At Buena Vista’s Labor Day parade, members of the Rockbridge-VA250 gathered together to spread the revolutionary spirit of next year’s landmark anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, and the joint creation of Rockbridge and Lexington during the Revolutionary War, to be celebrated in 2028.
At the Glen Maury Park pavilion later that morning, Rockbridge Historical Society Executive Director and VA250 Regional Co-Chair Eric Wilson introduced the candidates’ speeches by emphasizing the core themes of these commemorations’ local, state, and national mission: grounded by inclusive community initiative and creative event planning, without any partisan affiliations or restrictive guidelines.
Members of the local advisory team, some of who participated in last week’s event, include Spencer Suter, Rockbridge County administrator; Jim Jones, park manager, Natural Bridge State Park; Co-Chair Sheryl Wagner, director of Lexington & Rockbridge Area Tourism; Ron Cash, Buena Vista City Council; Nicholas Betts, Lexington City Council; Jennifer Bell, finance director, city of Lexington; Mark Bryant, president, Military Officers of America Association; Debbie Garrett, Virginia Commission for the Arts; Anne Herring, Daughters of the American Revolution; Jay Lewis, Rockbridge County Board of Supervisors; Tracy Lyons, executive director, Chamber of Commerce; Kristina Ramsey, director of economic development, city of Buena Vista; and Matt Paxton, publisher, The News-Gazette.
For more information on upcoming events, and opportunities to volunteer, see VA250. org/rockbridge, or contact Director@RockbridgeHistory. org.
