Born on Sept. 18, 1949, the second child of Thelma and Kenneth Bosart, I grew up outside of Marion, Ohio, in the sleepy village of Green Camp.  My siblings, an older brother (Kenny) and a younger sister (Connie), and I enjoyed the small-town life of Green Camp—where our grandparents lived only a block away and the safety of the village allowed us to play undisturbed from dawn to dusk.

In 1960, however, the carefree innocence of our childhood was sadly interrupted.  Our beloved father died unexpectedly, leaving our mother a widow with three elementary-age children.  This life-changing event, however, drew me and my family closer to God, who gave us strength and comfort in the many difficult days, weeks and months we faced.

In the years following my father’s death, God sent a wonderful new person into our lives.  My stepfather, Philip Luke, was and has always been a role model for me and my siblings (including two younger brothers, Robert and Steven, who joined our family following my mother’s marriage to Philip).

In 1962, my family and I made the move from Green Camp to the “big city” of Marion.  Looking back, the stress of attending a new school, making new friends and adjusting to the idea of a stepfather and new baby brothers could have been disastrous.  However, once again God stepped in and somehow made it all okay.  My loving mother and stepfather truly gave us a wonderful home where we all were happy, well-adjusted and never thought of ourselves as anything less than a normal family.

In 1968, I graduated from Marion Harding High School.  Following high school, I attended classes to become a keypunch operator at the Scotts Company in Marysville, Ohio.  Next, I decided to turn my interest in nursing into a second job at Sawyer Sanitarium, where I served as a nurse’s aide caring for elderly patients, each of whom had his or her own wonderful personality and intriguing life story to share.  It was at this job that I first met Vicki Cook—Princess Happy Heart—who was a fellow aide.  Following the closing of Sawyer Sanitarium, I continued my work with the elderly at Marion Manor Nursing Home.

In the years following high school, my friends and I enjoyed spending weekends at Lake Erie, going to the drive-in or simply “shooting the loop” of our local downtown and meeting guys!  However, it was not until 1970 when one of my friends introduced me to her fiancé’s friend, a Navy sailor home on leave, that I met my future husband, Art Adams.  I have to admit that our first date was not without a hitch; I did not like Art’s jokes and found him insolent instead of comical!

Our subsequent dates, however, went much better.  We found that we had many common interests, hopes for the future and dreams of a family of our own.  When it came time for Art returned to sea, we vowed to write to one another as often as possible. It was through our letters that we really got to know one another over the next nine months.  In fact it was in such a letter that Art proposed.

In 1971, I married Art at Green Camp Baptist Church—a place where I had so many happy memories from my childhood.  After our honeymoon in Kentucky, Art had to return to the Navy for his final, nine-month tour of duty.  Once he returned, we moved to the small hamlet of Nevada, Ohio, where we bought our first home and started our family.

Our daughter, Heidi May, was born in 1973 and brought overwhelming joy into our lives.  Our blond-haired beauty was a true blessing and the answer to our prayers.  Knowing that we wanted to grow our family, we moved back to Marion in 1977 to be closer to our extended families.  In 1982, God blessed us again—this time with a bouncing baby boy, named Jay Arthur.  Another blessing from God was the opportunity to work as a stay-at-home mother while my daughter and son grew up.

In 1996, with my daughter completing her degree at Otterbein College and my son entering high school, I decided to return to work outside the home by accepting a job with one of my friends as she started a new business, Health and Home Care Concepts.  Now in my 10^th year at the business, I am a receptionist and assist with human resources projects.

In 1996, my daughter married Joe Gordon, who is the son of Paula Main—Princess of Sunshine.  My daughter and son-in-law live in Lewis Center and have two beautiful Bichon Frises (my grand-dogs), Barney and Baxter.

My son joined the Air Force in 2001 and was stationed in Alamogordo, N.M., where he continues to live, now working in the civil service.  While in the Air Force, my son married, allowing me to became a step-grandmother to one of my most recent blessings from God—my granddaughter Hannah.