FRENCH LICK, IN     WAY OUT FROM ANYWHERE,YOU’LL FIND THE RESORT.

You ride and ride and finally just before you think…………this can’t be the right place you turn a corner and there it is! One  part is a good ways off  of the road and is hidden by the trees but the entrance will alert you to “something fine is in there”! The main part is about a mile on further down the main “trail”……….and yes, it looks like a very special place!

There’s a lot of history behind the French Lick Resort area and if you’re really interested just Google it. The main reason for my posting is that during the trip I was lucky enough to attend a trip about 40 miles away called The Cedar Farm…..built in 1837 by Jacob Lamb Kintner.

The house was restored 1984 by the Prichett Brothers and William and Gayle Cook of Bloomington, IN. The main house is Classic Revival in design. While touring the house and property we were introduced to Gayle Cook. A lady in all respects there in the heat guiding the guests into the lower part of the main house. After viewing the downstairs as we were going room from room I asked the guide who that “nice lady” outback was. Turns out THAT was

‘THE” GAYLE COOK from Bloomingdale! Her son was also there giving golf cart tours of the gardens down by the Ohio river where a view of Kentucky is in plain sight!

BUT the main impression I got from the whole trip was what a fine family the Cooks are! They are “down to earth” with no pretentious airs or actions! Mrs. Cook is the 73rd richest woman in the world and is proud that she was middle class when she got “her money” and will remain so until she dies! She and her husband started a catheter business many years ago in their small home early in their marriage. The business grew and grew and is now a major powerhouse in the medical field. The Cook family has renovated many buildings (French Lick Resorts) and many others in Indiana. They are known for their dedication to preserving the treasures of Indiana.

It is so great to learn that there are still great people out there that are not just materialistic minded individuals! People who are proud of who they were and are and make it their mission in life to give back and help the people of Indiana and the world instead of buying big boats and cars and taking world tours and skiing in the Alps as the main focus of their lives!

IT MADE ME FEEL GOOD TO JUST KNOW OF THIS FAMILY!!!

AND THEN  WE CAME HOME AND TURNED ON THE NEWS AND READ THE PAPERS WHERE WE LEARNED ALL ABOUT THE WARS IN THE MIDDLE EAST, THE IMMIGRATION PROBLEMS AT THE TEXAS BORDERS, THE MUD SLINGING POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS GOING ON LOCALLY, MURDERS IN THE AREAS, KIDNAPINGS IN THE CAPITAL!

I’M STRONGLY CONSIDERING MOVING CLOSER TO THE COOK FAMILY IN BLOOMINGDALE!