ZES ST T & Sty t lel
Country
e
of NOTE
ZEST & Style ZES ST TStytlel &
Country
Personalities, Celebrations and Sporting Pursuits
for the hummingbird.
© 2021 Country ZEST & Style, LLC. Published six times a year
Distributed and mailed throughout the Virginia countryside and in Washington and at key Sporting Pursuits and Celebrations
e
MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 798 Middleburg, Virginia 20118 PHONE: 410-570-8447 Editor: Leonard Shapiro, badgerlen@aol.com Art Director Meredith Hancock Hancock Media Contributing Photographers: Doug Gehlsen, Crowell Hadden, Sarah Huntington, Missy Janes Douglas Lees, Karen Monroe and Tiffany Dillon Keen
Contributing Writers: Emma Boyce Sean Clancy Kerry Dale Philip Dudley Mike du Pont Carina Elgin Valerie Archibald Embrey Jimmy Hatcher Ellie Rose Killinger M.J. McAteer Peter Leonard-Morgan Joe Motheral Jodi Nash Tom Northrup Melissa Phipps Pat Reilly Linda Roberts Eugene Scheel Anita Sherman John Sherman Peyton Tochterman John Toler Leslie VanSant Jimmy Wofford Louisa Woodville
For advertising inquiries, contact: Leonard Shapiro at badgerlen@aol.com or 410-570-8447
ON THE COVER SEASONED SUBJECTS This month’s cover features the Blunt Family. We had hosted the Blunts a few years ago for a Christmas portrait, so they knew what to expect, always a great help. Lighting was mostly standard as our photo shoots go, but we were going for a more intimate portrait in which they had to stand close to each other. Frequently, with group portraits, we ask for small yet intentional changes in posture or stance. Maybe a slight chin rise, a little head Doug Gehlsen and Karen tilt, or a half step forward for better exposure. Monroe of Middleburg Photo These small adjustments are possible today due to the instant review (maybe instant gratification) feature not only on expensive professional cameras but a vital component of your every day cell phone camera, as well. / Country Zest and Style
/ @countryzestandstyle
/ @countryzestand1
www.countryzestandstyle.com 4
ZE
BE ON THE LOOKOUT through this Country issue of
Country
He appears in two ads and the first two readers to find him (one each) will receive a gift from THE RED TRUCK Rural Bakery, with locations in Warrenton and Marshall. Send your reply to badgerlen@aol.com
FLOWER POWER ON DISPLAY
I
By Leonard Shapiro
t’s always time to stop and smell the roses, though I’ve never been much of a flower aficionado other than to admire their beauty, and particularly so when they start their spring blooming all around the local countryside. Still, with my wife and ZEST cohort, Vicky, out of town and the annual Daffodil Show taking place at Buchanan Hall recently, I had a chance for total immersion in both the fine art of creating floral arrangements, then seeing the finished product on display, with photos in this issue to prove it. In the spirit of full disclosure, Vicky is a member of the Piedmont Garden Club. She arranged for me to watch the club’s entry for the inter-club category entitled “Birds of a Feather—Swan Dive” being put together by Piedmont member and master arranger Betty Ann Trible, with the advice, counsel and helping hands of several other club members. The finished product even had swan feathers in the flowery mix, courtesy of Ben Rogers, Heronwood's farm manager who was kind enough to collect them from ponds on the property. A story on that stunning arrangement with a bizarre, but happy ending can be found inside this summer issue of Country ZEST. It’s accompanied by photos of Betty Ann’s eye-popping result, along with several other spectacular daffodil creations on display at the show. Our cover hopefully will lead you to stories about the Blunt family, including Middleburg native Melanie Blunt, clearly making a significant difference in her home town, and her husband Matt, the former governor of Missouri now an honorary and honorable Virginian. A current government employee recently transferred to Washington Street. Tina Brooks, a Marshall native, is the new postmaster at the Middleburg post office. Read all about her, then check out the story on another dedicated public servant, popular Middleburg police officer Lt. Shaun Jones, back in action after undergoing a major dose of chemotherapy earlier this year. There’s a new director of resident services over at Windy Hill, and we’ve got photos from the foundation’s successful recent gala at Salamander that raised over $150,000. And how about the opening of a new Glory Days Grill in Warrenton. It’s co-founded and owned by long-time Middleburg resident Richard Danker and is the popular restaurant chain’s 40th location. And so, as you head to the beach, the pool, the mountains, the interstate, the airport, we hope you’ll also take the time to put even more ZEST in your life and take along our latest summer issue. Sharing is definitely allowed. Leonard Shapiro Editor badgerlen@aol.com
MIDDLEBURG SUSTAINABLE COMMITTEE| Summer 2022
