Page 2 May 2021
DORIS ROSS Major surgery recovery
From Major Surgery to
MAJOR COMEBACK!
LifeWorks Rehab is more dedicated than ever to the care and safety of our patients like Doris Ross, who got back in action after recovery from major surgery.
450 Piney Forest Rd | Danville, VA 24540
(434) 448-5769 www.PineyForestRehab.com
We provide patients with exceptional recovery experiences you will not find at home or anywhere else. ✔ Customized treatment, therapies, & recovery tools ✔ State-of-the-art gyms & equipment ✔ 24-hour care from a professional team
2344 Riverside Dr | Danville, VA 24540
(434) 448-5890 www.RiversideHealthRehab.com
✔ 7-day-a-week therapy & more time in supervised therapy* ✔ Comprehensive disinfecting with world-class technology 240 Riverside Dr | Bassett, VA 24055 Scan this barcode or visit MyLifeWorksRehab.com/resources for more.
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*compared to at-home recovery
Editor’s Note Creating A-door-able Art
“Y
ou hang art inside your home. Why not on the front door?” Those are the thoughts of the couple on the cover, Amanda Earp and Chris Griffith. See their beautiful wooden creations and read about them on page 5. Another story about outdoor art is on page 9, “Does Your Wine Taste Like Stones?” by Dave Slayton. If that doesn’t pique your interest, turn to page 10 for “Iron Deficiency Leads to High School Reunion” by Carla Minosh. These are crazy titles for stories about beautiful outdoor art.
Photo by Michelle Dalton Photography
Evince Magazine Page 3
a series of fictional short stories on page 11.
Annelle Williams calls her strawberry salad a “piece of swirling art”. The best part? You can eat it. The easy dinner recipe is on page 13. When the dishes are done, relax with a book recommended by Diane Adkins on page 12. Take the Trivia Night quiz by Scott Jones on page 7. Read how Linda Lemery is gradually decluttering her home on page 8. Don’t forget Telisha Moore Leigg’s latest installment in
May is the perfect month to observe and appreciate the outdoor art that surrounds us. Don’t forget to honor and thank your mom on Mother’s Day. After all, you are her living work of art! Sincerely,
Credits: Amber Wilson: hair; Catherine Saunders: skin care and makeup; Genesis Day Spa & Salon, 695 Park Avenue, Danville. Janelle Gammon: nails; Salon One 11, 111 Sandy Court, Danville.
CEO / Publisher / Andrew Scott Brooks Editor / Joyce Wilburn (434.799.3160) joycewilburn@gmail.com Copy Editors Jeanette Taylor, Larry Wilburn Contributing Writers Diane Adkins, Lewis Dumont, Helen Earle, Kimberly Eaton, Scott Jones, Telisha Moore Leigg, Linda Lemery, Josh Lucia, C.B. Maddox, Carla Minosh, Bernadette Moore, Ben Rippe, Desiree Shaffer, Beverly Shelton, Dave Slayton, Joyce Wilburn, Larry Wilburn, Annelle Williams Art & Production Director Demont Design (Kim Demont)
On the Cover: Photo of Amanda Earp and Chris Griffith by Michelle Dalton Photography.
Finance Manager Cindy Yeatts (1.434.709.7349)
May 2021
Marketing Consultants For ad information contact a marketing consultant listed below.
Content
Lee Vogler Director of Sales and Marketing (434.548.5335) lee@evincemagazine.com
3 Editor’s Note
Kenny Thornton Jr, Account Executive (434.250.3581) kenny@showcasemagazine.com
9
The Wine Spot Does Your Wine Taste Like Stones?
12 Book Clubbing Libertie
by Kaitlyn Greenidge review by Diane Adkins
by Dave Slayton
5
Amanda Earp & Chris Griffith Creating A-door-able Art by Joyce Wilburn
10
Fiction by Telisha Moore Leigg
“Two Left Feet!” “Stack ‘Em High!”
Battle Cries by Linda Lemery
Editorial Policies
Spotting Exceptional Customer Service by Larry Wilburn
Leads to High School Reunion by Carla Minosh
evince\i-’vin(t)s\ 1: to constitute outward evidence of 2: to display clearly; reveal syn see SHOW Deadline for submission of June stories, articles, and ads is Friday, May 21, at 5:00 p.m. Submit stories, articles, and calendar items to joycewilburn@gmail.com.
Scorpion Grass Part 1
6 Calendar 7 Trivia Night 8 Two Decluttering 11 Iron Deficiency
Kim Demont Graphic Design, Marketing (434.792.0612) demontdesign@verizon.net
Evince is a free monthly magazine with news about entertainment and lifestyle in Danville and the surrounding area. We reserve the right to accept, reject and edit all submissions and advertisements.
13
Strawberry Salad Sure Sign That Summer Is on the Way
by Annelle Williams
14 Photo Finish
EVINCE MAGAZINE 753 Main St. Suite 3, Danville, VA 24541 www.evincemagazine.com For subscriptions to Evince, email info@evincemagazine.com. Cost is $24 a year. © 2021 All rights reserved. Reproduction or use in whole or in part in any medium without written permission of the publisher is strictly prohibited.
Page 4 May 2021
Evince Magazine Page 5
Amanda Earp & Chris Griffith
Creating A-door-able Art by Joyce Wilburn
O
ne look at the cozy Victorian cottage in Danville’s Old West End makes it clear that creative and talented people live here. Amanda Earp and Chris Griffith have filled every outdoor space with small works of art that they have created and colorful landscaping brought to life by their green thumbs. Sitting on the front porch of the 1906 house once owned by Chris’s grandparents, Amanda talks about the hobby the couple share that has morphed into a little shop of signs appropriately named Lil g Sign Company. (Little G was Chris’s nickname as a child.) “We are a complete partnership in this. It’s like left brain and right brain are meeting,” laughs Amanda. Chris gives the details: “She draws the designs. I cut the signs (from wood), and prepare them for her to paint.” Amanda quickly interjects, “It’s fun. He says I give him some designs just to challenge his cutting skills.” The couple didn’t intend to start a business when the first wooden
flower sign was created in 2017. “We made a sign for ourselves and then friends asked if we could make some for them. We also gave a few as gifts,” says Chris. News of these unique works of art spread on Facebook, Etsy, and by word-of-mouth. Soon, orders came in and the signs were being bought by locals and shipped within Virginia and throughout the Northeast. “We’re also working on Open/Close signs for businesses,” says Amanda. “For example, an optometrist might have a really cool, open eye painted on one side of a sign. Flip it around when the office is closed and the eye is closed.”
Looking at one of the wooden flowers that can be hung anywhere including on an exterior door in place of a wreath, Amanda continues, “Chris creates a blank canvas that I hand paint. We focus on things that are specific to the region like the different seasons of the dogwood flower.” Because they both have backgrounds in science and horticulture, creating the wooden flower blossoms was a natural choice. “I’m kinda crazy about all my plants,” admits Chris, a former member of the Richmond Bonsai Society, pointing to a potted tulip poplar that’s sixteen years old and other carefully cultivated bonsai on the porch. Amanda’s love of nature developed while working at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans where she was in charge of the landscaping for their Discovery Walks. ”I was certified by the National Wildlife Federation,” she remarks, adding, “That’s why we don’t use pesticides or weed killers here.”
When they aren’t working on the natural and wooden flowers in their front and back yards, they are busy with their day jobs. Chris is a graduate of Radford University with a degree in social work and teaches at Halifax County Middle School. Amanda has a degree in psychology from Northwestern State University of Louisiana. She is a nutrition coach at the Healing Center in Danville. In spite of those responsibilities, there is always time for making the signs. Amanda gazes around the little Garden of Eden she and Chris call home, looks at the wooden daffodil sign on the front door and asks a question that needs no answer, “You hang art inside your house. Why not on the front door?” After all, the signs are a-door-able! • Lil g Sign Company creations can be seen at Main Street Art Collective, 326 Main Street, in Danville. • For more information, visit www.littlegsigncompany.com.
Page 6 May 2021
May
Calendar of Evince Abbreviation Key
• AU=Averett University, 434.791.5600 www.averett.edu • DMFAH=Danville Museum of Fine Arts & History, 975 Main St. 434.793.5644 www.danvillemuseum.org • DSC=Danville Science Center, 677 Craghead St. 434.791.5160 www.dsc.smv.org572.8339, www.prizery.com • PA= Piedmont Arts, 215 Starling Ave., Martinsville 276.632.3221 PiedmontArts.org
May 1 Through October 31
Danville Master Gardener Help Desk: Master Gardeners love to research gardening problems. Anyone with gardening, lawn, or landscaping questions can call the Cooperative Extension office 434.799.6558 or email danvillemastergardeners@ gmail.com. Danville Farmers Market: Saturdays 7:30am to noon 629 Craghead Street 434.797.8961
w Rivervie Rotary
Ongoing
Guided Walking Tours: Millionaires Row, Holbrook Street and Tobacco Warehouse District. 434.770.1974 www.danvillehistory.org DMFAH: self-guided audio tours Camilla Williams Exhibit: Exhibit features her opera costumes including Madame Butterfly. DMFAH Danville Civil Rights Exhibition: The Movement on permanent display. DMFAH DSC: Learn about “Water”--its chemical makeup, the power it can generate, and the ecology of the Dan River. “Go!” highlights the intersection between the physics of machines and the biology of the human body. The J.T.-Minnie Maude Charitable Trust Creativity Lab is a makerspace offering hands-on access to craft and design tools.
Show sic Car
May 1
Clas
Rods & Rides: classic car show hosted by Riverview Rotary Club Ballou Park, 760 West Main St. Danville 8am-4pm gclark302@gmail.com
May 3 Through June 14
Forms in Clay: This pottery class is held every Monday 6:30-9pm $95 for DMFAH members $105 for others. Call 434.792.5355 to register.
Smokestack Theatre Company
St. Danville. 6pm Limited tickets available on Eventbrite.com. $20 ages 21+ Call to Artists - Expressions 2021: Lynwood Artists and Piedmont Arts will accept entries for Expressions 2021. Entry is open to all artists living within a 100-mile radius of Martinsville. Artwork submitted for entry must have been completed within the last three years. Work previously exhibited in Expressions is not eligible. To enter work, read the Expressions entry rules at PiedmontArts.org or pick up a copy at the museum.
May 8
DSO Concert: Danville Symphony Orchestra Concert Hits from the Big Band Era at Carrington Pavilion, 629 Craghead St. 3pm free www.danvillesymphony.net
May 9
Mother’s Day
May 5 Through 28
Fiber Lab: Sew pieces of sweaters together for Wanderlove. Times vary. DMFAH
May 21
Opening Reception - Expressions 2021: Free and open to the public 6-8pm. Complimentary wine and light refreshments will be served. Social distancing and masks required. RSVP by May 18 276.632.3221 or PiedmontArts.org
May 22 Through July 16
Expressions 2021: an annual exhibition of work by artists from Southern Virginia and the surrounding region, featuring an eclectic mix of work from more than 100 artists. PA
May 26
Smokestack Theatre Company: Read a role in a classic play or enjoy watching. 2 Witches Winery & Brewing Co., 209 Trade St. Danville 6pm free
May 29
Summer Stock Kickoff: Obtain information and register for upcoming summer programs for the entire family. Enjoy a play reading on the DMFAH lawn. Smokestack Theatre Company free 2-4pm DMFAH Attic Sale Drop-Off: Email davidc522@comcast.net for a time.
May 31
Memorial Day
May 15
Cars & Coffee: hosted by Old Dominion Classic Sports Car Club. See classic cars, sports cars, muscle cars, and more in the parking lot at Crema & Vine, 1009 Main St. Danville 9-10:30am 434.548.9862 See Photo Finish page 14.
May 16 Veronica Jackson - The Burden of Invisibility
May 1 Through 23
The Burden of Invisibility: a Veronica Jackson Exhibition at Gallery Space, 536 Craghead Street, noon-8pm Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays; noon5pm Sundays DMFAH free
May 8 & 9
DMFAH Free Admission
May 8
Smokestack Improv: 2 Witches Winery & Brewing Co., 209 Trade
Landon Spradlin Memorial Music Festival: free, six bands, food truck Donations accepted for Landon’s family. 2 Witches Winery & Brewing Co., 209 Trade St. Danville 1-7pm Bring a chair.
Evince Magazine Page 7
Trivia Night submitted by Scott Jones
1 Who did Betty White play on the sitcom The Golden Girls? 2. What is the name of the crosslegged sitting yoga pose in which each foot is placed on the opposite thigh? 3. What star of Netflix’s Grace and Frankie got her start performing stand-up comedy and appearing on the variety show Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In? 4. Elizabeth Short, murdered in Los Angeles, California, in January 1947, is better known by what name? 5. In the novel The Great Gatsby, who was Jay Gatsby’s former lover who married Tom? 6. What Batman villain is the alter ego of Dr. Pamela Isley? 7. What is Katniss Everdeen’s sister’s name in the Hunger Games trilogy? 8. Who was the crown princess of Agrabah who fell in love with the disguised Prince Ali Ababwa? 9. Who, along with Westley, encountered Rodents of Unusual Size in The Princess Bride? 10. What alternative rock band had big hits in the late 90s with songs like Change Your Mind, Champagne High, and All for You, which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Adult Top 40?
Answers to April Showers 1. Rose Nylund 2. lotus position 3. Lily Tomlin 4. Black Dahlia 5. Daisy Buchanan 6. Poison Ivy 7. Primrose Everdeen 8. Jasmine 9. Princess Buttercup 10. Sister Hazel
April Showers Bring May Flowers
7. Maria; Something’s Coming; I Feel Pretty 8. Old Deuteronomy; Mr. Mistoffelees; Memory 9. (Ya Got) Trouble; Shipoopi; Seventy-Six Trombones 10. Pretty Little Picture; Everybody Ought to Have a Maid; Comedy Tonight Answers to Broadway Show 1. Phantom of the Opera 2. Wicked 3. The Sound of Music 4. Grease 5. Hamilton 6. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street 7. West Side Story 8. Cats 9. The Music Man 10. A Funny Thing Happened on thr Way to the Forum
z
oom in to Trivia Nights on Mondays, May 3 and May 17, at 7:00 p.m. For more information, email scott. jones@richmond.edu.
We’re
on Danville! Donna Gibson Owner
Name the Broadway Show
where these songs would be heard. 1. Masquerade; All I Ask of You; The Music of the Night 2. Dancing Through Life; Popular; Defying Gravity 3. Maria; The Lonely Goatherd; Edelweiss 4. Beauty School Dropout; There Are Worse Things I Could Do; Summer Nights 5. You’ll Be Back; Dear Theodosia; Ten Duel Commandments 6. A Little Priest; Not While I’m Around; The Worst Pies in London
HOLLEY & GIBSON REALTY COMPANY
339 Piney Forest Rd., Danville, VA 24540
Office: (434) 791-2400 Fax: (434) 791-2122 Visit our website at
www.holleyandgibsonrealty.com
Page 8 May 2021
Two Left Feet!” “Stack ‘Em High!”
Two Decluttering Battle Cries
by Linda Lemery
“T
wo left feet!” and “Stack ‘em high!” have been ringing in my head since last month. I’ll explain how those phrases relate to decluttering, but, in the meantime, let’s talk dresses. I started trying on my dresses. I’ve been dieting and if the dresses were too big, they were busted (evicted from my universe). Slightly too big or fit perfectly? Blessed (kept) if I liked the design and fabric. Too small but I liked them? Blessed ‘em because I’m shrinking and might squeeze into them. Liking everything makes busting decisions much harder. It’s easier to jettison what is disliked. Only two dresses were miles too big. If any felt looseygoosey, out they went. Some
smaller dresses had never fit before, but now I could zip them up and sit down without splitting the seams. I blessed most of them to celebrate the miracle of weight loss. A conversation with a pregnant friend revealed that she was interested in loose, floaty vintage clothing. I sent her photos of mine. She accepted seven dresses. Into the box they went with a surprise Diaper Dude baby bag for her husband that I’d found in a closet. I rushed to the post office before I could change my mind. I fired off other dress photos to ask if another friend was interested. Eventually, I hope to hear, “Send ‘em all!” I paused addressing the dresses
Stack ‘Em High! Photo by Linda Lemery. and told my long-suffering husband, Steve, to find twentyfive books that he didn’t want. While he was reeling from the shock, I crawled under my work desk to access that narrow, cordcluttered lane between desk and bookshelves and forced myself to weed out twenty-five favorite books. They’re all my favorites. It would have been easier to pull from the “unread” bookshelves, but how would I know whether I was giving something away that I might like? Multiple loads went to the used bookstore. What the bookstore didn’t accept, I took to the Goodwill drive-thru where a worker rushed up before I could exit the car, grabbed the items, and flung the donation receipt to me through the window. What left home? 100 books and magazines, seven jumpers, a diaper bag, twenty-one clothing items, rotten lettuce, the garbage, the recycling, the bills, the taxes, and many digital photos (though the photos didn’t save any space). What else have I accomplished this month? Power washing/cleaning/water sealing two decks, two porches and a picnic table. Other accomplishments: organizing dresses, connecting a TV so it’s functional instead of an idle sculpture and alphabetizing DVDs
and videos we haven’t watched. I cannot wait to go through my shoes. About those two matching left tennis shoes I stumbled upon? Nowhere could I find their mates. What on earth happened? I asked myself. After painful cogitation, I remembered that our dear, departed dog, Hershey, loved to chew on old shoes. I’d worn out both right-foot shoes. (Why didn’t the lefts wear out? Another life question unanswered.) I gave Hershey the two right shoes to destroy, leaving two lefts stuffed high in my shoe cubbies waiting for the next chew-chew train. The battle cry “Two left feet!” describes my inept but determined decluttering. “Stack ‘em high!” became a second declutterathon battle cry when I was stacking tubs of Steve’s lost causes to clear more living room floor space. High ceilings have unexpected uses. Readers, what have you decluttered this month? Write to Evince to let us know. Can’t wait to hear from you! About the Author: When she’s not yelling her favorite new battle cries, Linda Lemery llemery@averett.edu works as Circulation Manager at Averett University’s Mary B. Blount Library in Danville. She welcomes reader comments.
Evince Magazine Page 9
The late Vernon Geyer of Danville created this sculpture “Friends.” It has a place of honor in a local garden. Photo by Dave Slayton.
Wine Spot
Does Your Wine Taste Like Stones?
by Dave Slayton
a member of the Master Court of Sommeliers
w
hat outdoor places would you like to visit before the summer heat arrives? How about a sculpture garden like Brookgreen Gardens near Myrtle Beach? There are others, but it’s the first place I think of when I hear the words outdoor art. Now suppose you could have a picnic in such a garden where you would enjoy food, nature, and art at the same time. If you could have a picnic in a sculpture garden, what wine would you want with your outing? Because you’re in a sculpture garden, would you like a wine with minerality? The word minerality is often used to describe a wine flavor, but is it really the taste of stones or rocks where the grapes were grown? This term seems to be used more in descriptions of white wines than reds. For example, you may see it used with a nonoak aged chardonnay from Chablis, France; New Zealand sauvignon blanc; or a riesling from Germany. When minerality in wine is mentioned, I think of a sauvignon blanc from the area of PouillyFumé in the Loire Valley of France. It is said that the limestone and flinty clay soil there impart the wine with a smokey quality (fumé) on the nose. The scent reminds me of wet
gravel, but the flavor reminds me of stone fruit (i.e., apricots) but not stones. In the article “The Mystery of Minerality,” Caroline Gilby states that there is no, shall we say, rock-solid evidence showing a link between wine and the presence of minerals. She writes, “It is not in any provable or literal way a taste of actual rocks or minerals found in a vineyard.” Not trying to rock the boat here, just stating that it is easy to pick up buzz words and toss them around just because you hear others use them. Here’s to being more careful with our descriptions. Cheers! • The collection of sculpture at Brookgreen Gardens contains over 2,000 works by 430 artists and, in the words of the Wayne Craven, author of the book, Sculpture in America, it is “unequaled in its size, focus on figurative works, visibility of the sculpture to the visitor, and integration within a garden setting.” For more information, visit www.brookgreen.org. • Follow the Outdoor Art Trail in Danville by using page 14 of the October 2020 Evince. Find it at www.evincemagazine.org.
Page 10 May 2021
Spotting
Scorpion Grass
Exceptional Customer Service
Part 1
fiction by Telisha Moore Leigg
by Larry Wilburn
I
’m going to tell our daughters about a man’s love, and you can’t stop me. I’m going to tell them about you, Allan Joseph Ross, and I’m going to start with the little plot of land, you, their father bought that wasn’t worth much out there by Creighton’s farm, how you paid $18,300 for the land and the large sign that came with it, how we could have made money on the billboard perched on it--if you had ever let anyone put a message there but you, but you never did, did you? When I would ask you, you would just shake your head, and say not right now, Fallen. I knew you were a man of few words. But when you said that, I didn’t feel I could reach out to you because you didn’t soften it, wouldn’t touch my hand, wouldn’t meet my eyes, nothing. Our girls should know these things. Sure. I don’t know. I guess now, looking back, I guess you were right all along, but I know for a fact that Johan Marks who owned a jewelry store on the end of Main Street wanted to pay $1,000 for a three-week ad, and he wasn’t the only one. But, you always said no, told him you were planning something special, and then put nothing up, week after week. People wondered at it, and some asked me. But I didn’t know either. You just cut the grass around it, sprayed the weeds, spared the scorpion grass, just put bigger lights under the bottom of the pole, lights that shone on the billboard and illuminated nothing. Every day, you passed it as you went to work at Carter’s Lumber Factory where you became a manager a few years ago. I know you work hard, but about the billboard, you were in no hurry to do much of anything. By May, we’d been re-married seven months, and Mandy Blue and Mean Keisha were about eaten up with curiosity, but I had nothing to report. All I could say was that although you cleaned
up the platform where the vinyl signs would hang and repaired any damage to the frame, there was nothing new to tell. The billboard by Creighton’s farm sat on a hill, and I could just see it from the window in Mrs. William’s classroom. One of our girls, Sara, sat at her desk and at only nineyears-old remembered not to call me her teacher’s-aide-mama, Mama, in front of the class or ask questions about the billboard, because she saw it too. Seemed like all of Marple View Elementary asked our girls, but they didn’t know about love then, about love that is that ruthless and patient. I remember one day, the bell rang and the class was escorted to lunch. I stayed and collected papers for Mrs. Williams. It was not quite raining, and that night I had a silly dream. Allan, I dreamt about us, that many years from now, when we’re so much older, one day our daughters, individually on separate occasions, will come to us fresh from the heartbreak of some boy-child who doesn’t deserve their kindness, holding remnants of some heart-care that went like a sour curdled hope. They would stumble into my arms, would lift their sweet sad-soul eyes and say where can they find love like mine and Daddy’s, when it is you who should hold them, you who should tell them about enduring...love, how I never really loved you, and you always knew it. I imagined then you eating at our kitchen table, Allan, looking in that moment fixedly at me over the raised fork with the meatloaf I always make with cumin and seasoned breadcrumbs, but it was I who would swallow tremulously. You should tell them about our “love,” but you won’t, won’t shame me, will you? (to be continued)
I
recently dined at Schoolfield Restaurant, 1009 West Main Street, in Danville. The food was delicious and the ambience intimate and comforting. The best part of the evening, however, was our waiter Drew Marshall. He was the epitome of what most of us want in a waitperson: knowledgeable, courteous, helpful, efficient and unobtrusive. I don’t recall the moment
he cleared the dishes or refilled the water glasses. He was pleasant in his approach to serving us and made our dining a very nice experience, something not often found in some restaurants which seem rushed to get you in and out. For these reasons I nominate Drew Marshall for the Spotting Exceptional Customer Service Award.
Evince wants to encourage and recognize exceptional customer service. When someone gives you exceptional service, please let us know. In 300 words or less, tell us what happened. Email your story to joycewilburn@gmail.com.
Evince Magazine Page 11
Iron Deficiency
Leads to High School “Reunion” by Carla Minosh
I
t has been said that I suffer from an iron deficiency. It is true. Since I was a child I would drag home any remnant of rusted, twisted, discarded metal that I discovered. The New England woods I was free to explore had a wealth of artifacts from Native American and Viking habitation and more recent rubbish piles dating to the Great Depression. From those treasure troves came busted trivets and gnarled curlicues. As an adult, my iron deficiency continued to consume me in the form of fences and fountains. My ultimate goal was a home encrusted with decorative metal work and adorned with castings. The purchase of the Sublett-Miller home in Danville was nothing more than the fulfillment of a metallic dream. The discovery of an old blackand-white photograph of the house depicting larger porches with even more cast iron scrollwork was profound, and we diligently worked toward bringing back what was lost. The fortuitous discovery of multiple original cast-iron columns buried in the yard was confirmation that we were following the right path in our restoration. A remnant of cast iron roof cresting discovered in the attic had us searching for just the right foundry to reproduce it so that we could also bring back
that lost metal feature. Though the ancient wrought-iron fence in the old photo was long-gone, we were determined to install an iron perimeter fence and found the most spectacular specimen in Connecticut. Formerly framing the stately Italianate Wilcox-Parker mansion in Meriden, Connecticut (razed in 1971), this cast iron beauty now graces the grounds of an equally beautiful Italianate in Danville. The rear fences were salvaged from various auctions and salvage yards, repurposed for their beauty, durability, endurance, and, of course, to feed my iron deficiency. One large section once graced the Packard mansion in New York. The rear gates, just one pair of two that we purchased, are likely crafted by the master, Samuel Yellin, of Philadelphia. The craftsmen of my favorite materials are familiar names to me and seem like old friends as I seek out their creations and admire their works. By far, my favorite metal craftsman was J.W. Fiske (1832-1903) of New York City. I searched for and collected his works for years, admiring his fountains above all else. The delicate storks, creative floral and foliate patterns, and the durability of the beauty his firm produced has always left me in awe of the
timelessness of his creations. It made sense then that the herringbone brick pathway in front of our home should direct the attention of guests to a focal feature of a diminutive Fiske fountain that features frogs and lily pads along its perimeter. A calla lily centerpiece sits inside awaiting restoration so that the entire feature can once again spout water producing musical tones and mesmerizing visual effects. My affinity for Fiske was more than superficial. I felt a particular pull toward his creations, like
a magnet, spending hours researching his remaining works and visiting them in town squares, peering through fences at privately-owned fountains, hunting them in old auction catalogs. I always wondered why his designs and creations appealed to me at such a deep level. That question was answered one day when I read an article about the man and his creations. I discovered that he grew up in the same New England area that I did, attended the same schools that I had, and graduated from my high school alma mater; Westford Academy!
Page 12 May 2021
friendships among women. It is those relationships of care and connection that Libertie chooses. In her struggle to find her own answers, she reminds us that we, too, have work to do.
Book Clubbing
Libertie
by Kaitlyn Greenidge review by Diane Adkins
L
Libertie is the daughter of Dr. Cathy Sampson, a Black physician who cares for the residents of Kings County (now Brooklyn), New York in the mid-1800s. As the daughter of an accomplished woman, expectations for Libertie are high. Her mother envisions a future for her that would have Libertie join her practice and arranges for Libertie to attend Cunningham College in Ohio to study biology. The things that drive Dr. Sampson, however, are not the same ones that attract Libertie. Music claims her. Libertie eventually loses her place at the college. In an attempt to raise money for the school and perhaps win back her
place there, she arranges for her two talented friends, the Graces, to sing in New York. The three of them return to Brooklyn for a concert. It is then, in her mother’s home, that she meets Emmanuel Chase, an emigrant to Haiti who has returned to the states to study medicine and who is her mother’s apprentice. Libertie has disagreements with her mother’s accommodations to the realities of racism: “She pretended the world had changed; (I) knew it hadn’t,” says Libertie. Dr. Sampson says, “I’ve raised you all wrong if some white folks being cruel is a surprise to you.” Libertie replies, “I am not surprised by the cruelty,
Mama. I am surprised we are expected to ignore it.” So, when Emmanuel woos her with the promise of freedom in Haiti, she accepts his proposal, an action that grieves her mother deeply. Libertie soon discovers her life in Haiti is not at all as he has pictured it. The way Libertie wrestles with that situation is the path leading her to herself and her own version of freedom—music, the very engine of her liberation. The book explores themes that resonate in our own context, questions of freedom, both personally and for all human beings, of sexual equality, of the importance of deep
Note about author Kaitlyn Greenidge: While working at the Weeksville Heritage Center in Brooklyn compiling oral histories, author Kaitlyn Greenidge heard the story of Dr. Susan Smith McKinney Steward, the third Black woman to earn a medical degree in the U.S. The woman telling her the story was Dr. Steward’s greatgreat-granddaughter, Ellen Holly, who had been a trailblazer, too. She was the first African American to appear on daytime television in the soap opera One Life to Live. Dr. Steward’s daughter married the son of the Episcopal archbishop of Haiti and emigrated there in the late nineteenth century. Greenidge filed this history away in her memory, thinking if she ever wrote a novel, she would like it to be about this story. Libertie is that book, a richly layered narrative that deserves close, careful reading. Diane S. Adkins is a retired Director of Pittsylvania County Library System.
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STEVE LUCEY, M.D.
Evince Magazine Page 13
Strawberry Salad Sure Sign That Summer Is on the Way by Annelle Williams winner of the national 2002 Sutter Home Recipe Contest
I
bought strawberries at the farmers’ market last Saturday. It was a welcome sign to see those flats filled with beautiful red berries. Next to the berries were bags of lettuce cut earlier that morning and bunches of green onions in a basket. There was everything I needed for a beautiful strawberry salad.
fresh lettuce makes in flavor. Even a pot of lettuce plants can give you a weekly salad for a few weeks.
Soups and salads are my favorite things to prepare. When fresh fruits and vegetables begin to appear in the early spring markets, I’m ready to take advantage of those delicious flavors. Years ago, I wrote about planting a lettuce garden and what a difference
This strawberry salad looks like a piece of swirling art. Eating with your eyes is certainly a true statement. When food is visually appealing, it draws us in and this salad doesn’t disappoint, because it looks great and tastes great.
Strawberry Salad
(adapted from Lemon Tree Dwelling blog) • 8 servings
6 handfuls of fresh mixed greens 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries 1/2 cup fresh blueberries 1 cup canned Mandarin oranges, drained 1/2 cup glazed pecan pieces 1/2 cup crumbled feta 1/3 cup sliced green onions
DRESSING 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice 2 T extra virgin olive oil 2 T seasoned rice wine vinegar 1/2 shallot, minced 2 T honey salt and pepper to taste
Salad: Place the greens in a salad bowl and top with other ingredients. Gently toss. Dressing: Place all ingredients into a jar with a lid. Shake well to combine. Dress the salad. Add roasted chicken or tuna to make it a meal.
Page 14 May 2021
Photo Finish
O
n a sunny Sunday in April, the Old Dominion Classic Sports Car Club (ODCSCC) hosted the Triad Austin Healey Club on Danville’s Main Street in front of the Danville Museum of Fine Arts & History. Evince was there to capture the afternoon for our readers. A little history about the ODCSCC: In 2001 a group of Danville and Ringgold residents formed the Old Dominion British Car Club. Its goal was to give British car lovers and enthusiasts in
Southern Virginia and surrounding area an organization that would provide members an opportunity to gather together and talk about British cars. In late 2017, club members voted to change the club name to Old Dominion Classic Sports Car Club, opening the door to a broader scope of cars and membership. They still have British cars and now so much more. If you’d like to learn more about the ODCSCC and their monthly Cars & Coffee event, contact President Lewis Dumont at lewisdumont@comcast.net. The next Cars & Coffee at Crema & Vine, 1009 Main Street, is on Saturday, May 15, from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. All are welcome.
The long line of classic cars await their fans.
(photos by Joyce Wilburn)
Four car enthusiasts chat about their cars: Kenneth Fleming, President of the Triad Austin Healey Club; Jim Allen of Southside British Cars; Lewis Dumont, President of the ODCSCC; and Tom Seher, owner of a Morris Minor.
Bryant Hairston is very proud of his 1977 MGB.
Taylor Huson and dad Henry Huson admire a 1965 Austin Healey BJ8.
Jay Shelton, Jeanette & Johnny Williams entertain the crowd with wonderful music and vocals.
Patrick Shelton and Karen Johnston stand among a row of red cars. Andrew Hessler with the Riverview Rotary Club can’t decide which car he likes best.
At the end of the event, ODCSCC members take a quick tour of Millionaires Row and visit inside Paul Liepe’s house.
Evince Magazine Page 15
Page 16 May 2021