Good Neighbor Podcast: Tri-Cities
Bringing together local businesses and neighbor of the Tri-Cities region. Good Neighbor Podcast hosted by Skip Mauney helps residents discover and connect with your local business owners in and around The Tri-Cities.
Is your business serving the residents of Tri-Cities? Then, we need to talk! Visit gnpTri-Cities.com to schedule your free interview.
Good Neighbor Podcast: Tri-Cities
EP# 3: From Early Retirement to Bed and Breakfast Bliss: Pam Sadler's Nolichuckey Bluffs Story
What makes Pam Sadler with Nolichuckey Bluffs a good neighbor?
Pam Sadler always thought she'd wait until retirement to take over the family business, but life had other plans. Join us as Pam recounts her journey from an early retirement to becoming the heart and soul of Nolichuckey Bluffs Bed and Breakfast. Nestled on 28 scenic acres along the Nolichuckey River, this charming retreat features a 1937 log cabin and has grown to include 11 cozy cabins. Pam debunks common misconceptions about running a bed and breakfast, revealing the tireless effort and passion it truly requires.
You'll hear heartwarming stories of adaptation and resilience, including how Nolichuckey Bluffs became a temporary home for a Netflix production team during the pandemic. Pam also shares her love for micro weddings in their quaint 15-seat chapel and opens up about her personal interests, from traveling and reading to her unofficial animal rescue operation. Whether you're looking for a peaceful getaway or just curious about the life behind a bed and breakfast, this episode is packed with insights and delightful anecdotes.
To learn more about Nolichuckey Bluffs go to:
https://www.tennessee-cabins.com/
Nolichuckey Bluffs Bed and Breakfast
423-329-9633
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, skip Monty, all right.
Speaker 2:Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a bed and breakfast, a wedding location or just a getaway with the wife or significant other? Well, you may be in luck once closer than you think. Today I have the pleasure of introducing your neighbor, Pam Sadler, with Nolichucky Bluffs. Bed and Breakfast, Pam, how are you doing?
Speaker 3:I'm doing great, thank you.
Speaker 2:Very good, great. We're excited to learn all about you and your business. So tell us about your company and what you do.
Speaker 3:Sure, we're a bed and breakfast. Cabins Cabins plural. We have 11 cabins on 28 acres along the Nolichucky River in Greene County. Greene County. I like to say come, stay, cozy.
Speaker 2:Come stay cozy. Very good, very good. Well, how did you get into this business?
Speaker 3:Well, I blame it on my folks. My father bought the log cabin back in the 80s. We have a 1937 log cabin and dad had the vision to purchase the log cabin and then create a property with other cabins and mom kind of went along with the vision. I always thought I'd come back when I retired and run the business, but instead I came back in my 40s Early retirement, Early retirement I don't think I can call it retirement.
Speaker 2:No, I don't think you can either. So are there in the bed and breakfast industry? Are there any myths or misconceptions that you can think of?
Speaker 3:You know, I'm not sure I would say that it's specifically to bed and breakfast, but I would certainly say, in the small business myth people think that I sit around sipping coffee all day.
Speaker 2:I know better.
Speaker 3:Yeah, you know better.
Speaker 2:Yes, I do.
Speaker 3:While in fact, my to-do list is probably about 10 miles long for every day, and so you know. I think people are attracted to this industry because it's very personable. You certainly get to be in your own space. You don't have to answer to a boss. There are many positive things, but it's also 24-7.
Speaker 2:Now this is an unscripted question, but I would imagine during the pandemic that your business did it get worse, improve or it was tough.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it was tough. We were very, very fortunate in that there was an organization looking for housing for their employees, and the stipulation that the company had was that they each had to have their own cabin and couldn't be in a hotel room, and so, consequently, we ended up housing about. It was for Netflix of all things, a Netflix broadcasting company, and we ended up housing all of their production team.
Speaker 2:Oh, wow, wow.
Speaker 3:That was a huge blessing.
Speaker 2:Oh, yes, I would imagine.
Speaker 3:Oh, wow, wow.
Speaker 2:That was a huge blessing. Oh, yes, I would imagine. But I also thought you know, because you have individual cabins, that that might be a good alternative for folks during the pandemic.
Speaker 3:It very much was, yes, private entrance. We don't have to interact with anybody. Certainly, we went into additional cleaning and screening practices. So, yes, we were very fortunate. More than that for us was everybody went to micro weddings and we have a little tiny chapel that seats 15 people. Oh, wow, okay, the micro weddings really made a difference for us. Micro weddings really made a difference for us.
Speaker 2:Wow. Well outside of work, pam? What do you do for fun?
Speaker 3:Is there anything outside of work? Is there anything outside of work? No, I certainly. I mean, I've traveled my whole life, so traveling is really important to me. I'm a reader, I like to read a lot of books, and if I wasn't running a bed and breakfast, I'd probably have an animal rescue, so I have lots of animals around me all the time and spend a lot of time with my animals as well. What kind of animals do you have? Two dogs, a husky and a German shepherd Australian shepherd mix and two cats that live at my cabin, and then three additional cats that showed up that are still here.
Speaker 2:Volunteers. Sounds like you do have a rescue operation going on yeah.
Speaker 3:Very cool Not to mention the raccoons.
Speaker 2:The raccoons oh okay. Yeah, gotcha, gotcha, and hawks too. Right Probably.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and hawks too, critters all kinds of critters.
Speaker 2:Well, let's change gears. Can you describe one hardship or life challenge that you rose above and can now say, because of it you're better and stronger? Does anything come to mind?
Speaker 3:That's a tough one. It's something I don't speak about very often, but I was vice president at a university in California and as a result of a political casualty it's the best way to say it I ended up back in Greenville running the family business. And you know, when you're at the peak of your career and something like that happens it. You know a lot of people, a lot of people go through it. Well, it devastated me and it was really tough on me personally and emotionally. 12 years later, I can sit here and go oh my goodness, best thing that ever happened to me.
Speaker 3:Wow, I wouldn't trade where I am now today in my life, for what I had back then.
Speaker 2:Wow, very, very good. Great story, great story, thank you. Well, please, as we wrap up, tell our listeners one thing that they should remember about Noble Chucky Bluffs Bed and Breakfast.
Speaker 3:One thing you know we're really committed. We're family, but we're really committed to personalized service. So you'll often find me back in the kitchen making more chocolate chip cookies because you loved your chocolate chip cookies, or back in the kitchen making more homemade ice cream because you want a specific kind of homemade ice cream. Not to mention pancakes for breakfast.
Speaker 3:We do try to make our service to you very personalized and oriented to what you really love. And I guess the other thing that I would say is most people come here as guests and leave as family very nice.
Speaker 2:Well, how can our listeners learn more about Novo Chucky Bluffs?
Speaker 3:Sure, probably the best thing is to go to our website, wwwtennessee-cabinscom. Our website site is pretty extensive. You can actually reserve a cabin there as well. Or, quite honestly, I carry a cell phone with me all the time. You can get our phone number and you can call me and speak with me directly okay, what do you mind if I ask what the number is? Not at all.
Speaker 2:Four, two, three, okay, three, two, nine, nine, six, three, three four, two, three, two, two, nine, nine, six, three, three, three and that goes three three, two, nine, three two, nine, sorry.
Speaker 3:Three, two, nine, six, three, three, three, three, three, three, three, three, three, three three, three, three, three nine, sorry three two, nine, three, three nine, six, three, three, and that goes to your call center. Right is the call center, sitting on the desk in front of you yes, it is okay, gotcha absolutely gotcha well pam so I should add to that when you call me at two o'clock in the morning and you say do you have bathrooms in your cabins? Yeah Right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we do All right. Well, Pam, I really appreciate you being on the show. We wish you and your business the best moving forward.
Speaker 3:Thank you so much.
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gnptry-citiescom. That's gnptry-citiescom, or call 423-719-5873. 8 73.