You have probably heard about cancer survivors, right? Well, meet Jamie Schankweiler, a woman who goes beyond surviving to full on thriving.
Undaunted by a diagnosis of breast cancer and a double mastectomy in 2019, Jamie looked to the future. She and her husband Alan bought a storybook 19th century farmhouse and moved across the state where she opened a business in her new hometown of Lexington, Virginia.
Most recently Jamie took perhaps the bravest step of all: deciding to close that business and focus on her family and herself in 2025. Her story proves that sometimes the best way to get what you want is to let go of something else.
Jamie has never been one to shy away from making tough decisions. She is a self-described Air Force brat who clearly inherited her late fighter pilot father’s moxie. After graduating from high school and studying hair design in Northern Virginia, at age 19 Jamie decided to join the Air Force herself. She withheld information about her father’s career, determined that the rank of Colonel “belonged to him,” not her.
Joining the Air Force proved to be a momentous decision. Just after basic training in 1996, she met another young airman, who would become her husband after a nine-month courtship. Jamie and Alan decided to leave the Air Force when she became pregnant with their second child, Zachary, in 2001, four years after the birth of their daughter Alexis. That might have been the first time that Jamie learned the value of letting go of something—serving in the military—to embrace something else—raising her young family.
Did I mention that Jamie is the ultimate DIYer, artisan, craftsperson and entrepreneur? She stewarded several successful businesses to showcase those talents, including a furniture painting and refurbishment company and a funky shop in Richmond that sold everything from Jamie’s painted furniture to hand-made jewelry and other crafts.
She named the store “The Stolen Pig,” in honor of a game she and her mother played. Jamie found a white ceramic pig one day shopping at Michaels. She decided it would be fun to hide the pig in her home and then challenge her mother to find it. Her Mom would then steal it back to hide in her house for Jamie to find, sometimes even "booby-trapping"it.
Of course, just naming the store in honor of the game was not enough. Jamie and Alan adopted an actual pig named Paisley, who became a fixture at the store and rode there every day, often sitting on Jamie’s lap. Paisley now enjoys her own pink and very feminine living quarters in Jamie’s farmhouse that is also home to three other fur babies: a Husky named Havoc, an Aussie called Bentley, and the sweetest rescue mutt named Buddy. They don’t seem to mind the company.
They are indeed a lucky group of critters to get to live in Jamie and Alan’s home. It’s warm, welcoming, and full of whimsy character, and charm, just like its owners. The Christmas decorations were a sight to behold and should be featured on a holiday home tour.
The journey to get there was tough. Jamie’s father had been diagnosed with cancer in 2009, and in late 2014 he discovered that it had returned, another turning point for Jamie and Alan. Jamie decided to close The Stolen Pig and move closer to her Dad to spend as much time with him as she could before his passing in February 2015.
Just a few years later in 2018, Jamie’s mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and urged her daughter to get a mammogram as soon as possible. And in 2019, at age 43, Jamie had her first mammogram and learned that she too had breast cancer. Jamie credits her mother for saving her life.
In 2021, Jamie and Alan began the search for their dream home, wanting it to be close enough to the Richmond area for their family to come visit. As soon as they saw the listing for their 1852 stunner in Lexington, Virginia, they knew it was the one and moved quickly to snap it up.
Buying that house led to the creation of Jamie’s most recent business, Hatterwick, her candle store and DIY event space in Lexington. She made a candle as a thank you gift for the seller of the house. The seller—who himself owns a beloved local gift shop—urged her to “make more” and sell them. And just like that, Hatterwick was born.
Serendipitously, a store front space came open and Jamie made her move to open Hatterwick. Her candles—all hand poured—were a hit and before long Jamie even started hosting “candle-making parties,” one of which I was lucky enough to attend. Jamie is the consummate hostess—charming, authentic, and always armed with a smile and a hug. The space that she created is nothing short of magical.
What I did not know was that Jamie was recovering from emergency surgery to remove her right breast after it had gone septic--her third surgery after her double mastectomy--when she opened Hatterwick in May 2022. That meant she was painting, moving in, decorating the new space, and making a crap ton of candles literally WITH ONE HAND. I am not sure I could have done it with two hands and army of help.
Sadly, Jamie’s mom passed away in March 2024. Initially, Jamie says that she buried herself in the store even more to try to ease her grief. But then she took a step back to rethink her priorities. One day someone asked to see a photo of her son. To find one photo of her family, she had to scroll through dozens of “work photos.” That gave her pause.
Jamie also got some good news in December: a space had opened up at UVA Medical Center for her to have a specialized surgery that would remove belly fat and use it to reconstruct her breasts. The recouperation time for such a procedure is around three months and takes quite a toll. But it’s something that Jamie always wanted to do for herself.
Jamie made the bold and brave decision to close Hatterwick to focus on preparing for her surgery and spending more time with her family. She describes her farmhouse as the “perfect place to play hide and seek” with grandbabies she is eagerly hoping for. She also has plans to perfect her homestead—complete with chickens and a garden.
I asked Jamie if making such big decisions scared her. “Oh yes,” she replied, flashing that characteristic twinkle in her eyes and million-dollar smile “Always. But when you know, you know.”
I was heartened to hear (as an official pyromaniac and huge fan of Jamie’s candles) that she is keeping an eye out for future opportunities to make them available again. So stay tuned!
Jamie is a real-life heroine who embodies the spirit of “doing it scared.” I admire her courage to take a hard look at her life. To keep evaluating what serves her and what does not. To realize that sometimes the best way to “get ahead” is to let go of what’s keeping you behind.
And that is why Jamie Schankweiler is a real Blue Ridge Woman Who Dares.
P. S. If you need a candle fix, check out some of Jamie’s creations now at Duke’s Antique Center in Lexington VA, vendor booth #318.
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