She went shopping…and bought the Entire Store!

Hop Skip N Jump's Store Front Along the Old Underground Railroad

Heidi Strimpfel loved shopping at the local children’s store in the quaint and historic town of Springboro, Ohio. When Heidi learned the owner of Hop Skip n Jump had decided to sell the store her first thought was “Where will I shop?” Her next thought was…I would love to make a change in my life – so she entered into negotiations to buy the lovely boutique! Heidi has a background in business, and with her accounting knowledge realized that the little business would be a perfect fit for her talents.

Hop Skip n Jump had been in business for 7 years when Heidi made her decision to ‘jump’ into the children’s clothing business – that was 11 years ago! Heidi has fine tuned the boutique into a desired destination for doting grandmothers and professional mothers who love the assortment and quality of Heidi’s carefully chosen selections. One of the store’s specialties is special occasion clothing. One customer declares “if you’re looking for a christening gown or First Communion gown and everything you’re finding appears to be cookie-cutter and not special, make a trip up to Hop Skip and Jump in Springboro, you won’t be disappointed.”

Heidi and Her Wears

The charming boutique is located on a lovely, tree lined street in Springboro, Ohio – a mecca for history buffs. Springboro, established in the early 1800’s and settled predominately by Quakers, was a major stop on the Underground Railroad. The building that the store occupies was built around the time of the Civil War, is on the National Historic Register and was the town’s original Dry Goods store. Tour groups regularly make a stop to visit the notable site. Heidi loves putting together eclectic merchandise groupings, using an antique display case and the fireplaces that grace every room. Integrating the beautiful merchandise while paying homage to the significant history of the area makes Hop Skip n Jump very special.

Take a stroll through the historic area, and visit Heidi at:
Hop Skip n Jump
220 S Main St
Springboro, OH 45066
(937) 748-9000

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Rowing the Atlantic in Memory of Mom

Paul Ridley, age 25, is 79 days into his solo, unsupported, trans-Atlantic journey in a yellow, 19′, 400lb row boat named ‘Liv’ – in memory of his mother, Katherine Ridley, who died of skin cancer in 2001. Inspired by his mom’s adventurous nature and with his newfound passion for cancer research fund-raising, Paul’s goals are to become only the 3rd and youngest person to ever row across an ocean, and in doing so, raise $500,000 for cancer research at the Yale Cancer Center. He set off  in early January in the Canary Islands (off Morocco) and has been putting in 8 to 13+ hours a day at the oars. The entire journey will require him to row more than 3000 nautical miles. He’s closing in on his goal and, weather permitting, is scheduled to pull into Antigua (in the Caribbean) at the end of March.

After seeing a few pictures of Paul, you might ask yourself why a person with a fair complexion and his mother’s battle with skin cancer would undertake such a long, grueling trip and – among all the other inherent risks – expose himself to so much sun? Well, Paul’s got plenty of sunblock, and for you apparel lovers out there – special ‘threads’ that block UV rays. Yup, science and technology is at work in apparel, too!

Did I mention Paul is undertaking this physical and mental challenge completely unsupported? That blows my mind! No sail, no motor, no support crew to bail him out if things turn ugly (which, hopefully, they won’t). This really hits me when I think about what it must be like out there, day after day – with no signs of human life – except for the 2 passenger planes Paul spotted up around 40,000′, the ocean liner that ‘brushed by’ (2 miles away), and yesterday, a bug landed on his deck (a sign that land is near)! He gets all giddy about such sightings.
Paul’s daily posts often focus on the interesting marine life he encounters, the physical and mental challenges he faces, his emotional ups and downs, his progress, what motivates him, and the ever-changing weather conditions. One of my favorite posts (from day 59) includes a description of how dramatic and dominating the constellations appear when viewed from a tiny row boat in the middle of the ocean.

As a tech-nut, I’m also amazed at Paul’s ability to stay in daily communication (via a solar powered satellite phone) with his support organization, Row for Hope, back in Connecticut. The information he relays immediately makes its way to the Web, into his blog, and even into his new Twitter page. Very cool. Here’s a guy out in the middle of the ocean – completely on his own – whose daily thoughts and reports are readily available to anyone around the world connected by computer (or even mobile phone!) to the Internet. Internet marketers/le•top e-tailers – are you listening? More on easily using some of these powerful technologies (to reach your target audience) is coming in future tech posts, so stay tuned!

Meanwhile, check out Paul’s Website and monitor his progress – it’s a fun, educational and inspiring thing to do with your kids. Also, please consider making a donation if you can. Due to the economic downturn impacting us all, Paul is falling short of his fund-raising goals – he could really use our assistance.

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