Saved by a San Juan Worm

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By Doug Humphreys

It’s called a San Juan worm, and it saved my life. Okay, that’s a bit much. It didn’t really save my life. It did, however, save me from a life without fly fishing.

When I was ten years old I got my first fly rod. In our backyard swimming pool I practiced standard, false, and roll casts until L.L. Bean himself would have asked for tips. I learned the Albright Knot, the Nail Knot, and the Improved Clinch Knot. I asked for flies for my birthday and Christmas, and in no time had a fly box full of dries, streamers, bead heads, and poppers.

I terrorized bluegill in the ponds around my neighborhood. I could lay a brightly colored popper beneath any tangle of branches, then with a flick of the wrist create a splash that no panfish could resist.

When I was twelve, my family went on vacation to The Homestead in Virginia. There are a million reasons a person might want to go to The Homestead, but I cared about only one. On the property was a private trout stream, and I’d be able to fish it.

The first morning I walked the trail to a pool that looked promising, and rolled the perfect cast, laying a dry in just the right spot. Nothing. I spent two days casting dries and bead heads to no avail. Late in the afternoon on the second day, I tied on the biggest streamer I had, let it sink to the bottom of a pool, and pulled it through as fast as I could.

I got a hit; then my rod started to jump. When I flopped the fish onto shore, my heart sank. The hook was firmly lodged in a gill. I hadn’t caught the fish, I’d snagged it. It was an accident. But snagging a fish is number one on the list of fly fishermen don’ts. I felt sick.

I set out on a quest to catch a trout with my fly rod, with a fly, the right way. Through junior high and high school I fished the town run in Shepherds-town. I fished the Opequon. I fished private streams made public during trout stocking season. Nothing.

At Penn State I fished with the fly fishing club in both stocked and native streams. Four years of fishing with guys who knew what they were doing produced nothing. By the time I graduated I figured that fish I’d snagged as a twelve-year-old had applied a permanent and unbreakable curse to my fly fishing. I gave up.

Fast forward almost 20 years. While planning a hunting trip to Wyoming I noticed a high mountain stream near our camp site. I called a local fly shop and asked if it had trout. It did, cutthroat.

I decided to blow the dust off my fly rod. After all, one can’t go all the way to Wyoming, camp right next to a trout stream, and not wet a fly. I restocked my box with the flies recommended by the fly shop. A few dries, a few bead heads …  and the San Juan worm.

My first spot required a roll cast. It was pathetic. I moved to a spot that allowed a standard cast. It wasn’t great, but it landed the bright red worm in the current. Immediately there was a splash. My rod jumped as I pulled the line. When I landed the fish, I found the hook neatly set in the corner of the mouth. The curse was broken, thanks to the San Juan worm.

I know that I’ll never be a fly fisherman. To call myself one would be an insult to those science-minded artisans who can match the hatch then float a fly like magic to a place where a trout can’t help but strike at it. But I will forever enjoy my place as a wannabe.

For those who want to be a wannabe like me, or those who think they may have what it takes to be the real deal, start with a visit to a fly shop. You could do worse than the White Fly in Shepherdstown—but most shops can get you what you need.

Fly fishing is a sport where a mentor is a must. If you don’t know a mentor, develop one in a fly shop. Tackle, cast techniques, flies, knots, tips on where to go, advice on what to wear—there is much to learn, and you’ll need help.

When you are ready, you can chase stocked trout in the Opequon and smallmouth in the Potomac. Next you can make the trip to Seneca Rocks, W.Va., and fish the North Fork of the South Branch of the Potomac, chasing trout in the shadow of our home state mountains. Finally, when you are really up for some fun, you can follow a mountain stream and fish for natives—an endeavor that will drive you mad or make your month.

My one suggestion: whatever you do, don’t forget the San Juan worm.

Growing Up From Tyke To Trike

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By Samantha Piggott

Want to meet a cool cat in Berryville? Head on down to Kenny’s Auto and Trike on Buckmarsh Street. Kenny has been turning wrenches for 40 years. His first Craftsman tool set came under the tree at Christmas when he was 7 years old. He proceeded to use it to build himself a mini motorbike at 8.

Growing up, Kenny’s family didn’t have a lot of extra money; he saw all his friends in the neighborhood getting mini bikes and other cool toys. He figured out young that if he wanted to keep up he would have to start building his toys himself. And he hasn’t stopped yet. As a matter of fact Kenny will tell you proudly that he still has most of the tools from that first Craftsman set. That is not surprising considering the immaculate condition of Kenny’s shop. There is not a tool out of place or a puddle of oil to be trod through.

Trikes have been growing in popularity. The baby-boomer crowd loves the idea of a motorcycle with the stability of three wheels. For Kenny the trike journey began about eight years ago when his wife wanted to start riding motorcycles. She, however, had been in a car accident, so a traditional bike just wasn’t an option. So Kenny researched every conversion package he could find. It took a while to land on DFT conversion sets. After converting a bike for his wife to enjoy, he was so impressed with the quality and intrigued with the process that he knew this was a brand he could represent.

He explains there are  differences between a stock model trike and a conversion. “Our conversions have an independent rear suspension; they are more comfortable to ride, and offer better handling,: Kenny explains. “The store bought trikes are a straight axel. There’s a huge difference.”

According to Kenny, not every bike is trikable—yes, that’s a technical term. Only certain models will do, and it’s not possible to convert a sport or racing-style bike. The conversion process takes about three weeks start to finish.

Kenny’s doesn’t just do trikes. Kenny himself is an ASE Master Technician for autos, trucks and heavy-duty trucks. With his two full-sized lifts he has plenty of working room in the main garage for cars and trucks. On the day I visited, Kenny’s team was rebuilding the rear end of a Chevy 2500 truck. The shop handles all types of jobs, suspension and lift kits to air-conditioning or replacing engines and transmission. Kenny’s uses Jasper engines and transmissions because they have a great reputation and he has had a lot of success with them.

Why go to Kenny’s? His no nonsense professional approach, “I tell it the way it is. I don’t sugar coat it,” he says, adding, “We get the work done, and we get you back on the road.”

Switching Off

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By Steve Chase

I recently took a road trip to northern Maine, where I skipped off the grid for five days. It’s something I try to do at least once a year. While I don’t like to be out of contact with my family, or miss anything special on the continuous news ticker that the Internet provides, I find this disconnection is a good thing, an exercise in mindfulness and living in the moment, important medicine for our hectic, Internet-connected lives. Who wouldn’t want replacement media that might include the sound of loons, the smell of a campfire, or a melody of a mandolin drifting through the campsite?

On the drive up we had some great music—I had made a couple of playlists, pulled some concerts off my database, and had the entire catalog of Spotify for more random selections. As we drove into the woods in a different vehicle, there was no way to play music, so I sent one last text home, and then watched the signal strength on my phone drop from a few bars to “no signal”, and I powered it off, as it was no longer needed.

Last September, as I drove back from another fishing trip, I heard an interview with Grist.org blogger David Roberts about an article he wrote for Outside Magazine called “Reboot or Die Trying” (www.outsideonline.com/1926796/reboot-or-die-trying). In the piece, Roberts was putting in 12 hours or more of screen time a day, writing, tweeting, researching and checking and responding to email. He said: “My mind was perpetually in the state that researcher and technology writer Linda Stone termed continuous partial attention. I was never completely where I was, never entirely doing what I was doing.”

Roberts decided to break away from the screens for a whole year, and he found a liberation that many of us from pre-Internet times don’t remember today. After a year, he dove back into the screens, but made a few rules that helped provide balance, like taking 15-minutes off the screens every two-hours, or using the app Freedom (http://macfreedom.com) that blocks the Internet on your devices to allow for some real concentration.

Of course, my few days on Churchill Lake, disconnected from the Internet, were but a token gesture compared to Robert’s experience. On our trip we focused on living in camp, during almost continuous rain. I really did not miss being connected—the camp chores, cooking, and fishing kept us busy. Sitting around a campfire with friends after a good dinner—social networking—beats reading my Twitter feed or hearing that blasted email chime any day.

I’m not ready for a year offline right now. I have to use the Internet for a number of reasons, my work being the highest priority, but we can all take a little break from the screens and practice some focus on whatever we might be doing even in this media soaked, online-intensive culture. And listening to music qualifies in my book as taking a break—sitting and listening to Copland’s Symphony No. 3 or Jethro Tull’s Thick as a Brick in their entirety can be a great way to focus, and relax. One warning, before entering the wilds, always make sure the music from your last hour in the car is carefully chosen, as these tunes will be the soundtrack in your head for your entire trip. You don’t want to be humming Wagon Wheel for five days, do you?

My Fusion Guitar Picks

This month’s playlist is my fusion variation on a list I recently saw on the best jazz guitar albums of all time. While some of my favorites, like Pat Metheny and John Abercrombie are on ECM records, a label that has walked away from any music streaming services, preferring download sites like ITunes or www.gubemusic.com/, this Spotify list has some remarkable material to listen to. Listen here: http://playlists.net/epolyphony-jazz-fusion-guitar-selections .

Woodchuck Rappin’

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How much wood woulda woodchuck chuck

If a woodchuck would

Chuck wood?

 

I wanna know shoulda Wood-duck duck

If a Chuck chuck wood

At a Wood-duck?

 

Chuckwood at a skunk and a stinkin’ Skunk stunk,

Chuckwood at a Mink.

Would da Mink stink?

 

Chuck dat shuck ‘bout wood-chuckin Woodchuck!

Woodchuck won’t

Chuck wood!

 

Whole peck a wood would a Woodpecka peck.

Woodpecka would

Peck wood!

 

Crawdad kid call a Crawdad Dad,

Do a Crawdad call his ma,

Craw-Ma?

 

Crow cram a Crawdad down a baby Crow craw!

With a crawdad in his craw,

Could a Crow caw?

 

Stickin’ on a stick by three sticky toe

Throat throbbin’ three-toed

Tree-toad!

 

Toad-stick stickin out a pawpaw tree

Tree-treadin’, pawpawin’

Tree-toad.

 

Do a Possum paw a pawpaw out another Possum paw,

When a Possum paw a pawpaw

With his paw?

 

Would a Possum paw pinch by a steel snap-trap

Make a Possum pause

‘Cause his paw’s raw?

 

Tuckered out hearin’ about Wood-duck, Skunk stunk,

Woodpecka, Tree-toad,

Mink-stink?

 

Enuffa dat stuff about Possum with a paw-paw,

Crawdad, Crow-craw,

Craw-Ma!

 

— Doug Pifer

The Benefits of a Sense of Control

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By Karen Cifala

We all know that losing control is a part of the aging process. Whether they are physical or mental or social losses, they all affect our ability to function independently and put our freedoms at jeopardy. Whether we are watching our parents age or are aging ourselves, we wonder, “What can I expect and how will I handle the changes?”

You might already be experiencing some of the physical and mental changes that age brings such as:

Vision and hearing issues,

Less ability to move easily, less flexibility, and less energy in general,

Memory problems,

Less control over emotions.

 

Social losses come with some of the physical and mental losses that limit a person’s ability to participate in social outings. As time goes on, sometimes the social losses just happen, with peers aging and friends passing on. This loss of contact or independence can be a source of great frustration or feelings of sadness or uselessness. It is common for people to feel fear, anger, guilt, or confusion with this loss of independence. For some, the expectation that aging family members and friends may not always be available is scary, and it’s hard to imagine how they will manage on their own. Others might take their anger out on loved ones; still others feel guilty for needing help and don’t want to be considered a burden.

Your attitude about aging has a huge influence on the outcome. Highly influential are childhood experiences and observations of parents’ and grandparents’ attitudes and approaches to aging, as well as their mastery of or failures with life experiences. Research results show that adults later in life who feel a high sense of control tend to be better off in areas of health and well-being. Those who feel a lower sense of control may be at greater risk for depression and anxiety, and may practice fewer healthful behaviors like exercise and good nutrition.

The notion that one can “take control” over the aging process is widespread today. The key message is that although our aging is greatly influenced by our genetics, a large component is determined by our lifestyle choices and behaviors. There is a link between having “a sense of control” and better health, and it has been proven in beneficial health-related behaviors like physical and mental exercises.

A “sense of control” occupies a pivotal role throughout your life, and can affect your behaviors. Having set goals as to how you want to age in place, as well as having “The Talk” with your family, is part of being in control. Research shows that if you believe you are in control over the outcomes there is better reported health, with fewer and less severe symptoms and faster recoveries. On the flip side, though, if you were in an institutionalized setting like a nursing home, relinquishing control might be less frustrating, and can simplify adaptation for those with reduced capacities.

Adjusting as the events occur greatly depends on your attitude about relying on others, and may be an indicator of how you adjust later in the aging process. Some people much prefer to manage without help when they can. Accepting help from family members can be difficult. From personal experience, it seems there is always one family member who will be challenging. An article I read said, “Often well-intentioned children end up with a power struggle between themselves.” So true! And even “well-meaning” relatives or siblings might unintentionally intimidate others by trying to assume control of the situation to “help.” As you grow older, you might be surprised at how your attitude might change about accepting help. People who adapt to accepting help will have more chances to build new and positive experiences.

A word of good advice: If one of your parents is still capable of making decisions, you need to let her/him be in control. Like it or not, that’s the way it is. If they ask for help, give suggestions and let the final decision be theirs. The key here is “help,” as in,  you are helping but you are not the one in control. You may also need to look for an unbiased opinion like an elder-care manager or an elder-care attorney.

Suggestions for coping with your loss of independence:

Be Patient. Acknowledge your loss and how it is affecting your life.

Practice Self-Acceptance. Frustration at the loss of independence is natural: it is not a sign of personal failure.

Recognize Your Feelings. Don’t put yourself down when you feel sad and frustrated.

Remain Open. Keep an open mind and discuss suggestions from others to make your life easier.

Pursue New experiences. Try a new activity or a new hobby that you can physically or mentally do

Stay Connected. In whatever way you can with friends, family, church, and neighbors.

Volunteer. Volunteering keeps you intellectually and socially stimulated and makes you feel useful.

Seek Help. If your quality of life is diminishing, seek help from your most trusted family or friends and make sure you are part of the decision process.

Accept Help. Others may feel good about helping you find the right balance between accepting and living independently.

Much research has been done on the psychology of aging, and has established that expectations make a difference, and a sense of control is extremely important. There is a delicate balance between knowing when to persist and when to switch gears. And though some things are not in our control, we are fortunate that there are lots of people and organizations prepared to support us as we age.

 

Karen Cifala is a SRES Realtor for Remax Roots in Berryville. She specializes in working with aging adults transitioning into retirement. She would love to hear from you and can be reached at 303-817-9374 or email her at kcifala@gmail.com.

From the Tree to Your Table

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By Claire Stuart

We hear about fresh local food coming from the farm to your table, but have you ever thought about your table coming to you from a local tree? Woodworker Ron Light can show you how it is done. At his home workshop in Boyce, lengths of locally cut logs and stacks of newly milled lumber are waiting to be transformed into hand-made, solid wood tables, chairs and cabinetry.

Light retired in 2011 as a colonel with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. After 30 years of rootlessness, he and his wife have made their home in Clarke County, with his longtime hobby of woodworking as a new career.

He has literally put down roots, too, planting his 24 acres with 2,200 hardwood trees, including sugar maple, white and red oak, locust and walnut. He doesn’t expect to be building furniture from the newly-planted trees, since most of them probably will not be ready to harvest in his lifetime. Light sees the trees as an investment for the future of his family and the planet, protecting the soil from erosion, providing a carbon sink, and helping mediate climate change. Trained as an environmental engineer, he is well aware of environmental matters.

The tree planting was no small feat. What had been pasture fields were disked to break up grass mats and destroy habitat of voles (also known as meadow mice) that live in fields and can kill trees by eating the bark at ground level. Then the trees were planted 20 feet apart on a planned grid.

Each tree was planted by hand, with eight workers camping out on the property and planting steadily for two days. Every seedling is enclosed in a shelter tube held in place by a metal stake that had to be driven in by hand. Light noted that the stakes are on the north side of each seedling so that the shelter will never shadow the growing tree as the position of the sun changes.

Much of the wood Light uses for furniture is obtained locally from people with fallen trees or who want trees removed from their property for various reasons. He does not charge for removing trees of the size required for his use.

“If it’s not near a structure or a power line, we fell it,” he said.

In order to be used for lumber, a log must have a diameter of at least 12 inches. That is essential because a log has to be trimmed on four sides to provide a central square that can be milled into eight-inch boards. The trimmings are considered waste and would generally be discarded. Ever mindful of his environmental footprint, Light uses scraps for fence boards or as firewood in his own home.

The logs are cut into eight-foot-six-inch lengths because, he explained, most furniture is less than eight feet high or long. They are then milled into boards that must be dried.

“Milled lumber is 50 percent water,” he explained.

Commercial lumber is dried in kilns to cook out the water, a process that takes about a week. Light air-dries his lumber, which takes a year for every inch of thickness. Stacks of dated boards in various stages of drying fill his drying shed. Dividers separate each board from its neighbors in the stack to allow air flow and prevent bending.

Over the course of a year, all lumber oxidizes to a gray color. When it is ready to be used, it is planed off to make it smooth and restore its color. Boards are milled down to 3/4 inch to get them flat.

“It takes lots of effort to get boards flat and usable,” says Light.

Light’s specialty is solid wood Colonial furniture, but he says he will do anything that a client requests. He notes that the public’s taste in furniture changes over the years, but he reports that he likes Colonial best because he thinks it is timeless. He particularly likes the curved legs of this style. He pointed out a table with “spoon feet” and said that no other woodworker in the area makes them.

Several Windsor pieces are on display in his showroom. He explained that they are made of three different kinds of wood. The spindles and legs are made from maple for strength; the back and arm rests from red oak because it can be bent; and the seat from poplar or pine because it is easy to shape.

Light does a few shows per year and is presently working from orders. He enjoys working at his own pace so that he can continue to enjoy his work without being overwhelmed.

Light’s friend Russell “Rusty” Sears, a fellow retired colonel from the Corp of Engineers, also settled in the area, and they have logged trees together since 2011. Until this year, Light had to haul his logs off premises to a sawyer to be milled. Sears, who operates Red Jack Farm and Mill, bought a portable sawmill, and Light was his first customer. The mill is trailer-mounted; Light describes it as “about the size of a bass boat.” All of the sawdust generated goes to Sears’ farm for bedding for his organically-raised chickens and turkeys.

For a look at Light’s work and more information, visit lighthousewoodworking.com.

Becoming a Montessori Mom

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By Victoria L. Kidd

It’s morning, and Berryville resident Kim Lynch is getting her daughter Allie ready for school. Much of their morning will be like that of  other Clarke County families, but they will end up at a school unlike any other in the area. Allie is a student at Winchester Montessori School (WMS) just over the county line on Parkins Mill Road. It’s a school that operates by applying the Montessori Approach to learning, and it has been doing so since 1977.

The Montessori method is often misunderstood, explains administrator Jennifer Sheehy. “Montessori is an approach to education that was developed at the beginning of the 20th century, but it’s still very relevant today. It utilizes the natural learning style of children, and allows students to be active participants in choosing their work in a specifically designed classroom environment.”

That environment—termed as the “prepared environment” in Montessori circles—is designed to provide the child freedom within a definite structure. “The child is allowed to choose work, but is not free not to choose,” Sheehy explains to dispel the myth that there is no structure to a Montessori student’s day. “The teacher is always a few steps away, monitoring the student and encouraging them to explore learning in a way that is natural for their inquisitive selves.”

Those choices occur within the context of the five basic areas of the prepared environment offered to them. These areas include practical life, sensorial, language, math, and cultural activities. The practical life area, for example, includes materials that allow the child to become independent and responsible for himself in the surrounding environment. (Activities in this area include dressing skills and other self-care tasks.) By contrast, the sensorial area helps students create order internally while making sense of the impressions he or she receives. (Accordingly, the student will work extensively with color, pitch, and dimension.)

Every detail of the environment at the WMS, and other Montessori schools across the country, is specifically designed to capitalize on the natural way children learn. It’s the way the Montessori philosophy—which we have only briefly introduced here, as there is much more to it—focuses on the student that attracted Lynch to the school.

“My husband and I researched many learning methods and schools before choosing WMS,” she says. “We wanted an educational environment that would deliver high standards of learning while, at the same time, be kind and loving to our daughter. We wanted a school that would impart the love of learning upon Allie, so that education was something she valued for a lifetime. And we wanted a school that partnered with us in helping to instill values, kindness, and empathy for those around her, as well as a knowledge and respect for the world we live in. We were fortunate enough to find that in Winchester Montessori School.”

One thing many Montessori parents like Lynch will tell you is that their children enjoy going to school. Such was the case with Sheehy’s children, and that is what got her started on a path that would eventually change the course of her career. “My kids were members of the first class when the doors opened in 1977,” she explains. “My daughter was only two, and there were only eight kids in the class that first year. I remember that she would wake up each day asking, ‘Is today a school day.’ That really made me realize that there was something special here. By the end of that first year, I wanted to learn more and wanted to share that ‘something special’ with other parents and their kids.”

The school’s founder, Mary Whitesell Horton, operated the school out of a classroom rented from Christ Episcopal Church those first few years, but increases in enrollment would force the school to seek a more suitable location in 1981. It would subsequently move to two other locations (on Weems Lane and later on Henry Avenue) before growing to a point that necessitated a truly dedicated space.

With a waiting list of over 30 children of preschool age in 1999, the time had come to think about moving to a purpose-built location. In October of 2003, WMS opened the facility at West Parkins Mill Road. The school can accommodate 125 students, although enrollment numbers vary each year. WMS deploys an instructional method that includes mixed age, three-year programs, which is designed to encourage cyclical commitment, as students are building on the skills and knowledge gained in the previous year. Older students are encouraged to assist the younger students, fostering an ability to cooperate, as well as the ability to teach/train (in the case of the older students) and the ability to learn/listen (in the case of the younger students).

“When you are able to teach something,” Sheehy says, “you really, really know it. Furthermore, the younger student learns that if you don’t understand something or if you do not have the skills to accomplish something, you should seek the input of someone who does . . . It’s really a clever means of helping kids learn to work out problems, get excited about learning from others, and use their natural curiosity to fuel learning.”

Lynch believes this foundational element of WMS’s teaching methodology has been invaluable to her daughter. “We credit WMS in helping us to impart important, fundamental knowledge and social skill sets upon our daughter,” she relays. “Allie is able to interact with concepts and ideas versus simply memorizing facts. The education model and delivery of this model, has taught Allie to think for herself and to imagine a new way to do something. Allie learns for herself, not just because she is told to do so. She is imaginative and logical, all at the same time!”

Perhaps the biggest value Lynch has seen is in the advanced life skills and confidence her daughter demonstrated even from her earliest involvement with the Montessori classroom. “WMS has helped prepare Allie for everyday life, teaching her practical skills and giving her purpose in achieving those skills. She is able to contribute to her class, her family, and the world. At three years old, Allie was able to set the table by herself, dress herself, and interact with people of all ages. Today, at age seven, she is articulate, well versed, and we are often told that Allie is special. We agree!”

Seeing the growth of each student, including Allie, is very meaningful to Sheehy and the rest of the staff. Perhaps her commitment to that individual growth is best demonstrated by the answer she gives when people ask her about what the future holds for the school. “I would love to see the classes full all the time,” she says, “but not just because of the business considerations associated with running a school. Montessori has so much to offer every child. When you have worked in the Montessori classroom for as long as I have, you see it in each student. The student is the entire focus of the learning environment. It’s about learning for life and learning for personal achievement. That’s really something special to be a part of.”

To learn more about the Winchester Montessori School (including offered before- and after-school care), visit www.winchestermontessori.com or call 540-667-1184. Sheehy, along with numerous Montessori parents whose children have been a part of the school’s classes throughout its nearly 40 years in operation, will be happy to help you see if the Montessori approach to education is right for your family.

Social Graces Gets New Home

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By Heidi Lynch

Imagine the golden pooling of afternoon sun on smoothly planed floorboards. See the glint and sparkle of crystal chandelier drops as they dangle above. Brush against the velvet folds of drapery and you have the perfect setting for . . . a traditional Native American dance? Perhaps this pairing appears incongruous at first glance, but delve a little deeper into the renovation story of Social Graces Ballroom Studio’s new location and the combination makes sense.

Freddie Ciampi, who discovered a love for dancing while in a performing arts group at college, started Social Graces 15 years ago. “It was a small scale business with only one instructor,” he says, “but there’s something magical about dance. It created its own community of friends.” Now the studio has moved to 639 E Main St, Berryville.

Community drives this studio. While Social Graces offers opportunities for competition and performance, the studio’s name announces its principal value: dance in a social setting.

“Our focus is people dealing with people, and offering students a challenge, exercise, a chance to learn,” says Ciampi. “We focus on the human condition. Students here don’t care how good you are; they care how nice you are.”

It’s no surprise, then, that this dance community has grown to include seven instructors and more than 150 students. The growing dance family is not only the driving force behind the studio’s move to a new and larger space, but also part of the work force for renovating that space. Ciampi estimates that more than 30 volunteers, all students of the studio, gave freely of their time to pour concrete, paint parking lines, and hang chandeliers.

“Why would people be so adamant about helping this business if not to contribute back?” he asks.

This giving of time and resources, this concept of contribution, is something on René White-Feather’s mind, as well. She is president of the Native American Church of Virginia and executive director of The Harvest Gathering, a 3-day celebration of Native American people and neighbors through dance, storytelling, and various social interactions. The goal behind The Gathering includes preserving and sharing traditions from generation to generation. René compares culture to a seed being planted in the ground.

“This ‘ground’ is community,” she says. “This area, this county, this state is the ground in which the seed is planted. The volunteers and organizers of The Gathering events are the planters of this seed.”

So what about those chandeliers and drapes mentioned above? How does the planting of a seed relate to a swanky ballroom? White-Feather views Social Graces’ grand opening as a preview of The Gathering. The grand opening will feature dance lessons and performances throughout the day, including the performance of a traditional Native American dance. Lenny Harmon, a local Native American Indian of the Nanticoke Lenape people, is scheduled to perform at Social Graces, allowing participants a quick glimpse into the spirit of October’s bigger event.

“Ciampi is supporting, and has caught the spirit of, The Gathering,” René says. “He is contributing of himself.”

René hopes to see more and more community embrace the seed of culture being planted. She asks, “How can you contribute of yourself? Who else has caught the spirit of The Gathering?”

The Social Graces Ballroom Studio’s Grand Opening starts Saturday, June 27 at 10am, and runs through the week. For information visit Berryvilleballroom.com or call 540-409-7136. The studio is located at 639 E Main St, Berryville.

Wanted: The Battletown Inn

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By Wendy Gooditis

Oh, Battletown Inn. I remember sunny day lunches under an umbrella on the patio, and cozy hours upstairs in the Gray Ghost Tavern on winter evenings. I remember the live music on Thursdays. And I remember the day my friend Paula and I went to the door and found it locked, with a sign that said it would reopen soon. But thus far, that has not occurred. Many people over many decades have enjoyed the hospitality and the food at the Battletown Inn, and I am not the only one missing it. It has been a fixture in Berryville as a restaurant and inn for nearly a century under one name or another, and its closing leaves a void.

My real estate team leader Chip Schutte shared a memory with me today: “Oh, I remember when I was a boy they handed you a bag of rolls as you left the restaurant, and we kids took them home and gobbled them up immediately in front of the television.” From the far-away and half-starved look in his eyes, I know those rolls must have been wonderful!

Most Clarke County residents probably know by now that Berryville was named to demonstrate how very pleased with himself Mr. Berry was when he bought the land and drew the grid of roads and whatever else one does to create a town. But the place he bought was known as Battletown (and apparently continued to be so known for years after he made it his own), probably because of the notorious recreational tavern brawls that occurred at the crossroads tavern here back in the 1700s. The Battletown Inn we have known actually started a couple of blocks down in what was then the Virginia Hotel, on the southeast corner of Main and Church streets. There is an old picture of the front of this building with the name “Battletown Inn” emblazoned across the front. The name moved over to the current location when it was bought by the erstwhile Battletown Inn proprietors in 1952.

In its current incarnation, the building is set up as a restaurant with a number of dining areas, a lounge or two, and cozy upstairs bar/pub with a few private rooms as well, and a separate building with 12 guest rooms with private baths, nine of which are finished. It has its own private parking lot, the entrance to which is between the two buildings. In recent years, the inn has been primarily a restaurant, but its history and, hopefully, its future are as a restaurant and inn combined.

According to Maral Kalbian, vice president of the Clarke County Historical Association, the building usually served as a private house and small family business before its hospitality years. It was built in the first years of the 1800s as a house for the daughter of Mr. Berry, who ran a boarding house there. It changed hands a few times and was added to periodically, but throughout much of the 19th century it housed the Showers family with their various businesses, including cabinetry and tailoring. It is said to have been a hospital during the Civil War.

One legend has it that a Confederate soldier hanged himself upstairs upon being told that his girl had married a Union soldier. It is cliché to say so, I know, but oh, the stories those walls could tell!

In 1919, the building vroomed into the modern age when the Elder family bought it and opened the doors of a new establishment for a new world: “The Sign of the Motor Car Inn.” Imagine how thrilling to have real motorcars trundling or perhaps roaring down Main Street and stopping right here in our very own town. I wonder how many buggy-drivers ran into trouble—literally—when their horses failed to grasp the concept of these frightening contraptions.

The business may have been created as a tea house, but must have become a one-stop destination for motor-fanciers, because it is listed in the 1920 version of the Automobile Blue Book, Volume 3, as a garage and service station as well as an inn. Anyway, it remained in business until the Battletown Inn took it over in the early 1950s in order to continue the tradition of excellent food in concert with nice lodgings.

Excellent food and hospitality were indeed to be had there for decades, until the recent closing of the doors. Just for fun, I searched the internet for reviews of the inn, and found nothing less than four stars and most of them closer to five. The location in Berryville seems to me to be a fine one—far enough away from the city to be a getaway, but close enough to make it an easy trip. Plus, we like our restaurants in this town, and we can use another one for sure.

The inn is currently owned by the Bernstein Family Foundation, who have been doing some repairs and painting of the property for the last several months. The kitchen is ready for an update, and the heating and cooling systems are as well, but I am assured that the two buildings are otherwise safe and sound. The signs only went up recently, and owners are asking for offers.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if it would attract the notice of a talented innkeeper with the energy and imagination to make it flourish once again? If you know of a restaurateur in need of a venue, or an innkeeper in need of an inn, spread the word. We want the Battletown Inn back.

Wendy Gooditis is a real estate agent on the Chip Schutte Real Estate Team with ReMax Roots at 101 East Main St., Berryville, VA 22611, phone (540)955-0911. Wendy would be happy to answer any questions you may have about real estate; reach her at Gooditis@visuallink.com or at (540)533-0840.