Hey, y’all. It’s Amie.

This week marked my eighth year in journalism. That means it’s due time for one of my favorite stories from “the vault.” About a year into my reporting adventure, I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing a 103-year-old woman ahead of her big birthday. She lived with her 87-year-old daughter. 

While inquiring about the centenarian’s life, I asked what all she remembered about World War II. “Well, not too much,” she said. “I was so little, you see. I do remember having three uncles in the war and being so happy when they came home.” As I wrote her response in my notebook, the daughter chimed in: “No, Mom. She asked about World War II. You’re talking about World War I.” My jaw might still be on their floor to the day because it surely dropped.

Whether you find yourself in the presence of someone who lived through World War I or you’re simply enjoying the kickoff to a nice weekend, I’m so glad you’re here. 

Here’s what you need to know: Some of the wackiest—and most impressive—world records were set right here in our state. From massive cakes to underground instruments, the commonwealth never ceases to amaze. 

Our top picks:

• Largest natural underground musical instrument—Composed of 3.5 miles of stalactites (rock formations), which are wired to a keyboard and can be struck with mallets to produce melodic tones, the Great Stalacpipe Organ at Luray Caverns is the world’s largest example of a lithophone.

• Most lightning strikes survived—Roy Sullivan, a Virginia-based park ranger, lived through seven striking experiences. Sullivan’s first lightning encounter happened in 1942, leading to the loss of his big toenail. Eventually, he earned the nickname, “Spark Ranger.”

• World’s largest kugel—No, this isn’t a delicious noodle dish, but rather a polished sphere that sits in a perfectly shaped socket and appears to “float” in a thin water stream. The biggest kugel in the world is the Mary Mortons Parsons Earth-Moon Sculpture at Richmond’s Science Museum of Virginia. The display measures eight feet and eight inches in diameter.

Looking for more wild stories from the commonwealth? We’ve found 11 unique bragging rights for those who call Virginia home. 

IVF has become a political talking point, but there’s more to the story. Right now, we want to give everyday Virginians who have IVF on their hearts and minds a chance to share their experiences. That’s why this week’s question is for anyone who’s ever been on an IVF journey: What’s your IVF story? Please share with us by emailing amie@couriernewsroom.com or by replying to this email. 

If you care about Virginia’s public schools, now’s the time to talk about it. The Virginia Department of Education recently announced a series of “accountability listening sessions” taking place throughout the commonwealth. These sessions are for state education officials to hear what Virginians want when it comes to potentially revising the Standards of Accreditation. 

Some of the proposed feedback categories include:

• Academic and growth indicators
• Chronic absenteeism
• College, career, and civic readiness

Dates range from Apr. 2-18 and will occur in each of the state’s eight regions. Specifics on dates for your region are available here. All meetings run from 6-7:30 p.m. Online public comments are also being accepted here.

• Does everything in your life feel a little more chaotic than usual? Or do you feel like misunderstandings are cropping up more frequently than they did even a few weeks ago? It’s not just you. Mercury is in retrograde now through April 25—and this celestial event may have an unstabilizing impact on your day-to-day existence (READ MORE HERE).

   

• Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin recently extended a budgetary olive branch to Democrats in the General Assembly. After weeks of partisan rancor over spending and legislative priorities, the new package contains more than 230 amendments to the two-year spending plan state lawmakers passed in March. The governor said his proposals would remove Democrat supported tax increases, as well as the tax cuts Youngkin had hoped for (READ MORE HERE). 

• Why did Gov. Glenn Youngkin shoot down the minimum wage increase bills? Dogwood’s social media manager, Ki Hearn, explains the rationale behind Youngkin’s rejection of  House Bill 1 and Senate Bill 1, which would’ve pushed Virginia’s minimum wage from $12 to $13.50 an hour (WATCH HERE). 

Throughout April, we’re sharing Virginia verse writers on our social media pages for National Poetry Month. Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok for the latest updates. 

Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Carl Van Vechten Collection

We did a bit of digging to find Willa Cather’s birthplace, Gore, which is located in the western part of Frederick County. That’s closer to the West Virginia state line than to Virginia’s closest city, Winchester! Cather’s hometown is approximately 1,200 miles from the setting of Cather’s most famous novel, which is based in Nebraska.

Cather’s inspiration for My Antonia came from a childhood friend named Annie Sadilek Pavelka. Cather met Pavelka, who immigrated from Bohemia (Czech Republic), when her family relocated to live on the plains. Many of Cather’s characters in the novel came from real-life encounters she had while living in Nebraska, according to the Chicago Public Library. 

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