Behind the Barn Doors: Tending the Vines

This week marks 15 years since the Barns of Rose Hill opened its doors. And, as I flip through the pages of the program from our Grand Opening Celebration, dated September 6–11, 2011, I'm reminded of how much has changed—and yet how much feels remarkably familiar.

Over time, though, everything needs a fresh coat of paint.

I'm usually too busy to slow down and get out the paint and brushes, but every once in a while there's a small project that's worth making time for.

The lettering on the stone at our entrance had been repainted before, but after several years of foot traffic and weather, it was ready for another pass.

It's something most people probably never see, but the words are worth noticing:

THE BARNS OF ROSE HILL

Raised by thousands of gifts

Fifteen years ago, those gifts helped make the Barns possible. Today, a big part of our responsibility is to tend what they built.

That responsibility takes many forms. Sometimes it's as simple as repainting a few letters. And sometimes, it means thinking much further ahead.

Which brings me to our endowment.

Ten years ago, we planted a vineyard. Not literally, of course, but in principle.

Investing in a permanent endowment is much like cultivating grapes. You plant with the future in mind, tend and nurture the vines, and give them time to mature. The goal isn't to harvest everything right away or all at once. It's to create something that can reliably produce year after year.

For the past decade, the Eugene B. Casey Foundation challenged our community to raise $100,000 each year to help build a permanent endowment for the Barns, with the Foundation matching those contributions dollar for dollar.

It was an ambitious goal for a young nonprofit, and meeting it once would have been an accomplishment. Doing it for ten consecutive years was something else entirely: a miracle.

And, this summer, we did something miraculous. We completed the final year of the challenge, reaching and exceeding our $100,000 goal.

Over the course of the decade-long campaign, there were gifts large and small, personal notes, phone calls, follow-ups, conversations after programs, and, in the final stretch, a fair amount of nail-biting.

But we did it, and we did it together!

And, at the end of it all, still reeling from excitement, an unexpected delivery arrived at the Barns: a congratulatory cake from two former board members.

It was assuredly the best cake I've ever eaten because it was so much more than a sweet treat. It was a symbol of what this milestone represents.

The Barns now has a $2 million permanent endowment—a financial backbone that will provide greater stability for the organization in the years ahead.

I happily accepted the cake, but this achievement doesn't really belong to me. It belongs to the more than 150 donors who answered the challenge over the past decade and helped build something that will outlast any single fundraising campaign.

The vineyard is planted.

Now we get to tend it and watch it grow.

Stewardship isn't always about looking backward. Sometimes it's about creating the conditions for someone else's vision to come to life.

We've had a good example of that in Orange on the Blue Ridge, Suni Mackall's original, semi-autobiographical folk opera about her experiences as the Commonwealth's Attorney for Clarke County.

What began as a deeply personal grassroots project has evolved into a fully realized production, performed by local musicians and embraced by local audiences.

The Barns has presented the production for three consecutive years, with two performances each August. Every performance has sold out.

From the audience, it looks deceptively simple: performers take the stage, the lights come up, and Suni's story unfolds through music.

Behind the scenes, it's considerably more complicated.

There are several days of rehearsal, dozens of lighting cues, and a whopping eleven microphones—plus all the other technical details that have to come together at precisely the right moment.

Over the past three years, Nathan has honed the production to the point where all of those moving parts come together seamlessly, bringing Suni's vision to the stage.

That's the part audiences don't see, and that's really the point. Our job is to create the conditions for artists and community members to do what they do best.

Sometimes that means presenting a concert. Sometimes it's an exhibition, a film, a class, or an idea that someone brings through our doors. The Barns doesn't have to be the source of every vision. We just have to be ready to help bring good ones to life.

And in November, we'll get to see even more of what happens behind the scenes when we screen a documentary about the making of Orange on the Blue Ridge on November 21.

The cast of Orange on the Blue Ridge performs for a sold-out crowd on August 22, 2026.

And then there's the gala.

If you've been around the Barns for any length of time, you know that a successful evening—especially a fundraiser—doesn't simply happen because everyone arrives on time.

There are menus to plan, auction items to procure, budgets to balance, timelines to build, lighting and sound to coordinate, software to configure, and approximately 123 small details that seem inconsequential until the moment they aren't.

And every one of those decisions has to balance the same two things: making the evening feel special while making sure we're spending responsibly.

But this year, more than others, we have an occasion to celebrate. Our 15th anniversary comes on the heels of a successful ten-year endowment challenge, making a gala the perfect opportunity to gather as a community.

And we're leaning into 15th anniversary tropes. Ruby red. Roses. A little extra sparkle, but without the black tie. Think dressy, but comfortable. No tuxedo or ball gown necessary.

For the food, Bonnie Blue has gone considerably beyond its usual barbecue repertoire with a menu featuring, among other things, an over-the-top seafood tower and a chocolate station.

They came to play!

Betty Friant looks over the spread at the 2025 Belmont at the Barns Benefit Gala. Photo by Cathy Kuehner.

And speaking of playing, fiddlin' Dave Van Deventer and former Barns Program Director Morgan Morrison will bring the music as the Furnace Mountain Duo. They're homegrown favorites, sometimes referred to as our “house band,” and it hardly seems right to celebrate this milestone without them.

The live auction will look a little different this year, too, with more items connected directly to the Barns and the programs we present. That's intentional. I want people to see the connection between what they're supporting and the place they care about.

So what exactly is a gala at the Barns?

Think of it as a concert, but with exceptionally good food and drinks, a few toasts, and half-decent jokes. It's a chance to dress up a little, enjoy an evening with friends, and celebrate the Barns.

In some ways, it's a little like a wedding, except you don't have to buy a gift for the bride and groom. You get to enjoy the party, and if you happen to leave with something from the auction, you've also helped give something back to the Barns.

A little self-indulgent? Absolutely.

Guilt-free? Also absolutely.

Because this is one night when we're asking you to celebrate the Barns by enjoying it. Have a drink. Bid on something you don't strictly need. Stay for another song. Raise your paddle. Indulge in the chocolate station.

And underneath all of it is the reason we're gathering in the first place: to celebrate the Barns and help sustain what happens here all year long.

Fundraising doesn't have to feel like a transaction.

It can feel like a celebration.

The Barns was raised by gifts. The endowment was built by gifts. The programs we present and the artists we bring to our stages are supported by gifts.

And we're still building.

We're still tending.

We're still making room for the next good idea to walk through the door.

So, on September 19, I hope you'll join us for the Barns of Rose Hill's 15th Anniversary Gala. Come celebrate where we've been, where we are, and where we're going next.

Fifteen years in, there's still plenty worth building.

Until next time,

Martha Reynolds
Executive Director