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Don and Jan Stover Guests on WGRN Saturday Night Ride

2012-01-16T14:06:00.001-06:00

WGRN Saturday Night Ride co-hosts Dennis Kelly and Joy Tsakanikas pose for a photo with Don and I after the two had interviewed us for their radio show. We always enjoy sharing information about the Owl Creek Gazette with others and look forward to future guest appearances on the Saturday Night Ride (89.5FM) here in Greenville, IL! ~ Jan

Check out our January 2012 Issue of the Owl Creek Gazette via our Current Issue Page

2012-01-06T11:09:00.002-06:00

HOT OFF THE PRESS ... the January 2012 issue of the Owl Creek Gazette.

You'll find the complete magazine online via our Current Issue page!

The Happy "Owl"-iday Card Making Event Was a Hit

2011-12-29T15:55:00.004-06:00

The Owl Creek Gazette welcomed kids of all ages to join in the fun of card making during the "Shop Small" Holiday Festivities in Downtown Greenville in December. Participants were able to make their own Happy "Owl"-iday cards for Mom and Dad or Grandma and Grandpa.

The event was sponsored by the Second Street Merchants Coffee Club.

Below are some of the happy crafters creating and displaying their Holiday cards.

2011-12-11T13:43:00.003-06:00

Thanks to everyone who dropped by the Owl Creek Gazette office and Don's Uniques Sunday, December 11th for the "Shop Small" Holiday Festivities in and around 2nd Street in Greenville. We loved watching the kids make their Happy "Owl-iday" cards and hope their parents will find the $5 off coupon helpful with their next repair.

A Delightful Meeting When Delivering the December Issue of the Owl Creek Gazette

2011-12-06T17:13:00.004-06:00

Delivering the December issue of the Owl Creek Gazette lent itself to a chance meeting with author Clarence "Sonny" White and his family at The Tapestry Room in Lebanon, Illinois. We were happy to share our publication with them and enjoyed watching everyone dig into the articles.

Owl Creek Gazette Grand Opening and Open House

2011-11-01T13:50:00.015-05:00

Many thanks to those who dropped by the Owl Creek Gazette office October 28th-29th to help us celebrate our Grand Opening and Open House. Additional thanks to those who sent flowers, cards, and/or signed our "Owl Creek Gazette Wall" offering their congrats and best wishes -- not only for a successful event, but for the continued growth of the magazine as well.

We also enjoyed handing out candy on Friday the 28th to all the area children who participated in Greenville's "Trunk or Treat" event -- and handing out the November issue of the Owl Creek Gazette which was hot of the press that very day!

Getting Our Introductory Issue Out to the Public ... with a little help from our friends

2011-09-24T14:56:00.009-05:00

As co-editors and publishers of the Owl Creek Gazette, we'd like to thank everyone who dropped by our office on Friday, September 23rd to share in the fun and distribution of our introductory issue.
~ Don and Jan Stover

A special thanks to Steve and Leanna Clark (featured in our introductory issue's article The Clark Farm: "Stocking Up on Skills, Not Just Things" ) for sharing their time and talents with us during the evening. We all enjoyed getting to know the Clark's grandson, Skylor, better too.

Also a special thanks to long time friends, Ron Clark and Kathy Stark, for handing out the magazine all about town.

A good time was had by all!

The Roots of the Owl Creek Gazette ...

2011-08-13T11:37:00.008-05:00

by co-editor, Jan Stover

Welcome to the Owl Creek Gazette … a new regional magazine dedicated to celebrating and enhancing self-reliant living in and around South Central Illinois. For years, my husband, Don, and I have been inspired by national publications with a self-reliant theme such as Backwoods Home Magazine and Mother Earth News and now we'd like to offer up a regional publication in that same vein. As some of you may recall, we've been involved with other publications in the past, most notably The Senior Review, a magazine for Senior Citizens which I co-edited with my mother, Hazel Jones. Don was involved in that endeavor as well, though taking a more behind the scenes approach then (with the exception of writing his popular Mr. Fix-it column). He served as the publication's tech guy and burned the late night oil with us as we put the finishing touches on each issue before going to press.

Now with this new publication, we're planning to broaden the focus of our writing to include many aspects of self-reliant living -- in part due to the changing economy which has many people rethinking their own current and future actions and in part because we've always had an independent streak that manifests itself in most all of our undertakings.

For those of you familiar with Backwoods Home and its founder, Dave Duffy, you'll know that Dave was inspired to begin his publication as a direct result of his personal efforts and experiences which came from building his off-the-grid-under-$10,000 home back in the day. Dave tells his readers that he had originally hoped to write a book outlining the process and offering valuable tips to other would-be-off-the-gridders, but at the time publishers were not jumping at the chance to publish such a book. However being the self-reliant individual Dave is, starting his own magazine to get his message out was a perfect fit. And now Backwoods Home publishes and sells all kinds of great books on self-reliance.

Similarly, Don and I have our own inspiration – a little plot of land we own and fondly refer to as “Owl Creek”. We have an old 70's motor home we park there during “camping season” and have high hopes of one day building a home on the property. But for now, it serves as our special little get-away which we happily share with family and friends. There's always a soft breeze whispering through the trees, the call of a neighborly owl or two, an inspiring nightly view of the stars, mixed with occasional surprises from nature like waking up to a scene of wild turkeys walking through the yard.

Until the time we do actually build, we're happy to while away the hours at Owl Creek (in between the inevitable demands, responsibility and commitments life brings with it). We enjoy the dreaming and planning of future possibilities and look forward to bringing you, our readers, along for the ride.

Now, for a bit more about those inspirations from the past that have led us here. Besides Backwoods Home, I mentioned Mother Earth News. I can still see my dad reading the publication from cover to cover, processing the content for consideration and later use. If memories serves me correctly, it was my brother, Jeff, who introduced our family to the publication. In 1979, Mother Earth News announced it was offering a series of summer seminars on its new 600-plus-acre research property in Hendersonville, North Carolina. Mom, Dad and I decided this was something we didn't want to miss. We loaded up the car and headed to out. Mom and I participated in the workshops, Dad hovered around the electric car and visited with lots of like-minded folks – and in spite of the rain which left the grounds a muddy mess, it was an event worth experiencing. And not to go unmentioned was a special item we purchased on that same trip -- my wedding dress. Don and I were married in the Fall on that same year (btw, we’ll be celebrating our 32nd wedding anniversary this October 21st).

Another publication that has provided us with information, entertainment and inspiration over the years is the Brown County Democrat -- the local newspaper of one of our favorite vacation spots, Brown County, Indiana. The Democrat features a much beloved iconic character named Abe Martin who offers up sage advice in a Mark Twain-esqe fashion. We’re hoping to eventually have our own version of Abe Martin (courtesy of a Wise Old Owl) who will provide similar bits of quirky wisdom here on the pages of the Owl Creek Gazette.

Also worth mentioning is a publication we were recently introduced to while visiting our children in California -- the Idyllwild Town Crier. This small town newspaper sports a delightfully wonderful feel of community, which is another aspect we hope to incorporate here as well. (See our Creating Community article on page 4)

So good readers ... grounded in these roots and with an eye toward the future, we welcome you to the Owl Creek Gazette and look forward to sharing in and with the self reliant community of South Central Illinois.