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NEVADA T H E

M A G A Z I N E

Featuring Vernon County’s People and Towns

ADVENTURES

of a Cottey Student

THROUGH the

Kitchen Door

WALKING

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CATS Vol. #2 ISSUE 3

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Program Offers Something for all Ages

By Tami Morgan Landis Adult Librarian, Nevada Public Library

The act of reading can be a solitary one, but the summer reading program brings community and shared adventures – for all ages!

The Nevada Public Library’s Summer Reading Program has long been a mainstay for Nevada and Vernon County children and teenagers, but now adults can get in on the fun too.

For the first time – adults are invited to sign-up, join in, and have some fun with their very own Adult Summer Reading Program at the Library. Throughout the month of June, adults can try something new and different, enjoy a wide variety of incentives, and enter drawings for prizes.

Adults have varying motivations for summer reading; some want to model good behavior and life skills for their kids, while others are nostalgic for the happy memories of their own childhood summers.

(417) 667.6015 900 South Adams, Nevada, MO

Your children and teens can once again fill their lazy days of summer with books, perks, and prizes, while strengthening their reading skills during the Summer Reading Program.

Everyone is invited to start signing up during the third week in May, and then enjoy the month-long SRP throughout June. Come on in and explore lots of new books, classic favorites, special guests and presentations, and so much more.

The Summer Reading Program is free and fun for the entire family.

Summertime exploration and know-how can be found in books on vegetable or flower gardening, vacations and travel, hobbies or baseball.

Here are some additional summer-themed book suggestions for various age groups: Children: “Buster Goes To Cowboy Camp” by Denise Fleming, and “The Day The Crayons Quit” by Oliver Jeffers.

Youth: “My Almost Epic Summer” by Adele Griffin, “Summer of the Gypsy Moths” by Sara Pennypacker, and “The Penderwicks” by Jeanne Birdsall.

Teens: “The Moon and More” by Sarah Dessen is the beach town story of Emaline and Luke, that could only happen in summer. “Project Sweet Life” by Brent Haringer is designed for the funny and lazy bone in all of us – a true comedy of errors among teenage boys.

Adults: “Frog Music” by Emma Donaghue is a tale of love and bloodshed in the boomtown of San Francisco during the summer heat of 1876. “Loss of Innocence” by Richard North Patterson is a sweeping family drama of dark secrets and individual awakenings. “The Chaperone” by Laura Moriarty is a captivating novel about the woman who chaperoned an irreverent Louise Brooks to New York City in the 1920s, and the summer that would change them both.

Your library card is a treasure trove of adventure and knowledge, and a weekly visit to your library will pay dividends in enjoyment and learning for the entire family.

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NEVADA T H E

Now you can network with potential customers using our “At Your Service Resource Page” Showcase your business and professional staff with a feature every other month!

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FEATURES SUMMER READING Program for all ages......................................... 3

AT YOUR SERVICE Check out the services Nevada offers........... 4

THROUGH THE KITCHEN DOOR with Barbara McAdams & Belinda Kennedy............................................ 6

ADVOCATING FOR ACCESSIBILITY ADA accessability standards .......................... 8

MENAGERIE Petting Zoo........................................................ 10

GARDEN THERAPY

McMillian Garden.............................................. 12

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WALKING WITH THE BIG CATS

Maine Coon Cats................................................ 13

SAILING MEDITERRANEAN Adventures of a Cottey Student.................... 14

THE COVER

NEVADA T H E

M A G A Z I N E

Featuring Vernon County’s People and Towns

ADVENTURES

of a Cottey Student

12

THROUGH the

Kitchen Door

WALKING

with the BIG

CATS Vol. #2 ISSUE 3

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2014

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$3.99

College student Beth Poortinga who recently completed a “Semester at Sea”, shows off one of her souvenirs.

Photo by Floyd Jernigan

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NEVADA the MAGAZINE

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Through the

KITCHEN DOOR . . .

...and into the kitchen of

Barbara McAdams & Belinda Kennedy Story and photos by Martha Meinsen Scott

Mother Barbara McAdams (at left) and daughter Belinda Kennedy (at right) enjoying coffee and pound cake in Barbara’s kitchen.

When Barbara was first married, “I could make a pretty ham, fry a chicken and make potato salad,” she said. Her husband Bob McAdams bought her first cookbook the second week after they were married. The tattered and stained “Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook” is still on her shelf. “In those days, you didn’t get cookbooks for gifts,” Barbara explained.

In that book is the recipe for “Mother’s Chocolate Cake” and she made that cake for Bob for years and years and it was his favorite.

The first time Barbara made the cake, however, Bob had invited some of his military buddies home for dinner. Barbara, being a novice cook, accidentally dropped part of an eggshell in the batter.

“I know now,” she said, “that you don’t break eggs over the batter bowl.”

Not able to fish the shell out, she turned the mixer on high, hoping to pulverize the shell! “No one ever knew,” she said with a smile.

Belinda was luckier because her mom taught her how to cook. From the time she was a toddler in her grandmother Nell’s kitchen, she grew up around cooking, watching her grandmother mix up the pound cake and then licking 6

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Barbara McAdams and Belinda Kennedy are a mother and daughter who both love to cook and love to entertain. the beaters after it was in the oven, to a fifth-grade student in Waco, Texas where she made her first cake all by herself.

Her daddy, Bob McAdams, always liked his girls to experiment in the kitchen, especially with desserts.

Belinda’s sisters, Trish and Julie, were more involved in sports so it was Belinda who cooked more with her mom.

And that tradition continues today as Trish and her family live in Springfield and Julie and her family live in Arkansas. So more mother-daughter cooking is done with Belinda.

“But we do converse by phone and email,” Barbara said. “And we cook together when I go visit.”

Bob’s job took them to different parts of the country. In each city or state they lived in, Barbara would often pick up a cookbook and learn the favorite dishes of the town that they lived in.

Barbara can still remember which cookbook has which recipe, she said.

For each of her daughters, she made a cookbook of all the family’s favorites.

A slice of Belinda’s Easy Pound cake

Both women collect cookbooks and Belinda said that her favorite is the “Southern Living Annual Recipes Cookbook” while Barbara favors the Thalia’s cookbooks and other community cookbooks, often ones published by her church in the towns where they have lived.

They also like to watch cooking shows — Barbara favoring “Barefoot Contessa” and “Pioneer Woman” while cable-less Belinda watches PBS and likes “America’s Test Kitchen” and “Cook’s Country, Lidia.” She’s hoping to take her mother to Lidia’s in Kansas City for the next special dining out occasion). Also a favorite is “A Chef’s Life,” a series about a New York chef that opens a restaurant in a small town in North Carolina.

Barbara is a busy woman keeping up with her three daughters and eight grandchildren — five boys and three girls. Belinda has a son and daughter and a daughter-in-law.

They all live fairly close. Although her daughter-in-law is not pregnant, she can’t wait for that first grandchild. Being an empty nester, she said she fills her time with helping husband Scott run their business, Kennedy’s Seed, and raising chickens and lambs.

“Bob always liked pick-up food (appetizers),” Barbara said. Belinda added, “Dad was just as involved in food as mom urging her to make this or that.”

Since Barbara didn’t work, Bob liked bringing home guests for dinner, often without much notice.

Barbara always kept a small can of Pet milk in the freezer, a can of Eagle milk and a box of Graham crackers in the pantry. With those ingredients and a lemon, she could whip up a tasty pie when she got the phone call that Bob was bringing home someone for dinner.

Barbara still loves to entertain but nowadays it’s mostly family or her Sunday school class that she has over for dinner.

Belinda’s busy schedule leaves little time for entertaining friends but she does like to have her family over for dinner.

Both women love to eat out. “We search out mom and pops, “ Belinda said. “We both like a unique dining experience.”

“And”, added Barbara, “if we like a dish, we’ll try to replicate it at home.” She went on to relate that there was one in Springfield that Trish is wanting to replicate and she felt that one more trip and they’d have it down pat.

“We’ll bring a dish or a cake,” Barbara said.

“When we know someone has had a bad week or a bad day, we’ll bring a hug and a hot casserole or a

A “poached egg” dessert — pound cake, whipped cream and a peach half

sweet dessert. ” Belinda added, “If we’re stressed, we’ll get in the kitchen and cook.”

The recipe that both women shared is for pound cake. Both were originally Barbara’s and Barbara chose to make Grandmother Nell’s Sour Cream Pound Cake. This is the one that Belinda used to lick the batter from the beaters when she sat in that same grandmother’s kitchen.

“Pound cake has been a staple dessert often in our home,” Barbara said. “All of my girls are good cooks and they can all make cakes of many flavors; but the humble pound cake can be made with vanilla, lemon or almond flavors and then will lend itself to a strawberry (or other fresh berry) shortcake base or something that my mother made back in the ‘50s called ‘the poached egg dessert.’”

Barbara explained that this was a simple piece of pound cake slathered in fresh whipped cream and then topped with a drained peach half turned upside down; looking a lot like a poached egg on toast.

“It was often the refreshment served at wedding/baby showers of that day,” she said.

Belinda’s pound cake is a simpler pound cake, which came from a neighbor in Waco. Belinda makes this more often because it is so much easier to put together than the Sour Cream Pound cake.

“I could not begin to share the many recipes I have gotten over the years from the places where I have lived or from my daughters who still share their cooking ideas with me,” said Barbara.

Visiting with Barbara and Belinda, you can see their eyes light up when they discuss food and the unique bond that a mother and daughter who both love to cook share.

GRANDMOTHER NELL’S SOUR CREAM POUND CAKE (BARBARA’S POUND CAKE)

2 sticks butter at room temperature 3 cups sugar 3 cups flour 1/4 t. baking soda 6 eggs, separated and whites beaten separately 1-cup sour cream 1 teaspoon flavoring of choice (vanilla, almond, etc.)

Beat egg whites and set aside; cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks one at a time. Add flavoring. Sift flour and soda and add alternately with the sour cream. When blended, fold in the egg whites well. Pour into a large tube pan or 2 loaf pans and bake for 1/2 hour at 325.

Lower oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake for 45 more minutes.

Glaze if desired with 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar and juice of 1 lemon ************************************************************************

WACO, TEXAS EASY POUND CAKE

2 sticks butter (at room temperature) 5 or 6 eggs (depending on size) 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar 1 t. flavoring extract of your choice (vanilla, almond, etc.)

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy; add eggs one at a time, add flavoring, slowly add in the sifted flour and blend well. Then beat on medium speed of mixer for 8 to 10 minutes.

Scrape bottom of mixer bowl to be sure everything is incorporated well. Pour into a well-greased and floured pan of choice. Can use 2 medium size loaf pans, large tube pan or Bundt pan. Bake at 300 degrees for 1 and 1/2 hours.

Glaze if desired with 1 1/2 c. powdered sugar and juice of 1 lemon.

NEVADA the MAGAZINE

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A DVO C AT I N G

F O R

ACCESSIBILITY “You have to fight for it to keep it. Don’t lose it.”

By Nicole Garner

It’s been almost a year since Willie Kimbrough arrived in Nevada, but his mission is still as strong as it was the day he arrived: creating a more accessible community for all residents.

Kimbrough, originally from St. Louis, is an independent living specialist working with On My Own. Part of his job in Nevada is to bring accessibility issues to the forefront for businesses and area officials.

Equipped with a variety of tools – a level, tape measure, camera and more – Kimbrough visits businesses around Nevada with several other advocates, examining everything from bathrooms, space between aisles, availability of ramps and weight of doors. It’s often the little things he catches that many don’t think about – how bathroom stall doors latch, lowered counters for easier transactions or inability to see screens at gas station pumps.

But, Kimbrough said those little things many don’t notice to some could cause problems for others.

After evaluating buildings, he creates reports and meets with business owners to discuss needs for ADA accessibility standards. Sometimes, he said, they take his input and consider making changes. Other times, his observations are bypassed.

He’s also worked to examine county infrastructure, such as crosswalks and sidewalks. Kimbrough, along with other On My Own staff, have approached county and city officials to discuss ways to improve pedestrian mobility around the area.

Kimbrough said his career in accessibility advocacy and education stemmed from his own difficulty in using public services in his hometown several years ago. The final straw was what seemed like a simple trip out of the house.

“There was a library I wanted to go to and do some research. I got there and found out I couldn’t get in. Some people were nice enough to go inside and ask for some assistance. A woman came out, and I asked if there was a way to get in. The person who worked there wasn’t even sure,” he said.

After being turned away because there were no entrances suitable for a wheelchair, Kimbrough determined that things needed to change. “I decided to be tough enough to tackle my neighborhood,” he said.

In St. Louis, he became involved in Paraquad, an organization that focuses on a handful of accessibility services, such as support groups, education, housing, health and transportation. He said Paraquad encouraged him to learn more about the Americans with Disabilities Act. “I took the time to learn some of that stuff. I watched videos of how people before would fall and drag themselves up steps and block buses,” he said. Those historical fights for accessibility standards inspired Kimbrough to advocate for others with disabilities.

With Paraquad’s help, he founded the Community Advocates program in 2008, with the mission of identifying accessibility problems around the city.

“I was able to get a group together of people with disabilities,” he said. “We would go out into the community – libraries, restaurants, you name it. We 8

| NEVADA the MAGAZINE

ABOVE: Willie Kimbrough, an independent living specialist for On My Own, works to help make communities more accessible to those with disabilities.

went to the zoo. We went to the Arch, everywhere. We made a name for ourselves after a while, and got a lot done.”

The success of that program has allowed Kimbrough to work on accessibility issues outside of eastern Missouri while the program continues on in St. Louis.

“We started branching out to some of the other cities and that’s the reason why I’m here. “I was willing to come out here to see if I could help get things going.”

By July 2013, he ended up in Nevada, and has been working with On My Own to provide accessibility evaluations and several classes at the center. Kimbrough offers a budgeting class, and often has one-on-one meetings with students. He also offers tax help to those who have disabilities, and is compiling a list of accessible shops, stores and restaurants around Nevada and Vernon County.

Kimbrough said no matter where he goes – Nevada or another city – his focus remains on helping others by maintaining and improving accessibility standards and empowering others to do so, too. “You have to fight for it to keep it. Don’t lose it,” he said.

BELOW: Willie Kimbrough measures countertops at a store in Nevada to determine if they are accessible to those with disabilities. American Disabilities Act standards require that countertops be no higher than 36 inches.

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Nevada High School Student Offers Menagerie in Petting Zoo Brett Snead stands with Lady Antebellum.

By Gloria Tucker

Brett Snead knew ever since he was little he loved animals and wanted them to be a part of his life. Snead, now 18, takes care of 10 llamas, an alpaca, a potbelly pig, two emus, a turkey, a guinea pig and a ferret, as well as some of the typical goats, ducks, chickens and rabbits.

“My parents wanted me to play sports, but sports didn’t interest me,” he said. “My parents knew nothing about animals, they were both city people, so everything was learning for them and me.”

Snead shows his animals in the Youth Fair as well as national competitions. A dark-eyed beauty, Lady Antebellum’s most recent award was the Llama National Champion Best in Show last fall. A white and dark brown llama, Arnie won the National Versatility Champion, meaning he performed the best in all the different show categories.

Snead enters his llamas in all the categories — halter class, fiber class and three performance classes, packing, agility and public relations.

“Getting the llamas cleaned up for a show is challenging,” he said. “I have to brush them in hourly spurts. I start with brushing Lady Antebellum completely out, and then I bathe her.

She takes over 24 hours to dry, and then we sheer her. I’ll brush her out again to get anything on the skin off, and then we bathe her again. So it takes a few days just for her to get ready.”

Though requiring a great deal of care, Snead said he’s enjoyed raising the pack animals originally from South America since 2008.

“They’re very inquisitive, friendly and sweet,” he said. “They just love attention. I like being able to tell people that llamas don’t spit at you just because you look at them. You have to agitate them, and llamas worked regularly aren’t easily agitated.”

As well as showing his animals, Snead started a rental petting zoo, which he has brought to events ranging from birthdays to Oktoberfest.

“I thought I might as well start a petting zoo since I already have all these animals,” he said.

10 | NEVADA the MAGAZINE

“Sometimes animals get a bad rap. I like being able to show people animals can be friendly and don’t have to be mean and grouchy.”

Snead said he plans to keep showing and offering his petting zoo after he graduates high school and while he attends Fort Scott Community College.

“I’m going to Fort Scott for my generals so I can be close to home,” he said. “If the petting zoo goes over big, I’ll make it a job or I will keep it a part-time thing.”

After Fort Scott, he said he plans to transfer to a university and pursue a zoological degree.

“There’s a lot of different things that wow me about my animals,” he said. “Ever since I first got them, everything I learned since then has been new to me. I was fascinated they could be so friendly and have such a personality. All of our animals, every single one of them, has a different personality. I know each one of them by name and can describe each by its personality.”

Crossfire is a llama raised by Brett Snead.

Lady Antebellum is a llama raised by Brett Snead.

Brett Snead demonstrates packing with Arnie.

Why a Green Space?

Can you image one of the City Parks completely devoid of trees? It is not a pretty picture and one we often take for granted. But, other than aesthetics, what exactly are the benefits of green spaces?

Over the years, this is a question many organizations, from government entities to private nonprofit environmentalists, have tried to answer. While the list seems to be infinitely long, there are a few that seem to stand out.

Well placed plantings offer privacy and tranquility by reducing sound and light glare. Sixty-eight trees have been planted at the Twin Lakes Sports Complex around ball diamonds to not only offer the comfort of shade but to provide a sound barrier blocking distractions from other fields. A portion of the funding for this project was made available through the Missouri Department of Conservation’s Tree Resource Improvement and Maintenance Program. A continued expansion of similar projects is planned throughout the entire city park system.

Community leaders recognize green spaces are beneficial to children and plan to enhance existing landscapes. Greenery in a child’s environment helps them to manage stress. Researchers have found that Attention Deficit Hypertensive Disorder symptoms are relieved in children after time spent in green spaces. A University of Illinois study found that girls exposed to greenery were better able to handle peer pressure, sexual pressure, and other challenging situations. All children were found to perform better in school. A study published in Environment and Behavior (Vol 35:311.330) indicated green spaces enable youth to think more clearly and cope more effectively.

Green spaces not only impact children but also adults. Countless studies indicate a growing evidence that plants lower blood pressure, reduce stress and reduce feelings of fear anger, and aggression. In fact, one study shows road rage incidents decreased along roadways that are surrounded by nature.

Green spaces contribute to healthy, active living both physically and emotionally. In fact, doctors have reported that people recover faster in a hospital when given a landscape view rather than the walls of adjoining buildings.

Parks and recreation opportunities have been found to be second only to education in residents’ perception of the value of municipal services. Well-landscaped grounds including trees and foliage are among the most important factors considered when individuals are relocating. Green spaces create communities by providing gathering places for socialization and a sense of belonging.

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McMillan

Garden Profi

By Gloria Tu

cker

S

An assortment of canned goods from McMillans’ previous gardens includes jams, green beans and tomato sauce.

Shoots of cabbage, broccoli, asparagus, onions, carrots, peppers, tomatoes, watermelons, squash, peas, radishes, peppers, sweet corn, potatoes, eggplant and okra spring up in the yard of the McMillan home 10 miles outside Nevada.

Their gardening success hasn’t been all roses, though. Moving from Texas 13 years ago, Steve and Lois McMillan had to adjust their planting schedule.

“The first year of our gardening in Missouri was kind of a disaster,” Lois said. “He planted too early, of course, and we had a snow. I told him not to plant anything yet.” “I didn’t listen,” Steve said and laughed. “We had three or four warm days.”

Though they’ve planted gardens each year since, Lois, 62, added gardening always involves success and failures.

“What does good this year might not do good next year and something else will do good,” Steve said. “Sometimes you never know about your garden. Like last year, our green beans did OK but never put on a lot. But our peppers, okra and watermelons just went haywire.”

Steve, 61, learned how to garden from his parents at a young age, having grown up on a farm with a garden of several acres. “I learned from him,” Lois said. “We learn stuff from books, garden TV shows and just talking to the neighbor across the street.” Steve said he gardens because the hobby is therapeutic.

“It’s very relaxing after a hectic day of work,” Lois said. “He comes home and mellows out in the garden. Whatever the troubles of the day are, they melt away when he goes in the garden. He’s not stressed out.

“It’s exciting to me to see something grow from a seed to a plant and then food for my family. It wouldn’t be any fun if one person did it. What we enjoy best is that we do it together. ” The excess produce goes to family members, friends, neighbors and church.

“Not only do we enjoy gardening, but we also enjoy canning,” Lois said. “We both can, which makes it more fun. The beauty of canning is that it will last a long time.”

12 | NEVADA the MAGAZINE

le

Over the years, they’ve seen a few changes in gardening and canning.

“There’s more varieties now,” Lois said. “It’s a lot easier to garden now. It’s a lot easier to learn.

Information is so much easier to get. As far as canning, the process is simpler and pressure cookers are better and safer.”

She advised would-be gardeners to start small. “Start on your front porch in a container,” she said. “Get a pot and plant what you like to eat. It’s real satisfying to see something grow.

It’s rewarding to eat fresh vegetables you’ve planted. Don’t be discouraged when you have a failure, just try again next year.”

ABOVE: Steve McMillan harvests some asparagus from his garden.

ABOVE: Shoots of green begin to show in McMillans’ small garden.

RIGHT: The McMillans grow spinach and lettuce on the porch.

The

BIG CATS

1

By Nicole Garner

When Larry and Karen Rose were first married, you wouldn’t find one friendly feline sunbathing in the window of their Nevada home.

More than 25 years later, the pair has developed a soft spot for the largest domestic breed of cats, sharing their home with seven Maine Coons who bask in the window. The cats, deemed “gentle giants,” can weigh up to 25 pounds and are known for their long hair and fox-like fluffy tails.

Both Larry and Karen said the last 20 years of adventures in raising the gigantic cats and creating a purebred breeding program – the now retired Rose Petals Cattery – were unexpected.

“When we got married, I made her get rid of all of her cats,” Larry said. “I was not a cat person. Now look at me.”

Soon after banning cats from the house, Larry slowly began to budge. Time spent away from home in the National Guard encouraged him to consider a companion cat for Karen.

“I would be so lonesome,” Karen said. “He finally broke down and said I could have a cat. One of the nurses I worked with [at the Department of Mental Health], her mama cat had kittens. So we drove over to Fort Scott and came home with two.”

“It was supposed to have been one,” Larry chided, laughing. They named the kittens Patches and Puff.

Years later, Patches and Puff are gone, but Takoda, Chinny, Lizzie, Ace, Walker, Indigo and Breezy all share residence with the Roses.

But one of the cats closest to their heart, which led them down the road of starting a cattery, was a Maine Coon named T.C. “When we moved to our house in November 1985, a neighborhood cat from two houses down adopted us,” Karen said. After some time, T.C. became theirs to keep, and for several years, lived with the Roses, as both an indoor and outdoor cat.

“He died at the foot of our bed,” Larry said, with sadness in his voice. It’s apparent that every cat the Roses have raised is special to them. In their entryway, a glass case holds urns with ashes from their past feline companions.

For some time, the couple didn’t know what kind of cat T.C. was – other than being large. It wasn’t until they visited a cat show in Joplin that they figured out what breed he was after noticing another cat just like him: a Maine Coon.

The two searched for a Maine Coon to adopt for quite some time, before Larry surprised Karen with a Brown Classic Tabby on her birthday.

After entering and winning several cat shows, Karen took a plunge into breeding in 1993. Years later, she can easily name coat colorings, cat history and explain the science behind genetics. But, she said it wasn’t like that during her first years owning a cattery.

“Over 20 years, you learn a lot,” she said. “I’ve learned a lot by trial and error. You don’t make money at it, so you have to do it because you love doing it. I love knowing I was making so many people happy.”

Karen said Maine Coons are a natural purebred breed, with genetic lines traceable to the late 1700s.

They are the only American natural purebred longhair cat.

“In your breeding program, you’re not allowed to breed them with anything but another purebred Maine Coon,” she said.

At birth, the kittens are nearly four times the size of other cats. Indigo, the Roses’ youngest Maine Coon, was born last August. At 8 months old, he’s the size of a middle-aged cat, but it won’t be until Indigo is 5 years old that he’ll be fully-grown.

Maine Coons are social and trusting cats, Karen

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1) Larry and Karen Rose hold Chinny, one of their Maine Coons.

They say their adventure into operating a cattery was unexpected.

2) Lizzie perches on the back of a chair at the Roses’ home.

3) Ace checks out the camera. Karen Rose said the cats, who are often photographed, have become used to cameras.

4) With Walker, it’s evident how large Maine Coon’s features are.

As kittens, the cats are four times the size as regular cats, and continue growing for 5 years.

said. So trusting, that they often make friends immediately with new people or with dogs.

“We’ve sold a lot of them [cats] to people with dogs, and they’ll send pictures of the cat curled up with the dog,” Karen said. “I tell them that a Maine Coon is a dog in cat’s clothing.”

Like their canine companions, Maine Coons can easily be trained to do tricks, such as rolling over or playing fetch. “Maine Coons are very playful,” Karen said. “When they’re not napping,” Larry noted.

Beyond the chiming and ticking of clocks, the Roses’ home is virtually silent, despite its multiple feline inhabitants, who enjoy causing some minor mischief. Karen said Maine Coons don’t meow, and instead make a chirping sound.

All of these characteristics, the couple said, make the breed of large cats great pets, especially around children.

Many of the Maine Coons Karen and Larry raised and sold have gone on to win awards in cat shows or become pampered house cats. Their own cats have been featured in books about Maine Coons and taken home champion wins from cat shows. Before his untimely death, their cat, Scotty, received several wins for best Maine Coon in the region and for his colorings in 2004.

Larry said the two of them were highly selective on who could adopt from their cattery in an effort to ensure loving homes and healthy environments for the kittens.

“You don’t sell purebred cats like people sell puppies,” Karen said. “You don’t sell to a broker.” Each cat was adopted out on an individual basis (some in pairs) to new adoptees who could pass the test.

“Everyone who came to us had a questionnaire. If they didn’t answer the questions right, they were not adopting,” Larry said. Those requirements included standards such as an indoors-only lifestyle and no nail declawing, which the Roses said can cause emotional distress and behavior problems in cats.

These standards, they said, helped them create a reputable cattery that has worked with many repeat adopters. Over nine years, one woman has adopted 12 Maine Coons from the couple. Since 1993, Rose Petals cattery has been registered with the Cat Fanciers’ Association, and been designated a Certified Cattery of Excellence each year. It was also certified as a Cattery of Distinction by the American Cat Fanciers Association between 2001 and 2013.

Since Karen and Larry retired last year, they’ve passed their Maine Coon lines onto a family cattery in Joplin, Mo., called Mojo Maines. The Roses have provided mentoring to the cattery, operated by Marian and Dan Goepfert. Karen said she and Larry felt confident in the Goepferts and their shared love for the breed of gentle giants.

Of all the journeys the Roses have had in the world of catteries, they say the joy of meeting others, like the owners of Mojo Maines, has enriched their lives. The pair have taken trips to deliver cats all across the country, and maintained relationships with many clients and cat enthusiasts.

“We have friends all over the United States,” Larry said. “That’s been the amazing thing.”

NEVADA the MAGAZINE

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Angela Phillips, assistant director of admissions for Cottey College, Cottey student Beth Poortinga, and Betsy Curtis, Nevada Lions vice president who coordinates the program speakers for the club.

Cottey Student Sails to Mediterranean for Classes

Cottey student Beth Poortinga isn’t your typical student. As a Cottey graduate with an associate’s degree, class of 2007, she opted to return to Cottey when the school began offering a handful of fouryear degrees after being out of school for several years.

By Floyd Jernigan

Poortinga displays a decorative yet useful fan she bought in Barcelona.

14 | NEVADA the MAGAZINE

When she finishes her bachelor’s degree, she’ll be the oldest Cottey four-year grad in her class.

As a non-traditional student, Poortinga is studying in what many would consider a nontraditional way as well. She just recently completed a “Semester at Sea,” a program through the University of Virginia as part of her Cottey graduation requirements for an international relations degree.

Poortinga spent her class time this past summer in the Mediterranean Ocean, visiting nine countries in 66 days, calling it “the best semester of my life.”

She was part of a group of students representing 100 plus colleges and universities.

Her cost was $16,000. “But there’s a lot of financial aid available. I was fortunate, it was fully funded.”

That included three meals a day on the ship, as well as her classes, which were every day, “except when we were in port, and then we had field labs.”

Classes are offered in gender politics, global media, and culture and women’s rights. Her ship was the MV Explorer, an 836-passenger 25,000-ton cruise ship.

“We left Southampton, England, with about 500 students.”

Poortinga had a room in one of the outer facing cabins. “I saw the ocean every day.

Most days we saw dolphin pods.” The first stop on the agenda was Morocco.

“The dress for women is very modest there. So we had to be covered up,” recalled Poortinga. Her field lab traveled to Casablanca for a visit to a women’s rights organization.

The five-day stint in this area also included a visit to Antalya, Turkey. Also in Turkey, she and her classmates visited Kusadasi for a 36-hours stay, enjoying a tour of an old theater.

The plan was also to visit Istanbul, but because of the unrest there at the time, the students instead visited Crete, an island off the coast of Greece.

“We toured a winery and had some time at a private beach.”

In Athens, Greece, the students spent five days. “We saw the Parthenon.”

Chief among her favorite memories of that stay included time spent at the Sea Turtle Rescue. “The workers there let us help them with the turtles, including feeding the turtles.”

Her field lab was a trip to the 2004 Olympics site. Next on the itinerary were stops at Livorno, near Florence, Italy; Lucca, Italy with a field trip to a wine tasting in the mountain area; and a jaunt to Rome and a visit to the Coliseum.

“Valetta, Malta, turned into my favorite stop. We got to see a solid gold church. Everything was gold, from the pews, to the ceiling, to the floor.”

Time spent on the Golden Bay beach was relaxing, she said.

The students visited Marseille, France, also a memorable time. “I had taken French for seven years, so this gave me a chance to use that.” She took a field trip to the Gallery of Mediterranean Art. Next up came Barcelona, Spain. “We saw the Grotto Sagrada Familia (one of the most visited cathedrals in Europe). We also attended a traditional bullfight. But it was sad that the bull got killed.”

Poortinga’s group visited FC Barca, the football club of Barcelona, known as soccer in America. The club is one of the most successful on the field in the world and is a consistent winner of the top competitions as well as La Liga, the country’s professional league.

“We toured the stadium, the press box, and the museum, with the museum being located in the lower level. “My dad was envious, as he’s a big soccer fan.”

The group headed to Cadiz, Spain, a resort town. “We were getting ready for finals on the ship, so it was good to have a break.”

Lisbon, Portugal, beckoned next. “We did a bike tour but we didn’t realize it was from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Afterward, I spent several days in bed,” she noted with a smile of just how physically taxing the bike tour was.

Recalling her favorite experience of her Semester at Sea experience, she said it had to be the diversity of the cuisine.

“I’m a foodie, so I really enjoyed the food at each stop.”

With her time at sea winding down, she said, “it was hard to think it was over. We had a formal dinner on board at the end. I made countless contacts.”

Poortinga said her plans following graduation at Cottey are to head to graduate school at Texas Woman’s University with a double major in history and government, and then hopes to teach at the junior college level.

Poortinga stands in front of a slide show she presented on her “Semester at Sea.”

Worry beads from Athens can provide mental and physical relief.

bpoortinga@student.cottey.edu NEVADA the MAGAZINE

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