July SouthPark 2021 by SouthParkMag

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FROM THE EDITOR

CATHY MARTIN EDITOR

editor@southparkmagazine.com

ho’s ready to hit the road again? I definitely am. When we started planning for this issue, we didn’t set out with a travel theme in mind. Yet somehow, and not surprisingly, the topic seems to permeate many of our stories this month. For years, I’ve kept a travel wish list of sorts on my iPhone’s Notes app. Whenever I read a travel article or see a jaw-dropping Instagram post of somewhere I might want to go, I add it to the list. While cooped up during Covid, I realized I had more than one list going: I’ve also got a Google Doc with a list of dream destinations, and in the back of my daily planner, I’ve begun creating full-on itineraries for trips to places like coastal Maine and Sedona, Ariz. Who knows how many places I’ll actually get to cross off the list, but dreaming is fun. Charlotte couple Wade and Hodges Miller got the travel bug a few years ago and took adventuring to a whole new level. The Charlotte natives, who are featured on our cover, bought a boat, learned to sail and spent three years at sea cruising around the Caribbean and South Pacific. “The whole experience of living on the water for three years shaped so much of who we are and our perspective on life, our thoughts on cultures and people — especially people who are different from us,” Hodges Miller told contributor Caroline Portillo in the story on page 66. Contributor Wiley Cash, who travels across the state interviewing artists, musicians and authors for our “Creators of North Carolina” series, stayed close to home this month for a look inside downtown Wilmington’s anticipated new restaurant Seabird and the chef couple behind it. A few years ago, I had a fantastic dinner at Wilmington’s PinPoint Restaurant when Seabird’s chef-owner Dean Neff — a James Beard semifinalist for Best Chef Southeast — was at the helm. I can’t wait to try Neff’s new place the next time I visit the Port City or one of the beaches nearby (adds to list). In other stories, Vanessa Infanzon takes a fresh look at Blowing Rock, always a favorite destination for Charlotteans. Ross Howell shares the vision behind Juneberry Ridge, a 600-acre sportsman’s retreat in Stanly County, about an hour’s drive from the Queen City. Charlotte’s Judy Carpenter, the former chairman of National Welders Supply Co., developed the property as a venue for competitive clay target shooting. Now, Juneberry Ridge has evolved into a working farm practicing regenerative agriculture and a retreat center for those looking to reconnect with nature. And if you’re headed to North Carolina’s Outer Banks this summer, you’ll want to read Gary Pearce’s story about The Lost Colony, the outdoor drama in Manteo reimagined this year with new choreography, regalia and cast members for the next generation of audiences. Wherever you’re headed this summer, while packing your bags, don’t forget to throw in a copy of SouthPark. We think it’s great poolside (or Adirondack-chair, hammock or beachlounge) reading. SP

SP behind the scenes

Contributor Kelsie Droppa of Kelsie Elizabeth Photography with 24 Hours of Booty founder Spencer Lueders, left. Photographer Chris Edwards, right, captures a high-flying Hodges Miller and daughter, Mia, for our cover story.

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July BLVD. 24 | food + drink Warmack’s Asian comfort food

28 | interiors Designbar’s new creative alliance

32 | style Closet crush with cake designer Kathy Allen

34 | music A North Carolina road-trip playlist

36 | givers 24 Hours of Booty turns 20

40 | gardening The summer herb garden

44 | around town Latest openings and events

46 | creators of n.c. Wilmington’s new Seabird restaurant and oyster bar

50 | happenings July calendar of events

DEPARTMENTS 53 | simple life A gardener’s bittersweet reminder of life’s impermanence

57 | queen city journal Homegrown tomatoes: a gateway to the return to normalcy

59 | bookshelf Notable new releases

61 | well + wise Coping with stress

104 | swirl Parties, fundraisers and events

ABOUT THE COVER Wade and Hodges Miller and their daughter, Mia, putter around in a friend's dinghy in the backyard pool of their Selwyn Avenue home. Hodges wears a vintage swimsuit that belonged to her grandmother. Photograph by Chris Edwards.

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A T O

LEBR

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YEARS Y DING I L CE EN

G SEVEN IN HOMEB T F XC E L U L E

O S T . 1 9 5

G E N E R A L C O N T R AC TO R

78 FEATURES 66 | Dropping anchor by Caroline Portillo | photographs by Chris Edwards | production by Whitley Adkins After three years at sea, a Charlotte couple builds their dream home along sentimental Selwyn Avenue.

78 | The big picture by Jim Moriarty | photographs by Peter Taylor Artist Matt Myers gave up a thriving advertising career in New York City to follow a different path — illustrating books for children.

82 | Nourishing nature by Ross Howell | photographs by Amy Freeman At Juneberry Ridge, seeds for a bright and beautiful future have been sown.

TRAVEL Blowing Rock 88 | Weekend away: High country haven by Vanessa Infanzon

90 | Posing for Daingerfield at Edgewood Cottage by Ross Howell

91 | The oldest mystery by Gary Pearce The Lost Colony gets a new look, a new life and a new vision.

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A TRADITION OF KNOWLEDGE AND TRUST

Contributing Editors David Mildenberg, Taylor Wanbaugh Contributing Writers Michelle Boudin, Philip Carter, Wiley Cash, Jim Dodson, Ross Howell, Vanessa Infanzon, Juliet Lam Kuehnle, David Menconi, Jim Moriarty, Gary Pearce, Caroline Portillo, Michael J. Solender

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Owners Jack Andrews, Frank Daniels Jr., Frank Daniels III, Lee Dirks, David Woronoff Published by Old North State Magazines LLC. ©Copyright 2021. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Volume 25, Issue 7

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blvd.

PHOTOGRAPH BY JUSTIN DRISCOLL

people, places, things

BRUNCH IS BACK Sunday brunch will never be the same after trying the Mega Mary at Warmack. The PlazaMidwood restaurant recently added brunch on Sundays (with Saturdays soon to follow), serving its own outrageous version of the classic Bloody Mary skewered with a pork bao, shrimp, jalapeño popper, pickles, carrots, celery, olives and house-made beef jerky ($22). To read more about the trendy new Asian comfort-food spot, turn the page.

southparkmagazine.com | 23

blvd. | food + drink

Flavor after dark FIRST LOOK: WARMACK by Michael J. Solender • photographs by Justin Driscoll

omfort-food cravings and obsessive, gotta-have-it snack attacks, while known to strike at any time, are particularly acute when approaching the bewitching hour. For Charlotte hospitality veteran and restaurateur James Nguyen, the inability to find a late-night spot in his Plaza Midwood neighborhood to satisfy longings for the foods he grew up with — piquant and earthy Vietnamese banh mi, shrimp crisps, and slowbraised pork belly rice bowls — was particularly frustrating. “I used to live in Houston,” Nguyen says. “I could find Vietnamese restaurants open until 4 a.m. In Charlotte, if I want a banh mi, I have to get one by 8 p.m., or it’s just not happening.” It wasn’t just the style of food he missed, but a cozy, convivial neighborhood hangout where he could unwind with his friends, share the trials and triumphs of the day, and enjoy a casual meal and a well-crafted cocktail. In late 2019, Nguyen, the former owner of uptown’s QC Social Lounge, turned to his pal Nobuaki Ishikawa, former chef/owner of 7th Street Market’s Bonsai Fusion sushi bar,

SOUTHPARK

about remedying the situation with a casually elegant restaurant serving a compact menu of authentic Asian dishes highlighted by a space with a late-night feel all evening long. Ishikawa, who closed Bonsai after eight years uptown and had ended his run as chef at SouthPark’s Yama Asian Fusion, signed on as executive chef, and the seeds for Warmack were sown. “James was looking to serve authentic Vietnamese,” says Ishikawa, who is of Japanese heritage. “I was hopeful to create a platform for Japanese cuisine that was more affordable and accessible than typically found in Charlotte. We know there is a market for dishes we want to serve, and the space here is a great draw for our neighborhood.” Timing is everything, and shortly after starting the buildout for the 1,100-square-foot restaurant in February 2020, Covid turned the world upside down. Undeterred, the team, which includes Capital Grille veteran Stephen Tandy and Chef Christian Vina, used the downtime to winnow their menu into a manageable selection of favorites — both small plates and more substantial

blvd. | food + drink mains — that encourage diners to be adventuresome. A year later, Warmack opened its doors, and the restaurant is already building a fervent following. Lovers of Vietnamese street food and the savory, sharable bar fare typically found at Japanese izakaya (similar to tapas bars) are in their happy place here as Ishikawa’s kitchen turns out umami-undertoned finger foods, bowls and mains addictive in their mélange of texture and flavor. Warmack’s bao buns are a prime example. There’s traditional bao: slow-braised pork belly lacquered with a sticky, sweet and salty hoisin glaze stuffed into a pillowy soft steamed bun and served with a tangy Vietnamese slaw. Served three to an order, these are the ultimate Asian sliders. Ishikawa delightfully tinkers with the concept in his chicken katsu curry bao. Here, the chef takes marinated

chicken thighs, lightly coats them with panko, and after a quick fry, bathes them in a mellow Japanese curry and serves them with house-pickled daikon. Ishikawa’s deft touch with seafood shines across the menu. O” Snap is Warmack’s star offering from the sea: A whole fried red snapper is served with tomato crudo on one side; pickled cucumber, daikon and carrot on the other. Visually stunning, the plate is large enough for two when served with sticky rice and an additional side of quick-fried Brussels sprouts with a soy and miso-based glaze. Tempura-fried salmon is tossed with a tart/sweet/hot sauce and served in crunchy wonton-shell tacos with mango salsa. This contrast of textures and flavors pairs nicely with a sunny WARgarita (Warmack’s custom margarita) from the bar. Eggplant agedashi is a dish Nguyen insisted Ishikawa add to

Opposite page: Warmack owner/operator Stephen Tandy, executive chef Nobuaki Ishikawa and owner James Nguyen. This page, clockwise from top left: Warmack salmon Donburi with Brussels sprouts, eggplant agedashi, yakisoba and the WARgarita cocktail

southparkmagazine.com | 25

blvd. | food + drink the menu after, on one occasion, the chef made him a quick lunch with some leftovers. The dish combines flash-pan-fried tofu, thick chunks of Chinese eggplant, shiitake mushrooms and a flavorful mushroom broth in a quick stir fry, served over rice. Rich marinades and complex sauces lay the foundation for many of the most successful dishes at Warmack. Fuzzy’s braised pork bowl — meaty charred pork belly with pickled watermelon atop sticky rice — owes its tender texture to a marinade that blends rich tamari, miso, sherry, rice wine vinegar, ginger, garlic and lemongrass. Gyudon pairs thinly sliced marinated beef tenderloin with shiitakes, sweet onions and asparagus spears over sushi rice. Traditional yakisoba, the classic Japanese stir-fry noodle dish, sings in what the chef refers to as “Warmack sauce” — think levels of sweet, hot, salty and citrusy, all playing together in harmony. Warmack staff members refer to their dishes as Asian comfort food. There’s no question why techniques such as grilling, slow braising and stir fry capture so much flavor while enhancing the natural essence of proteins and fresh produce. With slick service, a sleek black-on-black minimalist setting under moon-glow lighting and a backlit concrete bar, guests find a comfortable, compact space that encourages lingering. There’s a lounge-like feel with a DJ on weekends, and the bar flows out to the wrap-around patio that stretches from a frontdoor conversation den to tables on the side. Sunday brunch is a multicultural affair: Okonomiyaki, or Japanese pancakes, are vegetable-filled, rice-flour savory crepes served with chicken or tofu. Ishikawa’s shrimp and grits are made with a rich mushroom broth and Cajun-spiced shrimp. Charlotte’s most outlandish Bloody Mary — here called the Mega Mary — is skewered with a Pork Bao, shrimp, jalapeño popper, pickles, carrots, celery, olives and house-made beef jerky. Look for brunch to extend to Saturdays and the launch of a sushi menu soon. “We’re after neighborhood-comfortable,” Ishikawa says. “We want a place where we want to hang out with our friends.” That should be easy. Warmack is making many new friends, one evening at a time. SP 1226 Central Ave., thewarmack.com 26

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blvd. | interiors

Different by design TRADITIONAL MEETS URBAN AS DESIGNBAR’S MONIKA NESSBACH TEAMS WITH RICHMOND INTERIOR DESIGNER GARY INMAN. by Cathy Martin photographs by Peter Taylor

ou might not know Monika Nessbach by name, but chances are you’ve noticed her innovative design work at restaurants and other spaces across Charlotte. As founder and principal of Designbar, a commercial interior design firm, Nessbach’s roster of local clients includes Cantina 1511, Dilworth Tasting Room, Charlotte Motor Speedway and, recently, The Vintage Whiskey & Cigar Bar in Dilworth. Her designs are bold and contemporary, with a bit of an urban edge. Interior designer Gary Inman’s aesthetic is rooted in tradition, with clients ranging from luxury hotels and resorts to historic landmarks to private homes and estates. Over the years, Inman’s hospitality clients have included The Washington Duke Inn in Durham, Pinehurst Resort, the Vanderbilt family’s Elm Court estate in Stockbridge, Mass., and, locally, the Dunhill Hotel in uptown Charlotte. The designing duo might seem like unlikely partners, but a friendship that started more than a decade ago led to a mutual respect and admiration for one another’s work — and now, a collaboration. The designers are teaming up to offer their design services, including both commercial and high-end residential design, in Charlotte and beyond. For Inman, who is based in Richmond, Va., and will spend the next year as designer in residence at High Point University, the partnership will take him back to his roots in residential design. While he has always maintained his personal practice during his 30-year career, Inman’s work with larger design and architecture firms frequently led to more commercial projects. He was designing boutique hotels as vice president of hospitality at Richmond-based Baskervill, one of the oldest U.S. architectural firms, when Covid hit, prompting Inman to focus more on his independent practice. The designers met in High Point after Nessbach attended a

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Designbar founder and principal Monika Nessbach at The Vintage Whiskey & Cigar Bar, one of the design firm’s recent projects.

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blvd. | interiors

lecture given by Inman on hospitality design. A small circle of designers formed a “High Point family,” Inman says, frequently gathering socially during the biannual market. Nessbach, a native of Germany, moved to the U.S. in 1999, earned her MBA at Pfeiffer University and spent 14 years in the corporate world, with roles in account management and pricing and inventory management. “Halfway through my career, I realized my passion was somewhere different,” Nessbach says. Over the course of six to seven years, she took night classes to learn commercial design, muddling through the dizzying array of restrictions and codes involved in the work. “Because I jumped in from the side, I definitely had a steep learning curve,” Nessbach says. She launched Designbar in 2009, leaping into the business full time in 2014. The firm now has clients in five states. The new creative alliance will allow each of the designers to expand the scope of their work, with Inman returning to the residential projects he loves and Nessbach branching out into more residential design and, possibly, hotels, an industry where Inman has already begun to see an uptick going into the second half of 2021. “My goal for this year was to get more into multifamily [design],” Nessbach says, “but my dream client would absolutely be a boutique hotel. I like to tell a story with the design that we do. I feel like a small boutique hotel has all the opportunities to tell a story.” Meanwhile, Nessbach’s team in Charlotte will support Inman with local residential projects. While their aesthetics are quite different, the designers say they complement each other and share a similar tenacity and work ethic. “We’re cut from the same fabric,” Inman says. “[Nessbach is] really a person who trusts her own instincts. It’s unexpected, it’s very experiential,” Inman says of her work. “I love her energy and her focus ... if she sets her mind to something she’s going to make it happen. “Together we make a stronger team.” SP 30

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blvd. | style

CLOSET CRUSH:

Kathy Allen by Whitley Adkins photographs by Amy Kolo

edding cake designer Kathy Allen loves purses — so much so, she has dedicated an entire room in her south Charlotte home to her beloved pocketbooks, as Allen refers to them. Born in Michigan, Allen lived in California and Oklahoma before her father’s work in the hotel business brought the family to Charlotte when she was 18. Before long, Kathy met her husband, Randy, a land developer. The couple have three adult children, Kendrick, Lawson and Graham. NO STRANGER TO FASHION Allen was a model for many years with the Mannequins of Charlotte, an exclusive local modeling club in the ’70s and ’80s. “We did runway shows and TV work. ... Liz Hilliard, Maria Plumides, all those gals, all those years. Belk brought Oscar de la Renta and all the famous designers here for ‘Serenade to Autumn,’ [an annual fashion event] at Ovens Auditorium. It was really, really big in our city.” THE ICING ON THE CAKE Professionally, most Charlotteans know Allen through her namesake business, Kathy Allen Fine Cakes. Allen’s entrepreneurial career started when she opened Plants Alive, a florist and plant shop on Park Road, when she was 21. After the landlord sold the building, she closed the business and opened a Haagen-Dazs ice cream shop on Selwyn Avenue in the same shopping center where her daughter Kendrick now owns KK Bloom boutique. “I iced all of my ice cream cakes and thought, ‘Oh gosh, I want to learn the art of making these flowers I saw in the magazines.’” Eventually, she studied with several well-known cake designers, including Nicholas Lodge, the pastry chef who worked for the Royal family and created one of Prince Charles and Lady Diana’s official wedding cakes. Twenty-seven years later, Allen is one of the most respected cake designers in Charlotte. WHERE IT ALL BEGAN Allen’s grandmother was her earliest fashion influence. “My grandmother was from Czechoslovakia and moved to the South

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blvd. | style Leiber, especially, the originals are made so much better. Everything was hand set, every little stone. … If you lost one single stone, they would replace it. … Every one of her originals had a little comb, mirror and coin purse inside of them. Are there any other brands you like? Dior. Also, I love Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Prada and Jimmy Choo. I love my Valentinos with the bows. What about the luggage? It’s Mark Cross. I bought this at auction about 15 years ago. I paid about $30,000 for the set. It’s crocodile — I think it was probably used for a private jet. The quality is amazing. when she was young. She was the prissiest little thing you’ve ever seen, and she told me from the time I was young, ‘Kathy, you always have a pretty pocketbook and pearls around your neck. That’s Southern charm.’” Fast forward to about 1980, when Allen was vacationing in Hawaii with her husband, “I went into a store, and a lady said, ‘You’re dressed so pretty, you need a nice bag for that outfit.’ I thought my bag was pretty — it was everything I needed at the time. She took me two doors down to the Chanel store. I didn’t buy [anything] — I was looking and admiring and wanting to learn. ... I got my first Chanel purse when I was 40.” Allen’s collection grew after she discovered there were auctions for purses. For every holiday, including birthdays, “I wanted a pocketbook. It was easy to shop for me,” she says. Allen realizes that some might view her purse collection as extravagant, but she emphasizes the importance of helping others who are less fortunate. When her late son, the only survivor of quadruplets born to the couple in 1985, lost his vision at 6 months old, the school he attended couldn’t afford braille paper. The Allens began making monthly donations to the Metrolina Association for the Blind. “And we still do,” Allen says. “Giving is very important to us.” Comments have been edited for length and clarity.

Okay, I have to know — do you have an exit strategy for all these bags? Now, you have to remember I have two daughters who LOVE this pocketbook room, and I do not loan them to anyone. But one day, will they have access to this collection? Yes, yes. In December, Randy and I both had Covid. My girls came to our rescue. Every day, there was something on our front porch — flowers, food, every day. I was so overwhelmed with their kindness. For Christmas, I gave them each a Chanel bag, their favorites from my collection — like new, the box and all. SP

Tell me how this room came to be. At what point did you say, “My bags need a room?” These two rooms were add-ons — the master bedroom and this room — about 20 years ago, and that’s when I said this was the perfect size for my pocketbooks. I got this vintage brass piece that holds my bags from Slate. Is there a process for selecting a bag? A lot of times I will get an idea from a picture I see in a magazine, and I will search for it. … I try to look for things that are different but useful for my needs. ... I don’t mind carrying something flashy during the daytime. I’ll take Judith Leiber to lunch. I like them, and they make me feel good, and people like to look at them. Have you purchased many vintage bags? Yes, many. I buy them not because they’re vintage but because they’re different, and the quality is there. With Judith

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blvd. | music

ROAD

TRIP playlist

ROLL DOWN THE WINDOWS AND TURN UP THE VOLUME: THESE CAROLINA TUNES WILL KEEP YOU CRUISING. by David Menconi

Road trip season is upon us, which calls for some music to keep the momentum going. Whether you’re twisting along the Blue Ridge Parkway or cruising the Outer Banks Scenic Byway, when you hit the road for points beyond, bring along tunes made by artists with ties to the Old North State.

Chuck Berry

Etta Baker

This classic from the great classic-rock elder Chuck Berry tells the story of a coastto-coast journey with a roll call of cities along the way, including both Raleigh and Charlotte.

Baker was one of the great legends of Piedmont blues guitar. That especially goes for her signature instrumental “One-Dime Blues,” which rolls on down the highway. If you can play it yourself and keep up, you’re “one-diming it.”

“Promised Land” (1964)

6 String Drag

“Gasoline Maybelline” (1997)

The “5” Royales

Blues Magoos

Covered by James Brown and Mick Jagger, “Think” was one of the most enduring songs that the legendary WinstonSalem R&B band The “5” Royales left behind. It’s also a perfect cruising song — but keep your hands on the wheel, no air-guitar allowed.

One of the best bands from Raleigh’s mid-1990s alternative-country boom, 6 String Drag was a powerhouse with oldschool country harmonies and a soulful horn section. Nothing pile-drives like “Gasoline Maybelline.”

“Tobacco Road” (1966)

Durham native John D. Loudermilk wrote a lot of great songs, none greater than this oft-covered garage-rock classic. New York’s Blues Magoos cut the definitive version of “Tobacco Road,” which you’ll find on the 1972 proto-punk compilation Nuggets.

Squirrel Nut Zippers

“Put a Lid on It” (1996)

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Sylvan Esso

“Song” (2017)

Durham’s Sylvan Esso, made up of Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn, makes folksy electronic music with a warm, beating heart. This one is a great song for the wide-open highway.

The Connells

“Stone Cold Yesterday” (1990)

Black Sheep

Fantasia

From Sanford, North Carolina, the hiphop duo of William “Mr. Long” McLean and Andres “Dres” Titus would like you to know: You can get with this / Or you can get with that.

The High Point native, Charlotte resident and season-three American Idol winner has never been better than on her sultry performance of the George Gershwin classic. Perfect for long cruises.

Although they’re best known for the moody 1993 ballad “’74-’75,” Raleigh’s Connells can pick up the tempo, too. This song’s call-to-arms guitar riff really should have been all over the radio.

“Summertime” (2004)

Don Dixon

Southern Culture on the Skids

After you’ve been driving awhile and the caffeine starts to wear off, here’s a great singalong pick-me-up. “Praying Mantis” dates back to the early 1980s and Dixon’s long-running band Arrogance. After Arrogance broke up, Dixon, a South Carolina native who went to UNC Chapel Hill, had a solo hit with it.

Once you’re close enough to your destination to exit the highway, here’s one to ease off the throttle by Chapel Hill’s long-running garage-rock band. I got eight slappin’ pistons right here under my hood / Let’s ride. SP

“Praying Mantis” (1987)

“Think” (1957)

The big hit for the latter-day Chapel Hill hot-jazz band could go here as a good song for picking up the pace (or even speeding). But “Put a Lid on It,” featuring singer Katharine Whalen at her sassiest, is better for cruising.

“The Choice Is Yours” (1991)

“One-Dime Blues” (1991)

“Voodoo Cadillac” (1995)

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Ride along 24 HOURS OF BOOTY CELEBRATES 20 YEARS OF RAISING MONEY FOR LOCAL CANCER PROGRAMS. by Michelle Boudin • photographs by Kelsie Elizabeth Photography

$24 million raised for cancer research 25,000 riders since 2002 1,300 cancer survivor participants

he numbers are impressive as 24 Hours of Booty celebrates 20 years, but it all started thanks to a father-son bike ride along the Blue Ridge Parkway in 2001. “We did it for five days, and it was awesome. That next year I was on the booty loop trying to figure out how to top it, and I was thinking no one had ridden the booty loop for 24 hours,” explains Spencer Lueders, the founder of 24HOB and the 24 Foundation that runs it. The annual bike ride is held every July in the heart of Myers Park as hundreds of riders take over Queens Road West. Each team tries to make sure to have a representative out on the 2.9-mile loop at all times for 24 hours straight. Walkers can participate on the sidewalk alongside the loop. The money raised stays in Charlotte, helping fund dozens of programs that impact cancer patients directly. The first ride was in November 2002. There were no road closures, no cheering crowds, no hoopla of any kind. “I just showed up and started riding and really only stopped to eat or put more clothes on because it was so cold,” Lueders says. His dad came out to support him, along with some friends. But other than that, the 50-yearold admits, there wasn’t much of a plan. “I had been reading cancer stats and was trying to figure out what I could do. And I was passionate about riding bikes. That first time I was trying to ride, eat, drink … and the ‘why’ came to me during the event. It came from people who showed up to tell me their stories. They were survivors or had just lost a loved one. They were people I didn’t know who’d heard I was riding for cancer and listening to their stories — it was amazing, and I was inspired.” Lueders thought it might be a one-time thing, but by the end of his first ride he knew he needed to turn it into something bigger. The next year, the ride opened to the public. One hundred riders showed up, raising $33,000. “It sort of doubled every year after until we hit 1,200 [riders] and had to cap it at that going forward,” Lueders says. Many people ride in teams, with friends and family members tagging out throughout the night and camping out in a makeshift tent city that pops up each year on the Queens University campus. The 36

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race has prompted several fun traditions: People decorate the homes along the booty loop and gather to cheer riders, and there’s a pizza party at midnight. For Lueders, a patent attorney and the owner of State Building

blvd. | givers Services, the highlights are more personal. “It’s the stories of folks who are impacted, either personally or one of their family members, that hit me. This has happened to me more than once, when a survivor will come up to me and grab me by the shoulders, look me in the eye and say, ‘Without the program you funded, I wouldn’t be alive, and I’m here to tell you thank you.’ I’m honored and humbled when I hear those stories.” There is one rider in particular — a Florida firefighter named Steve — who Lueders says literally changed the ride for hundreds of people. Funny thing is, Steve doesn’t even like riding a bike. “He lost his son Camden at 160 days old, so Steve rides 160 miles,” Lueders explains. “I’ve been with him when he approaches 160 miles. It’s hard for him. He’s a big dude, his bike is all over the place. But you can see it in his body language and mind, and watching him as he approaches the 160 — he’s counting the final days of Camden’s life. And when he gets to 160, he pulls over and you have a moment every year — it’s super powerful and it’s actually a thing now. People will do a ‘Camden.’ People who have never ridden that far push through and ride with him, and it’s amazing.” SP 24 Hours of Booty presented by Levine Cancer Institute takes place from 7 p.m. Friday, July 30, to 7 p.m. Saturday, July 31. This year, participants can register for the in-person event or create their own experience with a virtual UnLooped event. More information at 24foundation.org.

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blvd. | gardening

The summer herb garden BEAT THE HEAT WITH HERB-INFUSED DISHES AND COCKTAILS. by Philip Carter

he steamy days of summer are finally here. Even as the owner of a landscape company, the last thing I want to do after work on a sizzling afternoon is spend a lot of time working in the vegetable garden. The same sun that brings the heat, however, has a tendency to make me yearn for something cool and refreshing. Where should I look for such a specimen? Over in the corner, and dappled here and there in sunnier parts of the garden, lie the various herbs that by now are growing like gangbusters. These plants are the little details that make that drink more refreshing, or that chimichurri on the grill smell so much more intoxicating. The herbs I planted in spring are now overflowing, and being the tidy gardener I pretend to be, it is my duty to pick that mint for my cocktails. But what if you didn’t start any herbs back in the spring? Well my friend, you’re in luck. July still leaves plenty of time for you to get your herb on. When it comes to planting herbs in the garden, I always say this is the place to let your imagination run a little wild. For the most 40

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part, herbs are fairly inexpensive, whether you grow them from seed or from a small container. There are a few different ways I like to use herbs in the garden. First, I like to have a small cluster by the kitchen door or in a sunny location that’s easily accessible. This is where I keep the ones I use most frequently in cooking — rosemary, basil, thyme, cilantro, parsley. Elsewhere in the garden, I recommend placing herbs where they can actually benefit the space. For example, try planting thyme between the cracks of stepping stones, or mint in a sunny, damp spot where it can run free. Herbs such as basil, sage or rosemary can also be used as filler in containers around a pool or porch. If you planted your herbs in the spring, you have probably realized that a few plants can go a long way. (No, your sister would not like any more basil, and the neighbors might have had enough of the salsa verde they were so complimentary of a few weeks back.) However, if you are planting later in the season, there are a few simple tips to follow. First, make sure the plants will have some room to mature. Good air circulation helps keep disease

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blvd. | gardening and pests in check. Rosemary, in particular, can become quite large. Varieties such as mint are also partial to spreading like mad, so plant in the ground or start with a good-sized pot. Second, make sure to use good bedding or potting soil. This will probably go the furthest in making sure your harvest is bountiful. Good soils also do a better job at holding onto moisture, reducing the need to water as frequently. Third, make sure to cut back the overgrowth. This will help keep the plant nice and tender, and it will also help ensure it doesn’t go to seed before the season winds down. Truly, there are 100 different ways to go about adding herbs to the garden. This should be a low-stress activity, and one that has a high rate of success. The main thing to keep in mind is to try to have fun with it.

For those who like to dabble in the kitchen, here are a few tried-and-true recipes to help use the fruits of your labor.

Chimichurri

Chimichurri can be used to baste meats (chicken or steaks) while grilling or barbecuing. You can also use it as a marinade. Ingredients: 1/2 cup olive oil 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar 1/2 cup finely chopped parsley 3-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or minced 2 small red chilies, or 1 medium red chili, deseeded and finely chopped (about 1 tablespoon finely chopped chili) 1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped oregano 1 level teaspoon coarse salt pepper to taste (about 1/2 teaspoon) Directions: Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes to release all of the flavors into the oil before using. Ideally, let sit for more than 2 hours. Chimichurri can be prepared earlier than needed and refrigerated for up to 24

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Ingredients: 6-8 mint leaves, plus extra for garnish 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar or 1/4 ounce simple syrup 2 1/2 ounces bourbon crushed ice Directions: 1. Place mint leaves and sugar or simple syrup in a julep cup, Collins glass or double old-fashioned glass. 2. Muddle well to dissolve the sugar and release the oil and aroma of the mint. Gently muddle your mint — the intention is to release the essential oils, not tear the leaves to bits. 3. Add bourbon. 4. Fill the glass with crushed ice and stir well until the glass becomes frosty. This should take at least 30 seconds, but the longer you do it, the better. 5. Before garnishing with an additional mint sprig, gently clap it in your hands to release the aromatic oils. Serve and enjoy.

Ingredients: 1 salmon filet (about 2 pounds, left whole) 3 cloves garlic, finely minced 1/4 cup chopped parsley 1/2 cup chopped Parmesan cheese

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Directions: Preheat oven to 425º F. Line pan with parchment paper for easy cleanup afterward. Place the salmon, skin side down, onto lined baking sheet. Cover the salmon with another piece of parchment paper. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, and remove the top piece of parchment. Top with garlic, Parmesan and parsley mixture. Return to the oven uncovered, and bake until the cheese has melted, the salmon flakes easily with a fork, and the fish registers 135º F when checked with an internal thermometer, about 5 more minutes. The Parmesan should be melted and lightly browned. Allow to rest about five minutes, and serve. SP Philip Carter is the owner of Allium Fine Gardens, a boutique garden design firm serving Charlotte and Charleston, S.C.

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blvd. | around town Sip and shop: The wine bar at RH Charlotte is now open. Adjacent to RH’s rooftop restaurant, the bar serves 40 wines by the glass, Bellinis, mimosas, and coffee and tea for guests to enjoy while shopping or relaxing on the rooftop park. 6903 Phillips Place Ct. Roosters Uptown reopened for dinner Tuesdays-Saturdays. The restaurant had been closed since being damaged by a fire in September 2019. 150 N. College St., roosterskitchen.com Ace No. 3 opened in Myers Park, the popular burger joint’s third location. 829 Providence Road, aceno3.com

800 Degrees Woodfired Kitchen opens this summer at Phillips Place, its first North Carolina location. Expect pizzas, wood-roasted entrees, power bowls, salads and more at the 3,000-square-foot restaurant. Adjacent to 800 Degrees, Bar ONE will offer after-hours cocktails and late-night dining. 6815 Phillips Place Ct., 800degreesphillipsplace.com The ETA Group behind Stroke and The Ice Trade plans to open The Royal Tot in the Belmont neighborhood later this summer. The cocktail lounge will serve tropical-inspired food and drinks and will have patio seating, a rooftop deck and private event space. 933 Louise Ave., Suite 350, Instagram:@royaltot Clean Juice owners Landon and Kat Eckles opened freecoat nails, a nontoxic nail and beauty bar, in Myers Park. Freecoat boasts an upscale salon experience while limiting exposure to toxic ingredients, fumes and vapors. 2901 Selwyn Ave., freecoatnails.com 44

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A place like home WILMINGTON’S SEABIRD ESTAURANT AND OYSTER BAR HAS LANDED. by Wiley Cash • photographs by Mallory Cash

hefs Dean Neff and Lydia Clopton are sitting at a table inside Seabird, their recently opened seafood restaurant and oyster bar in downtown Wilmington. It is midafternoon, and sunlight streams through the high windows along Seabird’s west-facing wall. The hum of breakfast has passed, and the dinner crowd has yet to arrive. Reservations have been fully booked since opening night. In this rare quiet moment, the couple pauses to reflect on what brought them together, what brought them to Wilmington, and what has kept them in the restaurant business since their chance meeting more than a decade ago. Given their shared history, it should come as no surprise that Neff and Clopton use the word “our” a lot. After all, they share a family, a restaurant and a past. But when the chefs discuss Seabird, it is clear that their use of the word extends beyond their personal and professional relationship to the place they now call home. “Seabird is a small, community restaurant,” Neff says, “and I hope it’s a place that feels like part of our community.” Partnerships with local farmers and small-scale fishermen sup 46

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port Seabird’s efforts to be good stewards of the environment, Neff says. The restaurant’s crew is treated like family, and menus vary based on seasonal availability. “Our food is going to develop from our relationships with the people in this community.” Neff and Clopton’s relationship began 12 years ago in Athens, Ga., where Neff was the sous chef at Hugh Acheson’s now-iconic restaurant, Five and Ten. At the time, Clopton was working toward a biology degree at the University of Georgia. “I was baking a lot at home,” she says, “and my roommate said, ‘You should try doing this professionally.’” A friend of Clopton’s worked at Five and Ten. Neff remembers the day Clopton came in for her interview. When Acheson asked if she’d ever baked professionally, Clopton admitted that she hadn’t. But Acheson must have seen something in the eager young baker. Neff remembers him saying, “Great. When can you start?” Neff must have seen something in her, too, and soon, she would see something in him as well. Romance ensued. From Athens, where Neff eventually became executive chef at Five and Ten

and worked with Acheson on his first cookbook, the couple ventured to western North Carolina, where Clopton and Neff both found themselves working with some of the South’s best-known chefs and restaurateurs. Neff helped John Fleer open Rhubarb, a farm-to-table restaurant on the square in downtown Asheville. Clopton worked at Asheville’s Chai Pani, known for its innovative Indian street food, and also helped open Katie Button’s Nightbell, a cocktail bar beneath Cúrate, another Button restaurant lauded for its “curative” Spanish cuisine. Next, Clopton was baking wedding cakes out of the couple’s home while Neff taught in the culinary arts program at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College and coached the school’s competition cooking team. “I loved what we were doing, but I knew that the longer we did it the harder it would be to get back into a restaurant,” Neff says. And that was when Athens returned to their lives in a surprising way. A man named Jeff Duckworth had long been a regular at Acheson’s Five and Ten. Back when Neff was chef, it wasn’t uncommon for Duckworth to find his way into the kitchen after enjoying a meal. He would always say the same thing to Neff: “We should go open a restaurant somewhere.” Years later, Duckworth tracked Neff and Clopton down in Asheville to let them know he was leaving Athens for Wilmington. He said he was ready to prove how serious he was about partnering with Neff. Though the couple had never visited Wilmington, it had been on their radar. “Back when we were in Athens, we had a list of places that we were considering moving, and Asheville and Wilmington were on it,” Clopton says. “And it just happened.” The first time Neff and Clopton drove across the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge, the river below and the city nestled on its banks before them, they knew this was where they would make their home, both in the restaurant business and in the community. The partnership between Duckworth and Neff opened as PinPoint Restaurant in May 2015, and Neff immediately understood how important local support would be to the success of any small community restaurant. “We thought that being downtown would get us a lot of tourists, but the space didn’t lend itself to that. You had to really know about it,” he says. Local support grew, and so did a buzz that carried beyond the city and state. While Neff loved his time at PinPoint, he grew eager to strike out on his own. “I sold my shares to Jeff in 2019, and I wasn’t sure at that moment what I was going to do,” Neff says. “We’d just found out that Lydia was pregnant, and then I learned that I was on the long list for the James Beard Award for best chef in the Southeast, and it all kind of reinvigorated the idea that I wanted to open our restaurant in the way we wanted to do it.” In the midst of all these changes, Clopton had opened Love,

Lydia, an upscale bakery near downtown, where her offerings, especially her focaccia, made a name for themselves. “She’s a details person,” Neff says. “And I knew that if we did this restaurant together then we would spend more time together, and everything — from the front of the house to the back — would be better if she were here.” It turns out the couple would be spending a lot of time together. In quick succession, their son was born, the pandemic hit, Clopton closed her bakery, and, finally, in May, Seabird opened to rave reviews. Neff credits the name of the restaurant with his obsession with maps and aerial views. When thinking of names, he pictured a bird flying over eastern North Carolina, gazing down upon the expansive landscape from which he and Clopton would draw both ingredients and inspiration. When someone tipped him off to the song “Seabird” by the Alessi Brothers, Neff knew they had chosen the right name, especially when he read the lyrics “Lonely seabird, you’ve been away from land too long.” Those lines are now featured beneath the restaurant’s marquee at the corner of Front and Market streets in downtown Wilmington. While both subtle and bold details inform the visual aesthetic at southparkmagazine.com | 47

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Seabird, clean lines, floor-to-ceiling windows, and textures varying from natural wood to textiles, create a space that feels durable and robust yet finely appointed. But make no mistake — while the restaurant is gorgeous, the menu is the focus. North Carolina-based food and travel writer Jason Frye cites the smoked catfish and oyster pie as being among his favorites. “It’s a master class in subtle flavors,” he says. “The oyster is stewed until tender, and the smoked catfish is done lightly, so the smoke comes in, but it doesn’t overwhelm the creamed collards and celery broth

or the potato-flour pastry that sits on top. With every bite, one flavor leads into the next. At the end, you don’t come away from it feeling like you’ve read a collection of short stories. You feel like you’ve read a novel.” And that’s exactly what Neff and Clopton want the food at Seabird to do: tell the story of the community it comes from. After more than a decade of working solo or for other chefs or alongside business partners, Dean Neff and Lydia Clopton have come home to Seabird, and they’re inviting locals and visitors to join them. Food, stories, family, community: All of the ingredients are here. SP Wiley Cash is the writer-in-residence at the UNC Asheville. His new novel, When Ghosts Come Home, will be released this year.

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blvd. | calendar

July

HAPPENINGS

Events + activities ASC Greenway Summer Concert Series Bring picnic blankets or lawn chairs and wind down with an evening of live music. Beer, wine and various food options are available for purchase. Thursdays through July 29, 6-9 p.m. at Anne Springs Close Greenway in Fort Mill, S.C.; free for members and $6 for nonmembers, plus $5 parking fee; ascgreenway.org Queen Charlotte Fair From tasty fair favorites like funnel cakes and candy apples to whirling carnival rides, there’s something for the whole family. July 1-11; tickets $12 for adults, $7 for kids 6-12, free for children 5 and under; Route 29 Pavilion, Concord; queencharlottefair.com Charlotte Firecracker 5K and Fun Run Dash through south Charlotte on your own, or race your friends to the finish line. July 3; registration costs vary by signup date; Windyrush Country Club, 6441 Windyrush Rd.; charlottefirecracker5k. raceroster.com Fourth of July Celebration at U.S. National Whitewater Center Burst into the holiday weekend with live music, yoga sessions and fireworks, in addition to the Whitewater Center’s 30+ recreational experiences. July 3-4; free admission with $6 parking per car; usnwc.org The Charlotte Knights annual WBT Skyshow The tradition lives on at the largest fireworks show of the season. The Charlotte Knights will light up the sky with a fireworks display after their game against Norfolk. July 4; ticket costs vary; milb.com/ charlotte-knights Party in the Park at Mint Museum Randolph On the last Sunday of each month, enjoy free admission to the museum, food trucks, live music, and a cash bar on the front terrace. July 25, 1-5 p.m.; mintmuseum.org Actors Theatre of Charlotte Rock of Ages at The Barn at MoRa Bring blankets and chairs and enjoy this tribute to ’80s classic rock. It’s the first of three outdoor rock musicals planned in 2021

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at the Barn at MoRa — a Levine Property. July 28-Aug. 21; ticket prices vary; 8300 Monroe Rd.; atcharlotte.org

Museums + galleries Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition at The Paper Warehouse at Savona Mill Charlotte gets a taste of Italy with this immersive display of Michelangelo’s masterpieces. Life-size panels feature reproductions of the breathtaking frescoes by the revered Italian sculptor and painter. Through July 31, Thursdays-Sundays, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; 401 S. Gardner Ave.; tickets start at $19.40 for adults and $13 for kids, free for 4 and under; chapelsistinecharlotte.com Reasons to be Cheerful, a Goodyear Arts takeover at SOCO Gallery Curated by Holly Keogh, this exhibition features recent paintings and mixed-media and performance works by 10 artists from the Goodyear Arts nonprofit residency program. Through August 7; socogallery.com Summertime at Jerald Melberg Gallery This exhibition highlights paintings and works on paper inspired by the summer season. Featured artists include Romare Bearden, Chris Clamp, Raul Diaz, Lee Hall, Wolf Kahn, Thomas McNickle and Robert Motherwell. Through August 21; jeraldmelberg.com Wavelength at Anne Neilson Fine Art Inspired by the connective properties of water, this exhibition showcases works by seven artists that express an intrinsic draw to the sea and the surf. Through August 28; anneneilsonfineart.com Eyes Wide Open at Elder Gallery of Contemporary Art Works by three Asian American female artists — Quynh Vu, HNin Nie and MyLoan Dinh — are on view. The “punchy, provocative” works challenge preconceived ideas about Asian art. Through Sept. 11; eldergalleryclt.com — compiled by Amanda Lea

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|simple life

Death of a green dragon A GARDENER’S BITTERSWEET REMINDER OF LIFE’S IMPERMANENCE by Jim Dodson

ast month, I returned from my first trip since the start of the pandemic to discover a baffling mystery at home. The leaves of a beautiful Green Dragon Japanese maple I’d raised from a mere seedling appeared to suddenly be dying. Arching gracefully over the side driveway, the rare 7-foot beauty was the star of my garden. It had never been more vibrant than the day I departed for a week out West, lush and green with lots of bright spring growth. But suddenly, inexplicably, those delicate new leaves were limp and withering. A friend who knows his ornamental trees pointed out that a freakish, late-season cold snap might be the culprit. The leaves of nearby hydrangea bushes were also severely burned, but with the return of seasonal warmth, were already showing signs of recovery. “I think you should simply leave it alone. Give the tree water and maybe a little spring fertilizer and let things take their course,” he said. “Nature has a way of healing her own.” His theory seemed plausible. I’ve built and maintained enough gardens in my time to know that nature always holds the upper hand. Sometimes unlikely resurrections happen when you least expect them. So I waited and watered, trying to push the thought of losing my spectacular Green Dragon out of my mind. Perhaps by some miracle it would come back to life. As I went about other tasks in the garden, I thought about how the sudden death of a spring pig provided writer E. B. White intense grief and something of a personal epiph-

any, inspiring one of his most affecting essays in 1948. Following a struggle of several days to heal his mysteriously ailing young pig — such an ordeal blurs the passage of time, the author expressed — White, accompanied by his morbidly curious dachshund, Fred, walked out one evening to check on the patient, hoping for the best. “When I went down, before going to bed, he lay stretched in the yard a few feet from the door. I knelt, saw that he was dead, and left him there: his face had a mild look, expressive neither of deep peace nor of deep suffering, although I think he had suffered a good deal.” The young pig was buried near White’s favorite spot in the apple orchard, leaving his owner surprised by the potency of his own grief. “The loss we felt was not the loss of ham but the loss of pig,” White recounts. “He had evidently become precious to me, not that he represented a distant nourishment in a hungry time, but that he had suffered in a suffering world.” Life, of course, is full of unexpected compensations. It’s possible that the guilt and grief E.B. White suffered with the loss of his pig was the literary world’s gain. Four years later, the author crafted a tale of a female barn spider that saves a charming young pig, Wilbur, from slaughter by creating upbeat messages in her web. It became an instant American classic, and Charlotte’s Web continues to rank among the most beloved children’s books of all time. I don’t know if a failed effort to save a spring pig bought “in blossom time” is anything like trying to save a young Japanese maple I’d

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|simple life raised from a seedling, but the sadness of its sudden loss combined with a palpable sense that I’d somehow failed my tree followed me around like Fred the dachshund for weeks, a reminder of life’s mystery and bittersweet impermanence. It didn’t help matters, I suppose, that I couldn’t even bring myself to dig up the deceased tree and cart it out to the curb for the weekly refuse crew. At this writing, as lush summer green explodes all around, the beloved tree stands like a monument to my botanical incompetence or simple bad luck. The autopsy is incomplete. The verdict is still pending. Gardeners and farmers, of course, experience dramas of life and death — and sometimes unexpected rebirth — on a daily basis. Pests and disease are constant threats that interrupt the cycle of life at any moment with little or no advance notice. Too much rain or not enough, violent winds, summer hailstorms and unwelcome diners in the garden are simply part of the process of helping living things grow. My longtime friend and former Southern Pines neighbor Max Morrison, who is known for his spectacular camellias and probably the most abundant vegetable garden in the Carolina Sandhills, solved his deer and rabbit problem decades ago by transforming his edible landscape into something resembling a Soviet Gulag with 10-foot wire fences and electric monitoring systems. On one of the first evenings I dined with Max and his wife, Myrtis, a gifted Southern cook, I noticed a large jar of Taster’s Choice instant coffee going round on the lazy Suzan. Attached to it with rubber bands was an index card covered with tiny dates written in pencil. “What’s this?” I asked, picking it up. Myrtis laughed. “Oh, that’s Max’s record of all the squirrels he’s dispatched with his pellet rifle over the years in order to keep them out of his garden.” The death count went back decades. Among other surprises, this cool, wet spring brought a noticeable uptick in the squirrel and chipmunk populations around the neighborhood, which made me briefly consider picking up an air rifle of my own. For the moment at least, our young female Staffordshire bull terrier has taken matters into her own paws, nimbly standing guard over the back garden from atop a brick terrace wall, ready to leap into action at the sight of a furry invader. Our in-town neighborhood is also home to a sizable community of rabbits that appear at dawn and dusk to feed in the front yards along the block. The dogs pay little or no attention to them. For the most part, ours seems to be a remarkably peaceful kingdom with no need to resort to sterner measures of defense. At the end of the day, this may be my form of post-pandemic compensation. My garden has actually never looked better, save for the untimely passing of a lovely Green Dragon. This morning, I’ve made up my mind to go out and do what I should have done weeks ago — dig up my dead maple and send it on to the town mulch pile. At least its remains may eventually enrich someone else’s garden. In its place, I’ll plant a border of peonies that will fill in nicely in a year or two. I shall miss that lovely Green Dragon, though. SP

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|queen city journal

Crimson crop MY GATEWAY TO A RETURN TO NORMALCY? HOMEGROWN TOMATOES. by Michael J. Solender

y barometer for post-Covid normalcy? Tomatoes. Plump, crimson orbs grown steps from my back door, my post-Covid tomatoes inform me things are becoming right with the world. They’re on their way, these beauties. Days from being picked while still warm from the sun, sliced thick, resting between slices of sourdough slathered with mayonnaise and finished with freshground pepper, my first homegrown tomatoes of the season are harbingers of salad days ahead. Like most gardeners, I’m an optimist. Promise lies in the loamy soil-filled raised beds situated outside my SouthPark home. It’s accompanied by the hope of fruit-bearing plants to be enjoyed come July — several months after receiving my second Covid jab and coinciding with President Biden’s goal of 70% of Americans having at least one vaccine by Independence Day. As a “We’re back to normal” indicator, Joe’s goal means less to me than a garden-side caprese salad complete with my very own Early Girls and fresh basil, picked minutes before serving. In mid-March of 2019, I’d returned to the U.S. on one of the last flights from Shannon, Ireland, hours before then-President Trump instituted the European travel ban. When I landed at an eerily deserted JFK, relief at being home quickly gave way to fears of the unknown impact the coronavirus would have on us all. There were no homegrown tomatoes for my family last year. No fresh tomato risotto, BLTs on whole wheat or tomato pie. I couldn’t

motivate myself to get into the garden. It was June before I came to realize that I hadn’t planted my beds, weeks before I usually would begin my first harvest. It saddened me, my tomato-free season. My relationship with my garden, I knew, was merely a proxy for so many other relationships coldly placed on hold over the next 15 months. Typically, my yield of tiny love-apples are vehicles for spontaneous conversations with my neighbors, opportunities to trade my summer bounty for stories about grandkids, upcoming vacations or the new family moving in down the block. My homegrowns are always warmly received as gifts at backyard BBQs, supplanting bottles of rosé, likely still stashed behind the pickles in my golf buddy’s fridge. Over the last year of Blursdays, neighborly interactions were confined to car-side waves or long-distance chats across the fence. Golf dates and BBQs were waylaid for better times ahead. There was nary an inquiry regarding my tomato harvest. Instead, I spent months doomscrolling and dashboard studying. Backyard tomatoes had become a constant in my life’s annual cycle: Planted in the spring, harvested and enjoyed throughout the summer and early fall, longed for in the winter. Their nourishment and sustenance fueled my psyche as much as my body. And though we’re not completely out of the woods, we’re making strides against this virus. This summer, my tomatoes are back in the dirt, the bees have returned, and my neighbors are anticipating the first arrivals as much as I am. This year’s crop will be sweeter than ever. SP southparkmagazine.com | 57

July books

|bookshelf

NOTABLE NEW RELEASES compiled by Sally Brewster

The Sound of the Sea: Seashells and the Fate of the Oceans, by Cynthia Barnett Seashells have been the most coveted and collected of nature’s creations since the dawn of humanity. They were money before coins, jewelry before gems, art before canvas. Acclaimed environmental author Cynthia Barnett blends cultural history and science to trace our long love affair with seashells and the hidden lives of the mollusks that make them. She begins with their childhood wonder, unwinds surprising histories like the origin of Shell Oil as a family business importing exotic shells, and charts what shells and the soft animals that build them are telling scientists about our warming, acidifying seas. From the eerie calls of early shell trumpets to the evolutionary miracle of spines and spires and the modern science of carbon capture inspired by shells, Barnett circles to her central point of listening to nature’s wisdom — and acting on what seashells have to say about taking care of each other and our world. The Key Man: The True Story of How the Global Elite Was Duped by a Capitalist Fairy Tale, by Simon Clark and Will Louch In this compelling story of lies, greed and tarnished idealism, two Wall Street Journal reporters investigate a man who Bill Gates, western governments and other investors entrusted with billions of dollars to make profits and end poverty, but who now stands accused of masterminding one of the biggest, most brazen financial frauds ever. Arif Naqvi, the founder of Abraaj, a Dubai-based private-equity firm, was the Key Man to the global elite, searching for impact investments to make money and do good. He persuaded politicians he could help stabilize the Middle East after 9/11 by providing jobs and guided executives to opportunities in cities they struggled to find on the map. In 2018, Clark and Louch were contacted by an anonymous whistleblower who said Naqvi had swindled investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars and offered bribes to sustain his billionaire lifestyle. Clark and Louch shine a light on efforts to clean up global

capital flows even as opaque private equity firms amass trillions of dollars and offshore tax havens cast a veil of secrecy which prevents regulators, investors and citizens from understanding what is really going on in the finance industry. The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller On a perfect July morning, Elle, a 50-year-old happily married mother of three, awakens at “The Paper Palace” — the family summer place where she has visited every summer of her life. But this morning is different: Last night, Elle and her oldest friend, Jonas, crept out the back door into the darkness while their spouses chatted away inside. Over the next 24 hours, Elle will have to decide between the life she has made with her genuinely beloved husband, Peter, and the life she always imagined she would have had with her childhood love, Jonas, if a tragic event hadn’t forever changed the course of their lives. As Heller colors in the experiences that have led Elle to this day, we arrive at her ultimate decision with all its complexity. Tender yet devastating, The Paper Palace considers the tensions between desire and dignity, the legacies of abuse, and the crimes and misdemeanors of families. False Witness, by Karin Slaughter Atlanta lawyer Leigh Collier is a defense attorney whose life is on an even keel after a traumatic childhood. Then a case lands on her desk — defending a wealthy man accused of rape. It is the highest profile case she’s ever been given — a case that could transform her career, if she wins. But when she meets the accused, she realizes that it’s no coincidence he’s chosen her as his attorney. She knows him. And he knows her. More to the point, he knows what happened 20 years ago, and why Leigh has spent two decades running. Slaughter shines an intense spotlight on a new normal laced with Covid-19 protocols and a cast of survivors battling a ruthless pandemic and a serial sadist. SP Sally Brewster is the proprietor of Park Road Books at 4139 Park Road. parkroadbooks.com southparkmagazine.com | 59

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|well + wise

Coping with stress by Juliet Lam Kuehnle

his past year has been stressful for most of us because of so many new challenges. Now we may also be experiencing “re-entry” stress as pandemic restrictions loosen, so let’s talk about how to deal with all of this change. Coping skills are strategies used to reduce stress and help us tolerate the discomfort that comes with stressors. Since we can’t make worries and hardships disappear, the best gift we can give ourselves is to learn to trust that we can handle uneasiness and bounce back. Coping skills aren’t one size fits all. What “works” for one person may not “work” for you. Even day to day, your own needs will change. Here are three styles of coping skills:

TASK-ORIENTED/PROBLEM-FOCUSED These deal with the specific cause of a problem. If it is something within our control, we can gather information and make a pros and cons list or a to-do list, ask for help from an expert, or manage our time differently.

AVOIDANCE-ORIENTED Maladaptive, or harmful, coping strategies tend to fall in this category and provide only short-term “relief.” There is definitely a time and place for healthy distraction! The problem comes, though, when avoidance is used reflexively rather than intentionally and infrequently. This causes problems to grow and gives more power to the stressor, making you think you can’t handle the discomfort. Try to increase awareness and recognize when you might be avoiding whatever is causing your stress, and give yourself the chance to come back and process it.

EMOTION-ORIENTED These are the skills you learn in therapy. They can be used to process through stressful times in a healthy and productive way. They include relaxation techniques, deep breathing, grounding skills, journaling, meditation, exercise and intentional self-care. Ideally, how we cope with stress perfectly aligns with our partners’ coping strategies, creating a calm and well-functioning environment to address problems as they arise. Solving problems as a team promotes a healthier partnership. What do we do when our style of coping creates an additional level of stress for our partner? Deryle Hunter, a local therapist who has been helping individuals and couples for more than 30 years, offers the following suggestions to help us regulate internal feelings of discomfort to communicate better, build resilience, and offer more compassion and understanding. • Re-frame your interpretation of your partner’s behavior and struggles by practicing empathy.

Heather Cole

Kuehnle recently spoke with Charlotte artist Heather Cole of Heather Opal Art. Cole is best-known for her heart-themed canvases, prints and door charms. Below are excerpts from the interview, lightly edited. Talk to us a bit about your journey with mental health and learning coping skills. The main reason I paint hearts is because I had heart surgery when I was 17. I’ve always been very aware of how my emotions affect my body, and vice versa. After the procedure, I had to relearn when my body was telling me to chill out. Even before this interview, I was so nervous, I was using my elevator breathing.

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|well + wise • If you need to talk in order to feel comforted or understood, it is restorative to be truly heard by your partner. Until your partner is available to be present and listen, practice comforting and soothing yourself. • When you feel your partner is ready, share your concerns. If you prefer to process things by yourself, there is a chance that your partner may feel disconnected or unimportant to you. By sharing your feelings, you may find that they can understand and love you while you find ways to cope. • Lashing out may feel better in the moment as a way to discharge built-up emotion, but those exchanges are toxic to the relationship. Think before you speak. Negotiate ways to apologize or accept an apology and find ways to repair the damage if you hurt them. • Realize that you can’t control people or events. Increasing your acceptance and getting better at tolerating things you can’t control will promote a better sense of agency. • Remember that anxiety is contagious, but so are kindness and patience. SP Juliet Kuehnle is the owner and a therapist at Sun Counseling and Wellness. The full version of Kuehnle’s “Who You Callin’ Crazy?!” interview featuring Heather Cole can be found on Instagram @suncounselingandwellness, @whoyoucallincrazypodcast or wherever you stream podcasts.

Listening to your body is so important — it’s our first line of defense and our alarm system — your physical symptoms are trying to tell you something. So you’ve gotten better at this? Yes, better at listening and owning it. Because it’s okay to feel that way. And if you have the tools or some act of self-care, you’ll get through it. I don’t have to pretend that I’m okay or hide. I don’t have to make this look good. I can say, “I need a minute.” And I’ve learned that if someone says, “I’m fine,” that is code for: “I am not OK.” Fine is not OK. We’re conditioned to respond that way, which isn’t always authentic — some of that is so it won’t take on a life of its own and some is our not wanting to burden others. You’ve given yourself permission to own it, and you trust that you’ll get through the temporary discomfort. Yes, because it gives other people permission to own it, too, and to set boundaries, have more self-respect, and expect respect from other people. Especially during this past year — being a small-business owner, an artist, a stay-at-home mom — I developed a lot of unhealthy coping skills. I had to recognize that my family had taken a back seat to being a working artist and to my love of sparking joy in the community. So, I made a lot of changes. It’s a work in progress from the bad habits that had set in and understanding basic needs.

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Dropping anchor AFTER THREE YEARS AT SEA, A CHARLOTTE COUPLE BUILDS THEIR DREAM HOME ALONG SENTIMENTAL SELWYN AVENUE.

Always seeking adventure: Hodges Miller and daughter, Mia, rappel in style outside their Selwyn Avenue home. Hodges wears a vintage dress from Raleigh-based House of Landor.

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by Caroline Portillo • photographs by Chris Edwards production by Whitley Adkins • photography assistant: Rebecca Bridges floral arrangements by Shelly St. Laurent of Foxglove Fine Flowers makeup for Hodges Miller by Josiah Reed

n the stairwell outside Wade Miller’s home office is a map of the world. The map is dotted with yellow pushpins and string, which track a course from the Caribbean to the South Pacific, from French Polynesia to Australia — a journey by sailboat that Wade and his wife, Hodges, took from 2016 to 2019. At sea, the couple discovered they could fish for their dinner, woo an island chieftain and anchor at port with minimal bickering. They also learned they could buy a lot and design a home from across the world — with a little help from Zillow, Pinterest and Charlotte-based Elite Design Group. The result is a stunning, 21st-century take on Frank Lloyd Wright’s Darwin D. Martin house, known for its iconic prairie style of architecture, with plenty of sexy ’70s touches and details recalling the couple’s incredible travels: a framed photograph of a Tahitian

man, covered head to toe in tattoos, in the downstairs half bath; a wall of intricate necklaces, gifts from locals in French Polynesia, in the couple’s dressing room; coffee- and cream-colored nautilus shells from New Caledonia perched on shelves lining either side of a large soaking tub. “The whole experience of living on the water for three years shaped so much of who we are and our perspective on life, our thoughts on cultures and people — especially people who are different from us,” says Hodges, 40. “We weren’t like, ‘Ooh, let’s bring Tahiti into the house,’” says Wade, 41. “It was a natural outgrowth.” In true Frank Lloyd Wright fashion, the home was designed with a meditative approach to the environment: As you retreat upstairs on the floating staircase, it feels natural to pause at the expansive southparkmagazine.com | 67

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two-story window designed to showcase the lush oak tree outside. The waterfall-edged pool, its color reminiscent of the South Pacific waters, is lined with greenery and manicured hedges. An accordion glass wall opening off the kitchen offers a sense of connection to the outdoors — a seamless flow to the backyard and pool. Inside, the décor is fresh and the art is playful. Consider the huge photograph from Burning Man that greets visitors when they walk in the front door, or the nearly life-size print of David Bowie that ushers you into the kitchen. A neon peace sign greets you at the bottom of the stairwell. It’s also a home designed for the impact of the couple’s almost 2-year-old daughter, Mia. The sunken living room — a layout that offers intimacy in an open floor plan, Hodges says — has comfy oversized sofas and a large fireplace. And, as if plucked from every child’s dreams, a hidden door in the room’s walnut wood paneling reveals a secret playroom. “We have friends with kids, and we noticed their living rooms are always covered with toys,” Wade says. “So we said, ‘Why not make a little space right off our living room that can be covered with toys, but we can shut the door when the grownups come over?’”

A U-TURN AND A DREAM Selwyn Avenue has always held special significance to the Millers. Hodges, a Myers Park High School grad, grew up in a white brick colonial on the tree-lined street. And it was while driving down Selwyn with her best friend that she saw Wade for the first time. “We saw this handsome man with no shirt on, running down the road, and my best friend said, ‘You need to pull over and talk to him.’” Hodges recalls. “So I pulled a U-turn and introduced myself.” Wade grins: “My reaction was, ‘I guess this running thing is working.’” But a couple of months later, over a picnic at Freedom Park, Wade was honest: He was planning to leave his native Charlotte for a while and travel the world by sailboat. If Hodges had no interest in ever leaving her land life, they probably shouldn’t continue dating. Hodges was not only unfazed, she was game. Wade had gone on a brief sailing trip in college but had little experience at sea. So the two used tax return money to buy a used sailboat and took to the waters of Lake Norman. They joined a yacht club and learned the ropes from sailing veterans. Meanwhile, Wade and Hodges also dabbled in mountain climbing and rappelling. They hiked Mount Rainier in Seattle. They summited Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest point in Africa. Then they made official their plans to set sail. The couple upgraded to a 50-foot catamaran christened Coco de Mer, with four bedrooms, four bathrooms and a large bank of solar panels to run off the grid. Hodges left her corporate wellness job. Wade arranged to leave his custom homebuilding company, Copper Builders, in the hands of his best friend. And in 2016, as their two-year wedding anniversary approached, the newlyweds ventured out.

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AROUND THE WORLD AND BACK AGAIN While at sea, Wade and Hodges witnessed an intimate portrait of countless cultures. They downloaded all of Wikipedia, thanks to a fellow sailor who had it on a flash drive (“Sailors are the worst pirates,” Hodges says). The online encyclopedia was invaluable for navigating local customs. “In some countries, you would have to go and introduce yourself to the chief before you were allowed to lay on the beach,” Wade says. “You would go to the chief and bring a gift and say, ‘Hey, I’d like to spend time on your island. Is that OK?’” Those conversations often ended with a gift exchange, dinner and an unforgettable experience. Once, they spent three weeks on an island with no running water or electricity, eating and drinking with locals who made their own rice wine and farmed black pearls. But while they were halfway across the world, Wade and Hodges were also thinking about their life back in Charlotte. When they returned, where would they want to live? So on rainy days — when they had internet service — the couple would get lost on Zillow. When they found the 0.7-acre lot on Selwyn, “it was pretty easy to think ‘this is the place for us,’” Hodges says. Wade’s company would build the custom home, and he enlisted JJ Barja of Charlotte-based 72

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Elite Design Group to help design it. Wade remembers sitting on the boat in New Caledonia with his iPad, reviewing the architecture plans and marking them up with an Apple pencil before sending them back. The Millers officially started building in fall 2018 and moved in a little more than a year later.

GLOBAL INSPIRATION Upstairs, the nursery is a playful mix of patterns, color and geometric shapes, from the gray-spotted wallpaper to the oval-shaped crib to the framed prints hanging above — artist Thom Pastrano’s modern interpretation of iconic Sesame Street characters. The couple spotted the prints in a gallery in Australia soon after they found out Hodges was pregnant. In fact, much of the striking art displayed in the Miller family’s home was bought during their travels. They picked up Soledad Duran’s four Basquiatinspired paintings, framed and displayed along the floating staircase, in Panama. The Millers don’t fancy themselves as highbrow collectors. Some paintings and prints were bought, rolled up and carried with them on the boat. “We just see a piece we like and do our best to get our hands on it,” Wade says. In the case of the David Bowie piece adorning the wall in the living room, Hodges spotted it in a rug advertisement. She then tracked down the artists, an international design duo known as Craig & Karl, who sent her a signed print. While neutral walls help the living areas feel airy and spacious, pops of orange and teal — the colors of their sailboat — enliven every space. Wade’s home office is surrounded by teal-colored built-ins filled with travel books and nautical touches. But the space’s pièce de résistance: a teal 1965 Mustang convertible that’s housed in the adjoining room. Technically speaking, it’s the third-car garage. But the hardwood, temperature-controlled room with built-in shelves displaying miniatures of other classic cars make it feel like the kind of place you’d want to sip an Old Fashioned and unwind.

In the dressing room, Hodges Miller, wearing a vintage floral dress, examines shell necklaces given to the couple by locals while sailing in the South Pacific — reminders of their three-year voyage and the people they met along the way.

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The housewares themselves are also a testament to the Miller’s love of travel. The orange stove is Italian. The kitchen cabinets are from the Czech Republic. The sparkling water on tap in the scullery? A luxe touch inspired by a coffee shop they visited in New Zealand.

‘THE OCEAN IS IN OUR BLOOD’ The couple sold their sailboat in 2019 in Australia, the last leg of their three-year journey. And though they still head to the beach for most vacations — “the ocean is in our blood,” Wade says — they aren’t planning another sailing trip for a few more years. These days, Hodges prefers scuba diving, and Wade, who’s taken up kitesurfing, is considering training for another trek up Mount Rainier. But when the couple needs a more visceral reminder of life at sea, they walk past the pool to the corner of the backyard, where an outdoor shower shaded by a fig tree awaits. SP

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The big picture ARTIST MATT MYERS GAVE UP A THRIVING ADVERTISING CAREER IN NEW YORK CITY TO FOLLOW A DIFFERENT PATH — ILLUSTRATING BOOKS FOR CHILDREN. by Jim Moriarty • photographs by Peter Taylor

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nce upon a time, there was an artist who lived on a shady street with four women and seven chickens in a simple house with a blue door and a yard with red flowers, and he was happy. Matt Myers, the illustrator of more than 30 children’s picture books, the writer of four, a percolating novelist, a man with an eccentric wit and a painter of serious ability, is a tumbleweed of talent, propelled by a cyclone wind of creativity. So, how did this Oregon-born, Manhattan-dwelling, former ad guy, who can draw a perfect circle freehand, find himself in Charlotte? Why, chasing the love of a woman, of course. Myers grew up in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, the youngest of four children of two graphic artists, in a rural town named for the daughter, Aurora, of the man who founded a religious colony there

in the 19th century. “My best friend lived across a filbert orchard,” he says. “Ever see the movie Stand by Me? That was actually shot 20 miles from where I grew up. That whole walking on the train tracks and being scared that a train’s coming — that was my childhood.” He attended what is now called Pacific Northwest College of Art, then put his considerable illustrating skills to work in the advertising world. He jumped from a firm in Portland to one in Seattle and then to various posts in New York. After 20 years in advertising, he was on the precipice of earning the kind of corporate money people climb the advertising ladder to make when he quit cold turkey in ’98. “I holed up in my West Village apartment and just painted,” he says. “I’m giving myself permission to quit advertising and just be an artist. What kind of artist do I want to be? southparkmagazine.com | 79

“If you can imagine a Far Side cartoon but rendered in traditional oil paints — light and shadow and all that kind of stuff — that’s basically what I did,” he says. “They were all gags. They had a caption. I was giggling while I was painting. I realized I hadn’t felt actual joy while I was creating for a long time.” His paintings sold faster than you can say Gary Larson. “For years I thought I was wasting my time in advertising,” Myers says. “But if I hadn’t gone into advertising, I wouldn’t have learned to work quickly, get over myself, work past the first idea and understand that I’m doing something for another brain, not just my own.” New York also gave him the kind of connections that would open up his picture-book world. “I think we’ve done about six books together across a little over 10 years,” says Neal Porter, Myers’ editor at Holiday House Publishing Inc. One of those books was Myers’ first as both author and illustrator, the semi-autobiographical Hum and Swish, released in 2019. Myers’ next book with Holiday House, Children of the Forest, will be out in the spring of ’22. “I think it’s among the best things he’s ever done. It is amusing, it’s funny, but it’s also really, really beautiful,” Porter says. “Despite the fact that everybody thinks they can write a children’s book, it’s a really difficult skill. You have to write something that’s accessible to a 4-5-6-year-old that’s still kind of rich and deep and satisfying as a story.” One other thing New York gave him: his wife, Maya, a freelance 80

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editor and children’s book author in her own right who had settled in Charlotte. “We met in a restaurant in Brooklyn, through mutual friends,” Myers says. “The first moment I saw her I was like ‘I want to be friends with that person.’ We became email friends and then text friends, and then we realized we’d fallen in love with each other. She said, ‘I’ve got three daughters, and I’m not leaving this town until they’re at least in college.’ When she told me ‘You’re in Charlotte, or you’re not with me,’ it was ‘OK.’ I really can follow orders very well.” He loaded his paints, brushes and the paper plates he uses as palettes, along with the stuff from his West Village apartment, into a U-Haul, waved farewell to exorbitant rents, and headed south. Drew Daywalt, author of the classic The Day the Crayons Quit, named to Time magazine’s list of 100 Best Children’s Books of All Time, worked with Myers on Disney’s Star Wars book BB8 on the Run. In a business where the writer and illustrator frequently exist in separate silos, Myers and Daywalt were dispatched on a book tour together. “It was like sending a couple of middle-school kids off on a trip. He’s a great combination of a 10-year-old’s perspective with an adult’s talent,” Daywalt says of Myers. “He truly sees the world as a child does, and it’s wonderful. It’s a miracle — so many of us lose that as we grow older.” Myers’ latest book, Dino-Gro, released in June, is about a sponge that grows in water. “It grows too much, and they kick it

out of the house,” he says. It was what Myers calls one of his “gags” at first, but over time the gag morphed into a story. “It ties into the feeling of wanting to nurture something that’s being shunned by others. Your job as a picture-book writer is to tug the heartstrings — get at a simple story that resonates with everyone.” The creative process can be grueling. “It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, trying to get a whole story in under 600 words,” Daywalt says. “I’ve written novels and screenplays that were not as hard to do. It’s like spending six months on a sonnet.” The same publisher who bought Dino-Gro, Random House Studio, has another Myers project in the pipeline — two boys who, tricked by a wily girl, have paid a nickel apiece for opposite ends of the world’s longest licorice rope. Ultimately, the gag turns into a story about friendship. “Without getting mystical or anything, I feel like the best ideas, the best inspiration, comes from rejecting yourself — not in a meditative way, but you just forget about yourself for a while,” Myers says. “You become a kid again and forget that this is a human being that has to make a deadline. You’re just having a blast.” And he is. SP

“He truly sees the world as a child does, and it’s wonderful. It’s a miracle — so many of us lose that as we grow older.”

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Nourishing nature AT JUNEBERRY RIDGE, SEEDS FOR A BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL FUTURE HAVE BEEN SOWN. by Ross Howell Jr. • photographs by Amy Freeman

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y destination is a 600-acre retreat in the foothills of the Uwharrie Mountains — just outside Norwood in Stanly County, about 45 miles east of Charlotte. Most vehicles on the highway are log trucks. The rolling hills are thick with pine and hardwoods. Cattle loll by hayricks, and calves frisk and butt in roadside pastures. I turn onto Old Cottonville Road. The name tells you something about the farm history here. Cotton’s still grown in the North Carolina Piedmont, along with crops for livestock. But essential topsoil is eroding away. Conservationists now say this area has some

of the poorest soil in North Carolina. On Old Cottonville Road, I spot a metal plate announcing, “Juneberry Ridge.” The drive rises steeply up an allée of young maples, with swales cut to catch runoff from the slope. I pass what’s known as a five stand. With heaters to warm shooters in winter and misters to cool them in summer, five shooting stations, an outdoor kitchen, a gathering space, and loads of technology to support media presentations, Juneberry Ridge — previously known as Lucky Clays Farm — might be the finest competitive clay-shooting facility on the East Coast. southparkmagazine.com | 83

It’s also a conference center and, despite the aforementioned soil conditions, an organic farm — but more on that later. The five stand was built by Judy Carpenter of Charlotte. Rising through the ranks of National Welders Supply Co., a regional business started by her father, she reaped full value for that enterprise through hard-nosed negotiations to a national distributor. She also happens to be a champion clay target shooter. When someone told her that, as a woman, she needed to find someplace else to compete, she bought this land and built herself one. Everybody at Juneberry Ridge calls her “Miss Judy.” She’s a genial, plain-spoken woman who could well be the most determined person on the planet. Farther up the ridge, an expansive log house first built as Carpenter’s residence now houses a handful of the farm’s more than 30 full-time workers. Beyond the house is a sizable solar array and a wind turbine. Rob Boisvert greets me outside. A retired news anchor for WSOC-TV and Spectrum News in Charlotte, Boisvert is the business development manager for Juneberry Ridge. I follow his car downhill past the conference center known, because of its proximity to a pond, as the “Toad House.” The building features more state-of-the-art technology and a commercial kitchen that can serve 70. Driving up another ridge, we pass tennis courts, and at the crest, a wellness center, cabins and a cottage. We pull up at Longleaf cabin, where I’ll be staying. It’s one of five rental units on the property, including three one-bedroom “tiny home” cabins. Longleaf is an airy, light-filled, three-bedroom cottage with a vaulted-ceiling great room. Other cabins were built by Juneberry Ridge employees with lumber harvested on the property and milled nearby. The details are both simple and exquisite. In the refrigerator, for instance, I find a salad of lettuce grown in Juneberry Ridge’s 45,000-square-foot greenhouse and fresh vinaigrette dressing made 84

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by head chef Tiffany Lackey, the hospitality director. I get it. I’m in a bucolic spot that’s an easy drive from Greensboro, Charlotte or Raleigh. It’s ideal for a weekend getaway outdoors. It’s perfect for a productive corporate retreat. But Miss Judy tells me what Juneberry Ridge is really about. “We’re kind of about saving the world,” she says. After lunch, two members of her young team meet me at the wellness center. Lead designer and Davidson College biology grad Ross Lackey spreads a map across a table. After traveling the country, working on organic farms through the international movement called Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms, he returned to his hometown of High Point to work at Lindale Dairy and later ran a farm business in South Carolina. He consulted at Juneberry Ridge before joining as an employee. On the map, he points out a small building near Hardy Creek, which he says was the first greenhouse on the property. “The idea was that the greenhouse would supply food for Miss Judy and all the employees,” Lackey tells me. “That little greenhouse is where farming here was born,” adds farm manager and Appalachian State University graduate Brian Hinson. Before joining Juneberry Ridge, he worked for the town of Norwood while tending to his family’s 500-acre farm. Farming at the Ridge got started with a small aquaponics system where the fish (tilapia) waste provided nutrients for the plants and, in turn, the plants filtered the water for the fish. We climb into a pickup for my tour. “The morel mushrooms will be up soon,” says Lackey, a certified mushroom forager, as we enter the woodlands. “And we’ve found some lobster of the woods down there in the hollow.” As part of a plan to build miles of bike and hiking trails, Lackey will one day lead visitors on foraging hikes. Trained as a permaculture designer by the Greensboro

Permaculture Guild, Lackey explains that an important tenet of permaculture is the notion of “right livelihood,” meaning that practitioners should not harm other living beings. It’s all about emphasizing biodiversity and natural systems while creating jobs. “Miss Judy takes a very long view,” Lackey says. “She’s making it possible for us to build an infrastructure that will employ people now and in the future, paying a good wage with benefits.” Mature crops of chestnuts, walnuts and pecans may require 10 to 15 years of growth, Lackey explains. Meanwhile, there are plans to plant a scuppernong vineyard. Quicker maturing crops like chinquapins, blueberries, mulberries, pawpaws and persimmons are being planted now. We stop at a dilapidated farmstead, where parts of the house date from the 1830s. Hinson points out a thick rock wall that’s waist-high and follows the contour of the hillside. “That stone wall’s a good 150 . . . 200 yards long,” Hinson says. “All hauled by mule.” As they point out various sights on the property, including the earthen berms on the drive up to the big greenhouse, their reverence is palpable. “It’s like a game, seeing how long you can get water to stay in the environment,” Lackey comments. “Any farming system that’s lasted longer than 200 years has intricate water management systems.” At the massive greenhouse, the farm’s transformation comes clearly into focus. The engine of change? Chickens. Nearby, 30 hens wander contentedly in a grassy area defined by an electrified mesh fence. Justine Carpenter, who runs the farm’s logistics and livestock, tells me they’re heritage birds — Rhode Island Reds and Barred Rocks — long-prized for their egg-laying. “They’ll give us about 10 dozen eggs a week, not a lot, some

thing we can serve in the kitchen,” Carpenter says. They’re entertaining — funky and feathered and scratching about in the grass. About once a week, the fence and hens will be moved to a different area of the farm. From behind the greenhouse, a sloped field is visible. A year ago, it yielded soybeans and corn. Now it’s planted with grass and rows of trees and bushes that follow the contour of the hill. Almonds, grapes and blackberries will be added to the rows, and in a year or two, Hinson tells me, livestock will graze in the alleys. “We’ll use portable fence,” he continues, “so we can keep rotating the animals, spreading manure to have positive impact across the whole farm.” Over the years, this is the process that will restore fertile topsoil to these depleted hills. A flock of white chickens — Cornish Roasters — pick and kick at the earth nearby. Like the laying hens, the Cornish Roasters are inside a portable enclosure. This is the team’s inaugural set of meat birds. The target is to raise 1,000 Cornish Roasters that will yield upward of 3,500 pounds of chicken to serve from the Juneberry Ridge kitchens. “These birds eat locally grown and milled grain produced on a fifth-generation farm,” Carpenter adds. “They’ll be processed at a facility that’s only 15 miles away, so we’re really keeping these birds local.” Inside the expansive greenhouse, big changes are underway. The original Hardy Creek greenhouse grew herbs, flowers, lettuce and peppers, serving more than a dozen local restaurants, and a commercial aquaponics facility was built. Harris Teeter was a client. Now, the space where thousands of heads of lettuce and basil had been grown hydroponically is being converted into a nursery for trees, shrubs and a variety of other plants that will be planted on the farm or sold to consumers. The aquaponics system is still used southparkmagazine.com | 85

to grow tilapia and a variety of lettuce and herbs. Later on, I meet Suzanne Durkee, who spent 10 years as an executive at General Dynamics in Charlotte before retiring in 2007. “After that, I kicked around painting, traveling,” Durkee says. “I was having a great time.” But fate intervened, in the form of Miss Judy. The two women worked out at the same gym. They started talking. “I loved what Miss Judy was doing, but I didn’t want to go back to work,” Durkee says. “So I told her I’d write her up a business plan.” That was four years ago. Now, Durkee is the CEO at Juneberry Ridge. “We’d given ourselves 10 years to transition to regenerative agriculture,” she says. “We’d created a strategic road map with guideposts and benchmarks showing progress and profitability.” Then the coronavirus hit, slowing the farm’s transition. “We’ve had time to plan,” Durkee continues, “but not that much time to implement.” She says even the huge corporate farms in the Midwest are realizing that continued tilling and massive use of fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides are methods that are not sustainable. “When we say we’re changing the way the world grows, it’s not 86

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just how we grow our food,” Durkee continues. “It’s how we grow as human beings, how we improve our own physical and mental health, how we grow our communities and how we grow as a nation.” Highfalutin? Maybe. But she’s made me a true believer. Count on Miss Judy to bring us down to Earth. “You know, we didn’t start out to be a regenerative farm,” she says. “We morphed here. But our young farmers can make something out of nothing.” Additional plans call for adding a 30-room inn and restaurant and bar on the farm. Tour complete, my packed suitcase is in the car, but I’m reluctant to leave. I walk over to the vista behind Longleaf cottage, where chestnut, persimmon and juneberry trees have been planted. Scattered among the young trees are clumps of muhly grass, blueberry bushes and prickly pear cactus, along with big stones grubbed up from the land. I look in the distance at the native forest emerging beyond the recent plantings and imagine coming back to this spot someday to see the chestnut trees loaded with nut burrs and the juneberry trees shading the bushes below. Given my advanced years, I may not be around for that. But from what I’ve seen and heard, I’m certain Juneberry Ridge will. SP

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High country haven BLOWING ROCK IS FULL OF HISTORY AND FOLKLORE CELEBRATING ITS MOUNTAIN HERITAGE. by Vanessa Infanzon

left Charlotte early on a Friday morning for the two-hour drive to Blowing Rock. Three days alone is rare for me, and I wanted to take advantage of every moment. I’ve breezed through the small mountain town in previous years, but a chance to spend an entire weekend perusing shops and wandering trails was a treat. Chetola Resort, a 78-acre campus with a lake, restaurant, spa, a lodge, small inn and condominiums, is just northeast of and within walking distance of downtown Blowing Rock. It served as my home base for the weekend. On a walk around the resort, I was intrigued by the bridge above the Chetola Lake dam. I rubbed my hands across the patches of moss growing on the worn rock walls and sat on a rocking chair overlooking the lake, wondering what this place looked like when it was first built in 1846. I asked a nearby employee about the history of the bridge, and he surprised me by calling the resort’s owner, Kent Tarbutton, on the spot and handing me the phone. Tarbutton, whose family has

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owned Chetola since 1997, happily recounted the history of the bridge: The road was once the original entrance into Chetola Estate — it was the perfect width for a horse and carriage. When the estate’s fourth owner, J. Luther Snyder, known as the “Coca-Cola King of the Carolinas,” purchased it in 1926, he needed a wider path for his Ford Model T. Snyder arranged for stonemasons to replace the wooden bridge. But Chetola isn’t the only place in Blowing Rock with stories. The town is full of history and folklore celebrating its heritage and location within the Blue Ridge Mountains with local art, music and outdoor adventure.

ADVENTURES The estate of Moses Cone, a textile entrepreneur, conservationist and philanthropist who died in 1908, was donated to the federal government in 1947 and is preserved for public use. Wide gravel and dirt trails in Moses H. Cone Memorial Park are easily accessible from Chetola Resort, from the Blue Ridge Parkway via U.S. 221.

PHOTOGRAHS BY AMANDA LUGENBELL, TRACY BROWN AND COURTESY OF CHETOLA RESORT

The 1-mile trail around Bass Lake or the 3-mile loop on the Maze trail offer places for quiet, easy hikes through white pine forests. Flat Top Manor, Cone’s 20-room country home, is a 5-mile round-trip hike from Chetola, or accessed at mile marker 294 on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Southern Highland Craft Guild’s retail shop with regionally handmade crafts is inside the manor, where craft demonstrations are held at certain times of the year. The Blowing Rock claims to be the oldest attraction in the state. Its legend about forlorn lovers from two different tribes — separated, then brought together by a mysterious wind — continues to fascinate visitors. Views of Hawksbill Mountain and Table Rock are visible from the 4,000-foot elevation. Downtown, locally owned shops like Final Touches, which sells chimineas and other Mexican imports, and The Last Straw, offering women’s clothing and home decor, line the streets. Pick up specialty teas and accoutrements from The Spice and Tea Exchange on Main Street. Grab maps for local trails and protein bars from Footsloggers, an outdoor provisions store. The trailhead to the Glen Burney Trail and Falls is a block from Blowing Rock’s Main Street, off Laurel Lane. Take a moment to look around Annie Cannon Gardens at the trailhead before you begin the steep 800-foot descent to the falls. The Chetola Sporting Reserve in Boone — just 6 miles from Blowing Rock — spans 67 acres and features archery, clay shooting, fly fishing and other outdoor hobbies for guests of Chetola Resort or visitors with a day pass.

EAT & DRINK Meander through the town to find coffee shops, restaurants and taverns. The Blowing Rock Ale House is a brewery, restaurant and a five-room inn. Signature dishes include a Southern fried chicken sandwich and a bison burger. Forty to 50 beers — from blonde ales to porters and everything in between — are brewed throughout the year, with a dozen always on tap. Six Pence Pub’s hearty shepherd’s pie or fish and chips will sustain you for the next adventure. The pub promotes an English vibe with British beers such as Bass, Newcastle and Old Speckled Hen, and supports North Carolina breweries by offering local craft beers.

Take the stairs next to Tazmaraz clothing boutique to find The Backstreet Bakery, a hidden spot offering cakes, pastries, scones and coffee. Go for soup and sandwiches at the Grilled Cheese Café — the French, with brie, gruyere, provolone, arugula, sliced pear and fig preserves, is a local favorite.

‘HAVEN OF REST’ The winding driveway to Chetola eases guests into this “haven of rest” — the translation for the Cherokee word. Though the property began as a single-family home, over the years, it’s become a place of refuge for vacationers. Today, guests stay in newly renovated rooms in the lodge or fully-equipped condominiums, perfect for families needing additional space. Couples have the option to stay in the eight-room Bob Timberlake Inn, a bed-and-breakfast in the original estate home. Chetola’s activities could fill a weekend: Boot camp, yoga and tennis lessons; acupuncture, facials and massages at the on-site spa; and kayaking or paddleboarding on the lake. Dine at Timberlake’s Restaurant, then finish the evening in an Adirondack chair, making s’mores and swapping stories around the resort bonfire. SP Getting there: Blowing Rock is about a two-hour drive from Charlotte via Interstate 85 South and U.S. 321 North. Plan your getaway around these upcoming events: July 2- Sept. 24: Music on the Lawn at Ragged Gardens, Friday evenings July 4: Fireworks Extravaganza at Tweetsie Railroad July 5-Aug. 2: Monday Night Concert Series at Broyhill Park July 17, Aug. 14, Sept. 11, Oct. 2: Art in the Park, downtown Blowing Rock July 18, Aug. 15, Sept.12, Oct. 3: Concert in the Park, downtown Blowing Rock July 23: Symphony by the Lake at Chetola Resort July 23: St. Mary Tour of Homes Aug. 18-21: Blowing Rock Plein Air Festival

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Posing for Daingerfield IN BLOWING ROCK, THE SPIRIT OF A PROLIFIC PAINTER RESIDES AT EDGEWOOD COTTAGE.

n mild evenings in Blowing Rock, a nice place to rest is on a bench next to the bronze statue of Elliott Daingerfield. When you sit down, the effect is quickly apparent: You’re posing for the artist. Daingerfield peers intently at you over his bronze easel, unruly hair swept back from his forehead, palette in one hand and brush in the other. He’s painting outdoors, en plein air, as he often did in life. A short distance behind Daingerfield’s figure sits Edgewood Cottage, his first residence and studio in Blowing Rock. Designed by the artist and completed in 1890, the building was recently restored. Daingerfield, the youngest of six children, was born in Virginia in 1859 but grew up in Fayetteville. According to family tradition, when his older brother, Archie, gave him a box of watercolors one Christmas, he immediately began painting beautiful pictures. Daingerfield would go on to study with a local china painter and apprentice under a Fayetteville photographer. In 1880, at the age of 21, Daingerfield left to pursue a career in New York City. There he would become apprenticed to Walter Satterlee, an associate member of the National Academy of Design. Satterlee made Daingerfield an instructor in his still-life class, his first teaching position. In 1884, he moved to Holbein Studios, where he would paint alongside landscape painter George Inness, who became a lifelong friend. In the winter of 1885-86, Daingerfield suffered a severe case of diphtheria. The following summer, seeking the curative powers of mountain air, he arrived in Blowing Rock after an arduous wagon ride along a rutted, dirt road snaking up the mountain. The lore and legend of the town and nearby Grandfather Mountain 90

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spoke profoundly to Daingerfield’s spirit. He taught summer visitors and would keep summer homes in Blowing Rock until his death in 1932. Daingerfield’s grand manor Westglow, built in the Greek Revival-style on land overlooking Grandfather, was finished in 1917 and is now a resort and spa. The artist was “an advocate for women artists during a time when they were denied the privileges of their male counterparts,” says Kadie Dean, chair of the Artists in Residence at Edgewood Cottage. Now more than a decade old, the summer residency continues to build on Daingerfield’s legacy of supporting artists, Dean adds. This summer’s program includes painters, quilters, photographers, leather artisans, pottery makers, mixed-media artists and woodworkers — most from western North Carolina. Visitors can watch artists at work in Edgewood Cottage and purchase pieces on site, which is currently open to the public only during this annual residency. This summer, half the net proceeds will be used to upgrade Edgewood Cottage and open it to the public as a museum. As an artist, Daingerfield is hard to categorize, but historians agree that Daingerfield’s work is suffused with mysterious, ineffable beauty. So, if you find yourself some twilight evening sitting on the bench by Daingerfield’s statue, you might imagine for a moment you saw a lock of the artist’s hair lifted by the breeze. Or be certain the tip of his brush just moved. And maybe it did. SP The 2021 summer Artists in Residence at Edgewood Cottage in Blowing Rock opened May 29 and runs through September 19. Featured artists change each week, so check the schedule for artists and times. artistsatedgewood.org

PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF BLOWING ROCK HISTORICAL SOCIETY

by Ross Howell Jr.

travel | n.c. coast

The oldest mystery THE LOST COLONY GETS A NEW LOOK, A NEW LIFE AND A NEW VISION. by Gary Pearce • photographs by Morgan Gustafson

he drive from the Outer Banks takes you 30 minutes to an hour — and takes you back 434 years. You leave behind the beaches, the bars, the shops, the restaurants, the crowds and the traffic. Cross over the causeway to Roanoke Island, pass through the town of Manteo and turn off the main road into the dark woods along the sound. Park and walk through the trees. It’s evening, nearly sunset. In the quiet, you hear only the wind and the water. You’re standing where, in 1587, a band of English colonists abandoned a tenuous settlement they’d established less than a year before. They set off in search of a new home — and they disappeared. You sit in an open-air theater where, on summer nights since 1937, the colonists’ story — and the mystery of their fate — has been brought to life by The Lost Colony, America’s oldest outdoor symphonic drama. Last summer, Covid canceled the production for the first time since World War II. This summer, The Lost Colony is back — with new energy, new casting, new production techniques, a new script and musical score, and a new look at what might have happened when two cultures, English and Native American, came into contact and conflict.

This will be the 84th summer the drama is performed in Waterside Theatre, at the northern edge of Roanoke Island in Dare County. The theater is part of the Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, which preserves the location of Roanoke Colony. The colony was the first English settlement in the New World and the birthplace of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in America. The play itself is a historic dramatization. It began as a federally funded Depression-era project. The theater was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The Lost Colony was intended to be a one-year production. Then President Franklin D. Roosevelt attended the show with a good deal of media fanfare on August 18, 1937 — the 350th anniversary of Virginia Dare’s birth and a little more than a month after the July 4th premiere. After FDR’s visit, the crowds came. The show was so popular, organizers decided to stage it every summer. Last season’s cancellation was a financial blow to the Roanoke Island Historical Association, which produces the drama. But Kevin Bradley, the association’s board chair, says the year off turned out to be a blessing. “We had the time to reimagine the production, recharge our batteries and refresh how we tell this story.” A new director/choreographer was recruited: Jeff Whiting, whose southparkmagazine.com | 91

travel | n.c. coast Broadway credits include on Bullets Over Broadway, Big Fish, The Scottsboro Boys, Hair and Wicked 5th Anniversary. Whiting has reduced the lengthy original script, written by North Carolina playwright Paul Green, allowing the scenes and story to move faster and providing more time for theatrical storytelling. Additional theatrical devices will support the storytelling, including large-scale puppets, a military-style drum corps and a new symphonic score. But Paul Green’s imprint remains. Green was a Harnett County farm boy who became a professor at the UNC Chapel Hill and a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright. Green was the father of “symphonic drama.” He saw it as the people’s theater, a way of telling Americans about their past. In the past, the production didn’t always use Indigenous actors to portray the Native American roles. Seeking authenticity, the association reached out to Chairman Harvey Godwin Jr. of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. With the tribe’s help, Native Americans were recruited as actors and dancers. Auditions were held in Robeson County, in the Lumbee tribal territory. “With North Carolina’s American Indian population numbering more than 100,000, it enriches the production to see and hear their voices on stage,” Godwin says. New choreography, regalia, language accuracy and orchestration will help bring “more of an authentic and cultural American Indian perspective into the play,” says Kaya Littleturtle, cultural enrichment coordinator for the Lumbee Tribe. But the real test is whether the new production will bring back audiences, says John Ancona, general manager. “We want to give our audience an exceptional evening’s experience in an outdoor setting — an experience you can’t get many places. We want to inspire interest in a part of history that remains a mystery today.” Ancona hopes that visitors will leave the theater intrigued by the story. Perhaps they’ll dip into the ongoing, unending research and archeological exploration that still seeks clues about The Lost Colony. Where did they go? What happened to them? Did they drown at sea? Were they killed by natives, or by Spanish raiders? Or did they quietly go live with a friendly tribe? We don’t know, but we do know the colonists dreamed of freedom. They dared a dangerous ocean voyage. They sought a new life in a new land. Take the drive back to their world. Walk where they walked. See and feel what they saw and felt. Hear their story. Listen to the wind, the water and the trees. Feel the mystery of The Lost Colony. SP The Lost Colony’s 2021 season launched May 28 and continues through August 21. For tickets and more information, visit thelostcolony.org

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SPECIAL VENDOR SECTION

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SOUTHPARK MAGAZIN E CE LE B R ATE S TH E COMMITME N T, H A R D WOR K , AND TRADITION OF QUEEN CITY S M A LL B U S IN E SS E S . ME E T TH E FA M ILIE S A N D FRIENDS WHO ARE WOR K IN G TO MA K E A ME A N IN GFU L IM PACT IN TH E LIVES OF THE IR CU STOM E R S A N D OU R COM M U N ITY.

THE SIMON FAMILY: Dressing Charlotte for 47 years After 45 years in business, Paul Simon is part of the local fabric. The founder’s son, Jon Simon, shares what makes their company more than a clothing store. “Most businesses have core values, but by being a family business, a lot of our core values come from our own family’s values. We care about our associates like they are family and even many of our customers.” “As a fourth generation Charlotte family, we have been involved in the community through giving and volunteering for more than 80 years. We are now dressing four generations of customers. A customer recently visited with his son and grandson. He told me this was the last generation he

would be bringing! We both laughed.” “We are the only local clothing store led by a second generation. We have a different eye when it comes to our taste and provide a relaxed setting to shop. Most importantly, customers can expect to form a relationship with someone who sincerely wants to help them look good in their clothes. We make sure our customers are always dressed well for the occasion.” Simon says they take the most pride in having built a great team that always delivers a high level of customer service. Visit their shops and experience the tradition of quality and trust.

4310 Sharon Rd. • The Village at SouthPark | 704-295-0975 | paulsimonco.com PREFERRED VENDOR

THE HOODS: Building a business around family and service Mike and Chrissy Hood bring more than 35 years of experience in the glass industry to Shower Doors of Charlotte. They also bring a great deal of thankfulness, perhaps more this year than any other.

the pandemic hit, the office became ground zero for the kids’ remote learning. “Everyone learned more patience and increased our multi-tasking skills,” Chrissy says.

Their focus on a beautiful finished product and excellent customer service never wavers. “We truly strive to earn your referral and your five-star review, “ says Mike. They also want their kids to know the importance of work ethic, integrity, giving back and building a fine product.

However, their biggest challenge this year wasn’t the pandemic - it was cancer. Chrissy began intense chemotherapy in January to treat lymphoma, all the while working remotely. She is now officially in remission! The Hoods are thankful for a work family that stepped up with support, action and prayers.

The Hoods have built a company that honors work-life balance with the help of a solid team. They’re able to carve out family time to catch team practices and games with their kids, Oliva and Brandon. When

When the Hoods say their team makes the difference, they speak from experience. Mike says they don’t stop until each frameless shower enclosure is perfect and each client is 100% satisfied.

info@showerdoorsofcharlotte.com | 980-819-5050 | showerdoorsofcharlotte.com | @showerdoorsofcharlotte PREFERRED VENDOR

THE COTTINGHAMS: Helping families find home Being a family business is not unique. What sets Cottingham Chalk apart is what “family” means to their business and how it extends to everyone in the company. That’s how Dan Cottingham felt when he co-founded the real estate firm in 1983 with John Chalk. Now, his two children, Daniel and Leigh, are leading Cottingham Chalk forward. For Daniel, broker-in-charge and CEO, Cottingham Chalk’s success comes down to two values that are fundamental to families: trust and selflessness. “Our agents trust each other and are always looking for ways to help each other, which is incredibly unique in our industry, and our clients reap

the rewards,” Daniel says. In an industry focused on transactions, Daniel says Cottingham Chalk agents look beyond the sale and focus on the big picture for their clients. Dan continues to oversee the business, while Daniel runs the day-to-day and Leigh works as an agent, spending her time serving clients. Leigh’s presence in the marketplace is hugely beneficial because she understands first-hand the challenges facing agents and their clients. According to Dan, it’s hard to beat working with family. “Work makes up a big part of our lives and spending that time with people you care about is very special.”

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SPAIN CONSTRUCTION: Helping to build Charlotte for more than 50 years Driving through the Queen City’s most beloved neighborhoods is a visual tour of Spain Construction. For Don DellaMea and his son, Anthony, it’s a daily reminder of the knowledge, hard work and family values at the heart of their business. For more than 50 years, Spain Construction has served the Charlotte area as a design-build firm specializing in high-end remodels. “Sharing the family business now with the third generation means more to me than I could put into words,” says Don, who serves as president of the company which was founded by his father-in-law, Jack Spain. It’s of utmost importance to Anthony DellaMea to continue his grandfather’s legacy in his role as operations manager. “Integrity

is at the core of what we do every day and how we run our business,” Anthony says. Dedication to the family business helped Spain Construction grow through challenges like the pandemic and uncertain markets. When they lean on each other, their common interests and values translate into shared success, says Don. At the start of the pandemic, the DellaMeas had two goals: to protect their employees and their clients. In a year that was transformative and relentless, they constantly reevaluated and moved forward with successful projects from Ballantyne to Uptown. With Spain Construction, clients can build with confidence knowing they’ll receive unmatched customer service and a home with impeccable design.

info@spainconstruction.com | 704.554.0041 | spainconstruction.com | @spainconstruction PREFERRED VENDOR

THE BROWN FULLINS FAMILY: Making magical moments Nia Brown recalls her daughter’s first real birthday party. It was at a spa and her daughter loved it. It was a lightbulb moment for Nia and her husband, Brandy Fullins. “I wanted to give that experience to other little girls and make it more magical,” Nia says. Soon after, they launched Princess Me Parties with a spa bus Brandy outfitted himself. Within a year of steady business, they bought a professionally built party bus and opened their first storefront. Nia and Brandy reached another milestone this year with a Princess Me franchise opportunity. Nia always wanted to help other moms have family-friendly careers and be their own boss.

When the pandemic started, they were devastated when Princess Me had to shut down. Nia says this is where family made all the difference. When she was down, Brandy motivated her to push forward. They worked with their landlord and carefully reopened with micro parties. “It showed me how strong I am and how strong my husband and I are as a unit,” Nia says. It’s a life lesson for their kids, too, who talk about being entrepreneurs one day. Let Princess Me Parties create a magical moment for your child. Visit their storefront in Northlake Shopping Center or have the spa bus come to you. From dress up to crafts and spa services, Princess Me makes kids feel like royalty and pampers their parents, too!

9739 Northlake Centre Pkwy | 800-295-1255 | PrincessMeParties@gmail.com PREFERRED VENDOR

THE HEMMINGSENS: Working together for wellness The Joint Chiropractic is not the first business Dan and Debbie Hemmingsen have run together, but it may be the one that speaks to their true calling: helping people feel better. They opened The Joint Chiropractic after previously owning three ice cream shops, certainly the kind of business that brings smiles to the faces of a lot of people! Yet, Dan and Debbie wanted to own a business that could help people in a deeper, life-changing way. “We are huge believers of chiropractic,” says Debbie. “This is a business where we can work together and help people live their best lives,” adds Dan. Their mission is for The Joint to provide convenient, affordable chiropractic care. It includes a segment of

the population that wouldn’t normally have access to it through traditional insurance or financial means. “We love getting to know the patients and watching them heal on their wellness journey,” says Debbie. Through the pandemic, The Joint stayed open as an essential business with a staff dedicated to serving patients. “We kept it about the patients and just focused on creating a clean, safe, sanitized environment,” says Dan. “Being a family business allows us to have a close connection to our team. We operate like a big family. We think it makes a difference,” says Debbie. Visit The Joint at one of the Hemmingsen’s four convenient locations. Relief. On so many levels.

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WADE MILLER & TIM PRATT: Doing Business Like Family Wade Miller is a Charlotte native; he founded Copper Builders to create beautiful homes and livable neighborhoods, while creating a positive legacy for his community. He has built a team of dedicated professionals, whose craftsmanship is reflected in hundreds of stunning homes and communities like Easton Park Townhomes, Altura Southend, and Catawba at Davidson.

As longtime friends and colleagues, Wade and Tim believe building a custom home should be easier and more enjoyable. Copper Builders follows a simple philosophy: treat the home like your own, while finishing on time and on budget. “While it’s been a trying time the past year,” says Wade, “Our team depends on one another to see each project to the finish line.” Clients like Tyler Helfrich echo the Copper Builders story; how their home shines during gatherings with friends, and how the team feels like family. Copper Builders is about relationships.

Culture is key at Copper Builders. Wade and company president Tim Pratt focus on exceptional quality and client lifestyles. “As a local firm, Copper cares about investing more time in designing our communities so they harmonize with local neighborhoods,” Wade says. That attention to detail leads to finer homes and a better quality of life for their clients.

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KYLE WILENT & JAMES TATE: A legacy of hard work Kyle Wilent believes improving water quality also improves quality of life. It’s something his grandfather, James Tate, believed when he started a Culligan Water franchise in Charlotte 40 years ago.

Wilent smiles telling how water quality was his grandfather’s second career after retiring from the phone company. Back then, private wells drove most of their business. Now it centers around innovation to counter the effects of an aging infrastructure, added chemicals and leaching pipes.

Technology changes, but not their philosophy: take care of your employees and they’ll take care of your customers. While Culligan Water is a world-wide leader in water treatment and filtration systems, Wilent says their office is all about having a positive local impact.

His grandfather has a less active role now, but they still talk about the company weekly. Legacy is important to them both. Wilent says his grandparents made Culligan Water a success through hard work and discipline. That won’t change under his watch.

Culligan Water offers a range of specialized services: filtering systems for city water customers, water softening, purification and reverse osmosis drinking water systems in residential and business settings.

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“We love taking pride in enhancing people’s lives by improving their water,” Wilent says. Let Culligan Water find the right solution to improve water in your home with a free consultation.

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THE TUCKS: Keeping it in the family For the Tuck Team at Cottingham Chalk, helping families buy and sell houses is part of their DNA. As a team, they have a multigenerational perspective of the Charlotte market with more than 65 years combined experience.

TUCK TEAM

It all started with Janet and Butch Tuck, who modeled successful real estate careers for their daughters, Melissa Tuck Murphy and Janelle Tuck Lenhart. Now, they all work together and even live a stone’s throw from each other in Myers Park. Janet, who grew up in Charlotte, says they couldn’t ask for a more perfect scenario! It benefits their clients, too. Easy communication and flexibility support their success as individuals and as a team. The Tuck Team’s expertise

always adds value when it comes to navigating inspections, negotiations and the closing process. “We appreciate our clients’ needs; from younger families that need more space to downsizing empty-nesters and those in between,” Janet says. Empathy was especially important during the pandemic. “As a family, we met challenges with grace, patience and hard work.” Butch says it’s satisfying to see how Melissa and Janelle have built careers through persistence and determination. Their passion for real estate ignited in high school by helping their parents in the office and has only grown. Their family loves Charlotte and would love to help you with all your real estate needs.

Janet Tuck • jtuck@cottinghamchalk.com • 704-904-4011 | Butch Tuck • jtuck@cottinghamchalk.com • 704-904-4008 Melissa Murphy • mmurphy@cottinghamchalk.com • 704-756-5806 | Janelle Lenhart • jlenhart@cottinghamchalk.com • 704-497-8244 PREFERRED VENDOR

|swirl A monthly guide to Charlotte’s parties and galas

Viva Italia! May 6

Natascha Bechtler and James Meena

Daryl and Radmila Hollnagel

Morris Mangum and Pamela Perle

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Liz and Lane Faison

Jennifer and John Harmeling

Erik Rosenwood, Daniele Donahoe and Laura VanSickle

Matt and Eloise Bank

Lourdes Rodriguez and John Olsen

Fran Kimberly, Erin Phillips and Elizabeth Toms

PHOTOGRAPHS BY DANIEL COSTON

Mahari Freeman, Jordan Bisch and Johnnie Felder

Opera Carolina brought the tastes and sounds of Italy to the home of Liz and Lane Faison. Families spread out across the lawn as musicians and singers performed on a stage by the lake.

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Charlotte BRITISH

AFTERNOON TEA

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SUNDAY, AUGUST 22nd 1:00 p.m. CHARLOTTE COUNTRY CLUB LEARN MORE AT pbscharlotte.org/tea

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A viewer-supported service of

|swirl A monthly guide to Charlotte’s parties and galas

Baby Bundles closing event Anne Neilson Fine Art May 4

Tammy Herrmann and Susan Klemm

Rosella and Peter Bergen

PHOTOGRAPHS BY DANIEL COSTON

Emily Gaston and Katie Gormly

Martha Ann Wardlaw and Anne Neilson

Diep Nguyen and Maddy Thorn

Emily Harry and Nathan Lampone

This year, in lieu of one large fundraiser, Baby Bundles held more than 20 small gatherings throughout Charlotte, culminating in a closing event at Anne Neilson Fine Art. Baby Bundles provides essential clothing, blankets, books and toys for mothers of newborn babies in need.

Cat Long and Gianna Figaro-Sterling

Kristen Sario and Nora Buscema

Amy Fonville and Leonie Appel

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|swirl A monthly guide to Charlotte’s parties and galas

Wayfinders Invitational Golf Tournament Palisades Country Club May 10

Will Mullinix, Alex Kelly Jason Meyer and Rick Payne

Scott Murray, Scott Singer, Jeff Coble and Kyle Lambeth

Javin Daniels, Yandrick Paraison, Trevor Mendelsohn and Brandon Daniel

We couldn't be happier to welcome back a familiar face to the team. 1300 Baxter St, Ste 114 Charlotte, NC

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Michael Amiri, MD Matthew McConnell, MD Kelly Xiong, DNP, FNP-C Betty Mays, NP-C Drew Boylard, NP Autumn Grimm, FNP

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Bob Suddreth, Barry Cronin, Mike McNamara and Will Beard

WHAT’S YOUR HOME WORTH? Whether you’re selling soon or down the road, it’s important to know your home’s value relative to the market around it. I will help you accurately evaluate your home’s worth. Give me a call!

Kim Ewert Licensed NC Broker 704-491-2765 cell kim.ewert@allentate.com

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PHOTOGRAPHS BY DANIEL COSTON

Molly James and Jaime Kannan Lam

People from across the city hit the links at Palisades Country Club in support of Wayfinders, which provides summer camp and year-round programs and mentoring to low-income Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools students.

|swirl A monthly guide to Charlotte’s parties and galas

Women’s Impact Fund 2021 virtual gala

PHOTOGRAPHS BY DANIEL COSTON

broadcast from WonderWorld TV Studios May 10

Cristy Travaglino

Ellen Rankin

Cherene Caraco

Natalie Frazier Allen

Zach Wyatt

Aaron Randolph

This year’s Women Impact Fund gala may have been virtual, but that didn’t stop the organization from recognizing several important nonprofits that have made a difference in Charlotte.

• Empowering the next generation while cultivating an environment for unity and diversity • Restoring Charlotte’s inner-city from within by transforming at-risk youth into the next generation of leaders for Christ! • Four-time US Club Soccer National Champions • Our programs include but are not limited to after school tutoring, college scholarship program, nationally ranked soccer academy, community outreach, and an 18-unit apartment complex housing immigrants and refugees.

EMAIL INFO@ONE7.ORG TO GET PLUGGED IN TODAY! OR VISIT ONE7.ORG Thank you Copper Builders for your support over the years!

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Charlotte Wine & Food Weekend April 14-18

Charlotte Wine & Food Weekend presented by Truist returned to various locations across Charlotte for several days of enjoying food and drink in a fun, socially distanced environment while raising money for local nonprofits.

Meg McElwain and Lauren Deese

Palmer Steel and Anthony Washington

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Pediatrics Symphony Park

PHOTOS COURTESY OF CHARLOTTE WINE & FOOD WEEKEND

A monthly guide to Charlotte’s parties and galas

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PUSHING BOUNDARIES

Andrea Vail, Herringbone shag (evergreen and sassafrass)

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PHOTOGRAPH TOP BY WILL JENKINS OF BLKMRKTCLT

ne bright spot that came out of the pandemic: an increased appreciation for — and reliance on — our communities. To celebrate the local arts community, Mint Museum Randolph in June debuted an exhibition featuring 25 Charlotte artists. It Takes a Village: Charlotte Artist Collectives includes works by photographers, muralists, installation artists, sculptors, multimedia artists and more. The artists belong to three innovative Charlotte collectives: BlkMrktClt, Brand the Moth and Goodyear Arts. It’s one of the largest Mint installations to date featuring all Charlotte artists. Prior to last year’s shutdown, the Mint had already begun focusing on ways to increase support for local artists, Mint CEO Todd Herman said at a preview of the exhibition. The museum’s Constellation series launched in 2018 is one example of that. The inclusion of BlkMrktClt in the exhibition also represents the Mint’s continued commitment to working with artists of color. The collective based at Camp North End was formed in 2017 to create a safe space for Black artists to create, host workshops and foster community. “We existed before this term of a collective existed,” artist and BlkMrktClt co-owner Dammit Wesley said. “We were ... just artists taking over whatever space we could to do simple showcases and activations. … With that groundwork, we essentially built a community without knowing it. So the purpose of BlkMrktClt was to not only foster but galvanize those relationships and those connections,” Wesley said. The exhibition was curated by Jen Sudul Edwards, chief curator and curator of contemporary art at The Mint Museum. “This [exhibition] is showing that we’re committed to making sure that there is systemic change, and that it’s meaningful and that it’s long-lasting,” Sudul Edwards said. SP

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