Sperryville Barbershop to celebrate 50 years
By Barbara Adolfi
Everyone is invited for cake and punch on Saturday, Aug. 2 from 2-4 p.m. to help John and Peggy Eubank celebrate 50 years in business at the Sperryville Barbershop at 11909 Lee Highway. John Eubank began shinning shoes in the early 50s at Mr. Watts’ Barbershop in Little Washington. Mr. Watts decided to make John his protege, took him under his wing and taught him to cut hair. The cost was 35 cents for children under 12 and 50 cents for anyone over 12. Mr. Eubank’s career was interrupted by finishing high school and military service, but all the rest of the time he has been cutting hair. His step-daughter Becky Smith says that he is a hard worker and has been all his life. When John moved his work to Sperryville in the middle 50s, he operated out of a small building (now gone) adjacent to the Thornton River at the end of the bridge, facing Water Street. On August 4, 1958 John moved into his current location and has been there ever since. John was born in Rappahannock County and noted that the prices for haircuts have increased and there are no longer the apple stands that used to line Route 211. John has been happy in his work and made a decent living serving residents from all over the county for the last 50 years. Do come and join him to celebrate this man who is a well-known and respected man in our little village.
Fresh fish at Corner Store
Salmon, shrimp, scallops and “catch of the day” are among the selections of fresh fish now available at The Corner Store in its new cooler, especially designed for fish.
Did you know that, in addition to an extensive wine collection, you can also find several kinds of organic flour, green paper products and real charcoal for your grille at the store. With the expanded dairy and produce case, shopping here is a viable option to that trip to Culpeper or Luray.
Sperryville news
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Appreciation Day
On Wednesday, July 23, the Sperryville Post Office will host a Customer Appreciation Day. Susan, Eileen, David and Sherry want to thank their customers for their many years of patronage and friendship. They will have refreshments available and plan to give demonstrations of the features available on the U.S. Postal Service Web site. Customers are invited to trade their business cards for a piece of candy. If you don't have a business card or a business, that's fine, too. Be sure to stop in for this special event.
Bastille Day dinner
Sylvie Rowand, the increasingly well-known and appreciated personal chef (www.laughingduckgardens.com) in Rappahannock County, served dinner to 25 people to celebrate Bastille Day, French Independence Day. A country dinner, served French bistro style, had a total of 20 dishes including a most scrumptious pissaladiere, the classic olive, anchovy, and onion tart from Provence, and seven homemade desserts. A native of Reunion, an overseas department of France located in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar, Sylvie and her husband, Keith, led the group in a rousing rendition of La Marseillaise to celebrate Bastille Day.
Stonewall Abbey Cafe
As promised, Brian Compton is scheduling occasional music performances at the cafe. On Friday, July 18, the Okuda Quartet will present traditional jazz from 6-8 p.m.
The performers are students at Shenandoah University, well-known for its excellent music department, so this should be a delightful evening of music. Come have a cup of coffee and a slice of daughter Denise Gentry’s homemade white chocolate red raspberry cheese cake during the performance. Denise hopes to provide homemade donuts to customers by this weekend.
This Internet cafe is growing in popularity. There are weekenders who are now “regulars” on Mondays and Fridays, telecommuting by extending their weekends in Rappahannock and working from the cafe on either, or both, of those days. I talked with one woman whose employment is with the state of Virginia, helping companies set up the infrastructure to promote telecommuting. She and her husband fell in love with Rappahannock, have put their home in Spotsylvania up for sale and are currently renting a home here. Stonewall Abbey provides a place for her to work until Piedmont Broadband can provide service in Woodville. This is certainly the kind of desired economic development that was predicted at our Living Towns Conference two years ago. Thanks to the Compton family for their beautiful improvement of a prime location on Main Street and for providing the important Internet access service to residents.