Avery Baylor: A Cut Above for Nearly Five Decades

Long before Avery Baylor opened the doors of Sagittarius in Montross, long before he owned multiple salons and a clothing store, or invented and patented a pillow designed to protect a freshly styled head of hair, he was just an eight-year-old boy standing on a soda crate in his father’s country store trying to reach his customers.

Avery grew up in Westmoreland County in the Flat Iron area, one of five children born to Calvin and Vernell Baylor. His parents operated Baylor’s Store, a country store that served as a community gathering place, complete with pool tables, a jukebox, and a steady stream of customers.

“I grew up around people all my life,” Baylor said.

His father also cut hair, but Avery’s training came mostly from watching and figuring things out for himself. By second grade, he was experimenting on his own hair and eventually began cutting hair for customers who came through the store.

He charged his first customer 25 cents. When the customer, who just happened to be his uncle, returned a month later, Avery raised the price to 50 cents. His uncle decided that was too much and went home to cut his own.

“I said, ‘I can’t even go up a quarter,’” Avery recalled, laughing.

The price may have been negotiable, but the career was already taking shape.

Avery cut hair after school and on weekends, learning to shape hairlines with a razor before the small detail trimmers used today were available. He even remembers taking a razor to school and squeezing haircuts into bathroom breaks.

By the time he reached Washington and Lee High School, Avery had built a real clientele. Afros were popular, and while some older barbers weren’t interested in cutting the fuller styles younger men wanted, Baylor was.

He also played basketball, sometimes doing double duty on game days. Principal Joe Tompkins wanted his players looking sharp when they traveled, so Avery would cut his teammates’ hair before putting on his own uniform and taking the court.

After graduating in 1973, Avery left for Washington, D.C., that very same day. He enrolled at Strayer Business College on a basketball scholarship and studied merchandising and retailing. Inspired by the Black-owned clothing stores he saw in Washington, he dreamed of opening one of his own.

His time in college was brief. The basketball program was discontinued before he played a game, and after one semester, Avery realized traditional classroom study wasn’t for him.

Hair, however, had been there all along.

Avery approached a barber near his Adams Morgan neighborhood and asked where he could attend barber school. The man asked him a simpler question: Could he cut hair?

Avery could.

The barber was preparing to open his own shop and hired Avery as his first employee. He stayed for about three and a half years, working with men and women and learning to cut a variety of hair textures. He also attended classes and hair shows, soaking up everything he could.

“I just was like a dry sponge,” Avery said.

Among the stylists he learned from was Paul Mitchell, years before the name became synonymous with hair products. Baylor remembers him as a talented stylist who was creating looks others weren’t doing at the time, including asymmetrical cuts.

By 1977, however, home was calling.

Avery returned to Montross and opened Sagittarius, named for his astrological sign, and already had customers waiting. While living in D.C., he had continued returning to Westmoreland County on weekends to cut hair, eventually coming home every other weekend because business was so busy.

Forty-nine years later, he is still here.

His career, though, has rarely been limited to one styling chair. Not long after returning home, Avery pursued his earlier dream of owning a clothing store. He bought the Montross building that now houses Angelo’s Restaurant and divided it, operating his salon on one side and a clothing store on the other.

When the early-1980s recession made the clothing business difficult, Avery returned his focus to hair. He eventually rented the building to become Angelo’s and moved Sagittarius back to its present location.

Meanwhile, one salon had become several.

At one point, Avery operated six Sagittarius salons, with locations in Montross, Kilmarnock, Fredericksburg, Ashland, Culpeper and Richmond. The salons were successful, but managing multiple locations eventually became more stressful than he wanted.

Ultimately, Avery returned to what had worked from the beginning: one salon, his own hands, and the customers sitting in his chair.

Many of those customers have stayed with him for decades. Some families have been coming to Avery for as many as four generations.

“I love that loyalty,” he said.

Although styles have changed dramatically since the days of Afros and razor-shaped hairlines, Avery believes good hair begins with something timeless.

“The most important thing in a hairstyle is the cut,” he said.

Learn the fundamentals well, he says, and adapting to changing trends becomes much easier. Avery doesn’t do extensions, hairpieces, or braids. His specialty remains what he calls “real hair”—particularly the precision haircut.

“I try to do the best I possibly can, each and every time,” he said. “I don’t care how long I’ve been doing it.”

That willingness to learn and try new things has carried far beyond the salon.

In the 1990s, Avery turned a problem mentioned by his female clients into an invention. Women with elaborate hairstyles told him they sometimes slept with their heads resting on their hands to keep from flattening their hair against a pillow.

The result was the StyleKeeper, a specially designed pillow that supported the head while protecting a hairstyle. Baylor created an early model, worked with a university in the Hampton area on a prototype, obtained a patent, and raised approximately $150,000 from investors.

The StyleKeeper reached the shelves of a local Walmart for a time, and Avery also approached QVC in hopes of gaining national distribution. Without the money required for large-scale advertising, however, getting consumers to know about the product proved difficult.

Still, the patent hangs on the salon wall today.

His entrepreneurial energy also extended to the land where he grew up. Avery’s father built a lake there when Avery was a child.  Years later, Baylor purchased 45 acres of his grandfather’s land surrounding the pond and developed Baylor Lake Estates. Although he had never driven a tractor, he bought one, worked with a surveyor, and built the road to state specifications. Today, the development includes a dozen homes.

For Avery, it was a way to preserve and make use of family land rather than allowing it to pass into someone else’s hands.

His roots in Westmoreland run deep. Baylor has four daughters, three granddaughters, and a grandson who he loves dearly. Outside the salon, he enjoys the beach, making wine,  learning to play guitar, gardening, traveling, and he recently painted his ‘89 Corvette all by himself.

“I am just trying to improve each day,” he said.

Perhaps that same philosophy helps explain nearly half a century behind the chair.

Avery hopes to work at least another five years, although he admits hairstylists have a way of never completely retiring. For now, he is taking it “one day at a time, one year at a time.”

Almost 50 years after that little boy climbed onto a soda crate in Baylor’s Store, Avery Baylor is still doing what he did then—looking carefully, working with his hands, and cutting until it looks right.

After thousands of haircuts, multiple businesses, six salons, a housing development, and a patented invention, he knows exactly what he hopes people will remember him for:

“One of the best barbers and hairstylists in the country.”

After 49 years in Montross, generations of Northern Neck families would likely agree: Avery Baylor has earned the title.

“That Kid from Nebraska”: Jason Strong’s Journey to Superintendent

When Jason Strong first called the Richmond County School Board office in 2003, no one could have known just how long his relationship with Richmond County Public Schools would last. At the time, Strong was a college student in Nebraska, finishing his degree and looking for his first teaching job. Richmond County had posted an anticipated English vacancy online, and Strong was interested.

Very interested.

He called the school board office every week for about four weeks, checking to see if the position had officially opened. Each time, Susan Johns answered the phone. Years later, Johns told Strong that she would tell then-superintendent Mr. Luttrell, “That kid from Nebraska is calling again.” She even had a bobble head custom made for Strong when he got his doctorate that says, “Kid from Nebraska.”

Eventually, the anticipated vacancy became an actual one. Strong flew to Virginia for an interview, was offered the job, and that summer he and his new wife, Becky, packed up their lives in Nebraska and headed east.

Twenty-four years later, that persistent “kid from Nebraska” is the superintendent of Richmond County Public Schools.

Strong grew up in Wood River, Nebraska, a small town in the Platte River Valley that he describes simply as “corn and cows.” He graduated in a class of 44 and remembers a community where everyone gathered at Friday night football games and the school served as a centerpiece of community life.

He attended the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, where he met Becky, who had also grown up in a small Nebraska community. The two married in May 2003, the same year Strong graduated with his English teaching degree. Ready for an adventure, they decided to look beyond Nebraska for whatever came next.

And Strong looked far beyond Nebraska. He applied for teaching positions in New York, Arizona, Colorado, North Carolina, Virginia, and even Alaska. But something about Richmond County caught his attention.

“It was close to the water. It was close to the city, but it looked far enough away from the city that it still kind of had a small-town identity,” he said.

That identity turned out to feel surprisingly familiar.

Strong began his career at Rappahannock High School teaching 10th-grade English and helping coach football. After one year, he moved to eighth-grade English, where he taught for seven years. From there, he became assistant principal at the high school, serving in that role for four years before becoming principal of Richmond County Elementary-Middle School in 2015.

After seven years as principal, Strong spent three years at the Chesapeake Bay Governor’s School before returning to the division office as assistant superintendent. This year, he stepped into the role of superintendent.

Although his positions have changed over the years, one thing has remained remarkably constant: his belief that relationships are the most important part of education and leadership.

“The more friendships we made, the more things we found to love about this place,” Strong said. “It just kind of felt like vines slowly grew around us.”

Those roots eventually became deep ones. Becky now works in payroll for Richmond County Public Schools and as financial officer for the Northern Neck Regional Special Education Program. Their 12-year-old son, Oscar, has grown up here. And Strong, who once thought he had left small-town life behind, has discovered that it suits him after all.

Sometimes, he jokes, Oscar gets frustrated when a quick trip to the grocery store becomes anything but quick because his dad knows so many people.

That connection to people is more than a side effect of living in a small town. It is central to the way Strong approaches education and leadership.

“Relationships are the most important thing to me as a teacher, as an educator, as a person,” he said.

Strong traces some of that philosophy back to his own years in the classroom. As a teacher, he learned that relationships with students were often the key to reaching and motivating them. As an administrator, that same principle has shaped the way he works with teachers, staff, families, and the larger community.

He also credits mentors throughout his career with preparing him for each new role. As an assistant principal, he worked under Jesse Boyd, now superintendent of King George County Schools.  Strong watched the way Boyd was always the first one to school each day and learned from him how to get out in front of things by not hesitating when a need arose.

Former Richmond County Superintendent Greg Smith became another important mentor, offering leadership coaching while modeling how to have difficult conversations and confront challenges all while maintaining collegiality and professionalism. 

Later, former Superintendent Trey Davis encouraged Strong to move to the Governor’s School to diversify his leadership experience and continued nudging him toward new opportunities.

Strong continued his own education along the way, earning a master's degree in school leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University and a doctorate from William & Mary. But he says becoming an administrator was not a carefully mapped-out plan from the beginning. Instead, he has tried to remain open to what might come next while being intentional about the opportunities in front of him.

“I don't think there's any chance at that moment in time that I would have thought, I'll be superintendent here one day at all,” he said of his younger self.

One of the things Strong values most about leading a small school division is the ability to truly know the people who make it work. Pointing to a photograph of the entire Richmond County Public Schools staff, he noted that he knows every person pictured by first and last name.

That closeness also gives him a unique view of the school system as a whole—how one decision affects another and how teachers, administrators, staff, students, families and community partners all fit together.

Strong is particularly proud of Richmond County Public Schools' longstanding reputation for high expectations, devoted staff, and strong leadership. One of the clearest signs of that strength, he said, came during a recent convocation when former Richmond County students who had returned to teach in the division were asked to stand.

“I could not believe how many of the teachers standing had once been students,” he said.

For Strong, their decision to return says something important about the community and the school system that helped raise them.

As he looks ahead, Strong wants Richmond County Schools to continue preparing students for a changing world. He points to opportunities such as computer science and coding as examples of how the division can continue evolving its curriculum while maintaining the strong foundation already in place.

Yet for all his attention to what comes next, Strong still finds joy in one of the simplest parts of education: watching a student understand something for the first time.  Even if a teacher has taught the same subject for 20 years, he said, every year brings a new group of students experiencing it for the first time.

“When the light bulb moments happen and they make a connection or figure out how to do something on their own… no matter how long you've been doing it, it's still fresh to them, and that's what makes it fresh to you.”

Outside of school, Strong has found other ways to become part of the Northern Neck community. For years, he was active with the Westmoreland Players, appearing in roughly 15 to 20 productions. He also played banjo in a band made up largely of current and former teachers. These days, much of his free time revolves around Oscar, whose growing interest in hunting and fishing has sparked the same interests in his dad. Strong also enjoys watching his son play soccer and spending time with Becky and Oscar.

It is a life that would have been difficult for the 22-year-old English teacher from Nebraska to imagine when he first arrived in Richmond County.

Strong knows that superintendents often have to move from one school division to another as opportunities arise. His own path has been different. He has been able to grow from teacher to administrator to division leader within the same community that gave him his first opportunity.

“This is my home,” Strong said. “I mean, I just couldn't be any more grateful and blessed for the way that things have played out over the years.”

And as he begins this newest chapter, Strong isn't pretending that more than two decades in Richmond County means he has all the answers.

“I am not a fully polished product,” he said. “I have much to learn from everybody else, from all of our many community collaborators, and I will make mistakes along the way.”

What gives him confidence, he said, is not the belief that he will always get everything right, but rather the people surrounding him and the relationships built over 24 years.

“I walk confidently because of the people around me, and because of the support that I feel.”

Maybe that is the most special part of Strong's story. He came to Richmond County because he was looking for his first teaching job. What he found, little by little, was a career, a community, and a place to raise his family.

The boy from Nebraska kept calling. Richmond County finally answered.  And somewhere along the way, it became home.

In our market, as in many others, the traditional process of selling a home usually goes something like this: the property is listed for sale, a buyer makes an offer, the home goes under contract, and then the buyer pays to have a home inspection performed.

The problem with that sequence is simple: Nobody really knows what the inspection is going to uncover.

Until the inspection is completed, the seller, the buyer and the real estate agents may all be unaware of issues that could affect the sale.

After more than 30 years in real estate, we’ve learned that surprises during a transaction are rarely a good thing.

That’s one reason we’ve become strong believers in discussing pre-listing inspections with our seller clients.

Why Wait Until After You Have a Contract?

Home inspections can uncover everything from relatively minor maintenance items to major problems involving the roof, electrical system, crawlspace, foundation, plumbing, HVAC or other components of a home.

When those discoveries happen after a buyer is already under contract, emotions can quickly enter the equation.

Buyers sometimes panic. They may overestimate what something will cost to repair or replace, ask for a substantial price reduction or credit, or decide they simply aren’t comfortable proceeding with the purchase.

Inspection issues are one of the common reasons real estate contracts fall apart.

The seller, meanwhile, may be just as surprised by the findings. Now there is a contractual deadline, a concerned buyer and very little time to investigate the problem, obtain estimates and decide what to do.

We believe there is a better approach:

Gather the information before marketing the property for sale.

What Is a Pre-Listing Inspection?

A pre-listing inspection is simply an inspection performed before a property is offered for sale.

Depending on the property, appropriate inspections and other due diligence may include:

• Home Inspection — A general evaluation of the home’s major systems and components, including electrical, plumbing, HVAC, roofing, structural components and more.
• Septic Inspection — An evaluation of the condition and operation of a private septic system.
• Termite/Wood-Destroying Organism Inspection — Looks for evidence of termites and other wood-destroying organisms and related damage.
• Water Analysis — Tests well water for certain bacteria or other contaminants, depending upon the testing performed.
• Well Inspection — Different from a water analysis. This evaluates the physical well and related equipment rather than simply testing the quality of the water.
• Chimney Inspection — Particularly helpful when a home has a wood-burning fireplace or other chimney system.
• Engineer Inspection — If cracks, settlement or other possible structural or foundation concerns are present, an evaluation by a qualified engineer can provide valuable information.

We also sometimes include surveys and title searches in the broader discussion of pre-listing due diligence. They aren’t technically inspections, but completing them early can uncover boundary, encroachment, easement, lien or title issues before they become problems during a transaction.

Not every seller needs every inspection. The appropriate approach depends on the property, its age, condition, systems and individual circumstances.

Knowing Gives the Seller Options

Finding a problem before listing a home doesn’t necessarily mean the seller has to fix it.

That’s an important distinction.

Once the seller has the information, he or she can make an informed decision. The seller may choose to repair an item, replace a component, obtain additional professional opinions or estimates — or simply offer the property as-is.

But at least everyone knows what “as-is” actually is.

If a home inspection identifies an older HVAC system, a plumbing issue or a problem in the crawlspace, for example, the seller can decide how to address it before a buyer ever enters the picture.

More importantly, prospective buyers can be given that information upfront.

The First Offer Can Reflect the Property’s Actual Condition

This is one of the biggest advantages we see with pre-listing inspections.

If buyers are allowed to review inspection reports before making an offer, the issues contained in those reports generally aren’t surprises later.

The buyer knows what he or she is considering purchasing and can make an offer accordingly.

Compare that with the traditional process. A buyer makes an offer, negotiates the contract, gets excited about purchasing the home — and then receives a lengthy inspection report identifying issues nobody was expecting.

Suddenly, the parties may be negotiating the transaction for a second time.

The buyer wants repairs, credits or a lower price. The seller believes the original negotiated price was fair. What may have started as a relatively minor repair issue can turn into a major disagreement.

With a pre-listing inspection, we’re trying to move that information to the front of the transaction.

Our goal is for the buyer’s initial offer to take the known condition of the property into consideration. That can substantially reduce the likelihood of a second round of negotiations.

Can the Buyer Still Have an Inspection?

Absolutely.

Providing a pre-listing inspection doesn’t prevent a buyer from hiring his or her own inspector, and a buyer may still choose to include an inspection contingency in the offer.

However, when an inspection report has already been provided, our position is that the buyer’s offer should take the items disclosed in that report into consideration.

If the buyer chooses to obtain another inspection, the discussion can then focus primarily on significant items that may not have been identified in the original report rather than reopening negotiations over conditions the buyer knew about before making the offer.

That’s a much different situation from everyone learning about the property’s condition for the first time after the contract has been signed.

What About Septic, Termite and Well Water Inspections?

This is an area where sellers can sometimes misunderstand what is actually required.

In our market, standard or customary sales contract language commonly provides for the seller to furnish items such as a septic inspection/report, termite or other wood-destroying organism report, and well water analysis when applicable.

However, that does not mean Virginia law universally requires a seller to provide and pay for each of these inspections in every residential transaction.

Contract provisions can vary by region and Realtor association, and many of the terms are negotiable, including which party pays for an inspection and how recently it must have been performed. Certain loan programs may also have their own inspection or property-condition requirements.

The important distinction is between something being customary in a contract and something being required by law or a particular loan program.

Our experience has been that when sellers have recently completed appropriate inspections before listing, many buyers are willing to accept those reports. Other buyers may prefer to obtain their own inspections at their own expense.

Either way, much of the information about the property is already available.

Transparency Builds Buyer Confidence

There is another benefit that is harder to put a dollar amount on: confidence.

When prospective buyers see that a seller has invested money in inspections and is willing to make the reports available, it sends an important message.

We’re not trying to hide anything. We want you to understand what you’re buying.

That transparency can put buyers at ease.

Buying a home is a major financial decision, and uncertainty creates hesitation. The more information buyers have, the more comfortable they can become making that decision.

Inspection reports, septic information, water test results and other applicable documentation can also become part of a comprehensive listing package.

Instead of simply presenting a house for sale, we’re presenting buyers with information they can use to make an informed decision.

That can help a property stand out from competing listings where very little information is available upfront.

Pre-Listing Inspections Can Be Especially Valuable With Multiple Offers

One of the greatest advantages can occur when a property generates multiple offers.

When buyers are competing for a property and comprehensive inspection information has already been made available, we’ve seen buyers become much more comfortable waiving inspection contingencies as part of their offer.

That’s a huge benefit to a seller.

An offer without an inspection contingency eliminates one of the biggest uncertainties between contract and closing.

It doesn’t happen in every transaction, of course. But providing buyers with good information upfront can give them the confidence to write a cleaner, stronger offer.

Yes, It Can Be a Sizable Investment

We understand why some sellers hesitate.

A home inspection combined with septic, termite, well, water, chimney or other appropriate inspections can add up to a sizable upfront expense — especially before the property has even been offered for sale.

We don’t require our seller clients to obtain every possible inspection.

What we do believe is important is explaining the potential benefits so sellers can make an informed decision.

Compared with the value of the property being sold — and the potential cost of a failed transaction or a last-minute negotiation — the expense of appropriate pre-listing inspections can be relatively small.

A problem doesn’t become less expensive simply because you don’t know about it.

In fact, it can become much more expensive when someone else discovers it at the worst possible time.

The Seller Keeps More Control

Timing matters tremendously.

Suppose an inspection discovers a significant issue before the property is listed. The seller has time to investigate it, obtain estimates, decide whether to repair it and choose contractors without the pressure of a contractual deadline.

Now imagine discovering that same problem three weeks before closing.

The buyers are concerned. Their agent is involved. Contractors may need to be scheduled quickly. The lender could potentially become involved depending on the issue. Everyone is working against a deadline.

And the buyers may request a repair, credit or price reduction that costs considerably more than the seller might have spent addressing the problem beforehand.

Or the buyers may terminate the contract if their contingency allows them to do so.

Finding problems early doesn’t make them disappear. It gives the seller time, information and options.

Can Pre-Listing Inspections Put More Money in the Seller’s Pocket?

We believe they can.

That doesn’t mean an inspection automatically increases the value of a property or guarantees a higher sales price.

Instead, the financial benefit can come from several directions.

Pre-listing inspections may reduce uncertainty for buyers, help produce stronger initial offers, reduce the likelihood of costly renegotiations, allow sellers to address repairs on their own timetable and potentially encourage buyers to waive inspection contingencies.

Most importantly, they can help prevent a transaction from falling apart after weeks of being under contract.

The cost of inspections can seem significant when viewed as another expense of selling a home. But compared with the potential financial consequences of an unexpected problem discovered after contract, that upfront investment can be money very well spent.

Knowledge Is Usually Less Expensive Than a Surprise

Selling a home isn’t simply about putting a sign in the yard and hoping everything goes smoothly.

Preparation matters.

After more than three decades of seeing problems discovered after contracts were signed — sometimes shortly before closing and sometimes resulting in lost sales — we’ve learned the value of finding out as much as possible before marketing begins.

Pre-listing inspections can identify problems on the seller’s timetable, reduce surprises, build buyer confidence, create a stronger listing package, reduce the possibility of renegotiating the sale and potentially save sellers thousands of dollars.

They aren’t necessary the same way for every property. But we believe they’re worth discussing with virtually every seller.

Because when it comes to selling a home, it’s usually better to know before you sell.

A Business Built on Relationships, Reputation, and Community

For nearly five decades, a local accounting firm has grown through changing names, changing technology and changing generations, while holding tightly to the values that mattered from the beginning.

If you spend any time with Billy Hughes and Rob Basye, it doesn’t take long to realize that the story of Hughes & Basye is about much more than accounting. Yes, there are tax returns, financial statements, and decades of numbers behind them, but the foundation of the business has always been people—clients who became friends, employees who became family, and a Northern Neck community both men are grateful to call home.

Billy Hughes’ roots here go back to the very beginning. He was born at home near Bethany Church and moved to Village when he was five. After graduating from Northumberland High School, he attended the University of Richmond and began his career with the accounting firm Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co. in Richmond. He spent his first years auditing large companies before moving into tax work, but it didn’t take long for the Northern Neck to begin calling him home.

While visiting one weekend in 1975, Hughes ran into John Shackelford, a former high school classmate whose father, Bill Shackelford, was a local CPA. John asked Hughes if he had ever considered moving back to the Northern Neck to practice accounting. His father was nearing retirement age and hoped to find someone who could eventually take over the practice.

Hughes’ response was immediate: “When can I talk to him?”

By that August, he was back home.

What Hughes could not have known was how quickly he would be asked to grow into the role. About a year later, while attending a tax conference in Virginia Beach with Shackelford, Hughes noticed his boss rubbing his chest and sweating heavily. Realizing something was seriously wrong, he began trying to get him to a hospital. What followed was a harrowing drive in heavy rain and an ambulance ride for Shackelford, who had suffered a major heart event.

Not long afterward, another senior member of the firm experienced heart trouble as well. Suddenly Hughes, still only 25 years old, found himself responsible for three offices and 16 employees.

“It’s called growing up in a hurry,” he said.

He did exactly that, relying not only on what he had learned in school and in Richmond, but also on the wisdom of the businessmen around him. Many of his early clients had built highly successful companies with little formal education, and Hughes quickly understood that his job wasn’t always to be the smartest person in the room.

“Somebody who built a multi–million dollar company back then doesn’t need your advice. You need to listen and learn from them.”

That willingness to listen became part of the way Hughes practiced accounting and eventually the culture of the firm itself.

Over the next several years, the business evolved through partnerships and name changes before becoming Hughes & Associates. Then, in the late 1980s, another Northern Neck native entered the picture.

Rob Basye grew up in Lottsburg, although technically, he jokes, his arrival into the world happened before his family quite made it to the hospital—he was born in the back seat of a car on the Tappahannock Bridge.

His connection with Hughes began while Basye was still a student at Northumberland High School. His mother did simple tax returns for employees where she worked and occasionally let her son help. He found himself intrigued by the process and enrolled in an accounting class. When teacher Betty Christopher invited Hughes to speak to the class during a career day, Basye began thinking seriously about becoming a CPA.

After one year at Randolph-Macon College, he transferred to the University of Richmond so he could take the courses required to sit for the CPA exam (the same university Hughes had attended years earlier). Basye worked for Hughes during two summers of college, and when he graduated in 1987, Hughes offered him a full-time position.

Basye had other opportunities, including higher-paying offers in Richmond, but Hughes shared some advice drawn from his own early experience in a large accounting firm. Hughes had learned that succeeding there could mean competing relentlessly with the people beside you, something that never suited him.

For Hughes, there were more important measures of success.

“In the Northern Neck, number one on the list is having a good reputation. And number two is telling the truth and not being afraid to back up what you say.”

Basye joined the firm on June 1, 1987, and never left.

Although Hughes owned the business, Basye said their relationship never felt much like that of boss and employee. Hughes included him in decisions, shared the benefits of successful years, and trusted him with increasing responsibility.

“I would say I worked with him, not for him, because he never treated me like I wasn’t an equal,” Basye said.

Their partnership developed naturally over the next two decades. When Hughes eventually began thinking about retirement, Basye was the obvious person to continue what had been built.

Around the same time, the firm was outgrowing its Tappahannock office. When Hughes and Basye looked closely at their client base, they realized that roughly 80 to 85 percent of their clients were actually on the Northern Neck side of the river.

They began searching for a location in Warsaw and eventually purchased the former law office of longtime local attorney Charlie Ryland. Basye bought the accounting practice from Hughes, and Hughes & Basye was born.  The two continued working together for several more years before Hughes retired at 65.

The transition worked because both men valued continuity. Hughes could have sold the business to an outside firm, but he worried about what that might mean for his employees and clients. Basye understood that he wasn’t simply buying a list of accounts; he was accepting responsibility for relationships that had taken decades to build.

That philosophy continues today through another generation of accountants at Hughes & Basye. Brittney Sgroi, Whitney English, and Madison Pierson are current CPAs, while Nick Basye is currently sitting for the CPA exam. Basye speaks about them much the way Hughes once spoke about him. The firm deliberately keeps an eye out for young people from the area who are studying accounting, inviting some to work during summers and giving them the opportunity to see what a career back home might look like.

Basye recognizes how fortunate the firm has been to have younger professionals prepared to carry it forward, something not every small-town CPA firm has.

“We've just been so blessed,” he said.

That sense of stewardship also shapes the way the firm treats its employees. Tax season can mean extremely long days and weeks for everyone involved. Hughes remembers working 65 to 70 hours a week from January through April during his years in practice. Basye says the hours can be even longer now, particularly for employees balancing demanding work with young families.

For both men, building the right team has always mattered as much as hiring someone with the right credentials. Hughes believed he could often tell within the first 15 minutes of an interview whether someone would fit the firm.

“If you were helpful and you wanted to be a team player, you fit.”

When asked what he enjoyed most about his career, Hughes didn’t mention tax law or financial strategy.

“The thing that I enjoyed the most was a personal relationship with the people that we did work for, because all of them treated me as if I was either a member of the family or a member of that team.”

Even in retirement, former clients still call him occasionally to run an idea by him. He is happy to tell them whether it sounds reasonable—or, in typical Billy Hughes fashion, whether he thinks they are crazy.

Basye has collected quite a few of what he calls “Hughes-isms” through the years, bits of wisdom that tend to make their point with a little humor attached. One he still uses with clients is simple: “Do you know there’s no prize for paying early?”

Another is considerably more colorful: “Don't take such long strides that you rip the inseam of your $50 pants, trying to save your $20 shoes.”

The humor may make the advice memorable, but behind it is a straightforward philosophy: be wise, be fair, and don’t make things more complicated than they need to be.

The same is true of the firm’s approach to accounting. Hughes and Basye are unapologetic about doing things correctly. One prospective client once told Hughes that he had heard the firm tended to “go by the book.”

Hughes’ answer was simple: “Well, what else are you gonna go by?”

That reputation for integrity is something neither man takes lightly. In a close-knit community, they know a business cannot separate its professional reputation from the people behind it.

“The key in the Northern Neck, the one thing that you have got to protect above everything else is your reputation,” Hughes said. “If you lose your reputation in the Northern Neck, you might as well pack up and leave.”

For Hughes and Basye, preserving that reputation means being honest with clients even when the answer isn’t the one they hoped to hear. Their goal, Hughes said, has never been to make decisions for people but “to lead them to make the right decision.”

Outside the office, both men would much rather be outdoors than sitting behind a desk. Hunting and fishing have long been favorite pastimes, and their years together have produced their share of stories. Basye remembers one early turkey hunt when Hughes positioned Basye and his brother Drew in front of him and began calling a turkey toward them. Somehow, the bird bypassed both brothers, circled around and headed directly toward Hughes—who promptly shot it himself.

Even decades later, the story still brings plenty of laughter.

But Hughes and Basye both say their bond is rooted in the Northern Neck, a place they deeply love and where close-knit ties define everyday life. In this community, people know each other, show up when needed, and when someone is in trouble, neighbors are quick to step in without being asked.

And that, perhaps more than any balance sheet, explains what Hughes & Basye has spent nearly five decades building.

The names on the door may have changed through the years, and another generation will eventually carry the firm forward, but the principles have remained remarkably consistent: work hard, tell the truth, take care of your people, and guard the reputation entrusted to you.

It is a legacy Hughes began, Basye has carried forward, and both hope will continue serving the Northern Neck for generations to come.

Why Your Roof Is Suddenly a Big Deal to Insurance Companies?

If you’ve purchased or sold a home recently — or even renewed your homeowner's insurance — you may have noticed something that wasn’t nearly as common five or ten years ago: insurance companies are paying much closer attention to the age and condition of roofs.

We’ve seen this firsthand in several real estate transactions. A buyer applies for homeowners' insurance, the insurance company reviews the property, and suddenly the roof becomes an issue. In some cases, the insurer has required the roof to be replaced before it will provide coverage. In others, we’ve seen buyers required to obtain a roofing estimate and make arrangements for replacement after closing.

So why has a roof that may not be leaking — and may still have years of useful life — suddenly become such an important insurance issue?

Why Insurance Companies Are Looking More Closely

There isn’t one single reason. The homeowner's insurance industry has been dealing with a combination of higher property losses, more costly severe-weather events, sharply higher construction and repair costs, and increasing reinsurance costs.

Reinsurance is essentially insurance purchased by insurance companies to protect themselves against major losses. According to the Congressional Budget Office, reinsurance rates doubled between 2017 and 2023. Those costs ultimately become part of the overall cost and risk of providing homeowners insurance.

At the same time, repairing a home has become considerably more expensive. Labor, building materials and replacement costs have all increased. When insurers are paying more claims — and those claims cost more to repair — they naturally become more selective about the properties they are willing to insure.

That’s where the roof becomes particularly important.

Why the Roof Matters So Much

A roof isn’t simply another component of a house. It’s one of the home’s primary defenses against wind, hail and water. When a roof fails during a storm, the insurance loss may extend far beyond replacing shingles. Water intrusion can damage roof decking, insulation, ceilings, walls, flooring and personal property inside the home.

An older or deteriorated roof represents a greater potential risk to an insurer, particularly when severe weather occurs. The Insurance Information Institute says the age and condition of a roof are major factors in how an insurer assesses a property and determines coverage. It also reports that when a roof is over 20 years old, many insurers will require it to pass an inspection when someone applies for coverage, while some insurers may decline the property altogether.

Is There a Certain Age When a Roof Becomes a Problem?

There is no universal age at which a roof becomes uninsurable. Insurance companies establish their own underwriting guidelines, and the type of roof, its condition, installation quality and previous damage can all make a difference.

However, the 15- to 20-year range has clearly become important for asphalt-shingle roofs. As roofs approach or exceed that age, some insurers may require an inspection or additional documentation, decline to write coverage, or change the way roof damage is covered.

One possibility is changing the roof from replacement-cost coverage to actual-cash-value coverage. With replacement-cost coverage, a covered loss generally provides for replacement without deducting depreciation, subject to the policy’s terms and deductible. Actual-cash-value coverage takes depreciation into account. That can make a significant difference in what an owner receives following a covered loss involving an older roof.

It’s also important to understand that the manufacturer’s advertised life of a shingle doesn’t necessarily mean an insurance company will view the roof that way. A shingle carrying a 25-, 30- or even longer warranty isn’t necessarily guaranteed to perform for that entire period. Many warranties primarily address manufacturing defects and aren’t a guarantee of how the roof will perform after years of exposure to wind, hail, heat and other weather conditions.

Technology Has Changed the Game

Another major difference between today and ten years ago is the amount of information available to insurance companies.

Insurers increasingly use property databases, high-resolution aerial imagery and sophisticated computer models to evaluate homes. Artificial intelligence can also be used to analyze property and roof information. In other words, an insurance company doesn’t necessarily have to send someone to your house to identify a roof that appears older or shows visible signs of deterioration.

This helps explain why homeowners and buyers may feel as though insurance companies have suddenly become much more interested in roofs. The risk has always existed, but insurers now have considerably more information — and better tools for evaluating that risk — before agreeing to insure a property.

What Are Insurance Companies Looking For?

Age is important, but condition matters too. Insurers may be concerned about missing, cracked, curled or lifted shingles; granule loss; unrepaired storm damage; deterioration; moisture intrusion; multiple layers of roofing; poor installation; or other conditions that increase the likelihood of a future claim.

That’s why it’s important not to assume that every 20-year-old roof needs replacement or that every 10-year-old roof is fine. Two roofs of exactly the same age can be in very different condition depending on the materials, installation, maintenance and weather exposure.

How This Can Affect a Real Estate Transaction

This issue affects buyers and sellers equally.

A buyer obtaining a mortgage generally needs homeowners insurance in place before closing. If the buyer’s insurance company won’t insure the property because of the roof, that can quickly become an obstacle to completing the sale.

We’ve encountered situations where roof concerns weren’t identified as a major issue until the insurance process was underway. At that point, the parties may need to obtain a professional roof inspection, negotiate repairs or replacement, provide documentation about the roof’s age, obtain estimates, arrange for replacement after closing, or find another insurance company willing to insure the property.

For sellers, an older roof can therefore affect the sale even if it isn’t leaking. For buyers, a satisfactory home inspection doesn’t necessarily mean the insurance company will be satisfied. The home inspector and the insurance underwriter are evaluating the roof for different purposes.

Virginia Is Changing the Rules

This issue has become significant enough that Virginia lawmakers passed new protections specifically addressing asphalt-shingle roofs. The new provisions take effect January 1, 2027.

Under the new law, an insurer cannot refuse coverage, cancel or refuse to renew an owner-occupied dwelling policy solely because an asphalt-shingle roof is less than 15 years old. But the law also provides important protections for older roofs.

When an asphalt-shingle roof is 15 years old or older, an insurer must allow the homeowner or purchaser to have the roof inspected by an authorized inspector, at the owner or purchaser’s expense, before requiring complete replacement as a condition of issuing or renewing coverage.

If that inspection determines that the roof has at least five years of useful life remaining, the insurer generally cannot require complete roof replacement solely because of the roof’s age or condition.

That does not mean an insurer has to ignore legitimate problems. The law specifically allows insurers to address unrepaired damage, deterioration, material defects, installation deficiencies, inadequate maintenance, structural concerns, moisture intrusion and other documented problems. An insurer can also require damaged or deficient portions of a roof to be repaired or replaced.

The law also gives homeowners and purchasers several ways to document a roof’s actual age, including installation or replacement receipts and contracts, building permits, or a report from an authorized inspector.

What Buyers, Sellers and Homeowners Should Know

The biggest takeaway is that roof age has become an insurance issue, not just a maintenance or home-inspection issue.

If you own a home, keep documentation whenever your roof is replaced. An invoice, contract or building permit that seems unimportant today could become extremely valuable years from now when you’re obtaining insurance or selling the property.

If you’re selling a home with an older roof, knowing its age and condition before accepting an offer can help avoid an unexpected problem later. And if you’re buying a home — particularly one with a roof approaching 15 to 20 years old — it’s wise to begin talking with your insurance professional early rather than waiting until a few days before closing.

It’s also worth remembering that insurance companies don’t all have identical underwriting requirements. A roof that creates a problem with one carrier may be viewed differently by another.

An Issue We’re Likely to Keep Hearing About

Five or ten years ago, we rarely encountered a situation where the age of an otherwise functional roof threatened to complicate a real estate closing. Today, we’ve seen it happen multiple times.

The combination of higher insurance losses, increasing construction costs, rising reinsurance costs and better technology for evaluating individual properties has changed the way insurers look at risk. The roof has become one of the most visible parts of that change.

For homeowners, buyers and sellers, the lesson isn’t that every older roof needs to be replaced. It’s simply that knowing the age and condition of the roof — and addressing the insurance question early — has become much more important than it used to be.

It is a life neither of them necessarily could have predicted, but for Justin, the desire to make the Northern Neck home had been there for a long time.

Justin grew up in Fairfax, but his family's roots in the Northern Neck run deep. The land where Sion House Farm sits belonged to his great-grandparents, and he spent much of his childhood coming here to visit family, hunt, and fish. His family has also gathered here for an annual reunion for more than 60 years.

“I'd always loved it down here,” he said. “The goal was to move down here.”

After high school, however, Justin's path took him far from Farnham. He studied park and resource management at Slippery Rock University and went on to work for the National Park Service, first as a wildland firefighter at Great Basin National Park in Nevada and later as a law enforcement park ranger in Yosemite National Park.

Jamie spent much of her childhood in Charleston, West Virginia, after spending her earliest years on her grandparents' beef cattle farm in North Carolina. She attended Liberty University before ultimately returning to West Virginia and working primarily in the restaurant industry.

The two met through a mutual friend in Charleston, married in 2013, and eventually moved to Pennsylvania, where Justin worked long overnight shifts in the oil and gas industry. The money was good, but the schedule was hard on a young family.

Justin's father began brainstorming ways they could create a business that would allow them to move to the Northern Neck and have more time together. Eventually, those conversations turned to hydroponic farming and the question of how they could make the family land profitable in a way that was different from traditional corn, wheat, or soybean farming.

Justin and his father attended a two-day hydroponic farming class in Ohio. After one particularly miserable Pennsylvania winter spent working nights in the oil fields, Justin called his dad and said, “What's it going to take? Let's try to start this hydroponic farming thing.”

In June 2015, Justin and Jamie moved to Farnham with two-year-old Josslyn and another daughter, Joely, on the way. They moved temporarily into Justin's parents' home and began the process of building their first greenhouse.

Looking back at the leap they took, Jamie's explanation is simple.

“I just believed in it.”

They built their first greenhouse that year with the help of family and friends and planted their first tomato seeds on Dec. 30, 2015. Their first farm dollar came from Old Farm Truck in White Stone, which purchased lettuce from them.

From there, they learned as they went.

Unlike traditional farming, hydroponics allows plants to grow without soil, receiving their nutrients through water instead. Justin relied heavily on support from the company that supplied their equipment, along with plenty of phone calls, internet searches, YouTube videos, and trial and error.

By 2017, Sion House Farm had added two more greenhouses and a packing shed, and Justin began experimenting with growing crops in the ground as well. Sweet potatoes were among the first, after a customer suggested the Northern Neck's sandy soil might be perfect for them.

While Justin was discovering how much he enjoyed traditional farming, Jamie began imagining a way to sell more directly to the community. She initially considered taking their produce to farmers markets, but eventually her idea grew into something more permanent

In late 2018, the McKenneys purchased the property in Village that had long been home to the old Self Produce stand. They constructed a new building and opened County Line Market in April 2019.

Jamie remembers standing inside the empty building before they opened and wondering how they would ever fill it.

That is no longer a problem.

The market began primarily with produce, a few coolers and a freezer, but Jamie knew they needed to offer more than tomatoes to keep people coming back. They added hand-dipped ice cream, flowers, mums and vegetable plants, and eventually Jamie began transforming the market from a traditional produce stand into more of a specialty grocery store.

Her goal is to carry things customers can't easily find somewhere else, with an emphasis on Virginia-made products when possible and options ranging from vegan and gluten-free foods to plenty of full-fat favorites.

“I try to keep it weird,” Jamie laughed. “I try to keep it fresh. I try to keep it different.”

Meanwhile, Justin's farming operation continued to grow. In 2019, he planted a small patch of pumpkins and discovered not only that he was good at growing them, but that he loved it. Today, he grows about 15 acres and roughly 40 varieties, from tiny gourds to 100-pound pumpkins, with some now sold to customers as far away as Richmond and Northern Virginia.

Despite being largely self-taught, Justin is quick to point out that he hasn't built the farm alone. He has developed friendships with other area farmers who willingly share advice, equipment, and experience.

“I don't look at anybody else down here that grows produce as a rival,” he said. “Everybody works together.”

Jamie believes that spirit is one of the things that makes the Northern Neck special.

“There's abundance,” she said. “There's not a scarcity mentality.”

Today, farm life also includes their three children, Josslyn, Joely, and Jude, each of whom has found a place in the family business. Josslyn, the family's bookworm and artist, enjoys working at the market and can handle the register like a pro. Joely has been driving the Gator since she was five and is equally comfortable dressed up or helping her dad change the oil in a truck. Recently, she packed 350 pints of cherry tomatoes before heading out on deliveries with her grandfather.

And then there's Jude, whose favorite phrase when Justin heads out is, “Let me get my boots on.”

“He just wants to be with Dad all day, every day,” Jamie said.

The McKenneys homeschool their children now, a decision that works well with the rhythms of farm life. Summers are far too busy for traditional vacations, while winter gives the family the freedom to travel together. Their children also learn plenty outside of textbooks as they help at the market and on the farm.

Their roots in the community have grown alongside the farm. Justin has served with the Richmond County Volunteer Fire Department for about eight years, and the family has attended Rappahannock Church of Christ since shortly after moving here. They also make a point of supporting local schools, churches, and community events.

“We love the community. We love our customers,” Jamie said. “We love serving and helping people.”

There are still new ideas ahead for Sion House Farm, including what Jamie teasingly calls plans to “spice up the market,” and Justin recently added another 30 acres for traditional vegetable farming. But even after a decade of growth, the reasons they chose this life haven't changed much.

They wanted to raise their family here. They wanted the freedom and slower pace the Northern Neck offered. And they wanted to build something of their own.

When asked what they would tell someone considering moving to the Northern Neck, their advice was simple.

“Slow down and enjoy it,” they said. “Embrace the pace.”

For two people who arrived with no farming experience, a young family, and little more than a plan they believed could work, it seems they've taken their own advice pretty well.

Getting a contract on your home is a big milestone.

After weeks—or sometimes months—of preparing, showing, negotiating, and waiting, it can feel like the hard part is over.

But under contract is not the same as sold.

One issue we see from time to time is sellers becoming a little too relaxed once they have a ratified contract. The grass doesn't get cut quite as often. The house gets emptied, but not cleaned. A few unwanted pieces of furniture get left behind. Repairs get handled quickly—or not exactly as agreed.

Our advice is simple:

Don't let off the gas once you get a contract. Press on the gas even harder.

The time between contract and closing is when buyers are often paying closer attention than ever. They're preparing to make a major financial commitment, and little things that may not have bothered them during a showing can suddenly become much bigger concerns.

Here are some things we encourage every seller to keep in mind.

Leave the Home Clean—and Empty

Once you have moved out, have the home thoroughly cleaned. Vacuum or sweep the floors, wipe down counters, clean bathrooms and appliances, and remove dust, dirt, trash, and debris.

Even if the buyers plan to renovate, they don't want to walk into a dirty house on closing day.

And unless something has specifically been agreed upon, take everything with you.

That old sofa, leftover shelving, half-used cans of paint, miscellaneous tools, and unwanted furniture probably aren't a "gift" to the new owner. If you don't want it, there is a good chance they don't either.

Buyers shouldn't have to spend their first weekend hauling away things the seller didn't want to deal with.

Keep the Yard Looking Good

The exterior should look just as good—preferably better—than it did when the buyers decided to purchase the property.

Continue cutting the grass, trimming where needed, picking up limbs and debris, and maintaining the property right through closing.

First impressions still matter, even after the contract is signed.

Complete Repairs Exactly as Agreed

If repairs are part of the contract, pay close attention to exactly what was agreed upon.

When the contract requires repairs by a licensed contractor, don't substitute a DIY repair. Obtain documentation showing who performed the work, what was repaired or replaced, and the materials used when appropriate.

Depending on the agreement, the buyer may also have the inspector return to reinspect repaired items.

Whenever possible, we often prefer negotiating an acceptable credit rather than having the seller make repairs. A credit can eliminate disagreements over contractors, materials, and how the work was performed. The buyer can choose who does the work and how they want it done, while the seller avoids the headache of coordinating repairs.

However, credits aren't always possible. Certain repairs—particularly with some types of financing—may have to be completed before closing.

Keep the Utilities On

Do not have utilities disconnected before closing.

Electricity, water, gas, and other necessary utilities may be needed for inspections, the buyer's final walk-through, and sometimes lender requirements.

We generally recommend that buyers arrange for utilities to be placed in their name approximately five business days before closing. Sellers can contact the utility providers a couple of business days before closing to confirm arrangements have been made.

Ideally, service simply transfers from one party to the other without interruption.

Your homeowner's insurance is different. We recommend waiting until after closing has occurred before notifying your insurance company to terminate coverage.

Tell Your Agent Immediately if Something Changes

A lot can happen between contract and closing.

A storm can damage the property. An appliance can stop working. A plumbing leak can occur. An HVAC system can fail. A tree can fall.

If something changes, tell us immediately.

Problems are almost always easier to solve when everyone knows about them early. Trying to hide or cover up an issue that will likely be discovered during the final walk-through can turn a manageable problem into a much bigger one.

Things happen. It's how we deal with them that matters.

Replace Burned-Out Lightbulbs

This sounds minor, but it matters.

If a light doesn't come on during the final walk-through, the buyer may wonder whether it's simply a burned-out bulb—or an electrical problem.

Replace burned-out bulbs before closing. It's an inexpensive and easy way to eliminate an unnecessary concern.

Leave Helpful Information Behind

A little thoughtfulness can go a long way.

Leave appliance manuals, warranties, instructions for systems, garage door remotes, keys, alarm information, or anything else that may be useful to the new owners.

You might even leave a simple list of nearby neighbors and their contact information when appropriate.

These things cost little or nothing, but they leave buyers with a positive impression of the home—and of the people who owned it before them.

Forward Your Mail

Submit your change of address and mail-forwarding request before moving.

Some mail will inevitably slip through, but the new owners shouldn't have to deal with stacks of the previous owner's mail for months after closing.

Understand That Last-Minute Delays Happen

Few things frustrate sellers more than hearing that closing may be delayed.

But remember that a delay isn't necessarily the buyer's fault.

Lenders, appraisers, inspectors, insurance companies, attorneys, settlement companies, title issues, and other circumstances can occasionally cause delays outside the buyer's control.

Before becoming frustrated, find out why there is a delay and what is being done to resolve it. A little patience and cooperation can keep a minor delay from becoming a bigger problem.

Remember the Golden Rule

One of the easiest ways to decide how you should leave your home is to ask yourself, "How would I want the seller to leave a home I was buying?

• Empty or filled with somebody else's unwanted belongings?
• Freshly cut grass or an overgrown yard?
• Repairs professionally completed or patched together?
• Useful information left behind—or nothing at all?

The answer is usually pretty obvious. Treat the buyer the way you would want to be treated.

Take Pride in the Finish

Selling a home is not finished when the contract is signed. It's finished when the transaction closes and the keys are handed over.

Buyers are often on high alert during those final days. They're looking more closely, not less closely, because they're about to make the property their own.

We encourage our sellers to take pride in how they leave their property. Clean it. Maintain it. Complete what you agreed to complete. Communicate when something goes wrong. Leave the property the way you would hope someone would leave it for you.

Most transactions make it successfully to closing—but deals can and do run into trouble when sellers stop doing what they're supposed to do.

So when you get that contract, celebrate.

Then keep your foot on the gas all the way to the closing table.

Creating a Place Where Everyone Belongs

For years, Heather Taylor Cash spent her days serving customers at the two Spice & Tea Exchange shops she owns in Williamsburg and Carytown. She loved the work, but every evening she drove home to the Northern Neck wondering what it would look like to build something here.

Not simply another store, but something that reflected the community she loved.  Somewhere neighbors could walk through the door, ask questions, discover healthier options, attend classes, and leave feeling like they'd been cared for.

That vision became Rise & Set Provisions.

When a property has been on the market for a while without selling, one of the first questions sellers begin to ask is: Should we reduce the price?

Sometimes the answer is yes. Sometimes the better answer is to stay the course. And sometimes there are things that should be done to improve the property before changing the price at all.

The challenge is figuring out which one applies to your property.

Trading Traffic Lights for River Views

Ron and Barbara had been married only two weeks when they pulled onto a long Northern Neck driveway lined with corn.

For Barbara, the view felt instantly familiar. Both of her grandfathers had been dairy farmers, and her grandfather Graham’s farm had a three-quarter-mile driveway with corn growing on both sides. As she and Ron followed the half-mile drive toward the property, those childhood memories came rushing back.

“I still get goosebumps when I remember what that felt like,” Barbara said. “I thought, ‘This is it.’”