photo courtesy of Penny Britt
Gainesville resident Penny Britt, right, and her mini goldendoodle Archie meet hospice patients in their own homes, as they are here with Shirley Rubis. The registered nurse working with Shirley recommended an Archie-visit to provide comfort and companionship. After an initial visit, Penny and Archie now visit Shirley monthly.
Three decades of service
Monte Shipley, right, who has served as Dora fire chief for 35 years, and Deputy Chief John Epley, left, and his wife Donna, retired from the Dora Volunteer Fire Department Sept. 1. Both Monte and John helped build the fire station pictured behind them. “It was all built with volunteer labor. First, we had two bays and a community building. Then we ran out of room. We had three trucks, so we added three more bays...”
Shirley and Ronnie Garrison’s house on Lake Road 619, off HH Highway south of Isabella, is off the beaten track but attracts a lot of attention this time of year when Shirley and son Heath Garrison create clever seasonal yard displays like these, which feature a huge haybale scarecrow and three straw bales with expressive faces. The designs are illuminated at night, and the Garrisons welcome friends, neighbors and other residents to come by and check it out.
Grandpa Homer Roberts’ old 8N Ford tractor still sits on the family farm in Elijah. The tractor was purchased new in Gainesville in the 1950s, and has hauled tons of black walnuts over the years. Times photo/Bruce Roberts.