Author Archives: zonker

Historic Oakwood: A storied past, a storied present

by Ann Brooke Raynal Visitors walking the streets of Historic Oakwood on a chilly December night may think they have been transported back to the 19th century. Candles burn in the windows, garlands of greenery grace the exteriors of Queen…

Smash it

by Kevin Barrett, Foundation cocktail director It’s summertime in the capital city, and you know what that means: It’s hot. After the winter we had, I’m not complaining about summer heat. I don’t have a lot of meat on my…

WALTER’S author dinner at the Umstead: The debut of WALTER events

An elegant evening of terrific company, conversation, food, and wine came together when four of the area’s best writers and 100 Walter readers gathered at the Umstead Hotel & Spa for the sold-out debut of Walter events. Local novelists Allan…

Move over, Martha!

photographs by Leslie Baker When Joyce Fitzpatrick and Gail Perry had young daughters, the two hard-working Raleigh friends decided to show their girls that they, too, could excel in the domestic realm. “Move over, Martha!” jokes public relations dynamo Fitzpatrick,…

Spotlight: Locavores

by Jessie Ammons photograph by Chris Seward, The News & Observer If the abundance of farmers’ markets in our area is any indication, it’s safe to say that eating locally is no longer a trend – it’s here to stay. We’ve…

Spotlight: Theater happenings

There’s no shortage of entertainment in Raleigh, especially when it comes to theater. From dreamy, moonlit Shakespearean nights at the Raleigh Rose Garden, to toe-tapping musical numbers belted from Raleigh Memorial Auditorium’s grand stage, to wild tales of booze, love…

Grit and beauty: The evolution of Justin LeBlanc

  by Liza Roberts photographs by Tim Lytvinenko “I need to make.” Justin LeBlanc’s fingers fly across a swath of mesh, attaching zip-ties to fabric in careful rows. “I’m a maker. If I don’t make…I go crazy.” Not that there’s any…

Lessons from lessons

by David Crabtree The wind is cold. Biting. A December wind that rushes, howling by the gothic stone of the Chapel of King’s College, Cambridge. Cold December winds have blown over these stones since the 15th century. Even the War…

Overcoming barriers, building leaders

by Lewis Beale photographs by Nick Pironio When Marco Zárate arrived here from Mexico in 1979 to study for his master’s degree in industrial engineering at N.C. State, he discovered that Hispanic culture in the Triangle was basically nonexistent. No Hispanic markets,…

North Carolina’s Executive Mansion

by Liza Roberts photographs by Catherine Nguyen Living above the store is a good way to ensure working around the clock. Even when “the store” is a gorgeous 1891 Queen Anne Victorian mansion set on nearly five lush acres, there’s an…

Raleigh’s coolest office

text and photograph by Scott Huler You  have never been inside Raleigh’s coolest office.  And I mean no disrespect of the modern when I tell you that even when the new Citrix building is finished, the coolest office in Raleigh…

The piano

by Elaine Neil Orr My 32-year-old son wanted the piano, and I told him he could have it.  I hadn’t played it for years.  But I put off making the arrangements.  Finally I got a piano technician to come to…

Rock star: Bailey McNeill’s jewelry for the cure

by Jessie Ammons photographs by Nick Pironio Growing up, Bailey McNeill always looked forward to her family’s annual summer trip, one she still takes with her grandparents, siblings, and cousins to the mountains for a week of hiking and gemstone mining. It…

Raleigh gets saucy

by Andrew Kenney photographs by Chris Fowler Sauce at its best is a culture distilled, the collected spices and secrets of a cuisine and a history. A taste of a hearty ragù or a vinegar sauce with an addictive eastern tang can…

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