Holiday giving in Cherokee County: Shop with a Cop and Toys for Tots
Cherokee County’s holiday giving season is in full swing, with Shop with a Cop, the Sheriff’s Christmas Joy program, and Toys for Tots all working to make sure local kids and seniors are not forgotten this Christmas.
* The Murphy Police Department partners with Walmart for its annual Shop with a Cop event, a tradition that started in two thousand four and now sends local children shopping with officers for gifts and essentials.
* The Christmas Joy program run through the Sheriff’s Reserve collects donations from residents and businesses, then works with schools and the Senior Center to identify kids and older adults who need help.
* Toys for Tots – Cherokee County, NC has donation boxes at local businesses and churches, plus special collection events and a cut off date shared by churches like Saint William in Murphy.
News as of: November 27, 2025.
Sources:https://www.townofmurphync.com/police/page/shop-cophttps://cherokeesheriffsfoundation.org/wp/christmas-joy/https://cherokeecountychamber.chambermaster.com/events/details/shop-with-a-cop-fundraiser-44433
https://murphy-nc.toysfortots.org/
https://www.cherokeescout.com/events/day-planner-298https://st-william.net/news/toys-for-tots-cut-off
From bitcoin to AI: Marble data center powers up
A former textile factory and later bitcoin mine near Marble is being transformed into a high-density data center for artificial intelligence, marking another big shift in how this huge facility fits into Cherokee County’s economy.
* The roughly two hundred fifty thousand square foot plant, once part of American Thread, previously hosted industrial crypto mining and now is being retooled for AI and other compute-intensive workloads.
* Operator Core Scientific markets the Marble campus as a secure, high-density data center with more than one hundred three megawatts of capacity on about seventy acres, built for AI and storage.
* GPU cloud provider CoreWeave has signed multi year deals to lease significant data center capacity from Core Scientific, part of a larger national boom in AI infrastructure that analysts say is changing the company’s business model.
* Commentators note that the Marble site could end up running massive clusters of Nvidia GPUs for generative AI, drawing power equivalent to tens of thousands of homes and raising long term questions about jobs, tax revenue, and grid capacity.
News as of: Update of previous stories dated August 13, 2024, and December 17, 2024.
Sources:https://www.cherokeescout.com/local-newsletter/crypto-mining-aihttps://www.cherokeescout.com/local-newsletter/local-plant-turns-ai-expandhttps://corescientific.com/high-density-data-centers/marble-nc/https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/coreweave-to-lease-16mw-of-data-center-space-from-cryptominer-core-scientific/https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/10/28/bitcoin-miner-core-scientific-upgraded-to-buy-on-ai-data-center-boom-h-c-wainwright
Thanksgiving travel and seat belt enforcement
With Thanksgiving travel in full swing, state and local law enforcement are stepping up seat belt enforcement on North Carolina highways, including the routes mountain families rely on to visit friends and relatives.
* AAA projects about two point three million North Carolinians will travel fifty miles or more this Thanksgiving, the highest number on record for the state.
* The N.C. Governor’s Highway Safety Program is running a statewide Click It or Ticket campaign from November twenty four through November thirty, stressing seat belt use and sober driving.
* Extra patrols are out on interstates and mountain corridors, with agencies from Raleigh to Asheville and the far west focusing on unbuckled drivers, speeding, and impairment.
* Nationally, AAA expects close to eighty million Americans traveling at least fifty miles, making this one of the busiest and riskier travel windows of the year.
News as of: November 27, 2025.
Sources:https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2025/2025-11-24-thanksgiving-seat-belt-enforcement.aspxhttps://newsroom.acg.aaa.com/aaa-over-2-million-north-carolinians-expected-to-travel-for-thanksgiving/https://www.witn.com/2025/11/24/statewide-thanksgiving-click-it-or-ticket-campaign-underway/https://828newsnow.com/news/228822-use-your-seatbelt-apd-launches-thanksgiving-click-it-or-ticket-campaign/
Thanksgiving help: free community meal and shelter options
For neighbors who are struggling this Thanksgiving, Cherokee County has options for both a holiday meal and a safe place to stay.
* REACH of Cherokee County and the Rotary Club of Murphy are hosting a free community Thanksgiving dinner in downtown Murphy on Thursday, November twenty seventh, from eleven a.m. to two p.m. at eighty five Hiwassee Street. The event is open to everyone, with walk-through and drive-through service.
* The Murphy Shelter / Cherokee County Homeless Shelter provides food, clothing, and shelter to men, women, and families in need, with a listed contact number of eight two eight, eight three seven, two six five four.
* REACH of Cherokee County operates a confidential emergency shelter for people fleeing domestic violence, sexual assault, or elder abuse, and maintains a twenty four hour crisis line at eight two eight, eight three seven, eight oh six four.
* The Cherokee County Food Resource Guide, updated in October twenty twenty five, lists regular free hot meals and food distributions at churches and community centers around Murphy and Andrews for support beyond the holiday itself.
News as of: November 27, 2025.
Sources:https://www.facebook.com/RotaryClubofMurphy/posts/free-thanksgiving-dinnerall-are-welcomedrive-thru-or-walk-thru-onlymain-street-u/1315628607265042/https://allevents.in/murphy/free-thanksgiving-dinner/200029225736046https://www.cherokeescout.com/local/quick-reads-188
https://murphyshelter.org/
https://www.cherokeecounty-nc.gov/BusinessDirectoryii.aspx?ysnShowAll=0&txtLetter=C
https://reachofcherokeecounty.org/
https://reachofcherokeecounty.org/shelterhttps://cherokee.ces.ncsu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Food-Resource-Guide-Cherokee-County-Updated-OCT-2025-.pdf
Black Friday and Shop Small Weekend in Downtown Murphy
Instead of fighting big-box crowds, Murphy is encouraging residents to shop local on Black Friday and Shop Small Saturday, with special deals and Downtown Dollars rewards.
* Under the Murphy Mountain Christmas program, Shop Small Weekend: Downtown Dollars runs Friday and Saturday, November twenty eighth and twenty ninth, in downtown Murphy.
* Shoppers who spend fifty dollars at participating retailers receive a ten dollar Downtown Dollars coupon good at any participating shop through March thirty first, twenty twenty six.
* The official list of participating retailers includes local favorites like Black and White Market, Blue Moon Elise, Enchanted Butterfly, FairyCross Bottle Shop, Glitz and Glamour, Journee 77 Boutique, Kephart Outdoors, Linen and Pearl, Murphy Paper Company, Narrative Bookstore, Olive’s Porch, the Murphy Art Center, Peaceful Trails, Serenity Mountain, Simply Sweet Baby Boutique, The Little Shop, and TSav Magical.
* Downtown and Main Street social channels are highlighting individual store promotions, raffles, and a selfie scavenger hunt tied into the broader Murphy Mountain Christmas season.
News as of: November 27, 2025.
Sources:https://www.townofmurphync.com/main-street-murphy/page/murphy-mountain-christmashttps://www.facebook.com/downtownmurphync/photos/ten-more-great-reasons-to-shop-small-in-downtown-murphy-nc-this-black-friday-nov/1215850417259010/https://www.facebook.com/cherokeecountync/posts/shop-small-shop-localon-friday-november-28-saturday-november-29-go-shop-in-dow/1264560505713021/https://www.facebook.com/VisitCherokeeCountyNC/posts/1262156802604987/https://www.facebook.com/events/downtown-murphy-murphy-nc-28906/shop-small-weekend-2025-in-downtown-murphy-nc/860950123094981/
Downtown Murphy’s December events: Art Walk, tree lighting, and parade
Downtown Murphy is also rolling out a packed early December schedule, giving residents plenty of chances to enjoy Main Street in full holiday mode.
* On Friday, December fifth, downtown will host an expanded Murphy Art Walk, with music, sidewalk vendors, demonstrations, and interactive activities.
* That same evening features the Town of Murphy Christmas Tree Lighting, with entertainment starting around five thirty p.m. and the tree lighting at about six p.m.
* The Murphy Christmas Parade follows on the weekend, bringing floats, school groups, and community organizations through the heart of town as part of the Murphy Mountain Christmas lineup.
News as of: November 27, 2025.
Sources:https://www.townofmurphync.com/main-street-murphy/page/murphy-art-walkhttps://www.townofmurphync.com/main-street-murphy/page/murphy-mountain-christmashttps://www.townofmurphync.com/main-street-murphy/page/murphy-christmas-tree-lighting
Murphy Bulldogs host Corvian Community in playoff showdown
Murphy’s football team has earned another home playoff game, hosting Corvian Community School in the fourth round of the state championships the night after Thanksgiving.
* The Bulldogs are ten wins and two losses overall and six wins and no losses in conference play, riding an eight game winning streak.
* In their last playoff outing, Murphy defeated Community School of Davidson sixty two to twenty to advance.
* Friday’s game against Corvian Community kicks off at seven thirty p.m. at Murphy, in the 2025 NCHSAA football championships bracket.
* Corvian’s defense has allowed roughly eleven points per game this season, setting up a high stakes clash between a stingy defense and a Bulldogs offense that has been piling up points.
News as of: November 27, 2025.
Sources:https://www.maxpreps.com/nc/murphy/murphy-bulldogs/football/schedule/https://www.maxpreps.com/news/0XXvxt95106nufzskXKFOg/football-recap-murphy-takes-down-community-school-of-davidson-in-a-playoff-battle.htmhttps://www.si.com/high-school/stats/north-carolina/football/games/5981510-corvian-community-school-vs-murphy
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