March 1982. A young boy is up on his father's shoulders in the middle of Franklin Street, and Chapel Hill has completely lost its mind. James Worthy had 28 points. A freshman named Michael Jordan hit the shot. Dean Smith, after all those years, finally had his championship.

Forty-four years later, that boy runs Carolina Athletics. And on a Tuesday morning in August, five weeks into the job, he drove down to Pittsboro to talk about what he wants to do with it.

Steve Newmark became UNC's Director of Athletics on July 1. He grew up off Ephesus Church Road, went to Ephesus Elementary, graduated from Chapel Hill High back when there was only one high school in town, practiced law in Charlotte for twelve years, then spent fifteen as president of the NASCAR team now known as RFK Racing, where he helped build the charter system that reorganized how money moves through the sport. He came home last August, shadowed Bubba Cunningham for a year, and took the chair.

That's the résumé. What he came to Pittsboro to talk about was community.

But the part that landed wasn't the basketball, and it wasn't the biography. It was what Newmark said about why an athletic department at a flagship university should care about the towns around it.

He talked about student-athletes as role models for school-aged children — not in the poster-on-the-wall sense, but in terms of actual presence. Volunteers in local programs. Faces that kids in the community can look up to and, more importantly, talk to. He said the department is actively looking for opportunities to partner with surrounding communities, and he meant it broadly enough that it wasn't hard to imagine what that could look like in Chatham County.

He didn't dodge the harder questions either. College athletics is genuinely strange right now — revenue sharing, name-image-likeness money, court cases still moving through the system. His view is that student-athletes getting compensated beyond a scholarship is fair and equitable given how much money flows through the space. But he was quick to name the part that gets lost: the vast majority of student-athletes aren't seeing any of that money. What they get is academic support — tutors, advisors, people whose whole job is making sure a nineteen-year-old on a bus at midnight still graduates.

Carolina has 63 national championships. He cited the number and then declined to sit on it. No resting on laurels. Forward-looking.

"We're the marketing arm of the university," he said, reaching for the old line about athletics being the front porch of the house — not the most important, but the most visible. What he seemed to be arguing, standing in a coworking space forty minutes from campus, is that the front porch doesn't stop at the county line.

He even took the football questions. Bravely.

Congratulations to Meri Lynch, named Sales Agent of the Month (Gold Award) at Coldwell Banker Howard Perry and Walston. Before becoming a Realtor, Meri served as a New York City paramedic — and she brings that same calm-under-pressure, people-first approach to every transaction. As the founder of NC Estate Services and a Seniors Real Estate Specialist, she helps families navigate some of life's hardest transitions: inherited properties, probate, downsizing, and moves to retirement communities. She also works with investors looking to make smart, strategic decisions in a shifting market.

Where: Forest Theatre, 123 S Boundary St, Chapel Hill
When: Openers 6:20 p.m., Paperhand 7:00 p.m.
Cost: Pay what you can

Their 26th annual show, The Wild Wisdom of the World, runs Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Sept 27, plus Labor Day Monday.

Insider Tip: If you go once a year, this is the one. Arrive early — the hillside fills up.

Where: 437 Dimmocks Mill Rd, Hillsborough
When: 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Cost: FREE

The mill was closed for a year after Tropical Storm Chantal. Live music from Liquid Pleasure, open artist studios, food trucks, and free art-making for all ages.

Where: Chapel Hill Public Library
When: 12:00 – 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 – 7:30 p.m.
Cost: FREE

Your chance to weigh in on how Chapel Hill grows. A second session follows September 10.

Fri, Aug 7 — Diggy Graves: The No Vacancy Tour, with Resentvul and Ryan Oakes. Doors 7 p.m., show 7:30 p.m.

Fri, Aug 7 — Jack The Songman, with Laura Ivy and Pint Night. Back Room. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m.

Sun, Aug 9 — Nine Lives Flea Night Market. Doors 5 p.m. Vintage, makers and oddities — not a concert, and worth the trip.

Tue, Aug 11 — Kevian Kraemer, with Closebye. Back Room. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m.

Thu, Aug 13 — Margot Sinclair, with Five Door Sedan. Back Room. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m.

Fri, Aug 14 — Shoaldiggers Album Release Show with Hustle Souls. Back Room. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m. Hometown record, hometown room.

Sat, Aug 15 — Barbies vs. Bratz: Y2K Party. Show 10 p.m. Exactly what it sounds like.

Mon, Aug 17 — Luke Borchelt. Back Room. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m.

Thu, Aug 20 — Happy Landing, with The Band Solstice. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m.

Thu, Aug 20 — Bill Moore and his Secret Admirers with The Carolina Junebugs. Back Room. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m.

Tickets and full details at catscradle.com.

Thu, Aug 20: CHCCS Meet-the-Teacher (elementary) and middle school orientations
Mon, Aug 24: First day of school, K–12

The department has created a dedicated team to investigate vehicle break-ins after responding to 14 over a single weekend and 320 so far in 2026. The team's focus is finding patterns across incidents rather than working each one in isolation. Police are asking people to call while something is actually happening rather than reporting it the next morning, since that's the only window where officers have a real chance of catching someone still in the area. The rest of the advice is the boring stuff that works: lock the doors, take the valuables inside, park where there's light, and don't leave the car running while you run in for one thing.

Insider Tip: Anyone with information can reach Chapel Hill Police at 919-968-2760, or use Chapel Hill-Carrboro-UNC CrimeStoppers to leave an anonymous tip.

The Orange County Arts Commission and the Orange County Arts Alliance — two organizations that already share programming and space — have launched a unified public brand: ArtsOrange. The commission is a county government body; the alliance is its 501(c)(3) fundraising arm. Both still exist, but there's now one name and one front door instead of two, which should make it easier for artists and arts nonprofits to find what they need.

Carrboro, Chapel Hill, Hillsborough and Orange County have all formally adopted a shared Heat Action Plan. It covers education and outreach aimed at the people most at risk when a stretch of days runs hot, and it's one of the rare things around here that all four governments signed onto in the same form.

The Crisis Assistance, Response and Engagement team, the all-civilian crisis response program that launched in Chapel Hill in 2024 and expanded to Carrboro last September, is staffing a second mobile unit for 2026. With two teams, the program will be able to cover more hours and take more calls. CARE sends a crisis counselor, an EMT and a peer support specialist instead of police to behavioral health and nonviolent calls.

The university named its 2026 Patterson Medal winners on Tuesday: women's tennis NCAA champion Reese Brantmeier, baseball All-American Jason DeCaro, and field hockey national champion Ryleigh Heck. The Patterson Medal, first awarded in 1924, is Carolina's most prestigious individual athletics honor. Announced the same day the new athletic director was out shaking hands in Chatham County, which is either good scheduling or a nice coincidence.

There's something in that line that isn't really about sports. Most of us have a front, the version of our work that people actually see, versus what is inside our “houses.” It's a balancing act.

Hit reply and tell me something. I read every one.

Until next time,

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Chapel Hill Insider is supported by anchor sponsor Meri Lynch of Coldwell Banker HPW.