About The MotherVine

In 2008, the first bottles of Mothervine Muscadine Wine were produced and marketed with much success. It was a sellout year with all net proceeds of the sales going to support a NC nonprofit organization, the Outer Banks Conservationists.

Though sweet and delicious, it wasn't the wine they were truly after. They wanted what was left over from the juice. That is, the muscadine pomace - the skin, pulp, and seeds of the muscadine grape used in the supplements. In 2010, The Original Mothervine Whole Grape Supplement™ was created using the best Mothervine Muscadines and adhering to all cGMP standards (current Good Manufacturing Practice).

But wait...that's not all! A NC beekeeper for over 40 years, Fountain wanted to also share the many health benefits and medicinal properties that come from the hive, including honey and propolis. So, from 2010 to 2011 testing was completed on a new product that blended healing elements from the vine and the hive. The All Natural Mothervine Soothing Balm™ was created and trademarked with 100% Natural Muscadine Pomace, Propolis, and Honey for soothing, moisturizing skincare relief.

And this is only the beginning! Who knows what will come next? You can be sure if it comes from the Mothervine, it will be a powerful, natural health product from the vine and the hive.

Back to top of this page

Mothevine History

An Ancient Vine at the Crossroads of Nature, History, and Health

In 1584, Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlowe, the first explorers sent to the New World by Sir Walter Raleigh, under the auspices of Queen Elizabeth, arrived at what is now Bodie Island. One of the first things they observed was that the land was overflowing with grapes. The English naturally thought that wine was plentiful in the region. Unbeknown to them, however, the absence of deliberately fermented beverages by Native Americans in eastern North America was universal. They simply ate the grapes.

The following year, 1585, brought yet another contingent of Englishmen to Roanoke Island. They too noticed the abundance of grapes, but knew little about fermenting them. Most of the wines in England were imported. The 1585 settlers did, however, put Native American maize to good use in a make-shift brewery.

Nevertheless, the English settlers of 1585 realized the potential of the Roanoke Island grapes. When they departed the Outer Banks for England, they took along cuttings of the Scuppernong. Alas, the plants failed in the wet and cold English climate. But that was never to be so for the more temperate southern section of North America. The story of Sir Walter Raleigh's colonies on Roanoke Island (sans their quest for the grape) is re-told every summer, in the words of Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Paul Green, at the Waterside Theatre on Roanoke Island. The Lost Colony, the world's first symphonic drama, like the Scuppernong grape, is a North Carolina treasure.

• Although never substantiated, many posited that Sir Walter Raleigh’s men discovered the Mothervine on Roanoke Island. According to Raleigh's explorers, the native Indians grew grapes, made wine and were very knowledgeable of agricultural techniques such as equal-distance planting and trellising. Did the Indians of Roanoke Island plant the Mothervine? Another plausible theory is that the settlers of John White's group, The Lost Colony, planted the vine.
• In 1732, Peter Baum paid his arrears on His Majesty's rent dating from 1729, amounting to 4 pounds 9 shillings 8 pence. The record of this payment of feudal tax to the King evidences the Crown grant to Baum, thus establishing him as part of the first documented generations of Baum family to own and occupy the "Mother Vineyard" tract.
• In 1858, 84 year old Abraham Baum was speaking to a roving reporter from The North Carolina Reader about the Mothervine. He told the reporter that when he was a boy, &quout;the vine was the largest on the island."
• In 1869, the title to the Mothervine property passed to Ghauhey Meekins who had married Mahalaj Baum, late in the 1840s.
• Solomon Baum (1813-1898) often spoke of memories of the Mothervine as being the same from his childhood to his old age. His father Maurice Baum II (1772-1839) and his grandfather Abraham Baum (1742- 1833) had told him the trunks were big and old from their earliest recollection and during their lives had not changed.
• "The largest scuppernong vine in the world grew on Roanoke Island and covered more than one acre of ground. It was found there by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1585 and was living and thriving until a very few years ago. It is believed to be the parent stem from which all others sprung."
  
  — Roanoke News – Weldon, N.C. (July 9, 1891)
• In 1957, Jack and Estelle Wilson purchased the Mothervine property. At that time the vine covered over 1 half-acre. Jack still attends to the yearly nurturing and care of the plant.
• Established in 2003, the MotherVine, LLC is a company dedicated to:
• The preservation, propagation and dissemination of the Mothervine.
• The education of the public about the exciting early history of America.
• In a 2005 interview with Jack Wilson, current owner of the Mothervine the 82 year old remembers the vine as being large and old during his childhood on Roanoke Island. When he purchased the land over 50 years ago the vine covered over one half acre. When asked how old he thought the vine was, he replied with a smile; "It’s older than I am."
• In May 2005, a new vineyard was planted in Rose Hill. All of the plants were cuttings from the Mothervine on Roanoke Island. Thus the tradition continues.
• July 16, 2008, The MotherVine will introduce its Premium Scuppernong wine in a ceremony sponsored by the North Carolina chapter of The International Knights of the Vine.


Back to top of this page

Family

Meet the folks taking care of business at The Mothervine

We'd like you to meet the folks taking care of business at The Mothervine Nutraceutical Company, located on Roanoke Island, near the majestic Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Co-Founders, Fountain and Carmen Odom are the visionaries who created this company in 2003, out of their own quest for healthy living and desire to live life to its fullest. They hike, run, travel, read, and love to spend time with their 6 children and 11 grandchildren. From Manteo to Manhattan, they're hard to keep up with, to say the least. Carmen, our Queen Bee, and Fountain, her lowly drone, are creative forces who mastermind new health products from the vine and the hive. They take their Mothervine Whole Grape Supplements every day.

Amy Odom, President, coordinates and oversees the business, marketing, creative development, and community relations at The MotherVine. Her background in Communications, Speech Pathology, and Journalism, greatly helps in educating folks about the health benefits of the Muscadine Grape and Honey Bee hive. Amy is North Carolina born and bred. She enjoys raising her three kids, taking walks on the beach with her good dog Moe, and being a backyard beekeeper. With a strong family history of cancer, Amy does everything she can to live healthy and live longer, including taking her Mothervine Muscadine Whole Grape Supplements everyday!

Matt "Muscadine Matt" Odom, is the Executive Vice President at The MotherVine. He grew up on the banks of the Catawba River in North Carolina, where even as a boy, he enjoyed the sweet taste of muscadine grapes. Matthew earned his undergraduate business degree from UNC Chapel Hill in 1993, the same year that the men's basketball team brought home a National Championship. He brings to The MotherVine an astute understanding of corporate business and finance from his distinguished twenty year career in banking. In Co-Founding SignTeacher SignWare, Inc. in 2001, with sister Amy Odom, Matthew knows what it takes to facilitate a successful transition in a business from start-up to early growth to mature. He belongs to the Elkin A.F.&A. Masonic Lodge, Scottish Rite, and York Rites. He lives in Winston-Salem with son, William. Matthew is currently seeking a yellow female lab pup with a black sire and dame, whom he will name "Scuppie".

Steve Drew, Exec. VP – Operations, is a very busy bee at The MotherVine Nutraceutical Company. He coordinates getting our health products to you and monitors the process from the gathering and storing of materials, all the way to the actual production and final delivery. Steve is a voracious scientific journal reader. He possesses a wealth of information on the antioxidant compounds of the muscadine. When a question comes up at The MotherVine, we frequently hear ourselves saying, "Ask Steve."

Chuck Friedman is our Chief Bio Chemist at The MotherVine Nutraceutical Co. He brings over 40 years of experience in researching, formulating, and producing a wide variety of personal care products, including 100% natural products from the vine and the hive. Chuck is a stickler for safety and is responsible for regulatory compliance at the The MotherVine. We don't mean to brag, but Chuck has earned patents and even prestigious awards from the industry, including "Healthiest Cleanser" By Health Magazine for Burt's Bees Orange Essence Cleansing Cream, and he earned the Formulation Award by Independent Cosmetic Manufacturers and Distributors (ICMD) in 2009 for "Lindi Face Wash", a gentle cleanser for skin undergoing chemotherapy. Chuck has earned the Natural Products Association Seal and has directed scientific work at Burt Bees, Almay, Estee Lauder, and Revlon, just to name a few. According to Chuck, he was a “Mad” Scientist until he joined the health oriented MotherVine Team and evolved into a Glad Scientist. Chuck loves to develop natural personal care products and practices what he preaches: He eats about 2 to 3 feet of organic carrots a day.

We are happy to have Sean Odom as part of our Summer Associate Program. Sean is a rising Junior at UNC-Charlotte. He has a strong interest in health and healing, and he hopes to attend medical school some day. Sean is quite the worker bee at The MotherVine. When he's not reading up on the latest Muscadine Grape and Honey Bee research, delivering juice, or making a sales call, Sean loves to play soccer, watch soccer, and talk about soccer.

Back to top of this page

Quick Links in this section

Fountain's Story
Mothervine History
Family

The MotherVine Original 100% All Natural Whole Muscadine Grape Supplement

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Statements made about muscadine products have not been evaluated by the FDA. Academic scientists, researchers, and all of us at The MotherVine Nutraceutical Company advise you to consult your physician or other health care provider prior to making any decisions, or undertaking any actions, or not undertaking any actions related to any health care problem or issue you might have at any time, now or in the future.

Please click here for our shipping, return and refund policies and general contact information.