The N.C. Coastal Land Trust has reached an agreement with a developer to preserve over 3,200 acres of forest in New Hanover County.  The deal is with Copper Builders, the developer behind the controversial Hilton Bluffs subdivision proposed on Castle Hayne property known as Sledge Forest. It would see over 3,200 acres of the forest protected under the stewardship o ...

The Forward Fund has received a $1 million grant from the Golden LEAF Foundation to expand its financing program for students in short-term, high-demand workforce training programs. The Golden LEAF Foundation awarded the funding through its Strategic Projects Advancing Rural Communities (SPARC) initiative, which aims to "support bold, collaborative projects that ad ...

Thalian Hall Center for the Performing Arts on Wednesday announced a $100,000 naming gift from REV Federal Credit Union to its ongoing capital campaign for the center's transformation project. The $25 million renovation project would nearly double Thalian Hall’s footprint, as it expands into a 17,000-square-foot wing that had been occupied by the city of Wilmi ...

The New Hanover Community Endowment held its semiannual public meeting Wednesday night, where officials addressed concerns about school bond funding, the local arts community and funding for the Northside Food Co-op.  The endowment hosted the meeting at the Minnie Evans Performing Arts Center located on the Eugene Ashley High School campus. The endowment, which has ...

Local organizations are seeking input from area nonprofits on the state of the nonprofit sector in New Hanover County, according to a news release. Cape Fear Collective, UNCW’s QENO (Quality Enhancement for Nonprofit Organizations) and the Landfall Foundation have opened an online survey examining funding, workforce and the conditions shaping local nonprofits, the ...

The New Hanover Community Endowment has appointed seven new members to its Community Advisory Council (CAC).  The endowment’s 18-member CAC is appointed by the endowment’s board after being recruited and selected through a public application process. The members serve staggered three-year terms.  The endowment was created following the $1.5 ...

The New Hanover Community Endowment has announced four new grants to education and youth-serving organizations in New Hanover County, according to a news release. An $896,000 grant to Girls Leadership Academy of Wilmington (GLOW) "supports efforts to improve academic achievement, expand pathways to postsecondary success and promote economic mobility for young women ...

At the celebration of life for Jean Beasley, held in April, about 200 people gathered to remember the sea turtle advocate, who died at 90 years old in December. She founded the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center as a result of the sea turtle work done by her daughter, the organization's namesake. Karen Beasley died at the age of 29 in 1991. ...

Too often, sorrow is the backstory for success. “I’ve been with The Healing Place for just over four years and was the organization’s first hire,” executive director Brian Mingia said. “I make it a priority to stay connected to the people we serve – because that’s what drew me to this work in the first place. A family member of ...

Public art can have a powerful role in a community, according to the head of a local project. “By turning blank business corridor walls into canvases for colorful stories, the Carolina Beach Mural Project gives everyone – locals and tourists alike – a true sense of place, inviting them to engage with the town’s heritage and encouraging cultural t ...