CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL STAFF STORIES ➡️January 2025 Staff Stories
JOHN BEANE
My Marantz stereo amplifier receiver was originally manufactured in the late 70’s. My mom forgot about giving it to me for Christmas and I didn’t discover it at my parents’ home until 1982. I have used it primarily for vinyl records. I had it rebuilt completely four years ago and added new speakers. Now I see that the fastest growing segment of the music industry is vinyl records. I guess I’m a trend setter. Of course, all my albums were pressed before 1990.
CYNTHIA BEANE
John and I enjoyed several days RVing on Geiger Key. This was an opportunity to test out the new RV since our other was totaled due to Hurricane flooding . We spent a day enjoying Key West. We rode our bikes to the Geiger Key Naval Air Base that is right along a beach. This was a lovely ride. We are not naturals at the the workings of an RV, so we scheduled to attend a learning RV bootcamp in May - HAHA! We are have a GRAND TIME!
GARRETT ATKINSON
Do my eyes look a little tired in this picture? Well, they should. I earned it. It’s midnight on New Year’s Eve, and it was a very long 2024! Mary Jacqueline and I went out for our first NYE party since forever, had fun playing cornhole and shuffleboard (poorly) with some friends, and promptly turned into pumpkins after a midnight kiss as we ran for the door. Happy New Year, everyone. Let’s cheers to a healthy and hurricane-free 2025!
JENNIFER BEANE
What a roller coaster the end of 2024 brought to us. Between my house, car, and the office flooding during Hurricanes Helene and Milton, the new year just HAD to be better! And so far so good, minus the crazy cold we have been getting. We are so close to getting the office completed – just waiting on trim and new paint, and then hopefully back to normal at the office! As for my house, we got approval to raise the house 6.5’ – a whole foot above code! That should start any day! In the meantime, I got approved to live in a trailer at Garrett and Mary Jacqueline’s house. All good things happening!
Frankie is now 10 months and has been living her best puppy life with a pool and a big yard these past few months. Soon to be cramped in a trailer until back in our house – but she is a big help when it comes to chores. She follows the vacuum and the hose around everywhere and sometimes will get onto them to make sure they are doing their jobs correctly! Her new favorite toy is a horse ball, which is bigger than her, but she drags it around everywhere! We have already gone through 2 ball covers and are on the search for a new that that can hold up to Frankie.
JENNIFER MILES
January is a big birthday month in our family. On the 7th, my oldest daughter, Chandler, turned 22. On the 8th, my youngest daughter, Gabby, turned 13. George and I also have January birthdays, so the entire month is one big celebration. What a way to kick off the year! In addition to birthday celebrations, we also added a new 4-legged kid to the family. Remi is a 4.5-year-old Great Dane. She was looking for a new home and after meeting her, we knew she would be a great fit in our family. We lost both of our previous Great Danes to old age in 2024. Remi, with her gentle spirit, is helping us heal that Great Dane shaped hole in our hearts.
