Town Talk
Town Talk: A conversation with Burke Moeller, Virginia Farm Bureau
In this Town Talk, our publisher Mike McCool speaks with Burke Moeller from the Virginia Farm Bureau. Burke Moeller, is a video producer for the Virginia Farm Bureau, interviewing farmers and others to explore the role agriculture plays and which sectors are most prevalent, and how the industry is changing.
This April, Virginia Farm Bureau’s Real Virginia television program will highlight Warren County as part of its County Close-up segment.
Each month, the County Close-up features a different Virginia county and provides an in-depth look at the area from an agricultural perspective.
The most recent Census of Agriculture, conducted in 2017, found Warren had a total of 321 farms on 38,697 acres, and the market value of all agricultural products sold that year was more than $5 million. Commodities like livestock, poultry, and other animal products account for 64% of all farm income. Crops make up the remaining 36%, with the major plantings being hay and forage, corn, and soybeans. Other commodities produced in the county include grains and fruits, tree nuts, and berries.
Real Virginia focuses on Virginia agriculture with a consumer audience in mind. The program airs nationwide at 3:30 p.m. on the first Saturday of each month on RFD-TV on Dish Network and DirecTV, and on selected cable outlets around the state. It airs weekly on WBRA Roanoke, WHRO Norfolk, WVVA Bluefield, and WTKR Norfolk, and on the first and second weekends of each month on WVIR Charlottesville and WRLH Richmond.
Watch Real Virginia anytime online at youtube.com/user/VirginiaFarmBureau.
With 130,000 members in 88 county Farm Bureaus, VFBF is Virginia’s largest farmers’ advocacy group. Farm Bureau is a non-governmental, nonpartisan, voluntary organization committed to protecting Virginia’s farms and ensuring a safe, fresh and locally grown food supply.
Town Talk is a series on the Royal Examiner where we will introduce you to local entrepreneurs, businesses, non-profit leaders, and political figures who influence Warren County. Topics will be varied but hopefully interesting. If you have an idea, topic, or want to hear from someone in our community, let us know. Send your request to news@RoyalExaminer.com
Town Talk
Town Talk: A conversation with Lisa Rudacille, Kindergarten Registration for the 2021-2022 school year
In this Town Talk, our publisher Mike McCool speaks with Lisa Rudacille. Lisa is the Director of Elementary Instruction for Warren County Public Schools. She wants to remind parents that kindergarten registration begins on April 6, 2021.
Town Talk is a series on the Royal Examiner where we will introduce you to local entrepreneurs, businesses, non-profit leaders, and political figures who influence Warren County. Topics will be varied but hopefully interesting. If you have an idea, topic, or want to hear from someone in our community, let us know. Send your request to news@RoyalExaminer.com
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DOCUMENTS NEEDED: |
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PLEASE REGISTER YOUR CHILD EVEN IF ALL THE ABOVE INFORMATION HAS NOT BEEN OBTAINED.
If you have any questions, please call (540) 635-2171, extension 34236.
Technical Questions: contact Amy Himes (540) 635-2171, extension 46125 or Kathy Gross (540) 635-7123, extension 46124.
Town Talk
Town Talk: A conversation with Kimberly Hancock, Code Ninjas

In this Town Talk, our publisher Mike McCool speaks with Kimberly Hancock from Code Ninjas. Code Ninjas is located at 217 E. Main Street in Front Royal.
Code Ninjas is where kids learn to code while building their own video games. This is where they learn problem-solving, critical thinking, and STEM skills in a fun, safe, and inspiring environment.
Coding has been called ‘the literacy of the 21st century’ for good reason. Just like math, science, and literature, coding is a key aspect of understanding our technologically advanced world. There’s a huge need for a generation that not only understands technology but how it works. Regardless of whether your kids one day pursue a career in coding, Code Ninjas teaches them confidence, logic, resourcefulness, and problem-solving skills that will serve them for the rest of their lives.
Find out more information here.
Town Talk is a series on the Royal Examiner where we will introduce you to local entrepreneurs, businesses, non-profit leaders, and political figures who influence Warren County. Topics will be varied but hopefully interesting. If you have an idea, topic, or want to hear from someone in our community, let us know. Send your request to news@RoyalExaminer.com
Town Talk
Town Talk: A conversation with Brittany Massey, Dance Instructor
In this Town Talk, our publisher Mike McCool speaks with Brittany Massey, a local dance instructor. Currently, Brittany is holding dance lessons at the Shenandoah Country Club. On March 8th she started teaching a Women’s Dance Fitness class. These classes are on Monday and Wednesday evenings from 6 pm to 7 pm.
Next week, starting on March 10th, she will begin a Line Dancing class on Wednesday starting at 7:15 to 8:45 pm. There are registration fees for these classes and more information is available on her Facebook page, or call her at 703-258-4662. Space is limited, so don’t delay.
Town Talk is a series on the Royal Examiner where we will introduce you to local entrepreneurs, businesses, non-profit leaders, and political figures who influence Warren County. Topics will be varied but hopefully interesting. If you have an idea, topic, or want to hear from someone in our community, let us know. Send your request to news@RoyalExaminer.com
Town Talk
Town Talk: A conversation with Annie Guttierrez, Jig ‘n’ Jive Dance Studio
In this Town Talk, our publisher Mike McCool speaks with Annie Guttierrez from the Jig ‘n’ Jive Dance Studio. Annie along with William Huck and Family Fun Day has planned a St. Patrick’s Day event on March 13, 2021, start at noon to 4 pm at the Gazebo in Front Royal.
Legend has it that if you catch a leprechaun then he must tell you where he hid his pot of gold. Annie says, “Down at the Jig ‘n’ Jive Dance Studio, we caught a leprechaun, but he stirred the pot by scattering the gold’s location on magic shamrocks around the town. Help us find the rascal’s Pot of Gold, and we’ll share the wealth!”
The St. Patrick Pot o’ Gold Treasure Hunt about fun and community spirit. A business participates by displaying a shamrock clue in a prominent location over the course of the event. The Pot o’ Gold event will run all week from March 13 – March 20. Businesses will also have treasure maps on Saturday to hand out to treasurer hunters.
There will be a grand prize as well as smaller prizes for adults and children. Treasure maps are to be dropped off – when you find the Pot o’ Gold – at C & C Frozen Treats or the Jig ‘n’ Jive Dance Studio on or before Saturday, March 20th. Winning maps will be drawn Sunday, March 21st.
Thank you to those displaying the shamrock clues, handing out maps, and/or contributing to the prizes. St. Patrick’s Day and all the hoopla surrounding it are near and dear to the Jig ‘n’ Jive Dance Studio’s heart. The Jig ‘n’ Jive will both perform and host activities at the gazebo throughout the afternoon on Saturday, March 13th. If you can, come out and enjoy the show!
Town Talk is a series on the Royal Examiner where we will introduce you to local entrepreneurs, businesses, non-profit leaders, and political figures who influence Warren County. Topics will be varied but hopefully interesting. If you have an idea, topic, or want to hear from someone in our community, let us know. Send your request to news@RoyalExaminer.com
Town Talk
Town Talk: A conversation with Town-County EDA Board Chairman Jeff Browne
In this Town Talk, our senior reporter Roger Bianchini speaks with Jeff Browne, Chairman of the Front Royal/Warren County Economic Development Authority Board of Directors. Roger sat down with Jeff to catch up on a variety of topics. Those topics included:
1 – The approaching mid-month declaration of Warren County as an official Spotted Lanternfly-invaded community. Hey Jeff, I have an idea for economic development – the Spotted Lanternfly Motel: “They check-in, but they don’t check out” – WAIT, do roaches have a patent on that one already?
2 – The long-awaited and finally ACHIEVED sale for the redevelopment of the Afton Inn.
3 – Signs, including the Afton sale, of a thawing in the relationship between the current EDA and the Town of Front Royal municipal government, including its new EDA executive director.
4 – How the long-term commitment of the Afton’s new owners, 2 East Main LLC and its principals Jim Burton and Alan Omar, may illustrate a trend in Northern Virginia/D.C. Metro area investment interest in Warren County and Front Royal.

Above, graphic from Dec. 29, 2020 Royal Examiner story illustrating 2 E. Main’s planned restoration and expansion of the Afton Inn into a commercial and residential anchor building for Historic Downtown Front Royal.
5 – An update on the “landing” of drone manufacturer Silent Falcon in Warren County.
And if those topics don’t pique your interest, you must have wandered into the wrong section of our website. – You haven’t, have you? Besides, where else can you hear that many topics of economic interest to our community discussed by someone at ground zero of them all in a 20-minute conversation?
Town Talk is a series on the Royal Examiner where we will introduce you to local entrepreneurs, businesses, non-profit leaders, and political figures who influence Warren County. Topics will be varied but hopefully interesting. If you have an idea, topic, or want to hear from someone in our community, let us know. Send your request to news@RoyalExaminer.com
EDA warns – Beware the Spotted Lanternfly: identify, report & kill
Town Talk
Town Talk: A conversation with Lorraine Hewitt and Mary Anna Ouakil, Dominion Ridge Academy
In this Town Talk, we’ll have a conversation with Lorraine Hewitt and Mary Anna Ouakil from Dominion Ridge Academy. Dominion Ridge Academy, formerly Front Royal Christian School, is a Pre-K through 12th-grade school in Front Royal, Virginia.
As a result of input from its stakeholders, the school board made the decision to change the name to better reflect its vision and approach to Christian education. The school’s mission and vision continue to be the same, focusing on building the dignity of every child and the new name better reflects that approach.
Lorraine Hewitt, the Superintendent, shared, “We are created in God’s image and with that, we are told to accept our dignity and take dominion of our lives. Thus, Dominion in our new name represents the direction given to us by God. Ridge is added because even though life has peaks and valleys, we train our students to holistically tackle each ridge. And, of course, the school is also located in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.” Hewitt added, “Academy was chosen because we have raised our educational standard and approach that reaches every child gifted to special needs.”
The way Dominion Ridge Academy achieves its mission and strives daily towards its vision is through its unique approach to the classroom, a groundbreaking approach that allows the teachers at Dominion Ridge to understand each individual child. This approach provides social-emotional learning in the classroom where the faculty at Dominion Ridge intentionally focus on the education of the whole child. Simply put, the faculty and staff at Dominion Ridge know their students as individuals and care as much about how they learn as what they learn.
“The name Dominion Ridge Academy better embraces who we are and where we are going,” Hewitt added. “We are reminded that Saul’s name was changed to Paul, Abram to Abraham, and Simon to Peter. The changes took place as God was ready to move them closer to the purpose he had for their lives.”
From special needs to gifted, Dominion Ridge is committed to the spiritual, moral, and intellectual development of its students and mediates a sense of competence, confidence, and belonging. Dominion Ridge provides the 21st-century learner exceptional and challenging educational experiences, including college preparatory courses with a dual enrollment program with LFCC, Regent University, and other universities, as well as performing arts, life skills, and athletics. For more information, call the school at 540-635-6799 or visit .dominionridgeacademy.com.
Town Talk is a series on the Royal Examiner where we will introduce you to local entrepreneurs, businesses, non-profit leaders, and political figures who influence Warren County. Topics will be varied but hopefully interesting. If you have an idea, topic, or want to hear from someone in our community, let us know. Send your request to news@RoyalExaminer.com