The Valley Today

We recorded today's "Tourism Tuesday" on location at Veterans Subs with Justin Kerns from Winchester/Frederick County Convention & Visitors Bureau . Joining us for the conversation was owner, John Kline and his General Manager, Andrew Miles. The pair explained how the business got started, why they teamed up and the whirlwind of opening once they found their location. We talked about several of th...

Our conversation with Tyler Hinkle, Shenandoah County's Planner is part of an ongoing series following the work on Shenandoah 2045 - Shenandoah County's comprehensive plan. The planning process will unfold over the course of four years with the majority of the community collaboration occurring from 2020-2022, with input in 2023-2024. Brian Otis, Planning & Zoning Administrator for the Town of Stra...

Today's conversation gave some information about other food pantries in our surrounding area that are doing incredibly important work. First, we talked with Andrea Cosans, Executive Director at Winchester CCAP. She explained the different services they offer to clients that include their food pantry (perishable and non-perishable items), clothing ministry, and financial assistance. They are always...

Our conversation today about community health was pretty eye-opening and insightful. It is part of our community health partnership with Valley Health where we talk each month with administrators, physicians, and other Valley Health staff about health topics, events, and the community. Joining me today was Jason Craig, Director of Community Health for Valley Health. He highlighted his professional...

We recorded today's conversation in the conference room on the Our Health campus to talk with Jennifer Hall, Senior Director of Community Investment for United Way Northern Shenandoah Valley and Abby Zimmermann, Manager of Valley Assistance Network . Jennifer explained how Valley Assistance Network (VAN) fits into the United Way organization. We talked about the resources the agency is able to acc...

Our conversation today with Michelle Smeltzer from Thermal Shelter of Front Royal gave us some insight into the homeless population in Warren County and the needs of the thermal shelter to serve them. Michelle have us a history of the shelter which opened in 2018. It is open mid-December through March each year and offers a safe place to sleep and a hot meal for those experiencing homelessness in...

We were live on location for today's conversation at the Camping for Hunger bus to kick off the 14th year of the annual food drive to benefit Front Royal/Warren County CCAP . Joining me to kick off the event was Andrew Shearer, President of Royal Broadcasting along with Larry Elliott and Joanne Koszyk from Front Royal/Warren County CCAP. We talked about the history of CCAP as well as the future of...

Our conversation with Olivia Hilton, Director of Strategic Initiatives for the Town of Strasburg happened at Nancy's Coffee Bar as is often the case. Olivia gave us details for the Veteran's Day Parade that happens on Saturday, November 12, 2022. The Town of Strasburg, in partnership with American Legion Post 77 , will be hosting a Veterans Day Parade to honor local men and women who have served t...

Our conversation today with Guy Curtis from Laurel Ridge Community College included Michelle Cribbs , Outreach Coordinator and AnnaJane Cribbs , Advisor for the college. We talked about the G3 Program: Get a Skill. Get a Job. Get Ahead. G3 is a tuition assistance program for any Virginia resident who qualifies for in-state financial aid and whose family income falls below an identified threshold....

Our conversation today is part of an ongoing partnership with the US Small Business Administration highlighting small businesses as well as offering advice and resources to small businesses. We talked with Martin Short, Lead Economic Development Specialist & Public Information Officer at the Virginia-Richmond District Office for the US Small Business Administration and Bill Houck, an International...

Our conversation today with Alex Flanigan, Main Street Program Manager for Old Town Winchester gave us details for several upcoming events happening on the Old Town Walking Mall and surrounding areas. Alex told us about Windependent Weekend , which kicks off after Thanksgiving with extended shopping hours in many Old Town businesses from November 25 through November 27, 2022. She encouraged busine...

Our conversation today with Shannon Moeck from Cedar Creek & Belle Grove National Historical Park, Nathan Stalvey from Clarke County Historical Association, and Kristen Laise from Belle Grove Plantation gave details for The Slave Dwelling Project. For the sixth year, Belle Grove Plantation and Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park will host The Slave Dwelling Project for Inalienable...

Our conversation today with Warren County Habitat for Humanity Director Andrea Ross included one of her board members/fundraising chair Sonya Wilkins. We met up at the WC Habitat office to learn more about the organization. Drea explained their mission and talked about their newest build as well as the next one on the drawing board. She talked about the value of home ownership and the role it play...

We were live in the studio for today's conversation with Lt. Warren Gosnell from Frederick County Sheriff's Office for Traffic Safety Thursday . Lt. Gosnell talked about the impact the time change will have on drivers in our community. We discussed not just getting darker earlier, but also the wildlife patterns. We talked about being extra vigilant in watching for wild animals as well as how to re...

Our conversation for The Valley Business Today - Front Royal/Warren County edition - featured Niki Foster, President of the Front Royal/Warren County Chamber of Commerce. We talked about the importance of voting in your local elections and got details for all sorts of chamber events that are happening in the coming months including the Front Royal Christmas Parade. For more details about anything...

Our conversation for Tourism Tuesday - Shenandoah County edition - took place last week with Kary Haun from Shenandoah County Tourism at the Woodstock Garden Cafe located inside of Woodstock Gardens Nursery & Garden Store. Many of our listeners will know this location as Fort Valley Nursery. It was sold about a year ago to Beaune Brothers Landscaping. Kary & I chatted with John Fogle for a few min...

Our conversation with Tyler Hinkle, Shenandoah County's Planner is part of an ongoing series following the work on Shenandoah 2045 - Shenandoah County's comprehensive plan. The planning process will unfold over the course of four years with the majority of the community collaboration occurring from 2020-2022, with input in 2023-2024. Today, Tyler gave us an overview of the results from their commu...

Our conversation today for United Way Day featured Kaycee Childress, CEO, Jennifer Hall, Director of Community Investment, and Jenna DeHaven, Director of Advancement for United Way Northern Shenandoah Valley. The group talked about the progress regarding the recent merger of Front Royal/Warren County United Way into United Way NSV. They explained the outpouring of support they've received and ment...

Our conversation today with Guy Curtis, Director of Marketing for Laurel Ridge Community College introduced us to Deb Taylor, Director of Corporate Training for Workforce Solutions . We talked about all the options available to small, medium, and large businesses for customized training. Training can include skills for doing a particular job as well as people skills like communication, managing em...

Our conversation for The Valley Business Today with Top of Virginia Regional Chamber's Director of Marketing & Communications, Kory Campbell featured guest Patti Solenberger from Solenberger's True Value Hardware . We talked about the power of community and how we can all support each other and small businesses in simple, easy ways. Patti gave us a quick history of the 135-year-old business and ex...

Our conversation today for TOurism Tuesday - Winchester/Frederick County edition - featured my "Winchester Tourism Dude" Justin Kerns from Winchester/Frederick County Convention & Visitors Bureau . Justin gave us a rundown on a slew of events happening across Winchester/Frederick County in the coming weeks. We talked about several Halloween happenings going on from beer & wine tastings, haunted ha...

Our conversation today with Kelly Botta, founder of Smartypants Medicine gave us some insight into a different & more effective (IMHO) way to get your healthcare. Kelly, a physician associate explained the idea of direct primary care and compared it to the typical "fee for service" model that many of us experience with traditional healthcare. We discussed the research she put in before choosing th...

Our conversation today with Stacy Swain gave us details for new (and existing) programs that will happen in the new 4-H year. Stacy manages the Warren County 4-H program for Virginia Cooperative Extension. She told us about new programs that include a cooking series, Thanksgiving activity boxes, and a return to in-school programming in Warren County. We talked about summer camps and she explained...

We welcomed Tonya Smith to the show today. Tonya was recently (in September) named Valley Health Senior Vice President of Acute Care and President of Winchester Medical Center (WMC). Our conversation is part of our community health partnership with Valley Health where we talk each month with administrators, physicians, and other Valley Health staff about health topics, events, and the community. T...

Our conversation today with Tony Baker from Frederick County Parks & Recreation gave us all the details for several upcoming events, races, trips, and Winter Wonderland. Tony told us about: Halloween Happenings at Clear Brook Park on October 28/29, 2022; Battlefield Half Marathon and Relays happening on November 5, 2022; Thanksgiving Day 5K happening on November 24, 2022, at Sherando High School/P...