2022 Maggy Awards: Lifestyle



Best Public School

Herbert Akins Road Elementary

Holly Springs High School
Willow Springs Elementary School

Best Nonprofit

Military Missions in Action

Meg’s Smile Foundation
Guardian Angel Thrift

Best Preschool

Primrose School

Johnson Pond Learning Center
Little Dreamers Preschool

Best Local Event or Festival

Beericana

HollyFest
Celebrate Fuquay-Varina

Best Local Music Group

2Digh4

Bender Street
The Rusted Rails

Best Place for Outdoor Recreation

Parrish Womble Park

Hilltop Needmore Town Park & Preserve
Bass Lake Park

Best Fitness Program

9Round Fitness

Burn Boot Camp
Original Strength Institute

Best Yoga/Pilates Studio

Bradley’s Yoga and Fitness

Prana Yoga
Breathing Space

Best Kids’ Program or Camp

Fuquay-Varina Arts Center

Rock Solid Warrior
Hunt Center

Best Social Media Account

Fuquay-Varina Memes

Rescued Wood Rehab
A Southern Wake Couple

BEST LOCAL PODCAST

Holly Springs Deep Dive Podcast

Girls Who Do Stuff
919 Beer

2Digh4

Best Local Music Group

Brothers Landon, left, and Aubrey Digh began developing their musical talents right here in Fuquay-Varina, taking lessons downtown and honing their craft at Fuquay-Varina High School. Now the four-person band travels around the Southeast, performing their signature country rock originals and popular cover songs.

 

Inside 9Round Fitness

Best Fitness Program

Jami Guillory, manager, Angela Maskill, owner, Luke Damo, Trainer

When the former owners of 9Round Fitness in Holly Springs wanted to close the gym, Paul Maskill didn’t want to lose access to his workouts, so he decided to buy it.

In the 18 months that Paul and his wife Angela have owned the location on GB Alford Highway, the pair has updated the equipment and improved social media awareness, focusing on serving the residents of Southern Wake community with a flexible and fun workout.

Owner Angela Maskill Takes Us Inside:

  • It’s a total-body kickboxing circuit workout. There are nine stations, each lasting three minutes. A three-minute timer keeps the pace, so after nine rotations, your 30-minute workout is done.
  • There are no set class times, no sign-ups. A new workout can be started every three minutes, so there is complete flexibility to suit each member.
  • The class changes every day, so you always feel challenged.
  • 70-80% of our members have zero kickboxing experience. Everything is modifiable. There is a trainer on the floor, and together you can decide what works for you.
  • It’s a great stress relief to punch and kick things. Frustrations get taken out on the bag.

 

Herbert Akins Road Elementary

Best Public School

Open Since: July 2009
Calendar: Year-round
Mascot: Hawks
Principal: Dr. James Douglas
Enrollment: nearly 1,000
History: Named for Herbert Akins, a veteran, businessman and community advocate, who lived in Fuquay-Varina from 1889 to 1965. Akins owned and farmed the land that the school was later built on, founded Varina Supply Company, and served as director and president of the Bank of Varina during his life.

Herbert Akins Road Elementary School has close to 25 books per student available, nine more than the Wake County average. (Source: North Carolina School Report Cards)

 

Primrose School

Best Preschool

There are 13 Primrose School locations in the Triangle area, two in Southern Wake: Primrose School at West Lake, in Apex, and Primrose School at Holly Grove, in Holly Springs.

 

Beericana

Best Local Event or Festival

Southern Wake loves craft beer, and Beericana celebrates that love by bringing together dozens of NC breweries, live music and food trucks in a one-day festival at Sugg Farm Park. Look for this annual festival to return in the fall of 2022.

 

Military Missions in Action

Best Nonprofit

Dedicated to assisting members of the armed forces, veteran and active duty, and their families through personal support and housing assistance.

$0.94 of every dollar donated goes to programs and services

58,000 veterans served

63,108 care packages shipped

731 building projects completed

533 veterans’ homes furnished

1,918 children of service members benefited

 

Randi Bradley, Founder, Bradley’s Yoga & Fitness

Best Yoga/Pilates Studio, Honorable Mention Best New Business

Found Randi Bradley, pictured center, holding hooray sign, with her Saturday morning yoga class

  • I taught free yoga online seven days a week, from the day the world shut down to July 1 (2020).
  • I opened the studio March 1, 2021. Since then, we’ve nearly tripled the number of classes and teachers.
  • My goal was to make people of any ability level feel successful in every single class, and feel better when they are done.
  • 95 percent of our yogis are beginner level. We welcome yogis of all ages, sizes and flexibility.
  • We are more than just a studio. We’re a community of mostly women who are there for each other.
  • Our busiest classes are usually the Yin classes, which are super slow, stretchy, calm and relaxing, and power flow, which is a yoga workout, with lots of movement and cardio.
  • The studio is heated to 90-95 degrees.

Bradley’s Yoga & Fitness offers free monthly events to members, like puppy yoga or partner yoga.

 

Fuquay-Varina Memes

Best Social Media Account

With good-natured jabs at all Wake County towns, Fuquay-Varina Memes has amassed a following of more than 42,000 across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Frequent targets are Cary’s public art, the odorous South Wake Landfill, shenanigans on the “Ladies of” Facebook pages and farm animals in Fuquay. We’re big fans of the monthly column in Main & Broad, too. Easily offended? Best to scroll on past this one.

Follow along @FuquayMemes

 

Holly Springs Deep Dive Podcast

Best Local Podcast

Karen Shore started the “Holly Springs Deep Dive Podcast” to create a dialogue with candidates for local office, understanding that local government officials have a huge impact on daily life, but details about campaign platforms and personal background can be hard for voters to find.

In her archive of 65 episodes, Shore interviews candidates, as well as local residents, entrepreneurs and community servants in a friendly, casual way.

“The best community is an informed and engaged community, and that’s what my goal was — to give the people an easier route to becoming informed and engaged,” Shore says.

More From Our Apr-May 2022 Issue
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