Hampton City Television Program – Round Robin and Other Segments – October 19, 2023
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Hampton City Television Program – Round Robin and Other Segments
Date: October 19, 2023
The provided transcript is not a city council meeting, board meeting, or public hearing. Instead, it is a compilation of multiple segments from a television program, likely produced by the City of Hampton or Virginia Farm Bureau, airing on October 19, 2023. The content includes segments on agritourism, gardening, cooking, pedestrian safety, local events, diversity training, music, vascular health, and fitness. No formal meeting minutes, agenda, or official public testimony are present. The following summary organizes the segments as they appeared in the transcript.
Segment: Bluebird Gap Farm Fall Festival
- Nick Meigel, a representative of Bluebird Gap Farm, discussed the annual fall festival scheduled for October 21–22, 2023. The festival features local artists, animal programs, hayrides, pumpkin chunkin’ (using a trebuchet/catapult), and pop-up animal encounters. The farm, operational since 1969, houses approximately 100 retired farm animals and offers free admission 365 days a year (closed Christmas and Thanksgiving). The festival runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with no cost for entry.
Segment: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion – Diversity College
- Mariah Roterer and Gabe Diaz from the City of Hampton’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion department described the city’s Diversity College program, which began in 2004 and has graduated over 5,000 participants. The program is free and offers three levels of facilitated dialogue on diversity topics: Level 1 covers baseline diversity, generational diversity, and inclusion; Level 2 covers cultural diversity, world religions, and socioeconomics; Level 3 covers race, culture, ethnicity, LGBTQ awareness, and disability awareness. Classes are offered in-person and virtually, with day and evening options. Registration is at hampton.gov/diversitycollege.
Segment: Local Musician Don Butcher – Lifetime Achievement Award
- Don Butcher, a Hampton musician, discussed his career starting in the Navy, his open mic nights at venues including Grand View Fishing Pier (August 1985), The Ordinary, Goodfellas, and others. He emphasized nurturing local talent and maintaining a “happy triangle” of entertainer, audience, and club owner. He and fellow musician Von Deal both received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Veer magazine. Butcher performed a song (“Shanty” by Jonathan Edwards) during the segment.
Segment: Vascular Health – Interview with Dr. Todd Gensler
- Dr. Todd Gensler, a vascular surgeon at Centero (CarePlex Hospital), explained common vascular issues: atherosclerosis (plaque buildup) in carotid arteries (stroke risk) and peripheral arteries (claudication, rest pain, tissue loss). He discussed risk factors (high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, smoking, family history) and modern treatments including endovascular aneurysm repair (stent grafts) and the new “wavelength” procedure for dialysis fistulas. CarePlex is the only facility on the peninsula offering the endovascular AV fistula procedure. Recovery for aneurysm repair is typically next-day discharge.
Segment: Fusion Fitness Dance Workout
- Alexis Perkins, fitness instructor, led a dance workout at the Hampton Roads Convention Center featuring music by local artist Dana Johnson. The segment included choreographed routines with steps such as “two-step,” “walk it out,” and “side to side.” Participants Taishana and Candace demonstrated the moves. The workout emphasized low-impact cardio and dance moves set to pop and R&B songs.
Segment: Pedestrian Safety – Perils for Pedestrians (National Broadcast)
- A segment from the show “Perils for Pedestrians” featured discussions in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, and Regina, Saskatchewan. Andrew Basold (active transportation planner) discussed safe routes to school and the bicycle/pedestrian advisory committee. Dave Sanderson (Pedal Fergus Falls) described the group’s work including bike lane advocacy, a mountain bike park, and a bike share program. Wayne Hurley (West Central Initiative) spoke about regional transportation planning for small towns. John Klein (Regina advocate) discussed challenges for pedestrians and cyclists in winter.
Segment: Virginia Agriculture – Real Virginia and From the Ground Up
- Barry Ridgway reported on agritourism in Virginia, generating over $2 billion annually. Farms featured include Virginia Mountain Vineyards (Botetourt County), Fables and Feathers Winery (Bedford County), Holly Fork Farm (New Kent), and Historic Greenbrier Farms (Chesapeake). Chris Mullins from Virginia Cooperative Extension visited the Faulkier Education Farm with Jim Hankins to discuss winter squash varieties (butternut, acorn, carnival, delicata) and harvesting tips. Recipes and cooking demonstrations were also included (marinated goat cheese by Chef Tammy Brawley, pumpkin pie cake and flourless chocolate cake by the Grill Sergeant from the Army Quartermaster Center).
Key Outcomes
- No formal decisions, votes, or resolutions were made during this broadcast. The segments served informational and promotional purposes for community programs, health services, local agriculture, and pedestrian safety.
Meeting Transcript
By the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation. For almost a century, Farm Bureau has been a friend of the farm for all Virginians. Visit our website at VAFB.com. Hello everyone and welcome to Real Virginia, a show about Virginia agriculture and the people who produce the wonderful local products we enjoy. Brought to you by the Virginia Farm Bureau. October is peak season for many things, including farm visitors. Winter squash is a fall favorite for gardeners and cooks alike. And we visit scenic Shenandoah County for this week's county agricultural close-up. Between the blue beach and shits of pee blue. Atlantic to my heart. Oh. Welcome back to Rio Virginia, everyone. We're coming to you this week from Hanover Vegetable Farm. Visiting a farm can be fun any time of the year, but many Virginians choose to come during the fall when the weather is cooler and there are plenty of seasonal favorites to bring home. Barry Ridgway reports that's one reason why many farmers see a bumper crop of guests this time of year. Fall is a great time to visit a farm for fun, education, or a special event. Such visits are considered agro-tourism, which has generated more than $2 billion a year for Virginia farmers in recent years. Vineyards are perfect for activities like wine tasting and special events. Virginia Mountain Vineyards in Bototad County offers a beautiful setting, 11 different wines, and friendly people. The agritourism part of the business is usually a very large part for wineries because it's a really tough crop to grow. There's a lot of overhead involved. So having your property open for events and people to come and sort of learn about what you're doing here is an important draw to get people up to the property. Sobieski says many of the visitors are local and frequent customers, but they often get out-of-state travelers from nearby Interstate 81. We're open and we're happy to see folks up here. We've got a bunch of delicious wines, so come up, bring the dog, bring the kids, bring your picnic lunch if you want to. We like to open the property up and for you to make it your your own for the day. Like many other wineries, Virginia Mountain Vineyards also hosts weddings and other private events. And you can rent the patio for an afternoon. They also host municipal events like Chamber of Commerce meetings. Wineries are like golf courses. They're in the most beautiful places. So we we love uh hanging out and uh drinking good wine. October is wine month in Virginia, and like dozens of other wineries, Fables and Feathers Winery in Bedford County offers wines and outdoor activities. It's a beautiful place for weddings and events, either in the vineyard or their indoor banquet room. SPCA adoption events and their Oktoberfest party, a celebration of the harvest, are just a couple of their events. Many of their visitors also learn about winemaking as volunteers. They'll come out all season long and they help prune and they help in the vines and they help bottle and to be able to talk to all these different people and learn about them and teach them about what we do. It's it's very cool. You meet folks out here and uh, you know, working, you know, volunteering, but then you know, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, they're out here, you know, enjoying their the fruits of labor. So it was really a really good time for me personally. Another familiar agritourism draw across the state are pumpkin patches, which often feature other activities like corn mazes and hay rides. Holly Fork Farm near West Point has something for everyone. It's a great place to have fun, but also learn a bit about life on the farm. Stephanie Ripchik says fall is the most important time of the year for them. It's just a great time. You can come and get your pumpkins, your chrysanthemums, corn stalks, straw bales, and so forth. It's certainly important to our local economy here in New Kent. There are just so many different items that flourish and that are for sale in the fall. Not only can you have admission to activities, hay rides, and so forth. You've got pumpkins you can pick.
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