Townsend,TN

I have been off the internet grid for awhile and have some catching up to do about some my activities over the last week or so. At the beginning of last week (Monday and Tuesday, 7/7 and 7/8) I had the opportunity to interview Janice Sullivan and Carol Murray in Townsend, TN.

Janice has been living in Townsend for the past 10 years and was originally from the Manassus, VA area. She has a varied past filled with a myriad of careers including philosophy, women's studies, pro tennis player and teacher, lawyer, financial planner and more. One of her passions is to help create a Department of Peace at the federal level; she has attended many peace rallies, workshops and events to support the formation of an organization that would be devoted to world peace. In conjunction with this she has also been involved in Marshall Rosenberg's work on "nonviolent communication" and has for many years been a member of "Numina", http://www.numina.org/ In addition to being a vibrant and passionate spokesperson for peace Janice loves nature and is committed to her own and other's health. She is an Isagenix (www.isagenix.org) consultant and offers her experience with the product to be "the answer to a prayer" for the improvement of one's health and well-being. In her free time Janice plays tennis and basketball and is currently preparing for the Senior Olympic games of '08.

Carol, is orginally a New Yorker, and her story of how she ended up living in Townsend is nothing short of a miracle. She fell in love with the area the first time she visited a year ago and then returned to where she was living in Florida. Through a series of synchronistic events she found out about an employment option to be a live-in caretaker for a 85 year old neighbor of Janice's and jumped at the opportunity to be back in Townsend. After spending a week there I felt the charms and beauty of the Great Smokies Mtns and the gracious hospitality of the people lving there. Carol is also an Isagenix consultant, a NLP (Neurolinguistic Practitioner), Radiant Heart Practitioner and has created many businesses (travel agency, real estate development, customer service, network marketing) over the course of her career.

Their love of the area was infectious - whether it was visiting Dollywood, driving through the National Park, going to the local Heritage Center, coffee shop or bakery - there was a familiar, small town feeling that pervaded every experience and made me feel welcome.