Summer 2022 Vol. 7, No. 4 FREE
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You don’t have to travel far for fun this summer!
Just head to Longwood!
On Brock Commons… • Splash in the Dancing Fountain (across from Brock Hall). • Have a picnic – we’ve got plenty of outdoor tables. • Load up the trikes and make a few laps on our “track.” MAIN LONGWOOD CAMPUS
At the Longwood Center for the Visual Arts… • Experience an exhibition. We have 4 shows up this summer! • Included is the annual favorite Start with Art, Learn for Life: Youth Art Exhibition, which showcases the artwork of 1,500 PreK through high-school students. June 11-Sept. 11, 2022. • Open 11 a.m.-5 p.m. TuesdaySaturday; 1-5 p.m. Sunday. FREE admission, and pick up your FREE art sketch packet to take home! 129 N. MAIN STREET
At High Street Theatre … • Kid-friendly movies: Thursdays at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., and Fridays at 3 p.m.; teen and adult films: Fridays at 7 p.m. • FREE admission and FREE popcorn! Scan the code for dates and what’s showing. 102½ HIGH STREET Sponsored by the Virginia Commission for the Arts
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Expert skin care for the entire family The team of skin care experts at RidgeView Dermatology is here for you at every stage of life offering only the best in medical, surgical and cosmetic dermatology services: Schedule an appointment today!
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Skin cancer diagnosis and treatment Evaluation and management of rashes, acne, eczema, psoriasis and more Cosmetic treatments for skin rejuvenation
Four Convenient Central Virginia Locations: Farmville | Lynchburg | Hardy | Forest | RIDGEVIEWDERMATOLOGY.COM
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Publisher — Betty J. Ramsey Betty.Ramsey@FarmvilletheMag.com Designer — Troy Cooper Troy.Cooper@FarmvilletheMag.com
EDITORIAL Crystal Vandegrift Crystal.Vandegrift@FarmvilletheMag.com Alexa Massey Alexa.Massey@FarmvilletheMag.com
ADVERTISING Director — Jackie Newman Jackie.Newman@FarmvilletheMag.com Advertising — Rachel Fielding Rachel.Fielding@FarmvilletheMag.com
CONTRIBUTORS Dr. Cynthia Wood
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Ridge Animal Hospital
Ireland Seagle
Miller's Country Store
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On the cover: Dr. Chelsie Novitske visits with Arya.
Cover photo courtesy of Ridge Animal Hospital On the web: www.FarmvilletheMag.com To subscribe, contact Circulation@FarmvilletheMag.com Farmville the Magazine P.O. Box 307 Farmville, VA 23901 (434) 392-4151
Farmville the Magazine is published eight times annually by Farmville Newsmedia LLC. Copies are available free at businesses throughout the Heart of Virginia. For convenient mail delivery of each issue, cost is $30 per year.
Recipes Also... Where Am I?
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Daylillies
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RIDGE ANIMAL HOSPITAL Taking care of Farmville’s pets since 1978
Story by Ireland Seagle
Did you know the veterinarians and veterinary assistants at Ridge Animal Hospital see more than 40 patients daily? This achievement is possible due to the practice’s recently finished renovations. Completed in December 2021, this new expansion arose from the hospital’s growing clientele. As Hospital Manager Sydney French explains, “For the last few years, we felt that we had outgrown our space.” The hospital’s treatment areas and exam rooms were congested, preventing veterinary staff from effectively seeing appointments. For this construction, “our goal was to create a very practical workspace where our patients and clients can be comfortable and our doctors and staff can operate most efficiently,” French continues. Many of the hospital staff and veterinarians, including Dr. Mark French, were influential in these new modifications. After creating plans to begin construction in summer 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic halted the hospital’s projects until early 2021. During the renovations, both the practice’s veterinarians and staff were flexible about working amongst the chaos. The patients and clients at Ridge Animal Hospital were also very understanding regarding the new modifications. “There were certainly a few rough spots – the three days spent tearing down our old brick chimney come to mind – and the hardest part was working in a space that was constantly in flux,” describes Sydney French. In the face of these obstacles, the staff at Ridge Animal maintained their professional and considerate attitudes. Despite the disorder generated by the construction, Ridge Animal Hospital remained open during the majority of the renovation. The practice only closed early for one week to redo their floors and to paint one or two exam rooms at a time. In fact, the hospital staff decided to keep the building operational due to a local and nationwide demand for veterinary services. As Sydney French emphasizes, “We were concerned that decreasing our hours or patient volume would place undue hardship on both our clients and our nearby emergency hospitals.” Following months of work, the modifications at Ridge Animal Hospital were completed. The renovation nearly doubled the practice’s square footage by adding two new exam rooms, an ultrasound room, surgical suite, dental suite, a dedicated lab space, new isolation ward, a cat ward, doctors’ office, and a staff break room. Some of the hospital’s existing spaces, including the front desk and treatment areas, were also expanded. With these changes, the hospital has increased its capacity to see more patients and use its treatment spaces more productively. “Things like… streamlining our surgical prep area ensures that every doctor has their own space to
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Murphy peers over the counter.
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work in without crowding each other, which in turn leads to a calmer and more efficient environment for our patients,” Sydney French details. This recent expansion follows a previous modification in 2007 when the hospital increased their number of exam rooms from two to four, strengthening the staff’s capacity to aid and treat clients. During this construction, the practice also expanded its treatment and kennel spaces, along with building their current lobby.
Before its two respective renovations, Ridge Animal Hospital emerged from the efforts of Dr. James “Jimmy” Gates and his late wife, Dianne Gates. Following their aspirations to bring modern veterinary medicine to the Farmville area, the Gates’ opened Ridge Animal in 1978. In truth, Dianne had a lasting impact on the business. “She was instrumental in its foundations, both tangible and philosophical,” Sydney French explains. Although Dr. Gates retired from the
practice three years ago, he still visits the hospital from time to time. While the staff at Ridge Animal Hospital is delighted about the building’s new improvements, they continue to plan for the practice’s future. “Our goal is to continue to serve our clients and patients for many years to come and to bring new veterinarians into our hospital, so that we can accommodate all those who need us,” Sydney French states.
At left, the Ridge Animal Hospital sign. Below is the newly remodeled Ridge Animal Hospital.
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Yellow lab Buck sleeps on the scale.
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These photos show some of the newly remodeled rooms in the addition. Top left is the new cat ward, top right is the new break room, bottom left is one of the new exam rooms and bottom right is the x-ray room. (Photos by Ireland Seagle)
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DR. MARK FRENCH Where are you from? Mt. Washington, Kentucky, which is just south of Louisville. Where did you go to school? I attended Elizabethtown Community College for two years, then I went to the University of Kentucky for one year. I then completed my Bachelor’s in Animal Science at Auburn University in 1985. Why did you choose this profession? I actually decided in middle school that I wanted to be a veterinarian. I loved science and wanted to be outdoors. I had no idea what veterinary medicine involved until I spent time at a vet clinic in high school. I loved it, so I stuck with it. How long have you been a veterinarian? Since 1985, so almost 37 years. How long have you been at Ridge Animal Hospital? My entire career. When I searched for a place to learn veterinary medicine, I thought Ridge Animal was the best place for me. Tell me a unique fact about yourself. I grew up with eight sisters and am the only boy of the siblings.
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DR. ANDREA KELLUM Where are you from? All over Virginia. I grew up in Roanoke and Ashland and have lived all over Virginia. I lived in Culpeper for a while, and now I live in Rice. Where did you go to school? I graduated from Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in 2006. Why did you choose this profession? I’ve always loved animals. I have always been intrigued by biology and the body. The more I learned about it, the more I was fascinated by it. I also like this profession because there is something new all the time. I’m always learning there are better ways to do things, and there is always something more to learn in this career. How long have you been a veterinarian? I have been in a vet clinic since I was 15. I worked there in high school when I could. After getting my degree, I worked elsewhere for five years. I then found myself back at a vet clinic, so I went back to school to become a veterinarian. How long have you been at Ridge Animal Hospital? I started in January 2016, so six years. Tell me a unique fact about yourself. I really like horses and camping. I love to travel. If I can travel with my horses and go camping, that’s what I prefer to do.
DR. CHELSIE NOVITSKE Where are you from? Keysville Where did you go to school? I graduated from Virginia Tech with my Bachelor of Science in Animal & Poultry Sciences. Then, I attended North Carolina State University to complete my Master’s in Physiology. Why did you choose this profession? My love for animals and the drive to help them feel better. How long have you been a veterinarian? For four years. I graduated with my degree four years ago as well. How long have you been at Ridge Animal Hospital? Almost four years. It will be four years in July. Tell me a unique fact about yourself. I love playing disc golf with my husband. I also have a 220-pound English Mastiff named Gus.
Above, Dr. Andrea Kellum, left and Dr. Chelsie Novitske
Quasimodo
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Above, Ridge Animal Hospital employee Reinette Januszkiewicz holds Sam while he checks out the camera. At right is the photo of Dr. James “Jimmy” Gates that hangs in Ridge Animal Hospital. Dr. Gates and his late wife Dianne started Ridge Animal Hospital in 1978.
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Where Am I? LAST ISSUE'S WINNER: As of press time no one correctly identified the “Where Am I?” photo from the May 2022 edition. The photo is of the side of the Bula Fiji Mart on W. Third Street.
The Heart of Virginia offers beautiful scenery and architecture throughout downtown Farmville. “Where Am I?” offers residents a chance to identify one of our hidden gems across town. If you think you know where this photo was taken, email your answer to WhereAmI@ FarmvilletheMag.com. We’ll draw one lucky name from among the correct answers for an annual subscription to Farmville the Magazine.
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Recipes
Sausage and kale pizza with Alfredo sauce Recipe, story and photos by Alexa Massey
A realization crept up on me last year that I had seemingly lost all desire to eat pizza, an epiphany which would disgust my 6-year-old self. Some of my fondest memories as a child involve afterschool trips with my siblings, my nana and my papa to the old Pizza Hut on West Third Street. That was back when you could walk in and gorge yourself on endless slices from the buffet, a tradition now lost to time. I crafted my hot italian sausage and kale pizza recipe after deciding I was ready to fall back in love with the stuff. This divine recipe has a depth of flavor worthy of an adult palate, featuring savory hot italian sausage and crispy chopped kale. Don’t get scared off by the green stuff. This is a comfort dish through and through. I’ve replaced that traditional red sauce with a rich, homemade Alfredo cooked right in the same pan that the sausage was browned in. There’s heaps of mozzarella and parmesan cheese, and you’ll be shocked to see just how simple the recipe is for our crispyon-the-outside, fluffy-on-the-inside pizza dough. Trust me, nobody will believe you made this pizza from scratch. It will become your new Monday night staple. And hey, you just might fall in love with pizza all over again!
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Sounds good, right? Here’s the recipe: Prep time: 35 minutes Cook time: 15 minutes Total time: Approximately 50 minutes Servings: 6 generous slices Ingredients Pizza dough: • 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour • Pinch salt • 1 tbsp. sugar • 1 tbsp. olive oil • One package active-dry yeast • 1 cup warm water (mixture of 1 tsp. olive oil and 2 cloves minced garlic, for crust) Alfredo sauce: • 2 tbsp. unsalted butter • 2 cloves minced garlic • 1 tsp. all-purpose flour • ⅓-½ cup heavy cream • ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese • Salt, pepper and crushed red pepper, to taste For toppings: • ¾ lb. ground hot italian pork sausage • 1 cup chopped and rinsed kale • 1 tsp. Olive oil • Salt and pepper, to taste • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese • ¼ cup Parmesan cheese Recipe: I may be a homecook, but a baker I am not. Cooking can be sloppy and experimental, filled with guesswork, some skill and a lot of luck. Baking is a science in that it involves very specific measurements and chemical reactions that, if performed improperly, ruin a recipe. I like to leave this science up to the experts. Therefore, I’ve pulled the pizza crust recipe for this sausage and kale pizza from JoyFoodSunshine, an amazing food blog run by a former chemistry teacher named Laura. Laura’s pizza crust recipe is famous across the internet. While you could use any crust you like for this recipe, including store bought dough or protein-rich almond flour, I’ve found Laura’s pizza crust tastes shockingly like my family’s favorite pizza chain. I’ve added a slight twist by brushing some olive oil and garlic on the crust. Begin by preheating your oven to 450o. To make your pizza dough, simply combine one cup of warm water (105o - 110o) with one tablespoon of sugar and one packet of active-dry yeast, a product found in your local baking aisle. After waiting five minutes, add in two cups of flour followed
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by your salt and olive oil. Use your stand mixer (or go old-fashioned and use your hands) to mix the wet and dry ingredients. As you knead/mix your dough, slowly add in up to ½ a cup of additional flour until your dough forms a ball that is slightly stickly. Letting your dough rise is optional, but I found that covering my bowl of dough with plastic wrap and letting it sit for 30 minutes produced unbelievably chewy, fluffy pizza crust. While your crust is hopefully proofing, brown your hot italian sausage in a skillet over medium heat. You want to cook the sausage until almost all of the pink is gone, as it will finish cooking in the oven. Transfer your sausage into a paper towel-lined plate to drain some of the grease off. We are going to cook our Alfredo sauce right in the pan we browned our sausage in. The sauce will absorb the flavor of the sausage and become even tastier! While your pan is still set to medium, stir in your butter and allow it to melt. Add in your garlic and cook for one minute, stirring continuously. Add in your flour and cook for one or two minutes more. This will create a nice roux for our Alfredo sauce. After your flour has darkened slightly in color, turn the heat to low and slowly whisk in your heavy cream. You will notice the flecks of spices and charred meat are pulled from the bottom of the pan, giving our sauce deep flavor. At this point, I like to add salt and pepper to taste in addition to a healthy sprinkle of crushed red pepper. If you don’t like things too spicy, leave that stuff in the cabinet. Add in your Parmesan and stir until well combined and thickened, approximately three minutes. (Note: I like a light amount of sauce on my pizza. If you like a really saucy pie, double this recipe, and don’t apologize!) Once your dough is done proofing, transfer it to a clean, lightly-floured surface. Using a rolling pin or something vaguely rolling pin-shaped (think wine bottles, people!) roll your dough into a nice, big circle and transfer the dough to a pizza pan. It can be tricky to cook a homemade pizza evenly. Oftentimes, your toppings are beginning to burn while your dough is still raw in the center. To avoid this, we will par-bake our crust. Place your crust in the bottom rack of your oven for no more than five minutes. Keep an eye on it to make sure nothing is browning. We’re just giving the crust a head start at the cooking process here!
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As the crust is par-baking, wash and coarsely chop one cup of kale. If kale scares you, spinach would make for a great substitute. Drizzle on a teaspoon of olive oil, some salt and pepper and gently massage your kale. Kale and I have a lot in common in that we both love a good back rub. Massaging the kale will make it tender. After five minutes, remove the crust from the oven and use a fork to pop any bubbles forming in the dough. It’s now time to assemble your masterpiece. Ladle on your decadent alfredo sauce followed by your mozzarella and remaining Parmesan cheese. Without being shy, you should then pile your pizza high with handfuls of sausage and kale. Lastly, brush a combination of one teaspoon olive oil and two cloves of garlic onto the edges of the crust. Slap this bad boy back on the bottom rack of the oven for 13-18 minutes, watching carefully so that nothing becomes burnt. Once cooked, garnish with an optional, generous dash of more crushed red pepper and serve while hot and delicious. And there you have it. This grown-up pizza is comforting, luxurious and easily customizable. If you really like things spicy, enjoy it with a healthy drizzle of hot oil. If you love leftover pizza for breakfast, top any remaining slices with a fried egg in the morning. The kale has a crunchy texture and a salty umami flavor that you’ll never get over. The hot italian sausage will send a welcome bead of sweat down your brow. And that Alfredo sauce? It would make your 6-year-old self proud.
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Cheerful dessert brings smiles The fresh, bright flavor of lemon can bring a cheery ambiance to any occasion when it makes an appearance in delicious recipes. Lemon essence seems ripe for spring and summer entertaining, and can feature prominently in Easter desserts. Such is the case with this recipe for “Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake” from “The Pampered Chef® Stoneware Inspirations” by The Pampered Chef® Test Kitchens. Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake Yield: 16 servings 1½ cups all-purpose flour 1½ cups granulated sugar 2 tablespoons lemon zest
2 tablespoons poppy seeds 1 teaspoon baking powder 1⁄2 teaspoon salt 3⁄4 cup (11⁄2 sticks) butter, softened (do not substitute margarine) 4 ounces cream cheese, softened 4 eggs 2 tablespoons milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Powdered sugar (optional) 1. Preheat oven to 325 F. Spray Stoneware Fluted Pan (or any bundt cake pan) with nonstick cooking spray. Combine flour, granulated sugar, lemon zest, poppy seeds, baking powder, and salt in a 2-quart mixing bowl; mix well. In a 4-quart
mixing bowl, beat butter and cream cheese on high speed of hand-held electric mixer 1 minute. Add flour mixture; beat on low speed 1 minute or until blended (mixture will form a stiff paste). 2. In a small bowl, whisk eggs, milk and vanilla just until blended. Add egg mixture to cream cheese mixture in four additions, beating two minutes after each addition. (Do not undermix.) 3. Pour batter into pan. Bake 55 to 60 minutes or until a cake tester inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes. Loosen cake from sides of pan; carefully invert onto a cooling rack, keeping pan over cake. Cool completely. 4. Place cake on serving platter. Sprinkle with powdered sugar or prepare a glaze, if desired.
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Beat the heat with smoked pulled pork Outdoor cooking is a staple come the warmer weather. When the dog days of summer arrive, few people want to spend time turning on the oven or standing by the stove. That’s when mastering grilling or barbecuing becomes so essential. Many people now have smokers in their outdoor cooking arsenals. The slow and low style of cooking imparts rich, smokey flavor and can create tender, fall-off-the-bone results wrapped in a delicious bark. Brisket and ribs are some of the foods associated with barbecue, but a perfect pulled pork recipe can yield juicy sandwiches or main courses accompanied by cornbread or cole slaw. Get barbecue ready with “Competition-Style Pulled Pork” from “BBQ Revolution” (Quarto Publishing Group) by Mitch Benjamin, author and Char Bar restaurant owner. Competition-Style Pulled Pork Serves 12 to 14 10 to 12-pound bone-in pork butt (Boston butt) 1 cup Meat Mitch Competition WHOMP! Rub 1 cup pork injection, mixed according to the package directions (optional) Apple juice 1 bottle (16 ounces) Stubb’s Pork Marinade (optional) 1 bottle (21 ounces) Meat Mitch WHOMP! Naked BBQ Sauce 1 tablespoon honey Greens (Such as parsley, lettuce, or kale to create a serving bed) Fire up your smoker to 225 F with a good smoke rolling and get ready for battle. The meat will have a big fat cap on it, and you should trim that down to a thin layer. The meat contains a large amount of fat throughout, so don’t worry about it drying out; it will be plenty moist. Then, you need to focus on the money muscle, trimming the meat to look like a log, which exposes as much money muscle as possible for seasoning, smoke, and bark. Once you have trimmed the meat, it’s time to inject. This is the fun part — load up your injector or syringe and pump that bad boy full of juice, injecting it randomly all over the meat, until it is packed full. After you have loaded it up, make sure to pat the meat dry with paper towels. Then, cover liberally in Meat Mitch Competition WHOMP! Rub and let it sit for about 30 minutes to sweat. With your meat ready and your smoker rolling at 225 F, place your meat inside the smoker. Feed the fire with some unlit charcoal and chunks of pecan and cherry. Close it up and make sure you have plenty of charcoal and pecan and cherry wood. You’ll be smoking for approximately six hours. Every 30 minutes, open up the smoker and spray the meat with apple juice. (Put about 1⁄2 cup of apple juice in a spray bottle for this.) After about six hours, check the meat to see if you’ve
achieved that mahogany bark. When this bark is achieved, lay the pork on a big sheet of aluminum foil. Pour the Stubbs Pork Marinade around the base of the meat, close up the foil, and return the meat to the smoker. This step essentially steams the meat and breaks it down to achieve the tenderness you want; keep the smoker at 225 F. This stage usually lasts three hours, but it can always vary. At the end of the cook, you are watching for internal temperature to reach the target goal of 197 F. You don’t want it so tender that the money muscle falls apart. Remove the meat from the pit and open up the foil to let out the steam. Then, close it back up and place it in a dry cooler to rest for at least an hour. (I have let it rest for up to four hours, and it was great.) Next, doctor up your barbecue sauce. Take a bottle of Meat Mitch WHOMP! Naked BBQ Sauce and pour it into a pan along with enough apple juice and honey to thin the sauce and make it slightly sweeter. Also, the honey adds to the shine. Remember, judges eat with their eyes first. Heat the pan on the back of the smoker box, making sure to stir frequently so it does not burn. Finally, it’s time to break down the meat. Carefully carve out the money muscle, keeping it as a perfectly shaped loaf, move it to a separate pan, and cover it with foil to keep it warm. It’s time to remove the bone. It should slide out easily and clean — if so, job well done! Chunk the remaining meat, paying close attention to the bark, trying to capture the best pieces. Separate the meat into nice barky chunks and tubes and then pull and slightly shred the remaining pork. Lightly glaze the meat with sauce, making sure not to add too much. Cover the pan with foil and set aside. Turn your attention to the money muscle. Brush the muscle with sauce; add just a light coating. It should glisten with the honey in the sauce. Next, carefully slice it into even pieces, but make sure to keep the loaf shape intact. To assemble, start with the arranged greens in a serving box. Then, place the money muscle slices along the back of the box and fill in the front of the box with chunks on one side and pulled pork on the other side. If you’re serving it in your backyard, drop it on the picnic table and watch your neighbors fight it out.
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From the Ground Up
Daylilies
The Perfect Plant for the Midsummer Garden Story by Dr. Cynthia Wood
The hot, humid, potentially dry days of summer are upon us, but even those gardeners who retreat indoors in midsummer still crave flowers that are bright and cheerful. Well, as long as those flowers are low maintenance and can deal with Virginia’s intense weather.
The display garden at Deb’s Daylilies is arranged so that visitors can view many different plants and color combinations.
The solution for many of us is the daylily. In one form or another, daylilies have been grown in Virginia since the 1600s. They thrive on heat and humidity, are dependable, and are hard to kill. They can be used to quickly fill in bare spots, interspersed in borders or used in massed plantings. Daylil-
ies are even available in all colors and color combinations except pure white and pure blue, and those colors may be developed soon. In addition to various color combinations, daylilies have many different flower forms – petals with ruffled or toothed edges, flowers with triangular shapes, ones with long
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Left, every garden needs a whitish daylily, such as Green Tea, which is accented with green markings. Below, Woodhenge Gardens offers daylilies in a riot of colors and shapes.
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A well-planned perennial bed balances intense colors with cooler ones and dark foliage.
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Tall daylilies, such as this one which grows nearly six feet tall, are very popular now.
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24 Farmville the Magazine spidery petals, blooms with bearded centers, and, yes, UFOs. UFOs are daylilies that have distinctly different flowers. The petals can be quill shaped or spatula shaped, or can cascade downward like a waterfall. There is a daylily for every gardener and every location – tall ones for making dramatic statements, very short ones for the front of flower beds, rebloomers that periodically bloom again throughout the summer, early season bloomers that put on a show in May, and very late season ones that provide delight in August when everything else has drooped. Daylilies are easy to grow. They are relatively pest free and aren’t picky about growing conditions. To produce the most blooms, they need
about six hours of sun every day, but can tolerate partial shade. They’re rapid growers, so they need to be divided every four to five years. With more than 50,000 selections to choose from, the only difficulty is deciding which ones to add to the garden. But help is available. The American Hemerocallis Society has several official display gardens nearby. Woodhenge Gardens, located on Plank Road between Scottsville and North Garden, specializes in what the owners term surprisingly different daylilies, including spiders and unusual forms. Woodhenge has an active hybridizing program with many award-winning introductions. Deb’s Daylilies in Randolph near Charlotte Court House, is another local official display garden, as well as a
test garden for the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research. The owner is very generous in sharing her knowledge of daylilies and how to grow them. The Southern Virginia Daylily Club is also a source of information for gardeners interested in daylilies. It meets every month at the library in Chase City. Gardeners in general are some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, but daylily growers are the best of the best. They’re always willing to share their knowledge. Gardeners who grow daylilies will tell you that it’s seriously hard to resist plants with a wide range of colors, sturdy shapes, and quirky names. Who wouldn’t want a daylily named ‘Dances with Giraffes” or one described as “having a weeping form with spooky fingers.”
This garden in Keysville incorporates daylilies, hibiscus, calla lilies, and many other perennials in mixed beds.
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Miller’s Country Store Great food, friendly faces
Story by Alexa Massey
Miller’s Country Store has found its way into the hearts and bellies of folks across the Farmville area. For more than two decades, this local grocery store and deli has been stacking sandwiches high and captivating customers with an unbelievable variety of mouthwatering, homemade desserts and unique products you just can’t find anywhere else. Today, it’s hard to find anybody who hasn’t stopped into this charming country store for a fresh donut or a carton of Farmville-raised eggs. However, it may surprise some that this successful and bustling business started off as a tiny shop run out of the Miller family’s own home. According to Manager and Co-owner Amy Miller, Miller’s Country Store began in the 90s when Amy’s parents and fellow co-owners, Albert and Anna Miller, opened up a tiny, one-room store out of their home in Cumberland County. Back then, the family just sold a few bulk food items and some produce plus some meat and cheeses. In August 2000, opportunity struck and the Millers moved the business out of their home and into its current location at 2737 W. Third Street in Farmville, opening up the store to a larger customer base and the chance to offer a much wider variety of products. In 2014, Amy joined her parents to work at the store as the manager. By 2018, she’d become co-owner. “Little by little, it’s grown,” Amy commented, recalling the evolution of the store. Today, Miller’s Country Store draws in patrons from counties over, and it’s not hard to see why. The business is renowned for its popular deli counter where hungry customers can order sandwiches with freshly sliced meats, cheeses and veggies or a juicy hotdog complete with all the fixins. There’s also
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Pictured are some of the many items Miller's carries.
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Above, pictured are a few of the staff members at Miller’s Country Store, from left, front row, Amy, Cheyanne and Carrie. Back row, Sara and Jolene. Below, from whoopie pies to cookies and lemon bars, a trip to Miller’s Country Store isn’t complete without being tempted by some sweet treats. crisp, freshly cut salads and generous sides such as pasta salad, potato salad, chicken salad and hearty, seasonal soups. “I would say probably one of the biggest draws is our deli,” Amy noted. If you’ve got more of a sweet tooth, don’t fret. The store is overflowing with an array of delectable baked goods made from scratch. There’s always several different flavors of seasonal cakes, pies and cookies to choose from, not to mention the ever-popular cinnamon rolls and raspberry rolls. You could always try one of the store’s infamous whoopie pies, and no bakery is complete without several different types of bread such as sourdough, white, multigrain, cheddar and herb and cinnamon raisin, just to name a few. Miller’s Country Store is also a great stop for grocery staples such as flour and sugar, and the
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Above, sandwiches are made to order. Pick an item off the menu, or get creative and order your personal creation go-to. Carrie is making a sandwich for a customer. Below, is the ordering counter for the deli that is near the back of the store.
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business is known across the area for its specialty items that folks just can’t get anywhere else, such as old-fashioned candies and other unique snacks. According to Amy, the Millers also like to keep a lot of their produce Farmville-centric, including items such as local honey and eggs. The store also sells items such as vitamins and essential oils, not to mention a selection of Farmville souvenirs such as T-shirts and cups. The bustling business is run by a mix of approximately 15 part-time and full-time employees. And while Amy’s parents are currently enjoying their retirement, they can often be spotted helping around the store or on Saturday mornings when making homemade donuts. Amy’s young niece, Lily, has even started to help out around the shop, marking the third generation to have a hand in the family business. With so many delectable items for sale and a menu of seasonal treats that keep things new and exciting, it’s no wonder why customers continually come back for more. But it’s not just those delicious sandwiches that keep people walking through the door; the staff members at Miller’s provide a quality of customer service that just can’t be matched. “One of the things that we really strive for is friendly customer service and making people feel at home and welcome,” Amy stated. “That’s something we want to give the customer; the best experience.” When asked what it means to have been able to serve the Farmville area for so long, Amy was quick to point out the many friendships made. “It’s an honor,” she said. “We’ve made a lot of friendships that we wouldn’t have had if we didn’t have the business… I just love that part of a small town.” Of course, for Amy and the rest of the team, it’s always a pleasure to see those smiling, familiar faces come through the door each morning. “We have quite a few of our regulars who are just like family.”
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Miller’s Country store offers many unique snacks that are hard to find and they recently added custard in the summertime.
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Above, sandwiches at Miller’s are stacked high with freshly sliced deli meats and cheeses. Manager and Co-Owner Amy Miller says the deli is one of the most popular parts of the business. Below, at Miller’s Country Store, you’ll always find dozens of unique cakes, pies and bread. There’s always a new seasonal treat to try.
