Reclaiming Wood, Reimagining Industry with the Urban Garden Workshop

Reclaiming Wood, Reimagining Industry with the Urban Garden Workshop

Cael Kendall’s lifelong sustainability journey has landed under the soaring beams of a heavy-timber warehouse in Waynesboro, Virginia. But once, it began in the mists of the coastal Rocky Mountains, in the old growth forests of British Columbia. Born into an era of clearcutting booms, Cael spent his childhood watching…

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From Initial Inspiration to Sustaining Success

From Initial Inspiration to Sustaining Success

Initial Inspiration runs what founder and owner Jennifer Ledford calls an “Idea Factory.”  Curious customers with t-shirt concepts, costume ideas, Pinterest images, embroidery designs, and more are welcomed into the business’s production studio for collaborative and personalized fabric and design creations. “If you’ve seen it on the Internet,” she says,…

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Grow Waynesboro Announces Start-Up Grant Awards; $22,000 will help four new Waynesboro businesses open in 2019

Grow Waynesboro is pleased to announce the final grant awards for four local businesses, helping them to create jobs and build a culture of entrepreneurship in Waynesboro. This marks the third year of the Grow Waynesboro initiative and the first year the program was funded through local sponsorship with funding…

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Grow Waynesboro to Award $20,000 in Small Business Grants

  This September, the City of Waynesboro’s Small Business Development initiative, Grow Waynesboro, will award $20,000 in grants for start-up businesses in Waynesboro. The awards will be announced at a celebration and presentation symposium, dubbed Pitch Night, on September 6, 2018 at 6:00pm at Shenandoah Valley Art Center’s 416 Gallery…

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Invention and Play with PEV Labs

Invention and Play with PEV Labs

The first pressing question upon arriving at PEV Labs in Waynesboro is obvious:  Would you like to ride the Dork Pod? An inviting yet slightly terrifying brainchild of Brian Williford, the Dork Pod boasts a zero degree turning radius and one-thumb navigation controls. But it is only one of many…

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Back to the Basics: brewing beer and sharing history with Basic City Beer Co.

Back to the Basics: brewing beer and sharing history with Basic City Beer Co.

Boom Town to Brewery Basic City once sat at the crossroads of two railroads and the coming industrial boom. Founded in 1890, the town experienced a three-year rally of manufacturing investments in the “basic” process of turning pig iron into steal. For its moment, prior to a national depression beginning…

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Community, Curation, Connection….and Coffee The Farmhaus Coffee Co. shares the entrepreneurial passions and histories that brought them to Waynesboro

Community, Curation, Connection….and Coffee The Farmhaus Coffee Co. shares the entrepreneurial passions and histories that brought them to Waynesboro

The Farmhaus Coffee Co. might be ringing in its one year anniversary this winter, but its roots and connections to Waynesboro run much deeper. “We knew we wanted to be a coffee shop that functioned as a gathering place,” says Bethany Mallory, who co-owns the business with her husband Aaron.…

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Forged in Fire: The craft and the wisdom of blacksmithing in Waynesboro

Forged in Fire: The craft and the wisdom of blacksmithing in Waynesboro

On the first Friday of every month, an eclectic band of hammer wielders descend on the South River Complex in Waynesboro. They come from many corners – one man moved to Virginia from Texas for the certificate program in Artistic Blacksmithing, others hope to become historic reenactors, independent blacksmiths, industrial…

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Unambiguous Joy: Minh Martin talks craft and vocation in Waynesboro

Unambiguous Joy:  Minh Martin talks craft and vocation in Waynesboro

Huge north windows frame the glass-blowing furnace behind Minh Martin. It’s an overcast and rainy day, but he’s in shorts and a t-shirt as the cold air blows in from the open warehouse door. He’s intent on his work, and smiling. “Honestly, I can’t image a better life,” he says.…

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Handmade Home with Make Waynesboro

Handmade Home with Make Waynesboro

Finding Home The pottery wheels weren’t the only thing spinning in Jake Johnson’s life. He’d been “always on the move,” from Illinois to Pennsylvania, from outdoor art fairs to new gallery placements. But several years ago, Jake and his wife Katie decided to make Waynesboro their home. Today, Make Waynesboro…

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