Discover Statesville
Welcome to "Discover Statesville," the show that takes you on a captivating journey through the heart of one of North Carolina's most charming towns. Co-hosted by community advocates, Richard Griggs and Cindy Sutton, this weekly show brings you the pulse of Statesville, recording live at various spots throughout Statesville in partnership with Sow Media studios.
Join Richard and Cindy as they uncover the hidden gems and local treasures that make Statesville truly special. From the top-notch attractions and exciting events to the remarkable individuals who shape the community, "Discover Statesville" promises to leave no stone unturned.
Hungry for a culinary adventure? Tune in for their delightful restaurant reviews, where they'll guide you to the best places to eat in town. Whether you're a resident or a visitor, this podcast is your ultimate guide to all the things that make Statesville great.
You're invited to come along on this immersive journey, as "Discover Statesville" brings you closer to the heart of our vibrant town. Be prepared to be entertained, inspired, and enlightened each week, as Richard and Cindy share their passion for all things Statesville!
Discover Statesville
Bountiful Berries and Soulful Sounds of Statesville in Spring
Get ready to mark your calendars as May unfolds with a basketful of events in Statesville! If the sweet scent of strawberries has you yearning for sun-kissed afternoons, our episode will guide you to the best local farms for strawberry-picking -just be sure to keep tabs on the weather with a quick social media check. We're not just about the daytime charms; our nights are set to sparkle with the Friday After Five concert series, kicking off with none other than Gump Fiction. For those who prefer chills over tunes, dare to join us on the Haunted Statesville Ghost Tours, and witness the whispers of our town's spooky lore. And for rhythm enthusiasts, the Iredell Arts Council is throwing a soul-funk street concert to energize your every step.
We'll also give you a sneak peek into the Carolina Hills Fiddle Fest. And for the creatives among us, the opportunity to showcase your art on the Cooper Street wall beckons. Thanks to the unwavering support of the Statesville Convention and Visitors Bureau, we're bringing you the heartbeat of our community through these engaging events. So whether you're a lifelong resident or just passing through, tune in to truly connect with the vibrant spirit and cultural fabric of Statesville.
Grab your calendars. We got a lot of great events coming up in May. Tune in now.
Speaker 2:Welcome to Discover Statesville, the show that takes you on a captivating journey through the heart of one of North Carolina's most charming towns.
Speaker 3:Welcome back Statesville. We're so excited to be back in studio here at so Media in the heart of downtown Statesville for another episode of Discover Statesville. This month we're going to be given a rundown of things happening in May, and from sweet strawberry fields to the haunting corners of downtown Statesville, there is an adventure waiting for you in Statesville, North Carolina, in May All right, yeah, we're excited Looking forward to it.
Speaker 3:So, talking about strawberry fields Forever, yeah, forever. I'm always so excited to talk about agriculture and you pick agriculture in Statesville because we are so full of it and strawberry picking is one of my favorites because we have two farms that offer strawberry picking. Actually, it opened up this past weekend. Beaver Farms is offering strawberry picking right here in Statesville. They are behind the old Davis Hospital, actually on Beaver Farm Road.
Speaker 3:Weekend beaver farms is offering strawberry picking right here in statesville um, they are behind the old davis hospital, actually on beaver farm road, and they are offering you pick strawberries monday through friday from 10 to 6, saturdays from 10 to 4 and even sundays from 1 to 4. And then our neighbors over in union grove, how Howard Family Farm, offering always delicious strawberries. They're in Union Grove, at 250 Crater Road, also Monday through Friday from 8 am to 6 pm and then Saturdays from 8 to 4 pm. One caveat for both of these farms and you pick always is follow both of these guys on Facebook and before you head out, just check things out, because it's weather dependent and sometimes they get picked out.
Speaker 1:It's availability, because strawberries are delicious yeah, they are delicious. It's the perfect fruit, because it's basically a dessert.
Speaker 3:So my favorite part of May is it's the launch of strawberry picking, so you guys get out and support those farmers. That's awesome.
Speaker 1:Another thing that picks up in May is the Downtown Statesville Friday After Five free summer concert series, piedmont Healthcare Friday After Five. This is hosted by our friends over at the Downtown Statesville Development Corporation as well as the Greater Statesville Chamber of Commerce. The first event will be Friday, may the 3rd. They'll be hosting Gump Fiction, which is the ultimate 90s experience, and then they'll have one the first Friday of every month through October. It's a really great time. Those events start around 6 o'clock, run until around 8. They'll usually have a couple of food trucks on site. There'll be lots of other vendors there, there's alcohol sales and just a really good time outside downtown 90s experience.
Speaker 3:Are we finally going to get to see you out there dancing?
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 3:I'll have my camera ready.
Speaker 1:You should be as convinced as that sounded when I said yes.
Speaker 3:Richard, did you know this is the 16th year for the Friday After 5?
Speaker 1:That's crazy. Yeah, I had no idea.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so kicking that off in May through October Also downtown Statesville Development staying busy over there. Also Downtown Statesville Development staying busy over there. I'm excited and we've talked about this before that instead of just their main Haunted Statesville Ghost Tours that they do in October, they started this year in March and then every month it's the fourth Saturday of each month they offer two sessions of Haunted Statesville Ghost Tours. So don't miss your chance if you haven't been on March 25th this month, and tickets are only $15. So if you have not experienced that, you definitely need to go to downtownstatesvillecom and secure your tickets for the Haunted Statesville Ghost Tours.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and it's really cool. I haven't been in several years. It's probably time for me to go again, but it was really neat, really interesting.
Speaker 3:the people that do the tours do a great job yeah, well, I think, if you haven't been in a long time, um keith ryan and the historic sharp players I believe they're called um they are. They are, so it's more actors instead of just locals are passionate about it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah doing, doing the maybe new ghosts that have been discovered. You guys, I.
Speaker 3:Sure, sure. So if you haven't been, it's time to revisit, because it's a little different.
Speaker 1:Cool. So also in May, the Iredell Arts Council has a ton of things going on, as is always the case, and so I'm just going to kind of run through their calendar real quickly. On May, the 2nd, they'll be hosting the Wilson Springs Hotel, which is a country Americana band out of Virginia.
Speaker 3:Oh, we can't stay there.
Speaker 1:You cannot stay there. Oh, okay, you'll want to?
Speaker 3:You'll want to.
Speaker 1:Probably not in the old jail, though. Speaking of ghost tours, on May the 4th the folks from Roots in the Round will be hosting the Cell Block Serenade Sessions. This is a sort of singers in the round type of an event where they'll have a number of different musicians on stage taking turns, telling stories, singing songs. That one will be hosted by Mark T Evans. On May the 11th, the Art Alliance Council will be holding their second annual street concert. That's exciting. Basically, we'll close off Court Street and have a stage down there at the bottom, kind of right in front of the Arts Council, and we will be bringing in Chawa, which is a New Orleans soul funk band, so heavy horn section, all that kind of stuff. It'll be a great time.
Speaker 3:I watched some of their videos preparing for our show today and I'm very excited.
Speaker 1:It's going to be great and the Insomniacs will be opening for them. So we'll have some local hip-hop, r&b, and then followed by Chihuahua. It should be a great time. Same thing have some food trucks out there, red Buffalo will be in attendance and then porn and everything. So we just want the community to come out and Hang out together.
Speaker 2:Save the date folks. That's another free event, yeah.
Speaker 1:On the 17th and 18th is the North Carolina Thumb and Finger Style Guitar Players Festival, which is amazing. I mean, it's just a bunch of folks that get together and teach sessions and perform on thumb and finger style guitar, which there is a very rich history of here in Arnold County. Yeah, really great time. If that's of interest to you, on the 21st the Full Bloom Film Festival will be. Their installment of their monthly movie series will be the Big Lebowski, which is one of the greatest movies of all time.
Speaker 3:Yeah, if you haven't seen it, I think you said that about the last movie that they did. Perhaps, they just go through your library.
Speaker 1:They just go through your library. Big Lebowski's in my top five. Okay, it's a great film.
Speaker 3:So great that Full Bloom Film Festival is keeping it going throughout the year.
Speaker 1:People say we don't have a theater in town.
Speaker 3:But if you look hard enough, we do Pay attention folks.
Speaker 1:May, the 22nd, piedmont Folkways will be hosting Carolina Ridgeline. That's a bluegrass band out of the Charlotte area. On the 24th, our Arts Council will host GA20, which is kind of like a pretty raw blues trio. It'll be kind of rocking good time there.
Speaker 3:We were talking about blues the other day.
Speaker 1:It will be great. On the 25th, roots in the Round folks will host another Cell Block Serenade session. This one will be hosted by Danny Carr. So same thing sort of singer-songwriters in the round series. And on the 29th, piedmont Folkways will host Tina and Her Pony, which is an indie folk band. So a wide variety and plenty of entertainment at the old jail in May.
Speaker 3:Talk for a minute, Richard Iredell. Arts Council has its thing and doing its thing, but you're talking about Piedmont Folkways and Roots in the Round and the Insomniacs.
Speaker 1:We have a lot of great musicians or individuals that are passionate about the arts coming together to do really good things here in Statesville, absolutely. So just only a few of these events that I mentioned are being actually presented by the Arts Council. It's the collaborative effort that's taking place there that has created this really vibrant cultural arts community coming out of that building. So we've got the folks from Grassroots Entertainment Group that also their nonprofit arm is, roots in the Round, so they're hosting events there. You've got Piedmont Folkways that's hosting events there. You've got the Insomniacs, which we've had Tevin and Capri on the show before that are hosting events there, and the Full Bloom Film Festival that's hosting events. So that's really been. The beautiful thing is all these community partnerships. The Arts Council is providing the space, but then all these other groups are coming together to provide the programming, and so that's what's making it work and why we're able to host 10 or more events there in a month, which is great.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and for those of you who don't know, discover Statesville is made possible by the Statesville Convention and Visitors Bureau. We're proud to help lift up the arts and things that are happening in Statesville by being one of the main sponsors this year. That's absolutely right and love that all this programming is happening for people who live here and people who are coming to visit here.
Speaker 1:We get a surprisingly large amount of people that will attend a lot of these concerts that we talk about, from out of town, sometimes out of state, which is pretty cool. Some of these bands that we're bringing in are bands that people have liked for years but haven't had the opportunity to see or hadn't seen in a long time, so it's always really interesting when we see new faces come in and ask people where they're from, how far people have traveled.
Speaker 3:And that's a pretty intensive lineup. There's always something to do in Statesville, guys, if you're, you just got to pay attention. But talking about strawberries, full-blown farmer's market season kicks off for Statesville in May. So the Rotary Farmers Market returns in May, on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 7 am to noon. And that's on the corner of West Front and Meeting Street, is that right, richard? Correct? Okay, right behind the old historic Vance Hotel. So you want to make plans to start supporting that farmers market kicking off in May? The evening farmer's market started a little bit early last month, but they'll continue into May, through October, and they are at Pecan Park also in downtown Statesville.
Speaker 1:Which is worth noting, is in the social district. So if you wanted to go by Red Buffalo and grab a pint, you could then walk over and peruse the farmer's market, buy some produce, make an afternoon out of it.
Speaker 3:Definitely worth noting. Very, very cool that you can do that. So that is on Thursdays from 3.30 to 5 pm at Pecan Park. And then we have made mention of them last month because they also kicked off, but the Fort Dobbs Artisan Far Farmers Market continues the first and third Tuesdays of May from 3 pm to 6 pm. So, guys, there's no reason that you shouldn't be out supporting your local farmers, buying locally made artisan products and also getting all your vegetables. So support them yeah vegetables, so support them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, on May, the 11th, at Firehouse Vintage Vehicles, they will be hosting their second annual Firehouse Vintage Ford, bronco and Truck Meet.
Speaker 3:I went last year. Did you really I did. Was it awesome? Yeah, it was it sounds awesome. I live in a household of men who love vintage Broncos, love beautiful Broncos and trucks.
Speaker 1:So they'll have those beautiful Broncos and trucks on display, but they'll also have live music, they'll have food, they'll have beer, they'll have other giveaways throughout the day. It is a celebration of, like I say, old Ford, broncos and trucks, so if you have one, they encourage you to bring it on up there and show it off. They'll also be given. The firehouse crew will also be giving out scheduled shop tours and they'll be posting a daily schedule for the event closer to the time. So check them out on the social media.
Speaker 3:Yeah, thanks Firehouse Vintage Vehicles for bringing that for us. Something new that we saw Love Valley is going to be hosting a country fest. Nice, and I am going to be looking that up, richard, because I did not put the date in our notes.
Speaker 1:Well, while you were looking that up, I'll talk a little about who's performing that day. So they've got four different bands performing throughout the day, starting kicking off at 2 o'clock with Scarlett Darlene, and they've got Bradley Cloninger, the Ray Shook Band and the Clicker Liquor Band to close it out.
Speaker 3:Very cool Country Music Festival happening in Love Valley and that is on May 18th, so be sure and check that out.
Speaker 1:A deeply rooted history of music festivals held up there in Love Valley going many, many years back, should be a good time. They're bringing stuff back, yeah.
Speaker 3:Gates open at 12 pm on the 18th and it looks like they're bringing people from three states, four different artists.
Speaker 1:Yeah, if you haven't been to Love Valley, it's certainly worth a trip anytime, and this sounds like a perfect reason to go.
Speaker 3:Yeah, every time we post it people say, isn't this closed? And they went through a time where a lot of the shops and stuff closed up because they had lost their water supply and stuff. But they've gotten some great grants and funding from the state and Love Valley's coming back guys.
Speaker 1:Love Valley's up there yeah.
Speaker 3:You need to go check it out.
Speaker 1:Perfect yeah. So later on the month of May, the fine folks over at the Recreation and Parks Department will be opening the Leisure Pool.
Speaker 3:Those are some fine folks. They are the finest.
Speaker 1:The Leisure Pool will open Memorial Day weekend, as will the splash pad over at the Bentley Community Center. Also, that weekend we'll kick off the Dive and Movie series. You'll have to follow us on social media or check out the website, but we'll have different free well, not all free different outdoor movies in different locations. We do a monthly movie at the Leisure Pool that one is feed, but then we'll do a free movie at the Bentley Splash Pad every month and we'll do some free movies at Martin Luther King Jr Park. But that series kicks off on the 26th with the Little Mermaid.
Speaker 3:This is the new one Also in your top five right.
Speaker 1:I mean, I love romantic movies. This is the new one which I actually have not seen. This is the live action one. I have not seen the live action one yet Very cool, but my daughter liked it very much.
Speaker 3:So I bet you, there's a lot of people out there that haven't seen that, so save the date.
Speaker 1:Tickets will go on sale in advance. Usually those dive-in movies will sell out before the actual screening.
Speaker 3:And then we'll sort of watch the weather and determine when we're going to release those tickets for sale. So, okay, so keep an eye out for that, guys. Um, recreation parks on social media, that's right. Yeah, follow along. And then something old but new.
Speaker 3:So memorial day weekend, may 23rd through 26th uh, blake family farms um, family family I'm Blake mixing all of our farms together but Blake Farms Family RV Resort is going to be celebrating 100 years of music in the Grove. So, out in Union Grove, where Fiddler's Grove used to be, the Blake Farm family now owns that property and they have rehabbed it into an rv resort. Um, they've taken the building at the front. Uh, just a couple weeks ago they've reopened it into a very cool country store offering, uh, local goods, produce, local, locally made stuff and plants. Um, and they're going to be bringing back. Well, actually it's going to be the inaugural carolina hills fiddle fest, but kind of like the fiddlers grow fest that used to be bringing back. Well, actually it's going to be the inaugural Carolina Hills Fiddle Fest, but kind of like the Fiddler's Grove Fest that used to be out there Three day three day weekend.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so it's my understanding they have like three camping spots left, so the camping has filled up and flowing over into people staying in our hotels and coming from all over for this fiddle festival. So we're really excited about it, even more excited that Bethany from Blake Farms is going to join us in studio week after next and tell us all things Blake Farms and everything we need to know about the Carolina Hills Fiddle Fest.
Speaker 1:Very cool. Yeah, that's exciting. That's a beautiful piece of property.
Speaker 3:Stay tuned for more, but you can go to carolinafiddlefestcom. Buy tickets now.
Speaker 1:That's Memorial Day weekend.
Speaker 3:That is Memorial Day weekend.
Speaker 1:That's Memorial Day weekend, yeah yeah, Exciting Other things coming up, just to keep on your radar. We're looking forward to June.
Speaker 3:The Recreation and get in touch with the Arts Council. Absolutely. You guys have been doing that for several years now A number of years.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, it's a fun time.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's June 1st.
Speaker 1:That is June 1st. We're mentioning it now.
Speaker 3:We're covering it now. Yeah, and at Martin Luther King Park, that's right, formerly Lakewood. Park. Okay, from 11 to 3. And speaking of artists, did you see that Downtown Statesville posted they are updating their? Is it Cooper Street?
Speaker 1:No, the art wall that's on the side yeah, it's on the side of New Way.
Speaker 3:Shoe Shop. Yeah, I think they actually call it the Cooper Street art wall. But if you are an artist, there are all kinds of opportunities for you to showcase your work, Like go out to DowTestStatesvillecom. Check that out too.
Speaker 1:Because they were doing like an artist. Call out for submissions right.
Speaker 3:They are. They're going to update what. I think there's 12 banners on that wall. So get what. I think there's 12, 12 banners on that wall, so get your art featured. Don't second guess it, just send it in, see if yours gets picked, because we have so much talent here in Statesville. So I mentioned briefly during the show and I just want to mention again we're so thankful for the Statesville Convention and Visitors Bureau making this podcast possible.
Speaker 3:The Statesville Convention and Visitors Bureau making this podcast possible. The Statesville Convention and Visitors Bureau is the tourism arm of Statesville and we focus on bringing people from the outside. But we also want to make sure that everyone who lives here loves it here as much as we do and we want everyone to be able to discover Statesville. So go to statesvillenccom. There's over 2,000 events on the calendar now. So I know we kind of highlight Richard and I highlight the featured events.
Speaker 3:Otherwise this would be a multi-hour show and we would have lost you probably five minutes ago. But almost every night there's live music, there's bingo, karaoke, magic shows, we have several businesses that do where you can go play cards, and there's just so many things to do that we couldn't possibly cover at all. I know that the Sharp House is having a Mother's Day tea. Several businesses have come together in downtown Statesville to showcase spending the day in downtown Statesville for Mother's Day. Just get out if you're local and support local If you're visiting. Go to statesvillennccom and click on plan your trip. Endless amount of things you don't want to miss.
Speaker 1:That's right. Always a good time here at Statesville.
Speaker 3:Thanks everyone.
Speaker 2:Thank you for joining Discover Statesville. You can email us at discover at statesvillenccom. Check us out on Facebook at Discover Statesville, nc hashtag Discover Statesville and our website statesvillenccom. Catch us next week as we continue on our journey to uncover the hidden gems, culinary adventures, entertainment, and to be inspired and enlightened as we discover statesville.
