“I don’t feel like I’m 63. I feel like I’m in my 20s.”

BJ Braden, who was among the crowd taking in a blast from the past at last weekend’s Hippie Fest

“If you’ve learned nothing else from us, I hope you have learned to explore, discover, to think, to challenge, to quest.”

Erin Dougherty, a professor at Catawba College, addressing more than 200 graduates at 2019 commencement last weekend

“We know full well what the issues are. We need to close and get rid of some of our schools. But it’s very difficult to close schools without building new ones.”

Josh Wagner, chairman of the Rowan-Salisbury Board of Education, during a discussion Monday about rising maintenance costs for the district’s older schools coupled with a continuing decline in enrollment

“It’s not like I have a whole lot of conversations with Ketchie. … He knows what he’s supposed to do, and he does it.”

Jim Gantt, baseball coach at Catawba College, on pitcher Bryan Ketchie, who was 8-1 going into regional play in the Division II championships

“They like your service. The amazing thing is that if the service was fixed how it could be, they would love your service.”

Kurt Neufang, a transportation consultant who surveyed users of Salisbury’s public transit system and presented a plan to the City Council for adding routes and improving service

“We hope we never have to add another name.”

Kevin Auten, the Rowan County sheriff, on Thursday’s dedication of a memorial that has the names of 12 local law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty in front of the courthouse