July 9th, 2021

FREE

JULY 9, 2021

FIRST IN FLIGHT ... AND SO MUC MUCH MORE

DARE COUNTY’S NOTABLE HISTORIC CLAIMS TO FAME

COASTOBX.COM

3 Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

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OVER 40 DESIGNS OF T-SHIRTS

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COROLLA 812 Ocean Trail Hwy 12 across from Food Lion Center 252.453.9116

DUCK 1180 Duck Road Lower Hwy 12 on the Soundside 252.261.4828

Open Daily 9:00 am - 9:00 pm WWW.FARMERSDAUGHTEROBX.NET

NAGS HEAD 6803 S. Croatan Hwy. Milepost 16 Highway 158 252.441.3977

HATTERAS 58848 Marina Way Ferry Docks in Hatteras Landing

252.986.9970

Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

4

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

We could all use a little

beach time.

OUTER BANKS VACATION RENTALS & REAL ESTATE SALES

Whether you are looking for the perfect place to vacation or seeking to invest in your own Outer Banks beach house, we offer unprecedented service in making your experience the best it can be. Kick off your shoes and stay a while!

The communal table set for a farm to table feast at Somerset Farm. OLLIE INGLIS/COURTESY

Serving farm-fresh fare and good company under the stars joelambjr.com • joelambrealty.com • 800-552-6257

Popular regional purveyor Somerset Farm launches the Porchlight Dinner Series at the historic Chowan County farm. PAGE 14

Back for more bluegrass Following up a successful first performance, new-grass musicians Dustin Furlow and Matt Thomas return to Bluegrass Island Trading Company for an encore show. PAGE 6

Inspired by a hippie Local acoustic guitarist Steve Hauser looks back on his foray into music and the path that led him to the Outer Banks. PAGE 22

Locally Sourced Seafood Steamer Dinners Salads, Sides, and Dips Steamed Shrimp & Crabs (252) 441-8808 | 101 Grey Eagle St. | Nags Head whaleboneseafood.com

ABOUT COAST COAST covers the people, places and characteristics that make the Outer Banks a beach destination for families, surfers and anglers from around the world. For more than 30 years, this publication has featured individuals making a difference in the community, highlighted the latest happenings and shared events that shouldn’t be missed – from live music to theatrics, food festivities, art shows, fishing, surfing, and more.

All local. All the time.

This is COAST.

EDITOR Hannah Lee Leidy hlleidy252@gmail.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Carrie Brothers, Dave Fairbank, John Harper, Maggie Miles, Mary Ellen Riddle, Scott Sechman, Ben Swenson ADVERTISE WITH US Find out how you can engage more readers with an integrated marketing program.

John“Ski”Miller, media sales manager, ski.miller@ virginiamedia.com; Elizabeth Catoe, senior account executive, elizabeth.catoe@ virginiamedia.com

THINGS TO KNOW During the summer season (May-August), when Coast is a weekly publication, information must be submitted at least 10 days in advance of an event.

During the shoulder season (September-October), when Coast is a monthly publication — with the exception of November-December and January-February, when two months are combined —information must be submitted at least 14 days in advance of an event.

WANT TO KNOW MORE? For more information, visit coastobx.com; facebook.com/CoastOBX

5

It’s not just a store...It’s an experience!

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MP6 Beach Road, 2016 North Virginia Dare Trail, Kill Devil Hills, NC

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Visit Our General Store Candy, Fudge, Coffee & Delights Galore • Remember your visit to the Outer Banks with a personalized ornament • Browse among our Thousands of Ornaments Table Top - Home Decor • Jewelry - Engraved Gifts Halloween Haunted House On the way to the NC Aquarium, Festival Park & Lost Colony.

Hwy 64 in Manteo on Roanoke Island

252.473.2838 • OuterBanksChristmas.com OPEN DAILY AT 9:30 A.M.

Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

OUTER BANKS ORIGINAL CHRISTMAS SHOP...SINCE 1967

6

ON THE TOWN

Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

Genredefying duo

Acoustic duo to rock Roanoke Island with reimagined bluegrass

By John Harper

Correspondent

When Dustin Furlow and Matt Thomas hit the stage, they completely pulverize preconceptions about acoustic duos. Furlow, 27, is an award-winning singer-songwriter, and Thomas, 34, has won numerous international flatpicking and thumbpicking competitions (just see his Wikipedia entry).

Together, the Virginia Beach-based musicians are dynamite. They will play a free show Tuesday, July 13, as part of the “Pickin’ on the Porch” series at Bluegrass Island Trading Company in Manteo.

Their repertoire includes originals and covers from artists ranging from Gershwin to Green Day. In the former category are Furlow’s pretty folk-rock tunes “Evergreen” and “The Garden,” as well as Thomas’ instrumental tracks “To Nashville and Back” and “Macon Bacon,” which capture time and place through melodies. The remakes are re-imagined with elements of jazz, rock, folk, country and classical, and most are improvised during performance.

“We have a roadmap in our heads,” Furlow says. “So there are peaks and valleys.”

Last month, the duo had the audience buzzing at a previous Pickin’ on the Porch show, and that’s why they were asked back. With Thomas coaxing gorgeous tones from his six-string guitar and harp guitar and Furlow adding his smooth vocals and exquisite guitar-playing, the duo took off on a spiritual flight.

Among the highlights were an explosive “Hotel California,” an otherworldly “Evil Ways” and a gentle, expressive instrumental take on “Close to You.” The duo’s inventive treatment additionally included the likes of Fleetwood Mac, Van Morrison, Santana, John Mayer and Steely Dan (a bluegrassy, percussive “Do It Again”) .

They also mixed in originals and provided entertaining behind-the-music stories. “We play to the audience,” says Furlow. “So we’re always doing wake-up calls.”

Don’t miss the opportunity to catch their return to town.

When: 7-9 p.m. Tuesday, July 13 Cost: No cover Where: Bluegrass Island Trading Company, 107 Budleigh St., Manteo waterfront district Info: 252-423-3039, Bluegrass Island Facebook page It’s lawn seating, so bring a chair or blanket.

Dustin Furlow (right) and Matt Thomas.

DUSTIN FURLOW/ COURTESY

7 Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

This Week at Downtown Books...

Joseph Terrell Friday July 16 2-4pm The Outer Banks favorite crime solver, Harrison Weaver, is back! The Souvenir Keeper, Joseph Terrell's latest book in this best-selling mystery series, is here - fans have been waiting for it and we've got it!

The Bird Store

Oceanfront & Open Year Round at 11:30 AM

The Outer Banks Wildlife Art Gallery

Specializing in Catering Services for Weddings & Events Fresh Seafood

Steaks

Vegetarian

Kids Menu

We carry over 75 artists, and specialize in Outer Banks wildlife! Pelicans, shorebirds, herons, ducks, songbirds and wildlife carvings, seashore paintings and prints, lighthouse art, gifts, cards, and all styles of decoys - antique and decorative.

Our 35th year!

Sandwiches Wood Fired Gourmet Pizzas Homemade Desserts Full Service Bar

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Daily Breakfast Specials 7 am - 2 pm

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MP 8.5 ON HWY 158 BYPASS (1/2 MILE SOUTH OF WRIGHT MEMORIAL) KILL DEVIL HILLS

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Look what Jolly’s doing this season!

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Great Drink Specials All Day! Watch NASCAR with US Great Drink Specials NTN Poker Tournament 5 pm

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Locals Sign up We also sell for Birthday Club homemade italian, Complimentary Dinner the month of your Birthday Also, a free Dessert!

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chocolate chip, and peanut butter cookies!

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JOIN JOLLY’S ON THE DECK TO WATCH FIREWORKS ON SUNDAY, JULY 4TH!

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Dinner Specials Start at 4 pm

Locals! - Nightly 20% OFF Dinner w/ Local ID

Locals! - Mon-Fri 20% OFF Lunch w/ Local ID

Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

8 The World War II wreck of U-701 sits in approximately 110 feet of water in shifting sands and currents off Cape Hatteras. NOAA

‘CROSSROADS OF AMERICAN CIVILIZATION’

By Ben Swenson | Correspondent

The 20th Indiana Regiment stands around the base of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Oct. 4, 1861, after a 25-mile march during the Civil War. OUTER BANKS HISTORY CENTER/COURTESY

state’s largest by area, though three-quarters of it is water. It runs from Duck in the north to Hatteras Inlet down south. A large part of the county, a sparsely populated peninsula, sits on the mainland. Roanoke Island, in between the two, is home of the county seat, Manteo — named for the chief of the local Croatan tribe during the contact period.

Englishmen first attempted North

9 between Hatteras and Ocracoke islands.

Confederate raiders harassed American maritime commerce from the area until August 1861, when Union naval forces pounded the forts into submission, delivering the North’s first major victory of the Civil War. In 1870, state legislators adjusted county borders and cobbled together the four disparate areas to create Dare County, naming it after the first child born in its borders. The new county remained a patchwork of scattered and hard-to-get-to settlements. Something as simple as a trip to the courthouse to file paperwork could require a two-day journey by sailboat. Residents conducted business in what historian David Stick called “the Dare County way,” in which the pace of everyday procedures and routines were slowed by the geographical challenges.

Seagoing vessels regularly used shipping lanes just offshore. The unfortunate ones ended their service there. The water off the Outer Banks is home to more than 2,000 shipwrecks, according to Mary Ellen Riddle, education and volunteer coordinator for The Graveyard of the Atlantic

Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

The first flight measured just 120 feet.

The Wright Flyer, a rudimentary aircraft made from cotton cloth stretched over a wooden frame, propelled by a simple gasoline engine, was airborne for a turbulent 12 seconds before it fell back to earth.

Brief as it was, that takeoff in December 1903 was an unprecedented feat — powered flight. Brothers Wilbur and Orville Wright had made world history on the sands of Dare County, North Carolina.

And while that flight may be the most notable claim to fame for the state’s easternmost outpost, it is by no measure the only one. Dare County has a history rich with heroes and villains, settlers and castaways, pirates, Confederates and even Nazis.

As Joseph Schwarzer II, director of the North Carolina Maritime Museum System, Dare County, puts it, the area “has been at the crossroads of American civilization for more than four centuries.”

Much of the county’s territory exists on the Outer Banks, a long sliver of land where dunes shelter some 3,000 square miles of estuaries and inland coastal communities from the foul moods of the Atlantic Ocean.

At 1,562 square miles, the county is the

American colonization at Roanoke Island in 1585, and then again in 1587. About 120 English men and women made a go at settlement. They witnessed the birth of the New World’s first English child, a girl named Virginia Dare. But when the colony’s governor returned in 1590 from a voyage to England, the settlers had vanished. He found the word “CROATOAN” carved into a tree. Most assumed the settlers moved inland, possibly integrating with Native Americans, when they could no longer survive on the harsh, sandy, spit of land.

The area was remote and difficult to reach, making it the perfect playground for pirates, a haven for the independent or rebellious. Pirates and other scofflaws left few official records of their exploits, as they were always in a game of cat-and-mouse with law-abiding merchants and mariners.

But their existence on the Outer Banks was genuine and threatening, as with the case of HMS Hady, which ran aground in 1696.

Raiders took some of the ship’s cannons ashore, blasted holes in its side to keep it from becoming buoyant once again and emptied its cargo.

After North Carolina joined the Confederacy, the South’s forces constructed forts to protect the inlet

Turn to Page 10

The American oil tanker Dixie Arrow sank off Cape Hatteras, N.C. on March 26, 1942, when it was hit by torpedoes fired by the German U-boat U-71. THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES/COURTESY

Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

10 from Page 9

Museum in Hatteras. More than 600 of those ships sit off Hatteras Island, Riddle says, where Diamond Shoals (shifting banks of underwater sand) have frustrated mariners for as long as they have passed over them.

Such treacherous water made lighthouses very important, and Dare County is home to two impressive examples: the Bodie Island Lighthouse, which is within sight of Roanoke Island, and Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, the tallest in the United States.

Although the sand and stiff winds weren’t always ideal for seafaring, those features nevertheless attracted the Wright Brothers, who at the turn of the 20th century, began working on powered flight. They loved the people and terrain of the Outer Banks. The locals “are friendly and neighborly and I think there is rarely any real suffering among them,” wrote Wilbur Wright in 1900.

Between 1900 and 1903, the Wrights spent warm months conducting thousands of glider flights. Their persistence culminated in success on Dec. 17, 1903.

That afternoon, Orville sent a wire to Ohio from the Kitty Hawk Weather Station: “SUCCESS FOUR FLIGHTS THURSDAY MORNING ALL AGAINST TWENTY ONE MILE WIND STARTED WITH LEVEL FROM ENGINE POWER ALONE…” The Wrights’ success put Dare County on the world map. But without any real network of bridges and roads, the area remained remote. That would change quickly with the construction of two bridges in 1927 and 1930, officially linking Roanoke Island, the Outer Banks and the mainland through what would eventually become N.C. Highway 12. Prior to that, people were forced to take ferries to the area. And, with no paved roads, more than a few found themselves stuck in the sand, sometimes staying there forever, according to Dawson Carr, author of NC 12: Gateway to the Outer Banks.

World War II brought the enemy to America. German U-boats prowled the waters off the Outer Banks, claiming hundreds of Allied vessels and earning its title of Torpedo Alley. American forces fought back, and within sight of Dare County, Navy, Coast Guard and Army vessels sunk four U-boats.

After the war, Dare County returned to business as usual. The milestone that solidified its place as an international tourist destination was the Dare Coast Pirates’ Jamboree, which held its first annual event in May 1955, according to Samantha Crisp, director of the Outer Banks History Center. “The Pirates’ Jamboree gave birth to the tourism industry because it brought large numbers of people to the Outer Banks for the first time,” she says.

Local organizers staged the festival in early May to extend the tourist season and included odd and, sometimes raucous, events, including the world’s largest saltwater fish fry and a mock pirate battle. The

Virginia Dare, shown in marble, at the Elizabethan Gardens on Roanoke Island in North Carolina. DREW C. WILSON/THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT FILE PHOTO

Dare Coast Pirates’ Jamboree had a 10-year run, during which it achieved the goal of accelerating Outer Banks tourism, Crisp says.

And for the past six decades, Dare County has relied largely on a constant stream of vacationers, who come to appreciate the sand, surf and sun that has drawn outsiders for centuries. Today the county is home to some 38,000 permanent residents and receives upwards of 1.5 million visitors annually.

The area has come a long way, but it’s still possible to glimpse life before beach cottages and booming businesses. The county has numerous areas protected from development, such as Jockey’s Ridge State Park, Cape Hatteras National Seashore and, of course, Wright Brothers National Memorial.

A lot has transpired since the colonists first landed on these shores nearly 500 years ago, but Dare County’s allure remains timeless.

“The sunsets here are the prettiest I have ever seen,” Orville Wright wrote from Kitty Hawk. “The clouds light up in all colors, in the background, with deep blue clouds of various shapes fringed with gold before.”

Reprinted from Distinction magazine.

This Dec. 14, 1903, image shows aviator Wilbur Wright after an unsuccessful trial flight Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Three days later the Wright Brothers, Wilbur and Orville, succeeded in the first powered, controlled flight. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS/GETTY

11 Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

HATTERAS HOT LIST BAKERIES

Orange Blossom Bakery’s legendary Apple Uglies are piled high for the morning rush. CHARLEY PEREIRA/COURTESY

By Carrie Brothers | Correspondent

Island Bakery

Scratchmade Snackery

Why: Opened in mid-2020, Island Bakery in Avon quickly established itself as a mustvisit stop for anyone with a sweet tooth and love for good bread. The glass cases are packed full with tender cupcakes, decadent cheesecakes and soft cookies nestled alongside fresh loves of bread, pies and treats with seasonal, exciting flavors, such as margarita cupcakes for Cinco de Mayo.

Each item is baked with care, and gluten-free options are available. Come early because they can sell out!

Where: 41934 N.C. Highway 12, Avon Hours: 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; Closed Sunday and Monday Info: 252-986-5188; www.islandbakeryavon. com

Why: Located in a colorful, quirky little building, Scratchmade Snackery is home to countless, craveable goodies. The cases overflow with cinnamon buns, cookies, brownies, croissants, muffins and bread.

Bars of key lime pie and cheesecake are also available if you are looking for more. Each sweet treat is almost as beautiful as it is delicious. After seven seasons on the island, the husband and wife team, Kitty and Kyle Oden, behind this bakery never disappoints.

Where: 57544 N.C. Highway 12, Hatteras Hours: 5 a.m. - Noon Daily Info: 252-986-0048; www. scratchmadesnackery.com

Orange Blossom Bakery & Cafe

Why: For more than a generation, many visitors have sworn that no trip to Hatteras has been complete without a stop at Orange Blossom Bakery & Cafe. Converted from a hotel to a bakery in the 1980s, the little blue and white bakery may be most famous for their Apple Uglies, a magical marriage between doughnut dough and apples. The tempting menu also features fresh doughnuts, sticky buns and breakfast sandwiches.

Where: 47206 N.C. Highway 12 Buxton Hours: 6:30 - 11 a.m. Daily Info: 252-995-4109; orangeblossombakery. com

Gingerbread House Bakery Why: Since 1975, this whimsical building straight from an old fairy tale has sold a variety of scratch-made pastries and jumbo cookies. Gingerbread House takes the bakery a step further and has an extensive pizza menu available for those looking for something a bit more savory. Delectable vegan options, like chocolate croissants are available, and, yes, they do have gingerbread men.

Where: 52715 N.C. Highway 12, Frisco Hours: 4:30 - 8:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; Closed Sunday-Wednesday Info: 252-995-5204; gbhbakery.com

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12 Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

15 + varieties of New York Bagels

Hatteras Island Pirates ~ Puzzles ~ Games ~ John Deere

Homemade soups and lunch specialties Cakes, cupcakes, cookies, pastries, and more Cozy coffee shop Custom cakes and pies

Salt Water Taffy ~ Truffles ~ Fudge ~ Chocolates Monday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm, Sunday 12 pm - 5 pm Hwy 12 in Buxton right before the turnoff to Cape Hatteras Lighthouse 252-995-7171 • 46928 NC 12 Buxton NC

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We offer a great family friendly dining experience, lively pub and unforgettable food from our scratch-made kitchen.

Our patio is dog friendly!

Our private dining rooms are perfect for large parties, special events and wedding receptions!

3 pm - 10 pm daily

Hatteras Island’s favorite brunch - Sunday’s from 10 am - 4 pm

Hawaiian Shaved Ice • Italian Ice Shakes • Sundaes • Smoothies

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Custom Ice Cream Cakes!

Call (252) 986-5109 | Open 6 AM - 4 PM

40146 N.C 12 in Avon

Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

The perfect place to start or end your day!

14 Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

The communal table set for a farm to table feast at Somerset Farm. OF OLLIE INGLIS/COURTESY

Serving fresh cuisine under starry skies at Somerset Farm

By Maggie Miles

Correspondent

Those who’ve been to the Secotan Market in Wanchese understand the value and pleasure of buying Somerset Farm’s farm-fresh produce, grown just west in Chowan County. However, the farm and

Inglis family are creating a new way to experience the locally grown fare with special outdoor dinners hosted at the farm.

At a romantically lit table in the gardens surrounding the over 100-year-old farmhouse, people can enjoy those same vegetables cooked up into a multi-course meal of gastronomic excellence and connect with

other guests from all over the region.

That is the experience that Ollie Inglis and Kelly Burton are bringing to Somerset Farm this summer with their Farm to Table Dinner Series, or as Inglis also calls it, Porchlight Dinners.

Somerset Farm is a diversified family-run, certified-organic farm based out of

Edenton, North Carolina, about an hourand-a-half drive from the Outer Banks. It is run by Inglis’ parents, Frederick and Jeannie Douglas, who have been tending that soil for more than 35 years.

The dinners are a different theme every Turn to Somerset Farm, Page 16

15 Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

Welco me Aboard!

Half Day Inlet, Sound Fishing, & Cruises

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Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

16

Somerset Farm from Page 14

time, determined usually at the last minute by what is at peak freshness and availability at that moment. They are also inspired by the travels of both Inglis and Burton. They love picking fun, international themes from across the world. Their last event, for example, was a Portuguese-inspired dinner.

“I’ve always been interested in cooking and eating well and traveling and going to other countries,” Inglis says. “I think they [in other countries] eat a lot better than us. They have their markets where you can get your fresh foods and fish. That has really inspired me to use other ingredients and to eat more vegetables.”

They started these farm to table dinners 10 years ago in the Raleigh Research Triangle. Inglis was in cooking school and getting certified in sustainable culinary arts.

It makes sense that she would be passionate about this; her father was one of the first in the state to get certified as an organic farm.

Somerset incorporates many sustainable practices into its farm operations. Burton was one of Inglis’ instructors, and they had the idea to start the dinner series, according to Inglis, “as a way to learn more, teach more, experiment with different foods and find new ways of doing things.”

When Inglis moved back to her parents’ farm a few years ago, they decided to keep the series going there. The dinners are completely different each time but made up exclusively of food from the farm or other local places. For example, the dinner held June 20 included herb-seared tuna, caught locally roasted beef crusted with Inglis’ own coffee steak rub and seared sausages from pigs raised on the farm. They were accompanied by a mustard made with apple cider vinegar that sourced apples from an apple tree on their farm, farro with beets and a roasted strawberry vinaigrette, cabbage date feta slaw, harissa grilled zucchini with lemon and parmesan, a cucumber salad and grilled bread. To finish off the feast, Inglis served a homemade peach-fig pie with almond ice cream.

Local, organic meats make an appearance at these events, but they are centered around the fresh vegetables, always highlighting those at peak season. On the day of the dinners, Inglis goes out to the field during the early morning and pulls the beets, picks the zucchini, peels the cabbage,

Inglis and Burton hope the Porchlight Dinners bring people together and inspire them to eat healthier, locally and sustainably. OLLIE INGLIS/COURTESY

and then 10 hours later people are there eating it.

“People aren’t used to eating that fresh,” Inglis says.

Then there is the educational aspect. Before dinner, Inglis and Burton come to the table and explain to guests what they did, how they did it and the significance behind their choices of spices and herbs.

Inglis says these dinners foster fellowship and let guests form new relationships. Something about sitting under the starry skies in the gardens of an old farmhouse, watching the fireflies and eating

fresh, local, sustainable ingredients draws a bond between people.

At the last dinner, two couples from different places became friends and are now going to visit each other soon. One event even sparked a romantic relationship.

Mary Scott Haigler, an Edenton resident, certainly felt that bond during one of Inglis’ earliest Porchlight dinners that she attended in 2018. Not only was she delighted at the various ages and origins of guests, including a couple from New Hampshire, but she also recalled a beautiful memory of the night.

“We drank wine out of mix-matched pottery goblets that were — I’m making an educated guess here — handmade by our host’s grandmother. The plates were a stunning combination of eclectic china, all set underneath strung white lights. Dogs roamed about, and cows ambled about a hundred feet away. The sunset was glorious. ... Truly breathtaking. The stars were dynamite.

Absolutely incredible. Over and over that evening, I consciously marveled at how lucky I was to be there,” she says.

The group later migrated

fireside, and many of the guests happened to be fantastic musicians who brought their instruments along. They all sang classic songs by the fire for the rest of the evening. She notes the only thing she regrets about the night was not giving her husband a big smooch under the starry sky!

For Inglis, the Porchlight Dinners are about inspiring people to eat a little healthier, a little more local and a little more sustainable. And, it’s about bringing people together.

“The common thing in food,” she says.

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Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

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18

COASTAL CULTURE

Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

Entrepreneur’s business to heal self while pleasing others

By Mary Ellen Riddle Correspondent

Kim Martin perfected her popular chocolate bombs through YouTube videos and trial and error. KIM MARTIN/COURTESY

Frisco creator Kim Martin is a whirlwind when it comes to creating bath, home and edible products for her business KM Creations. She not only comes up with recipes for the myriad products but creates, packages, markets and sells them at art fairs and through Facebook. Think, body and air sprays, sugar scrubs, candle melts, hand sanitizer and chocolate delights.

“I really like making things and doing things, so that’s how I started doing the chocolates, crafts and things to make people feel better about themselves,” Martin says. Feeling better was also personal for the 52-year-old.

The genesis of this one-person operation came at a time when Martin’s energy was low yet making a living was vital. Due to breast cancer and its related treatments, she was having a hard time working a nineto-five job outside the home. As a self-supporter, she knew she had to make ends meet. Calling in to work when she was having a bad day was not going to fly.

As they say, necessity is the mother of invention, and in 2017, Martin started running her own business KM Creations.

Chocolate pop bouquets for special occasions came into being, along with chocolate bombs — a hollow chocolate ball filled with cocoa and other flavor — meant for dropping into a heated drink. The bomb explodes once it hits the heat, and the chocolate melts, making a festive beverage.

Flavors for the chocolate bombs range from chai, cocoa, red velvet, raspberry cream, peppermint, salty caramel, cookies and cream and Lucky Charm.

Despite the work being labor intensive, Martin does not take shortcuts.

She melts the chocolate, puts it in molds, fills and then seals the halves.

The final touch — decorating the exteriors with chocolate sprinkles and different candy coatings.

How did she get started on the bombs? “I YouTubed it!” Martin, who beat her breast cancer, says with a laugh. “I perfected it by the third bomb.” The ideas for flavors keep coming. “I am working on a lemonade

one for summer,” she says.

For her spritzes and sprays, Martin experimented with different essential oils, such as lavender and lemongrass. She concocted a number of fragrances, but she desired a signature scent. “I wanted it to be sweet and fruity but mellow,” she says.

Fifteen oils went into developing her most popular spray, Ocean Potion.

“I try to keep everything all natural,” she says. In the case of her sugar scrubs, she goes for quality over cost.

“Grapeseed oil is pricey but lighter,” she says of the ingredient she uses in the scrubs. “It doesn’t clog your pores, so it’s actually good for your skin.”

Martin’s attention to details, diversity of products and ambition to create products that make folks happy is paying off. “I’ve actually gotten a following of people,” she says.

She takes pleasing people seriously.

“If somebody wants me to do a cake pop arrangement, I kind of want to know something about the person to create something just for them,” she says.

An esthetician was particularly satisfied with Martin’s personal attention. “The woman had to have a special recipe because she does hair removal with sugar scrubs,” Martin says. She worked with her client to get the perfect recipe, even creating five test cakes to find the most-loved result.

Creating her products and eschewing the nine-to-five life makes Martin happy. “With my head spinning with different ideas, I can actually make it happen,” she says. “I have fun doing it.” For her following, it’s all about feeling better through personalized beauty and deliciousness inside and out.

Where to find them Kim Martin will be featuring her creations at multiple arts and crafts shows throughout the Outer Banks, including at the recurring Lighthouse Local Arts and Crafts shows at the Family Life Center in Buxton. These shows run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Aug. 19, Sept. 3, Oct. 9, Dec. 10-11. She also will be at OBX Arts & Crafts Festival at the Hilton Garden Inn in Kitty Hawk, Sept. 8-9.

Contact her on Facebook, KM Creations, or email at kmcreations68 @aol.com

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20

CURRITUCK COUNTY Small Business Spotlight

Land of the Free, Home of the Wave

Corolla Surf Shop share their passion by teaching people how to shred increase in intensity. The summer brings long days in the sun and plenty of social interaction. The area offers a good balance of opposites. There is immense opportunity for new businesses as the area continues to grow.

The local community is comprised of some amazing humans.

What are the biggest challenges?

Luke Hurley is the co-owner of the Corolla Surf Shop in Corolla, NC. How long have you been in business in Currituck County?

Corolla Surf Shop has been in business since 1996. My brothers and I have been the owners since 2018.

Can you describe the business?

Corolla Surf Shop aims to provide a fun and unique experience in the water with surf lessons. We love teaching people how to surf and sharing our passion, so that lies at the core of our business. We offer surfboard, paddleboard, bodyboard, skimboard, and bike rentals. We also sell merchandise, surfboards, and accessories from many major brands.

Talk about the decision to start your own business.

We did not open up the doors at the shop, but Phil, Jack, and I made the decision to incorporate surfing and Corolla into our lives a long time

“Our staff is 100% surfers... we live and breathe this stuff.” ago. It was a no-brainer to pursue the opportunity to buy the shop when the former owner Gary Smith approached us in 2018. The Corolla Surf Shop provided all of us our first jobs. Phil began working there in the summer of 2006. Jack and I followed suit when we reached high school.

Why do you do what you do?

We all love Corolla and the ocean.

Jack and Phil guided me into my first waves in Corolla when I was 7. I still remember that day, and it changed the course of my life. All of our surf instructors remember the feeling of their first waves, and they enjoy sharing that excitement. It sounds simple, but I think we all do what do because we love surfing.

Why did you choose Currituck?

Currituck County offers a lot. The off-season comes with a decrease in population while the wind and waves

Housing for seasonal workers proves to be a challenge here. This has not been devastating for us because we have an amazing core group of employees that have solidified housing options. However, it is an issue for many other businesses in the area, and it most likely will be a challenge for us at some point in the future.

to the tourism and planning and development departments within Currituck County. They have a wealth of knowledge and resources that are instrumental in smoothly starting a business.

Corolla Surf Shop 807 Ocean Trail Corolla, NC

www.corollasurfshop.com

What are the biggest rewards?

The ability to live on the Outer Banks with friends and family. The area has a lot to offer. Meeting and creating lasting memories for visitors is also rewarding. Some instructors in our surf school, like my brother Phil and Jason Brickhouse, have taught kids every summer for ten years in some cases. Watching kids develop as surfers and people is rewarding.

What sets you apart?

We offer things that are unique in the area. Our staff is 100% surfers. We understand our equipment and offerings because we surf daily. We have a couple of guys that will tell you more than you ever needed to know before purchasing your first board because we live and breathe this stuff.

Any advice for someone starting a business in Currituck County?

I would advise them to reach out

CALL LARRY Larry Lombardi Currituck County Economic Development Director

(252) 232-6015 Larry@ThinkCurrituck.com www.ThinkCurrituck.com

21

Historic WOODEN

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Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

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22 Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

“Now, I’m here on the Outer Banks trying to be a kid, I guess!”Steve Hauser says. Catch him performing in Kitty Hawk, Nags Head and Manteo this season.

SCOTT SECHMAN/ CORRESPONDENT

BEYOND THE MUSIC

Upbeat and inspired by a hippie

By Scott Sechman

Correspondent

Of all of the musicians that ply their trade on the Banks, Steve Hauser has got to be one of the hardest workers. I know he’s much younger than I (don’t let his graying locks fool you), but this cat works his butt off every year. This season is no different. Perhaps a bit different in that he didn’t accept a steady Friday at one particular venue, opting to leave it open for one-night-only’s and the rare night off with his lovely wife and road manager, Donna.

Vaccine-happy and urged to get back into the swing of things, restaurants are able to pack ‘em in again. That “normalcy” concept is just something that was akin to a pipe dream as recently as January.

I myself, and perhaps due to just over a year’s worth of habit, am still reticent and keep a wary eye. Steve, on the other hand, has taken on his seven nights a week with the positive attitude that the vaccines offer him sufficient protection. A tool that allows him to interface with the general public.

Given that he’s exhibiting his ample skills at a wide variety of venues this year,

I asked him if there were any situations he’s found himself in that gave him pause or concerned him. “Not really. …I know it’s still out there”, he told me. “I know most people have been responsible and have gotten the shot. That doesn’t mean we can’t get it, but if we do, most of us won’t get sick … much less die. So I’m not too worried about it.”

And for music-loving visitors (as well as residents), that’s a wonderful thing, as Steve is a veritable human hard drive, packed with songs, streaming them at will.

A fine vocalist and guitarist, Mr. Hauser has an innate ability to reinvent a song you may have heard a million times and make it fresh, while still holding on to its best aspects. When you go to one of Steve’s gigs, you can expect a massive list of tunes ranging from the ‘60s to now. Not only are they enthusiastically performed, the energy’s a bit infectious (if I can safely use that word again, post-pandemic) when you’re an audience member. Don’t be afraid to request something, because he may surprise you and whip it out. I’d wager that if he doesn’t know your song, he probably knows something by the artist that did

your song.

Born in California, he grew up playing Dick Dale records (King of the Surf Guitar) and listening to Wolfman Jack on the radio (who made his home in Belvidere — about an hour’s drive inland). He moved to Washington D.C. for high school and later to Alaska in ‘80s. Towards the end of that decade, he came back to D.C./Virginia area where he played in an alternative band until a decision was made to settle down to try to be an adult. “Now, I’m here on the Outer Banks trying to be a kid, I guess!”

Steve says. “The Outer Banks is one of my favorite beaches. There is a nice balance between quirky beach town and outdoor activities.”

When it comes to his music, he was raised on the classic guitar bands like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Deep Purple.

“The ‘Book of Taliesyn’ ” was one of the first records I owned, so it got way more of my attention then it probably deserved.

What kept drawing me back was Ritchie Blackmore’s guitar. His bends, whammy bar, vibrato and sense of tonality blew me away. Still does.”

Another characteristic Steve goes for in

his style?

“Upbeat,” he says. “A good friend of mine, Mike Magnum, commented once that he tries to keep things upbeat. That struck me as good advice for a musician in a resort area.”

Given that the Beatles pretty much set the direction of my life in 1964, I asked if a particular band or person motivated him.

“There was this hippie that worked for the Forest Service or Conservation Corps.

Not sure. He was assigned a job living in a tent or something, so he left this enormous record collection with my parents. He gave me this mysterious look as he said ‘You can listen to them.’ So I had to check it out. …”

I didn’t ask him if that hippie ever knew how much he inspired and influenced Steve with that massive vinyl collection, but I know he deserves our thanks.

Steve can be heard at various locations on the Outer Banks this season including, but not limited to, Hurricane Mo’s, Ocean Boulevard Bistro and Martini Bar and Rundown Cafe in Kitty Hawk; Miller’s Waterfront Restaurant & Sunset Bar and Grill in Nags Head and Avenue Waterfront Grille in Manteo.

23

COROLLA CORK &CRAFT Weekly Wine, Beer & Craft Mixer

WEDNESDAYS, ALL SUMMER LONG In Historic Corolla Park

LOCAL WINE & BEER, CRAFT ARTISANS, FOOD TRUCK & LIVE MUSIC: June 16 June 23 June 30 July 7 July 14 July 21 July 28 August 4 August 11 August 18 August 25 September 1 September 8

Mercy Creek Phil Watson Steve Hauser Doc Perkins Troy Breslow & the Company Band Mercy Creek Bobby Plough Doc Perkins Mercy Creek Scott Sechman Phil Watson Bobby Plough Steve Hauser

3 – 7 pm. Every Wednesday, June 16th through Sept. 8th • $1500 to Enter • For More Info. Visit CorollaEvents.com

Coast | The Virginian-Pilot | Friday, July 9, 2021

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Friday, July 9, 2021 | The Virginian-Pilot | Coast

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