Meet Your New Neighbors

Joan Fick moved to Tehachapi from Simi Valley to be near her children and to have the four seasons she experienced when she was younger.

Although Joan was primarily raised in Sylmar, she was actually born in Olean, New York. Her family also spent some time in Elmira, New York where she claims she learned to skate on the dikes. She says she still has “hundreds of relatives” in upstate New York. Her sons, Aaron and John, also live in Tehachapi.

Aaron, his wife Renee, and grandson Daaron are also new to Tehachapi and are expecting a new baby boy due before Christmas. I visited with them in November, and they were featured in a prior article. This new grandbaby has certainly added much excitement to the family holiday season.

Although she is currently employed at Kmart, Joan has spent the last ten years as a business advisory coach for Specialty Merchandising Corporation (SMC) in the Simi Valley. Her current household includes four very energetic pups. Five year old Milo is a pointer who adores Joan and follows her everywhere. Mama, who was found in front of Kmart, is thought to be about six months old. Pete, a Jack Russell/Chihuahua mix, is about two years old. All three of these dogs are certified therapy dogs. Then there is Brownie who was a visitor who adopted Joan.

Like her son, Aaron, Joan is an artist, preferring to paint portraits and landscapes in oil or watercolor. She also sews and loves to make Raggedy Ann dolls. In fact, Joan told me that she and her mother had a doll shop in the San Fernando Valley 30 years ago. According to Joan, her next project was to be making her traditional candy for Christmas. Welcome, Joan, and I Know you’ll be a grandmother again by the time you read this.

Laura and Andrew Pinger seem to have settled nicely into Bear Valley Springs. They arrived from Portland, Oregon in October and Andrew began his work as a biologist on the wind farms with Western Ecosystems Technology. He is responsible for monitoring the safety of the area’s California condors to ensure compliance with federal regulations.

Laura works from home where she does social work consulting for now but plans to eventually do some clinical work.

Their son, two year old Leo, has his own busy social life attending preschool two or three afternoons a week. According to Laura, the Pingers had been in Portland for three years before moving to Tehachapi.

Andrew attended Portland State where he studied both biology and journalism. His father is an entomologist so it is no surprise that Andrew’s chosen field is related to biology.

Neither Laura nor Andrew is native to the west coast and their families are spread across the country. Originally from Washington DC, Andrew has a brother in Oregon, a brother in Indiana and a sister in Wisconsin. Laura is originally from Virginia and has one sister in Virginia and another in Utah.

Between work and Leo, Laura has very little free time. However, when she does, she likes to cook and sew. Says her favorite things to make are baby items.

Andrew is an outdoorsman. He likes to hunt and fish but his real hobby is making custom bows and arrows to be used for hunting.

It would appear that Tehachapi will be the perfect environment for this young couple. Welcome Andrew, Laura and Leo.

I want to wish all the Loop readers a Happy New Year and may you all have a very prosperous 2014. ~ Pat Doody

Welcome!

If you have moved to the Greater Tehachapi Area within the last six months and would like to know more about your new community, call 661-822-8188. We will be happy to make an appointment for a hostess to come by and give you lots of helpful information, some valuable coupons, gifts and much more. Many families and individuals who come to the area are pleasantly surprised with the amount of knowledge they gather about their new home. Publishing your welcome article is completely voluntary and is not a requirement of being welcomed.