Kara Fohner | The Gaston Gazette (AP) | WFAE 90.7

Charlotte-area boy injured in shooting gets new eye for Christmas

Nine-year-old J.D. Jackson didn’t just ask for toys for Christmas this year. Instead, his holiday wish was for something far more important.

Charlotte Area

Santa writes back to North Carolina third-grader

Kara Fohner | The Gaston Gazette (AP)

A 9-year-old North Carolina boy wrote to Santa. Then his grandmother made a mistake.

Charlotte Area

Gastonia woman starts nonprofit to empower women of color

Kara Fohner | The Gaston Gazette (AP)

Gastonia's Charly Lindsey launched her nonprofit, Hope’s Helping Hands, in 2020 with a mission of helping women of color succeed in life. Last fall, she opened a thrift store, Second Chance Community Thrift.

A screenshot from the trailer for "Fat Ham" shows people celebrating at a barbecue.

Arts & Culture

NC native James Ijames won a Pulitzer Prize for 'Fat Ham,' a play set at a barbecue

Kara Fohner | The Gaston Gazette (AP)

James Ijames, a native of Bessemer City in Gaston County, won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for drama for his play "Fat Ham," an interpretation of Shakespeare's "Hamlet" that is set at a North Carolina barbecue.