FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. -- Literacy rocks! Just ask the million-plus young readers of Kidsville News! Ask their parents, who've been thrilled to discover that this children's newspaper makes kids eager to read and learn. Ask the educators nationwide, who have enthusiastically incorporated Kidsville News! as part of their schools' daily curriculum, using it to promote their own character education curriculum.

MARSHALL, N.C. -- Whisper Mountain, located outside of the city of Asheville in the heart of western North Carolina, is a community where conservation and preservation meet. That's why Southern Living has chosen this community as the location for their first 2008 green Idea House.

BREVARD, N.C. -- Insulation Business Consultants announced today that the firm has developed a means of maintaining the thermal integrity of exterior walls, eliminating the voids in the insulation where electrical boxes (switch and receptacle boxes), create significant holes in the residential thermal envelope.

WAYNESVILLE, N.C. -- Haywood County tomatoes are now traveling worldwide, thanks to a short web-based video recently produced by the Buy Haywood Market Development Project. More and more, people are receiving messages that communicate "thousands of miles fresher," "buy local," and "support sustainable agriculture."

CARY, N.C. -- If getting organized this year is a top New Year's resolution, Innovention Lab, Inc. can help. The company crafts innovative solutions to today's modern problems. Their newest creation - the Internet Password Organizer(TM) (ISBN-13: 978-0615164700) - provides Internet users with a practical solution to password management.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Not a day goes by without the media reporting on the national mortgage meltdown and tightening guidelines for home loans. But one local mortgage company committed to affordable home ownership for North Carolinians found a way to help rural areas residents become homeowners. Veritas Mortgage Funding, a Raleigh based mortgage firm now offers a great alternative to traditional, more costly mortgages.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Hannah Montana (Miley Cyrus), who was commended for being a role model to young people, heads the list of the "Ten Best-Mannered People of 2007," as named by the National League of Junior Cotillions, an etiquette and social training program that involves thousands of young people in the United States.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- This fall artist Damaris Pierce launches her new, national postcard art project just in time to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. The project, entitled "I Am Thankful," encourages individuals of all ages and organizations such as craft guilds, public schools and counseling centers to create original postcard artwork expressing gratitude.

GREENVILLE, N.C. -- LBA Group, Inc. announces that it has made Inc. magazine's list of the top 5,000 fastest-growing businesses in the nation with a ranking of 3,613 and a three-year sales growth of 80 percent. Inc. 5,000 lists companies, that when put together, represents the backbone of the U.S. economy. LBA Group is a CMSDC certified small disadvantaged Hispanic business.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- While many Americans are receiving more vacation time, they are taking less time off. So, vacation planning and business travel is more important than ever. The Residences at Biltmore, located in the heart of Asheville, N.C., is re-inventing the importance of stress-free vacation days and efficient business stays.