Health & Fitness
Am I From Havre de Grace Yet?
Becoming a part of a community takes persistence and acceptance. Here's where I started.
I love this city.
I have loved Havre de Grace ever since my husband got a job at APG in 1986 and we moved to the area from Atlanta. I remember looking at a map and when I saw the little dot by the water, I knew I wanted to live there and nowhere else. It was a close call: my husband almost bought a house in Aberdeen before I got here. Ack!
In the end, we rented a small apartment on Fountain Street (the second floor of one of those old turreted buildings) and then, by a stroke of good luck, a year or so later, we were able to move into a lovely little 1930s house down the street near Union Avenue.
Find out what's happening in Havre de Gracefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
In those early years, it became obvious I would have to start making some income if we were going to grow in our house. My first serious attempt at income was real estate. People had always said I would be good at it, but it only took a few months after I got my license to figure out it was not my cup of tea. I was a terrible realtor (God bless the real ones).
The hardest thing was my desire to run my little real estate business right in town. And although I knocked on hundreds and hundreds of doors, most people already had a friend, a cousin, an uncle, a daughter or son who was already in real estate. It was a family thing. It became pretty obvious that I wasn't from Havre de Grace.
Find out what's happening in Havre de Gracefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
As an actress (I was touring a one-woman show at the time), director, and drama teacher, I eventually connected up with other theatre types and I got the idea of opening a theater in town. Back then, Tidewater Players had gone dark and the timing seemed ideal.
One of the first things I needed was to build a Board of Directors. I started asking around some of the locals if they could give me a recommendation for a good Board member, let's say someone like Mr. X; I got the most amazing answer:
Him? Oh, he's not from Havre de Grace!
He's not?
Oh no. He didn't get here til 1945.
Eye blink. The person was serious. And I was clearly out of my territory.
I think things have changed over the years. The city has grown by leaps and bounds and wonderful projects are springing up everywhere. More and more new businesses and people are springing up and making a positive difference.
I will never stop loving our city by the bay; but I have to confess, what I really want is to belong.
