Help Angie Buchanan’s fight with breast cancer.

Angela Marie Ollis Buchanan, age 66 went home to be with the Lord December 3, 2024, following a lengthy battle with cancer. She was a native of Mitchell County, NC. and a member of First Freewill Baptist Church in Spruce Pine, NC.

Angie was the owner and operator of Majestic Music in Spruce Pine, NC where she taught numerous students the love of music. She instructed and guided her students to play numerous instruments, and just enjoy music and the enrichment it could bring to their lives. Miss Angie was more than just a teacher to her students, she was a friend, counselor, and a great listener. She truly enjoyed her career, it was never a job to her, only a joy! She has forever touched the lives of so many people. She is now in the heavenly choir singing sweet melodies.

https://youtu.be/0ajBPT0u-NA

Please click the link above and watch Angie speak about the devastating effects of Helene on her business, Majestic Music (located in SprucePine,NC,) and our community in this interview by a news agency:

Update:

As most of you know Hurricane Helene unleashed her fury on Mitchell County, NC. It has destroyed many homes, businesses and taken families and lives of people in our beloved mountain community. What you have seen on social media and television is true but not completely accurate, it’s worse.

Angie lost her business, Majestic Music due to the rapidly rising river. She had just started working a light schedule after completing her radiation treatments from her recent battle with cancer. Unfortunately, Hurricane Helene claimed her business, Majestic Music, on lower street Spruce Pine, NC, when the rising river entered her business with nearly 6” of water and silt. To make matters worse her inventory was looted before she could attempt to salvage anything left that had not been compromised by the rising river. A volunteer group came and helped her clean out the remaining contents to be hauled away with the other destroyed debris. For this we are grateful and blessed. Shout out to PCCP and family friend Andrew Buchanan!

Angie has been hit hard in the past few years with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, chemotherapy, surgery, radiation therapy, the loss of her husband; Veron, and now Helene has claimed her business. She is still facing challenges with her cancer and is scheduled for another pet scan in mid-October to check the status of her cancer. (She was unable to continue her recent regimen of medication due to a severe reaction.)

I know many people have seen devastating circumstances in our community lately but she has faced constant battles for the past few years one after another. If you have a little extra this month and would like to pay it forward it would be appreciated. After the power was restored after nearly 2 weeks her house is experiencing surges and a solution has not been found to this date. Not to mention the town of Spruce Pine and Bakersville is without water due to Helene. Thanks and God Bless.

For more than four decades Angela Buchanan has been cultivating musical curiosity in the rural mountains of western North Carolina. Angela lives in the small community of Spruce Pine NC, where she has been teaching music for nearly 50 years. Angela has taught music lessons through several different agencies such as McKinney Music, Triad Sound Studio, and now The Majestic Music Store where she is the sole owner and operator. Her mastery of skills range from a variety of stringed instruments, percussion, piano, and even vocals. Through the years she continued to teach an increasing number of students. She remained musically active, playing in church and at community events, and even partnered with the Toe River Arts Council where she brought her love of music into her local school system where she taught guitar lessons in 2020 to “Title One” underprivileged students. Angela normally teaches around seventy private sessions/students weekly, some of whom would travel for miles to learn from her.

Although Angela managed to keep her business alive through COVID 19 pandemic, breast cancer has threatened her viability. In June of 2023 Angela went in for a routine mammogram which changed her life. She got the call all of us dread and soon went into to have testing . Her treatment plan was chemotherapy starting on August 6th, 2023 given bi-weekly for eight weeks with a total of sixteen chemotherapy treatments followed by surgery completing with thirty three radiation therapies. Shortly after her second treatment she was hospitalized. Since then she has been unable to work due to a severe reaction to the “RED DEVIL” chemotherapy. (That is the nickname healthcare workers call the chemotherapy therapy drug she was given.)

Angela needs your help as her spouse also is in the last stages of renal (kidney) failure. Her sole income not only supports her business but their household, and medical expenses too.

She has spent her life crafting musicians and singing artists in rural Appalachia where she has been both an innovator and cultivator in western North Carolina’s aspiring music artist. She has given so much to her community, and now it’s our turn to give back to her.