Waverly Couple Shapes Local Dulcimer Culture

by Jill Dickert

Gary and Toni Sager, co-owners of Prussia Valley Dulcimers: Acoustic Music Shop, indubitably have expanded the folk music culture in Waverly, Ohio. By pursuing their passion, they have surpassed being a mere music shop and instead have extended the store into part of Pike County’s local culture.

How it all began:

Sager built his first mountain dulcimer, a uniquely shaped, carved and plucked musical instrument that is a big component of the Appalachian folk music scene, in 1991 after seeing David Schnaufer's music video for "Fischer's Hornpipe" on CMT. He had always been a country and folk music enthusiast. After seeing the video, he wanted to know more about dulcimer instruments.

At the time, Gary was an electrician at the RCA/Thomson plant in Circleville, Ohio where he had been working since April of 1971. A co-worker gave Gary a book that contained instructions for making mountain dulcimers after Gary expressed his interest in the instrument. With the help of the book and determination, Gary constructed his first dulcimer. “It wasn't the best sample of my work for sure, but the instruments gradually improved,” says Gary.

Prussia Valley Dulcimers: The Early Years

Gary had been building mountain dulcimers for a few years and his interest in folk music only increased throughout the years. Gary’s wife Toni is also passionate about folk music. After seeing a woman playing an autoharp at the Fraley Mountain Music Festival in Kentucky, she became enthralled with the stringed instrument that has a series of chord bars attached to dampers which, when depressed, mute all the strings other than those that form the desired chord. The autoharp is a flat instrument that does not really resemble a harp at all.

Gary and Toni started to attend some local dulcimer festivals such as Fort New Salem Dulcimer Festival, Dulcimer Doin's in Dayton, Ohio, and Buckeye Dulcimer Festival in Ashley, Ohio. The couple quickly learned that the attendants of these festivals were also interested in dulcimer cases, picks, tuners, CDs and tablature books. Soon Gary and Toni decided to sell some of those items in addition to the dulcimer instruments that Gary made at the festivals. “After achieving success with these festivals, it just seemed logical to open a store in 2001,” says Gary.

Prussia Valley Dulcimers, nine years later:

The shop has seen a great many changes since its inception in 2001. A re-location has occurred and it has since expanded from a mere music store. Gary and Toni made the executive decision to make the store more than a dulcimer-selling entity and now sell several other acoustic instruments such as guitars, harps, fiddles, banjos and autoharps. There is a freestanding Web site to place online orders, workshops and lessons, CDs available for purchase and even a publication titled Dulcimer Players News. Gary and Toni continue to brainstorm and implement initiatives to extend the Prussia Valley Dulcimers presence in Pike County. They have recently developed a program with Bristol Village, the new senior citizen center in Waverly. Gary is going to offer free group workshops on playing the mountain dulcimer for the seniors. “It should be fun and we hope to help generate more local interest in the mountain dulcimer,” says Gary.

O2 Coffee House and Cabaret

by Anna Williams

Web Editor

As I walk down N. Market Street in downtown Waverly, Ohio on a brisk November afternoon, I’m overcome by nostalgia. I’ve never been here before, never even seen a place like this, but somehow I can’t help but imagine this small town as it had been in its heyday.

Advertisements painted on brick buildings are chipped from decades of weathering. A few neon signs light up the otherwise dim stretch of establishments. Above the door of the Emmitt House Restaurant, a well-known historical landmark in Ohio, hangs a sign that it has closed. Temporarily, I soon learn, but I immediately get the sense that this town is going through some economic hardship, like most of Southeast Ohio.

I continue down the street a sign catches my attention. It reads “O₂ Coffee House and Cabaret.” Intrigued, I learn more.

O₂ Coffee House opened in June of 2009 and despite the surrounding economy, it has thrived since day one. This gourmet coffee shop is a first for Waverly, offering espresso, gourmet coffee, deli sandwiches, soups, and it’s most popular item, Crispie Crème donuts. Crispie Crème is a local bakery out of Portsmouth, Ohio and delivers fresh dozens to O₂ daily. You name it, they have it. Cinnamon rolls to the traditional glazed donut, customers order them all. The best part, they’re just 80 cents a piece.

The coffee and espresso are also from a local company called Silver Bridge Coffee out of Gallipolis, Ohio. Blends brewed fresh throughout the day include Jamaican Me Crazy, Sumatra, Colombian, Hazelnut, and a variety of flavored coffee. Co-owner Jennifer Farmer suggests trying the espresso; “They say it’s the strongest in town.” It’s also one of their best sellers.

“Before us, Tim Hortons was the closest thing to gourmet coffee in Waverly,” says Farmer. She and her friend and co-owner Ashley Henson originally opened O₂ Coffee House and Cabaret serving only donuts and coffee, but expanded their menu due to demand. It is easy to see why this place rarely experiences slow days.

Located at 115 N. Market Street, the building has previously housed a bank, a post office, a gyro shop, and a Christian bookstore. And it is hard to forget this past, considering a pivotal part of the café is located inside the building’s old safe, built in 1951 by Waverly State Bank.

Inside, the walls are now painted black and covered with hundreds of silver signatures from visitors. One clever scribble reads, The safest place we’ve ever been! After just reading a few, you get the sense that this town is truly grateful for the atmosphere this place provides. Two comfy chairs, a pub table with stools and a dining table are cozily arranged inside the safe against the black walls.

Art hangs from the main room’s cream-colored walls, which feature a different local artist every month. Not one of the couches, lamps or tables is the same. But the mismatched-ness just adds to the comfortable atmosphere that channels the jazzy 1920s.

At least five times a week around lunchtime, O₂ serves as a venue for local and regional musicians.

The meaning behind the name O₂ Coffee House and Cabaret has much to do with this inviting and pleasant atmosphere. O₂, being the elemental symbol for oxygen, functions as a metaphor. Farmer says that we need oxygen to live, and similarly, we need the Holy Spirit to live; “It’s just there and you don’t have to force people to breathe it.” She admits that the original purpose of the coffee shop wasn’t about the coffee at all, but rather to serve as a non-threatening place for people to go that’s not a church or a bar, but an in-between of them both.

Comfy and affordable, the cafe attracts both young and old from around the region. Its hours are 6 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday, and 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday and Friday. Stop in for a cup of hot coffee, freshly made chowder, or just to chat with one of the owners. Whatever brings you here, it’s likely to make you want to come back.