Martin Beevers, the spirit behind the establishment of our newest site, sends these reflections on the 2-Day Introduction to Dry Stone Walling and the 2-Day Cheek Rebuild workshops that took place on June 26 & 17 outside of Nashville, Tennessee.
This was only our second workshop under the banner of The Stone Trust down here in Nashville. But already, I get the feeling we are adding a real Tennessee flavor to The Stone Trust’s growing number of training sites. This weekend’s workshops ran side by side with The Land’s “Living Off The Land” event. So together with a successful two-day experience of dry stone walling, we had beers and BBQ and live music after the final copes were in place on Sunday evening. Southern hospitality is a real thing let me tell you.
This double workshop offered a two-day introduction to dry stone walling and also a two-day cheek end course. A full house of 11 participants came from Georgia, Texas, Virginia, Tennessee, California, North Carolina and New York. 4 gals and 7 guys braved temperatures in the 90’s and humidity to match in what was a very challenging but highly rewarding weekend. Really encouraging that plenty of women with professional ambitions continue to come through our gates.
Despite the heat, a great deal was achieved and a great sense of camaraderie developed over the two days. The final half hour saw a real team effort to get the walls completed. We are creating a warm and friendly atmosphere down here in Tennessee. We take the teaching very seriously. But to do it with a sense of fun makes the whole thing so much more memorable. The smiles say it all!
Big thanks go to Franklin Smith who came over from North Carolina to share his wealth of knowledge. And last but not least to Lesley Mortimer-Wallace, who hosts The Stone Trust on The Land, an agricultural destination and “open air melting pot of the finest artisans and producers” (https://www.thelandcc.com/), who was once again the hostess with the mostest.
Next workshops are in September and October. Y’all come back now ya hear!
