Regarding Ed
I like Adam Fischer’s idea that friends can keep up with each other through web logs, so I will write this as though to friends whom I have not seen in a few years.
I am married to the very lovely and very loving Marcy (formerly Eggert) Pluchar. We want kids, are “trying” for kids (as we say in mixed company), and we make our home in Monroe County, West Virginia.
Marcy works as an RN at the local hospital in the ICU, while I coordinate a home repair program for a nonprofit called SARA, Inc. and write part time for the local newspaper, The Mountain Messenger.
We moved here because of a Catholic service organization called Bethlehem Farm, a community of people dedicated to Gospel values who lead service weeks for high school and college students as well as non-students of various ages. I spent a year living at Bethlehem Farm, and once married, Marcy and I found a home nearby, where we could develop our relationship (and “try” for kids) while continuing to serve with the Farm.
Before West Virginia I taught 7th and 8th grade Literature at St. Christina Catholic School in Chicago, which is its own set of stories. I mention that as a segue way to this: I’ve attempted to follow a certain leading, perhaps of God, and I’m not sure what’s next. But in the meantime, I’ve tried to be a good neighbor, I’ve grown a modest garden and now focus on growing trees. I cut trees up into pieces that fit in our wood stove, and am deeply satisfied by its heat; you would be, too. I helped save the life of a man shot in the gut, helped put on a fantastic retreat for teens in Chicago, and helped build a few wheelchair ramps with only a couple of sketches to go on.
What may be ironic about that last paragraph is not lost on me. I’m looking for the next big thing nonetheless.