Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1480176
SEPTEMBER 28, 2022 UCW 5 Best of Fayetteville Best Thing to Show Off to Visitors/Best Museum Airborne and Special Operations Museum 100 Bragg Blvd. 910-643-2778 or www.asomf.org The Airborne & Special Operations Museum is the only museum in the coun- try dedicated to all Army airborne and special operations units. Every year, it sees thousands of visitors: veterans who often share their stories with other visi- tors, Gold Star family members, students from local schools, those who want to understand more about our military, and people from all over the world. Nearby Fort Bragg is home to the 82nd Airborne Division, Army Special Operations Command, 1st Special Forces Command and Joint Special Operations Command — so downtown Fayetteville is the ideal place for this museum. No wonder ASOM is a repeat winner in both of these Best of Fayetteville categories. Established in 2000, ASOM tells the story of U.S. airborne and special opera- tions soldiers from 1940 to the present. Features include permanent and tem- porary exhibits, a parade field lined with monuments, a reflection garden, simulator experiences and more. Extra events include the annual Field of Honor, military-related movie showings and book signings, 5Ks, National Airborne Day celebrations, as well as ceremonies honoring different individuals and units. The U.S. Army owns and operates the museum while the ASOM Foundation manages the museum store, motion simulator, as well as the memorial paver and monument program. What Does Fayetteville Need Most? Leadership How ironic. Leadership is what Fayetteville needs most. This is precisely what Up & Coming Weekly has been reporting on and editorializing on for the last year. To be clear, what Fayetteville needs most is good, competent and honest Leadership. Even more ironic, last year at this time, there was a referendum being promoted that would restructure the Fayetteville City Council from nine single-member districts and the mayor position to five single-member districts with four at-large seats and the mayor position. Well, guess what? It's back! On Nov. 8, Fayetteville citizens will again have the opportunity to VOTE for 6, a referendum approved to appear on the next ballot that would provide citizens a much-needed voice in selecting citywide representatives. Yes! The good citizens of Fayetteville get a do-over and a vital one. A decision that just may decide the future of our city. Best Local Community Project North Carolina Civil War & Reconstruction History Center 824 Branson Street 910-491-0602 or www.nccivilwarcenter.org The North Carolina Civil War & Reconstruction History Center is designed to be an educational center rather than a collecting museum. While hosting a respectable core collection, the History Center will collect and display only those artifacts that advance its mission of telling the story of the Civil War and Reconstruction in North Carolina. Planners concluded that the whole state's story is a most compelling one. A conceptual feasibility study validated this finding, demonstrating that the History Center will attract wider attention and stronger support by reaching beyond Fayetteville and Cumberland County to tell the larger story. The result is an $80 million project involving a phased, multi-year approach to both fundraising and the History Center's overall development. The site will include a 60,000-square-foot main facility built outside the Fayetteville Arsenal's archaeological footprint, protecting the remnants of the asset seized by Confederate forces in 1861 and leveled by General William T. Sherman's engi- neers four years later. The center broke ground in June, but there is no expected opening date at this time. Although the history center is not open yet, programming, lectures and special events are available. Kudos to our readers and voters for recognizing the value of this project. Best Local Nonprofit Organization HIS Outreach Worldwide 2770 Breezewood Avenue 910-864-3991 or www.HisOutreachWorldwide.org His Outreach Worldwide's mis- sion is to reach children of the world with the gospel and love of Jesus Christ, exactly what the ministry's book "Sharing Jesus With Children Around The World" is doing. Their book has made its way to five continents and now is in more than 159 countries on every continent. It has been trans- lated into 69 languages and is changing lives worldwide. This international non-profit has been in business for 14 years and has its headquarters here in Fayetteville. They have founded numerous churches, orphanages, schools, Christian litera- ture centers and educational programs in many countries. Locally, they serve the city with His Bread of Life food bank and hold a monthly prayer for the city, open to the public. On top of that, they work will all of the Ronald McDonald Homes and various children's hospitals. For military families, H.O.W. President Lynne O'Quinn has published books for military children to deal with the deployment or death of a parent. H.O.W. staff also work closely with other ministries, such as Seth's Wish and The Friendship House, to provide hygiene packets. To accomplish all these goals, a fundraiser is held yearly along with special support from the Cumberland County Foundation.