The U. S. Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as “the lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life.” Merrell Footwear, an active lifestyle brand, joins the Mast Store for the eleventh year in 2019 to provide Food for Kids (October 21-November 3), a cause that supports funding the weekend food efforts in each of Mast Store’s home communities.

It's week four of the Fall Foliage Primer and we're beginning to see some changes. The higher elevations around Boone and Valle Crucis had a light frost earlier in the week. Festivals in all locations abound for the weekend, so there's a lot of things to do. AND, we believe you may begin seeing even more color with the frost being on the pumpkin, so to speak, and the cooler temperatures. Get out and enjoy the beautiful season! 

It's week three of the Fall Foliage Primer and it seems that the march to fall color is now marking time in all locations. Everywhere had a cool snap early in the week, with some places having some much-needed rain. Mother Nature's paintbrush is still finding its way into the scenery, just slowly, but there are a number of fun events on the list of things to do. Check out what our reporters recommend for this week. 

Fall finally made it, and with that, it’s time to pick over the tomatoes, beans, peppers, and whatever else you might have lingering in your gardens one last time. You’ll want to savor what you can as it’s fresh off the vine, but what do you do with the excess? We have a few ideas.

This week's second edition of the Fall Foliage Primer finds color appearing in splotches but not big swaths. Some can be seen along the highest ridgelines and some roadways and landscaped areas. Flowers, pumpkins, and vines are also adding to the fall decor. Click on in and find out what our reporters have to suggest for the coming weekend.

The first edition of the 2019 Fall Foliage Primer is here. While the most prevalent color observed is still green, there are tinges of orange, red, and yellow beginning to be revealed, especially in some of the higher elevations. Plus, some of the best "color" can be found and experienced in many of the wonderful fall festivals that happen in our local communities. Check in to see what our reporters are recommending this week. 

As the tilt of the earth moves us a little farther from the sun, the calendar fills with outdoor festivities to celebrate the fall turning of the leaves, the end of harvest season, and the culinary arts. We’ve searched our communities for festive and fun suggestions to add to your fall itineraries.

Mast Store believes in recycling. And recycling on a grand scale - that’s why we have homes in historic buildings along bustling Main Streets in vibrant downtowns. We recycle internally, too, like using the back sides of our white paper for accounting forms or documents that will remain in-house. But we know we can do better … and we want to help others do better, too. That’s why we spent an afternoon at the Watauga County Recycling Center – to learn the best practices to keep the recycle loop looping.

It’s hard to believe that it’s time to make the closet changeover from summer to fall. If you choose carefully among last year’s trending styles, you can update your look by adding a few key items from this year’s emerging course. Let’s get started.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines friend as “a favored companion; one that favors or promotes something.” Woodrow Wilson once said, “Friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the world together.” The Mast Store is pleased to count several active community groups among our circle of friends, and on September 7^th, we’ll introduce you to some of them and will make a donation to support their efforts.