Montpelier Community Days Inspiring the Community

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A woman and 2 children enjoy the event

This week we're focusing on stories coming from Montpelier. We were invited to join Montpelier Elementary School's January Community Day on Friday, January 29, 2016, where visitors are welcome and student's families are encouraged to come. With pop music blaring and everyone dancing, Mr. Fox began the high energy meeting cracking jokes and dancing along with the kids. His kindness and care were evident as he encouraged the kids on their recent testing improvement and positive citizenship. The microphone was then passed to each teacher who shared highlights from the month and named top students, not just academically but also naming students recognized for their kindness and compassion.

Man and girl enjoying the event

Happening this month, every classroom is collecting change to partner with Swing of Faith for an adaptive playground swing so their friends in the life skills class can swing as well. If you'd like to help, please contact Montpelier Elementary School. Also, they've started their 20 day countdown to ISTEP testing and are looking to further improve their scoring by classroom cooperation and focus!

Tell us about your good neighbors, positive stories, and events by messaging us on Facebook or submitting a form here! 

Good Neighbors: Introducing Granny's Bloomers!

Mike and Linda Guffey purchased the downtown building which houses several businesses, including Foister's Flowers. What wasn't anticipated was their purchase of Foister's Flowers itself. "I didn't want to lose the rent, and these people really didn't want to lose their jobs. This place needed to stay open." Thus, Granny's Bloomers was born.

“If we can make this business work, we can do more, but we have to get our name out there. Granny has the answer for your needs!”

— Mike Guffey

Mike is an engaging man full of ideas and care for his community. He has lots of plans for upgrades to draw people into the shop but he started with a very pragmatic repair: A two way swinging entrance door. For years, the entrance of Foister's Flowers has been a little confusing, even to it's regulars. It's new door and fresh take on marketing, including kid's coloring pages of Granny in the newspaper, are signaling a new beginning for an old community favorite. "If we can make this business work, we can do more, but we have to get our name out there. Granny has the answer for your needs!"

Supporting locally owned businesses helps lift up and encourage our community! Remember Granny's Bloomers this coming Valentine's Day.

To contact Granny's Bloomers, visit and like their facebook page, stop in at 110 E Main St in Hartford City or call (765) 348-3892.

Granny's Bloomer's bouquet

The door conundrum 

Granny Bloomer's Flower Refridgerator

Good Neighbors: Introducing Josslyn's Joyful Christmas

Josslyn Gee with Santa

As a way to celebrate the life of her granddaughter, and mourn her loss, Jaunice Bowman asked her friends to do a random act of kindness in Josslyn's memory. Baby Josslyn Gee, the daughter of Jessica O'Hern and Michael Gee, passed away in June of this year. Grandma Jaunice began a Facebook page and beautiful kindnesses have flowed out to friends and neighbors through her efforts. 

“Our community really comes together when needed...”

— Lisa Crawford

At the same time, Lisa Crawford and her Facebook resale community were looking for their annual community holiday project. When she saw Jaunice's acts of kindness for Baby Josslyn Gee, who passed away in June, she knew what she wanted to do. "On November 17th I asked the group to help adopt and donate a $5 gift to children of the local Head Start at the Armory which numbered 34 children. Within a day all children were adopted and more people wanted to help so we took on the Junior High Head Start and still more wanted to help. We adopted the Montpelier Head Start, totaling 72 children adopted for Christmas."

"Our community really comes together when needed," said Lisa. "We learned that in December 2011 when our house burnt down and we had nothing left. They took care of us, replacing our belongings and buying Christmas gifts for our oldest granddaughter." 

To connect with Jaunice and her community of Kindness, please visit Josslyn's Joyful Christmas. Do you have a Good Neighbor that you would like to nominate? Message us via our Facebook page or go to our contact page and fill out the form. We will get back to you with a response as soon as we can. Thanks in advance for participation!

Good Neighbors: Introducing Jim Ferguson

This is the first installment in our new Good Neighbors series where you can nominate someone in our community who has helped meet a need, inspire, or grow you or our community!

Jim Ferguson is a busy man. He runs a business, helps individuals in the community and has helped jump start a movement by creating the Growers and Maker's Market in Hartford City's downtown area. 

His newest project has been partnering with the county on the large lot between his property and the softball fields where a blight house stood for over 20 years. With the help of Build a Better Blackford, the blight house was torn down. Little by little his vision is coming clearer. "There's good Maple trees left here," he says as he points out the brush and Ash trees that still need to be removed. "Once it's cleared I can put a couple picnic tables up, maybe a grill and a sand pit for families who use these ball fields. He's been working hard tearing out the old, broken 7ft chain link fence bordering his property, "Fences like this belong at places like prisons. They say to keep out, it doesn't belong at a park." When I asked him why he's taking on this work at so much personal cost he said, "Some big guy or the government isn't going to do it for you. If you want something done, you have to be willing to do it yourself." He continued, "Clearing this out increases the value of not just my property but all the homes around here and people won't be passing by such a run down place every time they go to enjoy the park."

It's not just the practicality of the matter that spurs him on. You can see Jim's kindness all around you: his happy dog, birds flocked around feeders, smiling employees, and corn feeders spread out for squirrels. He takes care of those around him, it's just who he is.

If you'd like to help Jim in his efforts, send us a message and we can connect you to the project!