(11/17/05) Thursday and Sunday, Charlotte's Carolina Voices will perform an original score for its Thanksgiving concert. The score of the "Beatitude Mass" will highlight homelessness. WFAE's Simone Orendain spoke with the California-based composer Henry Mollicone about the choral work.

(11/18/05) Have you noticed that the holiday season is already upon us? How could you not? Peppermint mochas have returned to Starbucks! WFAE's Jaime Bedrin wanted the scoop on this year's shopping season. She caught up with the Charlotte Business Journal's retail reporter Ashley Gibson.

(11/16/05) The holiday season is typically a time when charities can expect to receive financial gifts. But this year, in the wake of multiple natural disasters, Charlotte-area non-profits are wondering if they'll meet their goals. Organizations fear they could lose out on donations if people are tapped out from giving to other causes. WFAE's Jaime Bedrin reports.

(11/15/05) Sometimes, the debate over health care in America can seem confusing or distant. But at other times, the issue becomes much more poignant and personal. Here's WFAE commentator Gerry Soud on health insurance.

(11/15/05) Can you believe it? Baby Boomers are turning heading into their golden years. WFAE commentator and Boomer Krissa Palmer says it's about time her generation got the respect it deserves.

(11/11/05) Charlotte's social service agencies did some fast work in the two months after Hurricane Katrina's victims got to the city. But the work came with a price: splitting priorities between evacuees and locals. WFAE's Simone Orendain reports.

(11/10/05) Catawba county residents are participating in a county-wide reading program that started last month. To commemorate Veterans Day organizer and English professor Rand Brandes facilitated a discussion of the Vietnam war themed book "The Things They Carried." WFAE's Simone Orendain spoke with Professor Brandes about the first of its kind community-wide reading program in Catawba County. www.thebigread.net

(11/08/05) If you've been looking for a flu shot but haven't been able to find one you're not alone. Many drugstores and supermarkets have had to cancel or postpone their flu shot clinics because their shipments of vaccines never arrived. WFAE's Jaime Bedrin spoke with Dr. Stephen Keener with the Mecklenburg County Health Department and asked him to explain the shortages.

(11/08/05) It's a good thing Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory likes his job, because he's got a few more years in office. McCrory easily defeated Democrat challenger Craig Madans with 56 percent of the vote. This will be McCrory's sixth term in office. In other election news, voters rejected a multi-million dollar Charlotte Mecklenburg School bonds package, although they did approve one for Central Piedmont Community College. 

(11/08/05) The Environmental Protection Agency wants to change the way it measures air pollution from power plants. Opponents say the agency's proposed new rule would increase air pollution by allowing fossil fuel power plants to run longer. But Republican North Carolina Congresswoman Sue Myrick says it will all help the EPA reach their clean air goals more efficiently. From WFAE's Capitol Hill bureau, Terry Gildea has more.