In 2013, I sat with my wife at this same venue - Peoples Natural Gas Park. It was for our wedding reception and we were the first couple to use PNG Park as our marriage celebration site. 6 years and 2 kids later, our love for our community continues to grow, much like how those trails continue to evolve. The Founders' Day message was simple: trails connect people. My wife and I are living proof of that.
The next day, we left at 4:06 A.M. for the beach. Family car rides connect people, but if you leave extremely early in the morning, you allow your children to connect with you four hours into the trip. This strategy is an act of love and to maintain sanity. I am proud to say, we executed the plan to perfection.
Beach week reveals a lot about the family dynamic and the ability to disconnect from routine. Above all, this year's trip reinforced what I have always believed - the Great Outdoors is the ultimate classroom. To see my kids splashing, dashing and thrashing - that is learning at its finest. We were dragonfly chasers by day and crab hunters by night. On our final full coastal day, we took what felt like a safari in a wildlife refuge. We saw great blue herons, osprey, and the landscape that connects Virginia and North Carolina. Our guide was even able to wrangle a cottonmouth snake and teach us about this serpent by the sea.
When we got back into town, a church message on being "daring" in faith provided a closing touch to the trip. The cottonmouth, venemous and what my daughters would classify as "creepy", is not a fellow to touch. Touch - we not dare. What I am willing to grasp is how important faith and family are to me. Beach trip proved that. Amazing Grace proved that. That 2013 wedding recepton proved that.
On that Sunday afternoon back from the beach, my parents reconnected with our kids. My wife and I headed for one of those Johnstown trails - the Jim Mayer trail. On our bikes and under a beaming sun, we traveled with the Stonycreek, viewing geese and Coal Tubin' tubers floating down the river. Pedailing by my wife, summer vacation was ending in a great way.
Get out in your community and connect. Discover trails and support local initiatives. Soon school will be back in session, but remember that Mother Nature is always calling.
Dare I say it - Johnstown is a great place to live.
