Article from Stanly News and Press, July 27, 2006.
It was twenty years ago on April 24th that I officially saw my first patient as the owner of my own practice. It was a lot different back then. I was large animal only and mobile back then. I had no building and no employees, just a truck and a lot of hope. I still remember that first appointment very clearly. It was a beautiful, sunny spring day as I drove up the driveway to Mrs Lori Kovel’s barn to vaccinate her horses. I remember being so nervous. I had never met this person, and she chose me based on the recommendation of a friend. I did not want to disappoint. I remember telling myself, “Stop it. You are not a new grad. You have vaccinated horses thousands of times. This is no different.” But it was different. It was my new business. My new venture. A lot was riding on this. My family’s livelihood depended on this going well. The appointment went very smoothly and I was so relieved. Mrs Kovel is still a client, but now it’s her dogs that I see. She has the lowest client number in the system.
Please forgive me, I speak about Bear Creek like it is a person. It is, kind of. Almost as of it is my child. Like a parent, I desire to see my child mature and thrive and be independent. It is its own entity. An ever growing, ever evolving entity that has taken on a path of its own separate from me. I could not have imagined the path that Bear Creek has taken. My life and Bear Creek’s are so intertwined. We have been through so much together. If you had told me twenty years ago, on that spring day in April, that Bear Creek would become the practice it is today, I would have called you insane. The Bear Creek that stands before you today is so far beyond what I started. I knew it was meant to be something more than just me and truck, but I had no idea what it would mean to so many.
The path Bear Creek has taken is not because it was my vision. It is because of you, the clients, and the community. You asked and I tried to provide. You pulled me into the small animal world and continued to ask for more. I added more vets and more services, and it continued to grow.
Over the years I have had countless difficult conversations, shared difficult diagnoses, hugged and cried over lost pets, laughed and celebrated good news and successful treatments. I have endured your personal tragedies within the walls of Bear Creek and outside them. I have attended weddings, birthdays, and funerals. You have shared your lives with me, and I have shared mine with you all because of Bear Creek.
Bear Creek is the dream I never dared to dream, and I have you to thank for that. It is clear to see in the clients that have stood by us through all the transitions and the struggles, remodels and pandemics, loss and growth. When I go to the grocery store on any given day and run into at least three clients that tell me they support my decision to step back but sure do miss me. Then welcomed me back with open arms. I still, to this day, have clients that tell me they are “sure sad I am no longer doing large animals” even though it has been 8 years since Bear Creek stopped providing large animal medicine.
I have the wounds and the scars. I have the smiles and the memories. Large animal provided me with the best stories. Most importantly, I have the support of my community. This community has given so much to me and to Bear Creek. Bear Creek has a family. Bear Creek is a family, and we cannot thank you enough. Here’s to 20 years of being a part of Bear Creek. Being a part of something so much bigger than myself. And here’s to another 20 years. Who knows what it will look like then. I can only imagine.
This post is about a dog. Not just any dog, but a dog that I didn’t ask for, he came into my life at time when I wasn’t sure I could handle any more and then gave me what I needed when I needed it most.
For any of those that know me and my family, you know my dogs. Many of you that you don’t know me and my family personally, know about Beast and Ghost and now most recently Tango. Many of you may not know Drei (pronounced DRY, it means three in German). You see, Drei did not have a Facebook page. He did not become a celebrity like the others. You see, he just… was….
Let me tell you about him. He was the handsomest, big, sexy, German Shepard Dog that you could every hope to see. He would not back down and he did not have an ounce of quit in him. He ruled the yard and the house with quiet power. He always let Ghost feel like she was in charge. He never challenged her and he never snapped back if she got too bossy. He did not get along with other dogs that seriously tried to take his place as alpha. When that happened, Drei said “Bring it!”
He hated thunderstorms and needed his mommy to hold him if ever thunder happened. In the case of a storm, he knew it was coming before the weatherman did. If it was at night, he was coming up on that bed, like it not. He was the best cuddle buddy anyone could ask for. He would get on the bed and lay along side you stretched out and not move until you were ready to get up.
There was not doubt in my mind that he would protect me with his life and no one would be dumb enough to not run if he ever felt the need to come after you. He was pure sexy German Shepard in a social, fun loving package. He loved to run and chase anything you would throw. At get togethers here at the house, he trained people to pick up the stick (or what ever other object he could find) that he would drop over the fence and throw it for him.
He loved to dig. He loved to sit on the hot tub cover and look out over his domain. He was a great training dog for the clinic nurses. I would bring him in so they could practice holding and drawing blood on big dogs that might be intimidating. He would never snap or growl at them. He would just let them do what they needed to do with the just right amount of resistance so they actually had to hold him. I could vaccinate him and draw blood with no assistance. I would tell him to sit and he would patiently let me do what I needed to do without complaint. He loved food and I never had an issue with him being picky. He did not have accidents in the house. He was a Momma’s boy. He was my boy.
This is his story. As a veterinarian, I come into contact with a lot of dogs. Some need homes. Some do not get those homes. I often have to say no when dogs are presented to me for a possible home. I just cant take all of them. However, there are a few that speak to me and I get a feeling that I need to say, Yes.
On the day he was presented to me for a second opinion by his breeder, he was an awkward looking 9 week old puppy with floppy ears and a mangled rear leg. The injury happened when he was only around 4 weeks old or so. I’m not sure exactly how he injured the leg but that was not important to the case at hand. The breeder asked me if I thought the leg was going to have to be amputated. He was missing a toe, extensive tendon, ligament and growth plate damage. All of this was going to translate into a leg that would heal misshapen and not grow properly. The leg would be shorter than the other legs and with his breed, he would likely sustain significant trauma to his hips and other legs trying to compensate from such an injury. His life would likely be plagued with arthritis and pain.
I took radiographs and could see the growth plate malformation and, yes, I agreed with the first opinion that the leg would likely need to be amputated, but it would be best to wait a few months until he was old enough to go through surgery safely. He seemed to be taking the injury without complaint and it was healing and not infected. The breeder then asked me to please put him to sleep for her as she was not able to undertake a pet with this injury and obviously he was not going to be able to be sold.
Please do not fault this individual and absolutely no negative comments will be tolerated about his breeder. I do not know them personally but I have no negative feelings toward them for being honest about what they were able to take on.
Something in that moment made my heart say, no to her request. Instead, I asked her if she was willing to let me have him. I would be willing to care for him and when the time came, have his surgery and let him live as long and as comfortable a life as I could give him for however long that would be. She agreed. He was coming home with me.
I truly thought my husband was going to fall in love with him and that he would be Tommy’s dog. Tommy was out of town on a job and I texted him a picture of our new puppy. He texted back, “We are not keeping him. We can find him a home”. My heart sank. Well, I thought once he met this sweet little puppy he would change his mind. Something in my heart just kept saying he was home.
I went through the rest of my day at the clinic and then came home. When I walked through the door and let the other dogs in to meet their new brother, I noticed Beast was limping on one of his front legs. He was not limping that morning when I left. Then on closer look, he had a swollen area near the bottom of his leg. I put my hands on it and it was hard and hot. My heart didn’t just sink, it shattered. Every owner of an Irish Wolfhound or other giant breed for that matter knows what that means. Beast had osteosarcoma. This is an aggressive and painful type of bone cancer. Once you see it, it has already spread. If you amputate the leg very early, you can maybe buy them 6 months. Amputating the front leg of a giant breed dog is not easy on them. I just couldnt do that to him. In that moment, I was alone, with a new puppy, and my heart dog was just given a death sentence. I fell apart. It still stands in my mind as one of the worst days in my life emotionally. This is the day, Drei came into my life. On day that my heart shattered and I knew I was loosing Beast. We put Beast to sleep a month later. He was in too much pain and I wasn’t willing for that magnificent, regal boy to hurt even a moment more.
Fast forward about 4 or 5 months. Drei is now as healed as he can be and is old enough for me to determine if surgery is the right answer. I took repeat radiographs and sent them to an orthopedic surgeon I work with often and asked his opinion. I explained that he runs and plays with it. He eats well and seems normal overall. He uses the leg like stilt or a crutch. He bears weight on it. It definitely was shorter than the other legs by at least 4 inches. If he stood upright on his good leg, this leg did not touch the ground. The surgeon replied that he would not take the leg. He would let him keep it and use it. If it helped him not overuse the other three legs, then it could prolong the function of those limbs for a bit longer. He would still have arthritis and he would still likely not live as comfortable of a life as if he had no injury, but was functioning well. So I left it. I named him Drei because I thought he was going to have three legs but he ended up keeping it.
After this, Tommy was again pushing for him for me to find him a new home. Josh was not fond of this idea and neither was I but I did look around for the right home. I asked a very close cop friend of mine and he almost went to live with him, but that did not work out. Then another friend of mine and her boyfriend feel in love with him and asked if they could have him. So he went to live with them. Some things ended up happening in their life that put a significant strain on their ability to take care of him (through no fault of his). He was with them for about 5-6 months I think. She came to me and asked me if I wanted her to find him a new home or if I wanted him to come back to me. Without hesitation, I said for him to come home. He was coming home. When he came back to me, I promised him it was for good. I told Tommy to let that shit go, he was here to stay. No ifs ands or buts. He is home for good. And home he has stayed. Until today. Today I said goodbye and sent to his other home across the rainbow bridge to join Beast and all the other dogs that have gone on before him.
You see, right around Christmas, I went into the garage and his front legs were covered in blood and there was blood dripping from his right nostril. I went into panic mode looking for an injury and could not find one. It was just dripping out of his nostril and he was acting like nothing was wrong. Tommy did not quite understand why I freaking out about it. I explained that dogs do not just get nose bleeds like humans do. There is a short list of why dogs get nose bleeds. Trauma and hit by car is the most common. He was sitting calmly in our garage with Tommy. That had obviously not happened and there was not trauma. I knew in my heart it was cancer. It eventually stopped bleeding, but I knew that was just a sign of something I could not see from the outside.
A week later I took him into the clinic for me to radiograph his head and possibly his teeth in case it was a tooth root abscess.
The radiographs made it clear that his teeth were fine. It was in his right frontal sinus. He had a tumor in his sinus cavity. These can be slow growing or aggressive. Without a biopsy I would not know. However, if it was aggressive, I would know in a couple weeks. It was not treatable without radiation and chemotherapy. Even then, it might come back. A week or two after that, I went on a cruise while on the cruise I got a text/picture from Tommy saying Drei’s right eye area was swollen and he was acting painful. He was shying away and did not want Tommy looking at it.
I asked him to take him into the clinic and have one of our doctors take a look at it. I immediately knew it was the tumor and I had my answer. It was aggressive. The tumor would eat at him from the inside and it would hurt. If given time, it would disfigure his face and cause immense pain. I could not let that happen to my big, handsome boy. I asked the doctor to put him on steroids and pain meds and hopefully I would be able to get home to him before anything had to be decided.
You see, my animals are my responsibility. I am their steward. I am their home and safe harbour. I am also the gatekeeper that escorts them to the other side. I refuse to allow them unnecessary suffering or pain. Outwardly, he did not look bad, but I knew what was happening on the inside. I knew he would not give up. He would fight and not let me know how much he was hurting. But I knew. I noticed the subtle changes.
The lack of air movement from that nostril, the tear drainage from the right eye, the licking, the slight muscle mass loss in his head. All these were subtle changes, but they were just the beginning.
I sat my family down and told them what needed to be done and I gave them some options on day, but never was the “if” in question. We decided on today.
Today we as a family, loved him and escorted to other home with lots of snacks and hugs. I was the one that did that thing and said goodbye for the last time. I promised he was home for good and I help up my end of the promise.
Even Tommy who did not in the beginning want to keep him, broke. Drei was the bestest boy one could ask for and I will never see the likes of him again. He was one I didn’t ask for, but he gave me more than I ever could have imagined. He will be missed.
First day homeFirst dayDiscovered early on his love for diggingAll dressed upSo many toysLap dogCan I hazEarly cuddlerLots of snuggleswhat a hamgoof balltotal lap dogPart of the familyBrothers from the start for baby MurphyLoves treatsMommas boymy protectorHey, that’s my spotI see how it isDo you see a patternDId not matter whereSo handsomeMy big boyWhat a profileWe will miss you buddy
When a bond is formed and a standard is set, there are expectations that need to be met. Those expectations are hopefully very high. When you set a high a standard there is a lot of pressure to maintain those standards. When those standards are not met, that trust can be broken. It is not necessarily something that is malicious or intentional, but none the less, the result is the same. When trust is broken, so is the bond. That bond and trust is very hard to rebuild.
What happens when that bond and trust is broken by your veterinarian or vet hospital? That can be even harder to repair if at all. Your pet is often a member of your family and even small concerns can seem like a crisis when you are in the moment. There are times, probably more so in the most recent years, that we as veterinary professionals have let our clients down when they could not be there for them. In some cases, struggle to meet their basic needs. Even the little things that we take for granted and assumed always to be present are simply not available. I equate it to going to KFC and being told they are out of chicken, not once, but repeatedly.
From my point of view it is painful to watch. To see the bonds we formed breaking right in front of my eyes. Not maliciously or intentionally but simply due to miscommunication or human error. We are all human. Humans make mistakes. A group of humans is made of many individual humans all capable of making mistakes and misunderstanding. I believe it is more complicated and more difficult to get a group of humans to not make mistakes that it is a single human. Sometimes the breakdown is a simple communication error. A simple misinterpretation of what is requested. Other times it is a complete structural breakdown from the bottom up or the top down. Information flow is just there. Enough time is not taken in the moment. It takes more coordination and more communication to keep the boat rowing in the right direction and all the rowers rowing in the same direction.
I feel that there has been a lot of change in the veterinary world and a lot of change with me specifically. For starters, I took a break from the veterinary hospital that I built from the ground up at a time when two other critical veterinarians needed to also exit the practice. The practice took a big hit when that happened. For a while things seemed ok, but then things were definitely not ok. The hits kept coming. Eventually clients felt let down. Staff felt abandoned. I elected to come back part time, but even that did not stop the ball from rolling downhill. More hits happened and trust was betrayed by not living up to the expectations that were set as the standard.
I admit that I have fallen into this situation many times over the years. I have been accused of charging too much, not making time to see patients when they need to be seen (regardless of what the schedule looks like), not valuing my staff’s input or taking their concerns seriously, not explaining the situation sufficiently, making the wrong diagnosis, or the worst part, simply not caring. Now granted, I often feel these allegations are not factual. I always care and I always try, but it is simply not enough and I am only human after all. You see the sustained and cumulative stress over the previous 23 years took its toll. I let it wear me down and I had to shut off parts of myself to survive. I do mean that literally. I mean this not as an excuse but as means of an explanation.
I do not know if the bonds that have been broken can be fixed, but I am here to say that it is my profound goal and with my utmost determination to focus my efforts to rebuild the trust of my community, my clients and my coworkers. I believe it will take a lot of time and late nights, and it will not be instantaneous, but I am willing to put in the work. Rest assured, I have learned valuable lessons from my time away. I will work hard but also set boundaries so that I do not let it wear me down again. That way it is sustainable energy. So from the bottom of my heart, I apologize for the times that I have not been there for you. That I have let you down. I cannot be everywhere and everything for everyone but I am going to try to be more available and more involved. This is directed to my clients, my patients, my staff, my hospital, my community. I love you and I want to be a positive part of your lives.
When the clinic was built, it was my design. Even down to the landscaping and the plants chosen. I was specific about every detail. Most of the suggestions and ordinary choices were presented as best case and they assumed I would make ordinary choices. When I said no, not this clinic, they shook their heads and gave me looks of disbelief. I stuck to my guns. I picked things that were elegant, visually appealing and warm. I picked plants that would be beautiful to look at it, not maintenance free. IOne of the plants I picked was this tree and its location. It was only 3 feet tall and barely a twig. It grew as the practice grew.
When it came time for the last big remodel, the tree was in the way. I was told it had to be sacrificed. It had to go. Again, I made the not so ordinary choice to save it and have it moved. Yes, it was going to cost me. Most of my choices do in same way “cost me” something, but the right choices aren’t always the easy choices and the easy choices aren’t always the right ones. I stuck to my guns and said “Save it.” It flourished and so did the clinic. I didn’t baby the tree over the years, it flourished on its own.
When decided to sell the land and the building, the inspector said it had gotten too big and was now too close to the building. It would need to be cut down. Again, I fought to save it and have it moved. Unfortunately, this time, it wasn’t just my decision. Thankfully, the new owner allowed me to move the tree and graciously allowed me the time to move the tree well after the sale of the property when it was best for the tree (November, not July). Yes, it cost me, but today it rests in its new home on our new property. On the Compound it can continue to grow and flourish for many many years to come without ever having to be moved again.
Its not just a tree. Its a piece of my history and my future. Its a story that will be told over and over. Its a reminder that things change. We grow. Its good to have roots, but sometimes we outgrow the space we are in and when the time is right, or necessary, we move and we acclimate. We put down new roots so we can keep on flourishing. Its also a testament to sticking to your guns when it comes to making the right choices. Hard choices often cost us something, but they are worth it.
I’m closing in on the end of my first year as a beekeeper. I started the year by doing a lot of research and planning. I read books and articles, attended lectures and even spent time working with an experienced beekeeper in his apiary helping him work his hives. I learned, a lot no doubt, but I was still unprepared for what I needed to be as an effective beekeeper. I learned a few lessons the hard way. There is absolutely no way to prepare yourself for the hot-as-hell’s front porch temperature in that suit in the full sun in mid July, or the first real glimpse of a “spicy” colony in the Fall when they are defending their resources, or a queen that takes a nose dive off the side of hive box a flies into the weeds never to be found.
Early on, I set goals.
I wanted to start with two colonies and see how it went before adding more. My hope was that I would have at least one colony make it through winter and into the next spring.
I decided that with all the options and different methods & equipment out there, I would stay as traditional and mainstream as I could and after I learned and experienced more, I could branch out or deviate later on down the road.
I wanted to collect data. I didn’t want to just guess at what at the bees were doing, I wanted to quantify it. In one of the lectures I attended, I learned that there were sensors and scales that I could purchase that would give me valuable data that I could use to diagnose what was going on inside the hive without having to open it and disrupt the bees. That sounded exciting.
I did not set any goals related to honey collection, as that is not at all likely and not my purpose for starting this venture.
I should probably go into the “why” I became a beekeeper before I get into the rest of this. Lots of people asked me that question. What was I looking to get out of it? I really just have always been fascinated and awed by these tiny creatures. How they live their lives, how they structure their world, how they handle problems, its all so incredibly effective. I just wanted to be around them. Yes, at some point I wanted honey, but not really as business, but as a hobby. I was not looking to make money off my bees. As many will attest, once you start getting bees, you end up making them a big part of your life. Often times that ends up with many keepers becoming full time beekeepers and it eventually becomes a business. My purpose in this venture, is still to just have bees. I love to talk about bees. I love to educate people about people bees. I love to catch wayward swarms and give them a home. I enjoy spending time watching them. They are such amazing creatures.
Ok, back to the story….
December came and it was time to order my bees and my equipment. I was lucky enough to have a bee store local that I could go visit and speak with the owner, an experienced beekeeper. He was very helpful and spent time talking me through the options and helping me choose what equipment made sense and would likely work best for me as a beginner. We settled on two Nucs (instead of packages) that he would go ahead and install in their hives. That way all I had to do was pick them up and take them to their new home. This would take place in mid to late April. I had plenty of time to get their new home ready. My husband and I had just purchased about 40 acres of land that they would be living on. The land was mostly wooded and I would need to pick a spot, level it and set up a foundation for the two hives. I waivered on the spot. Initially, I picked a location but the later changed my mind and ended up moving to another site. This current site has some positives but it also has some drawbacks. It isn’t in full sun all the time. It gets shade in the afternoon during summer and only gets a few hours of full sun in the morning during the winter, thanks to all the tall pine trees near by. Also, I underestimated the amount of preparation the area immediately under and around the hires would need.. I learned that the weeds get out of hand real fast and its really tricky dealing with weeds around spicey bees. I made some temporary modifications like putting down weed paper and artificial turf carpet to give me a place to work but it still wasn’t quite enough. Weed eating in front of the hives got me stung pretty much every time I attempted it. I made a new goal for next year to do more preparation and adjustments to the footing and ground around the hives this winter when the bees are clustering inside the hive. I also plan to move them away from the wood line a little more.
The spring got warm fast a the bees started getting out and moving pretty quick. I went to seek experience from another seasoned beekeeper that needed an extra set of hands. His bees needed tending but he hurt his back and was late getting to them. Because bees wait for no keeper, they started swarming, a lot. So one of the first things I did as an aspiring beekeeper was help catch a swarm. He loaded me up in bucket of his tractor and lifted me into the air with a special bee vacuum and I caught my first swarm. Later that day another hive had swarmed right in front of us. So, I set to work and caught that swarm too. This one earned me my first sting. My veil was pushed flat against my face while I was in the branches and a bee stung me on the tip of my nose. It wasn’t so bad. Badge of honor so to speak. I knew it was bound to happen sooner or later. We continued to work the hives adding more boxes to the expanding colonies in hopes of preventing more hives from swarming. As a thanks for my help, he gave me the 1st swarm that I caught! All of a sudden, I was a beekeeper. I wasn’t prepared for this. So, I rushed to the bee store before they closed and purchased an additional hive box set up to put them in. I now had my first hive. It was March. My other bees weren’t set to arrive for another month. I was a beekeeper a month earlier than I expected and I was going to have a third hire to care for and manage. Bee hives are not like cats. You know the saying, “Three cats are no more work than one cat.” Three hives are more work than one that’s for sure. I’m really glad I didn’t have four. But I gotta say, I caught more than swarms that day. I caught the fever. Bee fever. I was hooked. I knew I wanted to be a keeper. I knew beekeeping was a great fit for me. April couldn’t get here fast enough.
My nucs finally arrived and it was pickup day. I installed then right next to my swarm hive on the stand I made back in March. Now I had a full on apiary. I was so excited. I couldn’t wait to do my first inspection. I was feeding like I was told and I spent many hours just watching them.
I still felt so ill-prepared. I questioned and second guessed my every decision. I asked questions to other beekeepers and got multiple conflicting responses. If you ask the same question to 10 beekeepers, you will get about 9 different responses. It can be frustrating. I know I made mistakes. Mistakes that set my bees back or significantly disrupted their flow. Thankfully, the bees just kept doing what they do best. They would restart or rebuild and just shrug it off as if to say, “could you please stay out of way, I got this.”
Summer came and it became evident that my Swarm Hive was far outpacing the nucs. I had honey! I need to collect frames. My mentor, allowed me to use his extracting equipment in exchange for helping him extract his honey. It was a great trade off. I ended up with 2.5 gallons of honey! Unreal to me that only 6 frames equaled that much honey. At the end of the summer, I made one more collection and got almost another 2 gallons. My first year as a beekeeper, I collected almost 5 gallons of honey! Those swarm girls really worked hard. I still cant believe I ended up with any honey the first year, let alone that much. It blows my mind how these tiny insects do so much. Even with my blunders, they still outproduced my mistakes. Every time I went to inspect my hives I can pinpoint a mistake and say how I could have done that differently. I can’t say how many times I look back and think to myself that I shouldn’t have any hives right now, let alone be collecting honey. I am amazed at how these bees keep doing what they do.
Fall came and I attempted my varroa counts and treatments. This allowed for more screwups and more work for the bees to correct. I got really worried that a mistake this late in the year would leave them disabled and cause them to not make it through winter. Then the first cold snap of the season hit. I was really stressed about them girls. I ended up not being able to check on them for several weeks and all I could think was, they’re dead. I just know it. I was finally able to go check on them but it was still rather cold. No visual activity outside the hive and my sensors were showing a less than ideal temp inside the hive. I put my ear up to the side of the hive and listened. At first I didnt hear anything. I listened closer. There it was. I slight buzzing sound. They were alive. All three hives were alive. That didnt mean they were thriving, just surviving. When it warmed up again, it really warmed up. Thank you NC. The bees were on the move. I saw lots of activity and the scales were showing an increase in hive weight. I made sure they had additional resources and options. I applied fondant and set out concentrated sugar water feeders if they wanted it. It was so good to see them buzzing around. Again I was amazed. They seemed to be a healthy colonies. I am beyond blessed to have my three hives still going, and dare I say, semi-thriving, in January. We still have the coldest part of winter to go and their food stores may be tested if it stays too cold for too long, but we are still having some intermittent 60 degree days in January. My sincere hope is that all 3 hives make it until spring when they can start foraging again.
Until then, I am making changes to the bee yard and preparations to expand my apiary for 2026. I have learned a few new lessons and will keep learning how to be a better keeper for my bees. I am really glad I took this leap. I can’t wait to spend more time with my bees in bee yard. I’m sure I will make more mistakes and learn more lessons the hard way, but hopefully the bees will continue to be forgiving.
Home-based business selling local honey, homemade breads, and artisanal products. Focused on fresh, locally sourced ingredients and sharing our story and dreams with the community.
