude among many of these new musicians that is both progressive and respectful of tradition. “When you get progressive with it, you get a whole new audience.”

    Wayne released his first CD in 1991 and has since gone on to record another 15. Only recently, however, did he build his own studio beside his home. A lifelong learner, he built up his capacity as a bluegrass artist through a mix of his natural talent and a thorough study of technique, both with mentorship and by his own ear.

    Carl and Wayne reflect on the calming, even healing power of music. “Music,” says Wayne, “is used as a tool in music therapy to help people bring about positive change. It creates emotion. Playing my songs just puts me in a different frame of mind. I get lost in it. It is like going to see a good movie.”

    MORE FROM LIFE IN THE CAROLINAS:

    Award Winning Segments — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Brown Mountain Lights — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Car Culture in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carolina Theater Trail — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Christmas in the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Taste of the Carolinas — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Honoring Veterans — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    On Route 74 — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outdoors — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    The Outer Banks — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Video Podcasts — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas

    Carl's Syndicated Columns — Carl White's Life in the Carolinas


    Whippoorwill Academy Jun 16, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with painter and retired art educator Margaret Ferguson Carter-Martine. She is the Director of Whippoorwill Academy and Village, which she inherited from her mother, Edith Carter.

    Margaret considers her art to be a diary of her life. “My art takes many different directions,” she says. Some of her works are political, while others are “things of beauty that bring me joy”. She believes that it is an artist’s job to use the emotionality of the medium to express, often in a big way, what the artist believes is worth expressing—and to be prepared to defend the content of their work as a lawyer defends their client.

    Before retiring as a teacher, Margaret had always believed that her future role at Whippoorwill Academy would be to assist her mother in running the village. Unfortunately, as fate would have it, Edith would learn that she had cancer and pass away a mere month following the diagnosis.

    Whippoorwill’s purpose is to celebrate local and regional history, art, and period culture. To this end, the village conducts tours for out-of-towners and schoolchildren alike. Whippoorwill’s team includes specialists such as an Appalachian toy expert, a blacksmith, hearth cookers, spinners, weavers, and more. As a treat to the students, Margaret painted, on one hundred rocks, animals that Daniel Boone would have hunted. She created a scavenger hunt for the kids by hiding the rocks all around the village.

    The life of Daniel Boone is celebrated at the historic Daniel Boone Hunting Lodge where the man himself slept during one of his many hunts.

    Other attractions include the Tom Dooley Museum, in which visitors can watch a video that Edith created about the life of Dooley. There is also the Whippoorwill School House, where many great contributors to American society received their education.

    Margaret has an especially soft spot for the students who visit Whippoorwill on field trips. She makes it a point to totally immerse the kids into each of the village’s museums in order to build in them an appreciation of another time period on a tactile level. “Nothing else can take the place of hands-on learning,” says Margaret.

    To those who consider the study of history as useless and irrelevant, Margaret has this to say: “If we look at this pandemic that we are having right now—and I read a huge book on the pandemic of 1918—we would learn so much looking back through history as to how it was handled, and how we can handle this now. There is an importance to history. We can learn from long ago on what to do now.”

    Links:

    Whippoorwill Academy - www.whippoorwillacademy.com

    Life in the Carolinas Tom Dooley Segment with author Charlotte Barnes filmed at Whippoorwill Academy - https://youtu.be/-5-KbySh03k


    A Conversation with David Holt Jun 03, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with four-time Grammy Award winner David Holt. David has been collecting and performing mountain music for over 50 years and had the privilege of learning from old-time greats like Bill Monroe, Doc Watson, Ralph Stanley, and others in his early days as a musician.

    David is the host of the current TV series David Holt’s State of Music. David has had many TV adventures over the years and in this conversation, he shares memories from his exciting journey. It is a role he does not take for granted: Since the early 70s, he understood that TV is a powerful tool to promote different forms of music, not just to existing fans, but to those who are yet to be exposed to them, particularly younger generations.

    David shares his experience playing a musician near the end of the film O Brother, Where Art Thou?. He relates the evening he spent before taping his scene, shooting the breeze and singing old songs around a campfire with some of the cast and crew, including George Clooney himself. The following morning, David did his scene and ended the day wondering whether it would make it into the final cut at all. It did, and according to a call from a friend in Europe (which is where the movie was first released) David was billed “the village idiot”. It was an unforgettable day. David also shared a few stories about his guest appearances on the show Hee Haw from 1988-1991.

    What started out as a simple love for mountain music gradually evolved into a sense of responsibility for preserving a piece of American history. David was able to study and play with the renowned musicians of yesterday and emerged from those experiences driven by a calling to spread his passion through as many avenues as he could for the rest of his professional life.

    David has had the opportunity to play a variety of instruments in his time, some more exotic than others. He considers the mouth bow as one of the more unusual ones he has tried out. He also demonstrates his mastery of bones, an instrument which he fondly recalls his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather playing when he was just a little boy.

    This episode is filled with stories about a TV personality and entertainer who has reached millions with this unique style of brining stories to life.

    Links:

    www.davidholt.com/

    www.DavidHoltTV.org

    www.lifeinthecarolinas.com


    The Cicada Rhythm May 27, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with John Cooley, an Assistant Professor in Residence at the University of Connecticut. They discuss the emergence of Brood IX in North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia this May as well as John’s cicada mapping project and its corresponding app, Cicada Safari, which he is currently promoting.

    After a brief introduction to periodical cicadas, John answers some pressing questions regarding the emergence of the 17-year variety. He tells us to think of this type of cicada as a “big boisterous aphid”, as they spend a lot of time sucking on plant juices both as juveniles underground and adults above ground. He says that once you can see mating pairs amid the chorus, “you will know you are really in the thick of the emergence”, and that their time above ground should only last around a month, depending on the weather, before they all die.

    Immediately upon emerging, Adult cicadas climb the nearest available tree and shed their nymph exoskeleton. Starting out stark white, they achieve their full, brown coloration within a couple of days. Males feed on surrounding vegetation until they become mature adults, then proceed to sing in order to attract females. John goes into the complicated, three-part courtship that takes place throughout the entire chorus. For the remainder of their respective lifespans, males will continue to look for females and females will continue to lay eggs.

    Asked whether cicadas “damage” trees, John replies that “it depends what you mean by ‘damage’”. After all, these species of cicada have been around for millions of years, carrying out their regular activities within the same environment—which include trees—in that time. He hastens to add that “delicate ornamental trees, fruit trees, and saplings” are more prone to defilement simply because they are not a natural part of the Eastern Deciduous Forest.

    John says that spraying pesticides will not be enough to take care of the enormous numbers of cicadas in the area; not to mention the damage that will be done to the surrounding environment due to all those chemicals. Instead, John encourages those concerned to invest in anything that physically excludes the cicadas from the branches, such as avian netting, window screening, or cheese cloth. These will probably not exclude every single cicada, but it should exclude enough to prevent the tree from getting damaged.

    Apart from periodical cicadas, there are also annual cicadas. While these encompass a number of species, the “loud ones that are often singing at dusk” are known as Dog-day cicadas. John refers to Dog-day cicadas as “the sounds of summer”, as they emerge in July. Speaking of their singing, John mentions that the sound of the swamp cicada can be heard in the original Star Wars film when C3PO and R2D2 land in Tatooine. This is, in fact, a recurring choice in many Hollywood soundtracks because swamp cicadas produce a “scary, rattly sound”.

    John grew up in Kansas City and was exposed every year to summer cicadas. He loved hearing them, referring to the yearly experience as “the sound of childhood and summer”. He also had a professor in college who was an expert in periodical cicadas. He piqued John’s interest to the point where he went on to study the Magicicada in his postgraduate education.

    Why study something so “esoteric” as periodical cicadas? “In biology,” replies John, “it is the exceptions that are interesting. The exceptions tell us something about how the world works.” On a more practical level, periodical cicadas are a “bioindicator of our forests’ health”. That is, if a good crop of cicadas emerge, “all is as it should be”. The forest is doing exactly what it needs to be doing.


    Destination Preservation May 20, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Ted Alexander. Apart from working at the North Carolina Senate, Ted also serves as the Western Regional Director for Preservation, North Carolina.

    Preservation, North Carolina is a statewide nonprofit organization that has been around in some form or another for about 81 years, having first started out as the North Carolina Society for the Preservation of Antiquities in 1939. The group looks to protect, preserve, and even repurpose built environments regarded as significant to the state’s heritage. These included properties that tell rich stories about North Carolina’s history, from Gastonia's Loray Mill Village to the Bellamy Mansion in Wilmington.

    When asked why it is important to preserve these historic buildings, Ted first makes it a point to give due credit to President J. Myrick Howard with the overall vision-mission of Preservation, North Carolina. He says that there are several reasons why these assets need to be preserved.

    For one, “there are some properties that are inherently important”, whether it was the home of a famous individual, the location of a significant event, or a very important piece of architecture of a certain style. Another reason for preservation is to “create a sense of place”, as historic buildings help to establish the identity of the community in terms of its values and self-image. A building might also “offer a very functional use in today’s world”, such as serving as a tourist attraction. Then there is the economic benefit to preserving historic assets, since not only do the buildings themselves go up in value, but they may also pave the way to further investments or the creation of more jobs. Finally, there is patriotic value to preservation, being an activity that brings the entire community together.

    According to studies, historic sites are almost always near the top of a tourist’s agenda. Ted says that modern travelers want to collect experiences—speaking particularly of millennials. He says that even smaller towns who understand this and do whatever they can to promote these historical buildings by telling their stories will have an edge as tourist destinations.

    CONNECT:

    https://www.presnc.org/

    www.lifeinthecarolinas.com

    Carl@lifeinthecarolinas.com

    SEE MORE:

    https://youtu.be/pK78QQ4tLMM

    https://youtu.be/E_xCzuKeJ_c


    Celebrating Main Street May 05, 2020
    Show notes

    On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Liz Parham, the Executive Director of North Carolina Main Street Center. She works with designated Main Street communities across the state to conduct strategic planning and education programs. These initiatives, among others, are designed to increase the economic capacity of communities.

    The Main Street program was inspired by the National Main Street Center, which began in 1980. The idea behind the program was born out of the increasingly commercialized society that developed in the late 1970s and 1980s, with malls and strip centers popping up everywhere.

    Because of these rapid developments, there was concern among communities that their downtown districts would become vacant. The Main Street program was started, then, to “put new uses back into those really key properties, those buildings, that were in our downtown districts all across the state.”

    “The heart and soul of the community is in the downtown,” continues Liz. “Historic buildings are unique to that town. If you lose that heart and soul, you do not just lose it downtown; you lose a community’s identity. Even today, industries do not move into a community that does not have a heart and soul.”

    The Main Street program has brought life back into these communities. Residents develop a sense of pride upon seeing physical improvements to historic buildings, as well as new businesses coming to life. It inspires the citizenry to share the good news and invest for the good of the community in their own, individual ways.

    Just last year alone, $270 million was invested in Liz’s designated Main Street. Collectively, $3.2 billion was invested since the beginning of the program in 1980. As Liz says, “It’s very much a public-private partnership, which I think is good for everyone. They are sharing in the expenses; but they are also sharing in the success.”

    Liz actually began to do downtown work when she was finishing college. Upon graduation, Liz moved around for a number of years serving on the Main Street programs of different cities. In that time, she has seen directors of the program grow in number, from a small handful when she started, to about 20 now spread out among 64 designated Main Street communities.

    Asked about how the Main Street program is dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, Liz says that they are working with a lot of small businesses to help them build an ecommerce presence through websites and social media profiles. The Main Street program’s website has a dedicated COVID-19 resource page that is extremely active and updated with new information every day.

    Beyond looking at federal resources, the program is helping small businesses to develop and execute innovative marketing and investment strategies amid quarantine measures all around the country. All of this builds towards the long-term goal of recovery and resiliency.

    CONNECT WITH THE MAIN STREET PROGRAM:

    www.ncmainstreetrurualplanningcenter.com

    www.ncmainstreetconference.com

    CONNECT WITH LIFE IN THE CAROLINAS

    www.lifeinthecarolinas.com

    www,lifeinthecarolinaspodcast.com

    carl@lifeinthecarolinas.com


    Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 9 Next

    Related Podcasts

    Fresh Air

    1

    Fresh Air Arts
    Twenty Thousand Hertz

    2

    Twenty Thousand Hertz Arts
    The Black Tapes

    3

    The Black Tapes Arts
    Snap Judgment

    4

    Snap Judgment Arts
    Here’s The Thing with Alec Baldwin

    5

    Here’s The Thing with Alec Baldwin Arts
    The NoSleep Podcast – Creative Reason Media Inc.

    6

    The NoSleep Podcast – Creative Reason Media Inc. Arts
    footer-logo

    Contact Us

    Toll Free: 844-670-7747

    Links

    • Home
    • Top Charts
    • Networks
    • Apps
    • Independents Podcasts
    • Podcast Advertising
    • Podcast News
    • Contact Us
    • About Us
    • Analytics & Insights

    Stay Connected

      Privacy, Terms of Use & Our Code of Ethics Protecting Content Creators Copyrights