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Around here we have Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge – and a few years ago southside Virginia in Danville and Pittsylvania County adopted a similar tag line, as a way to re-brand the region. It paid off big time in 2025 when it comes to tourism and the tax revenue generated. Visit SoSi – that’s Southside Virginia – received the largest boost when looking at 2025 numbers when compared to 2024 no doubt by the opening of the Caesars Virginia casino, hotel and resort. In fact tourism director Lisa Meriwether noted it went up about 51 percent over 2024, when Caesars Virginia opened the doors to its permanent casino in December that year. WFIR’s Gene Marrano reports:

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Mixed signals from the new Virginia Consumer Sentiment Report released by Roanoke College, showing that consumer sentiment fell sharply after modest gains were recorded in the first quarter survey. The new online poll taken with almost 600 respondents in early to mid-August reveals that Virginians feel worse than they did about their circumstances in February. Wage growth has not kept pace with the resurgence in inflation in the latest Roanoke College survey, nearly erasing the real-wage cushion that had supported household spending earlier in the year. Roanoke College economist Dr. Alice Kassens says stubborn inflation and higher gas prices related to the war with Iran are a major reason. But Virginia households keep spending and are more optimistic than the national average about the future. Kassens, Dean of the Roanoke College School’s of Business, Economic and Analytics says politicians running on both sides of the aisle can make hay with the survey results:

Wawa has been in Virginia for more than 25 years, with more than 135 of its convenience stores and fuel stations in the Commonwealth – but has only started to expand into the western part of the state. This morning they cut a ribbon on West Main Street in Salem, giving away free t-shirts and coffee. The Pennsylvania-based chain has plans to open 30 more Wawa’s in Western Virginia over the next five years. The opening this morning included a hoagie-building contests between local police and fire departments, and a donation made to Feeding Southwest Virginia. Wawa has plans for 60 stores in the I-81 market over the next 10 years, averaging more than 7.5 million dollars investment per location. Each store will employ around 35 associates on average. Kim Dowgielewicz is director of Wawa  store operations in Virginia:

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Roanoke’s newest venue is packing its schedule with entertainment and special events.  As WFIR’s Denise Allen Membreno tells us its inaugural year has been a successful one.

Across the Way productions hit the ground running when it opened the exchange with Grace Potter on New Year’s Eve. That was just a taste of what’s to come.  In March the concerts started in earnest.  Now with just three months left in 2026 Sam Calhoun Chief Operating Officer of Across the Way productions says the rest of the year is packed with shows and private events, and they’ve started booking for 2027.  Floyd Fest fans will recognize The Futurebirds. That show is November 20th

“So we wanted to get them on that far out country tour that they’re on, managed to do so,” said Calhoun. “That also represents that tour is also going to the other established kind of music towns, Charlottesville, Richmond in Virginia. It’s another kind of tip in the cap to say, hey, we can do these shows too. We can do them in Roanoke. And that just means a lot to us.”

The Lettuce Cook Tour is October first and Maggie Rose is on stage October 8th.  See the rest of the events schedule at TheExchange.com.  Denise Allen Membreno WFIR News.

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The Exchange, Roanoke newest venue, is filling your calendar with great concerts and fun events this fall. WFIR’s Denise Allen Membreno has more.

Across the Way Productions is using its years of Floyd Fest connections to bring amazing music to the Exchange.  The Lettuce Cook Tour is October first.  Floyd Fest Fans will remember Maggie Rose.  That concert is October 8th.  Here’s Across the Way Productions Chief Operating Officer, Sam Calhoun…

“She played 24-25 Floyd Fest and was probably one of the shining stars of both of those festivals,” remembered Calhoun. “And so it was a no-brainer to bring her back to the exchange. And she’s excited. Those tickets are selling very well. So I do encourage people to jump on those fast. We don’t want to sell out on people. Yeah, we’re excited to have her play here.”

September 10th through the 12 is the Edgar Allan Poe Speakeasy Chapter 2—four Poe stories paired with four brand-new cocktails. November features the Futurebirds and two nights with Greensky Bluegrass.  Learn more and get your tickets at theexchange.com.  Denise Allen Membreno WFIR News.

Roanoke’s Mayor says legacy businesses are helping to keep the state of the city strong. More from WFIR’s Clark Palmer:

A Roanoke City council candidate is continuing to call for the removal of Flock license plate reading cameras. All this while the Town of Christiansburg has cut ties with FLOCK. Details from WFIR’s Clark Palmer

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Saturday A Few Old Goats Brewing or AFOG, is unveiling what has become a seasonal beer at its Buchanan location.  As WFIR’s Denise Allen Membreno tells us Sunflower beer was a big hit in its inaugural year.

The Sunflower beer was born out of a collaboration idea Candace Monaghan had. She runs the Beaver Dam Farm Sunflower Festival for her family farm and wanted something special to celebrate the event’s 10th anniversary.

“I didn’t even know if it could be done, but I approached them and asked if we could have a beer made” remembered Candace. “And of course, they’re amazing to work with and they’re kind of the same way. They love any opportunity to try something new. So basically we talked about like what kind of beer did we want a light beer or a heavy beer? And then we infused it with sunflower seeds.”

Ken McGraw, one of the owners of AFOG, had never heard of sunflower beer, but was up for the challenge.  He had found some brewers had combined roasted sunflower with their grain, but that was for dark beers, and they had to do something unique, a light beer finished with sunflower seeds.

“We made an American wheat ale” explained Ken. “So what we ended up having to do was use roasted and then hauled sunflower seeds. And we did what’s called basically dry seeding or wet seeding. And we made the beer, let it ferment out. And then once it was fully fermented, I took a bunch of roasted and hauled sunflower seeds and I aged the beer on fresh sunflower seeds.”

This is a small batch release.  The release is Saturday at the AFOG’s Buchanan location.  Ken says come sooner than later as the beer may sell out in as little as two weeks.  Denise Allen Membreno WFIR News.

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The Beaver Dam Farm Sunflower festival is next month but this Saturday you can head out to Buchanan and get a taste of the sunflowers…in a beer.  WFIR’s Denise Allen Membreno has more on the collaboration between the farm and a Few Old Goats.

Candace Monaghan had an idea so she went to the new brewery in town to see if they could turn it into reality.  Candace runs her family’s Beaver Dam Farm Sunflower Festival and last year was its 10th anniversary. She approached A Few Old Goats Brewery to see if they could make a sunflower beer. Ken McGraw, one of the owners of AFOG, wasn’t sure how they would do it, but he was ready to experiment.

“One of the things that people are saying is that sunflower seeds don’t have a lot of flavor, but for some reason it extracted a ton of flavor out of the sunflower seeds and it changed the flavor profile of the beer itself and made a really interesting unique beer and people didn’t seem to really like it,” said ken.

They decided to make an American Wheat Ale.  They let the beer ferment out and once it was fully fermented, they added roasted and hauled sunflower seeds.  Ken then aged the beer on fresh sunflower seeds. Candace says this unique collaboration benefits the entire community

“Last year, it was standing room only when people were there for the beer release,” continued Candace. “You couldn’t find a seat to sit down inside, outside. The place was packed. Everybody was enjoying it and having a great time. And then, you know, maybe they went down the street and had dinner at the local restaurant or they purchased gas, which helps. It’s more than just having one event at one spot. It’s all those people that you touch in relation that you come in contact with along the way as well.”

AFOG opened the Buchanan location in October 2024.  Ken says the brewery is a cool blend of modern and rustic with great vibe. If you want to try the sunflower beer, he says the sooner the better, it could be gone in as little as two weeks. The release is Saturday. Denise Allen Membreno WFIR News.

AFOG Buchanan

Beaver Dam Farm Sunflower Festival

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The Crumbl cookie chain has arrived in southwest Roanoke County, on Starkey Road. The line was out the door early this morning, with patrons looking to try the Crumbl chocolate chip cookie and other sweet treats. Crumbl Cookies has around 1100 locations in the US, Canada and Puerto Rico. The first 100 people through the door today also took home a free Crumbl T shirt. This is the third franchise for Patrick Gardner, he owns two other Crumbls in Lynchburg and Blacksburg. How does Crumbl Cookies keep patrons coming back? Gardner also says Crumbl corporate sends out new recipes every week.

With summer starting to fade away and Fall around the corner its a good time to look for some deals on end-of-season summer clothing -and this Saturday Downtown Roanoke Inc. says the annual Sidewalk Sale is a good place to start looking for a bargain or two Brittany Smith, DRI’s marketing and communications director, says their mission is to bring people to Market Square, Campbell Avenue, South Jefferson and other downtown streets for events like Dickens of a Christmas, the St Patrick’s Day Celebration – and the Sidewalk sale, back this Saturday from 10 to 5:

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The Roanoke Valley Holistic Hub recently launched with a mission to make holistic wellness more accessible to anyone who is interested.  WFIR’s Denise Allen Membreno has more.

The Roanoke Valley Holistic Hub is a new website that puts information on holistic practitioners and their modalities in one central place.  Founder Tara Jones says the goal is to make finding information simple everything from providers to explaining what the different modalities are.

“It’s a free online resource,” explained Jones. “We are offering think about or up to 37 different modalities now. We’ve got about 30 practitioners, everything from Reiki and meditation and yoga to therapy and counseling and aromatherapy and herbalism. It’s kind of amazing the variety that’s represented there.”

She says more and more people are looking for alternative ways to heal and stay healthy and the Roanoke Valley Holistic Hub is a gateway to that.

“One of our practitioners actually has a book,” said Jones. “She does hypnotherapy for pain management for pre- and post-surgery. So there’s a lot of crossover. People are really waking up to different ways of living and wanting to feel better. And we have lots and lots of folks that can help them do that.”

The website is offering a community giveaway-a free session with one of their providers.  No purchase is necessary.  Just go to HolisticRoanoke.com to enter by the end of the month. Denise Allen Membreno WFIR News.

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Massage, meditation, aromatherapy and yoga are examples of the modalities you can learn about when you visit the Roanoke Valley Holistic Hub website.  As WFIR’s Denise Allen Membreno tells us the goal of the new site is to make it easy to access holistic healthcare.

Tara Jones is a certified meditation teacher.  When she started her holistic health journey there was no centralized location for information on all the modalities available. She wanted to make it easier for anyone who is interested in holistic wellness to access it. So she founded the Roanoke Valley Holistic Hub.

“Holistic wellness is about the wellness of your body, mind, and spirit,” said Jones. “And we believe that if you heal yourself, you can heal the world around you.”

Early in her career she worked in medical offices doing administrative work and medical coding. Before she transitioned into holistic work full-time she worked for Microsoft for 5 years developing AI to produce doctor’s notes.  She says more medical professionals are seeing the value in holistic practices.

“They’re doing functional MRI scans now of folks who are meditating, and it shows the change in their brainwave patterns and the different parts of their brain that are lighting up live on the screen regulates your heart rate,” continued Jones. “So it’s not even just for their patients, it’s for them as care providers as well. Even just doing meditation every day is really gonna help you be more present for your patients.”

Jones says if doctor then teaches their patients meditation the patients will receive their treatment in a better way.  You can learn more about holistic healing at holisticroanoke.com.  Denise Allen Membreno WFIR News.