Dairy complex celebrates grand opening “Due to technical difficulties with our provider, we were unable to publish on-line content as usual last Thursday evening. Our apologies for any inconvenience.” - The Recorder
By CHARLES GARRATT • Staff writer
WARM SPRINGS - The weekend's events were scheduled to celebrate the opening of the renovated dairy barn complex, but it was the people involved that took center stage - everyone from new Homestead Preserve owners to relatives of those who once worked in the buildings and younger generations seeing history in action.
After nearly two years and $6 million, the old Homestead dairy complex on the hill above U.S. 220 in Warm Springs sprang to life Memorial Day weekend as the center of amenities for Preserve property owners. Some of the facilities, such as the market and meeting rooms, will be available for community use as well.
The complex of buildings includes a spa and fitness center in the old Guernsey barn, game rooms and activity room in the Holstein barn, offices and the 2,800-square-foot Trimble Hall in the main barn, meeting rooms in the silo and a market in the milk house. Celebration Associates, developer of Homestead Preserve, added an outdoor pool, lounge areas and wading pool to complete the range of activities available.
Last-minute construction kept contractors and staff busy in the days before the grand opening. Sally Johnson, executive director of Virginia Hot Springs Preservation Trust and executive director of Preserve Community Association let out an audible sigh of relief Sunday as she recounted the previous week. The certificate of occupancy was obtained barely a day before events were planned to begin, she said.
The elevator in the main barn was not operational for the weekend, which limited handicapped access to Trimble Hall, and the store in the milk house was not complete, but otherwise the facility was ready for tours and use.
Events began Friday evening with a sneak preview for staff and contractors. Preserve marketing specialist Penny Peery said, "So many hands touched this place." The employees and workers were just beaming Friday night as they toured the completed facility, she said.
Property owners enjoyed a range of activities Saturday from fly fishing, a creek side trout fry, guided hikes to an art show. The day closed out with dinner and dancing in Trimble Hall in an elegant dining room. Celebration Associates co-founder Charles Adams welcomed guests, and following the meal, the acoustics in the renovated room made the music full and lively.
Sunday was set aside as community day. Tours began at 1 p.m. followed by the dedication of Trimble Hall at 3 p.m. While no official count of those touring was made, nearly 200 were on hand for the dedication.
Visitors ranged from recent area property owners to families of men who worked at the dairy and farm three-quarters of a century ago. Joe and Lillie Gilbert from Virginia Beach recently built a second home in Little Valley near Bolar. Like many visitors to the Highlands, it was love at first site, they said. They brought property shortly after their first visit a few years ago. Of the barn complex, the Gilberts both said the facility was spectacular.
Bath County native and newly hired program director for the Virginia Hot Springs Preservation Trust, Jessica Stephenson, began gathering family members in the office area of the main barn as the tours began. Her grandfather, Jesse Stephenson, worked at the dairy under first manager, Marshall Trimble.
Within a short time, Stephenson had 16 relatives and spouses of brothers Jesse and Clyde Stephenson at the conference table, who quickly began relating stories of playing in the hay barn as children.
Recollections filling the buildings included riding grain carts, falling out the window, herding cows at 4 a.m., delivering milk, and the men who worked the seven days on, one day off shifts.
Just as the buildings have been brought back to a new life, on Sunday the people whose fathers and grandfathers had created that history brought the old days back to life as they chatted with friends.
Natalie Earle brought her children over from Alleghany County to see and experience the history. "I've watched this place for 20 years," she said. "The renovation gives you faith that people care about the past."
The history of the Homestead dairy operation was summarized by John Trimble during the dedication of Trimble Hall. The hall is named in honor of John and his father, Marshall, who were the only two managers of the Homestead dairy operation and farms in Warm Springs.
Trimble said his father told people he had "milk fed babies." Part of the "pay" for working at the dairy was one-half gallon of milk per day, John added.
Trimble's father had the dairy moved from Hot Springs to Warm Springs in 1928 and ran the operation until his death in 1948. The herd was sold and the dairy operation shut down in 1966.
During his presentation, Trimble recognized the people in the audience who are related to the men who worked with him and his father. He said he and his father were blessed by the "dedicated, conscientious employees that made the operation successful." The men who worked the farm and dairy were "plain, good country men," he added.
Dairy and farm work was not easy, Trimble pointed out a number of times. Dairy cows must be milked twice a day, every day in any weather, he explained. The employees had to love the work and did. There was little turnover among the 11 farm workers and nine dairy employees, he said.
Until 1948, the farm work was done by hand and with teams of horses. In that year the farm acquired its first tractor, Trimble told the standing room only crowd. Prior to the arrival of the tractor, 8-10 teams of horses were used.
The solemn nature of the Memorial Day weekend was not forgotten during the dedication ceremony. Bath County Board of Supervisors' chairman Cliff Gilchrest opened the event with a moment of silence and a prayer for those who have and are serving in the military.
John Airgood, project manager for the dairy restoration, finished the afternoon with a visual presentation which complemented the history and summarized the construction project. He pointed to a photo of rickety wooden scaffolding surrounding the half-built silos, saying, "OSHA (occupational safety) rules weren't in effect back then."
Just as Trimble pointed to the dedicated men who had made the operation of the dairy a success for him and his father, Airgood showed slides of the construction crews and contractors who made the renovation project a success.
While many of the facilities of the dairy complex will be available only to Homestead Preserve property owners and guests, Adams said, "From the outset, our goal was to not make the place for exclusive use." Meeting rooms will be available and the speakers program sponsored by the Preservation Trust will be open to the public, he said.
"The amount of visual ownership the community had for this place," he said, is what made it imperative the community continue to be a part of the facility and the facility be a part of the community.
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