In this episode of the Kudzu Project, I sit down with Hendersonville City Council Member Gina Baxter to discuss her path to public service, her love of the region and its culture, and the issues that matter most to her. Gina brings a background in nonprofits and a people-first attitude to her role on City Council. Her central focus is affordable housing — one of the most urgent challenges facing Hendersonville, Henderson County, and North Carolina today as the region continues to grow. She explains why housing accessibility is so important to the city's long-term success and how thoughtful planning helps working families remain in the community they love. Gina also talks about the importance of accessible leadership, listening to local voices, and finding common ground as Hendersonville prepares for its bright future.

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The Kudzu Project is produced by the Lucey Agency in Hendersonville, North Carolina. To learn more about the podcast, please visit kudzuproject.com, or follow along on Instagram at instagram.com/kudzuproject.

More than eight decades after he was killed in action on Guadalcanal and declared MIA during World War II, the remains of Marine Corps Private Luther Rhodes are finally coming home to rural Henderson County, North Carolina.

In this follow-up conversation, I welcome back retired Army Major Bob Johnson — first introduced in Episode 3 of the Kudzu Project — for a remarkable update on the long and determined effort to locate Henderson County's missing servicemembers. What once felt like an unresolved chapter from the Battle of Guadalcanal has now reached a moment of long-awaited closure for the Rhodes family of Edneyville.

Bob shares how years of research, advocacy, and coordination with the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency helped turn history into resolution, honoring a young Marine who gave his life in the South Pacific in 1942. This episode is a testament to remembrance, persistence, and a community that refuses to let its heroes fade into the past.

Some stories take generations to finish. This is one of them.

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The Kudzu Project is produced by the Lucey Agency in Hendersonville, North Carolina. To learn more about the podcast, please visit kudzuproject.com, or follow along on Instagram at instagram.com/kudzuproject.

In this episode of the Kudzu Project, I sit down with Barbara Volk, the first female and second longest-tenured mayor of Hendersonville, North Carolina, for a thoughtful conversation about leadership, legacy, and love of place. Having served the city for nearly four decades — first on City Council and then as mayor — Volk has helped guide the city through growth, challenges, and change. Our conversation goes beyond policy and politics. We talk about what it means to steward a community you care deeply about, how Hendersonville has evolved over the years, and the delicate balance between progress and preservation. Volk reflects on her journey in public service, the responsibilities of local leadership, and her hope for the future of the city she has called home for more than half a century.

Support the show

The Kudzu Project is produced by the Lucey Agency in Hendersonville, North Carolina. To learn more about the podcast, please visit kudzuproject.com, or follow along on Instagram at instagram.com/kudzuproject.