After almost four months of volunteer and staff dedication, this 5-year-old beauty is coming out of her shell. She is still a little unsure of new situations, but loves going outside in the play area with her kennel mates. Foxy will need a quiet and patient family that will give her time to get used to her new environment. She is spayed, up-to-date on routine shots and ready to go home today.

If you are interested in Foxy, please call the Lynchburg Humane Society at (434) 846-1438 or visit the shelter at 3305 Naval Reserve Road.

UPDATE: Vicky, last issue’s Pick of the Litter was adopted!

I always try to use local ingredients when I cook or bake. You can’t beat the taste and I’m convinced it’s healthier too. My own backyard garden is, of course, my favorite source for fresh foods, but for things I can’t grow, I’m happy to find it at one of our wonderful farmers markets.

So, take on the challenge of making an all-local Strawberry Rhubarb pie—my version of a 100-Mile Meal—even if you don’t grow your own ingredients. Everyone tends to have a favorite pie and this is hands down my winner. It nicely showcases flavor combination of sweet and tart and with this simple pie crust your fruit filling will reach its potential, enrobed in a perfectly tender and flaky shell with a hint of saltiness.

PIE CRUST

Ingredients

2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour (locally milled flour available)

1 ¼ tsp. salt

2 sticks of cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces (local available)

½ cup ice water

Directions

1. Mix flour and salt in a food processor to combine. Add the butter and pulse a few times until the butter is about the size of peas. Don’t over mix or the crust will be come out too hard.

2. Pulse while adding water until dough just holds together, about 20 seconds.

3. Divide dough in half, shape into disks and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for a minimum of one hour.

STRAWBERRY RHUBARB PIE

Ingredients

2 discs of pie dough

1 ¼ cups sugar

1/3 cup corn starch

¼ tsp. salt

3 ½ cups local rhubarb stems, cut into 1/2” pieces

3 cups local strawberries, hulled and halved

1 egg and 2 tsp. water for egg wash

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

2. Roll out one disc of pie dough and cover a 9″ pie pan. Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.

3. In a glass bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour and salt.

4. Toss the rhubarb and strawberries with the sugar mixture. Pour the fruit into the pan, filling it about ¾ full and mounding the filling a bit in the center.

5. Roll out the remaining pie crust disc and cut into strips for lattice pattern.

6. Put the strips over the filling, creating the lattice pattern. Brush with egg wash.

7. Bake the pie for 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375°F, cover with aluminum foil and bake for an additional 30 until the filling is bubbling.

8. Let cool for at least two hours before serving; less will result in a runny filling. Serve with local vanilla ice cream (Homestead Creamery’s is a great choice).

The James River Wine & Music Festival (JRW&MF) will be Lynchburg’s first fiesta dedicated to the handiwork of Virginia vintners. Scheduled for Saturday, May 11 (that’s AD), the festival will take place in downtown Lynchburg at the Riverfront Park.

Like their classical counterparts, wine aficionados will be entertained by music, plenty of wineries and an assortment of vendors. Unlike the ancients, Lynchburg attendees will be partaking from wine produced exclusively in the Commonwealth.

“This will be the premier wine festival for Lynchburg,” Frank Britt, the festival’s organizer and local wine savant said. “We’ve got a great location. There will be more than 60 different wines offered by 12 Virginia wineries.”

Britt publishes an online newsletter, The Official Virginia Wine Lover, with nearly 50,000 wine buffs as subscribers. He said the JRW&MF, which pops the first cork at 11 a.m. and drops the curtain at 6 p.m., is expected to pull 2,500 to 4,000 cognoscente to downtown Lynchburg.

The purpose of the shindig is to put the focus on Virginia’s growing wine business and the list of participating wineries is impressive, Britt said, who explained he consulted on numerous previous wine festivals in other areas.

“We’ve invited 12 of Virginia’s best wineries,” he said. “This is an invitation-only event.”

The wineries invited to the JRW&MF include: AmRhein’s Wine Cellars, DelFosse Vineyard, The Dog and Oyster Vineyard, Hill Top Berry Farm & Winery, Horton Vineyards, Peaks of Otter Winery, Rebec Vineyard, Rockbridge Vineyard, San Souci Vineyard, Savoy Lee Winery, Well Hung Vineyards and Wintergreen Winery.

As with any wine festival, live music and good eats will be in abundance.

“We’ve got some great food lined up,” Britt said.

Three local bands will provide a soundtrack for the JRW&MF: Apple Butter, Bigfoot Country and the Paddy D Quartet.

“These are three of the most popular bands in the Lynchburg area,” he added.

Those clocking in at the festival will also be able to spend their greenbacks with numerous on-site vendors. Britt explained that vendors will include arts and crafts, wine-related paraphernalia and local retailers.

Illustrating how the industry has grown within the last two decades, a little history goes a long way. The first settlers in Virginia tried but failed to get a viable wine industry started. Tobacco, not vino, got the attention of the Europeans and gold leaf got the economic nod over the grape. Even Thomas Jefferson and George Washington also tried but couldn’t get grapes to ferment a profit.

The potential for good wine was realized in the 1800s as native wines were recognized internationally, but Prohibition in the 1920s and 30s shut down the wine industry in the Commonwealth.

So winemaking in Virginia languished until the 1970s when a concerted effort to take advantage of the grape-friendly soil began. By 1995, Virginia counted 46 wineries. The number has since exploded to 231 wineries currently producing in the state. Economically, the wine industry contributes $747 million and 4,753 jobs to the state economy, according to the latest figures.

Virginia currently ranks fifth in the nation in wine production, said Britt, adding that he is focused on the JRW&MF sweetening the pot for the Lynchburg economy as well.

“We hope that those visiting will get a chance to see our downtown,” he said. “After the festival, we want them to go out and get some dinner and do some shopping.”

The JRW&MF is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Lynchburg, Discover Lynchburg and Centra. Media partners include Lynch’s Landing, Lynchburg Living magazine, The News & Advance, Official Wine Lover, WYYD and Britt Marketing.

For more information and to purchase tickets for The James River Wine & Music Festival, log onto www.vawinelover.com/festival.

Age: 41

Hometown: King of Prussia, PA

Geisel, you are a gifted baker, a mentor, a mother and much more. Tell us about your passion of serving other women through mentorship and cooking. 

Taste of Ministry: Apples of Gold (www.applesofgold.org) is a mentoring program I am blessed to be a small part of at Heritage Baptist Church. It is a six-week course geared towards mentoring newlywed women whose husbands will go into ministry.

Proverbs 25:11 says “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver” and Titus 2:3-5 says “The older women…can train the younger women.” These are the key verses in the book study “Apples of Gold,” written by Betty Huizenga. It is not just another Bible study or cooking class; it is the older women nurturing the younger women through fellowship, teaching, cooking, Biblical application and prayer.

As a cooking mentor, I work with mostly newlywed women. Before we started Taste of Ministry: Apples of Gold, the girls took a survey and shared what their kitchen experiences had been and what they hoped to learn from a cooking mentor. Each week had a different theme. In a rotation, a different mentor would have a special time of teaching after dinner each week. That gave Robin Waldrep, our leader, Judy Manuel, my kitchen help mentor and I an idea of what menus to plan for each week. We really wanted recipes that would give the women confidence in the kitchen and menus that they could easily plan to entertain guests of their own. We choose recipes that had easy-to-gather ingredients, quick to prepare and delicious!

You grew up in with a unique exposure to the Vietnamese community. How did this influence your love for cooking?

Hospitality, serving, cooking and mentoring were fostered in me at an early age. My parents taught us the meaning of “Love your neighbor as yourself” by showing it in action. When I was a little child, my parents, who were former missionaries to Vietnam, would often help the Vietnamese refugees with housing and getting jobs. Sometimes these refugees would live with us during a transition into a home of their own. Mealtimes would bring us all together.

We all had jobs to do, and mine was usually setting the table while my mom would roll up Cha Gio and make a batch of Nuoc Mam. Listening to my parents converse with our guests in Vietnamese always made me feel like my parents were amazing. They were able to share the gospel of Christ by building friendships through hospitality. I knew then that I wanted to be just like my mom when I grew up. When I was a little older (10), I had opportunities to serve and help within my own family. My mom went back to work full-time and she entrusted me with a few meals I could prepare each week to help out. I loved it and I learned so much!

Your business, Cakeview, bakes everything from birthday and wedding cakes to those delectable red shoe cookies at the Craddock Terry Hotel. How has word spread about what you do?

The staff at Craddock Terry Hotel has been so kind to me over the past year. I love making those adorable red high heel cookies for them each week. It is like their edible calling card. Craddock Terry Hotel has helped spread my name to other businesses interested in specially designed cookies with their business logo on it.

I have also had the privilege of working with and providing cupcakes for some awesome local charities this past year including Children’s Miracle Network, The Love of Children’s Ball 2012, MDA 2012 and Corsets for Courage Campaign. I look forward to serving them again this year, too!

Though you’ve lived in your home for more than a decade, you recently got the kitchen remodel you’ve long dreamt about. What was the process like to recreate that space?

Over the years, I had collected a file full of clippings of ideas and pictures of cabinets I liked.  Tommy Scott, from Scott’s Cabinets, came over and took measurements and we talked over ideas and he gave great advice. We reviewed plans and after a few weeks we had everything nailed down and we were ready for construction to begin.

My List of Kitchen Must Haves:

1. A gas duel fuel range and a vented hood
2. A prep sink in the island plus space for stools
3. Granite counter tops and a marble back splash
4. Custom white beaded border cabinets with glass knobs
5. Hardwood floors
6. Raised bar to eat at
7. Custom hutch built around an existing window

We had to move a wall approximately nine feet, which moved our dining room across from our living room nicely. This opened up the room for the island and space for more countertop, a range and cabinets. At first, I thought I couldn’t live without double ovens until I looked at a few. They were smaller than your normal range/oven. Tommy came up with the idea of installing a full-size single oven in the island and there was still room for the prep sink. I chose a vintage chandelier with glass beads adorning it to tie in with the glass knobs on the cabinets.

The custom hutch they built displays family heirlooms that had been housed in boxes. A shallow closet became a beautiful bookshelf for my cookbook collection. A window was replaced by a door to a new deck overlooking our backyard. In total, we were without a kitchen for six weeks as foretold. Scott’s Cabinets has been in business for more than 60 years and they know what they are doing and we completely trusted them for the job. The results speak for themselves.

What opportunities has your remodeled kitchen provided you?

I would not have been able to host Taste of Ministry: Apples of Gold in my old kitchen. My children love to cook too and the new range with a griddle is my daughter’s favorite. It has inspired me to reach out more to those who have need of a meal. The birth of a new baby, a new move into a new house, a family struggling with an illness or the loss of a loved one are all great opportunities to serve others and be love in action. There are a few great websites that enlist the help of friends to provide a meal for families in need, including www.takethemameal.com and www.mealtrain.com. I suggest using disposable pans so they don’t have to worry about washing and returning pans to you.

Ingredients

1lb. penne pasta

1 stick of butter, plus 2 Tbsp.

½ cup flour

4 cups of milk

1 ½ cups of mixed cheeses (sharp white cheddar , gruyere and fresh Parmesan are good choices)

Salt & Pepper to taste

2 Tbsp. truffle oil

1 cup bread crumbs

Directions

1. Cook penne according to directions. Meanwhile, melt one stick of butter and add the flour to it in a pan to make a roux. Add the milk. Stir until smooth and the sauce starts to thicken.

2. Add mixed cheeses, salt and pepper and truffle oil to sauce and melt together. Pour sauce over cooked penne and spoon servings into individual ramekins or a casserole dish.

3. Sprinkle with more cheese, if desired. Melt two tablespoons of butter and add bread crumbs. Sauté together in a pan and sprinkle on top of macaroni and cheese.

4. Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes for ramekins or 45 minutes for a casserole, until bubbly.

Admit it, part of you wants to rise from obscurity and do something big, maybe cure cancer, invent the next game changer, gain renowned influence and so on. Like us all, you want to matter to your time, to know that your one human life made a difference beyond surviving and then fading away. Well, you can.

Before you read further, you must know the hard truth of this undeniable plan for you to change the world. Statistically, you probably won’t do so from a famous or prominent position. And you certainly can’t do so with selfish ambitions. It can’t be about you. Still interested? Here is how you can shape the course of a better world: The simple practice of mentoring.

David Stoddard, founder and President of Leaders Legacy, Inc., wrote, “Mentoring is one of the best ways to have a significant personal impact on society, even for generations.” By simply coming along side someone in your circle of influence for two hours or two years to share your wisdom and unique life experience, you can reset the course for that person’s entire life. You will also implicitly make a mark on all the people he or she influences. Basically, your life-pulse will beat on and on and on well after you are gone. A pretty amazing concept.

Decades ago, my grandfather grew up on a farm outside Elizabethtown, Kentucky.  He lived out a rural Americana storyline during the Great Depression and World War II. At 9 years old, he went to a backwoods tent revival, where he met a man named Howard Meads. This man gave my grandfather a Bible and committed to mentor him in his new faith. Yet, before he could begin, Howard was shipped off to Germany to fight the Nazis. What’s more, he almost immediately got captured and became a P.O.W.  The story takes an outlandish turn, though. Despite being locked up behind enemy lines, Howard still regularly wrote my grandfather letters to guide him through all the joys and doubts of belief. Today, my grandfather is 80 years old and still has the letters his first mentor penned from a German prison camp.

Because of that man’s contribution, my grandfather grew up to become a pastor, and his son after him—my father—and today, I celebrate nearly 15 years of pastoral leadership.  Howard Meads’ short-term investment has impacted generations in my family and faith.  Exponentially, every time I sit across a coffee shop table or in a living room to help someone through the wins and struggles of faith and life, they are being indirectly mentored by Howard Meads. His life goes on and on and on.

So, how is this possible for you? Right now, you have a circle of influence. They are people you impact through your proximity and behavior, and you affect the world, good or bad, through these relationships. So, what if you were intentional about leveraging these circles to reshape the world for good, just like Howard Meads did for my family?

How do you mentor? There is no standard or perfect way to do so, but I follow this form: Compel. Open. Commit. First, I seek to live a life that is compelling to someone in my circle. Anyone who knows me can tell you I’m not perfect, but I seek vulnerability about how failure and success are growing me. This invites people to seek more of my life.

Next, I open my life, more specifically my time, energy and voice, to people who ask for it. Yes, I have work and family responsibilities, but I am also intentional about segmenting time for “changing the world.” Yes, I’ll insert the cliché here—one person at a time. Trust me, an open life is a significant one.

And finally, I commit a time period to track with someone. That span can be a single two-hour talk at Starbucks, or several over the course of two years. Either way, I commit a section of time with benchmarks, so that I can always evaluate if the relationship is being helpful to them. Most people don’t want to waste their time nor mine, so an established commitment is valuable for this purpose.

A couple years ago, the receptionist at my office told me someone was in the lobby to see me. I asked who it was and she described him as someone who knew me when I was in college. The man I expected to see was an old college buddy, but instead he was one of the middle school kids I once mentored when I was a college student. He wasn’t the short, pudgy kid with the chip on his shoulder anymore. Now, he was 20-something and looked like Dwayne Johnson, The Rock. Immediately, I recognized his grown-up self.  His name was Chris.

Years ago, Chris went through a tough season with his parent’s divorce and his grandparents’ death happening within weeks of each other. Some would say he was a train wreck. I happened to be on the tracks with him then during that phase, so I just tried to get him to the next place. Grown-up Chris spontaneously embraced me out in front of my office and said, “I’ve been driving by here for weeks trying to get the courage to come tell you thanks.”

Chris went on to describe the course of his life since we last met—a wife and two sons, a great job and a house in the country. Then, right before he jumped in his truck to drive away, he said, “You really changed my life.” I haven’t seen Chris since that day, but every time I’m growing impatient and exhausted trying to help someone get to the next place, I think of Howard and Chris. Then, I get back to changing the world again.

Compel. Open. Commit. Those three simple directives can help you do the same.

Mention Louisiana, and one likely thinks of jambalaya and red beans and rice. Texas—beef brisket and Tex-Mex cuisine. New Mexico has its green and red chiles, while South Carolina is chockablock with barbecue joints, along with shrimp and boiled peanuts, often sold roadside.

And then there’s Virginia, which some say is also fast becoming a favorite with food lovers.

“Virginia’s reputation as a top culinary spot is growing,” Tamra Talmadge-Anderson, public relations director for the Virginia Tourism Corporation, said. “In 2012, Wine Enthusiast Magazine named Virginia one of the top 10 wine travel destinations in the world. That’s big time.”

From drink cups to plates, there’s many a growing reason for this newfound fork-friendly distinction.

“With the launch of ‘Love on Tap: August Craft Beer Month’ last year, the hard cideries and the fact that Virginia is the largest producer of fresh, farm-raised oysters on the East Coast, it’s drawing visitors to sites across the state,” Talmadge-Anderson explained.

One way to sample Virginia’s culinary offerings is to take a food tour.

In Richmond, food lovers can walk in the footsteps of President Abraham Lincoln, and do brunch along the way. “Lincoln Legs: Brunch and Brushes with History,” led by Real Richmond Food Tours, retraces Lincoln’s visit to the former Confederate capital on April 4, 1865.

The tour includes brunch at Arcadia, a Shockoe Bottom restaurant near the 17th Street Farmers Market. Lincoln is said to have visited the market during his walk through Richmond. The tour also passes other sites related to the 16^th president’s visit, along with locations where the 2012 movie, “Lincoln,” was filmed.

“Lincoln Legs” is one of several tours offered by Real Richmond. Others include, but are not limited to, “Both Sides of Broad: The Art and Soul of Richmond,” “Carytown and Museum District: Butchers, Bakers and Beyond,” “Church Hill: From Pies to Spies” and “Off the Eatin’ Path: Richmond’s Riverfront.”

Tours range from $35 to $60 and, depending on the route, include everything from Dixie Donuts to haute cuisine.

“We work with local restaurants and food and wine purveyors,” Maureen Egan, Real Richmond co-owner and founder, said. “Those who like participating in our food tours give our groups special attention, insider info and delicious samples. We spread the word about Richmond’s cuisine and culture and give tour goers plenty of reasons to return to the restaurants and neighborhoods.”

In addition to food, Egan said, Real Richmond’s tours show off the city’s architectural, cultural, outdoor and historical offerings. Some tours incorporate the Richmond Slave Trail, a marked walking trail that recounts the history of the city’s slave trade.

“Each is in a different neighborhood [and] emphasizes its strengths,” Egan said. “The common theme is the vibrancy of Richmond’s cuisine scene and the startling amount of cool artsy and outdoorsy activities … available here. We’re big on showcasing art and it’s so easy with all of our galleries and murals and creative businesses.”

Real Richmond has tours on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, and both private and group tours are available. Each is about a mile-and-a-half in length, and kids are okay to bring, as long as they can travel the distance.

“We try to accommodate everyone,” Egan said. “We had a legally blind couple on a tour last year, but some restaurants are not [handicapped] accessible and the sidewalks and streets can be narrow and uneven.”

Egan, author of the “Insiders’ Guide to Richmond,” gives most of the tours, which she describes as “quirky and lots of fun.” She said tours are largely “unscripted” and often include “shout outs” from passersby and chance encounters with local chefs, authors and theater producers.

“[We] incorporate the spur-of-the-moment every chance we get,” she said. “Richmond restaurant folks are so excited to be getting the attention they deserve. It’s a privilege for us to introduce people to some of the out-of-the-way gems and let people have a real conversation with the people on the front lines and in the kitchens.”

In the near future, Egan said, she hopes to offer new tours, including one in the Old Manchester neighborhood and possibly a Petersburg tour.

“We’re always thinking of fun ways to combine eating and walking,” she said.

On Virginia’s coast, roving food lovers can embark on the Harvest Feast Food Tour, a multi-day culinary adventure that showcases the state’s coastal areas—not only the food and drink but the rich history and landscape as well.

In Smithfield, known for its Virginia hams, you “get to see and grab the hams hanging off the racks at Darden’s Country Store,” tour organizer, Jeff Swedarsky, said. On the Eastern Shore, the tour visits a clam farm, “where you see how they actually grow. Hands-on stuff with farms and farmers markets—a lot of fun options.”

Originally, the Harvest Feast was aimed at groups of six or more—motorcoach tours, family reunions, that sort of thing. This summer, however, Swedarsky said he plans to start offering tours that individuals can join, but not before he makes sure “it’s as perfect as possible; a really complete product and something that’s amazing.”

A sample four-day itinerary includes a dizzying array of activities. Day One alone includes a tour of the Cape Henry Lighthouse, a visit to the farmers market, a trip through the “unspoiled region of Pungo,” and lunch at a family-run restaurant that began its life in the 1930s as a country store.

After that, tour goers can hit the Virginia Beach Boardwalk for another food tour and a visit to Forbes, a century-old candy store.

The one-to-five-day tours are “very customized,” Swedarsky said, and may include a “catch and cook” option, where participants shove off from Rudee Inlet in chartered fishing boats and catch their dinner. “It’s a really cool concept,” he said. “I love it.”

Swedarsky, an Indianapolis native and world traveler who says, “I’m not lucky enough to say I’m from Virginia,” said his “passion revolves around food and travel and being able to experience different things in different areas. … It’s amazing how food defines a culture and how it withstands language and everything.”

He said he works closely with coastal municipalities, the state’s department of agriculture, farmers and fishermen to “really promote what makes an area special, its culture and architecture and its food.”

The Harvest Feast Tour starts at $199, excluding lodging.

In Charlottesville, not far from Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, is Clifton. Once home to Jefferson’s daughter, Martha, and her husband, Thomas Mann Randolph, Jr., the federal and colonial revival-style manor house is now the 17-room Clifton Inn.

At the Clifton, guests can bask in what online travel agency Epitourean describes as “Culinary Refinement in the Shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains.” Epitourean, which arranges “culinary travel for the passionate foodie,” offers a package at the Clifton that plays off the property’s Jefferson connection.

More of an experience than a tour, “A Savory Indulgence—Jefferson Style” includes two nights lodging at the Clifton, a behind-the-scenes tour of Monticello and various culinary experiences, including a five-course meal with wine tasting and afternoon tea.

Also included is a hands-on cooking class with Tucker Yoder, the boutique hotel’s chef. But before anyone brings out the spatulas and wooden spoons, there’ll be some foraging.

“After you’ve finished your continental breakfast, you will report to Chef Tucker, to begin an adventure that will be quite an education,” an online description reads. “He will start by leading you outside to forage for things that can be added to your meal to enhance it; things that you may not have known were edible!”

When asked about this foraging bit, Yoder explained. “There’s a pretty extensive vegetable garden and … we look for wild edibles, simple things like chickweed and stuff [that] people have everywhere in their area.”

Depending on the season, Yoder and his charges also look for berries. The Clifton property—100 acres all told—boasts what Yoder described as “a ton” of blackberries.

“We will plant blueberries and strawberries in the early summer,” he said. “Those are probably the big things. Early spring and early fall are the best times for getting out and finding.”

During the classes, Yoder said, some people watch him cook, while others get their hands dirty and help make the meal.

“It’s as hands on as you want it to be. We have people who sit and drink a glass of wine and watch me do a demonstration, and those who help out. You’re in the kitchen. If you look around and see someone doing something and say, ‘I want to learn how to do that,’ you can. It’s as interactive as people want it to be.”

Yoder said he uses an ingredient called “salsify” in some dishes.

“[It’s] a root vegetable Thomas Jefferson called ‘oyster root.’ It has a similar texture to cooked oysters when it’s cooked. He grew it [at Monticello].”

Yoder said he also makes some dishes similar to what Jefferson and his 18th- and 19th-century cohorts might have eaten.

“We definitely use similar ingredients, because that’s what’s still growing around here,” he explained.

Jane Hoagland, Epitourean’s manager of culinary travel, developed “A Savory Indulgence” about three years ago, in cooperation with the Clifton Inn. She said Epitourean’s packages are “100 percent customizable and created individually for the customer’s preferences.”

The Clifton’s website also lists “stay enhancements” that can be arranged through the hotel, among them a visit with Thomas Jefferson, portrayed by historical interpreter Steve Edenbo: “Mr. Jefferson … will spend up to four hours with you, either touring the grounds of [the University of Virginia] or sharing a conversation over a cup of tea or dinner at the Clifton.”

The price of this virtual date with history is “upon request,” but a similar-sounding encounter with President James Monroe runs $595.

Epitourean’s tour package—available year-round, depending on hotel availability —is $1,558 for two. When asked about its suitability for children, Hoagland said, “There really isn’t much for kids to do at the inn and there are no rooms that accommodate triple occupancy.”

Since they started offering the package two years ago, Hoagland said they’ve received inquiries about it from all over the U.S. and Canada, and several people have booked the culinary getaway. When asked about their response, she said, “Customers have raved about the property.”

Perhaps a Washington Post reporter put it best in 2006, when writing about a stay at the Clifton Inn: “… At the Clifton, you feel like a guest at the weekend place of some rich guy, without the rich guy.”

Far to the west, the town of Abingdon has starting hosting “Taste of Town” trolley tours as part of its “Rooted in Appalachia” branding initiative. Sara Cardinale, a former farmers market manager who now works as director of community relations for the William King Museum, is heading up the project.

Cardinale said she’d been on food tours in Ohio and Georgia and thought, “We should do something here.” Using the trolleys, something the town already had, “made sense,” she said, and a lot of the town’s restaurants are of the farm-to-table variety, using local foods.

Trolley tours cost $35 to $40 and visit four or five small, locally-owned restaurants. The tours, which started last fall on a trial basis with locals, are offered every other month, sometimes more frequently, and group tours can be arranged.

Abingdon is “really unique,” Cardinale said. “It’s a small town, but we definitely have a big farmers market and the farmers are really proactive and fairly well known in the state and region. A lot of independent restaurants are using local foods and doing really unique things. It’s a really cool place.”

For her part, Talmadge-Anderson, whose job takes her across the Commonwealth, said she feels like she’s on “one big culinary tour. … I get to travel across Virginia and visit places that are destined to become famous on the food scene.”

She added, “Virginia is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the great interest in food and local drinks, because every region of the state has something special to offer. Each region has its own flavor and you can find craft wineries, breweries and cideries in every corner of the Commonwealth.”

Talmadge-Anderson she has made a career of promoting the Commonwealth, and she makes quite a case for why she enjoys her job, particularly the part that promotes the vast array of culinary and liquid options available across Virginia—making the state a true haven for food lovers.

“Virginia has things that no other state can claim, including seven different oyster-growing regions, fresh coastal seafood, 230 wineries, nearly 50 craft breweries and close to a dozen hard cideries,” she said. “Add in regional favorites, from peanut soup to Virginia ham to Hanover tomatoes, and you have a foodie’s dream.”

Link Up to a Food Tour

A Savory Indulgence—Jefferson Style

www.epitourean.com

A culinary experience at the Clifton Inn, once home of Thomas Jefferson’s daughter.

Coastal Food Tours

www.coastalfoodtours.com

Harvest Feast Food Tour and others, showcasing the Virginia coast and its distinctive food offerings.

DC Metro Food Tours

www.dcmetrofoodtours.com

Food tours in Old Town Alexandria, Historic Leesburg and various Washington, D.C., locations.

Real Richmond Food Tours

www.realrichmondva.com

Walking food tours with themes, including a Lincoln tour, “Butchers, Bakers & Beyond,” “Church Hill: From Pies to Spies” and others.

The Clifton Inn

www.cliftoninn.net

‘Taste of Town’ Trolley Tour

www.rootedinappalachia.com

A trolley tour visits farm-to-table restaurants in Abingdon, Va.

Taste of Williamsburg

www.tasteofwilliamsburg.com

Food tours in and around Colonial Williamsburg.

There was a time when Thomas Jefferson’s quote about Lynchburg would have made Jennifer Kennedy laugh. But now, as the Community Market manager, she uses it as a battle cry when addressing other city employees about the market’s upcoming 230th anniversary.

It’s perhaps the Hill City’s oldest relics, predating the City of Lynchburg itself by three years. At 230 years old, the age of the Lynchburg Community Market also makes it only seven years younger than the United States of America.

Some even say that the market, originally located on 9th Street (then called Water Street), was a major factor behind Lynchburg’s incorporation back in 1786, as it was not only the epicenter for Lynchburg trade and commerce, but was also served as somewhat of a town square—a place where people came to hear political speeches and connect with their friends, many of whom were the ones grew the food they ate.

It was a place for interaction, for community. So, what happened? Kennedy isn’t sure. To some extent, she thinks shopping malls had something to do with the relegation of the market to a quaint activity for the weekend, but in recent years, another shift is occurring.

“I used to think of downtown as dark, desolate streets with absolutely no activity,” Kennedy said. “But we have some locals and out-of-towners who have, for some reason, decided to really invest in Lynchburg.

“I wanted to be part of that. I was really happy to get that job at the market because it really allows me to be a part of a revitalization of my own town. I probably never would have anticipated that growing up,” she said.

‘Everything tells a story’

What Kennedy has become through her job is a part of the story of Lynchburg. In her position as the market manager, she not only has the opportunity to step into the stream of a 230-year-old market and direct its course (while preserving its roots, she added), but she’s become more intimate with the place where she grew up, its people and its flavors.

“Everything tells a story. It’s not just a simple bottle of wine or a simple head of romaine. There’s a story and a life and a heartbeat behind it,” she said.

The narrative and relational aspect is what Kennedy believes has made the Community Market such a long-lasting force in Lynchburg, and also what she thinks is the cause for more and more people being drawn to it.

Kennedy says the market, historically and today, is all about relationships—the relationships of people who shop there and see each other week after week, the relationships between the farmers and market-goers. That part of the market has never changed. It still serves locally-grown, organic food; still has local crafters and businesses that provide top-notch breads and cheeses. But Kennedy has made a couple of changes since she started as the market’s manager.

“There are certain things that have been the same way for generations, and I didn’t want to touch that,” she said. “But my goal has always been to enhance the [Community Market] experience through bringing in farmers and artists that are offering diversity.”

What it really comes down to, she said, is perception. There is a perception out there—albeit a diminishing one—that the market has nothing to offer but some assorted produce items and knitted crafts, but that’s simply not the case.

“The market hits all the senses,” Kennedy said. “It hits the smell, the sight, the taste, the sound. … I don’t want people to think that you can come to the market for only one thing.

“We have the cheese shop, a bakery. You can come and hang out with your friends, hear some music. I would argue that there’s nothing out there that’s more of the true Lynchburg experience than the Community Market. … People come here to take a piece of Lynchburg home with them.”

The main event

On June 1, from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Community Market will host its official 230th anniversary “Old as Dirt” celebration, which aims to honor what began as the economic powerhouse that arguably served as the soil from whence our city grew. Come expecting to see livestock, leather trade, old photographs of the market, crafters from the crafter’s gallery demonstrating how they do what they do and farmers talking about their produce.

“We’ll be—kind of—recreating, since inception, the kinds of things you might have seen at the Community Market,” Kennedy said. “It will be a snapshot of what it was, while also paying homage to what is there now. All of the crafters and artists will be demonstrating in their booth spaces, from the person who wraps jewelry to the person who does the knitting to the person who does the sketching.”

There will also be live music throughout the day that will begin with old-timey bluegrass and eventually lead up to the more modern music that is usually heard at the market.

The idea is to offer a scenario where people can take in everything there is to experience about the market, while also experiencing somewhat of what it used to be like. Kennedy hopes the event will also create a space for people to talk and “go over memories that they might have of the market,” since the market has meant very different but very specific things to different demographics.

“People come to actually have a conversation with the hands that cultivated the food that they will go home and prepare and eat. … That’s something you can’t get [at big grocery stores],” Kennedy said. “That’s why the market has been around for 230 years. That why there are still farmers here 230 years later. Internet and plazas might have come along—things that were supposed to take away from community markets—but ours is still here. We might interact differently, but some things never change. We meet our neighbors. We talk to farmers and buy food for the week. You can buy household goods—the same interactions people have had over 230 years. And that’s pretty amazing.”

One step further

One of Kennedy’s main goals for the future of the Lynchburg Community Market is to urge people to be more mindful of where things come from, to learn the plight of the tomato and the journey it takes from the soil to your sandwich.

“You can mindlessly eat,” she said. “You can mindlessly shop. But you get what you give.”

To help with what she sees is a major deficit in the psyche of the modern consumer, the market is slated to host Demonstration Kitchens every Saturday morning, where local chefs and dieticians will show people how they can cook using the local ingredients that can be purchased at the market. Sometimes, it might even be the very people who are growing the food.

The Demonstration Kitchen will be free, but will serve as a springboard for the Community Kitchen, where the same demonstrators will offer more in-depth classes to the public, such as how to can food in order to preserve what you buy at the market to make it last throughout the year.

“It’s awesome to offer local ingredients,” Kennedy said, “but we want to take it one step further by educating people. The classes will show where [the food] came from and what to do with it.”

For more about cooking classes currently being offered around the Hill City, click on the Taste section.

The Lynchburg Community Market may have changed location and form over the past 230 years, but many of the fundamental factors have remained the same, including the most important ones that keep shoppers engaged and coming back—face-to-face contact and the building of relationships.

“Despite how fast the world is growing and how everything is at our fingertips, one thing is still important. It’s those relationships,” Kennedy said. “As we stray further from that, a place like the market is so important because you still have that place where you can go and tangibly be connected to something.”

A brief history of the Lynchburg Community Market:

• Started in 1783, it is the third oldest continuous running market in the U.S.
• The City of Lynchburg was incorporated in 1786, and it is believed that the market served as a catalyst for the city’s formation
• Began as an open air market on Water Street (now 9th Street), the market remained in that location until 1814, when it was rebuilt in the middle of 9th Street to accommodate population growth and the market’s popularity
• In 1872, the market was rebuilt in between 11th and 12th Streets
• The Lynchburg Community Market relocated to its current location in 1932
• The market was once an open-air market that cars could pull through to pick up goods until the space was enclosed in 1987

Beginning April 27, Paper Hope, a local company dedicated to aiding efforts to end sexual injustice around the world, will offer Mother’s Day cards for sale at Bloop Frozen Yogurt on Wards Road in Lynchburg. Cards sell for $20 and act as a donation in honor of mothers who receive them. The proceeds from each card will go towards organizations helping women and girls escape human trafficking and prostitution, including Gospel for Asia’s Red-Light Outreach and Freedom 4/24′s project to building a rescue home in Uganda.

Lynchburg couple, Tim and Sarah Gosnell, started Paper Hope after a trip to Nicaragua in 2010, where they met and heard the stories of girls who had been rescued from forced prostitution. They saw the need to raise awareness and fund this important work, so Paper Hope was born.

Last year, Paper Hope’s Mother’s Day project raised over $6,000. This year, Paper Hope wants to continue this effort in order to raise awareness and money to provide for the physical and spiritual needs of children and families who are being offered a new life. For more information about Paper Hope, visit www.paperhope.org.

NEW VISTAS SCHOOL PRESENTS ANNUAL SPRING FUNDRAISER, “THE FEAST”

On May 11, New Vistas School will host its annual spring fundraiser “The Finger-Licking Feast,” which will take place at Mountain Run Farm in Sedalia. Better known as “The Feast,” this event has proven to be the largest fundraiser for New Vistas, annually raising more than $50,000. Tickets for the event cost $75 per person and include unlimited food and drink. Proceeds benefit New Vistas School.

This special event offers live music by The Skyler McCurley Band, delicious food, a scenic setting and both a silent art auction and a live auction. Food will be prepared by “Cookin’ Fools,” Buzzy Coleman, William Davis, George Dawson, John Flippin, Scott Garrett and Marc Schewel, among others. A live auction will feature vacation lodgings, gourmet dinners, sports tickets and more. A silent auction will feature work from numerous area artists.

Founded in Lynchburg in 1986, New Vistas School is a private, nonprofit day school offering an individualized instructional program for students with learning and attention difficulties, kindergarten through grade twelve. To order tickets, call (434) 846-0301 or visit www.newvistasschool.org/feast.html.

INTERNATIONAL DJ FESTIVAL COMING TO RIVERFRONT FESTIVAL PARK

The inaugural International DJ Festival hopes to strike a chord at Riverfront Festival Park in downtown Lynchburg on June 1. Hosted by MG Productions, in collaboration with the Lynchburg Radio Group and other sponsors, this event is anticipated to bring hundreds of visitors to downtown Lynchburg to enjoy performances by two renowned DJs from France and Haiti, as well as local artists and musicians from around the U.S.

For more information, visit www.internationaldjfestival.com, www.idjfest.com or Facebook at www.facebook.com/IDJFest.

DONUT DAY AT OLD CITY CEMETERY

In honor of National Donut Day on June 7, Old City Cemetery in Lynchburg is giving out free donuts and tours of the Stapleton Station House, as they honor the women who served donuts to soldiers during World War I. The Open House of the Station House, featuring items from WWI, is from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

National Donut Day is born out of an event that took place during World War I, when approximately 250 Salvation Army volunteers provided assistance to American soldiers fighting on the front lines in France, starting in 1917. As the young soldiers faced physical and emotional peril amidst the fighting, female Salvation Army officers Ensign Margaret Sheldon and Adjutant Helen Purviance had the idea to comfort them with good home cooking, using their limited ingredients to fry up delicious doughnuts in helmets for the boys.

These women, nicknamed “Doughnut Lassies” and “Doughnut Girls,” served countless treats to grateful soldiers, traversing through the trenches to bring the men doughnuts and coffee. The doughnuts became an instant hit that was brought back to America by returning “doughboys.”

The Salvation Army celebrated the first National Doughnut Day in 1938 in the city of Chicago as a way to honor Salvation Army “doughnut lassies” from World War I. They started the day as a way to raise funds and bring awareness to the Army’s social service programs during the Great Depression.

For more information about Old City Cemetery’s event, visit www.gravegarden.org. For more tasty donut and pastry options from around the area, click on the “Look What I Found” link.

MADE IN THE SHADE CRAFT BEER FESTIVAL KICKS OFF AT AVOCA MUSEUM

Guests will raise a glass at the inaugural Made in the Shade Craft Beer Festival at Avoca Museum on June 22 from Noon to 6 p.m. The festival will feature craft and domestic beers focusing on those from Virginia. Wine from Molliver’s Vineyards will also be for sale.  Tasting tickets will be $15 presale and $18 at the door, with six coupons for tasting included.

Live music performance from Michelle Motley and Diamond Back as well as Leslie Brooks and Second Wind will be featured throughout the day. Food and the annual Avoca bake sale will be on hand, as well as vendors selling items ranging from jewelry to soaps, dip mixes and more.

Tickets are available at the Avoca Museum and Millers Jewelry in Altavista, and through the Lynch Station Ruritan Club.  For more information or to volunteer, contact (434) 369-1076 or educationoffice@embarqmail.com.

LYNCHBURG RECEIVES VIRGINIA MAIN STREET MILESTONE AWARDS

Lynch’s Landing Foundation and the City of Lynchburg have received Virginia Main Street Milestone Achievement Awards for the contribution of over 90,000 volunteer hours dedicated to downtown revitalization and for creating a climate that has encouraged more than $100 million in private investment in the city’s historic commercial district. The awards were presented at Richmond’s historic Hippodrome Theater on March 22.

“Our mission is to create a climate for investment in downtown Lynchburg,” Anna Bentson, executive director of Lynch’s Landing, said. “We are proud that the revitalization efforts over the years are celebrated and confirmed with the dedication of both time and money to make downtown Lynchburg a vital economic, cultural, historic, recreational and residential center for our community.”

The Virginia Main Street program, managed by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, provides assistance and training to help communities increase the economic vitality of their downtown commercial districts. The program helps communities implement a comprehensive revitalization strategy that creates economic growth and pride in downtowns. For more information, visit www.dhcd.virginia.gov/MainStreet.

LIBERTY UNIVERSITY PLEDGES $500,000 MATCHING GIFT TO THE ACADEMY OF FINE ARTS’ THEATRE RESTORATION

The Academy of Fine Arts and Liberty University have announced an initial $500,000 matching gift from the university to the restoration of the historic Academy of Music Theatre in downtown Lynchburg, in response to the campaign announced by the Academy in March to raise the $16.6 million needed to restore the theatre.

“Liberty University actually took ownership of this theater in 1986 and had planned to restore it,” Jerry Falwell, Jr., Liberty University Chancellor, said. “Circumstances prevented us from completing the project in those days but we are thrilled to contribute now to a theater that will greatly enrich the cultural experience of both our students and the citizens of the Lynchburg area.”

The fundraising campaign will result in construction to restore the Academy of Music Theatre and to build a two-story connector between the theatre and the administration building next door that will expand lobby, gallery, concession and meeting spaces.

“This matching gift will go a long way in helping the Academy reach its $16.6 million fundraising goal,” David Jenkins, Executive Director of the Academy of Fine Arts, said. “It sends the message that the top leaders in this community recognize the importance of this restoration project to Lynchburg and the region. With the generous matching support this will trigger from our donors, this $500,000 will become $1 million.”

Once reopened, Jenkins says the newly restored state-of-the-art Academy of Fine Arts will be the anchor to Lynchburg’s revitalized historic downtown and a catalyst for continuing economic prosperity. For more information, visit www.academyfinearts.com.