Culture

Since Lee Hunsaker launched Hoot and Holler storytelling events in Roanoke in 2016, she’s developed a reputation as a “story midwife” who helps bring out the best in her storytellers. Next month, she takes the show on the road to Bristol’s Rhythm & Roots Reunion music festival.

For more than three decades, Travis McDonald led restoration efforts at Poplar Forest in Bedford County. He retired recently, but he’s already planning his next book, this one about the decades-long project.

The James Beard Award-winning chef talks about the importance of the region on the future of food and how kudzu might be part of the answer.

Roanokers Bernadette Lark and Alanjha Harris are part of this year’s Virginia Folklife apprenticeship program. They will perform Gullah Geechee gospel music Thursday at the Taubman Museum of Art.

“Hidden in Plain Site: Roanoke” explores six sites in Roanoke that played key roles in the city’s African American community but are unknown to many residents.

At the time its board decided to shutter operations, the Axton Life Saving Crew had just a single volunteer certified for EMT work.

The segment of the Appalachian Trail that includes Dragon’s Tooth, McAfee Knob and Tinker Cliffs is one of the busiest sections of the trail. The National Park Service has been working with regional stakeholders to develop a plan to protect the trail’s natural resources and manage the growing numbers of visitors.

At various points during its long history, the Paradise Inn hosted a dancehall, an eatery, a community center and living spaces. Through it all, one former tenant recalled, it was the beating heart of Black Martinsville.

The hands-on museum has taken steps to make things easier for families dealing with neurodivergent diagnoses. It offers quiet spaces, sensory-friendly toys and a staff trained in autism awareness.

The group is looking for a new site within an hour of Blacksburg and Christiansburg.