| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| luvnlife |
Posted - Jul 18 2005 : 2:53:24 PM
Hi! I live in NE Oregon. My husband and I, along with our two young daughters, relocated from Southern California about 8 years ago. I had been diagnosed with breast cancer at age 26 and after treatments we decided to move somewhere where life was more like what we grew up with. We're both from rural areas in So. Ca and we wanted the same environment for our daughters.
I currently own and operate our town's small rural market and pub. If anyone has any ideas or thoughts as to what makes their hometown market special I'd love to hear about them.
I'm also invovled with our local volunteer fire department. My husband and I met in on a fire department 18 years ago. I'd love to hear about your rural fire department too.
We have a 14 acre ranch surrounded by dry land wheat farmers. We have horses, a mule and chickens. I like to garden and to cook when I'm not busy working at the market.
Drop me a line, I'd love to hear from you!
Michele
Dance like no one is watching! |
| 14 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Park Avenue |
Posted - Aug 25 2005 : 4:04:52 PM
So sorry to hear about your loss Melanie. That is the fear of most firefighters that I know, volunteer or professional. feeling helpless, and unable to do anything.
Michele |
| lamamama |
Posted - Aug 23 2005 : 10:27:27 AM
Welcome, welcome!
May you find great support & assistance here. And may I say "Congratulations!" on being 8 years out. I pray that you are completely healed. I am currently involved with one of my best friend's (an Ohio farmgirl) ordeal with breast cancer. She has just completed her 1st round of chemo, following a double mastectomy. May the angels watch over you both.
I also want to acknowledge what you do as a firefighter. My own Mother died a year & a 1/2 ago in a house fire. The firefighter's did everything they could to save her, although it was too late. It's still too painful to go into, but suffice it to say that my siblings & I were very touched by all that the firefighters did. You are true heroes. |
| Park Avenue |
Posted - Aug 22 2005 : 5:34:05 PM
Hi All,
I am also a volunteer firefighter in rural Paradise Valley Alberta, along with my husband and teenage daughter.
My daughter loves it so much she plans on persuing firefighting and emergency medical when she graduates high school in the spring.
Its gearing up for grass and bailer fires again, so we stay near our radios!
Michele |
| luvnlife |
Posted - Aug 22 2005 : 3:58:10 PM
Thank you so much Lynda,
The fire service has a special place in my heart as well. My dad is a retired captain who was first in on the space shuttle rescue team in Edward's AFB. My husband and I met in a volunteer department where we both began our volunteer careers. I'm now the training officer of our dept. and I'm the unoffical grant writer. Which is something that comes naturally and has been a huge asset for the dept. It's thankless sometimes but sometimes the little rewards is all it takes to get you through the rough spots.
Thanks for your appreciation of all firefighters!
Michele
Dance like no one is watching! |
| FarrarFarmgirl |
Posted - Aug 10 2005 : 9:46:54 PM
Hi,Michelle,
Welcome to the forum. I have to chime in with Aunt Jenny that you are an inspiration. You certainly have turned alot of obstacles into challenges and won! Truly modern day miracles. Congratulations on your remission, may it stay that way for a long, long time.
I don't have any ideas to offer for the market, except, I'm sure everyone is glad that you are open. I love going to our farmer's market, it's in the city, but it sure brings the rural atmosphere with it.
AS for the fire department, you have my utmost respect. AS long as I can remember my father has always been on the volunteer fire department and he still is to this day at 64. Not too old, by today's standards, but he has been at it for over 35 years. I can remember him being called away from the house at a moment's notice at all hours of the night. When he came home he smelled heavily of smoke and sometimes had a little ash and soot on him. I was always glad that he came home, though. He loves volunteering for the fire department that mans our state fair. He belongs to a regional organization representing several fire departments that meet monthly. He goes to every monthly local fire meeting faithfully. Last year he was recognized by the organization for his many years of service. I am so proud of him.
AS a result of his lifetime of being dedicated to the fire department, I have one brother who is a professional firefighter for St. Louis City and another brother who is a volunteer fire-fighter in Perryville, MO. Also one of my other brothers (I have 5), while serving in the Marines was a fire fighter on base in Quantico, VA, but he is no longer involved since he left the Marines.
So I have a very fond place in my heart for all fire fighters. I am so proud of each and everyone who takes the call to duty. I must admit I can be brought to tears in an instant anytime I see documentaries, stories, email stories, movies, commercials - anything - if it has to do with fire fighting. We live not far from a funeral home and there is nothing more moving and heart wrenching than to see a procession for a fire fighter. It gives me goosebumps now just thinking of it.
So, Michelle, I am proud of you and your husband and thank you from the bottom of my heart for your service to your community to protect all who are in your care. God bless and protect you both.
In His hands,
Lynda
Pray in faith and you will not live in doubt. |
| FlipFlopFarmer |
Posted - Aug 10 2005 : 9:31:02 PM
Welcome to the group Michele! I'm in OR as well.
Carla
Live simply.
Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly. |
| luvnlife |
Posted - Aug 10 2005 : 4:26:48 PM
Thank you for the warm country welcome! You ladies are like a breath of fresh air on these hectic days!
Dance like no one is watching! |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Jul 20 2005 : 10:30:45 PM
Welcome Michele!! what an inspiration you are to all of us. I hope someone has great ideas for your store..sounds like fun!!!
Jenny in Utah
The best things in life arn't things! |
| PhillyfarmGirl |
Posted - Jul 20 2005 : 5:46:41 PM
Welcome Michele! I am so glad to meet you and read your good news! You are an amazing woman to go have gone through this, to be so very busy and to have such an AWESOME attitude! I think you will be a wonderful addition to this forum and I look forward to reading more from you!
Blessings,
Philly Farmgirl
Philly Farmgirl
~It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion;
It is easy in solitude to live after our own;
but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd
keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.~
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
http://homeschoolblogger.com/PhillyFarmGirl/ |
| mollymae |
Posted - Jul 18 2005 : 6:09:04 PM
HI Michele, welcome to the group, I'm so glad you are in remission now! My mother is an oncology nurse and is an angel to the people she takes care of, I hope you have had lots of "angels" as well taking care of you! (Sounds like you have!) 
Cead Mile Failte,
Molly
"If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain. If I can ease one life the Aching or cool one pain, or help one fainting robin unto his nest again, I shall not live in vain" ~Emily Dickinson
**When life throws scraps your way ~ Make a Quilt!**
Sisterhood of the Traveling Art |
| luvnlife |
Posted - Jul 18 2005 : 3:59:50 PM
Yes, after lots of chemo, radiation, surgeries and a stem cell transplant, I've been in remission for 8 years now! Thank the Lord!!!
I'm grateful for every day that the good Lord has given me and that shows through my outlook on life. (Hence my user name "luvnlife".)
Thanks for the well wishes!
Dance like no one is watching! |
| Nicol |
Posted - Jul 18 2005 : 3:26:24 PM
Hi Michele! Welcome! I hope you are healthy now and are in remission. You know the best thing about hometown markets is the feeling of welcome you get. |
| luvnlife |
Posted - Jul 18 2005 : 3:16:46 PM
Thanks for the warm country welcome. I'm looking forward to hearing from other rural business owners. This is a new endeavor for me as we just bought the store last November. We're currently pouring all our resources and energy into building it up since it had been run down for years. The community is VERY appreciative and many months that is all the paycheck I take home.
Volunteer firefighters are the backbone of this country's fire department since 80% of the departments across the nation are volunteer. I always tell my firefighters to take what they do seriously because our fires are as hot and dangerous as career firefighter's fires.
In the last two years I've also started an EMS service in our department so we're able to provide some basic medical care before the ambulance comes from a neigboring town. The fire department will always hold a special place in my heart and is so important as you know from having to call on them twice.
Great hearing from you!!
Dance like no one is watching! |
| MeadowLark |
Posted - Jul 18 2005 : 3:06:38 PM
Hi and Welcome Michelle! So glad you are here! Bless you and I am hoping all is well with you health wise! There are several members here who are involved in rural markets that would love to chat with you and have loads of info on them! That is so great you and your hubby are vlounteers with the local fire dept. We have excellent volunteer rural firefighters. I have had to use them twice...Once for a very serious grass fire, and another for an electrical fire in our home. They are THE BEST folks going, so professional and caring! I really admire them and appreciate their service! GOOD people do this for their community. Again welcome to this great bunch... Jenny from Kansas
"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there." Rumi, 13th century. http://www.xs4all.nl/~josvg/cits/sb/sb101.html |
