Middleburg Life | July 2018

POSTAL CUSTOMER

Volume 35 Issue 4 | July 2018 | middleburglife.com

Presort Std ECRWSS US Postage Permit #75 Fredericksburg, VA

MIDDLEBURG

LI F E The Bounty of the Land + Conservancy & Summer Fresh

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E IC ED PRDUC RE

18490 BLUERIDGE MOUNTAIN RD, BLUEMONT

466 MONTANA HALL LN S, WHITE POST

39984 BRADDOCK RD, ALDIE

Boulder Crest Estate (1913) elegantly renovated (2008) historic green stone federal house sits on 134 acres (9 parcels) & boasts breathtaking panoramic views. 2 guest houses, pool, tennis & basketball court, english gardens, barn, greenhouse, 3 car garage, full gym, hiking trails, hunting grounds & cabin. Gated entrance. Appt only.

Ryan Clegg (703) 209-9849 Megan Clegg (703) 209-9429

Spectacular farmland in Clarke Co in one parcel with a minimum of 200 acres, options up to 400. 8,000+ s/f main house (separate in-law quarters), renovated “summer kitchen”, 2 story 4 bay garage, historic ice & spring houses, pond, gardens, outbuildings, rental houses, barns. Amazing views, 1 hr. to Dulles.

6,300+ s/f custom stone chateau. Gourmet kitchen with granite countertops and commercial appliances. Main level bedroom, aupair suite/artist studio. 12 stall barn with full 2nd floor. 8 fenced paddocks with waterers and run-in shed. Equestrian’s dream!

134 ACRES | 4 BR | 4/2 BA Offered at $4,999,950

200 ACRES | 3 BR | 9 BA Offered at $2,850,000

Anne McIntosh (703) 509-4499

Maria Eldredge (540) 454-3829

27 ACRES | 6 BR | 5 BA Offered at $1,795,000

Scott Buzzelli (540) 454-1399

Peter Pejacsevich (540) 270-3835

23460 SALLY MILL RD, MIDDLEBURG

4350 FAUQUIER AVE, THE PLAINS

39459 SNICKERSVILLE TPKE, MIDDLEBURG

Just east of Middleburg off a quiet state road, you’ll find “Deer Creek”. The beautiful colonial boasts four fireplaces, pool, guest house, three stall stable, five paddocks all on 25 acres bordered

by Little River. Much of area surrounding area in conservation easements. The charming village of Middleburg is three miles away.

Ted Eldredge (571) 233-9978

Small town living in horse country near restaurants & shops. Upgrades include: kitchen/bar, window replacement, enclosed outdoor garden, painted roof, tank-less water system & more. Front & back outdoor porches. Lovely garden. Easy access to I-66.

B&B possibility.

Charming historic home circa 1770 on approx. 7 acres. Beautiful property & gardens. Main residence renovated & well cared for.

Incl gourmet kitchen, upgraded appliances & 3 fireplaces. Guest house & wonderful 5 stall barn with office, studio & loft. Bank level of barn can be used as garage space.

25 ACRES | 4 BR | 4 BA Offered at $1,695,000

4 ACRES | 6 BR | 6 BA Offered at $1,250,000

Peter Pejacsevich (540) 270-3835

Scott Buzzelli (540) 454-1399

7 ACRES | 3 BR | 2/2 BA Offered at $1,200,000

Peter Pejacsevich (540) 270-3835

Scott Buzzelli (540) 454-1399

CE

NE

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I PR

38085 HOMESTEAD FARM LN, MIDDLEBURG

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Private and well protected compound consisting of 4 lots totaling 10 acres with three charming, restored & renovated houses. This is a unique opportunity for investors or those looking to share country life but with separate living quarters. Minutes from the village of Middleburg. Endless possibilities!

Circa 1812 Mt Pleasant Farm, steeped in history. Beautiful setting & views. Live today’s lifestyle in gracious period home. Sits on bluff overlooking Cedar Creek. In protected area. Crafted from brick made on site. Original millwork & hardware. Beautiful mantels, large kitchen, great floorplan. B&B potential, 1+ hr DC.

Horses are welcome with almost 15 acres of fenced land in pasture! This versatile property consists of 2 lots with 483 feet of Shenandoah River frontage, including boat ramp! Lot 7 has rambler with unfinished basement and 2 small barns. Lot 6 has additional barn with DUR. Perfect for full time living or a weekend getaway.

Mary Owen Chatfield-Taylor (540) 454-6500

10 ACRES | 9 BR | 6 BA Offered at $1,200,000

Scott Buzzelli (540) 454-1399

Peter Pejacsevich (540) 270-3835

106 ACRES | 5 BR | 3/1 BA Offered at $998,000

Carole Taylor (703) 577-4680

George Roll (703) 606-6358

14 ACRES | 3 BR | 2 BA Offered at $479,900

Please Consider Us For All Your Real Estate Needs! *represented the buyer

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Certified Delicious!

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MIDDLEBURG

LI F E JULY 2018 middleburglife.com

PUBLISHER Greenhill Media LLC EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Elaine Anne Watt EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Chelsea Rose Moore COPY EDITORS Chelsea Rose Moore, Rachel Musser ADVERTISING SALES REPRESENTATIVE Jennifer Richards ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Joanne Maisano CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Mollie Bailey, Trevor Baratko, Heidi Baumstark, Callie Broaddus, Kerry Phelps Dale, Morgan Hensley Kaitlin Hill, Dulcy Hooper, Richard Hooper, Carolyn Kincaid Peter Milligan, Chelsea Rose Moore, Wendy Kedzierski Beth Rasin, Ashley Bommer Singh, Anne Sraders Summer Stanley, Martha Wolfe CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Callie Broaddus, Eryn Gable Doug Gehlsen, Tony Gibson, Joanne Maisano Karen Monroe, Julie Napear, Yetta Reid MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER Abbey Veith DESIGNER: Elisa Hernandez PRODUCTION DIRECTOR: Nicky Marshok ADVERTISE IN MIDDLEBURG LIFE Greenhill Media, LLC P.O. Box 328 | Middleburg VA 20118-0328 540.687.5950 | info@middleburglife.com

FIND US ON Instagram @middleburglife Twitter @middleburglife Facebook.com/middleburglife

SUBSCRIBE TO MIDDLEBURG LIFE www.middleburglife.com

ON THE COVER

All editorial matter is fully protected and may not be reproduced in any manner without the written permission of the publisher.

All unsolicited manuscripts and photos must be accompanied by return postage; the publisher assumes no responsibility. Middleburg Life reserves the right to reject any advertising. Distributed in Aldie, Alexandria, Ashburn, Boyce, Delaplane, Dulles, Front Royal, Gainesville, Haymarket, Leesburg, Manassas, Marshall, Middleburg, Millwood, Paris, Purcellville, The Plains, Rectortown, Reston, Tysons, Upperville, Warrenton, Washington, D.C., and Winchester.

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Brett Miller of Blackwater Ranch herding the Black Angus cattle.

Photo by Tony Gibson ON THIS PAGE Wishing you a blessed 4th of July and relaxing summer holidays from the team at Middleburg Life.

Photo by Greenhill Media

LIVE HUNT COUNTRY Hunt Country Sotheby's International Realty is pleased to announce its appointment as the exclusive Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates franchise for the nation's hunt country capital, Middleburg, Virginia Our new Middleburg office location is on West Washington Street, in the heart of the Historic District, conveniently positioned to cater to clients in Western Loudoun, Fauquier, Rappahannock, Warren and Clarke counties. We look forward to seeing you!

HCSIR.com 4 Washington Street | Middleburg, VA 20117 | 703.443.1757 Photo Credit: Isabelle Truchon

Š MMXVII Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC. All Rights Reserved. Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each Office is Independently Owned and Operated. Sotheby's International Realty and the Sotheby's International Realty logo are registered (or unregistered) service marks licensed to Sotheby's International Realty Affiliates LLC.

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New & Noteworthy Tastes at middleburg's most historic inn

Story by Kaitlin Hill Photos by Callie Broaddus

A

visit to The Red Fox Inn & Tavern is much like stepping back in time.

Fieldstone walls peppered with sporting artwork, exposed hand-hewn beams and inviting stone fireplaces set the scene for extraordinary hospitality and exquisite dining in Middleburg’s oldest tavern.

Even before there was Middleburg, there was The Red Fox. The inn’s story starts with

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Joseph Chinn in 1728, nearly 60 years before Middleburg was officially chartered. Chinn built the tavern, at the time named Chinn’s Ordinary, as a rest stop for travelers making their way on the popular path from Alexandria to Winchester. Over the next 209 years, Chinn’s Ordinary would evolve into The Red Fox Inn & Tavern after various owners and a series of name changes. In 1812, it was renamed the Beveridge House, and was expanded to 35 rooms. At the height of the Civil War, the Beveridge House served as

headquarters for Confederate officers and a hospital for southern soldiers.

Twenty-two years after the South surrendered, their hub was rechristened the Middleburg Inn, and it returned to its previous purpose of offering fine food and quality lodging.

In 1937 a group of investors including George A. Garrett purchased the inn and renamed it The Red Fox Inn & Tavern.

Through its long history, The Red Fox became a sentimental favorite of both Inn | Page 5

Inn | From page 4 travelers and locals, like Nancy B. Reuter, who purchased the property in 1976. The tavern is now run by Nancy’s granddaughter, Matilda, whose affection for this special space is ancestral. Matilda remembers, “my grandmother and my grandfather used to go on all their dates here growing up, so it was really special to her.” Indeed the inn was so important to Nancy that she bought out dozens of

shareholders to secure The Red Fox as her own. Since then, the property has been run by three generations of Reuters who strive to, as Matilda puts it, “preserve the historic qualities of a 1728 inn.” The multi-level restaurant is undeniably charming with a warmth that only old-fashioned décor can create.

Though the atmosphere, and perhaps the wine tasting, may have you questioning what year it is, the menu is far from antique.

Chef Kurt Baier, who joined The Red Fox in February, offers his updated take on classics like Duck a l’Orange and Strawberry Shortcake in a brand new four-course tasting tour highlighting Virginia’s finest ingredients and wines.

Chef Kurt attributes his ability to create contrasting but complimenting flavors to his background in photography as well as years Inn | Page 6

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Inn | From page 5 in the kitchen. He explains, “It’s the same thing with photography and with cooking, you want to counterbalance.”

His Seared Sea Scallop may seem simple, but is an inspired experience of contrasting flavors and textures. The skillfully cooked scallop is nestled in a bed of seductively sweet creamed corn and topped with a crunchy, salty, fried country ham hat. The addition of tomato relish adds acidity to cut through the rich flavors for a winning first course. The scallops are paired with a King Family Roseland Blend from Charlottesville. This mix of Chardonnay, Viognier, and Petit Manseng has a bright, acidic taste and a long finish making it a smart compliment to Kurt’s scallop.

After a refreshing Spinach and Blackberry Salad, guests are tasked with the daunting choice between Chef Kurt’s Pan Seared Salmon with blackberries, balsamic and basil over grits or Seared Duck Breast dressed with orange marmalade mostarda over rye spatzel and Brussels sprouts.

Both are exquisite.

The salmon is fresh, tender and expertly seasoned and the Byrd Mill grits are what comfort food dreams are made of. The blackberry and basil add a welcome sweetness against the aged balsamic. Chef Kurt sums up his approach to this dish as, “it’s the two ends of the spectrum. As fresh as you can get with the basil and as old as you can get with the balsamic. Doing contrasts like that is what I really like.” The salmon is served with a Boxwood Estate Rosé from Middleburg.

The Rosè is extremely drinkable but holds its own with the boldly flavored fish.

Chef Kurt’s ability to contrast flavors and textures is also apparent in his interpretation of Duck a l’Orange. The duck is beautifully cooked, juicy, tender and perfectly paired with the orange marmalade and wholegrain mustard sauce. The delicately puffed rye spatzel and crunchy Brussels sprouts are delicious on their own, but are put to even better use mopping up any last smear of sauce you won’t want to leave behind. The duck is paired with a well-rounded Pinot Noir from

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Ankida Vineyards in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Its red fruit notes and tannic quality work well with the luscious duck breast and tart orange marmalade.

Dessert is Chef Kurt’s Strawberry Shortcake with rhubarb and ginger syrup. The shortcake is delightfully flakey, brimming with juicy strawberries and a cloud of fresh whipped cream.

The rhubarb and ginger syrup adds complexity to this otherwise traditional dish. His plating is simple but elegant and almost too pretty to touch, though you won’t hesitate to dive in anyway.

The final libation of the night is a Paxxito from Barboursville Vineyard. This amber colored blend of Moscato and Vidal grapes mirrors the sweetness of the dessert for an unforgettable final bite.

While contrast is threaded through Chef Kurt’s sophisticated tasting menu, it is also at the heart of why time spent at The Red Fox is so uniquely wonderful.

Change is embedded in the inn’s history, and the introduction of Chef Kurt’s “A Taste of the Season” menu opens a new culinary chapter in The Red Fox story.

The experience of exciting foods, old-fashioned ambiance and unmatched service is succinctly stated in their motto of “historic property, modern hospitality.” But maybe they should add, “and so much more.” ML Page 4: Chef Kurt Baier brings his artistry and his culinary skills together for an altogether gourmet experience in the tasting menu. Page 5, left: Third course option two is a Pan seared salmon with blackberry and balsamic reduction and basil contrasted by a bed of creamy grits. Page 5, right: Don't miss the current Taste of the Season dessert course, strawberry shortcake with rhubarb and ginger syrup. Page 6, top: The King Family Vineyards Roseland Blend is one of five Virginia wines offered in the Taste of the Season pairing menu. Page 6, second: The tasting menu starts with a seared sea scallop topped with fried country ham and tomato relish on a bed of creamed corn. Page 6, third: The second course is a spinach and blackberry salad with delicate champagne vinaigrette and candied walnuts, topped by a light and creamy peppered goat cheese. Page 6, bottom: Third course option one is a Seared duck breast with rye spätzle, brussels sprouts, and a swirl of marmalade mustarda.

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MEET MIDDLEBURG

Heather Fadely, police officer Story and photo by Kerry Phelps Dale

S

he’s just what a small-town police officer should be. Corporal Heather Fadely, an officer since 2005 and with the Middleburg Police Department since 2011, is friendly and kind, while remaining tough and vigilant.

As she winds through the town’s neighborhoods on the lookout for anything that might call for her attention, she waves to those who wave to her, as many do, stops to check on a resident to see if all is well in the neighborhood, and even asks the whereabouts of his dog, Murphy. She knows them both by name.

Two men wielding brush brooms scrub the sidewalk on Main Street in front of King Street Oyster Bar. The soapy water is running down the sidewalk and into the road. Heather lowers the passenger window and asks, “What happened here?”

Just a case of smelly garbage that leaked out of the cans. Heather thanks the men for cleaning it up and drives on.

Down Route 50, a turn south, and she pulls into the old Sharon Cemetery off Federal Street. Unsurprisingly, it’s dead in there— no crimes, no trouble, just one of the most beautiful, peaceful cemeteries and beloved by Heather. A respite of sorts.

She drives to another part of town to check on a stop sign that was knocked down overnight. Exercising her detective skills, she deduces it was a truck with dual wheels that made a short turn and then backed into the stop sign and road sign and clipped the building.

Thankfully, a Middleburg police officer’s job is without much crime or danger. The job is mostly that of ambassador where the officer’s mere presence instills peace and safety in the village. Heather’s days are mostly made up of talking to shopkeepers and residents, and writing parking and traffic tickets.

But, there is the occasional robbery or murder, too. When Heather was training a new officer, on his very first day with the department, they received a call. The caller said a female in his home killed herself. The next day the man committed suicide. It was found to be a homicide and suicide. Heather didn’t know how to explain that this normally doesn’t happen in Middleburg—the officer stayed with the department and is still there.

Heather explains that Virginia has recently passed a law against smoking and driving with children in the car, and she is on the

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lookout for that infraction. Another of her pet peeves is seeing a child in the front seat or bouncing around unrestrained—behaviors she wouldn’t mind writing a ticket for.

As an only child, Heather grew up in Mount Jackson and makes her home in Winchester, but she frequently heads to Loudoun for events and activities in her free time. She loves to travel “to anyplace warm in the winter” and thinks cruises are a great way to travel and find destinations she would want to come back to and spend more time.

Heather’s police boyfriend, who shares her 12-hour shift, two days off schedule and love of travel introduced her to “Trip on a Tank,” whereby the couple gets in the car, fills

the gas tank and takes off for a two-day mini vacation.

There’s something about the Town of Middleburg that reminds Heather of home and her travels around the nearby countryside.

“I love the small town feel of Middleburg.

I get to make more personal connections— not only with the residents but the business owners and visitors, too,” says Heather. “Everyone in the community calls us by our first names…and I like that.”

So, when you see Heather making her rounds on foot or in her car, say hello.

Chances are Heather knows you by name, as well. ML

ON THE

COVER

M

iddleburg Life visited Blackwater Ranch this month to photograph their herd of purebred Black Angus cattle being raised on a carefully curated diet of fresh grasses and balanced grains to produce prized marbled beef full of flavor to tempt your palate.

Brett Miller introduced us to Blackwater Beef, a company that produces locally farmraised beef, with an innovative subscription program to make it easier to obtain quality beef products for consumers. Miller has spent his life on and managing ranches, and his passion for his work is evident in all he undertakes.

Photographer Tony Gibson captured the cover image along with the other photographs found in this issue’s article on Ranching Made Better. ML

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WAR HORSES REMEMBERED AT FRONT ROYAL REMOUNT QUARTERMASTER DEPOT

By Martha Wolfe

B

eginning as early as 1910, Britain, France, Germany and Austria began purchasing American war horses. By 1918, nearly one million American horses and mules, the heart of the world’s military industrial complex before the automobile, had been purchased and shipped overseas.

From where had they come? How did they travel? Who were they, these beasts of burden, heart, courage, strength, stamina and faith, destined for unknown but certain death?

The United States Army Quartermaster Corps Remount Service was activated in 1908 for the purpose of purchasing, processing, training and issuing horses and mules to the cavalry, infantry, pack and field artillery and transportation corps.

The Front Royal Remount Quartermaster Depot opened August 30, 1911, on some 5,000 acres southeast of Front Royal in the heart of Virginia bluegrass country. Front Royal was one of three U.S. Army Remount Depots: Fort Reno, Oklahoma, established in 1908 servicing military units in Central and Southwestern districts; Fort Keogh, Montana, 1908, servicing the Northwestern, Mountain and northern Central districts; and Front Royal, a reception and issue center for military units east of the Mississippi. The Army had purchased land straddling what is now U.S. Highway 522—designated “Remount Road” on most maps—from the Kuser, Leach, Shipe, Maddox, Barbee, Brown, Kanny, Hester, Morrison, Lake and Redmon families, among others. Barracks, offices, barns and stables were built.

Phillip Gibbons, a historian now retired from the U.S. Marine Corps, speaking at a recent event at the National Sporting Library & Museum in Middleburg, told a standing-room-only crowd that the Front Royal Depot was originally called “Camp Stonewall” because the Army had decided to build a stone wall around all 5,000 acres.

“They quickly gave up that plan,” Gibbons said. He and his associate Brian Petruskie, DVM, and fellow historian, explained that the Remount service’s early mission was to find and purchase suitable cavalry horses and mules. Having witnessed the decline of American equine stock after Britain had purchased over 100,000 horses and mules to fight in their African Boer War and the U.S. Army’s purchase of over 20,000 horses and mules to fight in the Spanish-American War, the lack of quality war horses in America early in the

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20th century was evident.

The Remount Service’s first order of business was to establish a standard for future military mounts. Calvary mounts for enlisted men should be Thoroughbred or half-bred Saddlebred, Morgan or Arabian geldings, at least three years old, 15.1-15.3 hands, have a deep heart girth and a short back, good withers for a saddle, good leg bone, sloping pasterns for an easy ride with round, hard feet.

They must be bay, black, chestnut or sorrel with a minimum of white markings. A few grays were chosen, but no duns, palominos, roans or varicolored horses were accepted.

Artillery mounts must be 15 to 16 hands, 1,200 to 1,300 pounds, light draft or heavy hunter type geldings. Mules 14.2-15 hands weighing 1,000 to 1,250 pounds were ideal.

Militar y contractors scoured the Remembered | Page 11

Remembered | From page 10 countryside for farm and ranch horses. Purchasing boards were set up in Idaho, Colorado, Kentucky, California, Texas, Wyoming, and in Front Royal, Virginia. However, this system often resulted in the acquisition of older substandard mounts, since purchasing was at the whims of a supply and demand market dictated by a middleman.

According to Phil Livingston and Ed Roberts, authors of “War Horse,” the definitive text on the history of the Remount Service, “The primary problem facing the purchasing boards was finding the raw material which would meet the Army’s standards within the price limits.” The problem, particularly in the West, lay at the very heart of America’s horse-breeding program; though there were many thousands of horses roaming the west, few were of military quality. A young officer, Colonel Fred L. Hamilton, while looking over the string of mounts at the Fort Riley cavalry school early in the 20th century, commented wryly, “Small wonder that Sitting Bull caught Custer.”

In 1910 Congress passed an Appropriations bill attached to the Department of Agriculture’s budget, and William H. Taft signed into law a nationwide horse-breeding

program. Fashioned after the New York Jockey Club’s plan to improve breeding practices in New York state, in which stallions donated

by Jockey Club members were put to stud on farms throughout the state, the Army began its fledgling breeding program on the East Coast. The USDA purchased 33 Thoroughbred, Morgan, Saddlebred and Standardbred stallions in 1913 to stand at Remount sub-stations in Vermont, Virginia and Kentucky where mares, designated suitable for breeding, were sent for stud services. In addition, the mares were kept for one year while their foals were born, cared for and weaned with the Army getting first choice of foals.

The Front Royal Remount Depot received its first six stallions in 1912, one year after the Depot opened. August Belmont of the New York Jockey Club donated five: “Henry of Navarre,” “Octagon,” “Belfry II,” “Dandy Rock” and “Foot Print.” Johnson Camden donated the sixth, “Boola Boola.” The Front Royal Remount’s breeding program was underway.

Horsemen and women all over Virginia’s bluegrass country remember the Remount and its quality stallions available for stud to area mares. “Tim McGee,” “Kin Sir,” “Gordon Russell” and “Formas” also stood as stallions in Front Royal.

By the end of WWI the Remount Service

owned 60 quality stallions. In 1920 the Remount’s mission changed, from one of servicing and caring for mares at designated stations and sub-stations, to one of distributing stallions to ranches and farms around the country so that more mares could be conveniently serviced at less government expense.

Remount officers designated civilian agents within their districts were loaned a stallion to breed to his or her own mares, and their neighbors’ mares, for a minimum stud fee of $10, which served as the agent’s payment for standing the stallion. Agents were responsible for care of the stallion. The Army got its choice of foals. Without question, this breeding program is considered responsible for the high quality of horseflesh in America throughout the 20th century and today.

Fred H. McElhone was a civilian service agent in the 1920s in Upperville, where he stood “Out the Way,” a 16-hand, 1,200-pound stallion by “Peter Pan” out of “Sweep Away” by “Wild Mint.” “Out the Way” sired 176 foals in Upperville before he was transferred to F.W. Sharp of The Plains in 1928. “Out the Way” sired dozens of area steeplechasers and foxhunters.

One of the best-known stallions standing Remembered | Page 12

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Remembered | From page 11 at Front Royal was “Gordon Russell,” by “Marchmont 2nd” out of “Tokalon” by “Tammany,” donated to the Remount Service by the Kentucky Racing Association on October 27, 1920. “Gordon Russell” was at the Front Royal Depot in 1924 and 1925 and then in the hands of civilian Agent B.G. Ray of Happy Creek near Front Royal. Cavalry officers purchased their own mounts; many were mares.

“Gordon Russell” sired two-time Olympic medalist “Jenny Camp,” who was ridden by Captain Earl F. (Tommy) Thompson in the 1932 Los Angles Olympics where she won individual silver and team gold. She went on to compete in 1936 at the infamous Berlin Olympics against superior German-bred horses. Standing 15.3 hands with less than ideal conformation out of an unknown mare, “Jenny” was athletic and brave, going on to win another individual silver in Berlin.

At the peak of the Remount Service in 1940, there were 700 government-owned stallions available to civilians for breeding across the country. During WWII, from May 1945 to the spring of 1946, the Front Royal Remount was also home to German, French and Italian POWs, many of whom were paid by the U.S. government to work on local farms. On weekends, they spent their money and leisure time downtown.

Then, in October of 1945, 152 Thoroughbreds, purebred Arabians, Anglo Arabians and nine Lippizaners, spoils of the war with Germany, were shipped to America on board the Liberty ship Stephen F. Austin. Sixty-five American soldiers volunteered to defer earlier return in order to travel with the horses.

They landed in Newport News, Virginia, after 21 stormy days at sea and were transferred to the Front Royal Remount Depot. After a 90day quarantine, on April 7, 1946, the Depot held “Lipizzaner Days,” a celebration with a Parade of Horses. By June of 1946, all of the horses had been transferred to the Pomona Remount Depot in California.

But remember, the breeding program was only part of the Remount Service’s mission; its primary purpose was to train and issue mounts and artillery horses to units fighting around the world. During both World Wars, thousands of horses arrived by train at the Front Royal Remount Depot. Area residents still remember horses being driven from the railhead to the barns at the Depot.

After receiving veterinary care and training, they were sent, again by train, to Newport News to board transport ships for Europe.

By the end of WWII, the need for cavalry horses had declined, but the need for mules had risen. By 1948 when the Remount was disbanded, it was raising and training mules almost exclusively.

Shenandoah National Park was the beneficiary of much of the original Remount land.

Today many of the original Remount buildings are on the Smithsonian’s National Zoo

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and Conservation Biology Institute property.

“Jenny Camp” and her sire “Gordon Russell” are buried on Race Track Hill on the Smithsonian’s property. “Old Tom,” the last Remount mule, died there at the ripe old age of 47.

The U.S. Customs and Border Control and the U.S. Department of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms have dog-training facilities on former Remount property, a holdover from the Army’s use of the remount during WWII for war-dog training. Families donated their pets to the war effort. The famous war dog “Chips”

was stationed in Front Royal.

Northern Virginia’s 4-H Educational and Conference Center also occupies former Remount property. The original historic Quartermasters Headquarters building and the U-shaped horse barns form the center of the 4-H summer riding camps.

These historic buildings and properties of the former Remount Service are our final tribute to those many thousands of horses who rode the trains in and out of Front Royal on their way to war. ML

Page 10, top: Herodot stood at stud at the Front Royal Remount Depot in the 1920s. Photo courtesy of the Warren County Historical Society. Page 10, bottom: War horses loading onto rail cars to be shipped to Newport News, VA and on to Europe. Photo courtesy of the Army Signal Corps. Page 12, top: War horses in wooden stalls onboard ship bound for Europe. Photo courtesy of the Army Signal Corps. Page 12, bottom: Pack horses training inside the U-shaped barn during WWII. These stalls are still standing at what is now the Northern Virginia 4-H Education and Conference Center in Front Royal. Photo courtesy of the Army Signal Corps.

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GOING LOCAL

By Chelsea Rose Moore

Middleburg Common Grounds

W

hen traveling to an exotic destination for the summer isn’t in the cards, it’s still important to prioritize getting away and recharging. Fortunately, going away for a weekend, or simply a day, can be a refreshing change of pace.

Opting for a “staycation” is a fantastic way to be a tourist in a local town, while helping us relax and explore fun destinations. It can infuse a new energy into our normal routines and help us see life with a fresh vision.

We’re here to help! We’ve curated a guide through horse and hunt country, and are taking you through Clarke County’s Berryville.

We’ve done the work for you – simply follow our lead, and we’ll show you where to shop, dine, and explore. Berryville might be tiny, but what it lacks in size, it makes up for with its big heart. We’re positive you’ll love it, so hop on the road and enjoy the ride.

Your staycation both begins and ends in Middleburg, but the rest of our guide showcases Clarke County’s gems.

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We have a lot of ground to cover today, so we’d recommend starting early. Stop in Common Grounds for a breakfast sandwich and a pastry – some tasty fuel for the journey ahead. Head down 50 West for half an hour, and you’ll find yourself in the charming and historic Clarke County.

Middleburg Common Grounds is open daily and is located at 114 W. Washington St., Middleburg.

Cordial Coffee Co.

In its short life span, Cordial Coffee has become a centerpiece for cultivating community in Clarke County and the surrounding areas. Owners Brandon and Kaitlyn Belland are deeply passionate about coffee, and their attention to detail and devotion to their craft has helped them build a trusted and successful brand. Both a roastery and café, the made-to-order, gluten-free waffles are not to be missed (insider tip: ask what the seasonal batter is — it’s always delicious!).

As supporters of local makers, Cordial showcases a rotating selection of local art, and brings local musicians to entertain guests with acoustic tunes.

Cordial Coffee Co. is open daily and is located at 8 S. Church Street, Berryville. For more details, visit cordialcoffee.com.

Clarke County Farmer’s Market

With your Cordial Coffee in hand, stroll down the street to the Clarke County Farmer’s Market and meet the county’s farmers and makers. Enjoy the live folk music and food samples, while chatting with the friendly vendors and catching a glimpse of Clarke County’s big heart.

Don’t leave the market without saying hi to the friendly folks at Persimmon Ridge Farm. They offer a full selection of pork cuts, delicious sausages, fresh eggs, and bacon that is pretty close to heavenly. We’d also recommend visiting Rooster Dirt Farm for gourmet mushrooms, and Chilly Hollow Farm for all Local | Page 15

Local | From page 14 your produce needs.

The Clarke County Farmer’s Market runs May-October, from 8am-12pm. It is located at 100 S Church Street, Berryville. For more details, visit clarkecountyfarmersmarket.com.

Modern Mercantile

Love to shop? You’re in luck. Berryville is filled with unique shops, from a quirky bookstore to a plethora of antique shops. Stroll down Main Street, and you’ll easily fill a Saturday morning browsing the memorable specialty shops.

Modern Mercantile is at the top of my list, and is my go-to spot for gifts for loved ones (and let’s be honest, for myself too). Filled with whimsy and perfectly on-trend, it’s a well-curated space made for dreamers and doers. The window displays alone are sure to peak your interest and usher you inside its doors.

Modern Mercantile is open daily, and is located 13 S. Church St., Berryville. For more information, visit modernmercantilellc.com.

My Neighbor and Me

A trip to Berryville isn’t complete without a visit to My Neighbor and Me. As a fair-trade

gift shop, they sell hand-crafted goods made by artisans across the globe. Shopping here is an inspired experience, and TripAdvisor even rates it as the top thing to do in Berryville. We’re big fans of the beautiful African Market Baskets hanging outside the shop.

Watch their website for fun events, like their monthly community drum circle.

My Neighbor and Me is open daily and located at 15 E Main St., Berryville. Find out more at myneighborandme.com.

The Tea Cart

In need of a little British flare in your life?

The Tea Cart is your next stop. A traditional English tea room, this has become a popular destination for bridal showers, baby showers, birthday celebrations, and a ladies’ afternoon out. With an extensive offering of loose-leaf teas and delicious scones, this place is filled with nostalgia and elegance.

Our favorite item on the menu is the Royal Ascot, an assortment of finger sandwiches, soup, scones with Devonshire cream and jam, and a selection of sweets – accompanied, of course, by a bottomless pot of tea.

The Tea Cart is located at 16 W. Main Street, Berryville. Reservations are preferred.

For more information, visit theteacartva.com.

Los Wingeez

For a more casual lunch, stop by Los Wingeez, a new restaurant specializing in Peruvian chicken. Order the wings, sandwiches, or tacos (we’re partial to the fish tacos topped with chopped mangos). Enjoy your food while sitting outside, and soak up the sights and sounds of Berryville’s Main Street.

Los Wingeez is located at 24 W. Main St, Berryville. To see the menu and to learn more, find them on Facebook @loswingeezberryville.

Mt. Airy Farm Market

With full bellies, we’re headed outside the Town of Berryville, and back into the country. This time, we’re loading up on local goodies to take home.

Mt. Airy Farm Market is an indoor market dedicated to supporting local farms. Open year round, the market offers a great selection of local wines, beers, cheeses, meats, and baked goods. If you need an easy dinner, the market offers BBQ, salads, sandwiches, and other pre-made options, like lasagna, chili, and shepherd’s pie. Chat with the friendly staff and browse the aisles to see the best of what Clarke County has to offer.

Local | Page 16

UVA Radiology Vein and Vascular Care Gainesville

The exceptional care you expect from UVA, in a convenient Northern Virginia location We specialize in a variety of minimally invasive treatments for conditions including varicose and spider veins.

To make an appointment, call 703.712.6062.

facebook.com/UVA.VeinVascularGainesville uvahealth.com/gainesvilleradiology 14540 John Marshall Hwy., Suite 104 Gainesville, VA 20155 uvavvc@virginia.edu

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Local | From page 15 We highly recommend grabbing a bottle (or two!) of Falling Bark Farm’s hickory syrup. Made by a husband and wife team in Clarke County, hickory syrup is a unique and delicious product offering rich health benefits. We love it served over French toast and pancakes, but it works beautifully in savory marinades (think hickory glazed salmon).

Mt. Airy Farm Market is open daily and is located at 8204 John Mosby Hwy, Boyce. Find more details at mountairymarket.com.

Blandy Experimental Farm

As the State Arboretum of Virginia, there’s 172 acres of stunning gardens, native Virginia plants, and walking trails. Put your walking shoes on and soak in the beauty of the great outdoors. Download a free app to your smartphone and participate in an audio tour of the arboretum, which features 11 stops throughout the gardens.

The arboretum is lovely in the summer, and is particularly near-and-dear to my heart.

On a warm morning several years ago, my

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now-husband asked me to be his wife on top of a grassy hill. We were surrounded by apple blossoms and flowers, and celebrated the occasion with a picnic spread.

Blandy Experimental Farm is open yearround and is located at 400 Blandy Farm Lane, Boyce. To learn more, visit blandy.virginia.edu.

Watch the website for a list of events, walks, and classes.

arts and music hub. The Barns offers film screenings, art exhibits, workshops, bluegrass jams, and concerts for every music lover you know.

The Barns of Rose Hill is located at 95 Chalmers Court, Berryville. Find hours and event details at their website barnsofrosehill.org.

King St. Oyster Bar

Page 14: Cordial Coffee's caffeinated drinks are not to be missed. Photo by Hilary Hyland Photography. Page 16, top left: My Neighbor and Me's colorful storefront on Main Street. Photo courtesy of My Neighbor and Me. Page 16, top right: A couple walking through Dogwood Lane at Blandy Experimental Farm. Photo by Tim Farmer and courtesy of Blandy Experimental Farm. Page 16, bottom left: The outdoor displays at Mt. Airy Farm Market. Photo courtesy of Mt. Airy Farm Market. Page 16, bottom middle: Owners Brandon and Kaitlyn Belland are a husband and wife team and the faces behind Cordial's successful brand. Photo by Hilary Hyland Photography. Page 16, bottom right: A glimpse of some of the unique items stocked at Modern Mercantile. Photo by Era Everlasting,Terah Ware.

Your day finishes with the spinach artichoke dip and a dozen oysters from one of Middleburg’s hottest restaurants. Wind down with a glass of wine and breathe deep – you’ve successfully completed your staycation. Cheers to that!

King St. Oyster Bar is located at 1 East Washington St., Middleburg.

Barns of Rose Hill

If you aren’t quite ready to leave Clarke County, head back into town for one last memorable stop. As a performing arts venue and community center, the Barns is the town’s

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THEN & THERE

The Ultimate Garden Folly Ornamental Hermitages (and Hermits)

By Richard Hooper

A

mong the many forms of architectural garden follies that sprang forth in Georgian Great Britain, hermitages are among the most curious, providing a philosophical/mystical tone to one’s amblings through the landscape. They were small structures - usually one or two rooms - built from wood or stone and nestled into their immediate surroundings. Natural caves, serendipitously located, were also incorporated at times and might be used “as is” or enhanced with a facade with a doorway and perhaps a window or two. And, if one did not have a cave of one’s own, but thought it a necessity, one could have it built into a hillside - which, if lacking, could also be constructed.

Hermitages might look like a charming hovel or a well-crafted, tiny cottage. They were also built along the designs of pavilions or gazebos. They were a specialized form of the garden folly, inspired by a confluence of religion, druids, the secular naturalism of the philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau, literary melancholy (all the rage), Merlin the Magician and mythical creatures from antiquity

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that lived in grottoes.

According to Gordon Campbell in The Hermit in the Garden (Oxford University

Press, 2013), the first hermitage styled folly was designed by the architect William Kent for George II’s consort, Queen Caroline.

Construction on the stone building, located on the site of the present-day Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, commenced in 1730. It incorporated busts of five prominent English scientists and natural philosophers as part of the design. The queen also commissioned Merlin’s Cave, built in 1736. The King and Queen, both Germans, were using the structures to promote their Englishness. The structures proved to be very popular.

In 1731, Kent designed the second such folly to be constructed. Made for the first Viscount Cobham’s massive estate, Stowe, in Buckinghamshire, it was similar to that designed for the queen. Kent also designed a grotto at Stowe containing a statue of Venus.

Unusual for the time, the gardens at Stowe were always open for visiting, which lead to Cobham producing the first guidebook for an English garden.

After Queen Caroline’s and Viscount Cobham’s hermitages were built, they began to proliferate throughout the British Isles.

Garden | Page 20

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Garden | From page 18 There are nearly a hundred listed in The Hermit and the Garden. The fourth Duke of Beaufort had one installed at Badminton. The style became more rustic and in 1767, William Wrighte’s, Grotesque Architecture or Rural Amusement, was published, containing designs for seven hermitages and others for grottoes and other follies. His design for a “Summer Hermitage” included a floor composed of marrow bones from sheep laid upright.

From the outset, there were intimations of habitation. Queen Caroline’s Merlin’s Cave was populated with wax figures. Viscount Cobham’s nephew, Gilbert West, composed a poem about the gardens at Stowe in which he created the narrative that the hermitage there had been the last habitat of Malbecco, a character in Edmund Spencer’s The Faerie Queen. Decors of other hermitages implied a hermit in residence with props such as a book left open on a table with maybe a mug or pipe as well. “What bad luck; you’ve scared away the hermit. I do hope he returns.”

Stuffed and wooden mannequins also resided as hermits; some were automatons capable of movement. A few estates, most amazingly, even went so far as to employ real people as hermits-in-residence, a number of which were described in contemporary guidebooks.

Sometimes the hermit was the owner of the property or a relative. Such was the case with Gilbert White, author of The Natural History of Selborne. White had two hermitages in need of a hermit. That position was filled by his youngest brother, Reverend Henry White, who would play the role when Gilbert was entertaining guests.

Other hermits seem to have been hired for various lengths of time. Needless to say there, is a great deal of legend and lore regarding ornamental human garden hermits, and it is unknown if any ever fulfilled the more severe requirements laid out in some advertisements from the 1700s.

Some of these stipulations were that the applicant not bathe or cut his hair or nails for a seven-year period of employment. Speaking might also have been forbidden. He could not leave the estate. He would be paid only at the end of the employment a lump sum of 500 to 700 pounds.

As this was the Age of Enlightenment, instead of monetary compensation, one advertisement stated that at the end of seven years the hermit would be made a gentleman. ML The primary source for this article was The Hermit in the Garden by Gordon Campbell, Oxford University Press: 2013.

Page 18, top: Ossian's Hall hermitage in Dunkeld, Scotland. Photo from Wikimedia by Euan Nelson. Page 18, bottom: A design for a Summer Hermitage from Grotesque Architecture by William Wright, 1767. Photo from Getty Images. Attachments area. Page 20, top: The hermitage at Tollymore Forest Park in Northern Ireland.

Photo from Wikimedia by Sarahj2107. Page 20, middle: The hermitage at Stowe with its very low door opening.

Photo from Wikimedia by DeFacto. Page 20, bottom: The Friar's Carse hermitage at Dumfries, Scotland. It was a retreat for the poet Robert Burns. Photo from Wikimedia

by Roger Griffith.

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Middleburg's

MAYOR-ELECT LITTLETON & COUNCIL TAKE OATHS Story and photos by Elaine Anne Watt

C

lerk of the Loudoun County Circuit Court Gary Clemons declared it a bittersweet moment as he prepared to administer the oath of office to Mayor-Elect Bridge Littleton, who will begin his official term in office on July 1, along with Darlene Kirk, Kevin Hazard, Peter Leonard-Morgan and Cindy Pearson, the winners in the May

1 election joining other council members not up for reelection.

“I’ve enjoyed working with her [Mayor Betsy Davis] for many years, and she has touched so many lives here and outside of Middleburg. She will be missed dearly,” said Clemons.

With that said, Clemons proceeded to swear in first the council members and then Mayor-Elect Littleton, congratulating them on their leadership roles in our historic town.

Maplestone in Middleburg, est.1938 beautifully combines a blend of old and new styles for an exciting look. This is the entertainer’s dream house with versatile floor plan and access to gardens and patios. Located less than 2 miles to town with commercial potential.

Visit: maplestonemiddleburg.com

MLS# FQ10230909 $788,900 Please contact: Joyce Gates 540-771-7544 joyce.gates@LNF.com

Middleburg Life joins everyone in wishing Mayor Betsy Davis a well-earned retirement and in thanking her for her many years of service to our community! ML Left: Mayor-Elect Bridge Littleton. Right: Left to right, Peter Leonard-Morgan, Cindy Pearson, Darlene Kirk and Kevin Hazard take the oath of office administered by Gary Clemons, Clerk of the Loudoun County Circuit Court.

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Old Goose CreekFarm Farm Mount Mount Gordon Gordon Farm

Fidelio FidelioFarm Mayapple

Old Old Goose Goose Creek Creek Farm Farm

Mayapple Mayapple Farm Farm

Middleburg, Virginia The The Plains, Plains, Virginia Virginia Middleburg, Middleburg, Virginia Virginia The The Plains, Plains, Virginia Middleburg, Middleburg, Middleburg, Virginia Virginia $4,500,000 $9,500,000 $9,500,000 $4,500,000 $4,500,000 $9,850,000 $9,850,000 $3,400,000 $3,400,000 $3,400,000 Fidelio Old Goose Creek Farm Mount Gordon Farm Mayapple Farm “Mayapple Farm," purist location delight •minutes Original portion of house “Mayapple “MayappleFarm," Farm,"purist puristdelight delight••Original Originalportion portionofofhouse house Pristine equestrian property in turnkey condition Pristine Pristineequestrian equestrianproperty propertyininturnkey turnkeycondition condition Prime PrimeFauquier Fauquier County County location minutesfrom fromMiddleburg Middleburg 128 128acres acres and andimmaculate immaculate 33level, level, 13,000+ 13,000+ sqsqftftstone stone&& in 1790 in Preston CT • House was dismantled and built builtinin1790 1790ininPreston PrestonCity, City, CT CT••House Housewas wasdismantled dismantled and and •shingle Exceptional location •BR Stone home expandedfinishes to approx.

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Middleburg, Middleburg, Virginia Virginia The The Plains, Plains,Virginia Virginia Virginia Aldie, Virginia Aldie, Aldie, Virginia Virginia Marshall, Marshall, Marshall, Virginia Virginia $1,800,000 $1,950,000 $1,950,000 $1,800,000 $1,800,000 $2,950,000 $2,950,000 $1,899,000 $1,899,000 $1,899,000Valley Plac Belvedere Waverly Monroe Clarendon Farm Circa Circa1755, 1755,impeccable prime primeFauquier Fauquier County County location, between between Absolutely custom homelocation, on 50 acres with Absolutely Absolutelyimpeccable impeccablecustom customhome homeon on50 50acres acreswith with Beaumont Model Home, prime lot in Creighton Beaumont BeaumontModel ModelHome, Home,prime primelot lotininCreighton CreightonFarms Farms Gracious Gracioushome home with with 55BRs BRs ••Gourmet Gourmet kitchen kitchen••Farms Two Twostory story Middleburg Middleburg and The ThePlains Plains ••Additions Additions early early1800's 1800's && Middleburg, The Plains, Virginia lake frontageand 10 minutes from Marshall •inin Beautiful lake lakefrontage frontage10 10minutes minutesfrom fromMarshall, Marshall Marshall••Beautiful Beautiful •floor-to-ceiling 3 level brick home • Amazing &Ridge detailed ••33level levelbrick brickhome home••Amazing Amazingquality quality&&detailed detailed floor-to-ceiling window window display display ofofquality the theBlue Blue Ridge Virginia Aldie, Virginia Virginia 1943 1943••Home Home recently recently restored restored ••62 62gently gently rolling rollingacres acresinin Mountains millwork, extensive plantings, porches & terraces millwork, millwork,extensive extensiveplantings, plantings,porches porches&&terraces terraces finishes • 5••bedrooms • 4 fullceilings, + 1/2 bath • 4 width fireplaces finishes finishes••55bedrooms bedrooms••44full full++1/2 1/2bath bath••44fireplaces fireplaces Mountains 33FPs, FPs,coffered coffered ceilings, random random width $1,950,000 $1,800,000 $2,950,000 Orange OrangeCounty County Hunt Huntviews ••44bedrooms, bedrooms, 441/2 1/2windows, baths, baths,66fireplaces fireplaces rustic $1,899,000 •Fantastic mountain from oversized •Fantastic •Fantasticmountain mountainviews viewsfrom fromoversized oversized windows, windows, •rustic Master suite on main level • Gourmet kitchen with ••Master Mastersuite suiteon onmain mainlevel level••Gourmet Gourmet kitchen kitchenwith with cherry cherry floors floors ••Large Large home home office, office, gym, gym, rec recroom, room,

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408 E Washington Peace, Peace, Love Love& &Joy JoyStreet Farm Farm

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1755, Fauquier location, ••Improvements Improvements include include salt saltprime water water pool, pool, poolCounty house, house,large large between impeccable home on 50 acres withappliances Beaumont Model Home, lot oak in home with•finished 5finished BRsceilings, •stories, Gourmet Two story rolling pasture & Circa private dock • 5 BRs, 3 pool FPs, hardwood rolling pasture pasture&&Absolutely private privatedock dock ••55BRs, BRs,3custom 3FPs, FPs,hardwood hardwood Wolf appliances & shaker cabinets High oak kitchen •rolling Wolf Wolf appliances& &shaker shakercabinets cabinets ••High Highprime ceilings, ceilings, oakCreighton Farms multiple multiple porches porchesGracious and and patios patios ••Three Three stories, and The Plains • Additions in early 1800'saward & winning party partyhouse/studio, 22tenant tenant houses, houses, stone stone walls walls and andpond. pond. lake frontage 10 minutes from Marshall • Beautiful • 3 level brick home • Amazing floor-to-ceiling window display of27the Blue Ridgefloors floors •house/studio, ExtremelyMiddleburg well built home with endless floors••Extremely Extremely well well built builthome home with withendless endless floors, media room, elevator •••27 floors, floors,award awardwinning winning media media room, room, elevator elevator •• quality & detailed res approx. approx.

10,000 10,000 sf.sf.

••Carriage Carriage house house ••Garage Garage acres acres

• Home 62 gently rolling acres in Paul PaulMacMahon MacMahon (703) (703)•609-1905 609-1905 extensive plantings, porches & terraces •brick 5 bedrooms • 4 course full + 1/2 bath • 4 fireplaces • 3patio FPs,•coffered ceilings, random width • Very 1943 special home inrecently pristinerestored condition amenities amenities••Very Verymillwork, special specialhome home ininpristine pristine condition condition Attached garageMountains • Rear brick Golf course views Attached Attachedgarage garagefinishes ••Rear Rearbrick patio patio••Golf Golf course views views 4-1930 amenities Helen HelenMacMahon MacMahon (540) (540) 454-1930 454-1930 Orange County Hunt • 4 bedrooms, 4 1/2 baths, 6 fireplaces rustic cherry floors • Large home office, gym, rec room, •Fantastic mountain views from454-1930 oversized windows, • Master suite on main level • Gourmet kitchen with (540) 454-1930 Paul MacMahon (703) 609-1905 Helen Helen MacMahon MacMahon (540) (540) 454-1930 Paul Paul MacMahon MacMahon (703) (703) 609-1905 609-1905 -0650 Helen MacMahon Margaret Margaret Carroll Carroll (540) (540) 454-0650 454-0650 • Improvements include salt water pool, pool house, large rolling pasture & private dock • 5 BRs, 3 FPs, hardwood Wolf appliances & shaker cabinets • High ceilings, oak multiple porches and patios • Three finished stories, party house/studio, 2 tenant houses, stone walls and pond. floors • Extremely well built home with endless floors, award winning media room, elevator • approx. 10,000 sf. • Carriage house • Garage • 27 acres Paul MacMahon (703) 609-1905 Helen MacMahon Attached garage • Rear brick patio • Golf course views (540) 454-1930 amenities • Very special home in pristine condition (540) 454-1930 Paul MacMahon (703) 609 Margaret Carroll (540) 454-0650 Helen MacMahon

Twin Twin Creek Creek Farm Farm 408 408 EE Washington Washington Street Street Grasty Place

Middleburg, Virginia Aldie, Aldie, Virginia Virginia Middleburg, Middleburg, Virginia Virginia Warrenton, Warrenton, Virginia Middleburg, Virginia Middleburg, Middleburg, Virginia Virginia $975,000 $1,395,000 $1,395,000 $975,000 $975,000 $1,650,000 $1,650,000 $800,000 $800,000 $800,000 Twin Creek Farm 408structure, E Washington Street Peace, Love &recorded Joy Farm Grasty Place Beautiful brick federaldriveway structure, needtotoofthis repair • 2home homeliving in desirable Melmore Adjacent to the Beautiful Beautifulbrick brickfederal federalstructure, need needofofrepair repair••22recorded recorded Charming Charminghome homeinindesirable desirableMelmore Melmore••Adjacent Adjacenttotothe the A Along longhard hard surfaced surfaced driveway leads leads this special special homebuilt built Charming Quiet Quietcountry country living on on33 33acres acres with with•great great proximity proximity toto lots • East of town55•1/2 1.76 aces5zoned R-1 & A-C in the town of Middleburg offering proximity to town & privacy of lots••East Eastside sideofoftown town••1.76 1.76 aces aceszoned zonedR-1 R-1&&A-C A-CVirginia ininthe the town townofofMiddleburg Middleburgoffering offering proximity proximitytototown town&&privacy privacy ofof in in1985 1985 ••66side bedrooms, bedrooms, 1/2 baths, baths, 5fireplaces fireplaces ••High High shopping, shopping, restaurants, restaurants, schools schools &&hospital hospital ••Rare Rare find findtotoget get lots Aldie, Virginia Middleburg, Warrenton, Virginia Middleburg, Virginia historic • High ceilings & wood floors.garden almost 4 acresand • High light new kitchen historicdistrict district••High Highceilings ceilings&&wood woodfloors. floors. almost almost44acres acres••High Highceilings, ceilings,light lightfilled filledrooms, rooms,new newkitchen kitchen ceilings, ceilings,district large largerooms rooms with with good goodflow flow ••Formal Formal garden this thisacreage acreage and have haveceilings, FIOS FIOS––work workfilled from fromrooms, home homewhile while enjoying enjoying historic $1,395,000 $975,000 $800,000 & stainless appliances •fencing Familyand room w/granitecounters counters&&stainless stainlessappliances appliances ••Family Familyroom room overlooks overlooks Carters CartersRun Run••Large Largepond pond•$1,650,000 •Pool Poolwith with pool poolhouse house w/granite your yourown owncounters farm farm••Rolling Rolling acreage, acreage, stable, stable,fencing and aabold bold Paul Paul MacMahon (703) 609-1905 PaulMacMahon MacMahon (703) (703)609-1905 609-1905 w/granite

y to d to get e enjoying d a bold A 4long hard surfaced driveway leads to--yet this home Quiet living on 33 acres withfloor great proximity to w/fireplace, screened-in porch •well 3 BR including master ••Barn Barncould couldhave have 4stalls stalls ••Rolling Rolling land, land, very veryprivate private yet special n floor creek creek ••55built BR BR home home has hascountry been beenwell maintained maintained ••bright Main Main floor in 1985 • 6 bedrooms, 5 1/2 baths, 5 fireplaces suite •master High restaurants, schools hospital • Rare find to get w/bay window •carHome office (Verizon high&speed very veryclose closetotoWarrenton Warrenton master suite suite and andshopping, 22car garage garage . . . home while enjoying ceilings, large rooms with(703) good flow • Formal garden thisLL acreage and have FIOS – work from internet) & finished & 2 car garage.

Paul PaulMacMahon MacMahon (703) 609-1905 609-1905 overlooks Carters Run • Large pond • Pool withHelen pool house your own farm • Rolling(540) acreage,454-1930 stable, fencing and a bold 54-1930 Helen MacMahon MacMahon (540) 454-1930 Helen- MacMahon 454-1930 • Barn could have 4 stalls • Rolling land, very private yet creek • 5 BR home has(540) been well maintained • Main floor very close to Warrenton master suite and 2 car garage .

Paul MacMahon (703) 609-1905

s s patio

Grasty Grasty Place Place

Helen MacMahon

Winchester Winchester Road Road Oak Ridge

Beautiful brick federal structure, need of repairw/fireplace, •w/fireplace, 2 recorded Charming home desirable Melmore •master Adjacent to th screened-in screened-in porch porch ••33inBR BR including including bright brightmaster lots • East side of town • 1.76 aces zoned R-1 & A-C in the town ofHome Middleburg offeringhigh proximity suite suite w/bay w/bay window window ••Home office office(Verizon (Verizon high speed speedto town & priva historic district • High ceilings & wood floors. internet) almost 4&acres High ceilings, light filled rooms, new k internet)&&finished finished LL LL& 22car car•garage. garage.

Paul MacMahon (703) 609-1905 w/granite counters & stainless appliances • Family room Helen HelenMacMahon MacMahon (540)•454-1930 454-1930 w/fireplace, screened-in(540) porch 3 BR including bright suite w/bay window • Home office (Verizon high speed internet) & finished LL & 2 car garage.

(540) 454-1930

Kildare KildareStreet 204 Chestnut

Helen MacMahon

Oak Oak Ridge Ridge

(540) 454-1

204 204 Chestnut Chestnut Street Street

Marshall, Marshall, Virginia Virginia Middleburg, Virginia Virginia Warrenton, Virginia Middleburg, Warrenton, Warrenton, Virginia Virginia Middleburg, Middleburg, Virginia Virginia $795,000 $795,000 $760,000 $760,000 $655,000 $640,000 $655,000 $655,000 $640,000 $640,000 Winchester Road Kildare Oak Ridge Great 204 Chestnut Stre 1.69 1.69 acres acres with withfrontage frontage on onRoute Route•17, 17, right rightoff offRoute Route 66, Prime location, off Springs Road Surrounded by 66, Great Private Private light 6+ 6+& acres acres minimal ininaalovely lovely maintenance setting settingjust •just Main 33miles miles level from from living on a Prime Primelocation, location,off offSprings SpringsRoad Road••Surrounded Surroundedbyby Greatlight light&&minimal minimalmaintenance maintenance••Main Mainlevel levelliving livingon onaa currently currently zoned zoned R-4 R-4 • • New New Marshall Marshall code code zoning zoning calls calls for for large farms & estates • HouseMarshall, circa 1890 with 2 BR, town townofofMiddleburg Middleburg street • Walk ••Stucco Stucco to town, home home library with with &55restaurants bedrooms bedroomsVirginia • Large large largefarms farms&&estates estates••House House circa circa1890 1890with with22BR, BR,Virginia charming charmingstreet street••Walk Walktototown, town,library library&&restaurants restaurants ••Large Large Virginiacharming Middleburg, Warrenton, Middleburg, Virginia Gateway Gateway District, District, potential potential office officenew building, building, etc. etc.••Solid Solidstone stone master 1 1/2 BA, FP, hardwood floors, kitchen ••Traditional Traditional bedroom yet yet&open open sunroom floor floorplan •plan Fenced ••Hardwood Hardwood lot with floors plenty floors of room 111/2 1/2BA, BA,FP, FP,hardwood hardwoodfloors, floors,new newkitchen kitchen master masterbedroom bedroom&&sunroom sunroom••Fenced Fencedlot lotwith withplenty plentyofofroom room $795,000 $760,000 house house on on property property • • Sold Sold in in "As "As Is" Is" condition condition $655,000 $640,000 •Garage • 2 sheds/studio potential • Tenant house for ••Wood Wood expansion burning burning or afireplace pool fireplace • Lower ••Front Front Level porch, porch, offers rear rear private deck, deck,entrance patio patio •Garage •Garage••22sheds/studio sheds/studiopotential potential••Tenant Tenanthouse house for forexpansion expansionororaapool pool••Lower LowerLevel Leveloffers offersprivate privateentrance entrance

withfedfrontage on Route 17, right off Route 66,••22living Private 6+ acres in3rd amaster lovely setting 3 miles •Property from location, Springs Roadsetting • Surrounded& by & minimal maintenance Main level livin •Property shares1.69 largeacres spring pond •(703) Private setting & &&separate pool pool bay baygarage garage spaceand & and room main main for level level master bedroom suite suite withjust private •Propertyshares sharesPrime large largespring springfed fedoff pond pond ••Private Private setting &separate separateliving livingGreat space spacelight &&room room for for3rd 3rdbedroom bedroomwith with•private private Paul Paul MacMahon MacMahon (703) 609-1905 609-1905 calls•for town of Middleburg • old Stucco home with 5 bedrooms BR,••Beautiful charming street •front Walk toback town,yards library & restaurants lls on 13.21 acres currently zoned R-4 • New Marshall code zoningbath •Very •Very Beautiful pretty prettylot lotplantings with withmature mature & large trees treesfront and and & oldback stone stone yards walls walls on on13.21 13.21acres acres large farms & estates • House circa 1890 with 2bath bath Beautifulplantings plantings& &large large front&& back yards Gateway District, potential office building, etc. ••Solid stone • Traditional yetmany open uses floor plan454-1930 • Hardwood floors 1 1/2 BA, FP, hardwood floors, new kitchen ••Oversized master bedroom sunroom •and Fenced lot with plenty o Oversized storage building with and possibilities Oversizedstorage storage building building with with& many many uses usesand possibilities possibilities 54-1930 Paul MacMahon Helen Helen MacMahon MacMahon (540) (540) 454-1930 Paul Paulpatio MacMahon MacMahon (703) (703) 609-1905 609-1905 house on property • Sold(703) in "As 609-1905 Is" condition • Very private. • Wood burning fireplace • Front porch, rear deck, •Garage • 2 sheds/studio potential • Tenant house ••Very Veryprivate. private. for expansion or a pool • Lower Level offers private en & pool • 2 bay garage and main454-1930 level master suite •Property shares large spring fed pond • PrivateHelen settingMacMahon & separate living space & room 454-1930 for 3rd bedroom with p Paul MacMahon (703)Helen 609-1905 MacMahon (540) Helen MacMahon (540) (540) 454-1930 •Very pretty lot with mature trees and old stone walls on 13.21 acres bath • Beautiful plantings & large front & back yards • Oversized storage building with many uses and possib Helen MacMahon (540) 454-1930 Paul MacMahon 609-1905 • Very private.

110 East Washington Street • P.O. Box 110 110(703) East East Washington Washington Street Street •• PP.O. .O. Box Box Helen MacMahon (540) 454-

info@sheridanmacmahon.com info@sheridanmacmahon.com 1380 Middleburg, Virginia 20118 www.sheridanmacmahon.com www.sheridanmacmahon.com (540) 687-5588 info@sheridanmacmahon.com www.sheridanmacmahon.com

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1380 1380 Middleburg, Middleburg, Virginia Virginia 20118 20118 (540) (540) 687-5588 110 East687-5588 Washington Street • P.O. Bo 1380 Middleburg, Virginia 20118 (540) 687-5588

PET OF THE MONTH up our friends. Playing in a baby pool in the summer is the best! We like living outside with our other buddies.

Bonnie & May We are a rare breed of pig, similar to a Pot-Bellied Pig. American Guinea Hogs were bred to forage and seek out their food and grow slowly, so we are perfect for a wellfenced pasture instead of small confinement.

We can get as large as 85-100 pounds when we mature. We rely on our caregivers to have portion control because we will not stop eating and become obese. We love good quality 1st & 2nd cutting hay and lots of vegetables and fruits. After a good brushing, we glow! We are super smart and like new challenges, playing with toys and chatting

If you had one wish what would it be?

To find a home with a family who will love us. We don’t want to be forgotten outside.

We want a nice warm house to keep the chill out during the winter and a shady spot in the summer. Going to a new home as a pair would be ideal because we already get along with each other. We have been here for two years now and would like our wishes to come true! ML Top: Bonnie. Bottom: May.

Article courtesy of Melanie Burch, Director of Development. For more information, visit www.middleburghumane.org or call 540-364-3272. Middleburg Human Foundation operates a private, 4.5-acre farm shelter located in Marshall, Virginia. It is their goal to provide a haven for abused, neglected, and at risk animals, both large and small. Photos by Joanne Maisano.

8th Annual Polo Classic G R E AT M E A D O W

purchase tickets now to experience this fun-filled event!

Visit NationalSporting.org or call 540-687-6542 N AT IO N A L SP ORT I N G LI BR A RY & M USE UM

102 The Plains Road, Middleburg, VA 20117 | 540-687-6542 | NationalSporting.org Photos courtesy of Douglas Lees, Julie Napear Photography, and Chris Weber Studios

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RANCHING MADE BETTER

Story by Elaine Anne Watt

Blackwater Beef uses today’s breeding knowledge with old-fashioned hard work to produce superior, locally raised Black Angus beef products while promoting stewardship of the land for future generations.

B

rett Miller grew up in Cody, Wyoming, often called the rodeo capital of the world. Although he lived in town, all his relatives had nearby ranches, and that is where he spent his time developing a keen

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interest in livestock and the ranching lifestyle.

With season tickets to the rodeo located only blocks away, he also imagined becoming a professional bull rider.

“I was a rodeo rider on bulls from age 15 through high school. But, not a very good one,” Miller says with a laugh. “I never made it anywhere, but it was fun, and I never got hurt.”

Next up was college, where he quickly realized that he wasn’t going to be able to afford medical school, so he switched to a business degree, working his way through college at ranches for the most part.

The way Miller recounted these stories, you immediately could tell a few things about him. He’s honest, to the point, and sees the world clearly through a frame colored only by

his love of the land, an acute business sense and a commitment to do what’s right on a personal and professional level.

“I was still working on the same ranch part-time after school, but I entered the building industry as a carpenter. Those skills have come in handy over the years and in many ways,” he said.

The most significant opportunity to put those skills to use was being hired by Ed and Elsa Prince to help build their dream retreat, the Double E Ranch, in Cody, from the ground up. The process was to take five years, but Ed, who’d had a highly successful business career, never got to realize his dream, passing away from a heart attack before project completion.

Ranching | Page 25

2018 Polo in the Park!

Photo by Bob Tobias

Visit PolointhePark.org for more details!

Buy Season Passes!

Save more than 20% off of regular gate admission.

Arena polo is every Saturday evening June 30 – August 18 Bring a picnic, a blanket, and your favorite beverage to the terraced viewing area and sit back and enjoy the matches!

Gates open at 6 p.m. First match starts at 7 p.m.

Music and dancing each night following the final match Featuring wine from Stone Tower Winery and food from Roots 657 and King Street Oyster Bar Car passes are $35 in advance online, or $40 cash at the gate. Tailgating spots available.

Chas Sumser Photography

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Ranching | From page 24 Miller stayed on to work directly for Elsa Prince maintaining and managing the ranch for another eight years. The very first house built at Double E was for the Prince’s son, Erik, who was in SEAL training at the time.

THE MOVE TO VIRGINIA Fast-forward to 2007, and Erik Prince was living in McLean, Virginia, and spending time on his Middleburg property, Blackwater Ranch, designed as a family retreat just as his parent’s home in Cody had been originally.

A local farmer was utilizing the land to grow corn and soybean crops, but the potential for the ranch was far from being realized. All that was about to change.

Prince asked Miller to relocate to Middleburg and to manage a series of his properties around the country. The timing and the opportunity worked out perfectly for Miller and allowed him to continue working on behalf of a family he obviously admires.

“Erik and his wonderful, wonderful, wife Stacy, the whole family really trickling down from his Dad and Mom are tremendously capable and very generous and kind. They are more charitable in giving back than you could ever imagine,” said Miller. “Right now, Erik has a company in Africa building infrastructure there, trying to get water to communities to better the lives of the human race in some of the most challenging areas of the

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world. I have the utmost respect for him and his family.”

Miller had settled into his new role working for Prince when one day in 2010 they both found themselves home with the flu, talking on the phone about the possibility of adding cows to Blackwater Ranch.

“The land wasn’t being taken care of and maximized to its full potential, so we started by purchasing a diversified herd to see which breed we might want to focus upon,” shared Miller. “After four years, we decided to go with purebred Black Angus. The American Angus Association has developed so much helpful information and support for breeders. We now have the ability to see into the future, because the genetics tells you pretty much the animal that you are going to get, so the breeding process is more controlled and predictable.”

So, they sold off the diversified herd and purchased purebred Black Angus, almost exclusively sourced from Whitestone Farm in Aldie, a registered breeder. Miller explained, “You can work to have a registered herd and sell them, or you can raise some really good beef. We’re still highly involved in breeding for ourselves, but not for raising to sell as breeding stock.”

BLACKWATER BEEF The full story of Blackwater Beef goes back to solving a series of problems that Miller and Prince identified in the ability of beef-lovers

to purchase the quantity and quality of beef to suit their needs without the hassles of trying to put together two or more individuals to share orders. Miller said, “The company’s initial focus was on solving the problem of providing the average person the ability to obtain farm-fresh beef.

“We wanted beef that consistently tastes delicious,” he added, “so our animals are grass and grain fed and then grain-finished to get that beautiful marbling that provides superior flavor.” The flavor is from the grain.

“Our biggest challenge is the education process,” said Miller. “There’s a lack of clarity sometimes in purchasing beef. Is it live weight; is it rail weight; is it finished weight?

How do you find, purchase, have delivered and store the proper amount of beef at the right price?”

The subscription solution Blackwater Beef offers is simple and a good value. “You make a monthly payment throughout the year and receive a portion of your purchase quarterly, whether it’s a quarter beef, half a beef, etc., delivered to your door. We approach each sale and transaction with the mentality of under-promising and over-delivering,” said Miller. “With an average price of $10 per pound finished product, we’re extremely competitive price-wise, and with a growing line of specialty products as well.” Since their retail launch in February, Blackwater Ranching | Page 27

Ranching | From page 26 Beef has received a very strong reception in the marketplace.

“For Father’s Day, we came up with a gift box very similar to Omaha Steaks that did really well at a significant cost savings in comparison, and with our own branded sauce included,” he said.

Miller is the heart and soul behind product development. His wife, Emily, is a source of excellent support and advice on Brett’s marketing efforts as she has her own experience in these areas.

With a hint of pride in his voice, Miller stated, “The beauty of this system is we’re always turning over fresh product. Nobody else in the industry includes value-added products like beef sticks and jerky in a quarter beef subscription that I am aware of. The packaging is good for a year in the freezer as long as the seal is not broken, and you’re getting fresh beef delivered four times a year.

It’s not the same exact animal, but it’s all the same Black Angus from the same source with consistent quality.”

Blackwater Ranch has room for only about 100 head of cattle, but they have access to up to 400. “We utilize co-producers. We take the animals when ready to our co-producer in Staunton to finish them up,” Miller said. “We have great local business partners in Whitestone Farm, Middleburg Millworks for supplies, the Exxon and auto-parts store,

and the Culpepper Co-op (CFC) in Marshall where their grain is sourced.”

The subscription business is up and running, and Blackwater is building out its strategy for the future. “For years, we did all the research to build a beef jerky company because at Christmas I made jerky for everyone. We found so much competition and little margin, but we wanted to make it anyway,” said Miller. “Working with two processors, they have come up with beef sticks and jerky with enormous interest from consumers, which created another leg of the business. Another income stream will be a vending food truck business and a wayside stand at their location on Foxcroft Road in Middleburg. They have recently started selling at the Middleburg Farmer’s Market from 8 a.m. until noon on Saturdays in the interim. Long-term may be a steakhouse restaurant.”

Miller recently went to Sturgis, South Dakota, where Blackwater products received tremendous interest and will be featured at the largest saloon there, One-Eyed Jack, for the entire six-week season, with 500,000 people expected the week of the famous motorcycle rally, August 3-12.

“We’ll be providing the private reserve steaks, burgers and all their beef products, giving me a chance to get in-depth knowledge about the restaurant-retail side of the business,” Miller said.

“We’ve actually solved some of the prob-

lem with beef, because the restaurants only wanted prime cuts. By doing the beef sticks and jerky, burgers, steaks for the steakhouse, the whole animal is used to its best purpose. There’s no waste and all the flavor,” said Miller.

Blackwater has committed itself to making the land healthier and better then when they started. When you commercialize a product, you need a certain volume. If that product comes from the land, you have to take care of the land and put back in the nutrients or the product suffers. In Miller’s words, “We’re building a going concern for this family that could continue on with someone in the next generation. This family wants to be good stewards of the land and have something for posterity. I’ve been with them for over 20 years, and they care and do things right.”

Clearly, so does Brett Miller. ML Page 24: Blackwater Ranch raises Black Angus sold through its innovative subscription program and a growing retail market. Photo by Tony Gibson. Page 26, left: There are no shortcuts to handling the herds with care. Photo by Tony Gibson. Page 26, top right: The diets include grass and grain to produce the rich marbling that produces consistently more flavorful farm-fresh beef. Photo courtesy of Blackwater Beef.

Page 26, bottom right: A delectable one and a quarter pound ribeye steak served with Blackwater Burger and Steak Sauce. Photo courtesy of Eric Javage.

Page 27: Brett Miller loves what he does and does it well. Photo by Tony Gibson.

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SALT MATES

By Ashley Bommer Singh

I

should be gardening, but I am eating potato chips. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about these chips since Sarah Cohen, the owner of regional favorite Route 11 Potato Chips, brought advance samples to a dinner party with friends at the Middleburg Christmas Tree Farm.

The prototype chips were in clear plastic bags, and she whispered their name in glee: Appalachian Salt and Cracked Pepper. “Appalachian salt?”

We were her first outside focus group, and the new chips were an instant hit. Appalachian Salt and Cracked Pepper chips explode with flavor that tickles your tongue. The salt is from J.Q. Dickinson, a family run salt maker in the mountains of Malden, West Virginia. Sarah explained that the 400-million-year old Iapetus Ocean floor ended up tucked under the Appalachians here.

J.Q. Dickinson draws from the brine aquifer on that ancient seabed to create pure, mineral-rich artisanal salt through evaporation in sunny greenhouses. It is the only salt harvested this way in the Northern Hemisphere.

By now our heads were spinning. It is very rare that a potato chip could elicit such excitement.

But these chips are a masterpiece, and thanks to Route 11’s partnership with J.Q. Dickinson, they are tied deeply to the Virginia Piedmont and the Appalachians. Who could resist a handcrafted potato chip that lets you taste the sun and an ancient sea? I was hooked and told Sarah I wanted to be at the factory in Mount Jackson for the first production run.

A filmmaker turned chip artisan, Sarah grew up around her parent’s cozy and chic farm-to-table restaurant and hotel, the iconic Tabard Inn in Washington, D.C. Her family made its first batch of chips in the 1980s to help a friendly farmer next door survive after his main customer ended up in jail. Sarah established Route 11 in 1992, chipping off a tiny piece of the $9 billion industry. Her 41 employees turn six million pounds of potatoes, and one million pounds of organic sweet potaSalt | Page 29

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Salt | From page 28 toes, into handcrafted chips every year. By contrast, that’s about one week of production at a major Frito Lay plant.

At the Route 11 factory we meet Nancy Bruns, co-owner of J.Q. Dickinson, who has driven up to witness this partnership take flight. Route 11 staff are busy hand-shuffling the chips as they enter the lofted seasoning room from the fryer below. The men shake the salt and pepper and toss the chips by hand, looking out for any rejects. It’s hard work. Nancy beams, “It was always a dream of mine to find a potato chip partner.”

Nancy, a former chef and restauranteur, runs J.Q. Dickinson with her brother Lewis Payne on a farm that has been in the family for seven generations. They’ve revived the original family business, started by an ancestor named William Dickinson who helped lead a veritable salt rush in the 1800s. Crystals from the Kanawha Valley won “World’s Best Salt” at the London World’s Fair in 1851.

The industry at that time was dirty and fueled by slave labor. After emancipation, freed slaves and poor whites continued to toil at the salt furnaces, which were fired by wood and coal. In 1865, a recently freed Booker T. Washington, age 9, was put to work by his stepfather at a Malden salt maker. In Up from Slavery, Washington describes foul conditions and filth. He also notes the start of his education. “The first thing I ever learned in the way of book knowledge was while working in this salt-furnace,” Washington writes, explaining how the number assigned to his stepfather’s salt barrels—18—was the first thing he ever read or wrote.

As one way to face the dark aspects of history today, Nancy and Lewis ensure they have an environmentally sound and socially aware business. J.Q. Dickinson uses just the sun and breeze to refine its salt and has sponsored lectures and studies on the little-known legacy of salt and slavery in the Kanawha Valley.

The siblings only discovered their salt-making heritage when Nancy’s scholar ex-husband, Carter, uncovered family names during his research. Although the Dickinson family ran the last salt operation in Malden right up to 1945, it was not talked about. Following old company survey maps of the salt wells, they tried to rediscover the forgotten ancient brine.

“We stood around with little cups,” says Nancy. “They hit water again and again. No salt. Finally, past 300 feet down, water gushed, and we held up our cups. Brine.” It was a revelation. Now, with a team of 10, J.Q. Dickinson harvests salt from March to November.

The roughly five-week refining process depends on the weather: They need the sun and low humidity.

The salt finds its way to hundreds of gourmet restaurants and shops. Using specialty salts has long been a secret to great chef ’s

dishes because it enhances flavor rather than changing it. J.Q. Dickinson is sprinkled across the country from Baltimore’s Woodberry Kitchen to the Napa Valley’s French

Laundry. You enjoy it dining at many local restaurants including Field & Main in Marshall, the Ashby Inn in Paris, and Patowmack Salt | Page 30

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Salt | From page 29 Farm in Lovettsville.

At the chip factory we all grabbed bags coming off the line: Route 11’s first new flavor in 12 years. The wait has been worth it for the small but mighty company. If Sarah’s potato chips have finally found a soulmate, it is Appalachian salt.

Sarah had been looking to combine simple salt and pepper for years. It was her business partner Mike Connelly’s favorite flavor, and he would leave not-so-subtle hints around the factory in the form of empty bags of their competitor’s salt and pepper chips. They tried with the wonderful Real Salt from Utah that they love on the best-selling Route 11 Lightly Salted chips, but it wasn’t quite right. The competitors’ bags offered a clue: salt and pepper chips also had sugar, garlic powder, vinegar, rice powder, onion powder, maltodextrin, jalapeno powder, brown rice flour and all manner of other ingredients. Sarah wanted to be simple and pure. “But we couldn't get the flavor dynamic we wanted,” she says. “We just gave up.”

A chance meeting at the food show in Washington, D.C., changed that when Nancy handed over a small jar of her coveted salt.

Nancy knew and loved Route 11 potato chips.

and pepper shakers designed by woodcut artists Neil and Kerry Stavely of Horse & Hare in Winchester.

Nancy smiles with her first bite. “The beauty of our salt on this is it finishes slightly sweet,” she says. They did it the way they wanted: potatoes, sunflower oil, salt, pepper.

Four simple ingredients. As we got ready to leave, Nancy pulled around back to unload 250 more pounds of J.Q. Dickinson salt. Good thing. Appalachian salt may lead Route 11 to up production by another million pounds this year. ML You can find Route 11 Potato Chips and J.Q. Dickinson salt at stores all around the Middleburg areas with Appalachian Salt and Cracked Pepper appearing in July and August.

See chips frying Monday to Saturday at the Route 11 factory in Mount Jackson, VA. “I was hoping Sarah would call,” she says.

And call she did. “As soon as we tasted Nancy’s salt it was my oh MY God moment,” Sarah says. “We didn’t have to be conventional. We could do this ourselves.”

A Route 11 colleague runs in and shouts above the din, “I already ate the whole bag!”

It was 10 a.m. She happily holds up the empty package with its bold silver and black salt

Page 28: Route 11 Appalachian Salt and Cracked Pepper on the Factory Line. Page 29, top: Nancy (left) and Sarah with the first bags of Appalachian Salt and Cracked Pepper chips. Page 29, bottom: Appalachian Salt and Cracked Pepper is blended on site in a custom stainless steel tumber made by Route 11 co-owner Mike Connelly. Page 30: Hand Seasoning Route 11 Appalachian Salt and Cracked Pepper chips.

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POWER OF PARTNERSHIPS TO BRIGHTEN FUTURES

By Heidi Baumstark Photos courtesy of INMED Partnerships for Children

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artnerships: they have the power to move mountains. That’s the mission for one organization that has teamed with others to improve lives around the world and locally in Loudoun.

Founded in 1986, INMED Partnerships for Children is an international nonprofit that has worked in more than 100 countries for over 30 years to help create a world where children are safe, healthy, educated, and are provided access to opportunities to thrive. Through multisector partnerships and in-country affiliates, INMED (acronym for International Medical Services for Health) delivers innovative and sustainable approaches to break complex cycles of poverty. Programs in smart agriculture and aquaponics, maternal and child health and nutrition, and tropical disease prevention have dramatically enhanced the lives of millions of children and their families. While INMED’s international headquarters is in Loudoun, they also have staff on the ground in Peru, Brazil, Jamaica and South Africa.

Dr. Linda Pfeiffer, INMED’s founder, president and CEO, lives in Upperville in a former boy’s academy dating from the Civil War. While completing her doctorate in archaeology and anthropology, in 1981 she led an excavation in a remote fishing village around Rio Arriba in the swamps of southern Mexico near the Guatemalan border. After spending time with the villagers, she realized that some well-intentioned medical supplies from the developed world were sometimes ineffective and could cause more harm than good. For example, one shipment of donated medicine arrived with instructions in English; without a qualified recipient, a parent accidently gave her child the wrong medicine.

After returning to the U.S., she worked for an international relief organization becoming more convinced that partnerships with nonprofits, businesses and governments were key to opening lines of communication leading to responsive assistance.

In October 2015, the organization opened their Family and Youth Opportunity Center (known as the Opportunity Center) near their international headquarters in Sterling.

Pfeiffer added, “We always dreamed of having our own center. And our dream came true.”

But they can’t do it alone. INMED’s list of partners is long. Some include the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Mondelēz Inter-

national Foundation, U.S. Agency for International Development, Johnson & Johnson, Healthy Families America and Sabin Vaccine Institute/Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases. A sampling of local supporters includes Cyrus One, HITT Contracting, The Builders Foundation, Community Foundation for the National Capital Region, Virginia Department of Social Services, Loudoun County Government and 100 Women Strong. Media sponsors include WTOPFM, WINC-FM, Loudoun Now and Fairfax County Times.

Their work also got the attention of the Freddie Mac Foundation. In 1994, INMED was able to convince the giant enterprise to support their program locally. INMED also works with Loudoun County Department of Family Services, and they are part of Healthy

Families Virginia, which allows INMED to receive funding from state, county and private resources.

Prior to opening the Opportunity Center, INMED programs were held in various churches and community centers. Now at the Opportunity Center, afterschool academic programs are run for elementary age children who are referred by their schools for extra help. They work closely with guidance counselors. Sixty to 70 percent of these students are on the school lunch program, which puts them on the poverty level. Enrichment classes include art, yoga, sports and a host of practical programs for parents on budgeting, nutrition and parenting. Summer camps are also offered, and there is a revolving art exhibit from local schools.

Futures | Page 34

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s John Coles s “ specializing in large land holdings”

oakendale

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oatland views

Oakendale Farm is the epitome of an exquisite Virginia hunt country estate in prime Orange County Hunt territory. From the William Lawrence Bottomley designed Manor house to the meticulously manicured gardens, grounds, dependencies and the hundreds of acres of surrounding pastures with protected view-sheds.

333 acres @ $8,990,000 or 837 acres @ $17,990,000

section 2 ~ 379.75 acres on the north side of oatlands road between rt. 15 and snickersville turnpike. Currently divided into 16 Building lots developed under the low density development option. homesites range in size from 13.83 acres -38.12 acres. open space easement in place with potential for tax credits. $7,500,000

ALDIE – OATLAND VIEWS off of Oatlands Road - 271 ACRES divided into 11 Parcels ranging in size from 13 – 41 Acres with private road frontage on Clear Creek Lane. 10 of the 11 parcels have wells and Certification Letters for 4 Bedroom septics. Land protected by Loudoun County Open Space Easement. $5,500,000.00

Meadowgrove

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Breathtaking mountain views and glistening spring fed 10 acre lake, create a magical setting for this stunning historic estate. Encompassing over 180 gorgeous acres features include a stone and stucco 16 room residence with an ultra modern gourmet kitchen, new tiled baths and separate 2 bedroom guest wing. The 10 stall stable & tennis court complete this fabulous estate. $2,995,000

Great elevation, fantastic views, open land, woodlands and river frontage on the Rappahannock River. 726.66 acres in 14 parcels, all of which are 50 acres or larger.

Accessed from Hume Road and from Black Rock Ford. Mixed game for hunting. Great opportunity for tax credits. $2,979,306

c.1823,one of the grand manor homes in the famed horse country of Upperville on 34 + acres with a stunning tree lined entrance offers 6 bedrooms, 31⁄2 baths. Recently renovated, the home offers wonderful indoor and outdoor living areas. Porches, gardens, barns, paddocks, riding arena, pond, pool and magnificent views from the Bull Run to Blue Ridge Mountains. $2,950,000

destinaire farM

Creek ridge

stonehaven

Impeccably maintained, this is an exquisite 118 acre horse farm with ten fields and paddocks of 4 board fencing, gently rolling land and panoramic views of the Blue Ridge Mountains with glimpses of Skyline Drive. In addition to the stucco and stone main residence, there are guest and tenant homes, numerous barns and run-ins to house 25 horses comfortably, and an indoor dressage ring. $2,450,000

Exquisite custom home designed for indoor and outdoor living and entertaining on 23 private acres minutes from Middleburg. Grand rooms with 12’ high ceilings and beautiful moldings, elegant main level master suite with fireplace and French doors to terrace. Nearly ¼ mile of frontage on Goose Creek. Charming Guest Cottage. $2,249,000

A picturesque and tranquil retreat nestled on 158+ acres in pristine Rappahannock County. At the end of the private drive is the historic Stone residence, c. 1745 with additional stone cottage for guests or office and tucked into the woods, beyond the home, is a charming and beautifully restored 2 bedroom log cabin. Gardens, lawn, barns, paddocks and tremendous ride out $1,845,000 potential provide an outdoor haven.

www.thomas-talbot.com Offers subject to errors, omissions, change of price or withdrawal without notice. Information contained herein is deemed reliable, but is not so warranted nor is it otherwise guaranteed.

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( 5 4 0 ) 27 0 - 0 0 9 4 rallYwood

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World class equestrian facility comprised of 115 Acres in the OCH Territory. The U shaped complex encompasses an 80’ x 180’ lighted indoor riding arena connected by a breezeway to the 12 stall center-aisle barn and extraordinary living and entertaining quarters overlooking the outdoor ring.

Additional structures include tenant houses and large heated equipment barn. $4,400,000

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This grand 101 acre equestrian estate in the Warrenton Hunt Territory and is within easy reach of Washington DC. Elegant custom-built home with 11,000 sf, smart-wired, 3 finished levels-all accessible by elevator. Features include 12-foot ceilings, heart pine floors and granite and Viking kitchen. Guest cottage, Barn, 2 streams, Stocked pond.

Stunning countryside retreat. $3,475,000

Middleburg~A graceful & charming 5 bedroom French Country home is set amongst nearly 40 serene acres enhanced by majestic trees, rolling lawns and fenced paddocks. This wonderful horse property also includes a 7 stall center-aisle barn with office, additional 4 stall barn with apartment, indoor arena, and tremendous ride out potential. Located in the OCH Territory. $3,200,000

fred warren lane

Mountville land

D L O

S

Stone posts and walls mark the entrance to the 133 acre country estate of Landmark. As the driveway gently rises, curves and then circles in front of the handsome two-story stone manor house, one notices that the home is sited perfectly to enjoy the expansive mountain views from the Bull Run to the Blue Ridge. The setting for this four bedroom, four bath residence is further heightened by the massive boxwoods and the stately trees. $2,790,000

137.74 acres with frontage on little river, open space easement, rolling fields with mature hardwood forest, orange County hunt territory, great ride out, very private, within 5 miles of the village of Middleburg. 3600 views $2,534,500

ridge view

orlean land

145+ acres of land in sought after location on Mountville Road near Foxcroft School. Several home sites with wonderful views and vistas yet extremely private, half wooded and half pasture with over 2,000’ of Goose Creek frontage.

Minutes from Middleburg with easy access to Dulles International Airport and Washington $2,465,250 DC. Middleburg Hunt Territory.

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The lovely 22.8 Acre Ridgeview Farm offers a private, 4 bedroom residence sited on a knoll, with spacious rooms and views into the trees that border Little River.

Located in prime Orange County Hunt territory the horse facilities include a 6 stall barn with tack room and wash stall, machine shed, run in shed and 4 beautiful board fenced paddocks, fields and round pen. VOF $1,095,000 Easement.

151 Acres of good mixture of hardwoods and open land on Leeds Manor Road with easy access to Warrenton, Marshall, Middleburg and I-66. 3 Parcels $1,060,000

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95 Acres ~ Lovely, quiet and serene setting with a 5 Bedroom, 1 Bath home, amongst tall oaks in great location between The Plains and Warrenton, making this a wonderful retreat. Built in 1928. Huge screened-in porch for relaxing and watching wildlife. Mostly wooded with a mixture of Hardwoods and Pines. High elevation. Several ancillary buildings. 3 parcels with the possibliblity of further divisions allowed. $875,000

Barrington Hall (540) 454-6601

ThoMAs AnD TAlBoT ReAl esTATe (540) 687-6500

Middleburg, virginia 20118

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Futures | From page 31 To encourage STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) careers, INMED invites volunteers to help stimulate and prepare kids for 21st-century jobs. For example, in February, Dr. Vinton G. Cerf, vice president and Chief Internet Evangelist for Google, and widely known as the “Father of the Internet,” visited the Opportunity Center for an afterschool program. He participated in a binary coding exercise presented by Sterling Public Library and interacted with students and volunteers. Programs like this open up new venues for children and their families who may have limited access to this kind of exposure.

It takes a dedicated team of volunteers to get the job done. Trained volunteers work with the entire family with the goal of families becoming more stable and independent.

Pfeiffer said, “We also have a lot of high schoolers who volunteer to help younger kids. It gets them into something meaningful after school and puts the onus on them to be a role model.”

For at-risk families, INMED’s award-winning Healthy Families Loudoun program is facilitated by staff family support workers who make in-home visits. Pfeiffer added, “Basically, we don’t want any kid falling through the cracks. We provide a continuum of support from the prenatal period through adulthood.”

There is a perception that INMED is for first-generation Americans, but that’s not the entire population. For example, the prenatal program has a number of local teenage moms who don’t have a good support system at home. “We refer people, and people refer people to us. We want to work together so everyone in this county has opportunities. There’s a humanitarian side and a social and economic side,” Pfeiffer said.

One Loudoun family can vouch for INMED’s support. Pfeiffer spoke about a first-grade girl who was struggling in school; she needed extra assistance and got into INMED’s program. Her father was in jail. Her mother was working two jobs and was about to lose her home. The little girl got homework support in the afterschool program. “We were able to help the mom figure out a way forward with goals and budget planning.

She got to stay in her home and is now stable. It’s so important to address these things holistically; that’s why we

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call it the Family and Youth Opportunity Center,” Pfeiffer explained.

Jackelyn Mendez, a volunteer at the Opportunity Center, said, “INMED caught my eye, and I wanted to volunteer in the afterschool program. I help students with their homework and have them read to me.

But first, I have to build trustworthy relationships with them. I’m able to be a role model and am thankful they have trust in me.”

Steve Tibbets is on the board of trustees for the Opportunity Center. As a lawyer working for a local software company, he learned about INMED from a bar association that put out the word for volunteers. “It’s through this personal and professional connection that I got involved.”

Tibbets said. “I’ve donated my time preparing documents, but my main role is to help with fundraising, being a voice, an ambassador. They really fill in the gaps for folks and offer skill development for parents while their kids attend enrichment programs after school or on Saturdays.”

Headquartered in one of the wealthiest populations in the country, INMED fills the gap by meeting physical and holistic needs. Tibbets added, “They have a team of caring volunteers and a very dedicated staff who work way too hard for way too little money.”

By forging rock-solid partnerships, INMED is transforming the future, one child at a time. ML On September 9 from 2-6 p.m., INMED will host their third annual Barn Blast at Murray Hill Estate, 42910 Edwards Ferry Road in Leesburg. The afternoon includes live and silent auctions, food, libations, dancing, and other fun activities.

For information about this event, or to learn more about INMED, visit www.opportunitycenter.us, or call 571-293-9055.

Page 31, top: Dr. Vinton G. Cerf, V.P. and Chief Internet Evangelist for Google visited INMED’s Family and Youth Opportunity.

Page 31, bottom: Students participating in a binary coding exercise at INMED’s Opportunity Center in Sterling. Page 34, top: Music appreciation program at INMED’s Opportunity Center in Sterling. Page 34, middle: Dr. Linda Pfeiffer, Founder of INMED Partnerships for Children with two children in Peru dressed in traditional costumes that they made. In 2015, INMED implemented deworming and aquaponics in the region of Callao, the chief seaport of Peru. Page 34, bottom: Homework help at INMED’s Opportunity Center in Sterling.

THE FINAL FRONTIER LOUDOUN'S COCKTAIL CULTURE ARRIVES Story and photos by Trevor Baratko

I

f Loudoun County has arrived at a point where it houses celebrity bartenders—and, we'd argue, it has—the OG is, without question, Jeremy Ross at Sense of Thai St. Ross has become the face of the county's most cutting-edge cocktail experience and, by extension, Loudoun's evolving cocktail culture. That was never more evident than on June 18, when Ross and crew launched their summer pop-up tiki bar, Nai-Ngae-Dee, a fun and splashy scene with the intricate, refreshing sippers to match.

Guests can indulge in a classic Zombie (overproof Jamaican Rum, Aged Haitian Rum, Absinthe, Don's Mix, pomegranate, lime, bitters) or sip Unicorn Tears from playful, conch-shell glassware (Singani, pineapple, passion fruit, peach). The dangerous Atomic Grog (American Dry Gin, grapefruit, lime, Nam Dok Anchan Rum) is precisely what you would want your first drink on a beach-drenched vacation to look like.

“Creating a cocktail for our guests is the ultimate expression of hospitality,” Ross tells Middleburg Life. “Designing a drink around their palate establishes a personal connection from bartender to cocktail to guest, and overall, from my experience, the best cocktails have that personal touch.”

Ross came to Sense, in Ashburn's One Loudoun development, from D.C. several years back to help open the chic spot. As months went by and he became more involved, he realized he had a unique opportunity to create a premiere cocktail program—and top-tier barman reputation—from scratch. Ross said he left the District in search of a “blank slate” but never thought what he was looking for was just down the road.

With Ross's devotion to both his individual craft and the industry as a whole, it comes as no surprise that another local cocktail extraordinaire is something of a Ross protégé. In Purcellville, Sam Scarlett is constantly inventing new palate pleasers at WK Hearth, one of three restaurants in the Wine Kitchen group. Scarlett's funky, eclectic creations are a revelation in western Loudoun's rural dining scene.

“We’re serving to create more than just a drink, but an experience,” Scarlett said. “There’s a relationship there between us, the drinks and the drinkers. They trust us. And sometimes we even get to surprise them. The whole experience from start to finish and every part in between is honestly a lot of fun and can be immensely satisfying.”

Proving Scarlett's passion and meticulous attention to detail, ask him his favorite cocktail, and you get a 115- word response: “Please pardon the pun,” Scarlett tells us. “The Mango(od) Vibrations. It was the result of playing around with a precision cooker to do some sous vide alcohol infusions and trying to be more intentional with some fun and unique flavor combinations. The drink features mango-infused Hendrick’s Gin, Korean chili-infused Dolin Blanc vermouth, fresh lemon juice, honey, and just a few drops of a housemade black and Szechuan pepper tincture, with sliced cucumber and dehydrated mango as the garnish. It’s both fruity and spicy from the mango and Korean chili, with the cucumber cooling down the pepper and spice at the end. It’s a fun, tasty drink for when you need that refreshing kick in your day.”

Cocktail | Page 36

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Cocktail | From page 35

la, Silencio mezcal, watermelon, agave and saffron bitters).

While Duong has dipped into other professions, performing behind the bar is what he loves. On busy but smooth nights, it's beautiful and “graceful chaos,” he says.

“I'm just naturally a people watcher,” he says. “I love watching people, and as a bartender you're always watching people. When things are going well, running smooth, it's a dance. It's a perfect little dance.” ML

With more than 40 wineries and 20 breweries in Loudoun County, a refined cocktail scene is the natural next step in the local beverage industry. Several bartenders and general managers, Scarlett and Ross among them, are quick to incorporate local distilleries—Purcellville's Catoctin Creek, Mt. Defiance of Middleburg—into their offerings.

At Cocina on Market in Leesburg, its fresh and lively house margarita is made from a Mt. Defiance-produced agave spirit — tequila just not technically tequila. Diners and drinkers should expect to see more local collaborations like this in the future. Pushing the boundaries beyond a traditional margarita or predictable gin and tonic is necessary to solidify the county's reputation as a liquid hot spot.

In many ways, Scarlett says, a reputable cocktail scene is the “final frontier for the food and drink culture in Loudoun.”

Back east, veteran barman Phil Duong has been immersed in local restaurants for more than a decade. A Sterling native, Duong worked in corporate spots like Cheesecake Factory and Sweet Water Tavern before landing at revered Sterling eatery Mokomandy, where he developed one of the top cocktail

Trevor Baratko is the managing editor of the Loudoun Times-Mirror in Leesburg. His wine industry coverage earned first place in column writing from the Virginia Press Association in 2014. Contact him on Twitter at @ TrevorBaratko.

programs in the D.C. region.

Duong recently switched shop to the sophisticated AhSo in Brambleton, the latest venture of Chef Jason Maddens. There, Duong mixes up magic like the Sinful Saint (Cirrus Potato Vodka, St. Germaine, cucumber, basil, lemon and cava) and The Humo Rosado (El Jimador Reposado tequi-

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Page 35, top: Phil Duong serves up a delicious cocktail program at AhSo restaurant in Brambleton.

Duong previously worked at Mokomandy in Sterling. Page 35, middle: Sam Scarlett is the force behind WK Hearth's inventive cocktails in Purcellville.

Page 35, bottom: Jeremy Ross, head bartender at Sense of Thai St. in One Loudoun, has transformed the bar into a tiki pop-up for the summer. Page 36: One of Ross's creations for the summer pop-up is the Atomic Grog, featuring American Dry Gin, grapefruit, lime, Nam Dok Anchan Rum.

SMILE. YOU’RE HOME. Where does true happiness come from? From living in a

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From sharing a calendar full of special events and fun activities with family and friends? From having one of the region’s best golf courses right outside your door, along with an enviable list of resort-style amenities? At Creighton Farms, happiness stems from all these things—and many more. We invite you to visit our

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extraordinary club community and you’ll see for yourself: At Creighton Farms, home is where the smiles are.

C R E I G H TO N FA R M S . C O M Juno Loudoun, LLC is the owner and developer of the project. Access to and use of recreational amenities are not included in the purchase of real estate in Creighton Farms and require separate club membership which is subject to application, approval, and payment of applicable fees and dues. This is not an offer to sell property to, or a solicitation of offers from, residents of NY, NJ, CT, OR or any other state that requires prior registration of real estate. Obtain

the property report or its equivalent, required by Federal and State law and read it before signing anything. No Federal or State agency has judged the merits or value, if any, of this property.

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RED, WHITE & STRAWBERRIES Story and photos by Chelsea Rose Moore

T

he annual Delaplane Strawberry Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary over Memorial Day Weekend. Held at Sky Meadows State Park, the event carried a timeless feel reminiscent of days gone by. With fun activities and plenty of live

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entertainment, the family-friendly festival was a wonderful way for attendees to celebrate the beginning of summer.

The festival is hosted by the Emmanuel Episcopal Church and supports their outreach ministries. This year’s event raised over $30,000, which will help support organizations including People Helping People of Fau-

quier County, Boys Home of Virginia, Hero’s Bridge, Marshall Volunteer Rescue Squad, and others.

Emmanuel Episcopal Church’s Rector, Amanda Knouse, said the event began twenty-five years ago as a way for the church to Strawberries | Page 39

Strawberries | From page 38 raise money to meet a budget deficit. Today the funds are used to support Emmanuel’s ministries including grants to a number of nonprofit organizations in the community.

“There is no better feeling than writing checks and building relationships with these places,” said Knouse, “It’s been a very holy and sacred ministry here at the church.”

Knouse is deeply intentional about maintaining the festival’s old-timey feel. She loves watching dads throwing water balloons with their kids, moms participating in threelegged races, and grandparents and families enjoying time together at the festival.

“This festival gives people a time out,” she said. “It’s a weekend where you can step away from your daily routine, be outside in this beautiful place, make memories, and have good, old-fashioned fun. There’s something about swing dancing to some old-timey music or having a strawberry sundae eating contest. It’s a way for you to take a pause. The whole feel of the festival is to unplug and be present with one another.”

In today’s culture of technology, it has almost become a lost art to unplug and be fully present in the moment. The festival promoted a culture of good, old-fashioned fun, where

families could enjoy live music, shop for handmade items, take a hayride, grab some food, and try their hand at outdoor games.

The event also featured a petting zoo and a blacksmith guild.

Some attendees flaunted their love of strawberries by wearing red and white polka dot dresses and strawberry earrings—and everyone enjoyed delicious strawberry treats, from strawberry lemonade to the popular strawberry sundaes.

The City of Winchester Pipes and Drums opened the festival on Saturday. They marched through the center of the festival and then enjoyed the event with their own families.

Pipe Major Bryant Condrey said the Delaplane Strawberry Festival is one of the group’s favorite events to play, as they enjoy being able to relax and spend time at the festival afterwards. He appreciates the way the event is arranged with activities close together, rather than spread far apart.

“It gives it a more small-town feel and a more personal feel, even though it’s a rather large event,” he said, “There are a lot of people who attend the event, but it feels more hometown-ish.”

Kate Sprague, the Director of Sales for

Digital and Special Projects at Inside NoVA, volunteered at this year’s festival. She loved meeting families from Arlington and Fairfax and watching their amazement at seeing all the area offers.

“I got a kick out of these families saying, ‘I had no idea that you could do this out here,’” she said, “They were excited to find out that it’s not just wineries. It’s not just about adult fun. [It’s] a safe place for families to gather and do something different. A lot of these young families had no idea.”

The festival, she said, feels like the kind of place you can bring your grandmother.

When families left the festival, they were carrying strawberries and happily engaging with one another—the true mark of a festival well done.

Don’t miss next year’s Delaplane Strawberry Festival! Get in on the fun by visiting delaplanestrawberryfestival.org. ML Page 38, top left: The Delaplane Strawberry Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary this year. Page 38, top right: Attendees cooled off with a refreshing strawberry lemonade. Page 38, bottom left: Amelia Moore loved the strawberries. Page 38, bottom right: The festival had an old-timey flare.

YAPPY HOUR

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Tuesdays from 5pm–7pm on our Gold Cup Terrace.

Public welcome. Call 540.326.4070 for details.

Download the Gentle Harvest app

Grocer • Butcher • Café 8372 W. Main Street, Marshall 540-837-4405 GentleHarvest.com 8:00a.m. - 9:00p.m. Daily

Bring your four-legged friend to “Yappy Hour,” our pup-friendly social event. With special “Sharable Chow” and “Pup-tail” menus, plus plenty of activities for your pooch, it’s tail-wagging fun for all.

Proceeds benefit the Middleburg Humane Foundation.

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THE RUTLEDGE FARM SESSIONS

GOLD MEDAL CLINICS ARE UNDERWAY

By Elaine Anne Watt Photos by Tony Gibson

First clinic conducted by Olympian McLain Ward huge success

J

une 6th brought four accomplished riders in their own right together with McLain Ward at the inaugural event of The Rutledge Farm Sessions Gold Medal Clinics.

With at least three more scheduled for the coming months, some of the most accomplished winners of past Olympics will teach intimate clinics at the totally renewed and expanded facilities at Rutledge, where they will help others to raise their skills to new levels.

In addition to his other accomplishments, Ward won Olympic team jumping gold in 2004 with teammates Peter Wylde, Beezie Madden and Chris Kappler, and again in 2008 with Lauren Kraut, Madden and Will Simpson. The clinic provided a delightful opportunity to learn first-hand what an outstanding teacher and mentor Ward is along with his winning track record.

Ward, also in town to compete at the Upperville Colt & Horse Show, began the clinic by asking the riders to describe their mounts.

Tiffany Cambria, Matt Hollberg, Gavin Moylan and Agustin Rosales each in turn gave an assessment of their horses, important for Ward to understand how each rider adjusted their style to account for the needs of their partner.

Ward explained to the rapt audience of approximately 30 auditors plus guests invited to observe that a “hotter horse means you’ll use more hands and less leg, and a colder horse means more leg and less hands.”

One of the successful elements of the clinic was that Ward met both the riders and the observers where they were: His comments were understandable to both the educated and the relative newcomer, providing useful insight that was instantly translatable to action in the ring.

Ward asked the riders to loosen up their horses, to let them relax into the bit and to the level of weight in each seat and to move forward into the bridle.

“The goal is to figure out what the horse is willing to accept in that moment, what it’s willing to give, where it’s most comfortable.”

Gold | Page 41

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Gold | From page 40 Laughing, Ward said, “Maybe that’s why I’ve had so much success with mares.”

A big challenge in finding that balance is keeping the horse’s carriage up. Ward “prefers to have the horse’s head up a bit, up in front of me, particularly if they have a short neck.

Everything has come up a bit because of the speed of the sport today.”

Ward said he keeps his horse slightly bent in the direction he is heading and a tad loose.

But, “find a place to step up into the bit if the horse is a little too quiet. The horse should be carrying you, but don’t let it get lazy!”

Emphasizing his overall philosophy, Ward said that forward and straight is always the way to go. “Forward and straight and with a good rhythm, and I am going to beat you more often than not.”

It’s not about fancy tricks but good, old-fashioned schooling that will best prepare you for today’s competitions.

“You need the basics. Good care, healthy, happy, well cared-for horses…not grinders. Carry your good plan over to the show, have plenty of warm-up, it’s not complicated,” said Ward.

And, he strongly disagreed with using a harsh low hand. “Your hand carriage should

The goal is to figure out what the horse is willing to accept in that moment...

- McLain Ward be slightly elevated above the wither with a nice line to the horse’s mouth…a nice direct line from the elbow with a supple arm to the horse’s mouth.”

When the riders progressed to the canter work, Ward said to “keep a nice short rein on the horse and control your seat.” He further stated that, “Training is about control, and making it easier for the horse to do the job.

Having a little bit of a relaxed knee and thigh and keeping the lower leg close helps to control how much you put into the seat.”

Of paramount importance is “when the horse gives you what you ask for, you have to give some back. It’s about feel and reward. A big error that juniors make is that they keep

asking for more, and they don’t give anything back until the horse eventually resists.”

To improve on the jumps, Ward advised keeping a conservative distance and making the horse wait before the jump. “Long can be easy for the horse sometimes,” he said. “Work on what’s hard for him. Shorten the distance, and tighten the space, keeping your upper body relaxed. Allow the horse to come up to you when it jumps with his wither to your chest bone.”

In every situation, keep your eye level up.

By doing so, the whole carriage of the horse goes up. “The concept is the same for every approach whether it’s a grand prix or not, and a soft contact on landing. Drive your weight down into your heels, stay tall with eyes up so that the horse can land with more balance and softer.”

Habits are easy to form and hard to break.

A pertinent question to ponder is why would you practice one way and expect to perform differently when you add the pressure of competition, noise and other distractions into the equation? Always look where you are going and keep your eyes up so that you and the horse will be balanced and ready for each approach.

Gold | Page 42

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Gold | From page 41 Moving into the gymnastics portion of the clinic after some basic timing and crossrails exercises, Ward said he spends time every day working on these critical foundational skills.

“Use a soft hand to slow the horse down to work on your timing. The work is to teach the horse, and if he’s handling it well, let him go with it, and keep your hands soft,” said Ward.

From the big picture standpoint, the training is about mastering a conservative ride, keeping a strong connection to the horse, making subtle adjustments to higher rails and staying straight with the eye level up. “This is basic stuff, but it’s being disciplined about it,” said Ward. “Follow your horse through the turn and then straight and balanced toward the pole. The sport has moved to supporting the horse over short distances with careful jumps.”

Additionally, “when the horse jumps a little flat, it’s even more important to sit tall and stay in the middle and hold your position no matter what. When the body goes too far forward, the leg goes back and everything starts to unravel.”

On top of all his other words of advice and encouragement, above all, Ward recommended that you should “trust that your schooling will hold in the ring. Trust your own training.

Too much perfection can lead to time faults and hold you back, so give [the horse] the trust that it needs to perform.”

Ward graciously answered many questions from the clinic participants and observers, including his own struggles with the mental pressures of the sport and conditioning of the body over the lifetime of a career. “I ride less but enough to keep my level up, and I make smarter choices,” he said.

Aleco Bravo-Greenberg, host and owner of Rutledge Farm, thanked Ward and all present for making the clinic such a wonderful experience. Mike Smith profusely thanked Ward for returning to the Upperville Colt & Horse Show and for his commitment to the sport, and Ward said how delighted he was to be a part of a beautiful afternoon in first-rate facilities with such nice and enthusiastic people! ML Future clinics will feature Will Simpson, Chris Kappler, Leslie Burr-Howard, Peter Wylde and others. For more information, visit www.RutledgeFarm.com or contact@rutledgefarm.com.

Page 40, top: Gavin Moylan. Page 40, bottom: Tiffany Cambria. Page 42, top: McLain Ward generously shared his wisdom and keys to success. The best question was whether he'd be willing to move here.

Probably not, but he loves it here was his answer.

Page 42, middle: Matt Hollberg, Aleco Bravo-Greenberg, Agustin Rosales, McLain Ward, Gavin Moylan and Tiffany Cambria. Page 42, bottom: Agustin Rosales working to master the basics.

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Middleburg, Virginia

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October to April: Open daily, noon ‘til 6pm May to September: Open Monday to Thursday, noon ‘til 6pm Friday to Sunday, noon ‘til sunset

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Saturday to Sunday: noon ‘til 6pm, year round

GreenhillVineyards.com Farm Store Hours

Friday to Monday: noon ‘til 6pm, year round

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STEWARDED GROWTH OF CONSERVATION EASEMENTS MOVING FORWARD

By Land Trust of Virginia

T

he protection of the natural and historic resources found throughout Virginia and, in particular, those in Loudoun and Fauquier counties, is a shared concern for a growing community of conservation organizations and like-minded individuals. The Land Trust of Virginia (LTV), based in Middleburg, has been working for more than a quarter century to help landowners permanently protect the natural and historic resources contained on their properties through the donations of conservation easements.

LTV currently holds 165 conservation easements on almost 18,000 acres in 14 counties. Those eased properties range in size from less than three acres to 850 acres. Even relatively small parcels can be of tremendous historical, scenic or strategic value in protecting our heritage. Of local importance, 105 LTV easements protect over 8,600 acres in Loudoun County, and 35 easements protect more than 4,400 acres in Fauquier County.

The Land Trust of Virginia’s slow and steady growth has been thoughtful and purposeful on the part of a very dedicated Board of Directors. LTV’s geographic expansion over the years has been tempered by their Board’s concerns for their ability to manage the stewardship responsibilities they assume with the acceptance of each new conservation easement.

“That stewardship role is at the heart of our work,” said Sally Price, LTV’s executive director. She went on to explain the time they take with each landowner to ensure that their easement donation will protect the conservation values on their property. She also emphasized LTV’s consideration of the staff time and other costs that might be required to regularly monitor the property and, if needed, to legally defend the terms of the conservation easement.

The care LTV takes with easement acceptance and their demonstrated ability to steward their easement properties enabled them to become one of the first land trusts in the country to be accredited by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. The accreditation process is a thorough examination of a land trusts’ policies, procedures and their adherence to the Land Trust Alliance’s Standards and Practices. It includes an audit of their financial ability to permanently steward the properties in their easement portfolio.

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This rigorous review is a challenge for any land trust and is one that they must complete once every five years to maintain their accredited status.

In 2009, LTV became one of the first 54 land trusts (out of about 1,700 nationally) to earn their accreditation and in 2014 was one of the first 43 to successfully complete their accreditation renewal.

who have donated conservation easements to them. Jacqueline Mars sought out LTV when she wanted to protect her 218-acre Meredyth Farm in 2017. When asked why she selected LTV as the organization to hold her easement, she said, “It was very comforting to work with dedicated environmental professionals who have, through their good deeds, accumulated the resources to uphold and enforce the

“Accreditation has been an important part of LTV’s maturation and growth,” remarked Chris Dematatis, LTV’s chairman. “We committed ourselves to the considerable preparation necessary for the Accreditation Commission’s review, and we are proud to have earned their trust.”

He gave credit to LTV’s Board and staff for the work that went into becoming accredited, and especially to Turner Smith, LTV’s president at the time. “Turner’s leadership and organizational talents were critical in guiding LTV through such a complex undertaking,” said Dematatis.

LTV has likewise worked hard to earn the trust of those within the conservation community and, in particular, the landowners

easements granted by property owners. Too often easements are granted with good intentions and are not enforced.”

Later in 2017, Mike Smith also chose LTV when he decided to protect Atoka Farm, his 350-property located between Upperville and Middleburg. “Working with the Land Trust of Virginia’s staff and Board was very productive and efficient,” he said of the experience of donating his easement to LTV. Ashton Cole, LTV’s director of conservation and stewardship, observed that “for all the efforts we make to protect land, none of it would be possible without the landowners who make those easement donations. They are the reason we are here, Conservation | Page 45

Conservation | From page 44 and our land conservation successes are due to their generosity.”

The generosity of LTV’s donors was on full display at their 20th annual Garden Party. The event was held this year at Rose Marie Bogley’s Peace and Plenty at Bollingbrook and was attended by a record crowd of supporters on a beautiful day in May. “The enthusiasm for our work that we heard that afternoon was so encouraging,” Sally Price reported. “We are in the midst of growing our capacity so that we can protect more land, and many of those who were there acknowledged the need for all of us to do as much conservation work as we can as soon as we can.”

Sally mentioned that the addition of Ana-Elisa Bryant and Seth Young to their conservation and stewardship team, during the past year, has already produced positive results.

“With Isa and Seth’s help, and with the unflagging efforts of Kerry Roszel, our development associate, we have a strong team,” she said. “We are optimistic and excited about LTV’s future. All of us look forward to helping even more landowners with their donations of conservation easements.” ML

Page 44: Sally Price, LTV Executive Director, Malcolm Matheson accepting Conservationist of the Year for Leadership and Lifetime Achievement on behalf of Jacqueline Mars, and LTV's Board Chair, Chris Dematatis.

Photo courtesy of Alex Thomas Photography. Page 45: Northern Fauquier and Loudoun Counties are extremely fortunate to have many properties permanently protected by conservation easements, noted on this map in green. The majority of these properties are in easement with the Virginia Outdoors Foundation. The easements on those properties in dark green are with the Land Trust of Virginia. In total, the Land Trust of Virginia holds 165 easements across 14 counties.

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MARKET SALAMANDER EMERGES REFRESHED,

BETTER THAN EVER Story and photos by Elaine Anne Watt

S

heila Johnson has had a very good month. As part owner of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, she shared the Washington Capitals’ thrilling Stanley Cup Victory with friends and rabid fans throughout the area. The Ford’s Theatre Society bestowed their prestigious annual Lincoln Medal upon her, recognizing her outstanding achievements and personal attributes as best exemplifying the courage and legacy of President Abraham Lincoln. The Trust for the National Mall formally announced her as a Board member.

But for those of us in Middleburg, perhaps the most significant win has been the reopening of our beloved Market Salamander, stocked with more goodies, offering a tanta-

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lizing array of new food-on-the-go options, and with a redesigned interior and exterior that feels spacious and more intimate at the same time.

As with many successful individuals, Johnson has a knack for attracting and surrounding herself with great teams. At Market Salamander, Jacob Musyt, director of food & beverage for Salamander Resort & Spa, Ryan Arensdorf, executive chef for Salamander Resort & Spa, and the newly appointed chef for the market, Anthony O’Connor, worked together to effect the transformation.

After Reggie Cooper, general manager of Salamander Resort & Spa, welcomed the festive crowd thoroughly enjoying the complimentary food and champagne at the reopening party on June 14, Johnson waxed a bit reflective on the history of the market and why it was time for a change.

“This building used to be an old gun shop, and before that it was a home. There was a confederate flag hanging in the window, and it was offensive to me,” said Johnson. “So, I bought the building, and I knew just what I wanted to do with it. In those days, there was no place to go after soccer with the kids to pick up some chicken and macaroni and cheese.”

Market Salamander became a local venture into the hospitality industry for Johnson with its opening in 2004. Now with its renovation complete, it is intended to be a part of the Salamander Resort & Spa, with one seamless operation to offer food and beverage services to resort guests, residents and visitors alike. With a full array of catering services, making arrangements for tailgating, Salamander | Page 47

Salamander | From page 46 day-trips or a grand affair fits comfortably within their capabilities.

“We wanted to offer more grab-and-go options, more creative offerings,” said Cooper. “We wanted an attractive space for corporate meetings or special dinners which we now have up above [on the second floor].”

Johnson emphasized that though it’s been “a very long haul. I’m so happy to have brought this project to fruition to show everyone how amazing this town is. We had to show what can be done with all these empty storefronts by investing in the town and bringing it even

more to life. My hope is that it will inspire people to do other things in town.”

Looking around at all the locally sourced items and the cases brimming with healthy but satisfying selections, you can be assured of finding something appealing to your taste.

I grabbed a friend so that we could each have half of a Virginia Gent, bourbon-pecan chicken salad with bacon, lettuce and tomato on toasted multigrain bread, and a Low & Slow BBQ Pulled Pork delight, with tangy sauce and Commonwealth Coleslaw on a sesame seed bun. A scrumptious Red Velvet cupcake topped off the meal.

And in case you were worried, the mac and cheese is still on the menu. ML Page 46, top: Jacob Musyt, Mayor Betsy Davis, Reggie Cooper, Sheila Johnson and Mayor-Elect Bridge Littleton prepare to cut the ribbon. Page 46, bottom left: A charming nook for local and boutique wines.

Page 46, bottom middle: Giardy Ritz and Sheila Johnson have a little playful fun at the soft reopening on June 6th. Page 46, bottom right: A new eat-in bar space nicely enhanced with stunning art pieces.

Page 47, left: Mayor Betsy Davis, Sheila Johnson and Mayor-Elect Bridge Littleton were all smiles.

Page 47, right: Upgraded equipment with a sleek new look.

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Contact Site Manager at 540-687-3402 Mon – Fri, 8 – 4:30 TDD #/ 711 This institution is an Equal Housing Opportunity Provider and Employer

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By Chelsea Rose Moore

“D

o you like antiques?”

That was the first question Rosanna Funiciello Smith was asked by her husband’s grandmother when they met for the first time.

She did not ask if Smith liked Virginia, the place to which she had come after uprooting her California life. She did not ask if Smith missed her California home or her family there. She did not even ask if it was an adjustment to leave Los Angeles and move to a dirt road.

Instead, she asked if Smith liked antiques, the very thing Smith’s world would grow to revolve around. As the owner of Bella Villa, an antiques and vintage rental company now based in Marshall, Smith has grown to an inventory of over 8,000 antique pieces.

Her love for antiques blossomed after she met her husband. Although she grew up with antique and vintage items around her, having spent summers with her family in southern Italy, she lacked an awareness or deep appreciation for it until she came to Virginia.

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“I didn’t really know I was interested in antiques,” she said.

When she moved to Virginia, she moved into her husband’s childhood home and fell in love with the way everything had a meaningful story. Her husband Kevin would tell her about pieces in the house, from the black walnut tree that fell during a storm in the 1960s and was made into a coffee table by his father, to the fact that the street they lived on was named after his great-great grandfather.

Everything around her was old and filled with interesting stories, and she wanted to learn more. (“Who are the other roads named after, and who lived there?”)

Both Kevin’s mother and grandmother were antiques collectors and had small booths in various antiques shops over the years. His mother Nancy taught Rosanna about the different styles and eras of pieces they both enjoyed collecting.

“I have a soft spot for Rustic, European-infused farmhouse,” Smith said. “I bring in a European look with vintage Italian pieces, like chandeliers. But it’s comfortable History | Page 50

VILLAGE OF UPPERVILLE $1,250,000 9075 John S Mosby Highway,Upperville, VA Gloria Rose Ott +1 540 454 4394

ALMOST AN ACRE IN MIDDLEBURG – COMMERCIAL & RESIDENTIAL POSSIBILITIES $5,900,000 | 115 West Washington Street, Middleburg, VA Bundles Murdock +1 540 454 3499 | Laura Farrell +1 540 395 1680

HISTORIC ASHLAND $5,500,000 | 132+ acres 8714 Holtzclaw Road, Warrenton, VA Michael Rankin +1 202 271 3344 | Gloria Rose Ott +1 540 454 4394

PIEDMONT HUNT COUNTRY $3,300,000 | 51+ acres Salem Oaks—2380 Atoka Road, Marshall, VA Cindy Polk +1 703 966 9480 Brandy Greenwell +1 540 974 7791

UPPERVILLE $4,425,000 | 166 acres 21167 Trappe Road, Upperville, VA Gloria Rose Ott +1 540 454 4394

FLINT HILL ON THE RIVER $6,300,000 | 100 acres 12473 Crest Hill, Flint Hill, VA Gloria Rose Ott +1 540 454 4394

STUNNING RAPPAHANNOCK $4,445,000 | 299 acres 0 Jericho Flint Hill, VA Gloria Rose Ott +1 540 454 4394

PIEDMONT HUNT COUNTRY $1,295,000 | 31+ acres Kilkelly Farm—9376 Briar Lane, Delaplane, VA Cindy Polk +1 703 966 9480 Brandy Greenwell +1 540 974 7791

PIEDMONT HUNT COUNTRY $1,995,000 | 42+ acres Hastening Farm—20597 Furr Road, Round Hill, VA Cindy Polk +1 703 966 9480 Brandy Greenwell +1 540 974 7791

VIRGINIA WINE COUNTRY $990,000 | 25+ acres The Barn—38699 Old Wheatland Road, Waterford, VA Cindy Polk +1 703 966 9480 Brandy Greenwell +1 540 974 7791

WARDMAN TOWER | WOODLEY PARK $3,595,000 2660 Connecticut Avenue NW #5F, Washington, DC Christopher Ritzert +1 202 256 9241 Christie-Anne Weiss +1 202 256 0105

WARDMAN TOWER | WOODLEY PARK $4,295,000 2660 Connecticut Avenue NW #6C, Washington, DC Christopher Ritzert +1 202 256 9241 Christie-Anne Weiss +1 202 256 0105

WARDMAN TOWER | WOODLEY PARK $6,495,000 2660 Connecticut Avenue NW #7C, Washington, DC Christopher Ritzert +1 202 256 9241 Christie-Anne Weiss +1 202 256 0105

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History | From page 48 and practical and meaningful—it all tells a story.”

She began by opening a little antique store in Aldie in 2007. The next year, she tripled in size and moved next to the Aldie Peddler, where she stayed until 2017. During the store’s first eight years, it operated as a retail shop, and she rented out rooms to other antiques dealers. The last year, she ran it solely as a rental shop. Meanwhile, she was helping decorate homes, growing her inventory (“squirreling her favorite things” as she calls it), and perfecting her craft.

She chose to open her warehouse in Marshall due to its proximity to both Loudoun and Fauquier counties and easy access for clients located in Washington, D.C., as it’s near I-66. Her shop’s name—Bella Villa Antiques & Vintage Rentals—was born from her Italian heritage. Bella means “beautiful,” and villa translates to “country estate.”

“Anybody’s house, no matter how big it is or where you live, can be a beautiful home, a beautiful estate. It’s just what you make of it,” she said.

THE STORIES THEY CARRY Her commitment to adding beauty to spaces is perhaps clearest in her 800-squarefoot farmhouse. With oversized European armoires, artwork, chandeliers, and gold Florentine mirrors, its style differs from what is expected of a typical farmhouse.

“Everything in my house—except for the TV, computer and sofa—is old. My dishes, the stuff on the wall, and even my hole puncher is vintage,” she said. “Old stuff works better.

It lasts. Old stuff is colored differently; it has different shades of paint. Old just looks better to me. It is heavier because it’s made with real wood. An old upholstered chair weighs a lot more than a new chair.”

Her raw talent for styling has opened the door to opportunities and publicity. Her first styled shoot was published in Weddings Unveiled, and her first wedding was seen in Southern Living Weddings. Her work has been featured in Green Wedding Shoes, Style Me Pretty, and on countless other wedding blogs.

With a fun and endearing personality, Smith’s enthusiasm for the pieces she collects is contagious. “I’m so excited all the time. I have to remember, you can’t be more excited than the bride,” she said. “I love the creativity of it.”

One of her favorite parts of a wedding is creating a lounge with pieces like an old, standup radio or a gramophone. “Anything that makes people remember or ponder what the ‘old days’ were like—it gets them talking about what it was like growing up, or going to a grandparent’s house,” she said. “It gets them sharing stories. I love bringing that element, that window to the past, on a day you’re looking to the future.”

History | Page 51

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History | From page 50 To her, collecting antiques is bigger than the items themselves: It’s the story they carry, the background they hold, the history of the person who once owned and cared for them.

When adding an item to her collection, she tries to learn as much as she can about it.

“I love knowing where something comes from,” she said.

One day, when exploring an abandoned house said to have provided respite for Manassas Battlefield soldiers, she discovered a discarded table that was flipped over and sitting in tall grass. She turned it over and found the legs were sturdy, and it was covered in layers of chippy paint. It was too tall for an end table and too low to eat on, but she was charmed and deeply curious about its story.

Kevin grabbed his truck, and they hauled the table to their house—and she rearranged their whole house around it.

“I like things that have to do with history and nature,” she said. “I’m sentimental. The table could have been used to lay somebody on it, fix them, and [help them] live. Maybe somebody rolled out a pie on the table. Maybe they ate on it. There’s a little kid’s name on it. Who was that kid? People don’t last, but the stuff does. The memory of the people lasts through the story, and the stuff becomes a ve-

hicle to tell the story. The area has since been redeveloped, and since not everybody values these things, the table would’ve likely been trashed. I feel like I saved a bit of history by having a ‘vehicle’ to recount the story.”

Smith’s items have been used in everything from backyard parties, to weddings, to baby and bridal showers, corporate meetings, and children’s birthday parties (including a Snoopy party). She will soon have a digital catalogue for people to browse and reserve items online.

scratched up from playing. But that is exactly what she looks for in furniture: pieces that show wear and tear. She doesn’t want broken items, but those that are strong and resilient.

“The story matches what I have within myself,” she said. ML

STRONG AND RESILIENT

Bella Villa Antiques & Vintage Rentals is located at 8371 W. Main Street, Marshall, VA, and is open by appointment only. To make an appointment, text or call 571-921-0356 or email squirrel@BellaVillaVintageRentals.com.

Follow Smith on Instagram at @bellavillashop or on Facebook @BellaVillaAntiques.

Stroll through her warehouse, and you’ll feel like you’re walking through an Anthropologie-esque rental company. Filled with large pieces of furniture and small pieces, like cigars and decks of vintage cards, it’s a haven for party planners, brides, stylists and photographers. Regardless of the style of party, planners in search of vintage items should easily be able to find a piece (or two – or 10!) to fit the event. You’ll also notice Smith’s incredible eye for curating. She said her secret is knowing what to leave behind, rather than knowing what to buy.

Growing up with three brothers and all their friends, Smith was a self-described Tom Boy, and she always came home dirty and

Page 48, top: Rosanna standing outside of her charming little farmhouse where her husband Kevin grew up. Photo by Candice Adelle Photography.

Photo courtesy of Rosanna Funiciello Smith. Page 48, bottom: Rosanna sitting outside of her farmhouse where her husband Kevin grew up. Photo

by Candice Adelle Photography. Photo courtesy of Rosanna Funiciello Smith. Page 49, top: A bar styled by Rosanna at the Goodstone Inn & Restaurant. Chandelier from Aly Rohling of La Bella Luca.

Photo by Jodi & Kurt Photography. Photo courtesy of Rosanna Funiciello Smith. Page 49, bottom: A lounge styled by Rosanna at the Goodstone Inn & Restaurant. Floral arrangement by Nature Composed. Photo by Jodi & Kurt Photography. Photo courtesy of Rosanna Funiciello Smith.

Summer is cool at the

National Sporting Library & Museum

Summer

Art Workshops

Join us for Summer Art Workshops — free art activities for kids aged 5 and up.

Learn about color theory, shape, proportion, and more while having fun and getting messy!

Each week will feature a different drop-in activity inspired by the artwork and books in NSLM’s collections.

Summer Art Workshops are every Friday in July, 10am-12pm.

July 6: Sculpture silhouettes July 13: Watercolor batik prints And don’t forget

July 20: Making marbled paper with shaving cream July 27: Handprint foxes* June 29, July 27 & August 31

Free Summer ConcertS

*Join us at Open Late to make more handprint foxes with family and friends!

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Melanie Ferrio-Wise thrills the crowd with a bridleless ride on Wings at Twilight Jumpers. Photo by Callie Broaddus.

7/1 – 7/22

A Sporting Vision: The Paul Mellon Collection of British Sporting Art from the VMFA at the National Sporting Library & Museum: This traveling exhibition organized by the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) with representative masterpieces of the genre celebrates Paul Mellon’s gift of British sporting art to the VMFA. Price: Adults $10; Seniors $8; Youth $8; Children Free; Members Free.

7/4

Independence Day BBQ & Celebration at the Salamander Resort & Spa (3 p.m. – 10 p.m.): Celebrate the 4th of July at Salamander Resort & Spa with fireworks and a classic BBQ with all the fixings and sides you love including mouth-watering ribs, grilled chicken, house-made coleslaw, and more! Live entertainment provided by the Floorboards starting at 7:00 p.m.! $62 per person, $30 per child. Held on the Middleburg Terrace. For reservations and details, call 540-326-4060.

7/4

MCC July 4th Celebration (11 a.m. – 9:30 p.m.): Enjoy your 4th of July at the Middleburg Community Center! Enjoy the pool, bluegrass band Circa Blue, and fireworks. The Children’s Parade will begin at 6 p.m., and children are encouraged to decorate their bikes, wagons, and strollers to compete for the most patriotic prize. This event is free and open to the public.

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7/6, 13, 20, 27

7/7, 14, 21, 28

7/6

7/8

Summer Art Workshops at the National Sporting Library & Museum (10 a.m. – 12 p.m.): Summer Art Workshops are free art activities for kids aged 5 and up. Each week will feature a different activity inspired by the artwork and books in NSLM's collections. Summer Art Workshops are every Friday in July, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. July 6: sculpture silhouettes; July 13: watercolor batik prints; July 20: making marbled paper with shaving cream; July 27: handprint foxes.

First Friday Concert on the Lawn at Greenhill Winery & Vineyards (6 p.m. – 8 p.m.): Join us at Greenhill Winery & Vineyards for our First Friday Concert on the Lawn, featuring music by The Crooked Angels & food for purchase from Market Salamander.

Glasses & bottle service available up to 30 minutes before sunset.

7/7

Escape Room Vineyard Edition at 50 West (1-1:45 p.m.): You have entered the barrel room, and the door closes. You find a note that says the barrels will burst unless you solve the mystery. Save the next vintage of wine, and you will be rewarded! 45-minute sessions start at 1, 2, 3, and 4 p.m. Tickets are $35 per person and include one glass of wine after the session.

Tickets at sunsethillsvineyard.com/product/ Escape-Room.

Twilight Polo at Great Meadow (5:30 p.m. – 11 p.m.): Twilight Polo celebrates its silver anniversary in 2018! Join us at Greenhill Stadium on Saturday nights for Twilight Polo at Great Meadow! We will have three polo matches, halftime games, and wine for sale from Greenhill Winery & Vineyards. The evening will conclude with dancing in the pavilion after the matches.

Gates open at 5:30pm. Details and tickets at greatmeadow.org/twilight-polo.

Independence Day and Bastille Celebration “A Day at the Shore” at L’Auberge Provencale (12:30 - 4:30 p.m.): L’Auberge Provencale is bringing the beach to you! Think steamed clams, steamed mussels with herbs, housemade pork roll, lobster rolls, mozzarella and Jersey tomatoes, and even cotton candy! Everyone will take home saltwater taffy. Book a room for that evening, and enjoy a 20% discount by mentioning the word “shore.” Call 540-837-1375 for reservations.

7/8

Carriage Day at Banbury Cross Sunday Polo (3 p.m. – 7 p.m.): We will have two action-packed polo matches, full bar, food truck, pony hop races, halftime divot stomp, champagne pour & so much more. Gates open at 2 p.m., admission is $10, children 12 and under are free! Pack a picnic, bring your chairs and come tailgate at the beautiful Banbury Cross Polo Club! Sponsored by Kendra Scott.

Tickets at banburycrosspoloclub.ticketleap. com/general-admission-tickets/.

7/10

Trivia Night at Hunter’s Head Tavern (7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.): Build a team, and join us for Trivia Night! The quizzes will cover everything from celebrities in trouble to wordplay to bad television. Winning teams will be awarded prizes including gift cards, swag and more!

7/12

Paul Mellon’s Art Legacy at the National Sporting Library & Museum (6 p.m. – 8 p.m.): Jeffrey Allison, the Paul Mellon Collections Educator at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, speaks on Paul Mellon’s art collections and their lasting impact on the region and beyond. $5 admission, free to NSLM members. To RSVP contact Anne Marie Barnes, 540-687-6542 x25 or abarnes@nationalsporting.org.

7/14, 15

World War I & Wo r l d Wa r I I Weekend at Oatlands (10 a.m. – 5 p.m.): From the Front Lines to the Home Front commemorates our country’s World War I and World War II experiences with a focus on Loudoun County and Oatlands. Featuring self-guided mansion tours and access to the garden, food and beverages available for purchase, and living history interpreters and re-enactors. Admission $20 per family; $10 per individual. Visit oatlands.org/ oatlands-events/ for more details.

7/17-18

Enriched + Encouraged Intensive/Retreat: Join us for this two-day, all-inclusive intensive and retreat for creative entrepreneurs seeking to get their business back-end in order! Experience group and one-on-one coaching in a hands-on workshop setting that feels like a Fortune 500 business intensive and spa retreat wrapped into one! For details and tickets visit coachingforcreatives.co/intensive/.

7/19

Acoustic Jams at Side Saddle Café (7 p.m. – 10 p.m.): Have an instrument and want to jam with some fellow musicians? Look no further!

Side Saddle Café is hosting weekly Acoustic Jams every Thursday from 7-10 p.m. during their Happy Hour, 4:30-8 p.m. Bring a friend, have a beer, and create some fabulous tunes.

See y’all Thursdays!

7/20

MCC Doc Saffer Summer Series (6 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.): Join us at the Middleburg Community Center for the Doc Saffer Summer Series’ annual cardboard regatta. The event is free, open to the public, and family friendly. Dinner will be provided at 6 p.m., with activities to follow.

Thank you to the Luminescence Foundation for making this event possible. The event will take place at the Middleburg Community Center Swimming Pool.

7/20

Paint Nite at the Mt. Defiance Cider Barn (7 p.m. – 9 p.m.): Paint Nite is invading bars and restaurants near you with everything you need to create a one-of-a-kind painting. We’ll guide you and your friends through two lively hours of creativity, drinking, and laughing ‘til your cheeks hurt. The best part? You don't have to be an artist to have an amazing time. Tickets are $45 at paintnite.com/ events/little-seashell-at-mt-defiance-cideryand-distillery-10089449.

7/21

Purcellville Wine & Food Festival (2 p.m. – 8 p.m.): The Purcellville Wine & Food Festival is nestled “In the Heart of DC’s Wine Country” in the charming town of Purcellville. This annual July event has drawn thousands of attendees and won several awards in its six-year history.

Enjoy wine, food, live music, and crafts from vendors throughout the region. Visit purcellvillewineandfood.com for details and tickets.

7/21

Twilight Tastings at Salamander Resort & Spa (6 p.m. – 9 p.m.): Our annual Twilight Tastings is a celebration of locally brewed beer and blended wines. Our world-class Equestrian Center will be filled with the different refreshing libations while guests dance under the stars to live music and indulge in our culinary team’s delicious offerings. Live entertainment will be provided by the Floorboards! $85 all-you-can-enjoy beverage tastings and food, $45 all-you-can-enjoy food. Questions?

Email awaddell@salamanderresort.com.

7/22

Paint and Sip at Chrysalis Vineyards (1 p.m. – 4 p.m.): This three-hour event includes all art supplies, an awesome staff, and a lot of fun. We will have a selection of our award-winning wines and delicious cheeses and other tidbits available for purchase! Tickets are $40 per person. For tickets, visit creativemankind.com and click “Calendar and Events Around Town.” Click on the 7/22 Chrysalis event to purchase.

7/23-28

Loudoun County Fair: Celebrate summer at the annual Loudoun County Fair! July 25th is Kid’s Day at the fair. Join us for pony rides, unicorn photos, and other fun activities. Visit loudouncountyfair.com for tickets and details.

7/25

Middleburg Library’s Great Decisions Discussion Group led by Foreign Policy Expert Larry Roeder (7 p.m. – 9 p.m.): Join the program that discusses the most critical global issues facing America today. Larry Roeder, recipient of the U.S. Department of State Superior Honor Award, will facilitate. Held in the Library’s Meeting Room.

7/27

Open Late Concert Series at the National Sporting Library & Museum (6 p.m. – 8 p.m.): Bring your lawn chairs or a blanket and join us on the NSLM lawn for live music. Concessions and cash bar available. Also enjoy free admission to our museum! The July 27th concert will feature the Bryan Shepherd Band, playing original material and classic country hits, and is in partnership with the Mosby Heritage Area Association, Loudoun County Equine Alliance, and Virginia Tech Alumni Association.

7/27

National Scotch Day Dinner with Glenmorangie at the Salamander Resort & Spa (6:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.): Happy National Scotch Day! To celebrate, we are teaming up with Glenmorangie as we taste our way through signature and reserve scotches and pair them with an exquisite menu built exclusively for these scotches by our Executive Chef, Ryan Arensdorf. Whether you are an avid scotch sipper or looking for your first experience, this is for you. $150 per person. For reservations, call 540-326-4070.

7/28

Meet the Author at Middleburg Library: Hallmark Channel Inspiration Suzi Weinert (2 p.m.

– 3:30 p.m.): Learn how author Suzi Weinert's “female intuition” led to the “Garage Sale Mysteries” book series and what it was like for them to become 12 Hallmark Channel movie adaptations starring Lori Loughlin. Meet her before this summer's movie premiere! Book sale and signing in the Library’s Meeting Room. For adults.

7/28

Full Moon Walk at Blandy Experimental Farm (8:30 – 9:30 p.m.): Explore the Arboretum under the full moon. Wear comfortable shoes, bring a flashlight, and explore the natural world at dusk and after dark. Who knows what we might see, hear, or smell! FOSA members, UVa Alumni $10; nonmembers $15; Member/UVa family $20; nonmember family $25. Reservations required – space is limited. Call 540-837-1758, ext. 224 or visit blandy.virginia.edu to register.

7/29

3rd Annual Piper Cup: Join us for Banbury Cross Polo Club’s 3rd Annual Piper Cup with a world-class polo match and lots of spectator activities! 12 goal polo match, horse-drawn carriages, halftime divot stomp, champagne pour, DJ & so much more! Tickets are on sale now for seating in the VIP Tent, Tailgate spots, and General Admission. For more information, please email info@banburycrosspoloclub.com or call 833-BBX-POLO. Visit banburycrosspoloclub. com/piper-cup for details!

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2018 Upperville Colt & Horse Show Delights

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Photos: 1. Darragh Kerins on Chill RZ. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 2.

Betty Oare presents the award for Grand Champion to Dr. Betsee Parker and Scott Stewart rider of Lucador.

Photo by Joanne Maisano. 3. Maddie Tosh on Dr. Betsee Parker's Love Me Tender Reserve Champion for Small Pony Hunter. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 4. Charlie Brown helps Frazer Hendricks with her win for Best Foal and second place for best TB Broodmare. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 5.

The leadline in the main hunter ring.

Photo by Joanne Maisano.

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Photos: 1. Wall of Honor recipients (Left to right): Gavin Moylan & Garnet with Penny DeNegre, Mike Smith, Linda Reynolds (for Bucky Reynolds & Gozzi), Ernie Oare & Betty Oare (for Spirit of Song), Judy Phillips (for Gaylord Hoisington) & Sally McVeigh (for Steve McVeigh).

The inductees were: Garnet, Bucky Reynolds, Gaylord Hoisington, Steve McVeigh, Gozzi & Spirit of Song. With the exception of Garnet, all of the inductees were with us in spirit only. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 2. Hunt Tosh and Bastion Grand Champ of Hunter Green. Photo

by Joanne Maisano. 3. Katie and Jim Fitzgerald. Photo by Anna Purdy.

4. Joey. One of the many adorable dogs present throughout the week.

Photo by Joanne Maisano. 5.Jumper Riders Janie Ware and Thea Bitar.

Photo by Anna Purdy. 6. Leadline 4-6 winner Griff Dean on Delilah owned by Sarah Crampton. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 7. McKayla Langmeier on Laney in $30,000 Grand Prix. Photo by Joanne Maisano 8. MTF Saint Simeon and Sloane Coles. Photo by Anna Purdy.

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UPPERVILLE COLT (continued from page 55)

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Photos: 1. Brianne Goutal Martea Winner of the $35,000 Speed Stakes. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 2. Darragh Kerins on ChillR Z Zip winner of the $40,000 Upperville Welcome Stakes and son with Mike Smith, BOWA's Tim Burch, Tom Wiseman, Jim Thompson and Barbara Roux. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 3. Top Hunter Trainer Peter Foley with a leadliner from Sprout Therapeutic Riding. Grady Glenn riding Ballou owned by Dr. Betsee Parker. Photo by Anna Purdy. 4. Olivia, Peyton (rider) Sen. Jill, Alex Vogel with owner of pony Farnley Crown Prince Caroline. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 5. Tab Hunter chatting with Carole Stadfield of TTR Sothebys. Photo by Snowden Clarke. 6. Wallis Stuntz on Nimbustwothousand owned by Margaret Bigley. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 7. Rioja, owned by Leah Coxsey, won best three-year-old Non-Thoroughbred with the help of Oliver Brown. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 8. Scott Stewart riding Dr. Betsee Parker's Cameo High Performance Champion. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 9. Soldiers from the Caisson Platoon. Photo by Joanne Maisano. 10. The Color Guard. Photo by Joanne Maisano.

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Merida and her baby boys came to MHF from a hoarding case in Louisa County and they are ready for adoption. They can’t wait to go to their new homes together! Please Note: Goat fencing is required. admin@middleburghumane.org (540) 364-3272 www.middleburghumane.org

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Upperville Colt & Horse Show: A Modern Classic with Strong Roots

Story by Elaine Anne Watt

A conversation with Barbara Roux

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he Upperville Colt & Horse Show, dating from 1853 with deep traditions, is a marvel of planning and community effort that truly reflects the spirit of Virginia hunt country and its commitment to offer both competitors and spectators the best experience possible. For a magical week in June each year, the sprawling grounds just outside the quaint town of Upperville are transformed into a functional village of gorgeous tents, first class performance and training facilities, gaily decorated and competitively designed courses for jumpers and hunters, food vendors, the 1853 Club, merchandise and all the necessary accommodations and logistics support to handle an estimated 2,000 horse-and-rider pairings in an orchestrated dance that builds to the grand finale of the FEI CSI 4-star Upperville Jumper Classic on Sunday afternoon.

Middleburg Life was fortunate to be able to sit down with Barbara Roux, First Vice President of the UCHS for the past three years. Although we never really discussed it, Roux’s family owns St. Bride’s Farm, this

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year’s Show Presenting Sponsor. Her warmth and passion was immediately evident as she began to express her gratitude to the “creative, hard-working, dedicated board members, and the wonderful volunteers who come out year after year to give back to this community in an inclusive way.”

The setting of the show with the Blue

Ridge Mountains in the background on the Jumper Side, and the woodsy terrain on the Hunter Side was breathtaking. Everything seemed to be structured to emphasize the natural beauty while providing maximum functionality for all.

There was so much to do and see that whether you’re a horse enthusiast or not, you could stroll the family-friendly activities, treat the kids to some slushies, sample the newest old bourbon from Kentucky, shop for tack, animal nutrition or the latest fashions or try Art Under the Oaks. Barbecue to funnel cakes were all conveniently available so that you could take your time and enjoy your day at the show or come all week. From Lugano Diamonds and Hermés saddles to a practical leather application, you could find it here.

“We have many talented people that work so hard to get things right,” said Roux. “Right now, we are walking around taking notes of what is working well and what we can do better next year. The planning never stops.”

Roux especially acknowledged the efforts of the Upperville Board, Show Manager, Tommy Lee Jones, who has been with the show for 36 years and Show Secretary, Ginny McCarty, a 15 year veteran who “just pulls it all together.”

Roots | Page 60

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Roots | From page 58 “We also have many volunteers that work tirelessly to help the show run smoothly and we cannot thank them enough for their many contributions. All of these people give their time, talent and resources to produce the show and share our southern hospitality with our riders, owners, exhibitors, spectators, trainers, officials and grooms,” said Roux.

Another highlight of the show was the return of McLain Ward, who is currently the number two rider in the world. Roux shared: “He’s a tremendous ambassador to our sport and so humble. This year he gave a clinic during show week and the people participating and observing gave it tremendously positive reviews. Another rider from Upperville, Allison Firestone Robitaille, recently participated in the 2018 World Cup in Paris. It is thrilling both watching her show at home and following her as she competes for the United States abroad.”

Near and dear to Roux’s heart and to all the Board members are the many charitable and nonprofit organizations that benefit from the show and that are recognized over the course of the week. This year, Military Appreciation Night was added to the programs and was thoroughly embraced. The participation of the soldiers from the Caisson Platoon as part of the ceremonies to honor and celebrate veterans was particularly moving, as they serve to carry the fallen to their final resting place in Arlington National Cemetery.

The Churches of Upperville, including Upperville Baptist, Trinity Episcopal, Mount Pisgah and Upperville United Methodist, and the Volunteer Fire Department of Upperville directly benefit from the horse show.

The UCHS also welcomes other nonprofits to participate with show sponsored booths and promotion. Examples include Seven Loaves Food Pantry of Middleburg, which is supported by the “Great Barn Challenge” as well as the donation of over 800 pounds of non-perishables remaining from the 1853 Club catering, humane societies and their animals. The Fauquier SPCA fundraising and adoption awareness program was sponsored as well as the Middleburg Humane Foundation’s tack sale and animal adoption services.

“This show always has and always will have deep roots in our community. We are inclusive and welcoming. We invite local families to attend and participate and include members of the community in the show,” said Roux. “On Grand Prix Sunday, the children from the Middleburg Community Charter School kicked off our 4* Grand Prix by singing our National Anthem and car collectors bring rare and exotic cars for display at our Horses and Horsepower car show held in memory of David Mullins who helped organize the first car show four years ago.” To add to the excitement, this year one of the Board members provided a genuine NASCAR

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racecar to the show.

An impressive list of sponsors that return year after year are critical to the growth and success of the show and reads like a who’s who of area businesses and families that have provided a firm foundation for the UCHS. However, each year new sponsors continue to come on board as well. These sponsorships have enabled the show to offer competitive prize money and upgrade key elements of the show such as the technology and communications. Some of the recent improvements include live-streaming classes nationally and internationally, the distribution of updates, events and results in the form of a daily newsletter and providing the best footing possible in the rings.

According to Ginny McCarty, there were 1500 stalls on the show grounds and 1800 horses and ponies showing during the event.

“We were sold out weeks in advance of the show,” said Roux. “But, we had neighbors and friends who were able to find room at their farms for the overflow. That is what our community does and what makes it so special.”

We’ve been talking about an hour when Middleburg Life learns that Barbara Roux just moved here only six years ago, but has been active on the board of UCHS for five years. For this area, she’s practically a newbie.

“When we moved here, we needed help with the barn layout and design, and neighbors opened their barns, shared ideas and recommended products and craftspeople. We were amazed by so much kindness, help and generosity to someone so new to the community.”

When asked what means the most to her about her involvement with the show, she doesn’t hesitate at all: “I love meeting new

people and thanking vendors, sponsors, riders and owners for their participation. It’s a joy to meet the riders and their incredible horses. Many of these are the ‘rock stars’ of our sport and the people admired by our children and developing riders. I always keep in mind as a member of the Board that I represent both the UCHS and my community.

I want people who come here to have fond memories and want to return.”

All of the people involved with the show seem to have heavily committed schedules.

“They are all hard-working and capable, but they somehow find the time that it takes,” said Roux.

Just listening to the amount of attention paid to the smallest detail was impressive. How much time does it take to make this all work?

Roux said: “Well, when you want something to succeed, you never stop thinking about it and how to widen your circle of contributors, how to improve from where you are, how to adequately thank participants and volunteers. I am so pleased with how the show has grown and developed and with the talented people that have made it possible. I have the deepest gratitude for everyone who has worked so hard. It’s 52 weeks a year that you think about it.” ML Page 58, top: Judging of side saddle class. Beauty and organization was everywhere you looked at UCHS. Photo by Joanne Maisano. Page 58, bottom: Barbara Roux at Upperville Colt & Horse Show.

Photo by Elaine Anne Watt. Page 60: Middleburg Community Charter School children singing the National Anthem to start the Grand Prix. Community inclusiveness and support was evident throughout the week. Photo by Anna Purdy.

ART UNDER THE OAKS GROWS UP

Story and photos by Elaine Anne Watt

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ack in the days before Artists in Middleburg (AiM) became a nonprofit, Sandy Danielson had investigated the possibility of having an artists’ tent at the Upperville Colt and Horse Show. The cost seemed prohibitive, but the idea of showcasing artists and promoting arts in our community remained on the minds of Barbara Sharp, Barbara Roux and others.

Just three short years ago, a limited program on Grand Prix Sunday for both adults and young children was started, Art Under the Oaks, adding another exciting feature to the historic character of the UCHS, wherein talented local artists work to encourage expression in all who are interested. Last year saw the program grow to have its first official tent on the grounds, and this year, they were thrilled to have a large tent sponsored through the generosity of Fuog/Interbuild, a local construction company specializing in hunt country structures, state-of-the-art stables and commercial buildings such as the

Mt. Defiance Cidery Barn just outside the town limits of Middleburg.

The program was supposed to have run from Thursday through Sunday, but “the children just started coming on Wednesday while we were setting up, and they did some wonderful things,” said Sharp.

Besides Danielson and Sharp, the talented instructors this year included Daryll Kingan, Gail Maslyk, Kerry Waters, Patty Craighill and Marci Nadler, all giving generously of their time and skills to share their love of art and the creative process with others.

“It’s so important for kids especially to have this wonderful opportunity to continue their artistic pursuits in an unexpected venue,” said Danielson. “They get to try painting, drawing, canvasses, charcoal—they can go home with a beautiful canvas bag of their own design to remember this experience.”

Sharp mentioned how appreciative many of the younger participants are to have something of their own to make memories of Upperville. “A lot of them have siblings who are riders, and this gives them something special

of their very own, a positive experience with nature and animals, the chance to express themselves and be encouraged that they can do it,” said Sharp.

As you can imagine, none of the artists or students lacked for enthusiasm or engagement. One of the favorite things I heard was Sharp telling one of the teenagers to try “holding up your fingers, looking through them and squinting your eyes, and you’ll have a painting.” Through some long, hot days, the volunteers enjoyed every moment of sharing their ideas and techniques with young and old.

“If you give them the ability to interpret an object, that’s a skill they can take with them for the rest of their lives,” said Sharp.

Last year, all the children received a sketchpad to take home with them, but this year drawings, paintings and canvas bags had to suffice.

Just before I had to leave for the day, Jennifer Martin arrived with her equestrian daughter, Katelyn, and a friend that they had Oaks | Page 62

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Oaks | From page 61 brought along for the trip to Upperville. From Virginia Beach, Katelyn had loved Art Under the Oaks so much last year that she “had been thinking about it for the last 11 months.”

Katelyn enticed her friend Alex Wetherbee to come this year because of the promise of Art Under the Oaks and “to also see me

compete in large ponies, but it was really about the art, I think,” said Katelyn.

As I left, the girls were all smiles and debating choosing to paint horses over designs for their canvas bags. What fun, and how important is it to be able to provide such an enriching cultural experience for those who visit our community! ML

Page 61: Alex Wetherbee, Vickie Fuog, Barbara Sharp and Katelyn Martin had great fun together!

Page 62, left: Joey and Poppy work with Barbara Sharp. Page 62, middle: Kate Hughes shows off one of her completed projects at Art Under the Oaks during the UCHS. Page 62, right: Youth of all ages participated in Art Under the Oaks at UCHS. Here Sophia is being helped by artist Barbara Sharp.

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STONELEIGH,

AMBASSADOR DODD AND GOLF Story and photos by Richard Hooper

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ocated off Route 7, a short distance west of the town of Round Hill, Virginia, is the Stoneleigh Golf & Country Club.

Going through numerous incarnations, it became such in the early 1990s. The remains and traces of these previous lives intertwining with the present make this a beautiful and unique place.

Stoneleigh is composed of portions of colonial land grants. The earliest, of 560 acres, was to John Dixon, a citizen of Delaware, who never built on the property. Another grant of 580 acres was awarded to John Hough, a surveyor, in 1754. The Stoneleigh of today straddles major portions of these two grants.

The oldest structure on the grounds is the stone Founder’s Cottage, believed to have been built in the mid-1700s. A surprise attraction, it nestles snugly alongside one of the fairways on the golf course.

The main residence was constructed for Mason James. It is a stone house and James’ initials and the date of 1852 are carved into one of the stones near the top of a large chimney. Now, it functions as part of the tavern for the club.

Mason James’ name for the property was Mount Silvia or Mount Sylva. One version or

another of this name was used by James’ family until the property was sold to William E. Dodd in 1913. Dodd renamed it Stoneleigh, for its abundance of fieldstone. It operated as a dairy farm and fruit orchards and was Dodd’s summer retreat from his professorship in history at the University of Chicago.

Dodd, born in North Carolina in 1869,

was a courageous man and a keen observer with an independent mind. While professor of history at Randolph-Macon College in the early 1900s, he came under harsh criticism for teaching that the South was not justified in seceding from the Union and that slavery and the concept of a white aristocracy were Stoneleigh | Page 64

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In January, the Tavern at Stoneleigh brought on board a new chef – Randy Mosteller, a graduate of the New England Culinary Institute. Mosteller formerly served as executive chef at Redwood Restaurant and Bar in Bethesda and was previously at Old Ebbitt Grill and Smith & Wollensky.

Stoneleigh | From page 63 the causes of the war, not some lofty ideal of states’ rights.

In 1908, Dodd was offered a position at the University of Chicago. He continued teaching history there and was active in Democratic politics. He was a close friend to Woodrow Wilson and wrote a biography of him.

His reputation grew and in the spring of 1933, President Franklin Roosevelt offered Dodd the ambassadorship to Germany, which he accepted.

Dodd quickly became appalled at the situation there. He had studied in Germany, receiving his doctorate from the University of Leipzig, and could barely believe the alarming changes that had taken place among the citizenry. His were early warnings as to what was taking place and what it could lead to.

Dodd’s courage was ingrained in his character. In October 1933, he addressed the American Chamber of Commerce in Berlin and, with high Nazi officials present, stated that the Nazis were “half-educated statesmen” led by the whims of a dictator reminiscent of some ancient regime.

Dodd remained ambassador until the end of 1937 and died at his farm in February 1940.

After Dodd’s death, Stoneleigh passed

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through several owners until acquired by Bruce Brownell and a group of partners, who developed it into the Stoneleigh Golf and Country Club, which opened in 1992.

The group employed golf course architect Lisa Maki, who at the time was one of only seven women designing courses in America.

She held a degree in landscape architecture and had studied the classic golf links of Scotland. Her vision was particularly suited to Stoneleigh and it is difficult to imagine anyone better to have designed its course.

The course rises and falls and wraps its way around the stone Founder’s Cottage and a red barn – set ablaze during the Civil War by the troops of General Sheridan, the fire was extinguished by Mason James’ daughter before it fully took hold. Old farm outbuildings come into play, streams meander and stone walls crisscross the landscape like stitching on a green quilt. Clusters of fruit trees form little groves here and there.

From the 18th green, in the distance across a large pond is a stone pump house of recent construction for irrigation. It sits there, almost floating in appearance, as a mysterious relic from the past, yet masterfully blending in.

The course maintains a bucolic, pastoral

Stoneleigh’s new membership opportunity gives the community access to the Tavern through a Dining Membership that includes access to Stoneleigh’s dining facilities. Stoneleigh Golf & Country Club will waive joining fees for the first 100 new Dining Members. For more information, please contact Clinton Chapman at membership@ stoneleighgolf.com or call 540-338-4653 x5.

appearance while achieving a high level of sophistication and challenge. Members drive and putt their way through beauty and history. If Mark Twain had seen Stoneleigh, it’s possible that he may not have said that, “golf is a good walk spoiled.”

Acknowledgements: Ann Whitehead Thomas, A Story of Round Hill (Friends of the Thomas Balch Library, 2004); Arnold A. Offner American Appeasement: United States Foreign Policy and Germany, 1933–1938 (Harvard University Press, 1969); An extensive account of Dodd’s ambassadorship can be found in the book by Erik Larson, In the Garden of the Beasts (Random House/Broadway Books, 2011). ML Page 63, top: The red barn, a portion of which was burned during the Civil War. Page 63, bottom: Farm buildings and stone walls are part of the course at Stoneleigh. Page 64, top: The Founder's Cottage.

Page 64, bottom: The initials for Mason James and date carved into the stonework of the main building at Stoneleigh.

Fresh new al fresco patio, lighting, flooring and décor. A tastefully redesigned upstairs meeting venue. A complete kitchen remodel. Not to mention an expanded menu of tempting new go-to offerings, the coolest Middleburg-themed gifts and more.

Come celebrate our grand re-opening at Market Salamander. Everywhere you look, you’ll discover something deliciously new.

Join us for our Grand Re-Opening.

855.496.5330 | marketsalamander.com | Steps from Salamander in the heart of Middleburg, VA.

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middleburglife.com

ProPerties in Hunt Country West RidiNg

BUCkskiN MANoR

Marshall ~Completely renovated stately brick home located just outside of Middleburg. 2 parcels, totaling 22+ acres in a private setting. 2 story covered porch. 4 bedrooms and 4 ½ bathrooms, including a separate au pair or guest suite with fireplace. Hardwood floors, antique mantles, ten foot ceilings, 5 fireplaces and custom woodworking.

Full basement w/ work out room & sauna, play room and storage. New kitchen with Sub Zero, Wolf and Bosch appliances. New 20 x 24 equip. shed. $2,100,000

the plains ~ Charming country home with parts dating back to the 1700s. 3 bedrooms and 3½ bathrooms. Main level master with his and her bathrooms. Lovely, spacious entertaining spaces. Beautiful gardens, swimming pool, stable, 222’ x 112’ arena, tenant house.

25.60 acres in prime location on Rock Hill Mill Road in Orange County Hunt territory. 3 parcels. Conservation Easement potential. $1,900,000

Harpers Ferry Rd ~ A true treasure! Lovely home with mountain views dating back to the 1700s on 66.20 acres just outside of Hillsboro. 5 Bedrooms 4½ Baths, beautiful details throughout, Guest House, Stable, Pool & Outdoor Entertaining areas.

Extensive plantings, stone work and mature timberland.Was recently a successful B&B. EZ commuter access. Located near wineries. Would make a great wedding venue or retreat. $1,700,000

YoRksHiRe HoUse

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eBeNezeR Rd.

Warrenton ~ This fully renovated brick home by Swiss architect Henri de Heller in 1938 sits on 5+ professionally landscaped acresin downtown Warrenton. House has influences from the Modernistic Movement & listed on the Nat’l Register of Historic Places. 4 BRs, 5.5 BAs, formal Living Room, Dining Room, Den, Conservatory, gourmet Eat-in Kitchen, Family Room & 6 fireplaces. The grounds have over 100+ species of trees, shrubs, flowers, terraced gardens & stonewalls all centered around a sunken garden. 3-car Garage. $1,575,000

Bluemont ~Incredible custom built 3 Bedroom 4 Bath log home offers soaring ceilings, stunning stone 2 story fireplace, 3 fireplaces, hand hewn logs, fabulous decking in a magical setting on 42 gorgeous acres (additional 17 acres available). Impeccably maintained: New roof, New HVAC, grand sun filled rooms. 2 story barn/garage, Whole Home generator, workshop, on walk-out level. $1,199,000

Cricket Bedford (540) 229-3201

Mary Ann Mcgowan (540) 687-5523

A spectacular 88 acre parcel at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains on a quiet country lane. Surrounded by beautiful estates & picturesque horse farms. The land is open & rolling with a strong stream. It is an ideal setting for a gracious country estate & perfect for equestrians.Recently approved permits for the well, septic and roadway to the beautifully sited building envelope. Ideally located within minutes of the village of Middleburg and the town of Purcellville, with easy access to Dulles International Airport and Washington, D.C.$1,195,000

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95 Acres ~ Lovely, quiet and serene setting with a 5 Bedroom, 1 Bath home, amongst tall oaks in great location between The Plains and Warrenton, making this a wonderful retreat. Built in 1928. Huge screened-in porch for relaxing and watching wildlife. Mostly wooded with a mixture of Hardwoods and Pines. High elevation gives the possibility of amazing views in several directions.

Several ancillary buildings. 3 parcels with the possibliblity of further divisions allowed. $875,000

Middleburg ~ Desire a Middleburg address? Then build your dream home on one of 3 parcels available on 3 or 4+ acre parcels just East of town. Settings offer cleared home sites with pastoral views. Ideal commuter location with easy access to both Dulles International Airport & downtown Washington DC. All parcels have permitted septics, private access easements and covenants. $285,000- $299,000

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Upperville~Stunning c. 1843 Greek Revival style home in historic village of Upperville. Classic center hall design w/hardwood floors & double porches in front & back.

Formal Dining Rm & Living Rm w/fireplaces, Family Rm, Kitchen, 4 Bedrooms, 3 Baths, enclosed Sunporch for office or Bedroom. Upgrades include new electric, boiler, roof, gutters, windows, baths & kitchen, AC & water system, parking area, fences & landscaping. 2-car detached garage & potting shed. Turn-key. $890,000

Cricket Bedford (540) 229-3201

emily Ristau (540) 687-7710

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Mary Ann Mcgowan (540) 687-5523

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Barrington Hall (540) 454-6601

Cricket Bedford (540) 229-3201

Please see our fine estates and exclusive country properties by visiting www.THOMAS-TALBOT.com Susie Ashcom Cricket Bedford Catherine Bernache Snowden Clarke John Coles Rein duPont Cary Embury Barrington Hall

THOMAS AND TALBOT REAL ESTATE A stAUNCH AdvoCAte oF lANd eAseMeNts lANd ANd estAte AgeNts siNCe 1967 Middleburg, virginia 20118

(540) 687-6500

Phillip S. Thomas, Sr.

Celebrating his 56th year in Real Estate.

Julien Lacaze Anne V. Marstiller Brian McGowan Jim McGowan Mary Ann McGowan Rebecca Poston Emily Ristau

Offers subject to errors, omissions, change of price or withdrawal without notice. Information contained herein is deemed reliable, but is not so warranted nor is it otherwise guaranteed.