Entertainment

Enjoy luxurious Valentine’s dinner in Fayetteville

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Wednesday, 28 January 2026

Written by Tara Kamiya

A new luxury event company is making its official debut in Fayetteville with the launch of Legacy and Silk Events, a business built on more than two decades of experience producing high-end celebrations for prominent clients across the country.
The company will introduce itself to the community with its signature launch event, The Sweethearts Dinner, scheduled for Feb. 14, at the Crown Expo Center at 7 p.m. at 1960 Coliseum Dr. Tickets are now available through the company website, legacyandsilk.com. A limited discount is being offered using the unlock code SWEETHEART. The evening will be full of dancing, dinner and live music. Tickets start at $119.
Legacy and Silk Events is a luxury event curation company centered on storytelling, culture and meaningful connection. The company focuses on designing elevated experiences that blend elegance with warmth while remaining accessible to the local community.
The president of Legacy and Silk Events, Dion Clark, said the decision to establish the company in Fayetteville was intentional. She noted that the city is home to families, military couples and individuals who value upscale experiences but often must travel elsewhere to enjoy them.
She said the goal of the company is to bring refined and thoughtfully designed events to Fayetteville while preserving a sense of intimacy and inclusion. The Sweethearts Dinner reflects that vision.
The event is designed to celebrate love in many forms rather than focusing exclusively on romantic relationships. Attendees may include couples, mothers and daughters, close friends and anyone seeking a meaningful shared experience.
Guests can expect an elegant atmosphere featuring chef-inspired dining, live entertainment and an evening of dancing. Organizers describe the setting as refined yet inviting, offering a balance between sophistication and comfort.
Clark said the intention behind the evening is to create an environment where guests feel present, relaxed and connected to one another.
She said the event was created to encourage people to slow down, step away from daily responsibilities and focus on celebrating the people who matter most in their lives.
Organizers hope The Sweethearts Dinner will become a recurring tradition in Fayetteville.
Clark said the long-term goal is to establish a signature annual event that residents look forward to each year, one that fosters connection and reinforces the importance of shared experiences.
Legacy and Silk Events draws on an extensive background in luxury event production. Over the past two decades, leadership within the company have contributed to private and large-scale celebrations for high-profile individuals, including business leaders, entertainers and public officials. While the company’s experience includes elite clientele, its Fayetteville events are designed to feel welcoming rather than exclusive.
Meaningful events should not feel distant or unattainable, said Clark. She emphasized that elegance can coexist with approachability and that high-quality experiences should be available within the local community. She said her inspiration for entering the events industry stems from a belief in the emotional power of gatherings.
Events create moments people anticipate, remember and associate with significant points in their lives. From milestone celebrations to intimate dinners, well-designed experiences can strengthen relationships and elevate the spirit.
Clark communicated that every detail contributes to that outcome, including menu selections, décor, lighting and music. When combined intentionally, those elements help shape the emotional tone of the evening and support the overall story being told.
The Sweethearts Dinner is intended to serve as more than entertainment. Organizers describe it as a celebration of connection, presence and appreciation. The overall hope for the event is that guests leave feeling valued, inspired and emotionally fulfilled.
Organizers said the response reflects a desire for opportunities to gather in beautiful spaces, dress with intention and participate in events that feel meaningful rather than routine.
Legacy and Silk Events plans to expand its offerings following the February debut. Future programming will continue to emphasize culture, celebration and storytelling while maintaining a consistent standard of elegance and thoughtful design. With its official launch underway, the company aims to contribute to Fayetteville’s evolving social landscape by creating experiences that bring people together through intention, atmosphere and shared memory.
Tickets for The Sweethearts Dinner remain available through legacyandsilk.com, with limited seating expected. The event marks the beginning of Legacy and Silk Events’ commitment to curating experiences designed to endure long after the evening concludes.

Robert Burns: Scotland’s National Poet, his lasting legacy in North Carolina

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Tuesday, 20 January 2026

Written by Sheila D. Barker

Robert Burns—known today as Scotland’s national poet—holds a unique place not only in Scottish literature, but also in the cultural life of North Carolina. Born in 1759 in Ayrshire, Scotland, Burns wrote poetry and songs that captured the language, humor, struggles, and hopes of ordinary people. More than two centuries later, his works are still sung, studied, and celebrated worldwide. In areas of North Carolina shaped by significant Scottish immigration, Burns represents both a literary icon and a symbol of heritage, identity, and continuity.
Burns is best known for his lyrical poetry and songs written in both Scots and standard English. Among his most famous works are “Auld Lang Syne,” sung every New Year’s Eve across the globe; “Tam o’ Shanter,” a comic, supernatural narrative poem; “To a Mouse,” with its famous reflection on “the best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men”; and “A Red, Red Rose,” one of the most beloved love lyrics in the English language. What distinguishes Burns is not only his language but his worldview: he wrote about farmers, lovers, workers, and dreamers, elevating everyday life to the level of art.
A champion of human dignity, Burns celebrated equality, compassion, and social justice. His poem “A Man’s a Man for A’ That” boldly asserts that true worth lies not in rank or wealth, but in character. These values resonated deeply in Scotland during a time of social change, and they continue to resonate in communities around the world that identify with themes of hard work, resilience, and democratic spirit. Burns’s ability to unite rich poetic expression with folk tradition is one of the reasons the Scottish diaspora has held onto his legacy so strongly.
During the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, large numbers of Scots—especially Highland Scots—immigrated to the Cape Fear Valley. Many arrived after the failed Jacobite Rising of 1745 and the subsequent political and economic pressures in the Highlands. They followed the Cape Fear River inland, establishing communities in what are now Cumberland, Harnett, Moore, Hoke, Richmond, Robeson, and Scotland counties. Gaelic was spoken in the area well into the nineteenth century, and Scottish surnames, churches, music, and customs took firm root.
Fayetteville itself, along with towns such as Laurinburg, Carthage, and Southern Pines, has long been shaped by this Scottish presence. Scottish Presbyterian congregations, family traditions, and later Scottish heritage organizations preserved not only genealogy but also literature and song. Within this cultural tapestry, Robert Burns became a focal figure—a poet who gave eloquent voice to the culture many settlers had left behind but still carried in memory and identity.
Burns’s ideals speak directly to values cherished in North Carolina: independence, hard work, humor, and neighborliness. Many of the Highland Scots who settled in the Sandhills were farmers, craftsmen, soldiers, and teachers. Burns—himself a farmer-poet—wrote from this same world of soil and sweat. His attention to rural life and his sympathy for ordinary people makes his poetry feel familiar, not distant or elite. Even for those without Scottish ancestry, his work captures universal human emotions and experiences recognizable in everyday life in the Carolinas.
The connection is not purely literary; it is expressed through living tradition. Piping, Highland dancing, tartan displays, clan gatherings, and heritage festivals across southeastern North Carolina keep Scottish culture visible and vibrant. Within these celebrations, Burns is often front and center—quoted, sung, or toasted. His songs and poems give artistic expression to the very heritage being celebrated in kilts, music, and community events.
Burns is celebrated each year on or around his birthday, January 25, at “Burns Night” or “Burns Suppers.” These gatherings typically include the recitation of his poems, traditional Scottish music, dancing, and the ceremonial “Address to a Haggis,” one of Burns’s most theatrical works. These events are festive, but they are also acts of remembrance—ways for communities to reaffirm cultural roots and honor a shared past. Wherever Scots settled in substantial numbers, Burns Suppers followed, becoming a cherished tradition that blends literature, ritual, food, and fellowship.
The Cape Fear Valley Scottish Clans is having their annual Robert Burns Night on Saturday, Jan. 25 at Gates Four Country Club, located at 6775 Irongate Drive. This event will begin with a Social & Cocktail Hour at 5 p.m., featuring a cash bar. Piping, Dancing, and Address to the Haggis will begin at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m. Admission is $37.50 per person, $75 per couple, and $10 for a kid's plate. Dress code for the evening for men is Highland Military, coat and tie, or business dress. Ladies are asked to wear dressy, elegant evening wear. For more information on this event and other great Scottish events and history, visit their website at https://www.cfvscots.org/. (Please see update below)
Robert Burns is known as Scotland’s national poet because he distilled the spirit of a people into unforgettable words and melodies. He is celebrated because his works are both beautifully crafted and emotionally alive—full of humor, insight, love, and courage. He is also important in North Carolina, especially around Fayetteville, as his legacy is intertwined with the story of Scottish settlement in the region. Through Burns, communities in the Sandhills remember their roots, reflect on their identity, and celebrate the enduring ties between Scotland and the Carolinas.

1/22/2026-Email update from Cape Fear Valley Scottish Clans on their Burns Supper: "Due to the possibility of snow and sleet on Saturday, 1/24/26, we have decided to cancel the dinner. We have reserved Gates Four for Saturday, 2/7/2026. Those of you that have made your reservations already, please let me know immediately if you are willing and able to attend on 2/7/2026. Anyone else that was not able to attend on 1/24 but would wish to attend 2/7, please let me know quickly. The final date to have your payment in will now be January 30, 2026." POC is Marianne O'Leane at capefearscots@aol.com

NC Fashion Week inspires models, designers, boutiques

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Wednesday, 28 January 2026

Written by Anna White

While most fashion shows center around a cohesive theme, Jennifer Baker likes to keep individuality at the forefront.
“This is your show, your way,” she explained. “What we do at North Carolina Fashion Week is we give the designers free rein on what they want to do.”
Baker, founder of NC Fashion Week and owner of modeling agency Metro Faces International, wants to put regional talent on the map. Nearly 20 years ago, she launched the annual fashion event, and its impact continues to grow.
“It gives models, designers and boutiques an opportunity to be seen,” Baker shared. The week includes both in-person and virtual opportunities; contests, complementary workshops, portfolio-building, and finally, the runway on Feb. 7.
Fayetteville is a prime location for the event, according to Baker, given its central location between New York and Miami, both fashion hot spots.
“Years ago, it was just about the city you lived in,” Baker said of models looking to launch a career. “But now you have the opportunity to be in larger markets. I think you should always look at the beginning as something that could get bigger.”
NC Fashion Week is not only an open door for regional talent to expand their market. The event also draws models from across the country, and most recently, across the world.
“When we first started North Carolina Fashion Week, we were dealing with models from right here in our area, but now we have models coming in from New York and Los Angeles,” Baker explained. “We also did a prelude to North Carolina Fashion Week about a month ago, where we actually partnered with an agency from the Bahamas.”
The Bahamian agency found Baker through Facebook. When multiple models expressed a desire to participate, Baker conducted a virtual audition process and had models fly in for a show.
“It was really amazing,” she shared, “It was such a good time.”
This year, the week will feature events, workshops, and castings all designed to bolster models’ professional and practical skills and resources. They’ll participate in virtual opportunities to show off their best portfolio images and attend complimentary workshops. Baker says this year they’re hosting a photo movement workshop, which “gives models opportunities to learn how to pose for the camera, walk on the catwalk and just little things like how to pose and stand there for at least six seconds.” She says the preparation ensures models leave with “amazing photos from the fashion show.”
At the end of the week, two “lucky models” will be chosen to attend Los Angeles Fashion Week in the spring, according to Baker. The decision will be made based on the model’s walk, enthusiasm, commitment and overall attitude.
Baker says her biggest challenge this year has also been her biggest reward. As the fashion industry evolves, designers are expanding their search beyond models with small bodies.
“A lot of designers are now saying, ‘We don’t really want double zero models, we want people to look like everyday people,’” Baker explained. “I’ve had to go outside my database, and that’s a good thing. I’ve been able to call one of my lifestyle models and say, ‘hey, this is going to be an opportunity for you because they’re looking for people that look like you.’”
Through matching the right models with the right designers in a changing modeling landscape, Baker has overcome obstacles and continues moving forward.
Diversity is important to Baker, and she auditions models of all abilities, sizes, and ages.
“I’ve worked with fashion models as young as three and as old as seventy-two, so I would never want them to stop dreaming, and I would just want them to be authentic.”
This year, Baker is excited to have autism represented among her models. A young man who previously took acting classes with her agency eventually circled back to modeling.
“I’m really excited for him because he’s so happy and he’s excited about it.”
On Feb. 7, models will gather at the Arts Council of Fayetteville/ Cumberland County to prepare for their big day. The morning will start with hair and makeup and end with models owning the catwalk.
“This is the day they want,“ said Baker, explaining that this is their chance to be seen. “In the audience, there could be a boutique from New York or one from Paris. The sky is the limit.”
North Carolina Fashion Week runs February 1-7. The runway will be held on Feb 7 at the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County at 301 Hay St. Text “Model” to 910-978-8368 to learn more.

(Photo courtesy of Jennifer Baker)

Imbolc: A healing weekend gathering at 3 Roots Center

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Tuesday, 20 January 2026

Written by Staff Report

Key Burns inherited a piece of land from her mother, now known as 3 Roots Center, that she’s turning into a nature reserve. She wants to make it a sanctuary and “a place where people can reconnect with the earth,” according to her co-host Jackie Helton. Burns and Helton collaborate on many events held at the property, often centering around the seasons. This Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, they’ll highlight the midpoint between the winter and spring equinox with a retreat called “Imbolc: A Healing Gathering.” The meditation center is located at 1750 County Line Rd. in Cameron, NC.
Burns, an associate clinical therapist, and Helton, a Reiki practitioner, have shaped the event around famous eco philosopher Joanna Macy’s “Work That Reconnects.” According to Joanna Macy’s website, Work That Reconnects is “a form of group work designed to foster the desire and ability to take part in the healing of our world.” Before Macy’s passing in 2025, she mentored Burns, and Burns continues to integrate her insights at 3 Roots Center.
Helton said they regularly host events modeled after Joanna Macy’s works, along with themes such as the equinox, and Irish, Scottish and European culture. This time of year, Helton says people are “dealing with a lot of grief.” The event encourages them to “Go inward and look for spiritual transformation.” She says people are starting to look for these kinds of events more and she and Burns hope to guide attendees towards resilience and meaningful change.
Historically, Helton says Imbolc honored the fact that native Irish, Scottish and European people were nearing the end of winter. During the winter, whole families, and often animals, would live together to survive the cold. Imbolc celebrations were a time to bring the animals back outside, spring clean, and say, “We know this coldness is over soon.” Helton described Imbolc as a time of rebirth, renewal, clearing and purification.
Day 1 includes starting the labyrinth walk, truth mandala, and recognition of the Celtic goddess and Catholic saint, Brigid. It will likely end with a moon ceremony. Day 2 includes relational movement, which Helton described as a mix of yoga and relaxation, a fire ceremony, more mandala work and a goodbye ceremony.
The mandala spiral starts with gratitude and moves to honoring the pain of the world and allowing grief and pain to be felt and expressed, according to Helton.
“It’s very slow-moving, very deep work, and people get emotional,” Helton explained.
The event cost is $133, but Helton said no one is turned away for lack of funds and they offer work packages on the farm. These packages allow attendees to participate for free if they complete designated work at 3 Roots Center prior to the event. Camping is also available for those who want to stay overnight between the two days. Helton described the camping accommodations as “primitive.”
“The air of this is really self-healing within the community,” Helton shared, adding that the event is not for the faint of heart. “It’s an invitation. If you come and you’re unsure if you want to participate, you don’t have to. Come with an open mind. Come to the first day and see what you think.”
For more information and to register, visit https://www.threerootscenter.org/

(Photo: The Mandala at 3 Roots Center is a spiral that starts with gratitude and moves to honoring the pain of the world. Photo courtesy of Jackie Helton)