Ever wondered about the journey of a small town local business, the evolution of media, and how one woman manages to juggle it all?
This riveting episode featuring lifelong Bowie resident and entrepreneur, Carol Ann Head, is a testament to the power of community, involvement, and giving back.
The heart of our conversation revolves around Carol's experience in the media industry, specifically her pivotal role at the Montague County Shopper. Carol takes us down memory lane as she shares her journey from the good old days of cutting and pasting paper to the sophisticated printing process today. She reveals the significant changes that the Montague County Shopper has undergone since she took over in 2005, including the transition to a larger size newspaper.
In the latter part of our episode, Carol shares her insights on the importance of community involvement. We discuss her work with the Bowie Chamber of Commerce and the Jim Bowie Day Association, and the significance of volunteering and supporting local businesses. Furthermore, Carol takes us through her journey into real estate and how she successfully balances her career in media, real estate, and giving back to her community. Don't miss this inspiring conversation with Carol Ann Head as she exemplifies the power of engagement, hard work, and the ripple effect of giving back to one's community.
Whether you're an entrepreneur, a local business supporter, or someone who loves an inspiring success story, this episode promises to be an engaging one. Join us as we explore the world of media, community, and real estate through Carol's journey.
Connect w/Montague County Shopper
https://theshopperonline.biz/
Music by: Kim Cantwell
Bowie Mural: Located at Creative Cakes
Connect w/Aaron: www.aarondegler.com
Ever wondered about the journey of a small town local business, the evolution of media, and how one woman manages to juggle it all?
This riveting episode featuring lifelong Bowie resident and entrepreneur, Carol Ann Head, is a testament to the power of community, involvement, and giving back.
The heart of our conversation revolves around Carol's experience in the media industry, specifically her pivotal role at the Montague County Shopper. Carol takes us down memory lane as she shares her journey from the good old days of cutting and pasting paper to the sophisticated printing process today. She reveals the significant changes that the Montague County Shopper has undergone since she took over in 2005, including the transition to a larger size newspaper.
In the latter part of our episode, Carol shares her insights on the importance of community involvement. We discuss her work with the Bowie Chamber of Commerce and the Jim Bowie Day Association, and the significance of volunteering and supporting local businesses. Furthermore, Carol takes us through her journey into real estate and how she successfully balances her career in media, real estate, and giving back to her community. Don't miss this inspiring conversation with Carol Ann Head as she exemplifies the power of engagement, hard work, and the ripple effect of giving back to one's community.
Whether you're an entrepreneur, a local business supporter, or someone who loves an inspiring success story, this episode promises to be an engaging one. Join us as we explore the world of media, community, and real estate through Carol's journey.
Connect w/Montague County Shopper
https://theshopperonline.biz/
Music by: Kim Cantwell
Bowie Mural: Located at Creative Cakes
Connect w/Aaron: www.aarondegler.com
What happened to my hometown. It seemed so different when I look around.
Speaker 2:It's funny how things have changed since I was young. What? I wouldn't give to go way back and take a long look into my past.
Speaker 4:I remember this town, the way that it used to be. Welcome to my hometown, our little town on the map and home to the world's largest Jim Bowie Knot. To show you around our beautiful town is our tour guide, erin Degler. Erin has a love for road trips, taking the opportunity to stop along the way in small towns across the US, just like our very own Bowie, texas. Spend a little time with Erin each week as he takes you around Bowie, sharing the value of the small businesses, the organizations, the history and, of course, the people that make up my hometown. After this podcast is over, make sure you give it a like, a share, and please subscribe and review this podcast. I would now like to introduce to you your tour guide for today in my hometown, erin Degler.
Speaker 1:Today's episode is being recorded at the Chapman Building, the Chapman Building and Event Center located in downtown Bowie.
Speaker 1:Thank you to Brad and Deanne Sherman for allowing us to record this week's episode from the Chapman Building. Brad and Deanne have done a wonderful job on the Chapman Building Event Center. They have taken this old building and modernized it but yet kept that old feeling. As you can see, the nice mural behind me is of the old train station, so they're keeping that old with the new. It's a great place for any special occasions, special events that you want to have. It has plenty of parking, plenty of seating. It's just a wonderful event center in downtown Bowie. You can find the Chapman Building Event Center on Facebook. We'll also put the link in our show notes. Again, thank you to Brad and Deanne Sherman, owners of the Chapman Building and Event Center, for allowing us to record this week's episode of my Hometown right here in downtown Bowie. Welcome back to my Hometown. Thank you for taking the time to join me today.
Speaker 1:Please welcome my guest today. She is a lifelong resident of Bowie. She is the current vice president of the Bowie Chamber of Commerce. She has served on the Jim Bowie Day Association for many years. She is the owner of the Montaig County Shopper. She is also a real estate agent for the 940 Real Estate Group and a grandmother to seven grandchildren that all live here in Bowie, which is pretty awesome. Please welcome my guest today, ms Carolyn Head, thank you. Thank you for joining me today. We're going to talk about a lot of different things. We'll talk about the shopper and real estate and the chamber and all that kind of stuff. We kind of want to go way back, because I always like to go way back, especially since you've been a lifelong resident. You graduated from Bowie in 1984.
Speaker 2:Yes, sir.
Speaker 1:You graduated from Bowie. You went to the junior high now.
Speaker 2:Yes, and the old high school which is the intermediate now, yes.
Speaker 1:And the elementary that was torn down.
Speaker 2:Yes, east Ward.
Speaker 1:East Ward, which is what I think is called the pride of not many people remember, yes, and then you graduated high school. What did you do right after high school?
Speaker 2:Right after high school, the following fall, I went to work for the shopper. Same year, the same year.
Speaker 1:So did you have jobs during high school? I did. Did you work the shopper during high school?
Speaker 2:No, I did not. I worked at the Bowie drug. You probably don't remember the Bowie drug. I don't remember when was that it was where the LaDance, I believe that store. It was in a drug store and had an old time soda fountain. I worked for the Morgans. It was a fun job. I liked it, great people to work for and learned how to make sodas like old fashioned sodas and pimento cheese.
Speaker 1:Old fashioned pimento cheese. Old fashioned homemade pimento cheese Did that, so do you still make it?
Speaker 2:I don't, I do not.
Speaker 1:So you graduate, you work there and you go to work the shopper. Was it something you wanted to do? Was it just to kind of? Was college a thought, or was it just something you didn't really want to do? And Sam, we'll work the shopper for a little bit and see how things go.
Speaker 2:It was a thought, but I decided I wanted to stay in Bowie and was newly married and wanted to kind of be a stay at home Wife, I thought, but soon realized I needed something more, got bored and kind of have to be busy. I'm that person. So just kind of randomly went in there actually and Lynn Morgan, the owner at the time, called me back that day or the next day and I went to work and it was much different back then. We had Walmart was not here, so we had a huge office supply store. And then, of course, did the shopper?
Speaker 1:Because it was down. Where was it when you started working?
Speaker 2:Across the street from the post office.
Speaker 1:Okay, that was it. So was that whole? Did it take over that whole section? There Were that whole block, or was it just?
Speaker 2:That building there on the corner or the alley, and it's a large building. It's a big building, old building, but the whole front half of the store was just office supplies. I mean we had a big, big inventory because there was nowhere else around here to get it at the time without driving, so that was a big part of the business. And then the shopper. He started it in 79, I believe.
Speaker 1:And you went to work. Then A4? A4. So just about five years after they started. So were they printing it there or did they ship it off to?
Speaker 2:It's printed in Wichita Falls. At that time and back then it was so different we actually laid out the paper on boards and cut and paste, literally Like actually cutting the paper out, pasting it on the board. Yes, you had grid sheets and that was your page and you literally cut and waxed back and pasted it and did it the old fashioned way, it's even hard to think about how in the world we did all that then, but just how you did it.
Speaker 2:And then he would take it to Wichita Falls to be printed, and when I first started they still threw it in the yards.
Speaker 1:Someone went around and I forgot they used to throw the shopper.
Speaker 2:And that was coming to an end. Not long after I went there and got it all in the computer base and printed labels to go on every single shopper. It was different. Even that part was different when we did start mailing it. And that was a feat in itself, ingering thousands upon thousands of names and addresses.
Speaker 1:And.
Speaker 2:I remember that well.
Speaker 1:So the shopper, as you say, that it was still free, it's always been free.
Speaker 2:It's always been free.
Speaker 1:But then it was mailed to the addresses. But now that's not. It doesn't happen that way, does it yes? Is there addresses on there.
Speaker 2:No, there's not addresses anymore, so it went from the actual label and then the printing press actually would print the address. Did it that way for a while? No, name just the address, and then now it is sorted and there's no name or address or anything. It's just sorted by route and street and PO box and so forth.
Speaker 1:So is that something, over the years, you had to do? Just make those changes.
Speaker 2:Just cost efficiency and then postal regulations too. So now the printer, just we upload it via internet and then they bring it the next day, sort it and bundled and take it to some of the post offices, the large like Bowie, nocona, because it's we mailed to everyone in Montec County and then into Bellevue and then Alvoord. So we print a little over 14,000 shoppers every single week.
Speaker 1:Every week.
Speaker 2:About 12,000 is mailed. Wow, that's a lot, it's a lot.
Speaker 1:And so, and Eddie, so what was your first position at the shopper?
Speaker 2:My first position at the shopper was at the front learning the office supply part, and we made copies, we printed business cards just waiting on the customers. And did that because back then we didn't have any of that in a computer system. We had the old cards inventory you know so you had to keep up with it. That sounds so long ago. It sounds so antiquated, but that's how we did it, because that was a lot of years ago.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean almost 40 years ago.
Speaker 2:Yeah, a long time, and then Lynn just had me do different things. I left for a short time to have my first child, Seth, and I thought I was going to stay at home. You know I need to stay home.
Speaker 2:You know, stay at home, mom. Well, you know, after so long I was like man, I kind of think I want to go back to work. Well, he called and asked me if I wanted to, and so I've been thinking about it, maybe part-time. And so I didn't stay off long, not even a year, and he said well, we'd like for you to come back and be our bookkeeper. And I remember just I said I don't know how to be a bookkeeper.
Speaker 2:Oh you'll be fine. You know, we'll show you. Judy will train you, she'll show you, you'll be fine. Okay, you just I've just told you I don't know how to do it. And anyway, went back, did that, she trained me, and so I did that for quite some time and then got into the top setting. We had older machines. They were called compugraphic machines, old way of doing it. You said at the machine but all you saw was this little little readout. It was like this and you just see what you were topping up there.
Speaker 2:Then you'd have to take the canister out of it, go put it in this processor and your stuff would come out. And you just hoped that you did all the commands. This machine was crazy looking all these buttons, and so you hoped that your spacing was right and that everything was so you could just cut it out and build your ad.
Speaker 1:Did that for a while, a good while actually, and so after you have Seth then is does he go into daycare and you're?
Speaker 2:working. Yes, yes, I'm working and full time and I just did just nearly every position up there. I even helped him some on the press because he eventually we had a what we call the job press to do invoices, envelopes, various things like that, copies, flyers and so forth. So I kind of helped him some with that, then continued to do the bookkeeping for I think pretty much from then on, then built pages that's what we called building the shopper and kind of got away from the front. And then in the 90s he started a publication called the Rat Top Marketplace and you may or may not remember when the whole ostrich emu, the reas, yes yes, that's the term for those three birds.
Speaker 2:That's a weird word, so we he just saw an opportunity and it was a magazine.
Speaker 1:So then people would write in, or I mean write articles for it. Yes, we had writers, we started it, we had writers.
Speaker 2:We got up to one at one point with that over 40 employees. And so it was just kind of crazy Just throwing up offices and walls.
Speaker 1:That was in the 90s.
Speaker 2:And somewhere right in there. I don't have all my years exactly, but he bought a printing press and put it out at the building on Y Street where we were for many years and started printing our own publications. But this magazine went kind of crazy. It got up to 400 pages. We printed it every other week. Wow. It went all over the world. We had a big subscription department. It was thinking back on it now. It was just nuts. He really saw a great opportunity.
Speaker 1:You know it played out all of that kind of fizzled out, but during that time it was a good. How long did it last?
Speaker 2:I'm going to say maybe five years. I don't even know if it was quite five years. So there was a shopper still it stayed by the post office and just moved the printing down to that building on Y Street, and then we eventually showed everything out there.
Speaker 1:So and he was still, but he wouldn't print the shopper, it was just the magazine.
Speaker 2:Did print the shopper too at that time.
Speaker 1:Yes, and then, when did he go back to having a printer?
Speaker 2:Well Lynn retired in 2005. And that's when I purchased the shopper from him.
Speaker 1:So did that seem just like a kind of a natural thing.
Speaker 2:It did Because at that point I was just taking care of everything. It had been for many years so it was a very smooth transition to that. And then someone else purchased the printing side. So I continued to print out there for several years, until probably about eight years ago, and then took it to Gainesville and then now I have it printed in Grandbury.
Speaker 1:It's where it's printed and then, so then you could downsize your space.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, Didn't need near the space, of course out there, and so the move to right off downtown was a really good one, a very good fit for what we needed and the location's good, and so that's been really good.
Speaker 1:And the shopper. So as it's, we purchased it in 2005. And I'm sure you've seen a lot of changes since 85. Yes, just from some of the yes. I mean just the way you print it, just the way you design it, everything Probably. So you know, probably from in the last 10 years have you seen some really big changes in the way, especially with digital marketing, digital media. Um and you don't email it out, right? Is it digital? Is it online also?
Speaker 2:It is online. Yes, we don't sell anything online. You know, sometimes you can pay a fee and have it on there as well as getting it mailed to you it's not like that. It is there, it's available, so that's good. So that was a change, not a real major change. Some of the changes have been distribution hasn't changed a lot in that number of years. You know it still goes to the post office. You know they get it out all over the county.
Speaker 2:Some of the programs and the software has made it much more efficient and you just need less people.
Speaker 1:So it takes less employees to run.
Speaker 2:It takes less people than it did back then, basically doing everything by hand. But there's not been a ton of changes. The shopper has just kind of maintained and it doesn't look hugely different than it has. So that kind of look change is when we started with this new printer last November they could no longer. They could not do the tablet size the smaller.
Speaker 2:So, if you notice, now we're a regular size like a newspaper and that was sort of a big deal just because it was always the other size you know, and that's how you just knew the shopper as being a smaller size. Yes, so just you know, we had to just kind of get used to it. And we are now and it really didn't affect our customers greatly. You know, I just had to make some adjustments. So yeah, that's.
Speaker 1:Do you see a decline, maybe in the amount of ads that are put in there because of social media or other ways that they can sell or market?
Speaker 2:things Market there. So, to be totally honest, not a lot. The shopper just works really well, the whole concept of it. I think it has to do with a number of things. We're in a smaller, rural community, if you will, so people still like to pick things up and thumb through and turn the pages. There are certain businesses that, yes, when that started some years ago, car dealers were one of the first ones that I thought, because, you know, they had a big presence, but the majority, no.
Speaker 2:I mean if you look at the shopper today and if you looked at one 15 years ago, you won't see a huge change and you'll see many, many of the very same businesses. Some of them are advertising today, that we're advertising the day I want to work there literally. So of course I'm going to market the shopper. That's what I'm supposed to do and it works. But the concept works. You mail to that many people, then your business, whether it's a service, repair, real estate and on and on and on.
Speaker 2:It's going to get seen and people rely on it.
Speaker 1:Because an algorithm isn't going to miss it. It's getting mailed regardless. It's going to a home, it's going to a business of 14,000 people that somebody's going to touch it, somebody's going to see it. There's nobody saying well, it doesn't look this certain way on the front page, so they don't see it, right? Yes, it's the continuity Everybody gets in their hand.
Speaker 2:Yes, and so it's just worked all of these years and it still works, and the shopper's free. So, it costs a good bit of money to mail that to that many people every week, so you rely on the advertisers and it's just chock-cool, I know, you see it. I've been seeing it all these years, so it kind of speaks for itself. And then we also put community news and happenings and it's, has it always been that way.
Speaker 1:Have you added things to it over the years.
Speaker 2:Some of those. We have changed that maybe over the years somewhat. Maybe we put I think we put more of those type items in there now. I like it, I think people like it, I think they like to read about what's going on and we don't do any reporting or as you know, you know, go out and.
Speaker 1:You still have, we Saw.
Speaker 2:You know we don't, but we have been talking about that for the last year or so. People loved that and we may just have to bring that back.
Speaker 1:And of course, it was easy to do because Because people write in it, right, or how would that?
Speaker 2:Actually, back then it was the employees only. We put what we Saw. Somebody went to lunch and saw Aaron doing a podcast. You know, saw Aaron on the corner of So-and-So Street and it was fun and people liked it and really looked forward to it. So the girls and I have talked about bringing that back to something fun.
Speaker 2:People look forward to reading. So, yeah, and then people send things in to us and we encourage them to do that Because, again, I think that's one of the things people like to open it up and see, and yeah, because it's neat, Especially with social media.
Speaker 1:I think, oh, they caught somebody. They actually saw somebody.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:And I think it's neat yeah.
Speaker 2:So they're still Obviously still a need and market, just by what we still do and the amount of advertisers we have and they rely on us, we rely on them.
Speaker 1:And through the years I'm sure you've been in all kinds of different boards and associations, all that kind of thing. How long have you been in the chamber, Involved with the chamber?
Speaker 2:Involved with the chamber. Many, many years ago I was a director and then didn't for many years and then so this go around. I believe I'm maybe in my fourth year. I think. Because COVID year kind of Well, we know what COVID year was, so that year kind of didn't count. So I think I'm either four or five or so. But yeah.
Speaker 1:And the current vice president of the chamber, and I mean that's so being on the chamber and being part of the Jim Bowie Day Association, those are. I mean, those take up a lot of time.
Speaker 1:They do and we really tried to get together early in the summer. But because of Jim Bowie Days and having so much and I think sometimes people take for granted the things that the chamber does, the things that Jim Bowie Day Association does I think the Jim Bowie Days just happens. But it doesn't just happen. There's really probably a whole year of work.
Speaker 2:There's a lot that goes into that and it's changed so much over the years. Scott, my husband and I got involved, I believe it's. I think we're right around that 10-year mark and it was just really different then. It had really declined.
Speaker 2:Not all sure the reasons Lack of interest, maybe I don't know, but it's come a long way. We have a tremendous board, a large board, and everyone works really, really hard and I feel like every year as a group and not giving us the credit, just the community, the people it has just grown and evolved and every year I feel like it improves and is more enjoyable or maybe adds something exciting. It's just a neat thing. We are in our 55th year now. So, jim, Bowie.
Speaker 3:Days has been around a long, long time. That is a long time.
Speaker 2:So, and it brings a lot of people to Bowie, it's probably our largest community event. I believe I'm correct in that. So I'd like to think that businesses benefit families. It's a time for them to get together. I know when I was a kid we did the frogs and turtles. It was downtown at the legend bank under the covered parking lot, so it's kind of neat to keep a tradition going like that. I think people really do love it.
Speaker 1:And then so being here all your life, are these like the chamber and Jim Bowie Day Association? I'm sure there's other things to do. Is it things that you go? Do people ask you to be on them, or is it just something you go? I kind of want to be a part, I want to help, I want to kind of make a difference.
Speaker 2:Those two boards. We were actually asked, and then I was asked about being nominated for the chamber director at the time when I went in. On that one I hesitated a little bit, mainly just time I don't like to volunteer for something and then not do my part so to speak, but it's worked out and I attend. There's not many events that I have missed.
Speaker 2:Try to really make a point to be there and be present and do what I can do my part Because if everybody said I'm too busy, then a lot of things wouldn't get done and some of our associations and groups and this and that would be lacking, and some possibly are just because people are busy. So I like being able to help and lend something whatever I can.
Speaker 1:And I think it's important that we, because we do love our community and there are areas that we can help, whether it's the chamber, whether it's Jim Buoy Day's, whether it's cleaning up a park, painting a park, you know Buoy beautification, whatever it is, and it's volunteers. And just because you're not paid for something doesn't mean you can't do it. That's right and that's what our community runs on as volunteers of people that all we, you do it because you love the community. Yes, jambuidae Association. Can we make it better?
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:Let's get together, and I think we can make a little bit better.
Speaker 2:Yes, and you know everyone can bring, like our Jambuidae Day's board. You don't have to ride a horse or or know anything about rodeo to be on the board. Everybody has their niche and one person may feel like they're just doing a small thing, but I'm looking at the group and I don't think anyone else could do that has the knowledge or the whatever. So it takes all types and there's something you can do. There's just it's a lot of work, from trash pickup to manual labor to you know some of the guys. There's lifting and welding and you know things that of course I couldn't do. But then there's things I can do. So you know how it works with the, with the group, you can bring something and for me it's gratifying.
Speaker 2:It makes me feel good to be able to help. And again, if everybody said no for all their reasons, then you know we wouldn't have many. There'd be a lot of things that didn't get done. So we do have a lot of great volunteers in our in our town. If you look around, you see many, many people just doing things as a volunteer. You don't expect any pay for it, you just you're glad that you can be a part of it and especially if it grows and prospers and improves and helps our city and our community, then you know even better.
Speaker 1:And you know, I know the chamber would go to a lot of grant openings for businesses ribbon cuttings how neat is that to, when a business opens, to be part of that, to be a chamber member and be there knowing that they're, you know, just like you know it might be a new business and maybe taking over a business, but just like you were all those years ago starting, you know, taking over a business. Yes, how's that feel when you go to a new business and know that they're going to serve our community?
Speaker 2:It's really exciting for me and I try real hard to go to those because if I was that new business owner I would I would sure hope you know everyone would want to come and meet and but it's exciting to see them starting something new. We've had in the last year many ribbon cuttings, many new businesses, that newcomers to Bowie, new business owners, new Bowie residents, so that's even in itself exciting because I feel like we're growing in that way and people want to come here, which is exciting. I mean we want growth.
Speaker 2:so it is, it's exciting to see them, you know, start up their new business and and just want to help them and and be there for them and and that's the job of the chamber is to promote our businesses and help network and so, yeah, it's good, it's exciting, I like, I like doing that and and those small businesses as they open.
Speaker 1:It's also important us as citizens, as community members, we go visit those. It's neat when we see the the chamber ribbon cutting, when everybody's out there supporting them. That's really neat. But we have to follow up with that as community members, as fellow community members, that we support those small businesses.
Speaker 2:Do those?
Speaker 1:small businesses count on those dollars.
Speaker 2:They do and and it's not easy, you know it's not. We are a small town and so the more that we can shop local and support each other's businesses, the better. You know. If you drive out of town, yeah, you might maybe save a little money, but then your time which our time is valuable and fuel and self-worth, so yeah, it does.
Speaker 1:I mean it really, it pans out it really works itself out. Yes, so, and you got into real estate. How many years ago?
Speaker 2:Five years, five years ago.
Speaker 1:So how does that come about? How do you how?
Speaker 2:did that. Yeah, how do you?
Speaker 1:own the shopper and then you go. I think I'm gonna do real estate.
Speaker 2:Right, um, I thought about it for a long time, many years, prior to doing it. But, um, during those years I was, um, in my mind. I thought I just I don't think I can do both and I probably could have that. I convinced myself, no, not now, not now. So when I did it, I was just ready. I thought, you know, I'm just at a place that I want to do it. I could see myself doing it all those years and I thought I would enjoy it. I thought it's something I was capable of doing, um, and so I just thought I'm doing it and, um, it's been good and it's just like. I thought I love it.
Speaker 2:Um, it's just a another way of helping people and, uh, you know, yes, you know there's there's the income aspect, but also it's very gratifying. Again, you're helping someone and you're going through a big, big uh purchase investment, if not the biggest and so it's very rewarding to be able to help them and they you know clients rely on you. Maybe they've never done it before, um, many of them have it, and I remember being there, being that person not having a clue, um, so I like it. Like it, I mean, just today, I've talked to numerous people about just various things in real estate, and it just it's good.
Speaker 1:So is that challenging to juggle both or is it kind of a place with, as long as the shopper and you've been doing it, that is kind of you can balance it out pretty when I did it that's, that's where I was.
Speaker 2:I thought, you know, I think I can balance both. I have wonderful employees they're just couldn't say enough great things about my employees that they can and have they been with you a long time? Yes, yes, um, they could pretty well run it without me, um. But so, yeah, I thought, okay, I think I can juggle the two. There are times that it's challenging um a few years ago, real estate just got really uh kind of crazy and um, but you just you manage it you just do and you?
Speaker 2:you don't have hours with real estate and uh, so you know, maybe weekends, evenings and as part of real estate, no matter the market or what's going on, because you know weekends, evenings, when people are not working, and yeah, just kind of juggle it it. It is a juggling that a lot of the time. But somehow I thrive on that and uh, and and like it. I like being busy. Um, I always have said I think I work better under pressure, so I no longer worry that's not going to get done, because I know I'm going to get it done.
Speaker 1:And uh, and I seem to work better like that you think, when you're younger you thought, oh, I'm going to stress about that because it may not get done. But now you just know from experience that it's going to get done.
Speaker 2:So one way or the other, it's going to get done and um, and people understand you know, but I, my nature, is to accommodate, so, uh, you know I wanted it right then, for I remember being the person. I don't want to wait until the end of the day I need you now, so I'm really really hard to to do that um and it, but I like it.
Speaker 1:It's rewarding and it works for me and so, over the years of having the shopper, did you have running into any challenges over those years? Um, whether it's employees, whether it's like I don't you know this is a lot of work or do you ever have that thought like I don't know if this is really what I want to do?
Speaker 2:the rest of my life. I might have had a few of those moments. I don't remember having a time where I just I, just I just don't think I want to do this anymore. Um, apparently I'm a kind of a creature of habit, so, you know, got comfortable and felt I was good at what I was doing and um, and then had opportunity, um so um.
Speaker 2:I don't really feel like I had a ton of challenges. You know if I'm thinking about many, many years ago being a mom of young kids, and but that's, that's what everyone is. You know getting them to daycare and you know having to be at work by eight and and all of those things, but it's part of life. And now watch these moms do it with more than two and, like I, had it pretty easy yeah but no real serious challenges um.
Speaker 2:I just uh was very comfortable and and felt like I maybe kind of found my niche, if you will, so just sort of stuck with it and which I think is unique, especially in our community, of being a smaller community yes that you can get out of high school and you just find that niche, that thing that works for you, that you enjoy doing, that.
Speaker 1:It just kind of you're able to work your way through, learn new things, because all those years I mean you know you learned a lot of things.
Speaker 2:I did.
Speaker 1:I mean from marketing to bookkeeping, to how to design the paper. I mean advertising. Come did you? I'm sure you sold advertising you did, yes, yeah so I mean, that's a lot of things yes um that you've learned over those years yeah, it was.
Speaker 2:It was neat to uh. And two, he had the Lynn Morgan had the confidence in me to to let me try it all. And uh, it was fun because I'd like to be busy and you know, tend to maybe get bored doing the same thing. So I think he probably saw that in me and, well, come try this. Well, now I want you to do this, I want you to learn that. And then to the point, I was just pretty well running it and taking care just about virtually everything and he was at a time that good, that was great.
Speaker 2:You know he had worked very, very hard, very brilliant businessman like so much from him. I still enjoy visiting with him today.
Speaker 1:So yeah, it was, it's been a it's been a cool path and sometimes we don't get that opportunity in a small community, in small business, to have that mentor. Yes, um that teaches, can teach her up, because that's a valuable um that's more valuable, I think sometimes in any school we can learn from is.
Speaker 2:I say that often yes, the things that I have learned over the years, many things, whether it be just a little little thing a little procedure um that I have kept and it has stayed with me all these years. You know, whether the way I run my business now, the things I do, the steps I take, you know, learn so very much of that from him and it's just like you said it's invaluable and you see that crosses over into real estate.
Speaker 1:Those habits, those disciplines, absolutely yes um for sure it does and uh probably in anything, and whether it's in the chamber, whether it's in the jambu de association, any board drawn I mean it just carries over, it's just you find yourself with the same thought processes.
Speaker 2:You know, or how you think things need to to be and run and um. So maybe a little bit of the control freak comes out at times like that but but no, seriously I've I learned so much and uh, I think it's been very valuable in my businesses and and just life, and you know can't hardly pay a price for that yeah, because I mean it just.
Speaker 1:It just helps in everything, yes and um. So how did, at any time, your kids come work for you?
Speaker 2:um Emily uh has worked for me um over the years, from the teenager off and on. Uh, then she'd have a stint, you know work kind of on a regular basis, um, and she's wonderful, you know there's not anybody. You would just um feel comfortable with your business and I mean I still do all of my, but keeping uh, you know my reports, my all of that you do all that, yes and um.
Speaker 2:Anyway, nowadays she's such a busy mom and wife of mama four and um also works part time that I don't get her very often. In the summer she came and worked a week for me and it was so nice I was behind and in in those few hours literally she had me all caught up. But maybe one day again when she's not so busy, but for now, it's just yeah yes and uh.
Speaker 1:So with uh and you have seven grandchildren yes, you know it's got to have seven grandchildren and which is? I mean I'm kind of jealous that all seven live in buoy. Yes, I mean that's pretty amazing. It's pretty amazing.
Speaker 2:Um, that doesn't happen too often, it doesn't and yeah and when I uh talk to people and friends that theirs aren't close, um, I really do feel sad for them and of course they wish they were close. But I do, because, you know, maybe I take it for granted that mine are right here and I don't go very long without seeing them, and so it's pretty wonderful what do you think it made them stay kids to have grandkids, and what do you think?
Speaker 1:and want to just move back.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, uh, rowdy uh-huh our second oldest and his family moved here just about a month ago and um, they love Bowie, they like the smaller town, the smaller school for their son, riker. Um, my Seth and Emily, you know of course, grew up here. Seth went off to college, to Tech, for a while and um came back and got in the oil and gas uh business and landed a really good job doing that and um just wanted to stay and he and Kendall have uh Jett and Tyler and they just they wanted to stay in Bowie and raise their kids here and just have done great. And uh, josh, emily's husband, grew up in Bowie. All his family grew up in Bowie so it's kind of the same with them.
Speaker 2:They just wanted to stay and work here and um raise their kids here.
Speaker 1:so so I mean that's a real blessing that you can have them all here and that they want to stay and they want to raise their family here.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:Um, because again that doesn't happen.
Speaker 2:It does, and so I'm very thankful.
Speaker 1:How quick can I get out of town? Yes, they might come back later, but that happens a lot.
Speaker 2:Yeah, um Seth was very anxious to get out of town, but I was sure happy when he, when he came back, um, but it is Nate, and so I feel extremely, extremely blessed.
Speaker 1:And I think you've kind of mentioned um success of you know, having the opportunity with Lynn Morgan and being being him, being your mentor. What are some other successes that you feel just had? Living in our living in the community May not be business related, but just they're just living here, being here.
Speaker 2:Successes.
Speaker 1:Yeah, things you enjoy, things that um might even say, the things that make you call it my hometown, my um. Besides just living here, there's other things that you know make you call it that.
Speaker 2:Yes, well, from growing up here and living here and honestly working at the shopper all of these years, for so many years and I may still be called today the shopper girl and, um, so you just meet so many people and you're able to uh, I've been able to help people in just various ways. You know, they.
Speaker 2:I feel like sometimes we're short of the yellow pages. Uh, people look to us and call us and come in for so many things, but it's okay, you know we, we want them to. Um, so success is just being a part of this community, I think. Um raising again you know my kids here and hopefully uh, teaching them, them seeing um as they're growing up.
Speaker 2:You know the things that you can do and and the ways you can give back and lend and um, and be a part and help, and so, um, I think, just looking back over where I've come business, personal, my kids, grandkids I count those as big successes. Yes, yes.
Speaker 1:And I think you know, looking back over when you started the shopper, I think, um, you're a good example of you. Couldn't do a lot in a small community. I think a lot of people think the community holds them down and doesn't allow them to grow, to flourish. So they think, if I get out of this small town I can grow and flourish. But I think you're a great example of you can grow and flourish in the community? Sure can, but you have to be willing to give to that community. You did, and I don't mean financial, I mean of your time, yes, of your energy, of your ideas.
Speaker 2:I'm a firm believer in that, and you know um something I was told many, many years ago is you get out a lot what you put into it and that carries over into, or it could carry it over virtually into anything.
Speaker 2:You get out of a relationship with. You know you get out of your business or your volunteer organization, whether it's monetary, if it's a job you're trying to do, or just the satisfaction and the gratification of helping. So, yeah, you can definitely do that in a small town and and you know, everyone knows you which is good or bad.
Speaker 1:sometimes it can be, you know.
Speaker 2:you see, the grandson that moved to town recently said Hickey, how do you know all these people? Well, I grew up here. I either went to school with them and of course now I'm seeing, you know their kids and their grandkids, and that's neat in a lot of ways, networking. Um, I think that if you're out in the public, which I have been all of these years through- my business. People depend on you in various ways. You build so many relationships.
Speaker 2:They trust you, which is, again, that's invaluable, whether it be real estate or I'm going to take care of you, you know, if you're my shopper, advertiser or whatever it might be, and there's just so much to me that's. Those are big successes, just personal that that make you, make you smile and and realize you. You know, do a few things correct and you're right.
Speaker 1:It is about connections, because they know they can come and they can trust you in the shopper. They trust you in real estate. They trust you. If they need other things, yes, whatever it is. They know that you're a person of trust. I can, no matter what. What they're she's going to help with it's going to be um, it's going to, we can trust, and it's going to make a difference?
Speaker 2:Yes, and that means an awful lot. That's, yeah, it's going to be a trait for that.
Speaker 1:Because we only get one name in life. So that's right. We got to make the best we can. That is right.
Speaker 2:Make the best, and you're on the other note. You were talking about volunteering and people think, well, what can I do? Or where can I? Or oh, the chamber, that's just a select group of people, or maybe you have to own a business, and so there's a lot of misconception. You know, there I'm not special because I'm on the the chamber.
Speaker 2:I just saw a way to maybe help, which is about our businesses in Buoy. So and I have a business, so there's something I can can bring to the table and help and that's good. Um, but again, it's all types of people, all walks of life, and just getting involved and don't sit back and wait for everyone to come to you. I think if we can get away from that mindset and put ourselves out there more, Because if we want to see a change, we have to be part of that change.
Speaker 2:We do and we want change, we want growth. Um, you know, I want to see our, our city, our community grow. I want to see more businesses come in here and some of these empty buildings get full and that's important to me. I'm not one to just sit back, and I go to work, and I go home, and oh well and. I'm always looking around and noticing and, um, just need to get involved. People just probably should think about getting a little more involved.
Speaker 1:I feel like I think in a think you're right, which is that everybody has something to offer. Even that we might take it as oh well, everybody knows how to do that, but they don't. Um, we just sometimes we're so good at it that we think we just take it for granted, so it goes well, everybody knows that. Or everybody can do that, but they can't right, and it may be kind of minor to us, but it's.
Speaker 1:It can make a big difference in an organization in our town, in a business yes, um that we can just make a big difference if we step up yes, and, and everyone benefits you know, everyone benefits um, so I completely agree with that yeah and um. I just want to thank you for um sharing a little bit of your time with me today.
Speaker 1:Thank you for having me yeah, having having the shopper and and taking that step, um, I know to you it probably seemed like, well, that's just the logical step. Yeah, um, but that is that. I look back as you're talking, I think about all those years and all those things learned. All those changes have come about. Yes, and it's a pretty amazing. Since 1985, um, it's just kind of your life, your past, but when we look at it that's that's a lot, um, a lot.
Speaker 1:You've learned a lot of people's lives. You've touched um, from people announcing of babies and, and we saw and the changes of the paper and the changes of buildings, um, because in our community that's a big deal when we because those buildings are different things now, yes, um, they've grown, they've moved on, just as the shopper has grown and moved on. Yes, um. So, and and giving back of your time, um, because you love the community and all the different organizations that you give of your time, even when you have husband, kids, grandkids yes, because it's real easy to be stingy with our time. Yes, for our family, yes, it's very easy. And if we can just spend a little bit of time on our community, if everybody spends a little time, we can do a lot of big things a big, big difference and we would see even more changes, growth and and positive, which is what we want, you know that's that's what it's all about.
Speaker 1:Um so it starts with one person, and, and one person that has networks and connections with a lot of people. Yes, um, we could say 14 000 people yes, really could you come into 14 000 homes and businesses every week. Um your product, what you? What would you represent? Um so a no algorithm can take that away. Thank goodness no it, which is a pretty special thing in our day and time that very special that you have that ability.
Speaker 1:Yes, that you go. I just think it's neat that um. I think shopper everybody, everybody in our community, knows what that is.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, they do and and I'm excited about that still to this day, um, I still believe, uh, as I was saying earlier, just that the concept what we do, why we do it, how, it works um, and I'm extremely thankful that, uh, it is still working today. It may not in another town or city or you know, but here it's still working great and I'm very, very thankful and that's what makes our town special, I think some of those things that we still get to keep and do because people support it.
Speaker 1:Yes, um, and then that's what it is that people support it is, it most definitely is by advertising, by um, getting it by selling from those that they read and see, and visiting those businesses. I mean at all, it's um. You really offer a lot of networking opportunities and people to have businesses to sell things, to connect with people, organizations. It's really an amazing thing that we have that um that we can come to and get whatever we need, whether it's a church, whether it's a bank whether it's a real estate agent or if you're looking for a chicken or a bird or yes, we laugh about all the the many things over the years um but everything that you could imagine, you know you might find in this, and that's what our community made up.
Speaker 1:Is is in the shopper basically, it really is yeah, you can take a look at and kind of get an idea for our community.
Speaker 2:So but thank you, carol, for spending a little time, thank you for having me and just thank you so much for your time. I appreciate that. Thank you for all you do.
Speaker 1:Oh, you're welcome in our community, thank you um, I just want to help our business and I want to help our community and, um, I'm fortunate enough that this podcast gives me that um to do and then, as we, as we grow, people can tune in and say well, what's the shopper about?
Speaker 2:yes, and they know those things and we have newcomers uh coming to me. I see a lot their real estate and the shopper and um more than maybe a lot of people realize.
Speaker 1:So this is ways that they can learn about our community and meet people and get involved, and so yeah, sometimes we don't get to see a face or we get to see a name, but sometimes we want to see a face with the business.
Speaker 2:Yes, so it's kind of nice to know who's behind it, to put that face and name together.
Speaker 1:Yes, so thank you, carol, appreciate your time thank you to each of you for stopping by and visiting with us a little bit today on my hometown. We're looking forward to seeing around my hometown thank you for listening to today's podcast.
Speaker 4:If you would like to connect with Aaron, you can do so by going to AaronDeglercom or find him on social media as Aaron Degler on Instagram, facebook and YouTube. Once again, we greatly appreciate you tuning in. If you have enjoyed this show, please feel free to rate, subscribe and leave a review wherever you get your podcast. We greatly appreciate that effort and we will see you around in my hometown.