Savvy Citizen: A Gaston County Podcast

Members of the Gaston County Cooperative Extension and Natural Resources Department are here to talk about updates to the Farmland Protection Plan and how that'll help farmers across our county for years to come. 

Get a look inside the world of foster care with Gaston County Department of Social Services employee Seth Derner, who has experience working in the foster care system as well as being a foster care parents himself. 

On this special episode of Savvy Citizen, our team takes you on a hike at Crowder's Mountain, as our expert guides provide some history and little known information about Gaston County's most prominent natural wonder.

Join us as we talk to two young women who interned in 2023 with the Lighthouse Children's Advocacy Center about what drew them to such important and challenging work.

What does it take to get a major project approved? We take you behind the scenes of the Riverbend Preserve project -- one that will transform the face of northeastern Gaston County in the coming years -- with Planning & Zoning Director Jamie Kanburoglu. 

It's been three years since we launched Savvy Citizen, and we're celebrating with Country musician Rob Williford. Rob is a Gaston County native and played with Luke Combs for many years before striking out on his own earlier this year, releasing his debut solo album, 'Wildcard.' You can hear our interview with Rob here OR watch it and hear a bit of his music on our video project, Savvy Sounds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dxEhG9BndE

Gaston County is hosting a GIS Day for the first time on November 15, and GIS analyst Naomi Paul stops by to talk about why the event will be both fun and informative (and attract geocaching buffs as well).

It's Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and Gaston County has critical resources available to anyone who needs them. Also, the Threads of Hope fundraiser is just around the corner, and its a great way for everyone in the community to help support survivors of domestic violence, child and elder abuse. 

It's one of our favorite episodes of the year -- our Halloween Spooktacular! Members of the Dallas Branch Library talk about some unexplained happenings and Alex Brooks from the Gaston County Museum of Art & History joins us to talk about the return of paranormal walking tours later this month. 

In this episode, Linda Minges and Payton Flowers from the Cooperative Extension sit down with hosts Dandria Bradley and Gavin Stewart to discuss the grape of the south - the muscadine.