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Hi everyone, hoping all of you had a great week! I am finishing up the January/February issue now, after an unexpected change was necessary in my layout that was unavoidable, and such is the life when publishing a hyper local publication. I am just glad I am not a newspaper printing twice weekly! This problem has been an issue with our timely frequency since 2017, and I am so so excited it is gone.

I want to highlight one of the very coolest things I have seen to come about in Edmond over the decades I have lived here. I was raised to respect my elders and with my grandparents both having 6 siblings each, they all took care of each other without anyone becoming lonely or feeling isolated.

I know that I was privileged and so very lucky to witness this within my extended family and be the recipient of their generous love, and I am quite well aware there are some that are without immediate or extended family as they become older. Edmond Mobile Meals is now offering a Friendly Visitor Program to help tackle the issue of elder isolation, and you can volunteer by simply getting in contact with them. Here is more information:

I looked over all of my past 85 issues of EdmondActive over the years and laughed at some of the “new” ideas some are presenting to the community. We have covered boss babes here in Edmond for over a decade, who still remain the same awesome positive forces they were in 2011 and beyond and are excited to be bringing this back as a mini feature set this summer. It’s not just women in positions of absolute power who deserve to be on this list, for certain, but women making small daily changes to our community’s over all charm and usefulness are priceless to the forward development of Edmond and our surrounding communities.

Sadly, most of the rest of the metro views our community as snobby, exclusive, and highly over rated and assume our streets are paved in gold bricks.

The attitudes of some of those seen by the rest of the metro are sometimes viewed as indicative of this embarrassing label.

The women I know in Edmond and those that I currently work with are NOT those kind of women, as they work hard, very long hours at what they do, they invest all of themselves in their families and in the community, and try to bring innovative changes to our community every day, not only on occasion or when it suits their image branding.

Their pioneering, loving, kind spirits are what they are known for. And, this is what I am here for in 2020, and I can’t wait to move forward. My first feature this year is on a woman owned business that fits this mold and I can’t wait to distribute this issue where I was able to catch up with Kellie Clements and her amazing team at Modern Whimsy Interiors.

Something else that caught my attention was a tweet a local marketer made asking her followers not to make fun of those who are taking their Valentine’s to Olive Garden. While I love local chef run restaurants and that is the “cool” thing to say you did with your significant other during any holiday season, most people in the general population could actually care less about whether a restaurant is local chef run or not, and to be very clear, not everyone can afford such a night out.

The tweet simply stated “Not everyone’s fancy is the same”. This holiday has been a topic of discussion in my all male household for at least a decade. When I was young, my husband hated the day in its clear measurement of his income not his affection for me. After awhile, I honed in on this and told him not to worry about that, but came across friends that asked me “You let him get away with not giving you ANYTHING?”. As an early empty nester, I love my little home, downsized to work for me not cause me strife in its upkeep. My husband affords me this.

All of the belongings I held onto for 24 years I thought I couldn’t live without are such a distant memory I almost cannot remember what I had and I cannot believe I waited that long to declutter my life, both literally and proverbially.

Judgment on both sides of the aisle are high on this day and so is the idea of standardized gift giving. Give an experience that won’t be forgotten once its over as flowers, jewelry or other gifts might be. I believe this is the new show of love that is lasting and soon I hope to be doing just the same. Because in this realm of gift giving, fancy doesn’t matter, and everyone’s memory of shared experiences cannot be compared. That is priceless in this day of Insta comparison’s that is causing so many in the community personal grief. Do you. Share your life through experience and stop measuring everyone else’s worth with your coveted gifts – doing this would go a long way to destigmatizing our community’s perceived snobby status.

And, a huge thanks to Edmond Mobile Meals for their outstanding program to lend human compassion to those without family or friends they can call on. This love of community is what I consider “fancy”.

You can grab hand tied floral arrangements at Emory Anne Interiors at 150th just east of Santa Fe for your Valentine, and if you are in Downtown Edmond, stop by Citizen’s Bank of Edmond to grab a bouquet from the amazing vendors of Curbside Chronicle at 1st Street and Broadway!

Have an amazing week, see you in and around Edmond! Check back next Wednesday for another Around Edmond.

Sherri Hultner