5 minute read
RE/MAX Crossroads
Honey,
I’M HOME!
Kelly Thornton grew up in a family that respected and supported honey bees, with her parents tending to several hives on the small farm over the years. While she had gotten away from it in life’s twists and turns, when her mom passed last year and the decision had to be made about what to do with the couple of remaining hives on the farm, Kelly and husband Philip decided to keep the family “tradition” going and continue the care for the apiary. The enthusiasm about carrying on the small apiary transformed into the idea of introducing new hives at their own home in Culpeper as well. They’ve since soaked up as much knowledge, community resources and support as possible, and have grown from the initial two hives to six at the farm and have introduced fix hives on their home property. They’re excited about continuing to expand their apiaries and love that it is something that their 10-year-old son also participates in, as he had learned about hive care from his grandmother on the farm and has his own bee suit. “While we know there will be ups and downs in the journey of beekeeping, the idea of promoting and supporting such an important thing in our community and our world is definitely a ‘feel good’ experience,” Kelly said. “Not to mention the thought of the honey that we’ll be able to harvest next year after these hives are a bit more established.” “It’s been so interesting discovering just how many people in our community are beekeepers, and I’m so appreciative of the mentoring and support I’ve been able to gain from local beekeepers who are much more experienced, and eager to share about and promote beekeeping.” “Learning about the honey bees has been fascinating,” Philip said. “Their importance in our world for pollination, and how they work together within the hive, with each having different jobs, is just amazing.”
REAL ESTATE
RE/MAX Crossroads Kelly & Philip Thornton
Housing honey bees goes hand in hand with what the Thorntons do on a day to day basis, as they are both REALTORS. “Connecting people and property….that’s what we do,” Kelly said. Kelly and Philip are both licensed Brokers and own/manage RE/MAX Crossroads, Paragon Property Management, LLC and Crossroads Real Estate Referral Company, LLC in Culpeper. Their combined 38 years of experience comes into play in each and every real estate sale and purchase they help their clients with. “Experience is so crucial in real estate,” Philip said. “Buying a home is one of the biggest events in a person’s life – you have to make sure it’s handled properly.” “I think sometimes people tend to think a Realtor’s role is unneeded and/or an easy job, and that’s just not the case. We go the extra mile for clients, always making sure their needs are met and that we’re looking out for their best interests.” Kelly and Philip both strongly believe in being involved and supporting their real estate association and their community. Kelly is the incoming 2023 President of Greater Piedmont Realtors and sits on the S.A.F.E. Board as well as the Early Childhood and Head Start Parent Community Council.
Philip served as the 2018 GPR President, and has coached their son’s soccer team for multiple years. He continues to serve in various capacities with GPR. Both Kelly and Philip are recognized top producers in the industry and have been inducted into the RE/MAX Hall of Fame. They’re also both major investors in RPAC which promotes and protects the rights of property owners. They have both played a role in ensuring that Culpeper continues to have affordable home buying options, with Philip’s advocacy for this during his presidency, and Kelly’s recent national recognition of it during a National Association of Realtors pitch battle in Chicago. Kelly won first place sharing this advocacy story, earning grant money for the association to put back into the local community! “We love our community and always look for ways to support it – whether that be local youth groups, community events, small businesses, fundraisers, etc.,” Philip said. “Having grown up here and watched Culpeper blossom into what it is now, I’m proud to be a part of it, work here and live here,” Kelly added. If you’d like to reach out to Philip and Kelly and learn more about them, check out their website at www.yourlocalREpros.com. 810 S. Main St., Culpeper, VA • Philip 540-222-9155 | Kelly 540-718-5763 • www.yourlocalREpros.com
A LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
Welcome to the fourth edition of FACES of Culpeper!
Once again, the focus remains on many local faces that make up the successful business community throughout Culpeper County.
This year’s cover features Realtors Kelly and Phillip Thornton and their honey bees. Learn more about how they not only found houses for thousands of bees on their property but continue to find Culpeper residents’ dream homes every day on pages 2-3.
Three years in a row, FACES of Culpeper has won First Place in the Virginia Press Association’s annual competition for newspapers throughout the Commonwealth.
The new FACES of Culpeper magazine is also available digitally at culpepertimes.com.
Thank you to all of the faces inside for being a part of this special 2023 edition.
We hope you enjoy seeing their faces and reading their stories.
Maria Basileo
Editor, Culpeper Times
INDEX
02 RE/MAX Crossroads 05 Mane Street Hair Salon 06 First County Mortgage 07 Pinto Thai Culpeper 08 Freedom Street Partners 09 Thompson Auto Repair 10 Wild Birds Unlimited Nature Shop 11 Home & Tack Organizing, LLC 12 Miss Minerva’s Tea Room 13 Tropi-Canna 14 Outgoing Portraits 15 Applied Science Fitness Studio 16 Endless Creations 17 Culpeper Chamber of Commerce 18 Narmada Winery 19 Economic Development of Culpeper 20 Shelly Tutt Mindset Strategist 21 HTDNET, LLC 22 Eppard Orthodontics 23 REC 24 Eye Care of Virginia
TOM SPARGUR JAY FORD MARIA BASILEO TIM HICKLING AUDRA DICKEY LORI PAYNE FRAN CECERE
Publisher Graphic Designer Editor Photographer Account Executive Project Writer Project Writer
FACES of Culpeper is a free annual publication of the Culpeper Times. Copyright © 2023 by the Culpeper Times. All Rights Reserved. Information in this magazine is as correct as possible at press time but is subject to change. Reproduction of any photographs, illustrations or written material without prior consent from the publisher is prohibited.
