Welcome to the maiden voyage of The James Exchange, a podcast for Southern Albemarle, Buckingham, Fluvanna, Nelson, and the Town of Scottsville.
I am Nancy Gill, some know me as the sidekick of Mary Hardy or aka Miss Tudala, others as that pesky town councilor that liked to follow rules and procedure, others as the Mayor of Scottsville. Those who know me best are my family and friends from all parts of this country.
As I travel throughout our region, roughly a 10-mile radius of Scottsville—give or take a few miles here and there, I will ask, “Why are you here?” So, in fairness, I will tell you why I am here.
I grew up in Thorndike, Maine. I’m not sure where the name came from since we were surrounded by the towns of Unity, Liberty, and Freedom. Due to the economy, my family moved from Maine when I was fourteen. This was a trying period for my parents. Our lineage as Mainers on my mother’s side was a century or so. Dad’s grandparents, as far as I know, hailed from Canada. I’ve heard Prince Edward Island, but where is the proof?
Economics brought my family to Virginia. The Lake Anna Power Plant played a dominant role in my last two years of high school. I graduated from Louisa High and I can tell you I had a fantastic time playing basketball, and I came away with really good typing skills.
Dad was transferred back to New Hampshire, then a couple of years later back to Virginia. My parents and siblings that were still under their thumb ended up in Gum Spring—Goochland County. I stayed behind.
Fast forward to 1988. I had graduated from the University of Lowell and earned a second BFA in Photography from the Massachusetts College of Art. During my last semester at Mass Art, my oldest brother was diagnosed with brain cancer. Well, one of my journeys in Massachusetts was to work for a neurosurgeon. He insisted my mom and brother come to Massachusetts. Dr. Gardner took care of my brother the last year of his life.
What about 1988? I moved to Virginia. Another fast forward to December 1995. One of my brothers asked me to help him stain woodwork at the house he was building. If you have been to Gum Spring, you know there isn’t much happening. So, I agreed. He asked me what I always wanted to do. Without hesitation, I answered, “Play the cello.”
A couple of weeks later one of his agents called him, my brother was a manager with Farm Bureau. There was this teacher in Scottsville who wanted to know if she could get insurance on her collection of string instruments. The answer was no. However, my brother called to ask if she taught cello.
On a raw, snowy day in February 1996, I came to Scottsville for the first time and had my first cello lesson with Mary Hardy. It was the beginning of a friendship that I shall always cherish.
I have a history in the newspaper and magazine world. To be honest, it would be the small world of Goochland. To me, podcasting is a dream come true. I get to talk to so many people and then I settle into editing audio files which to me is lots of fun. So here we go!
Welcome to the first edition of The James Exchange: Monday Matters 6.28.21.
In this issue, you will hear from Matt Lawless on the new ABC law allowing restaurants/bars to sell alcoholic beverages during special events. This could open the historic, downtown area of Scottsville to this activity. We also hear from Laura Mellusi on the Fourth of July, which is on the 3rd of this year, activities. I spoke with both Matt and Laura at the Batteau Festival on June 23rd. I took the opportunity to speak to those who came to the festival on the riverbank of the James.
Tally ho and here we go with Matt Lawless!
The James Exchange: Monday Matters 6.28.21