Kaitlynn Returns to the GCCVB

If you are tuning in for the first time or a returning reader, let me sum up what has happened in the last  nine months and no I didn't have a baby. I left Gallia County. When I completed my internship last summer at the Gallia County Convention and Visitors Bureau I moved to Jeffersonville, Ohio and worked in Columbus for AAA as a travel consultant. I enjoyed my time there learning about domestic and international travel, but for myself and my husband there was something missing. Home.

I used to question why anyone would want to live in Gallia County. I wanted things to do, places to shop and bigger was suppose to be better. The first few months were an overload of shopping and visiting new places. But when our wallets were hurting and not really having the opportunity to make friends (plus I am quite awkward) to do well nothing with, we began to visit home. I would count the days till we could come home to see our friends and family. I was crushed when I couldn't attend the grand opening of the Colony Club, a local restaurant that shows movies. When I would talk to my co-workers instead of having nothing to say about Gallia, it's all I talked about. They found it strange that when going to Walmart I have to plan for extra time because you never knew who you would run into #smalltownproblems. I also learned that in the city you don't refer to places by the county it is in, which to me is weird. My favorite was talking about our festivals, I am very proud of the fact that I have only missed attending the Bob Evans Farm Festival twice in my whole life. I even drove down to be a part of the annual Gallia County BBQ festival last year. Best. BBQ. Ever.

So there I was working in the travel industry in the "big city" and an opportunity buzzed in my desk drawer. Amanda Crouse the Executive Director here at the GCCVB and my mentor for several years was reaching out to see if I wanted to interview for a position. It didn't take much time (3 seconds) to know I wanted to come home. Long story short I returned to the GCCVB, this time in an office of my own and a notebook filled with ideas. I am happy to be back in Gallia County and so is my husband who also grew up here.

I have lived in Athens, Ohio, Jeffersonville, Ohio and Gallia County, Ohio. There was something missing in those other places for me, not that they weren't nice places to live or go to school. It's that Gallia County is such a strong community and it offers residents a quality of life that is unmatched by any other place that I have been.