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Talk's own 'good news' FYI -
Talk Loudoun won the 2009 - 2010 Town of Leesburg 'New Business' Award. Thanks for honoring us for doing what we do!
As we near our first year, the entire Talk team is so grateful to two of our original Founding Supporters who've just confirmed they're back on board supporting Talk in its 2010 - 2011 year-- wow! Special thanks goes out to Sonia McCormick of PNC Bank and Dr. Kathleen Saylor of REHAU. We simply can't thank you enough for this generosity, and we know our readers thank you too.
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Stepping up for agriculture
By Nancy Croft Baker
 Chris Hatch has been many things in his life: a construction worker, a dairy farmer, a cattle rancher and a school bus driver, among other things. But the title he wears most proudly is president of the Loudoun Valley Homegrown Markets Association (LVHMA).
"People don't realize that when they spend money at a farmers' market, they're not only buying healthier food for their families, they're also helping the environment, they're helping their local economies and they're keeping family farms alive," says Hatch, whose family has operated Mill Road Farm just south of Leesburg since the early 1950s.
Hatch knows painfully well how close to the cusp most farm families live.
The son of a Navy officer who moved his family frequently, Hatch planted his roots at Mill Road Farm, a 400-acre dairy property dating to the mid-1700s. "It didn't matter where we moved, we always came back to the farm," he says. Hatch shares the property with his brother, Bill, an ABC News camera technician who runs Zephaniah Farm Vineyard -- named for their great grandfather, Zephaniah Jefferson Hatch. Chris raises Angus beef, lamb and honey.
Hatch temporarily fled the toils of dairy farming for a decade out of high school, trying his hand at construction and laying roads for VDOT before returning to Mill Road in 1982. He longed for the days when the family's entire meal was produced entirely on their property. "There's something primal about being self sufficient," he says. "It gives you a feeling of accomplishment and independence. I knew that if I didn't at least try to make a go of it on the farm, I would regret it." |
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And despite some tough years of barely scratching out a living, Hatch has no regrets. His family sold their dairy cows for Angus in 1986, the year Hatch took over the farm, selling feeder calves through a broker. "We thought raising Angus would be less labor intensive than dairy cows but quickly found that the conventional way of doing business with beef cattle was just as labor intensive and only generated enough to pay taxes and insurance," Hatch says. "I went for a time without paying myself, and my family just did without." He took a job driving a school bus to make ends meet, and his wife, Janice, landed a full-time government job to provide healthcare benefits.
 Hatch worried about other farm families struggling to survive and wondered what he could do to make a difference. In 1993, he enrolled in the Leadership Loudoun program to learn how to become a liaison between the farming community and county government. At the same time, the county launched the Loudoun Valley Homegrown Markets Association to provide a marketing venue for local producers. Hatch tried selling his beef directly to customers, "but it was a different era, and the concept of buying meat at a farmers' market had not caught on yet," he says. Nevertheless, Hatch became involved in the organization by joining its board of directors and eventually took over as president when the county could no longer fund the program. "One thing I learned through Leadership Loudoun is that I am an introvert by nature, but I will go anywhere and talk to any group to promote farmers," he says. "I will step up for agriculture."
And step up he did. Hatch not only sits on the board of directors of the Loudoun County Farm Bureau to promote agricultural awareness in public schools, but has helped organize five thriving farmers' markets through the LVHMA -- with a sixth market scheduled to open in Sterling this summer. And with better portable refrigeration technologies -- and a brother-in-law willing to help him sell -- Hatch decided to give the farmers' markets another try in 2004. "This time around it was far more profitable to sell directly to customers, who are actually looking for grass-fed beef."
Hatch understands the critical value of direct marketing and has mentored dozens of other producers in the art of farm market selling. "When you go to a farmers' market, you always learn something," he says. "The producers educate their customers, advise their customers and care about the welfare of their customers." The producers, in turn, develop a loyal customer base willing to pay a little extra for the benefit of fresh food and a relationship with producers.
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"I never buy any meat at the grocery store," says Susie Harding, who has shopped the Cascades and Leesburg farmers' markets for years. She searched for sources of grass-fed beef when she moved to Northern Virginia. Although grass-fed beef has a more robust flavor, Harding says her family prefers it. "The other thing I love about shopping the farmer's market is that you really get to know the farmers and other shoppers on a personal level," she says. "We've watched farmers get married and have children, and one of the vendors even picked up my orders and delivered them to my home when I was bedridden last year. My grocery store doesn't do that." |
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 "That close relationship between producer and consumer is priceless," says Joey Coburn, who launched Cornerstone Baked Goods a little over a year ago and recently joined LVHMA's Purcellville market. "I don't have a storefront, so selling at the farmers' market is a great way to get our name out there and for people to try my product without having to place an entire order. Word of mouth is our best advertising."
Vendors also benefit from LVHMA's technologically savvy market coordinator, Judy Stroske. She works closely with all the producers to keep customers informed of vendor specials and upcoming events on the group's web site and via its e-zine, which she writes. "I also Twitter from all the markets on the weekends to let people know what's going on," she says. "I'm amazed at how our Twitter and e-zine subscriptions are taking off." She started tweeting during the blizzards to let customers know when the LVHMA's winter market would be open. "Customers loved it and wanted to know more about what's going on at the markets, so I Twitter all the time now."
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 Market vendor Steve Baker hopes that using technology and education will encourage more young people to not only shop the markets but to consider farming as a profession. "Today, there is more demand for local foods than supply," says Baker, who sells his Baker Farms pork products at the Brambleton, Cascades and Leesburg markets. "There is great opportunity for people to go into small, sustainable farming in our  region. Farm life is difficult, but it's an honorable occupation. People who come to the markets really appreciate our efforts." Baker says he's also heartened by the increasing number of universities buying locally grown food, a trend being pushed by students.
That's good news to Josh Cockerill, a recent graduate and newlywed who came back to his family hog farm on Snickersville Turnpike. He's the fifth generation to farm the property, which still has remnants of a Revolutionary War fort encampment -- aptly named Fort Bacon. Cockerill and his brothers sell their pork products at farmers' markets while also growing hay and produce, which they sell from a store on their property. "It's more profitable to sell directly to the customer," says Cockerill, who remembers peddling vegetables at farmers' markets with his mother as a child. "If I can make money on the farm, that's what I'd love to do," he says.
Keeping farms in Loudoun County -- or anywhere -- should be a community priority, Hatch says. "We need to keep land in farm use, because it's an important sustainable resource. Once you build on it, that's the last crop."
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Visit a bounty of farmers' markets in Loudoun County
Agro-Depot Indoor Farmers' Market: Hill High Orchard Store, 35246 Harry Byrd Highway, Round Hill 20141, (540)338-7173. Saturdays, 12 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Loudoun Valley Homegrown Markets Association: Markets in Brambleton, Cascades, Leesburg, Purcellville and Sterling. For exact locations, days and a list of vendors, visit www.loudounfarmersmarkets.org/.
Lovettsville Farmers' Market: 16 S Berlin Turnpike, Lovettsville 20180, (540)454-8089. Tuesdays, 3:30 p.m. - 7 p.m.
Middleburg Community Farmers' Market: W Marshall Street, Middleburg 20117, (540)687-5152, http://www.middleburg.org. Saturdays, 8 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Purcellville Community Market: 130 E. Main Street, Purcellville 20132, www.purcellvillecommunitymarket.com. Saturdays, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
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Take our challenge -
Plant your support behind Loudoun's farmers
Did you know that for only $40 a year you can support agriculture and farming right here in Loudoun County? Become an associate member of the Virginia Farm Bureau, and you can reap the many benefits for yourself, your family, your children and your community! Farm Bureau members help preserve farming in Loudoun County while creating educational tools for our public schools and important marketing opportunities for more locally grown foods.
But more than that, members can take advantage of a wide variety of resources and discounts we're sure few know about. Check this out: Virginia Farm Bureau members receive discounts on rental cars, hotels, child safety seats and all-terrain helmets, as well as vision, hearing and prescription drug plans -- in addition to competitive insurance policies and reduced rates on museum memberships! Teen drivers can earn a $1,000 savings bond by successfully completing the Teenage Driver Safety Education Program, which teaches the safe driving techniques all young people need to know. What's more, special vendor partnerships offer significant savings to Farm Bureau members. The long list of benefits far outweighs the small investment!
We challenge you to step up and support Loudoun's farmers -- both the time-honored and the newcomers! Please act now and join the Virginia Farm Bureau. Once you do, notify us via info@talkloudoun.com, and we'll print your name, along with our thanks to you, in a special box within our e-zine starting this July and continuing every other month! We'll also put your name in a drawing for a variety of gifts, including a weekend getaway at a fine Loudoun hotel, a $50 gift certificate to one of Loudoun's restaurants that features "farm to table" items, special Loudoun winery giveaways, and so much more. Join us, and please join the VA Farm Bureau - Loudoun County! Just go to: http://www.vafarmbureau.org/MEMBERPROGRAMS/Pages/default.aspx. It's a good deal for a great cause!.
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Transformation from within
By Betsy Allen
 America's got plenty of challenges on its plate, but obesity's one of the most pervasive. Today, a third of our nation's adults -- along with 25 percent of Virginians -- are obese. These folks suffer greatly increased risks of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, stroke, osteoarthritis, gallstones and some forms of cancer. Then there's the medical costs involved in treating these conditions, as well as the impact of lost work days and decreased productivity.
Yet, what sometimes gets lost in the barrage of information is the emotional effect -- how it actually feels to deal with a weight problem, day in and day out. "For some women, intimate relationships suffer," says JoAnn Junk of 7Company Weight Loss & Wellness Center. "They might have stopped undressing in front of their husbands. Or they can't play with their children." Many people, Junk adds, worry about fitting into an airplane seat, or wonder if they'll break the chair they've just been shown to in a restaurant.
"You can see how they comport themselves," Junk says of some of the clients who seek help at the center. "At first they're depressed, disappointed. They're either made fun of or ignored."
It was the desire to address weight loss on both the physical and emotional fronts that spurred Jennifer Seven to open the Leesburg 7Company center in January. The launch of the new business followed years of working with corporate clients all around the D.C. area. "My background was in telecomm sales," Seven says. "But I've always been entrepreneurial at heart. I learned about the concept of health fairs and thought to myself, I'm going to look at offering (them) on my own."
She established 7Company in 2004 to plan and conduct employee health fairs, but soon expanded into wellness workshops, flu shots, and cholesterol and glucose screenings. She developed a consortium of health and wellness service providers, doing the legwork that would save time and money for HR staff members usually tasked with coordinating these services. "I found the biggest issues dealt with obesity," Seven says. "If you're 30-40 pounds overweight, it affects every joint in your body," she says. "It affects every single thing."
Seven still maintains the corporate health portion of the business, but has expanded her scope of services with the weight loss center. Assisting her as director of operations and new business development, JoAnn Junk brings a wealth of experience to the table. Junk's approach is a mixture, as she puts it, of firmness yet compassion. These attributes served her well during her 12 years with the Philadelphia police department, investigating crimes against women -- abuse, rape, incest.
"After I left law enforcement, I became an image consultant," she says. That segued into two decades of work in the weight loss field. It's quite a mix of careers, but Junk sees close parallels among her experiences. "I've got 35 years of working with the public in a one-on-one counseling type" of environment, she notes. "It all revolves around an individual's self-image."
The emotional component of losing weight is always front and center at 7Company. "I always say, 'We have a weight loss center, but the end result is to repair and rebuild people's self image,'" Junk points out.
While men are certainly welcome, 7Company's clientele is nearly 90 percent women, with an average age of 35 to 55 years. In the past, Junk saw common weight loss goals of between 20 and 25 pounds. "Now it's 40 to 50 pounds," she notes. "They're starting from a heavier point." |
 Susan Lee, 52, of Waterford has been a client of 7Company for 11 weeks. "Until the age of 40, I was in good shape," she says. "Then, with menopause, I felt that my body rebelled against me. I was putting weight on and couldn't figure out why. I would try different diets, all these different things. You almost give up."
As a member of the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce, Lee likes to support new businesses in the county and so, last winter, she found herself at 7Company's Open House. "I was sitting with JoAnn (Junk) that day, and she asked how I felt about my weight," she remembers. "I became very emotional. I felt like I had let myself down."
Junk's long experience in weight loss and her confidence in the program won Lee over. She started coming to 7Company on a weekly basis and was impressed by the ladies who make it all work. "I felt their sincerity immediately. They really want to help men and women. I knew in my heart this was different."
New clients are evaluated on their physical condition, as well as on their motivational level, and advised on an individualized weight loss plan. Many clients make use of the special foods 7Company offers, which contain balanced protein and restricted carbohydrates. The center also provides educational programs, counseling and massage services. It's a business philosophy that looks at every aspect of the client - one that extends to employees as well. |
 "We offer the personal touch. I don't ever hire an individual to work with clients because she's skinny," Junk says, adding that she prefers to hire people who used to be heavy, or who are heavy and on the 7Company program. It's hard to work effectively with those who want to lose weight, she explains, "if you have not been there and done that."
As clients progress with the program, they receive the kind of encouragement and support that can make all the difference. "If they make a mistake or slip up and have a brownie, they've already beat themselves up," Junk says. "We ask them, 'Do you spend nearly as much time patting yourself on the back when you make a good choice?'"
Today, Lee is lighter by 36 pounds, and counting. "I showed up and did what they told me to do," she says. "Now people say, 'You don't look like the same person.'"
When a client loses the desired amount of weight, 7Company bestows a special gift: a total body makeover, which includes a style analysis (tailored to an individual's body measurements), a color analysis and a cosmetic makeover. Junk also asks clients if they have a favorite clothing item that didn't fit, but that they couldn't part with. "Once they reach their weight loss goal," she says, "we take a photo of them in that item."
When she was heavier, Lee recalls hating getting dressed each morning. "Everything was too tight. Now I'm going shopping in my own closet. And I'm determined not to backtrack. I gave away all my bigger clothes."
Backtracking by gaining back the lost weight is a concern everyone shares. The key, Junk says, is behavior modification. She gives the example of someone who's had gastric bypass surgery. They'll take weight off, she says, but what is often missing is the carryover. "Just because they've had (the surgery), doesn't mean that they've had the behavior modification necessary. They might still reach for that unhealthy food."
7Company offers behavior modification classes to help those who have met their weight loss goals stay on track. "It's a very give and take, hands-on sort of class. I want involvement," Junk says. "They'll get a very sound education."
It's just part of the transformation - inside and out - that Seven and Junk want for all their clients. "They help you set the goal and help you believe it," Lee says. "If you believe it, you can achieve it." |
Let Us Help:
We're happy to get the word out about any volunteer or fundraising needs your organization has, or information about your special event. Check out the Events/Needs link on Talk's website and follow the listed guidelines, hit Submit and we'll take it from there - that's our promise to you.
Execs & Their Pets:
Know an exec who adores/can't do without his or her pet(s)? Let us know at info@TalkLoudoun.com. |
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