Have you met your neighbor?

We have, and we’re loving it.

Many of you have probably noticed a new feature we now run each week in the “Springville Journal:” our “Getting to Know your Neighbor.” We take pride in highlighting the businesses and organizations that make up our community and have really enjoyed meeting with the area’s small business owners, the true entrepreneurs.

In the few months since we began this feature, I have already met so many new people and learned what really makes their businesses tick. I have been able to discover how local merchants got started and have found out firsthand how the businesses I visit every day actually work.

Last week, I talked with Debby and Ted Adams (see page 2) at the Joylan Theater and was fascinated to hear how movies are selected and played on their big screen. My sister and I took in “War Horse” (and cried the whole way through) on family night and enjoyed some delicious popcorn while we sat in the very nostalgic and historic theater. Some great memories are made this way!

I trekked to Arcade a few months back to visit Creekside Fabrics and learned from the ladies there just how much you can let your creativity soar. They might just be able to persuade me to take up quilting!

I sat down with Kim Carrow at My Best Friend’s Closet (what a cool name for a store, right?) and toured the beautiful shop she and her family built from the ground up. This woman is truly an inspiration; she set herself a goal and has more than met it.

We’ve toasted the owners of Frosty’s Zoar Valley Inn, hung out with the Apple Dumplin’ gang, learned how to best sell our homes with the staff of Concord Land Realty and gotten to know Pete Andrews from Andrews Forestry Consultants.

We’ve had our hair cut at Root 39 Salon & Spa, chatted with the guys at Smith-Weismantel, found out what made our insides run at Bertrand Chaffee Hospital’s new heart center and were fascinated by the dedication displayed by the Nature’s Pride workers.

Thank you, business owners of the local community, for allowing us to get a personal look into what makes your companies unique. This experience has allowed us to more fully appreciate the small business community and has opened up our world, and, we hope, our readers’ worlds, as well. Thirteen stories told; many more to go!