Owning a clinic in my hometown had always been my dream. My husband, Mark, was tired of watching me pour myself into other businesses without appreciation, so he and my mother went looking for an old house we could renovate into a clinic of our own. We bought a hundred-year-old home, and with family and friends, we turned it into the clinic ourselves. 

Money was tight. We worked long hours, and my whole family helped build what we have now.

I put in 12-plus hours a day, seven days a week. As a mother, the hardest part was less time with my kids, but I was building a better life for them, so the sacrifices were made.

My husband and I went all in with our own funds to get a business loan, and Barbara Dixon at Southern Bancorp took a leap of faith on us. To get started, I worked two days a week out of Emily Vaught's small clinic in Horatio while ours was being renovated.

Renovating a hundred-year-old house came with its share of construction delays, and our opening date kept moving, but it all came together in God's time. And I didn't build it alone for long.

Jennifer Buenrostro-Oros and Kristina Lovell, my first hires, helped me build and grow from ground zero, and they still do. They are hard workers and good friends who's always bringing me new ideas.

Today we're a comfortable, homey, faith-based clinic, and the staff I hire truly care and go the extra mile. The compliments from this community, and knowing we've made a difference, are still what motivate me most.