FEBRUARY 2020
womensinc.net
When two creative worlds collide
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Georgia on my Mind
the music of Ray Charles
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WHEN TWO WORLDS COLLIDE
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FAITH FEATURE
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HOMETOWN HERO
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DIY: VALENTINE BOXES
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FUN TAKE ON VALENTINE’S
A LOOK BACK
Contributing Writers Hilary Andrews Cindy Beckman Andrea Champlin
WINC team Hello readers! How it’s already February, I do not know. I hope each and every one of you had a great start to the new year, full of fresh motivation and perseverHilary Andrews, ance in your personal WINC editor and professional lives and eager to do great things in this new decade. The WINC Team and our writers have so much love to share with you this February, whether that be romantic love, familial or friendly love or love of hobby and job, we’ve got a little bit of everything. You may have noticed recently a new business making its way into downtown Conway. Fretmonkey Records, formed in 2015 by Kevin Blake Goodwin and family, brings together artists from all over the globe including 22 award-winning musicians. Our cover story, written by Melissa Gates, sneaks a peek into Goodwin’s world of music, his struggles with depression and drug use, his climb to soberness and his current life with fiancé Cheyenne Toney. Take a read and enjoy the love of music shared between the sweet
Melissa Gates – Cover Story
couple. In our February WINC, readers will have the opportunity to get a few tips and tricks about how one family celebrates the annual Valentine’s Day holiday and creative ways to put together those classroom Valentine boxes and get a peek into our faith feature guest writer’s perception of love and who is and isn’t worthy of it. This month’s Hometown Hero holds a special place in my heart. Over the past few weeks, I’ve had the chance to learn about and meet Conway’s Greg Nobles and his family, especially his daughter Bailey Smith. Nobles has lived with MS for the past 15 years, but recently, was diagnosed with ALS on top of that. In response, many in the community banded together to help ease that financial burden through a packed benefit event; talk about a show of love! I encourage each and every one of you to pick up your copy of our February WINC Magazine, which can be found in several locations across town including at our downtown office at 1121 Front Street. Happy February and Valentine’s Day guys!
Becké Stuart Photographers Cover photos by Joshua Mashon Hilary Andrews Ron Beckman Andrea Champlin Advertising Sales Executives Kelly Booy Crystal Geraldson Editorial Board Hilary Andrews Cindy Beckman Andrea Champlin Melissa Gates
Questions or Comments? Call (501) 327-6621 e-mail: Hilary Andrews at handrews@thecabin.net or write to: 1121 Front Street, Conway, AR, 72032 www.womensinc.net
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We were humbled to accept this award and acknowledge the deep dedication of our staff to the well‐being of our residents as the primary driver of our success.” Heritage Living Center will be recognized during the 2020 HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition, which takes place March 9–13 in Orlando, Florida.
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Creative Love: When two worlds collide By Melissa Gates
I
can’t remember a time I was more impacted by meeting two people than I was by Blake Goodwin and Cheyenne Toney. The duo are both recovered addicts, have a passion for Jesus, and love to create, are incredibly naturally talented, make crazy cool music together, and fell in love making a short film about overcoming addiction. You might recognize Blake’s business, Fretmonkey Records
Studio, which recently opened in downtown Conway. Musicians from around the world travel there to record. Goodwin recently worked with a harpist from Russia who flew his $50,000 instrument in to record there. Blake works with musicians from places like Ireland, Turkey, Columbia, Germany ... the list goes on and on. Goodwin, at 30 years old, is an international, award-winning guitarist. Meeting people at competitions is how he got so connected. womensinc.net 7
Five years ago, his first contest in Canada launched his career. “I entered the competition as a stand-by contestant and simply hoped for the opportunity to compete,” Goodwin said. “As fate would have it, a competitor didn’t show up nor did nine other stand-by contestants who signed up before me. By default, I got the opportunity to play. Winning that competition was beyond my wildest dreams.” He did so having had no professional musical training. Growing up, he simply enjoyed watching and listening to his uncle play. “My uncle taught me to read guitar tablature and use my ear,” Goodwin said. “He showed me how to use his first digital recording device when I was ten or eleven. I was the kid in 8th grade showing my friends my first demo.” But his young love of music also took him down a bad path of addictive behaviors. “I spent many years practicing guitar and writing music in my room on substances,” Goodwin said. “I toured with a few bands out of high school that had a lot of steam and momentum but we always failed due to drug and alcohol abuse. I eventually sold all my equipment and gave up.” In 2011, Goodwin fell into deep depression and immersed himself in drug use. He was in and out of rehab before he eventually got serious about it. “My final attempt at getting sober came from the deepest of desperation,” he admitted. “It finally clicked that I had to do everything that Alcohol Anonymous and the facility asked of me. I gave them the keys to my life and let them guide me fully. That decision is the reason why I am still sober to this day.” 8 WINC. | February 2020
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Goodwin has been sober for six years. He said the process has changed how he writes and plays music. “It was so tough and required so much more effort than I could imagine,” he said. “I wanted to play guitar again so badly and wanted to write that I just put in hours of work. Around a year and a half of sobriety, I entered the world championship for acoustic guitar. I ended up taking first place. That gave me the notoriety in the guitar community. With proper healing and dedication to sobriety, you can do anything better sober than you can high.” Goodwin is now engaged to the love of his life, 32-yearold Cheyenne Toney, who also battled addiction. He met Cheyenne Toney while making a 10 WINC. | February 2020
short film, titled, “Dissonance,” about Goodwin’s road to recovery. “During filming we developed a deep bond,” Goodwin said. “We quickly realized we had similar pasts and a passion for music. The one thing that stood out the most was her undeniable love for God.” Blake and Cheyenne found it
was easier to walk through life together, leaning on each other when tempted. Cheyenne admitted every day in her world is a fight. She came into drugs and alcohol as a teenager and was also facing domestic abuse, intense anxiety and trauma, dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result.
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“They became my outlets to help cope with pain and trauma. They’ve given me a beautiful way to tell my story. ...”
“We’ve both had to learn patience and how to love someone with a lot of scars,” she said. “Some days he’s there to just hold me and remind me that everything will be alright. He reminds me of my strength.” Toney is an incredibly creative person in her own rite. Aside from acting, singing, writing poetry, and painting on canvas she also redesigns used clothing. “Everything I create is part of my healing,” she said. “I love the idea of taking old or unwanted/ used things and transforming them into something spectacular. Every piece I make is one of a kind. Why let perfectly good clothes go to waste?” She called it wearable art, known for taking a pair of scissors and bleach to old t-shirts and giving them a new, funky look. “My passion for writing, art, music, dance, etc., has only grown over time,” she said. “They became my outlets to help cope with pain and trauma. They’ve given me a beautiful way to tell my story. Every poem, every canvas, every lyric comes straight from my 12 WINC. | February 2020
soul.” She credits her mother, younger brother, and 9-year-old son for helping her out of addiction. Her tattoos are tributes to each of them. Toney is currently looking for ways to help support others who are battling similar demons. “I want to tell my story and give hope to other women,” she said. “I want to let them know they are not alone. I want to be a voice and safe place for women recovering from or still experiencing abuse.” Toney has goals to start a nonprofit for victims of abuse. She’s also willing to donate 20% of her earnings to help those who suffer. While she’s just beginning in this journey of giving back, the You can see a lot of Blake’s work impacts she’ll make, I’m confident on his You Tube channel, “Kevin won’t stop at the impact she left Blake Goodwin.” on me. Cheyenne and Blake are a creMelissa Gates has been telling ative power couple indeed. Along stories in Faulkner County for more than a decade. She has with recording new music together interviewed a wide variety of interesting people at Fretmonkey, they are planning from U.S. Presidents to rock stars and countless a November wedding. community leaders. After You can find Cheyenne’s designs growing up in the Midwest, she is thrilled to call Conway home, alongside her husband on Facebook and Instagram at and three kids. @badapplebychey.
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Valentine Boxes
I
may not be the best cook or the best housekeeper, but darn it, I can make some awesome Valentine boxes. This is an extraordinarily silly gift to have, but my children love it and we have fun planning and making them, so, I embrace it. I had no clue about Valentine boxes when my first child started kindergarten. It didn’t even occur to me to check Pinterest! Annabel and I grabbed a box, wrapped some 14 WINC. | February 2020
By Andrea Champlin
leftover fabric around the sides and hot glued some rhinestones on it. It was super cute, but we’ve gotten a little more elaborate over the years. Now, I know not everyone appreciates my fondness for this particular aspect of Valentine parties in elementary school, so I’m going to give you a few tips to make things easier, ones I’ve learned over the years: l Save your Amazon boxes! I keep a few from Christmas that are
about the size I think I will need. l No need to paint anything, use poster board and cut it to the shape of your box and hot glue it on. Voila. A colored box. l Mod podge is awesome. You can print anything on a piece of paper mod podge it onto your box. l Wax paper is great for tracing shapes. I used wax paper and my son’s Batman pajamas to trace the Batman symbol for his Valentine box. This works for anything.
l Use
fabric. Fabric is such an easy way to wrap up a box fast! We’ve used if for superhero capes and Star Wars robes. l Get out the old Halloween masks. You can attach these to a Valentine box easily. My daughter is too old for Valentine boxes now, but my two sons still want fun Valentine boxes for school. My son Andrew chose Yoda (I really tried for baby Yoda, but he insisted on old Yoda). Andrew did not already have a Yoda mask, so being the sucker that I am, I ordered one from Amazon. We used two boxes for Yoda; one larger box for the body, and a smaller box on top to attach the Yoda mask. This one was super easy and we finished in about 30 minutes. Here are the steps, which you can use for any box: 1. Glue two boxes together, one to serve as the body and one to serve as the head. I used a cough medicine box for the top box. 2. I wrapped a dark brown fabric around the larger bottom box and cut to size. Then I hot glued it on. 3. Next step is to hot glue the smaller box onto the larger bottom. 4. Glue the Yoda mask onto the box. 5. Finally I wrapped a lighter linen fabric over the Yoda head and we hot glued it down. 6. That’s it. I may add a paper towel roll light saber to Yoda, but he’s pretty cute as is, and Andrew is thrilled with him. Now, I realize Valentine boxes can be a little of a touchy subject. Not all students can bring Valentine boxes to school because of various circumstances. Some parents compete with each other for the best box. It can get crazy. I get it, but if you want to make a box with your favorite kiddo, do it. Have fun together. Don’t stress. And get as creative as you want. They may not remember the box, but they will remember the time you spent together. womensinc.net 15
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February Faith Feature
This Love
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his love. This love is supernatural and mysterious. This love is undeserved, mocked, beaten, rejected. This love pursues and summons in the midst of running and rejecting. Persistent and deter-
By Heather Harrison, guest writer mined, this love rescues, delivers, restores. This love is unknown and while it is unknown is moving toward, relentlessly pursuing. Beckoning, preparing, plowing up. Loosening this compact heart soil. Painful? Sure, sometimes. But
nothing compared to the pain involved in the hardening. This love has called me, broken me, remade me. This love is better. Better than my hopes, thoughts, or pleas. This love is present. Never leaves. Faithful. Com-
mitted. This love is eternal – forever back and forever forward. All encompassing. Long suffering. Ordinary love is give and take and always in a certain proportion. This love is give give give. There is no ratio womensinc.net 19
that will do. This love depends on His unchanging character. This love is not a response but instead calls forth a response. This love goes deep, down to the depths deep. No matter how far down I go, this love is there, not always to bring me up but to sit in the depths with me. This love is with me. This love is wide – wider than my mind can dream and wider than my mouth can express. This love goes and goes and goes. No matter how far I roam, this love finds me there. This love doesn’t rush, but woos and takes my hand and leads me home. This love goes the distance. This love is high, far above any loves I’ve known. His love goes up up up, all the way up. Exalted above the highest heart, worthy of the highest praise. This love lifts me and then lifts my eyes further still. There is no limit to this love. There are no adjectives that will do. A love like this cannot be repaid, only adored. Do you think little of this love? You are forfeiting a gift you were created to receive, walking away empty handed, searching for another guaran-
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teed to disappoint. The cost for this love has already been paid. Paid in the midst of your, “No Thanks.” Paid while you were striving and rushing and grasping empty things, things destined to leave you without. Has this love caught up with you? Do you have a heart to receive? Because receiving is all you can do. Receive and never be the same. Receive and find the song your heart has been longing to sing since the first note was heard. This love is your song, your melody, your anthem. This love was sung over you from the beginning. Now, join your voice with its song. Can you hear it? Join its chorus. Sing. Dance. Live. “Look up, look up,” He sings. “Look at Me. Here, touch My hands, see My side.” “This?” “Yes this, for you.” “But I can’t.” “I know, that’s why I did. I have loved you and called you My own. I have covered the cost and poured out My love and grace and blood. It was poured out for you. This life blood poured out at death. It has won.”
Hear His beautiful song. “I’m not worthy of this sacrifice.” “You aren’t, but I am. The high price I paid declares your great worth. I have done it all so you would come to Me. “ “I don’t know if I have what it takes to be what You call me to.” “You don’t, but I do. As you follow you’ll see that your heart is made new. I will change you. Learn of Me, live with Me, love Me.” “I don’t know if I can love You that much.” “You can’t, but I can. And as you are filled with My love, your heart will expand and flourish. I will heal and restore and make you into My image. You will learn to love by being loved.” So I will learn to love by receiving This Love.
Heather Harrison is in absolute awe of the love and grace of God. She loves pointing others to Him through writing and teaching. She also enjoys creating, sitting with friends and spending time with her husband of 23 years, Michael, and their three teenage boys: Andrew, Nathaniel and Matthew. You can find more of her thoughts on her Facebook page, Wading in the Deep.
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Photo courtesy of H and H Photography
Fun take on Valentine’s Day By Andrea Champlin
I
used to have a love/hate relationship with Valentine’s Day. During my dating years, whether or not I liked Valentine’s Day, depended on whether or not I had a boyfriend. I spent several Valentine’s Days alone and crying, drinking wine and watching, “Bridget Jones’s Diary.” Thankfully, my life has drastically changed since those days and I’d like for my children to have a little different relationship with Valentine’s Day than I had. In our family we celebrate love between our family on Valentine’s Day. Instead of celebrating solely romantic love, we celebrate love in general. 22 WINC. | February 2020
We started a tradition a few years ago where we all have dinner together at our home and we go around the table and take turns telling one quality that we love about each other and why we are thankful they are in our lives. This is always a fun exercise. You can make up whatever rules you want. The main thing is that we’re together as a family. I also add in a fun dessert after dinner; sprinkles are usually involved. Sometimes we do a gift, if I remember. That hasn’t happened in a couple years. As my children are getting older, and especially since my sixth grad-
er is already starting to lament the absence of a boyfriend on Valentine’s Day this year, I started thinking about some other ways we could just celebrate love in general on Valentine’s Day. I would like my children to think of Valentine’s Day as a way to show love to others, instead of just worrying about romantic love. I’m totally fine if my children don’t date until they graduate from college. Here are some ways to spend Valentine’s Day with the family: l Deliver Valentine cards or goody bags to a nursing home. l Donate food to a food pantry. l Invite some family friends over
with their children for a Valentine soiree. l Have a family movie night with Valentine-themed snacks. l Challenge yourself and your children to perform three random acts of kindness. l Have your children make and send Valentine cards to their grandparents. l Take thank-you notes and a few goodies to the police or fire station. I’m not exactly sure how we’ll be celebrating Valentine’s Day this year, but as always, I want our children to be secure in our love and, although we do celebrate Valentine’s Day, my husband and I don’t make too big a deal of it. We feel it’s important for our children to see that their mom and dad love each other every day, not just Valentine’s Day. So whatever it is you’re doing, I hope you enjoy your friends and family ... and I still have a fondness for, “Bridget Jones’s Diary” ... and wine.
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Guard Your Heart By David Smith
There is a commercial that seems to play about a zillion times each day that asks the question, “What’s your more?” Its intent is to make you imagine what all you could buy, or where all you could go and how great things would be, if you won the big prize in the lottery. I’ll openly admit to several things coming to my mind whenever I hear or see it. That’s just human nature and, frankly I see nothing wrong with dreaming
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about some of those things. But, should those things be what our hearts truly desire? I think not. In The Wizard of Oz, the second character Dorothy encountered on her way to see the Wizard was a rusty Tin Woodsman. His lament was, “if I only had a heart”. Do you remember why this was his desire and how he found himself in his current condition? The short version is that he was once a human woodsman who loved a Munchkin girl and
wanted to marry her. Running afoul of the Wicked Witch of the East, he ultimately ended up completely made of tin. His only desire was for a heart with which to love again. In that regard, the Tin Man was not so very different from us. We all want to love and to be loved in return. We are especially mindful of that when Valentine’s Day rolls around. The question we need to ask ourselves is what characteristics
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do we have that would cause someone to love us? Do we need to enlist some divine help in order to remove some of the “rust” from our character? That’s a big yes for me. I need a squirt or two from God’s oil can every day. For several Sundays last fall at Antioch Baptist Church, our pastor, Dr. Jason Aultman, preached a series of messages dealing with the different spiritual “guardrails” that protect us and help us in our daily lives. These guardrails dealt with things like our speech, what we listen to or watch, our attitude toward others, humility, purity, our families, and our good name, to name a few. But the verse of emphasis was Proverbs 4:23, which says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Think about that for just a second. Everything we do is a direct reflection of the condition of our heart. Proverbs 27:19 says, “As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart.” Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and I realize
that, for many people it doesn’t bring much joy. Real life is not always a Hallmark movie story. Relationship issues, financial hardships, job loss, loneliness – these surround us every day. One of these may even describe your situation. If it does, be encouraged by Psalms 137:2 which says, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” I believe that our spiritual well-being directly affects our physical well-being. Proverbs 17:22 says, “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” With all that in mind, I’d like for you to take a minute and ask yourself exactly what is your more. The older I get, the easier that question is to answer. It’s funny how priorities change with age. I don’t focus as much on financial things now as I used to. Certainly, financial security is important, but I don’t figure I’m going to win the lottery. I’m pretty sure I’d have to buy a ticket for that! My more can’t be bought. My more is good health and time – time with my wife, my children
and my grandchildren. None of that is guaranteed. All you have to do is read the obituary page to prove that. I would love to have had more time with my dad, whose heart quit beating when he was only 47 years old. I would love for my mother not to have suffered that heartache. I would love for my children to have known him and for my grandchildren to have played with him. Sure would have been fun to watch. Proverbs 3:3,4 says, “Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.” Dad left me with a great legacy – his good name. My more is for that to be the case when I’m gone. What’s your more? David Smith is the owner and chief pharmacist at Smith Family Pharmacy where he works with his wife Shirley and staff. He graduated from the UAMS College of Pharmacy in 1974 and has been taking care of people in the Conway and surrounding areas for more than 43 years.
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Never Lose Hope
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Story and photos by Hilary Andrews
onway’s Greg Nobles and his family have had quite the year. Nobles has been living with MS (Multiple sclerosis) for 15 years – a disabling disease, which affects a person’s central nervous system – but in January, the family started seeing some noticeable changes in their loved one. His daughter, Bailey Smith, 26 WINC. | February 2020
told the Log Cabin Democrat that in January 2019, her dad started dragging his foot. The family thought it was probably just an MS relapse, but then in March, Greg had to start using a cane. By May, a walker and then in June, had to switch to a wheelchair. After visits with several of his doctors, Greg was diagnosed in
November with ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) – also known as motor neurone disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig’s disease, which is a specific disease that causes the death of neurons controlling voluntary muscles – on top of his MS, which is rare. While there is no cure for either disease, there are treatments that make both more manageable,
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including stem cell transplants, put out into the world. which Greg has already had two Madsen joined with several othof. ers, including Kristi Connell, to After the November diagnoses, devise a way to ease the family’s Bailey created a GoFundMe page financial burden through this difannouncing their plans to raise ficult time and came up with the money for HSCT (Hemoatopoidea to hold a benefit in Greg’s etic Stem Cell Transplant). Treat- honor, which was held Jan. 3 at ments cost about $15,000 and Legacy Acres in Conway, packed have to be performed in Mexico, out with friends and family of in a small town just right over the the Nobles family to offer their border; not to forget travel, hotel, support, and finances, during this food and more, the cost averages difficult time. Overall, the night around $60,000. Greg has already brought in more than $21,000 but had two treatments, which he said Madsen said a few things are still he’s starting to notice a difference being counted. from already. “It was so cool to see this event As a result of the family proall come together,” Madsen said. fession – Greg owns a family hair “Greg and his family have been salon called the Jordan Group through so much so it was ex– a wide array of clientele, which tra special to see them enjoy the have grown into close relationnight and catch up with people ships, have resulted through the who hadn’t seen Greg in months. years, including Conway’s Chris- They are so loved.” tina Madsen and many, many Greg and his wife, Carla, as more who are devoted to not only well as their children Bailey, her their favorite stylist, but also the husband, Chase, their children family and the great things they Charleigh, Lennon and Sloane 28 WINC. | February 2020
and Bailey’s brother, Jordan and his daughter Hailee were all in attendance for the event. Bailey said they have been very shocked and overwhelmed at the support and love people have been showing them. Tears were plenty during the event by many, including the family and those they hadn’t seen in months, everyone showing up to support their friends.
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“We were very overwhelmed by the love and support from the Conway community,” she said. “This was such an emotional night for our family. So many tears and encouraging words that we will cherish. Greg greatly appreciates everyone’s hard work put into the event to help give him hope for treatments. We want to say a special thank you to the women that poured their hearts into this for our family.” When the family got there, a line immediately formed to greet them and to get in there and give Greg a hug. “It was so neat to see how many different people showed up to show their support,” Bailey said. “Family, friends from high school, current and past Salon employees, clients for the last 25 years, the staff from rehabilitation, and even people we have never met before, but that got the chance to meet our family.” Bailey intentionally thanked the following: Christina Madsen, Kristi Connell, Andrea Standridge, Melanie Church, Susan Jenkins, Wendy Norris, Ora Lyn Blackwood, Samantha Moore, Molly Bernard, Allison Lea, Adrienne Moore and Jill Stow, Diana Kirkland. In addition, Madsen said everything was donated which means every penny raised will go straight to the cause. Items included several pieces of art by local artists V. Noe, Steve Griffith and Wendy Norris to name a few, a leather power recliner from H3, makeup and skincare product packages from LimeLife, Rodan & Fields, Estée Lauder and Avon, fashion 30 WINC. | February 2020
jewelry, a Toshiba Fire TV, a handmade farmhouse foyer table, teeth whitening from Conway Family Dental, a Polaris cooler from C2 Sports, beautiful items from Golden Girls and Park Hill Home, Viking cooking school package, $250 gift certificate to Sparkling Sparrow Boutique, restaurant gift certificates, children’s toys and items, a handmade quilt, several gift baskets with various themes- haircare, painting, wine lovers, Razorback gear and more. Food was provided by Catering by S and I, drinks by Stone’s Throw Brewing and music by Madsen’s band, Just Cause.
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A Look Back...
Photo Courtesy of H.G. Foster
Foster Oar operated on the west side of Parkway near Prairie Street from 1956 to 1978.
‘Best Little Oar House’ Foster Oar Company By Cindy Beckman
I
n the 1930s, Harry Gregory Foster founded the Foster Boat Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan, producing small wooden recreational boats. By Spring 1941, the business had relocated to Charlevoix, in the northwest Upper Peninsula (about where the third finger is on the hand), occupying the former Ferry Seed Company building. It had 15 employees but was struggling financially. America’s entry into World War II, however, quickly provided opportunities for the fledging company. It shifted to war production, being awarded a contract to build aircraft rearming boats – craft used to ferry men and munitions to seaplanes. Soon, it began constructing sailing dinghies for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard. The company’s sail and canvas division made portable arctic Photo taken by Ernie Deane, part of Ernie Deane Photographic Collection at the Arkansas History Commission Ed Richardson, secretary/treasurer and Jim Foster, president, looking over their paddles in the shelters. drying room in 1961. After the Battle of the Bulge, extra womensinc.net 33
Photo Courtesy of H.G. Foster
On April 28, 1988, the building that once house Foster Oar burned. Southern Castle, a fiberglass manufacturing firm, was leasing the building at the time.
workers were hired to manufacture storm boats intended for river crossings in Germany. At its peak, 175 employees labored in the company’s three plants – two in Charlevoix and one in Petoskey. After the war, Foster Boat returned to the recreational market, supplementing its line of row boats and other small craft with a 26foot cruiser designed by Charlevoix native, Jim Bellinger. It later offered toboggans, snow scooters, kapok life vests, oars and a variety of canvas products. Though many of Foster’s products were well received, ultimately the business failed and the plant was sold. In 1953, Foster and his son, Jim, were traveling through Arkansas when they stopped overnight at the Bel Mar Motel in Beebe. There they met Frank Anderson, father of Bruce Anderson who started Cajun’s Wharf. Over coffee, Anderson sold Foster the Beebe Ford dealership and a Standard Oil gas station located near it. Jim moved his family to Arkansas to run it. After a few years in Beebe, however, Harry Foster realized the dealership and gas station didn’t satisfy his itch to create engines of social change and opportunities for others, so, he sold them and moved Jim’s family to Conway to open up Foster 34 WINC. | February 2020
Oar, having kept the machinery to make oars when he sold Foster Boat. “He had a knack and a joy in starting businesses, bringing people together for their common enterprises,” Foster’s namesake, H.G. Foster, Division 5 Circuit Judge of the 20th Circuit of Arkansas, said of his grandfather, H.G. was 6 months old when his parents moved to Beebe and five when they moved to Conway to work in the oar business. The building on Parkway where Foster Oar was located was considered one of the oldest structures in Conway, with one section dating back to the 1800s. It had been a wagon yard that opened in the center, an old freight/livery building and a lumberyard. There was even a roller rink in it at one time according to Jim Foster. The Foster Oar warehouse, office and finishing operations were located there while the actual sawmilling and wood working was done at a location on Sturgis Road called the “lower 40.” The operation on Sturgis Road was in a large tin metal building, which was mostly open air. “It had no heat or air and wasn’t the safest place to work,” Bo Conner, lifetime friend and classmate of H.G. Foster who worked there, said. “You had to pay attention to what you
were doing because you were working around a lot of different kinds of saws and sanders. We always knew where the first aid kit was.” A day shift of approximately 30 men or so, manufactured wooden boat paddles and boat oars. They were mostly older, hardened, blue collar factor workers. When people couldn’t get jobs in bigger, higher paying factories, they could go to work at Foster Oar, making enough money to feed their families and have some measure of human dignity. H.G.’s father, James E. “Jim” Foster, held various jobs at the plant, from unloading log trucks to “selling oars to Sears Roebuck in a three-piece suit” to vice president of the corporation. By the time Harry Gregory Foster, H.G.’s grandfather, passed away in 1972, Foster Oar was one of the largest oar manufacturing operations in the world. Sears and Montgomery Ward were its biggest customers. Judge Charles Ed Clawson, Jr., Division 3 Circuit Judge of the 20th Circuit of Arkansas, worked at the downtown location for several months in 1970 when Jim Foster needed some extra help to run a second shift in the evenings. “Jim was one of the greatest guys I’ve ever known,” Clawson said. “A wonderful guy!”
Jim Foster was known for his keen wit and a dry sense of humor. He was an astute businessman, running the oar company as well as selling boat supplies everywhere. He loved to tell people that he operated “the best little oar house” this side of the Mississippi River. He said, “and we made them out of white ash.” Sourcing lumber for the oars was always a challenge, requiring Jim to travel to places like Ecuador to find cypress and ash. As time went on, it became harder to find these woods, forcing him to search out substitutes. Photo Courtesy of H.G. Foster Jim Foster, right, in Ecuador looking for cypress, used for paddles, and ash, used for oars. In addition to the Fosters, other members of the core “team” includmanufactured during the day. So he a good time,” he said. “The place ed Ray Stell, Kenneth and Marie came up with the night shift, staffed smelled strongly of lacquer.” Brown, and Raymond Woodruff. primarily with college students. This Bo Conner, lifetime resident of “They were like family to all of allowed many future doctors, lawConway, was one the “college boys” us,” H.G. said. “Our family owes a yers, accountants, etc. to work about that worked on the night shift for a great debt to them and I will always 20-25 hours a week while furthering little over two years while attending feel deep gratitude toward them. their education during the day. It was SCA. Without them this story would have a “win-win.” “When I began looking for a sumended differently.” The night shift worked 3:30-8:30 mer job in 1971, my older brotherAnother group of notable workers p.m. weeknights and Saturday morn- in-law suggested I go to work at the were some Nigerian students who ings but only worked until 6 p.m.. Foster Oar Plant,” Conner said, “He were attending State College of on Wednesday evenings because the had worked there and was leaving, Arkansas (now UCA). It was shortly plant manager, Raymond Woodruff, and said the work wasn’t bad, the after the Biafran War in Nigeria in who was a staunch Baptist, insistpay was good and it was a good 1969; many were war veterans and ed they were all supposed to go to job to have while you were still in often had served on opposing sides. church. school.” “They did not really need to be Judge David Reynolds, Faulkner He said one of the highlights working with each other but thankCounty District Court and Van during the winter months was to fully, no incidents of violence beBuren County District Court, also hurry and get your work done. tween them occurred,” H.G. said. worked there about a year while he “Then, you could finish the night H.G. started working in the family was in college. sitting by a single wood stove with business at the age of 14. In high “I had worked at other places the others until you clocked out,” school, he sold oars and paddles out where they told me I could work Conner said. “A lot of lies and stoof a pickup truck in Arkansas as well around my schedule,” Reynolds said. ries were told by that wood stove. Jim as around northern Michigan and “That didn’t happen. Frustrated, I would often drop by at night I think Canada while visiting his grandfather complained to a friend, Don Brown, just to be one of the guys. He was in Charlevoix. The oar business put who told me he had the perfect job always a hoot when he came by.” H.G. through college and law school at night. There were four or five of Shortly after Conner began workand when he completed law school, us who would go to the Sturgis Road ing at the Parkway location, he he opened his first law office in the factory. When we arrived, we were became the “night boss” of the night Foster Oar building. Jim fashioned given woodworking tasks, usually crew, mostly through attrition. a shingle for him to hang at the oar sanding paddles and oars.” “It wasn’t long before friends and plant. Clawson, also a lifelong friend of fraternity brothers found out about At some point, Jim Foster decided H.G. Foster, said he ran a belt sandthis, so during my time there, most that he needed some extra help, prier, smoothing out the oars before of the guys I worked with were SCA marily to provide finishing work for they were sent to finish. guys, mostly fraternity brothers,” he the oars and paddles that had been “It was loud and hot but we had said. “At one time, we had so many womensinc.net 35
fraternity guys working out there, we had to change our fraternity meeting night to Wednesday ‘church night.’” H.G. Foster, who was attending Hendrix, joined the group about this time and soon there was an influx of Hendrix boys working nights as well. “We all meshed well, worked hard but had a fun, valuable experience while we were Foster ‘college boys,’” Conner said. “For sure we all learned that we needed to stay in school and get our degrees rather than making a career out of sanding boat paddles and oars.” While fire was always a possibility in this industry, and several competitors went out of business because of it, Foster Oar never had a fire while still in operation. “We never had a serious one because the firemen were always there.” The Conway Fire Station was just around the corner. In 1978, it became evident that Foster Oar would need to make changes if it were to remain com-
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petitive in the coming years. Coincidentally, this was also the year H.G. became a licensed attorney. When he decided to go into private practice rather than continue the family business, his father decided it was time to sell the business. The Fosters sold the operation to United Dollar Stores, a consortium in Dumas that later went bankrupt. The family kept the building and leased it to Southern Castle, a fiberglass manufacturing firm that produced portable toilets and satellite dishes. Plans were underway to sell the building to Dr. George T. Gray III, a Conway physician, when the fiberglass company caught fire
and burned on April 28, 1988. The 16,000 square-foot building contained fiberglass material so the fire burned for over three hours. An employee, Jimmy Anderson of Conway, was injured in the fire when he tried to re-enter the building and something exploded as he opened the door. Father and son stood by with tears in their eyes, watching it burn and remembering but H.G. said his grandfather would not have been bothered a bit. “He said everything has a beginning, a middle and an end,” he said. “When something comes to an end, it is over. It is fitting and proper. Everything has a time.”
Cindy Beckman is a local freelance writer and columnist who has authored several local history books and articles. Her weekly History Mystery and Artifact of the Week columns appear in the Tuesday edition; the A Look Forward column appears bi-monthly in the Sunday edition; and the Yesterdays column appears daily in the Log Cabin. She is also editor of Faulkner Facts and Fiddlings, the journal of the Faulkner County Historical Society. She may be reached at beckman@wind stream.net.
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