A ribbon cutting was held by the Franklin Chamber of Commerce at the Barn @ Burningtown located at 67 Smith Road. Owners Homer and Teresa Holbrooks offer the perfect venue for weddings, birthdays, anniversary parties, church groups, graduations, family reunions, class reunions and more.

Edward Jones office on Highlands Road is an example of how small local offices can recycle effectively.

Chris Brouwer, Christine Bury and Cathy Bryan each have recycle boxes under their desks to separate sensitive papers for shredding and regular paper that they drop off at the recycle centers.

The office recycles approximately 100 pounds of paper each month. In addition, they bring all biodegradable waste home for composting and take cans and bottles to the dropoff centers.

The Filling Station Thrift Store will have a Grand Opening on Saturday April 6, from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. The Filling Station is located at 615 Highlands Rd. in Franklin, NC. Free hot dogs and balloons for the kids will be given away from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. The Grand Opening will culminate with drawings for a $25 gift certificate and two $10 gift certificates. All area residents and visitors are invited to register for the free gift certificates. The drawing will also be held for the winner of the raffle for the beautifully framed "Waits River" print by Rudi Reichardt, valued at over $222. Raffle tickets for the Reichardt print are $1 each.

The Filling Station Thrift Store is a non-profit purposed to support the mission of Kids Against Hunger- Franklin to reduce hunger around the corner and around the world. Kids Against Hunger-Franklin raises money and recruits volunteers to package food to ship where it is needed.

The Macon County Economic Development Commission (EDC) has announced details of the upcoming BizWeek 2013 events to be held April 23-25. BizWeek is a celebration of business, industry and entrepreneurship in Macon County.

“The Macon County EDC and our partners have many events planned during this celebration,” said Tommy Jenkins, director of the Macon County EDC. “Each event is designed to show our appreciation for all our businesses, both large and small, that are part of the fabric of the county’s economic community.”