Festival President, Sharen Gromling, is pleased to announce Kenny Wallace as Firefighters’ Marshal for the 96^th Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival.  Wallace is a retired NASCAR driver renowned for his racing prowess and national television on-air persona.  As our Firefighters Marshall Kenny Wallace will kick off the parade with “start your engines” as he leads the festival fire truck brigade through crowd-lined streets in historic downtown Winchester, VA.

Wallace set the NASCAR record in 2011 for most career NASCAR Xfinity Series starts, amassing nine wins, 10 pole positions, 66 top-five and 173 top-10 finishes in the 547 Xfinity starts. His racing career spans more than 25 years having competed in more than 900 races in NASCAR’s top three racing divisions.

The 1986 American Speed Association (ASA) 22-year-old rookie-of-the-year made his NASCAR debut driving with Dale Earnhardt, finishing seventh in the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Martinsville Speedway. He transitioned into a full-time Xfinity Series ride in 1989 for a team fielded by his brother Rusty Wallace, where he was rookie-of-the-year and completed the season sixth in the point standing. In 1991 Wallace finished runner-up in the Xfinity Series points and is only one of four NASCAR drivers to have won the Most Popular Driver award multiple times. Wallace had his final start in the 2015 Iowa Speedway NASCAR Series race as he drove for Joe Gibbs Racing.

He brought his infectious humor, trademark laugh, and widespread popularity when he worked as an analyst for NASCAR Raceday on FS1, covering the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series.   Retired from NASCAR driving, Wallace, who is held in high esteem in his field for “racing anything and everything”, continues to race his No. 36 Toyota DIRTcar in more than 60 dirt races per year, a consciously scaled-back effort from years past to afford him more family time.

He is the son of accomplished short-track racer, Russ Wallace, and brother of NASCAR drivers Rusty and Mike Wallace. Born in St. Louis, Wallace was nicknamed “Herman” after the mischievous “Herman the German” cartoon character for his boisterous, full-of-himself behavior.  Wallace and his wife, Kim, have three daughter, two granddaughters and one grandson.  His family lived in North Carolina for several years during his NASCAR career before moving back to St. Louis in 2016.

Wallace will be attending festival events on Friday, May 5, including the Coronation, presented by Morgan Orthodontics, where he will be knighted by Queen Isabella Astin prior to leading the Hang 10 Car Wash Firefighters’ Parade at 5:30 p.m.

Additionally, he will be an added speaker on Saturday, May 6, at the Partlow Insurance Sports Breakfast at the Tolley Dental Zone in the James R. Wilkins, Jr. Athletic and Event Center on Shenandoah University Campus.  He will then ride in the Glo Fiber Grand Feature Parade, which steps off at 1:30 p.m.

Tickets to Festival events are available at www.thebloom.com/events.

2022 CLASS 4 GIRLS ALL-STATE VOLLEYBALL TEAM
FIRST TEAM ALL-STATE

Player BRENNA CORBIN JAMES WOOD FR

Player KENNEDY SPAID JAMES WOOD FR

Player MADISON KOELLER MILLBROOK SR

Player ALEXIS KEETER, GRAFTON JR

Player BRIANA ELLIS KING GEORGE SR

Player ALONDRA MIRANDA-PAGAN GRAFTON SR

Player MORGAN CRAWFORD ATLEE SR

Player DEVAN FUNKE EC GLASS SR

Libero HALEY GILL DOMINION SR

Def. Specialist ALEXIS CURRY HANOVER JR

Player of the Year ALEXIS KEETER GRAFTON JR

Coach of the Year ADRIENNE PATRICK JAMES WOOD

SECOND TEAM ALL-STATE

Player SOFIA BEARD WESTERN ALBEMARLE SR

Player KENNEDY SEEKFORD DOMINION SR

Player KAITLYN DEMITZ DOMINION SO

Player MAYA VAN WYNGAARDT DOMINION SR

Player REBECCA HEIM KING GEORGE SR

Player NELLIE FITZGERALD EC GLASS SR

Player CAMPBELL WOODS HANOVER JR

Player NATALIE ROCCO WESTERN ALBEMARLE JR

Libero AMELIA TOMLINSON WESTERN ALBEMARLE JR

Def. Specialist MEREDITH PLUNKETT EC GLASS S

BY: JOSH KIRBY

TALKWINCHESTER.COM

WINCHESTER – The James Wood Lady Colonels fought off a last chance effort by Jefferson to claim their first victory to open the season 55-37.

The Colonels started the game with a fast pace as senior guard, Brynna Nesselrodt made three out of five attempted field goal shots along with an additional two free throws on four tries as Jefferson committed six fouls in the first quarter. The Colonels had ten total points in the first quarter and they only held Jefferson to four after the Colonels went with a “trap” defense towards the end of the quarter.

“We are trying to be a little aggressive this year” Head Coach of The Lady Colonels, Sanford Silver said about the “trap” defense the Colonels ran because of the youth of the Lady Colonels “to try and force turnovers to give us transitional play offense” Silver added.

James Wood continued the trend moving into the second quarter as sophomore guard Jolie Jenkins made three of five from inside the arc and she also went two for two from the free throw line. Nesselrodt added to the scoring with a huge three point shot. “She is a tough cookie to crumble” Silver said when asked about Nesselrodt’s performance in this matchup.

“For a season opener I think we did really well” Nesselrodt said in the Colonels 55-37 victory “we’re just going to grow from here” she also mentioned.

Into the third and fourth quarter Jefferson implemented a press defense of their own and they established a level of pressure on James Wood and forced a few Colonels turnovers. “We just have remain calm” Silver said, “we just gotta get better, we gotta stay on the drawing board” as Jefferson came away with eight points in the third quarter and 14 in the fourth quarter, James Wood had 10 fouls in the third quarter mainly because of Jeffersons tight press defense which allowed the Cougars to come away with few free throws.

“With the hard work and tenacity that they (The Lady Colonels) bring to the table we will get it right” coach Silver said.

The Lady Colonels lead scorer was Brynna Nesselrodt with 28 points, Jolie Jenkins also had double digit scoring with 16 points, collectively the Colonels shot 50% from the free throw line and 27.1% from field goal range. “We moved the ball really well” sophomore Jolie Jenkins said

“For being so young, as a whole we did really well because having such a young team can be more difficult but with strong leaders it helps” Nesselrodt said. Jenkins said when asked about Nesselrodt, “She is a great leader”.

The Cougars lead scorer was Mackenzie Brezovec with 15 points, Taliyah Lindsey and Ciara Holmes both had six points, Jazmyn Taylor and Olivia Hedrick both had five points.

The Lady Colonels next matchup will be next week hosting Central.

James Wood team photo after defeating Grafton for the VHSL Class 4 girls volleyball state title

on November 19, 2022 at VCU Siegel Center.

BY: JOSH KIRBY

TALKWINCHESTER.COM

The James Wood Colonels Volleyball team defeated Grafton out of Yorktown, Virginia to capture the first title in program history this past Saturday at The Siegel Center in Richmond Virginia.

In doing so, they join the 1970 Colonels football team along with the 2002 boys cross country team as state title winners in James Wood High School history.

Grafton has appeared in the past five class four state title matches, all falling as the runner up.

When asked about the preparation going into this match, “We tried to keep as much of our normal routine the same” said Adrienne Patrick in her third season as head coach for the Colonels as they swept Grafton 25-19, 25-19, 25-16.

Freshman Kennedy Spaid had a game high 15 kills and Brenna Corbin had 12 kills for the Colonels, Spaid also contributed with three aces in a row for a game total of 11 and also led in digs for James Wood; “Their ability to play volleyball at a high level is tremendous” Patrick added about Spaid and Corbin.

Other key contributors for the Colonels included Ashlynn Spence with six kills in the middle and Ella Kelchner had four blocks, The Colonels play their best as a “full family unit, high energy” Patrick added when talking about Spence and her six kills in the match along with various points throughout the match.

The Colonels had a perfect regular season of 20 wins and no losses after last season finishing 17-7 and losing to Loudoun County a ten time state champion volleyball program won the past five state championship matches.

This season started with the Colonels hosting Loudoun County and beating them in three sets “it set the bar high for us” when coach Patrick was discussing the regular season for James Wood after the victory against Loudoun County, the Colonels also defeated Williamsport who was the Maryland state champion last season and North Hagerstown who claimed the Maryland state championship this season along with defeating crosstown rival Millbrook in the regular season “those big wins against really tough teams were able to prepare us for Saturday” Patrick said.

VHSL Class 4 Tournament Bracket.

Throughout the regular season, the team had a motto “Make History” a board was made with that phrase on it that the team took with them to every game, “the group of girls I was able to have on the team this year, they had what it took to make history, and they did” Patrick mentioned when asked about the team motto.

The Colonels Volleyball team had numerous All-District and All-Region awards, listed below:

Head Coach Adrienne Patrick was awarded both Northwestern District and Region 4C Coach of the Year.

The Northwestern All-District first team included: Carsyn Vincent, Kennedy Spaid, Brenna Corbin and Paige Ahakuelo

Northwestern All-District second team: Lexi Taylor and Hannah McCullough

All-Region 4C First Team: Brenna Corbin and Kennedy Spaid

All-Region 4C Second Team: Carsyn Vincent and Paige Ahakuelo.

The entire interview with James Wood Girls Volleyball Head Coach Adrienne Patrick and Josh Kirby of News Talk 1400 is available here:

STAFF REPORTS

TALKWINCHESTER.COM

Winchester, VA – The unveiling of the 96th Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival® annual theme and its unique artwork represents the official kickoff of the Festival every November. The theme announcement is the foundation for building momentum through the unveiling of newsworthy events and special guest announcements throughout the winter and early-spring months that lead up to the Festival which takes place next year on April 28 to May 7, 2023.

Sharen Gromling, Festival President states, “The theme’s inspirational message consists of three simple, short verbs that reflects the love our community has for this nearly 100-year tradition of celebrating the Bloom. It is an easy to remember, simplistic theme that is filled with energy and action – Live. Love. Bloom. In short, the theme inspires us to Live Fully, Love Deeply, and Bloom Forever.”

The 96th theme is once again designed by the Festival’s talented graphic designer, Erik Zimmerman, of White Spider, Inc. In describing the theme design and inspiration, Zimmerman states, “I wanted the artwork for the 96th theme to be as simple and as powerful as the title “Live. Love. Bloom”. A clean and bold design, incorporating traditional colors along with a splash of something different to provide complimentary impact and Festival energy. Typically, the logo is a simpler version of the program cover, however this year the logo came first, and they mimic each other almost identically with a strong design. The program cover only shows a slight modification to the logo art, along with a halftone blossoms background for a little depth and flare.”

Event ticket sales will be announced at a later date. Tickets can be purchased in person at Festival Headquarters located at 135 North Cameron Street, by phone at (540) 662-3863 or through our online ticketing system. Make plans now to join us for the 96th Shenandoah Apple Blossom Festival® on April 28 through May 7, 2023.

Local Winchester, Virginia businessman Darrin Jones, is acquiring heritage radio station WINC-FM from Metro Radio, Inc.

Jones is quite familiar with WINC-FM; the opportunity to acquire WINC-FM was presented by News Talk 1400, WZFC-AM (formerly WINC-AM) owner Todd Bartley.

According to Jones, “Todd brought a great business plan and model of success for WINC-FM to my attention and it was a very easy decision to make.”

Jones added, “with what Todd has accomplished with the relocation of the AM 1400 tower and studio in less than a year; I have all the confidence in his ability to lead our efforts going forward.”

When contacted for this story, Former WINC-FM morning host Barry Lee said, “welcome home”.

Bruce Simel, former market manager for Centennial Broadcasting offered his assessment of the acquisition;

“I am very excited that Todd and his team are buying WINC-FM.  I’ve known Todd for more than 20 years and he is a specialist at leading community radio stations.  This is great news for local businesses and anyone that loves Winchester and the surrounding area.”

He added, “WINC has and always will, stand for Winchester.”

The acquisition is being filed with the Federal Communications Commission; regulatory approval of the transaction is anticipated by the end of the year.

Additional acquisitions will be announced in the near future.

This is a developing story on TalkWinchester.com.

Carter Myers Automotive recently launched a “Drive More Days” event to encourage used vehicle purchases amidst economic and supply chain difficulties.

It is extremely difficult to get a new car these days. Supply chain issues in automotive manufacturing coupled with COVID related labor shortages have significantly reduced dealer inventories of new cars. These factors increase both the price of a new vehicle and the lead time necessary to have one delivered to a potential customer. Due to these circumstances, a six-month wait for a new vehicle can be common. Liza Borches, the President and CEO of Carter Myers Automotive (CMA), wants to do something about this.

“I have absolutely no ability to increase the supply of microchips for automotive manufacturing,” said Borches, “but for those faced with long wait times and paying over sticker on new cars, I can make ‘nearly new’ vehicles a much more attractive and economical option.”

Borches and CMA are doing this is by launching “Drive More Days,” beginning August 8 and running through September 5, 2022. CMA already is committed to never charging over sticker for their new vehicles, but now, during this special “Drive More Days” event, customers will also receive a $500 gas card with the purchase of a used vehicle.

“Out-of-control inflation has caused gas prices to skyrocket nationwide. Providing customers with a gas card helps to alleviate some of the stress of filling up their tanks so they can focus on enjoying their vehicle purchase.” said Borches. “We hope this can remind customers for a few months that we wanted to help in some way.”

As the only employee-owned dealerships in the Mid-Atlantic, CMA’s 20 locations throughout Virginia and West Virginia have thousands of new and used vehicles in stock to ensure customers can find exactly what they need.

In the Winchester area, CMA’s Subaru of Winchester, CMA’s Honda of Winchester and CMA’s Hyundai of Winchester are participating in “Drive More Days”.

Similarly, CMA’s Toyota of Martinsburg and CMA’s Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram in nearby Martinsburg, West Virginia.

In order to make the buying experience as stress-free as possible, CMA will even bring the car to the customer’s home for them to take a test drive and complete all paperwork without having to visit the dealership.

All purchases are also backed by CMA’s Love it or Leave it Promise, a 3-day return or 30-day exchange policy on used vehicle purchases.

Through these challenging times, CMA also calls special attention to honoring local heroes who have never slowed down and hopes that the “Drive More Days” event will help all our heroes to keep moving forward. CMA is anticipating a successful “Drive More Days” event that will help drive the lives of its communities forward, one car at a time.

ON BACKGROUND

Carter Myers Automotive is a privately-owned retail auto group based out of Charlottesville, VA. They were founded in 1924 as Petersburg Motor Company and today, nearly 100 years later, CMA has expanded to have locations in Staunton, Charlottesville, Richmond, Winchester, Williamsburg, and Martinsburg, West Virginia. CMA also has an Employee Stock Ownership Plan which allows employees to own part (over 26%) of the company.

This empowers CMA’s employees to do their very best to assist customers, thus their motto “Owners Just Care More.”

This is a developing story on TalkWinchester.com.

Winchester, VA, July 12, 2022 – Valley Health System President and CEO Mark Nantz announced this morning that Tonya Smith, Pharm D, MBA, MHA, will be the system’s next Senior Vice President of Acute Care and President of Winchester Medical Center, effective September 12, 2022. Smith’s selection follows a nationwide search and an extensive interview process involving more than two dozen administrative and medical staff leaders.

“I am pleased to welcome Tonya back to our team,” Nantz said. “She is an accomplished and visionary healthcare executive with extensive healthcare experience ranging from clinical pharmacist to hospital president. Throughout her career, Tonya has had success in developing enduring and trusting relationships with physicians, leading cultural transformation resulting in high quality, safety, patient experience and employee engagement, and increasing organizational effectiveness and system integration.”

Smith served in leadership roles at Valley Health and Winchester Medical Center earlier in her career, including Director of Pharmacy, Corporate Director of Pharmacy and Vice President of Operations and Ancillary Services. Among her accomplishments at Valley Health was her leadership in the system-wide implementation of Epic, the electronic medical record, in 2014.

Smith left Valley Health in 2015 to become President of Munson Healthcare’s Cadillac Hospital in Cadillac, Michigan, and soon thereafter became President of Munson’s five other community hospitals. In 2020, she assumed additional responsibility for leading Munson’s system integration efforts.

Smith is a graduate of the University of Maryland, where she attained her Doctorate in Pharmacy. She subsequently earned a Master’s in Health Administration and a Master’s in Business Administration from University of Maryland University College. An engaged community leader, she volunteers in non-profit and civic leadership capacities, including the United Way, Chamber of Commerce, and Rotary.

A native of Jefferson County, West Virginia, Smith looks forward to moving back to the area. “This move is more than professional, it is deeply personal,” she said. “Not only did I serve as the Vice President of Operations at Winchester Medical Center for six years, it is the hospital where all four of my children were born. We will be moving back to the community where my husband and I, as high school sweethearts, grew up, got married, and started our family. I am honored and excited to serve a health system and community that have meant so much to me and my family.”

Staff Reports

TalkWinchester.com

RICHMOND, VA – Governor Glenn Youngkin today announced that Virginia’s unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.3 percent in January, while total nonfarm payroll employment decreased by 4,900 jobs. The Commonwealth’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 3.3 percent is 1.5 percentage points below the rate from a year ago. The labor force increased by 16,461 to 4,277,757, as the number of unemployed residents decreased by 1,892 to 139,261. The number of employed residents rose by 18,353 to 4,138,496. Virginia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate continues to be below the national rate, which rose from 3.9 to 4.0 percent in January.

The Commonwealth’s labor force participation rate increased slightly by 0.3 percentage points to 62.9 percent in January. The labor force participation rate measures the proportion of the civilian population age 16 and older that is employed or actively looking for work.

“My administration is committed to boosting economic growth, creating jobs, attracting businesses, and lowering the cost of living for all Virginians,” said Governor Youngkin. “One of our top priorities is ensuring that Virginia’s economy serves and benefits Virginia’s workers, businesses, and families alike.”

“The economic growth that we have seen in recent months slowed slightly in January, but that’s no cause for worry,” said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Caren Merrick. “Our unemployment rate continues to be below the national rate, and our labor force participation rate rose to 62.9% last month. We’re confident that our business and worker friendly policies will continue to spur economic growth throughout the Commonwealth in the months ahead.”

“We see plenty of good signs for Virginia’s economy”, said Secretary of Labor Bryan Slater. “In recent months we have seen employers across the Commonwealth, and the nation, struggle to find and retain quality workers. We must work together with our workforce development partners to ensure that workers in Virginia have access to training and resources necessary to fill these positions.”

From January 2021 to January 2022, the VEC estimates that establishments in Virginia gained 89,800 jobs, an increase of 2.3%. In January, the private sector recorded an over-the-year gain of 83,400 jobs, while employment in the public sector gained 6,400 jobs. Compared to a year ago, on a seasonally adjusted basis, eight of eleven major industry divisions experienced employment increases while three saw employment decrease. The largest over-the-year job gain occurred in leisure and hospitality, up 46,200 jobs (+13.7%). The next largest over-the-year job gain occurred in professional and business services, up 17,700 jobs (+2.3%). Other job gains occurred in trade and transportation (+10,700 jobs), education and health services (+7,800 jobs), and government (+6,400 jobs). Within government, only local government saw an increase in employment (+11,100 jobs) while state (-4,500 jobs) and federal government (-200 jobs) both lost jobs over the year. The largest job decrease over the year occurred in manufacturing which lost 2,800 jobs (-1.2%). Other employment losses occurred in construction (-1,700 jobs) and finance (-1,600 jobs).

For more details, visit the Virginia Employment Commission’s website at vec.virginia.gov.

Staff Reports

TalkWinchester.com

Virginia officials and project partners mark milestone at groundbreaking ceremony; new express lanes extension to bring congestion relief, new transit options, and economic benefits

TYSONS, VA – Governor Glenn Youngkin today announced the start of construction on a two-and-a-half-mile extension of the express lanes on Interstate 495 between the Dulles Corridor and the George Washington Memorial Parkway in Fairfax County. Governor Youngkin was joined by Virginia Secretary of Transportation Shep Miller, state and local officials, and Transurban—Virginia’s project partner and operator of the 495, 95 and 395 Express Lanes—at a groundbreaking ceremony to officially kick off construction on the 495 Express Lanes Northern Extension (495 NEXT) project. The latest extension of Virginia’s 90+-mile express lanes network planned for Northern Virginia, the project will provide new travel options, reduce congestion, support new transit services, and minimize cut-through traffic in residential communities.

• Replacement or rehabilitation of seven bridges
• Replacement of nine existing noise walls and the construction of one new noise wall
• Environmental commitments to improve streams and manage stormwater
• Four miles of new bicycle and pedestrian connections
• Funding for new American Legion Bridge bus service connecting Virginia and Maryland