Jordan moved to Thatcher the summer he turned eleven and stayed through HS graduation (a class of about 50 students). His dad, Kenyon, had a ranch near Clifton/Morenci and also farmed (mostly cotton) nearby in Solomon. In about 1985, while Jordan was in Japan, there was a crop failure which forced Kenyon to sell his ranch and most of his farm so he made a pivot to use his law degree to became a small town attorney doing a variety of legal work for people (some clients traded tractors/painting jobs, etc for his services). His mom, Leona, worked in the law office as well and this was something they really enjoyed doing together. It had been a number of years since I had been back here and it looked mostly the same to me except for some beautiful curbs/sidewalks in a few of the neighborhoods we drove through! That really took us by surprise and we remembered that was something Leona had always missed after they moved here from Gilbert. Jordan has three siblings that still live here - Jayna, Brooks & Nona along with their spouses Dave, Suzette and Mark - and it was fun to hang out at each of their places and catch up.
One day Nona planned an outing for everyone. Jordan's brother Collin & his sister Alayne (and hubby Don) drove from Mesa to join in. It was pretty great to have six of the eight siblings and their spouses all together for the day! We met in Willcox and had yummy BBQ and then headed to explore the Chiricahua National Monument. It's filled with amazing rock formations as well as some historic buildings from the Faraway Ranch which was owned by Swedish immigrants, Neil and Emma Erickson, who settled there.
I love these pictures, Alison, and these wonderful people!!!