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With lofty ideals, VES thrived but the world changed. The 70’s, as most of us remember, was a time of rebellion and upheaval. Deferred maintenance and enrollment dominated by commuting students, tested the financial strength of VES. A new headmaster, Lee Sanford (Sandie) Anislie, Jr arrived with new ideas and determination to right the ship. He instilled discipline of daily chapels, required athletics, seated family-style meals on weekdays, coats and ties and reasonable compromise on style and length of hair (remember the 70’s?). This new discipline established VES as a “safe” place to send boys. Women were not admitted until 1987. In the meantime, VES was still facing revenue shortfalls. 

In 1974, a committee searched for property on which to build WC. For the first time in June of 1975, the founders mentioned purchasing property in Lynchburg, Chaplain Hobbs mentioned to Headmaster Ainslie that part of the VES property would be a great place to build WC. Both the faculty and the VES Board of Trustees endorsed the proposal. 22 acres between Williams Road and VES Road were sold to WC for $150,000. 

In a decision all resident can applaud, the board decided to model the WC buildings and campus after a model resort rather than the as an “old people’s home”, common at the time. The heights of WC buildings was set 779.3 feet above sea level or not to exceed the height of Jett Halll on the VES campus. In addition, to accommodate the elevator housing, 13 feet were added.  WC demolished two faculty homes to prepare the site for new construction. These were replaced with two new faculty houses on the VES campus at a combined cost of $100,000. Additional land was acquired from orphanage next door, the Presbyterian Home and now known as HumanKind.

Groundbreaking for WC occurred in December 1978. On October 18, 1980, the buildings were dedicated. The first 46 residents moved in on July 14, 1980. The original buildings included Brookside and Creekside as well as the Healthcare Drinkard building, now known as Riverside. The original plans did not include the Bridge, which was suggested by the wife Ebo Fauber, a local architect, the bridge was added during the original construction so that the buildings were connected. 

Life during those early years was a bit different. Coats and ties were required for men in the dining room, which only consisted of a dining room in the area of the current Café. Served family style, food was delivered to the tables. Breakfast was the only meal that was “almost” self-serve. There were two (2) shifts for meals to accommodate all the residents even though it took several years to fill the facility to capacity. 

The world had yet to develop convenient alarm system for use in each apartment, so the Hostess in the Cafe served as the gatekeeper. To assure that all residents were accounted for daily, the Hostess checked residents in for meals. 

The original board was geographically diverse with members from Staunton to Bluefield and South to Martinsville. Westminster Canterbury of Richmond served as welcome advisors while the planning was completed.   

Early planning and operation WE called upon the talents of several current resident of WC. 

• Joe Payne worked for many years in Development. John Payne, his father, was on the original board of directors. 

• Susan Wyatt, a resident of Brookside, is the daughter of the former headmaster of VES and grew up in one of the houses torn down to build WC.

• Ruth Tergeson, a resident of Creekside contributed to this history and been a resident since 2001.

• Charlotte Fischer was a board member for many years and the best recruiter. She reports that at one time, 47 residents followed her advice to move to WC. 

• Sharon Ainslie is a resident of Riverside. Sandy Ainslie passed away on October 22, 2023. Their son, Garth, is the current headmaster of VES. 

Many other residents or their family members have been associated with VES over the years so the above list is not definitive. A book about the history of VES, Our Centennial History: Toward Full Stature by Mary Molyneux Abrams is still available for purchase at VES. Published in 2016 during the Centennial year, the book tells the history of the school and the social environment of the times. 

Submitted by Margaret Mundy with assistance from Susan Wyatt

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