In this episode, I sit down with Shelley Blades, the farm manager and executive director of Lynchburg Grows, to hear the story of their farm and the work that they do. Lynchburg Grows has taken an abandoned, seven-acre rose farm right in the middle of our city and transformed it into a thriving urban farm with a mission to provide access to fresh, local produce and purposeful jobs to individuals with disabilities.  In our conversation, we talk about how Shelley ended up in farming and in Lynchburg, the people who have helped her along the way, her fondness for radishes, what she's noticed from tending the same soil for several seasons, and what she loves about the work. Visit Lynchburg Grow's website to find out how to connect, volunteer, or support their work.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Lynchburg Neighborhood

Episode 24: Shelley Blades + Lynchburg Grows

"The best stories are the truth. The best stories are accounts of what really happened. There's no better setup or crescendo than what really happened." - Walter Virgil Jr. on the power of honesty and authenticity in storytelling. In this conversation with Walter Virgil Jr., we talk about his childhood growing up in New Jersey, how he made it to Lynchburg, Virginia, the work that he is doing in our community, how his story has shaped his outlook and his mission, and what he is seeing in our city that makes him hopeful. Find out more about Walter's work here. If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 23: Walter Virgil Jr.

In this episode, I sit down with former Lynchburg city manager Kim Payne to talk about his early childhood years growing up here, his life in local government, downtown revitalization, what makes a good city council member, and how things get done in our city. If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 22: Kim Payne + Local Government

Born in 1938, Aubrey "Chub" Barbour has lived in the Tinbridge Hill neighborhood his entire life. In this conversation, Mr. Barbour shares about the rich history of his neighborhood, what it was like to grow up on Polk Street, his early love of music, his 42 years as the supervisor of the Yoder Center, and his diligent work in the Tinbridge Hill community garden providing fresh produce to his neighbors. If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 21: Aubrey Barbour on Tinbridge Hill

In 1948, J.P. Vaughan and the rest of the Lynchburg Mighty Mites sandlot football team headed to Philadelphia to play in the Pop Warner National Championship. Some players remembered seeing a film crew at the game, but the footage was lost to history. For the next 70 years, their memories, a few black and white photographs, and some faded news clippings would be all they had to remember that time in their lives. But what if a tape of that game still existed? What if those boys, now in their eighties, somehow had the chance to watch themselves all these years later? If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia. Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood Podcast Music by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 20: Searching for the Mighty Mites

In this conversation, John Abell, Professor of Economics at Randolph College, teaches us about the history of redlining in Lynchburg. John also shares with us about his career in academia and how his Randolph students sparked his research on local food deserts.  Visit John's website to connect with him or find out more about his work.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 19: John Abell on Redlining

In this conversation with Reid Wodicka, the Deputy City Manager for the City of Lynchburg, we discuss how a class at E.C. Glass High School sparked Reid's career in local government, what a typical day is like at City Hall, and how the City of Lynchburg is working to address affordable housing. In this episode, I mention a special written edition of the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast that is a deep dive into the Patterson Drug Store Sit-In of 1960, which can be found here. If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 18: Reid Wodicka

Baseball has been put on hold for a little while at every level from Little League to the Majors. This episode is a love letter to baseball and a deep dive into Minor League baseball right here in Lynchburg, Virginia. Baseball fans can't help but enjoy all the fun that goes on at a Lynchburg Hillcats game, but there's something happening behind the scenes that the typical fan can't see. In my conversation with Anthony D'Elia from the Cleveland Indians, we get to hear how data and technology are impacting player development and play on the field even in the Minors. Plus, for all of us that had a childhood dream of being in the baseball world when we grew up, we get to hear what it's really like to go to the ballpark every day and pursue that dream.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 17: Take Me Out To The Ballgame

In my conversation with Rodney Ferguson, we talk about growing up in downtown Lynchburg in the 1950s and 60s, the closing of the pools in the Summer of 1961 and swimming in the first integrated pool at Camp Kum-Ba-Yah, the integration of Lynchburg City Schools, and what it's really like to own and operate a cemetery.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 16: Rodney Ferguson

As everyone in the Lynchburg Neighborhood adjust to a new normal, we wanted to check in with all of you  from here at Mimosa Hill.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 15: Checking In from Mimosa Hill

Anne Spencer was a Harlem Renaissance poet who lived right here in Lynchburg, Virginia at 1313 Pierce Street from 1903 to 1975. In that home, Anne raised a family, tended a garden, wrote poetry on the walls and in her writing cottage, and hosted some of the greatest African American thinkers, artists, and leaders of the 20th century. Anne's granddaughter, Shaun Spencer Hester, is now the director of the Anne Spencer Museum. In our conversation, Shaun and I talk about her grandmother's life, her home, her poetry, and her love of nasturtiums. Shaun also tells us about her father, Chauncey Spencer, and how he broke down racial barriers in aviation. Find out more about the Anne Spencer Museum here.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 14: Anne Spencer

In January 1962, Owen Cardwell, Jr. and Lynda Woodruff desegregated E.C. Glass High School in Lynchburg, Virginia. Dr. Owen Cardwell, Jr. is a pastor, a Civil Rights advocate, and the Rosel Schewel Distinguished Chair in Education and Director of the Center for Education and Leadership at the University of Lynchburg.  In our conversation, Dr. Cardwell and I discuss his work and ministry, the impact and influence that Dr. Virgil Wood and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. had on his life, the desegregation of E.C. Glass High School, and Lynchburg in the 1960s. If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 13: Dr. Owen Cardwell, Jr.

Every place has a history. A few years ago, an unexpected knock on the door let us in on the history of Mimosa Hill and introduced us to the family that lived there for nearly 100 years. Join me for a walk down memory lane through Lynchburg of old with Jane McCraw.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastIntro Music by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.Outro Music by: That Girl Quartet. Song: When It's Springtime in Virginia (1913).

Episode 12: Jane McCraw + Nostalgia

Meet Joe Stinnett, a longtime newspaperman here in Lynchburg, Virginia. In our conversation, we talk about journalism, how the news gets made, Joe's career as a reporter and editor, and the history of our local newspaper.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 11: Joe Stinnett + Local Journalism

Meet Bill Harris, a local lawyer and magician. In our conversation, we talk about Bill's lifelong love of magic, his artwork, and his friendship with Bev Cosby. While many of our recent episodes have been about big, systemic issues in our community, this is a smaller, more personal conversation about magic, friendship, and the joy of doing things simply for the love of it.The cover art for this image is one of Bill's doodle art prints.If you enjoyed this episode, want to connect, or have a good story to share, reach out to me on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Instagram @billyhansenmai. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher living in Lynchburg, Virginia.Thank you for listening to the Lynchburg Neighborhood podcast. If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please leave a review and share with friends. Visit us at the Lynchburg Neighborhood PodcastMusic by: Ryan Andersen. Song: Coming Home. Ryan Andersen is an American composer and producer currently making music in Paris, France. Visit him here.

Episode 10: The Magician Lawyer

A podcast about the Lynchburg neighborhood, its people, and its history. By getting to know our neighbors and hearing their stories, we can feel more connected to this place. By learning this area's backstory, we can better understand how Lynchburg works, how it has changed, and where it may be headed. Billy Hansen is a commercial real estate broker, appraiser, writer, and teacher in Lynchburg, Virginia.

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Lynchburg Neighborhood

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