LIONHEART RESORTS in BUCKINGHAM, VA OFFERING SOMETHING FOR ALL!
by Dan Curran
Long-held dreams are becoming reality with the opening of Lionheart Resorts, a 260-acre multiple activity property in Buckingham County.
Located off Rt. 60 and Jct 628 at High Rock Rd. near Cumberland County, Lionheart is now offering (or will soon) fine dining, a conference center and recreation opportunities for many. Embers, their new restaurant, will offer a variety of delicious food, a chef table, and hot-rock cooking, followed by a chance to dance the night away in Embers nightclub.
Recreational activities include a 3-acre lake with white sand beaches, cabins, camping, sports fields, walking trails, equine facilities and mountain bike rentals. A zip line course will follow shortly with plans for a golf range in the near future. The Executive Chef has already joined the team at Lionheart and accommodations are readying for guests. The event and conference center, along with the beautiful serene environment, make it an excellent location for weddings, special events and retreats.
With the support of the Buckingham County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors, permitting was approved for Phase I of Lionheart’s five-year plan, including two restaurants, 100 RV sites and 100 staged camping sites.
Part of the property was formally the home of what was known as the New Dominion School for Boys, which closed a few years ago.
Regionally speaking, Lionheart is conveniently located only about one hour from the metro areas of Charlottesville, Lynchburg and Richmond.
The stated mission of owners Richard and Christina Kingswell is to…”Come for a Meal…Stay for a Week.” Richard and Christina’s expertise include many years of experience in the field of social work with adolescents, children and family. This has included owning and operating diagnostic group homes in Richmond, providing mental health services, and currently offering Treatment foster care for children through Extra Special Parents in Virginia. Richard Kingswell was born and raised in England and achieved the ranking of ‘Queen Scout’, which is the U.S. equivalent of ‘Eagle Scout’. It had always been his dream to establish a boy’s summer camp in the United States after volunteering at a Boy Scout camp. Christina was born in California and served with the US Air Force before moving to the east coast where Richard and Christina met. They discovered this beautiful piece of property for sale in the summer of 2010, and after purchasing it realized the site had much more to offer the community.
The Kingswell’s are excited about what this project means to Buckingham County and surrounding neighbors. Future plans will evolve with many more exciting and interesting venues, activities and amenities. With the continued positive support of the community, the Kingswell’s see employment opportunities in the near future for over 100 new jobs to the local community. There will be memories created here, sure to last a lifetime! The Kingswell’s would love you to follow them on Facebook for the most up to date information.
MARIE SWEENEY & REV. JIMMY DUNN HONORED AT 2013 BUCKINGHAM CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNUAL AWARDS DINNER
The Buckingham Chamber of Commerce, in 2003, began honoring county residents who have unselfishly contributed their time and talents to the greater community.
At the annual Chamber dinner each January, two awards are presented, the Lifetime Achievement Award and the Volunteer of the Year awards.
If you know of someone deserving of either of the awards below, please send your letter to the Buckingham Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 951, Dillwyn VA 23936.
Nomination Letter of Marie Sweeney As Volunteer of the Year
Marie is a seemingly tireless volunteer in many civic organizations but I will speak for the selfless devotion and hours that she pours into the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and the continuation of our mission. I have had the privilege of knowing and working with Marie for the four years that I have been associated with the VFW Post 8446. Marie recruited me for the VFW after a few years of vigilant “bulldogging” which is a great segue to my first point of merit. Marie is the lead recruiter for our post, at any giving time she carries membership applications in her purse so as to always have one at hand, no matter where it may be as soon as a veteran identifies themselves to her the next question she has is “Are you a member of the VFW?” and out comes the membership application. Because of Marie’s efforts in this area we have exceeded our membership obligations for the past 5 years, an honor among all VFW posts.
Marie currently serves as Commander of Post 8446; she held this position a few years ago as the first female commander in post history, she declined re-election due to other obligations for one term, but of course remained vigilant in her other assumed duties at the post. Due to the untimely parting of our Post Commander, comrade and friend, John Marshall Harris, the position needed to be filled. Marie naturally volunteered in a time of need and was elected, unanimously, as Post Commander, once again.
The majority of our Post’s income and operating capital is generated through the rental of the Buckingham Veterans Memorial Hall, once again Marie gets all the credit for this program. She has taken charge of the program and through her efforts has created a truly viable and reliable source of income. Marie takes the reservations, meets the renter at the hall to go over the rules, the rental agreement and hand off the keys the night before each rental. After the rental Marie goes back to the hall to collect the keys, tidy up for the next renter and inspect the post for damage, most often this occurs twice a weekend. Due to her efforts the post is booked every weekend, and some weekdays throughout the year and months in advance. No other member has ever been so dedicated to this program and its success.
Every month Marie personally calls each of our 67 members to remind them of our monthly meeting and breakfast, she also takes this time to talk with each member about their well being and the well being of their families. She reports at each meeting on the status of members that need our prayer or assistance. She continues this service diligently and it is greatly appreciated by all. As commander, her duties go beyond the conduction of meetings. Marie goes above and beyond the duties of the billet performing each task with dedication and pride. She conducts speeches at Memorial Day, the 4th of July and any other patriotic events at which she may be asked to speak. She regularly visits our members that may be in assisted living facilities or the hospital. She attends JROTC and Scouting events. Marie completes all these tasks while working, running a household and seeing to her numerous family obligations. She is also an active member in other civic groups such groups as the Buckingham Active Seniors and the Friends of the Library. I can think of no one more deserving of the title Volunteer of the Year than my Commander, comrade and friend Marie F. Sweeney.
Respectfully Submitted;
George B. Stish Quartermaster / Adjutant Post 8446 and Fire Marshall Toga Volunteer Fire Department
Nomination Letter of Rev. Jimmy Dunn For Lifetime Achievement Award
submitted by Gwynn Tyler
“Hey How you doing”? Have you heard those words before? The first time I heard them was back in 1977. Phyllis and I had recently moved to Buckingham. One Saturday afternoon there was a knock at the door. I looked out and there was this young guy standing there. I opened the door and he said, “hey how you doing, my name is Jimmy Dunn. I’m the pastor at Maysville Baptist Church.” He was out visiting and stopped by to invite us to church.
We hadn’t joined a church yet so we checked out Maysville Baptist and eventually joined a few months later. It didn’t take long to realize that Jimmy was a caring pastor who was sincere in his faith, faithful to his family, and someone who had a heart for missions.
When I think of Jimmy Dunn, I think of visitation and missions. Most of you know how dedicated he is to visit church members, friends, and members of the community when they are sick or in the hospital. He visits the bereaved and ministers to those who are hurting in other ways.
Jimmy is often seen out in the community supporting young people at ball games, or participating in fund raising events. He is just one of those folks who likes to be with people. Over his many years of ministry, Jimmy has had a positive influence on people in his churches and community. Whether it was in Halifax County or Drakes Branch, Buckingham or the Northern Neck, people love and respect Jimmy as a minister who genuinely cares about them.
Jimmy has always had a love for mission work. He taught about missionaries in church, promoted mission work in the community and in other parts of the world. He also participated in mission projects himself, both here and abroad.
One program in our church involved leading young boys and teaching them about missions. Jimmy would often take the group out into the community to help elderly folks and widow ladies with yard work. Sometimes he would take them out Christmas caroling. He taught them about working together to help others while learning about the things of God. He also took them to ball games and did other things to help them not only to have fun, but also to learn about fellowship with each other.
One of those boys went on to be a college professor, one is a pastor, and others have become successful businessmen. I am confident that Jimmy’s influence played an important role in their lives.
Back in the early 1980’s Jimmy’s love for mission work took on a new role. A member of a former church was looking for volunteers to do short term mission work in Honduras. Jimmy jumped at the chance to go and helped pull together a group of other men from Buckingham to go as well. On the first trip they built classrooms at a church so they could have Bible study. The next year they helped build a new church.
For the past 30 years, Jimmy’s enthusiasm helped to spark mission teams and individuals from the James River Baptist Association to go and participate in mission projects from Boston Massachusetts, to Slidell MS, to Mexico, to Panama, to Argentina, numerous trips to Honduras, to the Indian reservation in South Dakota, and right here in Buckingham County.
Members of these teams have ministered to those affected by disaster, helped those who were sick, assisted with the construction of over a dozen churches, helped build a medical clinic, and helped meet the needs of those who are less fortunate than we are who live in poverty. While these projects were being done, the love of Jesus was being shared.
When Jimmy left Buckingham to go to the Northern Neck, he got involved with the local Hispanic ministry. When he returned here, he helped to get a Hispanic ministry going in our area to help the local Hispanics adjust to life here and to help them to feel at home.Jimmy isn’t a block layer or a doctor. He can’t speak much Spanish, although he tries to make up a few words that occasionally get him in trouble. I don’t think he can operate a sewing machine or do much carpentry work. But you don’t need to do those things when you can surround yourself with people who can.
When you have a vision, a heart for missions, the ability to work with people, the support of your family and your church, along with a strong faith in God a lot of good things can happen. Jimmy has all of these things. As a result, over the years, his influence and leadership have resulted in a lot of good work being done both here in the States as well as overseas.
Because of his influence and his legacy, it is my privilege to recognize my friend Reverend Jimmy Dunn as the recipient of this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Thank you Jimmy for all you have done in the past, all you will continue to do, and all that you mean to each of us.
DONATIONS SOUTH FOR HERITAGE HALL PATIENT AID FUND
Heritage Hall-Dillwyn, located at 119 Brickyard Drive, is a 60-bed facility that allows the staff to work closely with residents and families. They have a hometown connection that maintains a high standard of excellence and a heritage of quality and commitment to the residents. Physical, occupational, and speech therapies are offered for individuals needing rehabilitative services. Residents renew their skills while being helped to attain their highest level of functioning. Both short-term and long term care are provided. State-of-the-art health care services include daily rehabilitative services, specialized wound care, and safety training in the home.
Most of the residents are long-term care and the facility has established a Patient Aide Fund to help accommodate activities and personal needs. The fund is used to purchase meals for residents that go on monthly trips. These trips enable the residents to interact with others and have an opportunity to be out in the community. In the past the residents have been to restaurants, bowling, the apple orchard and other places. The fund is also used to purchase personal items that a resident and/or their family are not able to purchase. For example, funds were used to purchase a wig for a resident who had lost most of her hair. The wig gave her self confidence and she started to socialize with others.
Donations can be made to the Heritage Hall- Dillwyn Patient Aid Fund in honor or in memory of a Resident.
Please feel free to contact Heritage Hall at (434)983-2058, come by for a tour, or visit their website at www.ahc.cc.
ANNUAL EVENTS IN BUCKINGHAM COUNTY
Historic Buckingham, Inc invites you to: Annual Spring Meeting
April 29th 2:30pm at Rocky Mt. Church. Speaker: David Spears, Geologist State of Va.
Annual Fall Meeting
September 20 5:30pm at Historic Village
Do You Know of a Club or Organization That Should Be Listed Here? If So, Please Contact the Buckingham Chamber of Commerce at 983-2372