Keep NC Weird, a program highlighting the unusual and dark history of North Carolina, will be presented by storyteller Liz Z Pardue at Pack Memorial Library in Asheville on Tuesday, March 31 at 5:30 p.m. The event is free and open to all.
The one-hour session promises an exploration of some of the state’s most eccentric characters and folklore. “Keep NC Weird is a one-hour journey through the strangest history, most eccentric characters, and darkest folklore of the Old North State. Join storyteller Liz Z Pardue for a lively exploration of the bizarre, macabre, and delightfully peculiar stories that make North Carolina unforgettable,” organizers said.
Liz Z Pardue has spent nearly four decades collecting Southern stories. She is known as an award-winning storyteller, writer, and director from North Carolina. In 2023, she established Sisterhood of Spirits, LLC in Fuquay-Varina—a town described as “the most haunted small town in the South”—offering ghost tours and historical theatrical productions.
The program comes at a time when local education data shows varying levels of college readiness among Buncombe County students. For example, during the 2022-23 school year, 28.5% of senior students who took the science portion of the ACT were considered ready for college according to data from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Among juniors taking the same test, 30.1% met college readiness standards (source). In reading, 41.1% of seniors demonstrated college readiness while 43.2% of juniors did so (source). For math, 25.6% of seniors and 32.7% of juniors reached this benchmark (source).
Pack Memorial Library is located at 67 Haywood Street in Asheville; further information can be obtained by calling 828-250-4700.
