The Synergy of Wolverton Hills and R. Murray Schafer’s Productions
March 28, 2002
Written by Debbie White for the
R. Murray Schafer Productions Newsletter

Today the snow is gently falling at Wolverton Hills making it look like a winter wonderland even though it’s the end of March and the teasing of spring is hidden under the snow. After retrieving the mail at the road, I decided to walk through some trails to enjoy the fresh air and snow while surveying the land for any wind damage from the last storm. The dogs enjoying a run, flushed out a grouse that favors the protection of the pines. Even though I admonished the dogs for bothering the bird, I could not help but secretly be in awe of the beauty of the grouse, which, unless flushed out…. never get to see as they hide so well.

As I stood overlooking the frozen pond, I reflected on the past few years and how blessed we where to live on such a beautiful property. "Wolverton Hills", the endearing name we gave the property after we purchased it three years ago, seems to resonant throughout the land. "Wolverton", we felt, gave the connotation of wolves, the wonderful, mysterious, majestic creatures of nature. Also, the old familiar country ballad "Wolverton Mountain" depicts a place of country, mountains, and nature. Being on 200 acres of the Oak Ridge Moraine, we see beautiful treed rolling hills in all direction, therefore; "Wolverton Hills" was born.

Leaving behind my corporate life and ‘urbannay’, I felt like I was "coming home", never to leave Wolverton Hills. It has become our "‘lil piece of heaven". We knew when we found this property that there where greater forces at work and that this property was not just for us to enjoy, but to share our "‘lil piece of heaven" with others. My husband, Dan, comfortably is able to work from home operating his business consulting, where his clients enjoy the property when they come to do business. Having made a career change myself and previously suffered from burn out from the rat race, vowed never to return again and have focused me attention and talents on offering Wolverton Hills to those who need a getaway from the city’s hustle and bustle, and who need to get grounded in nature again.

We have a quaint cozy cottage overlooking the sparkling waters of the 2-acre Wolverton Pond, which is on the headwaters of the Pigeon River. I rent out this cottage for getaways and also offer holistic body treatment, like aromatherapy massage, to enhance the guests stay and to help them de-stress. Groups also like to use the property for workshops and enjoy the many kilometers of interpretative hiking trails. We have enjoyed developing a hobby farm where we have free-range chickens producing our eggs and donkeys and horses to enjoy. For those wanting to have a ‘country experience’ we encourage them to visit the animals and benefit from the therapeutic nature of our critters.

The nature around me inspires my work in pottery, interpreting the textures and shades of nature on the walls of my pots. Raku has become my favorite form of pottery since moving to Wolverton Hills, as the earthiness and spontaneous effects of the smoke and fire appears magically on the vessels. Our vision of Wolverton Hills is to offer a holistic place where one can come to restore & revitalize oneself through nature, solitude, and healing bodywork treatments and workshops.

In the fall of 2000 we were approached by Patria and asked if we would consider hosting the production by R. Murray Schafer, "The Palace of the Cinnabar Phoenix". We were thrill about the opportunity, not really knowing what we where getting in to, but felt it would be the perfect venue for Murray’s work and an honor to host the production. Murray’s environmental philosophy’s echoed many of our own. The idea of blending the music with the nature and the natural acrostics of the land seemed like it was meant to be. The production was a great success, thrilling over 1,450 patrons in a four-night performance. Again, this year with the offering of another of Murray’s work "The Enchanted Forest", we felt the synergy at work and accepted another production. We coincidently already had a trail named "The Enchanted Forest", which would truly enchant the audiences. Mother Nature will be thrilled to have the air filled with the sound of music.

The "Enchanted Forest" story line about the evil developers raping the land of the trees, could honestly speak of our concerns of saving the Oak Ridge Moraine, which now, more than ever, is a very part of our life, as we live on, breath the air and drink the waters of the moraine. We will continue to preserve the land at Wolverton Hills, so others can too enjoy the beauty of the moraine. We have participated in a Wet Land Conservation plan and monitor and record wildlife activities for them. It is an incredible honor to offer Wolverton Hills as the venue for Murray’s work. Again, we see greater forces at work, and are listening!

Debbie White
Proprietor of Wolverton Hills