News Articles

A nice evening for a good cause #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

August 30, 2022

A nice evening for a good cause #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

Another great opportunity to meet a greet

August 29, 2022

Another great opportunity to meet a greet. #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

The ultimate event to meet and greet!

August 25, 2022

The ultimate event to meet and greet! #Movetomartinsville #martinsvillelifr

Join Martinsville Speedway in their 75th Anniversary Celebration!

August 25, 2022

Join Martinsville Speedway in their 75th Anniversary Celebration! #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

MHC has it all for recreation!

August 24, 2022

The recent well-deserved attention given to Lou Whitaker on his induction in the Detroit Tigers Hall of Fame has also brought attention to the rich athletic history of the Martinsville-Henry County region.

For those unfamiliar with Lou’s story, here’s a quick snapshot: Lou graduated from Martinsville High School in 1975, after a stellar career with the Bulldogs baseball team. I was lucky to see that career up close, as I had the privilege of playing on that same team with Lou. Actually, to use the word “playing” is a bit lenient – I had the privilege of sitting on the bench my freshman year and watching Lou do unbelievable things on the baseball field.

I remember the spring of 1975 so well – the parade of professional scouts coming to our practices and games and watching how Lou seemed unaffected by it all and played like the superstar he was. The Detroit Tigers were impressed too – they drafted Lou in the fifth round of the 1975 Major League Baseball amateur draft, and three summers later Lou was voted American League Rookie of the Year.

Lou finished his career with the Tigers in 1995, after five All-Star game appearances and playing a vital role in the Tigers' 1984 World Series title. He won three Gold Glove awards for fielding prowess and four Silver Slugger Awards for being the best-hitting second baseman in the league.

Lou would tell you that being raised in Martinsville-Henry County, a community that valued recreation and youth sports, played a significant role in his success. That same community commitment still exists today.
Martinsville-Henry County is blessed by so many recreation and exercise amenities it will be hard to limit this column to just a few. But let's try anyway.

We have more than 11 miles of walking trails with the Dick and Willie Passage, which meanders through the city and the county from the Smith River Sports Complex to the busy Virginia Avenue commercial corridor. A new section of the Dick and Willie is just about to begin construction from Spruce Street to Mulberry Creek near the City of Martinsville garage.

That Smith River Sports Complex (SRSC) facility I mentioned? It is a jewel, consisting of two state-of-the-art artificial l turf fields with lights; four other grass fields; walking trails; a golf driving range; and an amphitheater/festival grounds near the Smith River. The Complex is routinely booked every weekend for college and high school events, local soccer and T-Ball leagues, and parties at its various shelters.

Our local governments have robust offerings for the community. The City of Martinsville partners with the Henry-Martinsville YMCA for a variety of programs for young and old. The Henry County Department of Parks and Recreation offers multiple programs too, and also plans and presents an old-fashioned County Fair each September.

Let's don't forget Martinsville Speedway, the oldest track in NASCAR (it started in 1947, and NASCAR started in 1948). Martinsville Speedway plays host each year to two major race weekends for the NASCAR Cup Series, and also is the home to an annual Late Model Sportsman race weekend that is the Super Bowl for the small tracks on the East Coast.

Martinsville Speedway also serves M-HC by being the home for many community events, including Breast Cancer Awareness Month and for a children's toy drive in December.Then there's Fairystone Park, Philpott Lake, J. Frank Wilson Park, Jack Dalton Park, and so many other great venues that I can't fit into this space. We also have a rich history of high school athletics and multiple state titles in multiple sports. Patrick & Henry Community College is a member of the National Junior College Athletic Association and its baseball and soccer teams are among the best programs in the NJCAA.

We have two public golf courses and one private golf course. Chatmoss Country recently played host to the GPro professional golf tour and the players were highly impressed by the quality of the club, the course, and the people.

I'm out of space, but I haven't covered all of the opportunities we have to offer. I guess you will just have to visit M-HC, or make an effort to get out more if you already live here, to see it all for yourself. You won't be sorry.

We thank the Martinsville Bulletin for their community support and sharing this article Quality ...

August 24, 2022

We thank the Martinsville Bulletin for their community support and sharing this article Quality of Life is a strength of our area #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

MHC has it all for Recreation!

August 24, 2022

MHC has it all for Recreation! From the Dick & Willie Trails to the Martinsville Speedway! #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

WOW!

August 22, 2022

WOW! We are SOLD OUT for our evening of Good Wine, Food & Music event! Thank you to everyone would purchased a ticket! #martinsvillelife #MoveToMartinsville

A great event

August 21, 2022

A great event. Thanks go out to all that planned and supported this family oriented event. #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

Another great area asset #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

August 20, 2022

Another great area asset #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

MHC has it all, for work and play

August 18, 2022

What could you do with more free time each work day?

What could you buy with more money residing in your bank account? Instead of it jumping off your debit card to pay for basics like groceries, mortgage payments, and healthcare, it can go where the fun things are.

Today, more than ever, making wise purchases with limited resources is essential. Martinsville-Henry County is a great place to make your money and time go far.

For example, what could you do with spending up to 115.1% LESS money for basic expenses, including 642.7% less on the purchase of a home? According to www.bestplaces.net, these numbers represent the different between living in Martinsville-Henry County and living in Fairfax.

How about Richmond? Again, based on information at www.bestplaces.net, the cost of living there is 39.5% higher than here.

Need more? Charlotte is 44.7% higher. Raleigh is 48.6% higher. Roanoke is 21.2% higher.

The facts are overwhelming, and that’s why homesnacks.com ranks Martinsville-Henry County as the fourth-most affordable place to live in the Commonwealth.

If time is money, then the commuting patterns here and in the localities mentioned are impactful. According to insideNOVA.com, the average commuting time in Northern Virginia is 57.2 minutes a day.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the average commuting time in Martinsville-Henry County is 35.8 minutes round trip. That saves a M-HC driver almost 22 minutes a day over NOVA’s commute. That’s nearly two hours over the course of a week of suddenly-free time on your hands.

With time and money covered, a place to work would be nice. M-HC has them. According to the Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation, since 2018 an additional 1,358 new jobs and $379.5 million in capital investment were created in M-HC.

The area’s unemployment rate, which a few years ago was in double figures, now sits near 3%. More people are working locally than at least since the mid-2000s.

New companies such as Press Glass, Crown Holdings and Schock chose our community for significant projects. Local stalwarts such as Bassett Furniture, Hooker Furniture and Eastman continue to flourish by operating in
M-HC.

Still, no one wants to work all the time. Our options for free time are tremendous.

We have the Dick and Willie Trail covering more than 10 miles of paved path, with the next expansion beginning soon. Want to put a kayak in the Smith River? We have 10 access points for you.

Martinsville Speedway is the oldest track on the NASCAR circuit and plays hosts to two Cup Series weekends a year. The Speedway experience traditionally ranks at or near the top of all NASCAR tracks, according to the fans

We have the Smith River Sports Complex, which plays host to soccer tournaments, Ultimate Frisbee tournaments and high school and college sporting events. It also is the host site for the annual Smith River Fest, which draws thousands, each August.

If it’s live music that you want, RoosterWalk is your answer. The multi-day music festival is held each Memorial Day weekend at Pop’s Farm in Axton. Artists such as Grace Potter, Little Feat, Robert Randolph, Marcus King, John Cowan and Billy Strings have played the event.

Local breweries such as Scuffle Hill and Mountain Valley, and Hamlet Vineyards, provide locally-produced beverages and also play host to live music.

Is proximity to mountains important? We are less than 45 minutes from the Blue Ridge Mountains. We are 4 hours from Myrtle Beach and 5 hours from Virginia Beach. We are less than an hour from Smith Mountain Lake.
Odds are, if you already live here, you already know these things. But what about those friends and relatives who don’t know what we have?

That’s where our “Move To Martinsville” effort (www.movetomartinsvilleva.com) comes in.

We work with our community partners to bring more attention, and more people, to Martinsville-Henry County. We have everything a family could want in a community, as I’ve outlined above; we just need to make a better effort at NOT keeping it to ourselves.

I was raised here and I moved away for several years. Truthfully, I probably took for granted a lot of the things that our community provides for a family or a young professional.

But not anymore. We have a wonderful community and wonderful amenities. Let’s work together to let others in on our secret.

You can bring your ideas and dreams to life at the Fab Lab at P&HCC's Thomas P Dalton IDEA ...

August 18, 2022

You can bring your ideas and dreams to life at the Fab Lab at P&HCC's Thomas P Dalton IDEA Center in Uptown Martinsville! #MoveToMartinsville #innovation

Support our local Arts scene!

August 17, 2022

Support our local Arts scene! #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

Lots of FUN happening this weekend in Martinsville!

August 17, 2022

Lots of FUN happening this weekend in Martinsville! #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

A great evening planned at a great community asset; Hamlet Vineyards

August 15, 2022

A great evening planned at a great community asset; Hamlet Vineyards. Space will be limited, so act quickly. #MoveToMartinsville #martinsvillelife

Join us for an evening of Good Wine ...

August 15, 2022

Join us for an evening of Good Wine, Food, & Music from Blake Christiana of Yarn at Hamlet Vineyards! Dinner Service will be provided by Pickle & Ash from 6:00-8:00 pm. Local Artist, Chris Woods, will be performing during dinner. Performance of Blake Christiana will begin at 8:00 pm! Cost: ...