Stonehaus Farms works to preserve food and the arts for the Martinsville community

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (WDBJ) - One couple is expanding their farm to help children in the community.

Stonehaus Farms was established in 1998 by Martinsville local Elliott Stone and his wife, Connie.

They use the many animals on the farm to teach sustainable living to guests through classes such as cheese, soap, and candle making.

“The sustainable part comes from our own health,” said Elliott Stone, Executive Director of Stonehaus Farms. “My wife’s mother died of pancreatic cancer. If you look into the situations with that, you’ll see that pancreatic cancer is caused by a lot of the preservatives and things that we put in our food system. So, we’re really working on cleaning the food and having some of our own.”

Along with preserving food, they are now focusing on preserving the fine arts.

They are constructing a new dance and music studio where kids in need can take lessons in ballet, piano, singing, drums, and more for free.

“One of the things that we find is that the parents could have an absolutely wonderful child and they see an opportunity to give that child lessons, but typically the cost is just too prohibitive. So, this gives them the opportunity to have us assist them in teaching that child and giving them those lessons that he or she would really like,” added Stone.

The music studio is almost complete and features a vocal booth, recording studio, and several instruments.

The dance studio will have a barre and a performance area.

“We see that the fine arts really is becoming a lost art, as well. I’m a former musician and my wife is a former ballerina. So, we want to give back to the community and see if we can help some of the children live their passion,” explained Stone.

They expect the music and dance studios to be complete by the end of this year.

Copyright 2023 WDBJ. All rights reserved.