This year's Thanksgiving edition will be full of more than just ads
This Wednesday, subscribers will receive the biggest edition of The News Leader this year, the Thanksgiving edition. The News Leader staff has worked up some good long-weekend reads for you — and of course the paper will be chock full of advertising and inserts to help you get a jump on your shopping weekend, if that's how you roll with the holiday season.
So, what can you expect to see on Wednesday's edition?
Century-old farm, the lowdown on holiday shopping and parades, and women with guns
On the cover: Monique Calello takes us to the county's oldest Black-owned family farm. Walter Brown of Arbor Hill in Augusta County was recognized by the Alliance for the Shenandoah Valley as a "valley treasure." What does that mean and how did it come about?
An Augusta County native, Brown and his family have been on a nearly life-long journey to ensure the legacy of Hidden Springs Farm, the same property owned and farmed by his grandfather and his father where Brown was born and where he lives now with his wife of 57 years, Joan. The Brown family started with a USDA easement to protect the powerful 300,000 gallons-per-day spring on the property that the farm is named after. The farm then earned a Virginia Century Farm designation, a recognition of farms that have been in the same family for more than 100 years.
“There is pride in having your own farm. I am going to hold onto this for my daughters and my nieces and nephews," said Walter Brown. "I know that it makes them feel good to have that legacy.”
In our first two installments of an occasional feature on guns and gun culture in the valley, Patrick Hite and I write about two very different aspects of guns in Augusta County. Gun raffles as fundraisers for volunteer fire departments has long been a tradition in Virginia and other states as popular ways to keep these volunteer first responder sites up and running. Lately the practice has come under fire in other states, and some of these raffles have been canceled out of concern that first-responders should not be raffling guns any more than they should be raffling gasoline and matches. Patrick looks at the area VFDs that have sponsored these raffles, and adds the local point of view.
I admit I probably had more fun with my contribution, following a couple of dozen women to an undisclosed location in the county to hang out and shoot handguns. I take a look at a local organization that empowers women to bear arms and why some women say they have chosen to get a gun and get trained; and introduce you to the two women behind C-BAR, a firearms training group (they train men, too!) that has helped over 600 people with training on concealed carry certification in just a few years.
What's a holiday without crime? Brad Zinn lays out the facts of a stunning new case against a local lawyer who's accused of swindling thousands of dollars out of incarcerated clients for failed court motions.
People can always debate about crime and guns, but there's no debate that the weekend after Thanksgiving jump-starts the holiday shopping season.
Patrick Hite gets the lowdown on how small businesses are preparing for that weekend that's just around the corner.
And speaking of just around the corner, another mini-season starts very soon after Thanksgiving, and that's the sudden appearance on almost every city and town of Christmas and holiday parades. Patrick's got you covered with the most comprehensive list around.
Special section, special features
Our Thanksgiving paper will also have a special bonus section, featuring:
A guide to sports viewing for the holiday weekend
Two full pages of recipes, plus the numbers for food-related hotlines, should you overcook the sweet potatoes
The Giant Thanksgiving Crossword. And I mean giant. It'll be two facing pages across to test your and your family's puzzle-solving skills
Kids coloring and games, as well as other games and puzzles for adults
The folks at Reviewed, part of the USA TODAY Network, will provide their ratings for hot items this holiday
More stories about how Americans are giving thanks this holiday, as well as a list of important dates to remember through the season
If you're a subscriber, look for this issue to hit your doorstep, or your mailbox, or your front shrubbery, on Wednesday. If you're not a subscriber, go grab a copy at the local grocery store or gas station!
And from all of us at The News Leader, we wish you a safe and satisfying Thanksgiving holiday weekend!
—Jeff Schwaner is the Virginia editor at Gannett. Reach him at jschwaner@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Thanksgiving issue has monster crossword, holiday shopping and great stories
