Appalachian Valley Natural Products (Anatolian Treasures) Changes Hands

[Guest guest]

*Howdy y'all,

 

This might surprise some folks but others figured it was going to happen

soon because for the last two years .. since I returned to the U.S.A. from

Turkey .. I have been saying that after 14 plus years in the business my

life has become too full now and I need time to devote to other

activities. My priorities have changed .. so I decided that I must adjust

my activities.

 

My original plan was to put AVNP to sleep when I decided to retire .. on 31

December 2009.

 

I didn't want to pass to an unknown person the company I had built and the

good name we had earned in 50 U.S states and 90 other countries. At the

same time, I was uncomfortable in that my decision would put my employees

out of work at at bad time .. I had notified them of my decision and they

were looking to be unemployed by the New Year.

 

It was perhaps fate that the future owner learned of my plans to retire ..

and after a lot of on line and telephonic conversation .. and him traveling

from PA to TN to discuss it with me .. it was agreed that instead of closing

the company I had created in April 1999 .. he would take the helm. A

win-win decision this was .. for he and I, for my employees and in my

opinion .. for the AT community.

 

So .. effective 1 October 2009, I will not longer be the owner of AVNP.*

:-)

 

*My feelings on getting out of the business are similar to those I had when

I made some other major decisions in my life .. like:

 

Deciding to retire after 30 years in the Army .. and stay in Turkey in 1989.

Deciding to not renew my management contract with Vinnell, Brown & Root in

1995.

Deciding to not leave Turkey in 1995 .. even though I had a return airline

ticket in hand.**

Deciding to open my Turkish Export and Consulting company in 1995 and sell

it in 2005.

**Deciding to open Appalachian Valley Natural Products in Friendsville,

Maryland in 1999. *

*Deciding to leave Turkey after 19 plus happy years of being a Big Fish in a

Little Pond .. in 2007.

**Deciding to sell rather than close Appalachian Valley Natural Products in

Friendsville, MD .. in 2009. *

*

**All significant decisions these and I had mixed feelings on all but the

last one .. but in all cases I realized they were good decisions and I've

never looked back with regret. The time was right then and the time is

right now .. and **though I will miss a lot of things about this industry ..

especially the good folks I have met and dealt with .. I'm sure that I'll

not look back on this decision with regret.

 

Often folks wonder how things would have been if at certain junctions in

their lives they had turned left instead of right and odds are that if they

had done so their life would be different now. They might have avoided

some pain, suffering, trials and tribulations. Some folks (like me) spend

no time on such thoughts because they **are satisfied with their lives now

and realize that the tough trip was worth the effort. My life is better

than I had dreamed it could be. I could damn sure use more money but I

believe that hitting the Lotto would not change my life much and I know it

would not make me happier than I am now. ;-)

*

*A number of considerations caused me to decide to retire ...

 

**I am healthy and have no plans of going under snakes anytime soon .. but

if I go under prematurely I want to avoid my wife having to close out my

affairs in areas outside Paris, TN. I also plan to sell a lot I have on

Klamath Lake in Oregon. Was a time I considered retiring there but now a

team of mules couldn't drag me out of Henry County, TN. ;-)*

 

*I am going to retire for the THIRD TIME .. but I'm NOT going to sit on my

butt in front of a TV or PC monitor .. or anything else. I have an

aversion to recliners and rocking chairs .. I prefer bass boats and deer

stands.**

 

I turned 67 years on 13 July. I was employed for 54 of those 67 years and

since becoming an adult I can't recall having worked a 40 hour week. While

in the military and as a corporate manager and twice as a company owner ..

60 to 100 hours was the norm. Chronologically I am an Old Fart now .. but

physically and mentally I am a young feller with a young wife and a 3.5 year

old son .. my oldest son will be 49 in December. *

 

*I'm not the average 67 year old .. many 47 year olds can't keep up with me

in the woods .. but if I don't get off my butt and spend more time in the

woods this will change because I have arthritis and I must be more active.

It has already begun to change .. I had planned to hunt the early archery

deer season later this month but last week the doc told me I had a torn

rotator cuff in my right shoulder so drawing a bow this year is not an

option. How did it become torn? I was moving some cross ties to build a

frame. This is not the most strenuous work I have done lately. **Why did

it become torn? Because I have been sitting on my ass too much and have

lost some strength!*

*

**I also need more time to spend with my Son / Sun, Alexander. A little

genius he is and there are many things I need to do with him .. things he

has great interest in doing and learning. He wants to participate in

everything that interests me and considering the expectations for his age,

he masters most anything he does. He is so far ahead of his chronological

age that it is mind boggling. I need time to teach him things he will never

learn in school. He needs more of me NOW!*

*

So .. I'm going to spend more time hunting, fishing, gardening and

landscaping. Tanya and I **have turned our little mini farm into a show

place but we have a LOT more to do. I might even play around the outer

perimeter of County politics.** State or national politics are not a

consideration .. we already have enough fools in Nashville and in

Washington, D.C. Here in the Paris / Henry County area we have

outstanding officials .. transparency in their operations and management

style and a strong sense of fiscal responsibility. D.C. could learn a bit

about government if they came here. We have an outstanding mayor .. that

he is a black man is superfluous information.

 

**I might also sell Organic vegetables, fruits and berries at the farmer's

market here during summer months. This year we gave away dozens of bushels

of produce and canned and froze dozens more.

 

I might even write a book .. but not about Essential Oils or Aromatherapy.

;-)

**

So .. who will be the new owner of AVNP?* *John Croskey! A man I have

known for many years .. a good customer and friend. He and his wife,

Heidi, own and operate a successful natural products company in PA. He has

done much to turn the heads of many Young Living followers. I trust and

respect John. In a few days he will introduce himself.

 

Martin Watt knows John and they are presently coordinating plans for Martin

to assist him with some technical issues on the AVNP web site .. they are

interesting plans that will benefit the public. New blood almost always

results in improvements to current operations.

 

One of the great experts on management was the late William Oncken, Jr. In

one book he described management time as being who had the monkey. When

ownership of AVNP changes the monkey will jump from my back to John's.

But .. I will still be partially responsible for the care and feeding of the

monkey .. I will stay on as a consultant for a while .. hard to say how long

... but for a considerable period of time.

 

How will this Change of Command or Passing of the Monkey impact AVNP?

Current operations in AVNP will continue as they are now .. the company name

will not change .. the company location will remain in Friendsville, MD and

there will be no change in the employees. The sources for our products

will not change .. nor will the quality of our products.

 

A minor change will be in ownership of the monkey .. a major change will be

cutting my work week back from 100 hours or so to 30 hours or so. ;-)

 

And there will be some technical changes .. all improvements. John has

plans to improve the web site and shopping cart and install a bit of

automation in AVNP .. stock control and such.

 

There is one admin change I am dealing with right now. In the last couple

of months I have been negligent in that I let some Essential Oil cost

increases slip by me .. some prices on my Wholesale link are close to our

cost now .. and breaking even is not a good thing. I promised John I would

get them straight before he took over and those adjustments will be made in

the next two or three days. Since you folks are wise consumers, I believe

this notice might do much to reduce the joint stock inventory effort we have

planned for next week. ;-)

 

This is not Sayonara .. just a heads up notification. I'll be around for a

while longer and available to continue to answer off line questions. Even

after I decide to no longer be around for everybody .. I will still be

around for the many loyal customers and friends who are the real reasons I

had the opportunity to build AVNP into a successful and credible company.

I appreciate you all.

 

Y'all have a good one .. and keep smiling. :-)

 

Butch ... http://www.AV-AT.com <http://www.av-at.com/>*

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Wishing you every happiness in your new phase of life, Butch. I hope that you

will enjoy every moment with your family and your land. Many thanks for all the

great oils and great advice you have provided over the years

I hope you will continue to contribute to this list and share your unique point

of view.

Stay well,

Allana

-

Butch Owen

Sunday, September 20, 2009 1:37 PM

Appalachian Valley Natural Products (Anatolian

Treasures) Changes Hands

 

 

*Howdy y'all,

 

This might surprise some folks but others figured it was going to happen

soon because for the last two years .. since I returned to the U.S.A. from

Turkey .. I have been saying that after 14 plus years in the business my

life has become too full now and I need time to devote to other

activities. My priorities have changed .. so I decided that I must adjust

my activities.

 

My original plan was to put AVNP to sleep when I decided to retire .. on 31

December 2009.

 

I didn't want to pass to an unknown person the company I had built and the

good name we had earned in 50 U.S states and 90 other countries. At the

same time, I was uncomfortable in that my decision would put my employees

out of work at at bad time .. I had notified them of my decision and they

were looking to be unemployed by the New Year.

 

It was perhaps fate that the future owner learned of my plans to retire ..

and after a lot of on line and telephonic conversation .. and him traveling

from PA to TN to discuss it with me .. it was agreed that instead of closing

the company I had created in April 1999 .. he would take the helm. A

win-win decision this was .. for he and I, for my employees and in my

opinion .. for the AT community.

 

So .. effective 1 October 2009, I will not longer be the owner of AVNP.*

:-)

 

*My feelings on getting out of the business are similar to those I had when

I made some other major decisions in my life .. like:

 

Deciding to retire after 30 years in the Army .. and stay in Turkey in 1989.

Deciding to not renew my management contract with Vinnell, Brown & Root in

1995.

Deciding to not leave Turkey in 1995 .. even though I had a return airline

ticket in hand.**

Deciding to open my Turkish Export and Consulting company in 1995 and sell

it in 2005.

**Deciding to open Appalachian Valley Natural Products in Friendsville,

Maryland in 1999. *

*Deciding to leave Turkey after 19 plus happy years of being a Big Fish in a

Little Pond .. in 2007.

**Deciding to sell rather than close Appalachian Valley Natural Products in

Friendsville, MD .. in 2009. *

*

**All significant decisions these and I had mixed feelings on all but the

last one .. but in all cases I realized they were good decisions and I've

never looked back with regret. The time was right then and the time is

right now .. and **though I will miss a lot of things about this industry ..

especially the good folks I have met and dealt with .. I'm sure that I'll

not look back on this decision with regret.

 

Often folks wonder how things would have been if at certain junctions in

their lives they had turned left instead of right and odds are that if they

had done so their life would be different now. They might have avoided

some pain, suffering, trials and tribulations. Some folks (like me) spend

no time on such thoughts because they **are satisfied with their lives now

and realize that the tough trip was worth the effort. My life is better

than I had dreamed it could be. I could damn sure use more money but I

believe that hitting the Lotto would not change my life much and I know it

would not make me happier than I am now. ;-)

*

*A number of considerations caused me to decide to retire ...

 

**I am healthy and have no plans of going under snakes anytime soon .. but

if I go under prematurely I want to avoid my wife having to close out my

affairs in areas outside Paris, TN. I also plan to sell a lot I have on

Klamath Lake in Oregon. Was a time I considered retiring there but now a

team of mules couldn't drag me out of Henry County, TN. ;-)*

 

*I am going to retire for the THIRD TIME .. but I'm NOT going to sit on my

butt in front of a TV or PC monitor .. or anything else. I have an

aversion to recliners and rocking chairs .. I prefer bass boats and deer

stands.**

 

I turned 67 years on 13 July. I was employed for 54 of those 67 years and

since becoming an adult I can't recall having worked a 40 hour week. While

in the military and as a corporate manager and twice as a company owner ..

60 to 100 hours was the norm. Chronologically I am an Old Fart now .. but

physically and mentally I am a young feller with a young wife and a 3.5 year

old son .. my oldest son will be 49 in December. *

 

*I'm not the average 67 year old .. many 47 year olds can't keep up with me

in the woods .. but if I don't get off my butt and spend more time in the

woods this will change because I have arthritis and I must be more active.

It has already begun to change .. I had planned to hunt the early archery

deer season later this month but last week the doc told me I had a torn

rotator cuff in my right shoulder so drawing a bow this year is not an

option. How did it become torn? I was moving some cross ties to build a

frame. This is not the most strenuous work I have done lately. **Why did

it become torn? Because I have been sitting on my ass too much and have

lost some strength!*

*

**I also need more time to spend with my Son / Sun, Alexander. A little

genius he is and there are many things I need to do with him .. things he

has great interest in doing and learning. He wants to participate in

everything that interests me and considering the expectations for his age,

he masters most anything he does. He is so far ahead of his chronological

age that it is mind boggling. I need time to teach him things he will never

learn in school. He needs more of me NOW!*

*

So .. I'm going to spend more time hunting, fishing, gardening and

landscaping. Tanya and I **have turned our little mini farm into a show

place but we have a LOT more to do. I might even play around the outer

perimeter of County politics.** State or national politics are not a

consideration .. we already have enough fools in Nashville and in

Washington, D.C. Here in the Paris / Henry County area we have

outstanding officials .. transparency in their operations and management

style and a strong sense of fiscal responsibility. D.C. could learn a bit

about government if they came here. We have an outstanding mayor .. that

he is a black man is superfluous information.

 

**I might also sell Organic vegetables, fruits and berries at the farmer's

market here during summer months. This year we gave away dozens of bushels

of produce and canned and froze dozens more.

 

I might even write a book .. but not about Essential Oils or Aromatherapy.

;-)

**

So .. who will be the new owner of AVNP?* *John Croskey! A man I have

known for many years .. a good customer and friend. He and his wife,

Heidi, own and operate a successful natural products company in PA. He has

done much to turn the heads of many Young Living followers. I trust and

respect John. In a few days he will introduce himself.

 

Martin Watt knows John and they are presently coordinating plans for Martin

to assist him with some technical issues on the AVNP web site .. they are

interesting plans that will benefit the public. New blood almost always

results in improvements to current operations.

 

One of the great experts on management was the late William Oncken, Jr. In

one book he described management time as being who had the monkey. When

ownership of AVNP changes the monkey will jump from my back to John's.

But .. I will still be partially responsible for the care and feeding of the

monkey .. I will stay on as a consultant for a while .. hard to say how long

.. but for a considerable period of time.

 

How will this Change of Command or Passing of the Monkey impact AVNP?

Current operations in AVNP will continue as they are now .. the company name

will not change .. the company location will remain in Friendsville, MD and

there will be no change in the employees. The sources for our products

will not change .. nor will the quality of our products.

 

A minor change will be in ownership of the monkey .. a major change will be

cutting my work week back from 100 hours or so to 30 hours or so. ;-)

 

And there will be some technical changes .. all improvements. John has

plans to improve the web site and shopping cart and install a bit of

automation in AVNP .. stock control and such.

 

There is one admin change I am dealing with right now. In the last couple

of months I have been negligent in that I let some Essential Oil cost

increases slip by me .. some prices on my Wholesale link are close to our

cost now .. and breaking even is not a good thing. I promised John I would

get them straight before he took over and those adjustments will be made in

the next two or three days. Since you folks are wise consumers, I believe

this notice might do much to reduce the joint stock inventory effort we have

planned for next week. ;-)

 

This is not Sayonara .. just a heads up notification. I'll be around for a

while longer and available to continue to answer off line questions. Even

after I decide to no longer be around for everybody .. I will still be

around for the many loyal customers and friends who are the real reasons I

had the opportunity to build AVNP into a successful and credible company.

I appreciate you all.

 

Y'all have a good one .. and keep smiling. :-)

 

Butch ... http://www.AV-AT.com <http://www.av-at.com/>*

 

[Guest guest]

Congrats, Butch.....enjoy the freedom.

 

By the way...howdy neighbor. I'm in Gibson Co.

 

Jen

 

 

On 9/20/09, Butch Owen <butchowen wrote:

>

>

>

> *Howdy y'all,

>

> This might surprise some folks but others figured it was going to happen

> soon because for the last two years .. since I returned to the U.S.A. from

> Turkey .. I have been saying that after 14 plus years in the business my

> life has become too full now and I need time to devote to other

> activities. My priorities have changed .. so I decided that I must adjust

> my activities.

>

> My original plan was to put AVNP to sleep when I decided to retire .. on 31

> December 2009.

>

> I didn't want to pass to an unknown person the company I had built and the

> good name we had earned in 50 U.S states and 90 other countries. At the

> same time, I was uncomfortable in that my decision would put my employees

> out of work at at bad time .. I had notified them of my decision and they

> were looking to be unemployed by the New Year.

>

> It was perhaps fate that the future owner learned of my plans to retire ..

> and after a lot of on line and telephonic conversation .. and him traveling

> from PA to TN to discuss it with me .. it was agreed that instead of

> closing

> the company I had created in April 1999 .. he would take the helm. A

> win-win decision this was .. for he and I, for my employees and in my

> opinion .. for the AT community.

>

> So .. effective 1 October 2009, I will not longer be the owner of AVNP.*

> :-)

>

> *My feelings on getting out of the business are similar to those I had when

> I made some other major decisions in my life .. like:

>

> Deciding to retire after 30 years in the Army .. and stay in Turkey in

> 1989.

> Deciding to not renew my management contract with Vinnell, Brown & Root in

> 1995.

> Deciding to not leave Turkey in 1995 .. even though I had a return airline

> ticket in hand.**

> Deciding to open my Turkish Export and Consulting company in 1995 and sell

> it in 2005.

> **Deciding to open Appalachian Valley Natural Products in Friendsville,

> Maryland in 1999. *

> *Deciding to leave Turkey after 19 plus happy years of being a Big Fish in

> a

> Little Pond .. in 2007.

> **Deciding to sell rather than close Appalachian Valley Natural Products in

> Friendsville, MD .. in 2009. *

> *

> **All significant decisions these and I had mixed feelings on all but the

> last one .. but in all cases I realized they were good decisions and I've

> never looked back with regret. The time was right then and the time is

> right now .. and **though I will miss a lot of things about this industry

> ..

> especially the good folks I have met and dealt with .. I'm sure that I'll

> not look back on this decision with regret.

>

> Often folks wonder how things would have been if at certain junctions in

> their lives they had turned left instead of right and odds are that if they

> had done so their life would be different now. They might have avoided

> some pain, suffering, trials and tribulations. Some folks (like me) spend

> no time on such thoughts because they **are satisfied with their lives now

> and realize that the tough trip was worth the effort. My life is better

> than I had dreamed it could be. I could damn sure use more money but I

> believe that hitting the Lotto would not change my life much and I know it

> would not make me happier than I am now. ;-)

> *

> *A number of considerations caused me to decide to retire ...

>

> **I am healthy and have no plans of going under snakes anytime soon .. but

> if I go under prematurely I want to avoid my wife having to close out my

> affairs in areas outside Paris, TN. I also plan to sell a lot I have on

> Klamath Lake in Oregon. Was a time I considered retiring there but now a

> team of mules couldn't drag me out of Henry County, TN. ;-)*

>

> *I am going to retire for the THIRD TIME .. but I'm NOT going to sit on my

> butt in front of a TV or PC monitor .. or anything else. I have an

> aversion to recliners and rocking chairs .. I prefer bass boats and deer

> stands.**

>

> I turned 67 years on 13 July. I was employed for 54 of those 67 years and

> since becoming an adult I can't recall having worked a 40 hour week. While

> in the military and as a corporate manager and twice as a company owner ..

> 60 to 100 hours was the norm. Chronologically I am an Old Fart now .. but

> physically and mentally I am a young feller with a young wife and a 3.5

> year

> old son .. my oldest son will be 49 in December. *

>

> *I'm not the average 67 year old .. many 47 year olds can't keep up with me

> in the woods .. but if I don't get off my butt and spend more time in the

> woods this will change because I have arthritis and I must be more active.

> It has already begun to change .. I had planned to hunt the early archery

> deer season later this month but last week the doc told me I had a torn

> rotator cuff in my right shoulder so drawing a bow this year is not an

> option. How did it become torn? I was moving some cross ties to build a

> frame. This is not the most strenuous work I have done lately. **Why did

> it become torn? Because I have been sitting on my ass too much and have

> lost some strength!*

> *

> **I also need more time to spend with my Son / Sun, Alexander. A little

> genius he is and there are many things I need to do with him .. things he

> has great interest in doing and learning. He wants to participate in

> everything that interests me and considering the expectations for his age,

> he masters most anything he does. He is so far ahead of his chronological

> age that it is mind boggling. I need time to teach him things he will never

> learn in school. He needs more of me NOW!*

> *

> So .. I'm going to spend more time hunting, fishing, gardening and

> landscaping. Tanya and I **have turned our little mini farm into a show

> place but we have a LOT more to do. I might even play around the outer

> perimeter of County politics.** State or national politics are not a

> consideration .. we already have enough fools in Nashville and in

> Washington, D.C. Here in the Paris / Henry County area we have

> outstanding officials .. transparency in their operations and management

> style and a strong sense of fiscal responsibility. D.C. could learn a bit

> about government if they came here. We have an outstanding mayor .. that

> he is a black man is superfluous information.

>

> **I might also sell Organic vegetables, fruits and berries at the farmer's

> market here during summer months. This year we gave away dozens of bushels

> of produce and canned and froze dozens more.

>

> I might even write a book .. but not about Essential Oils or Aromatherapy.

> ;-)

> **

> So .. who will be the new owner of AVNP?* *John Croskey! A man I have

> known for many years .. a good customer and friend. He and his wife,

> Heidi, own and operate a successful natural products company in PA. He has

> done much to turn the heads of many Young Living followers. I trust and

> respect John. In a few days he will introduce himself.

>

> Martin Watt knows John and they are presently coordinating plans for Martin

> to assist him with some technical issues on the AVNP web site .. they are

> interesting plans that will benefit the public. New blood almost always

> results in improvements to current operations.

>

> One of the great experts on management was the late William Oncken, Jr. In

> one book he described management time as being who had the monkey. When

> ownership of AVNP changes the monkey will jump from my back to John's.

> But .. I will still be partially responsible for the care and feeding of

> the

> monkey .. I will stay on as a consultant for a while .. hard to say how

> long

> .. but for a considerable period of time.

>

> How will this Change of Command or Passing of the Monkey impact AVNP?

> Current operations in AVNP will continue as they are now .. the company

> name

> will not change .. the company location will remain in Friendsville, MD and

> there will be no change in the employees. The sources for our products

> will not change .. nor will the quality of our products.

>

> A minor change will be in ownership of the monkey .. a major change will be

> cutting my work week back from 100 hours or so to 30 hours or so. ;-)

>

> And there will be some technical changes .. all improvements. John has

> plans to improve the web site and shopping cart and install a bit of

> automation in AVNP .. stock control and such.

>

> There is one admin change I am dealing with right now. In the last couple

> of months I have been negligent in that I let some Essential Oil cost

> increases slip by me .. some prices on my Wholesale link are close to our

> cost now .. and breaking even is not a good thing. I promised John I would

> get them straight before he took over and those adjustments will be made in

> the next two or three days. Since you folks are wise consumers, I believe

> this notice might do much to reduce the joint stock inventory effort we

> have

> planned for next week. ;-)

>

> This is not Sayonara .. just a heads up notification. I'll be around for a

> while longer and available to continue to answer off line questions. Even

> after I decide to no longer be around for everybody .. I will still be

> around for the many loyal customers and friends who are the real reasons I

> had the opportunity to build AVNP into a successful and credible company.

> I appreciate you all.

>

> Y'all have a good one .. and keep smiling. :-)

>

> Butch ... http://www.AV-AT.com <http://www.av-at.com/> <

> http://www.av-at.com/>*

>

>

[Guest guest]

Not too much of a surprise; you been threatnin' for some time now. I'm

happy that you are at peace with this; having birthed my own aromatic

endeavor that I know I can't manage forever, however, I'm not ready to give

up my contribution to it yet . . . But then, I don't have a 3 1/2 year old

child, either. All of those that belong to me that young have their own

parents doing a fine job with them and I get the gravy; the enjoyment with

not too much of the responsibility. You're making the right choice, and

it's good to hear your clarity . . . Chuckling over " activity adjustment " ,

sounds just like the organized military man you are. I know you will check

in with us periodically and make us all jealous of your tales of leisure and

fun! Congratulations for your successs; you now deserve to do whatever the

hell you want!

 

Be Well,

Marcia Elston, Samara Botane/Nature Intelligence

http://www.wingedseed.com

http://www.wingedseed.blogspot.com

http://www.aromaconnection.org

" We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give. " - Winston

Churchill

 

 

 

 

________________________________

 

ATFE [ATFE ] On Behalf Of Butch

Owen

Sunday, September 20, 2009 9:41 AM

ATFE

Appalachian Valley Natural Products (Anatolian Treasures)

Changes Hands

 

 

 

 

*Howdy y'all,

 

This might surprise some folks but others figured it was going to happen

soon because for the last two years .. since I returned to the U.S.A. from

Turkey .. I have been saying that after 14 plus years in the business my

life has become too full now and I need time to devote to other

activities. My priorities have changed .. so I decided that I must adjust

my activities.

[Guest guest]

Hello Butch..

 

>>>> So .. effective 1 October 2009, I will not longer be the owner of AVNP.*<<<

 

Wow. Ok, I knew it was coming eventually, but...wow. I understand why you are

doing this. Family, health, quality of life, that all has to come first,

especially the family part.

 

Butch, you will be missed. But I'm sure you are leaving things in capable

hands, as well. Thank you for bringing your products and knowledge to the AT

community, I appreciated you even more when I was a newbie, more than 10 years

ago, staying at home raising my new baby boy, reading about essential oils and

wondering what they were all about. And thank you for deciding to continue to

bring your products to us through your new owner.

 

Christy

[Guest guest]

Glad for you Butch, but you will be missed! I hope that we can trust " the new

guy " to be as good as you!!!

 

I do have a Young Living dealer in my little small town area, how to politely

convince my close friends that she is dangerous?? When I visited her little

booth at the local festival, she claimed that " Young Living oils are the purest

oils there are, and the only ones you can safely ingest and use on your face

etc.... " She gave me a handout that made all kinds of quacky claims....very

scary, and even scarier is that people were buying it, literally, someone right

there spent over $65.00 on a detox kit...a friend of mine thinks that I would

just love her because I am into it as well. (hell no) and what does anyone know

about her " detox " foot soaks?

-

Butch Owen

Sunday, September 20, 2009 12:37 PM

Appalachian Valley Natural Products (Anatolian

Treasures) Changes Hands

 

 

*Howdy y'all,

 

This might surprise some folks but others figured it was going to happen

soon because for the last two years .. since I returned to the U.S.A. from

Turkey .. I have been saying that after 14 plus years in the business my

life has become too full now and I need time to devote to other

activities. My priorities have changed .. so I decided that I must adjust

my activities.

 

My original plan was to put AVNP to sleep when I decided to retire .. on 31

December 2009.

 

I didn't want to pass to an unknown person the company I had built and the

good name we had earned in 50 U.S states and 90 other countries. At the

same time, I was uncomfortable in that my decision would put my employees

out of work at at bad time .. I had notified them of my decision and they

were looking to be unemployed by the New Year.

 

It was perhaps fate that the future owner learned of my plans to retire ..

and after a lot of on line and telephonic conversation .. and him traveling

from PA to TN to discuss it with me .. it was agreed that instead of closing

the company I had created in April 1999 .. he would take the helm. A

win-win decision this was .. for he and I, for my employees and in my

opinion .. for the AT community.

 

So .. effective 1 October 2009, I will not longer be the owner of AVNP.*

:-)

 

*My feelings on getting out of the business are similar to those I had when

I made some other major decisions in my life .. like:

 

Deciding to retire after 30 years in the Army .. and stay in Turkey in 1989.

Deciding to not renew my management contract with Vinnell, Brown & Root in

1995.

Deciding to not leave Turkey in 1995 .. even though I had a return airline

ticket in hand.**

Deciding to open my Turkish Export and Consulting company in 1995 and sell

it in 2005.

**Deciding to open Appalachian Valley Natural Products in Friendsville,

Maryland in 1999. *

*Deciding to leave Turkey after 19 plus happy years of being a Big Fish in a

Little Pond .. in 2007.

**Deciding to sell rather than close Appalachian Valley Natural Products in

Friendsville, MD .. in 2009. *

*

**All significant decisions these and I had mixed feelings on all but the

last one .. but in all cases I realized they were good decisions and I've

never looked back with regret. The time was right then and the time is

right now .. and **though I will miss a lot of things about this industry ..

especially the good folks I have met and dealt with .. I'm sure that I'll

not look back on this decision with regret.

 

Often folks wonder how things would have been if at certain junctions in

their lives they had turned left instead of right and odds are that if they

had done so their life would be different now. They might have avoided

some pain, suffering, trials and tribulations. Some folks (like me) spend

no time on such thoughts because they **are satisfied with their lives now

and realize that the tough trip was worth the effort. My life is better

than I had dreamed it could be. I could damn sure use more money but I

believe that hitting the Lotto would not change my life much and I know it

would not make me happier than I am now. ;-)

*

*A number of considerations caused me to decide to retire ...

 

**I am healthy and have no plans of going under snakes anytime soon .. but

if I go under prematurely I want to avoid my wife having to close out my

affairs in areas outside Paris, TN. I also plan to sell a lot I have on

Klamath Lake in Oregon. Was a time I considered retiring there but now a

team of mules couldn't drag me out of Henry County, TN. ;-)*

 

*I am going to retire for the THIRD TIME .. but I'm NOT going to sit on my

butt in front of a TV or PC monitor .. or anything else. I have an

aversion to recliners and rocking chairs .. I prefer bass boats and deer

stands.**

 

I turned 67 years on 13 July. I was employed for 54 of those 67 years and

since becoming an adult I can't recall having worked a 40 hour week. While

in the military and as a corporate manager and twice as a company owner ..

60 to 100 hours was the norm. Chronologically I am an Old Fart now .. but

physically and mentally I am a young feller with a young wife and a 3.5 year

old son .. my oldest son will be 49 in December. *

 

*I'm not the average 67 year old .. many 47 year olds can't keep up with me

in the woods .. but if I don't get off my butt and spend more time in the

woods this will change because I have arthritis and I must be more active.

It has already begun to change .. I had planned to hunt the early archery

deer season later this month but last week the doc told me I had a torn

rotator cuff in my right shoulder so drawing a bow this year is not an

option. How did it become torn? I was moving some cross ties to build a

frame. This is not the most strenuous work I have done lately. **Why did

it become torn? Because I have been sitting on my ass too much and have

lost some strength!*

*

**I also need more time to spend with my Son / Sun, Alexander. A little

genius he is and there are many things I need to do with him .. things he

has great interest in doing and learning. He wants to participate in

everything that interests me and considering the expectations for his age,

he masters most anything he does. He is so far ahead of his chronological

age that it is mind boggling. I need time to teach him things he will never

learn in school. He needs more of me NOW!*

*

So .. I'm going to spend more time hunting, fishing, gardening and

landscaping. Tanya and I **have turned our little mini farm into a show

place but we have a LOT more to do. I might even play around the outer

perimeter of County politics.** State or national politics are not a

consideration .. we already have enough fools in Nashville and in

Washington, D.C. Here in the Paris / Henry County area we have

outstanding officials .. transparency in their operations and management

style and a strong sense of fiscal responsibility. D.C. could learn a bit

about government if they came here. We have an outstanding mayor .. that

he is a black man is superfluous information.

 

**I might also sell Organic vegetables, fruits and berries at the farmer's

market here during summer months. This year we gave away dozens of bushels

of produce and canned and froze dozens more.

 

I might even write a book .. but not about Essential Oils or Aromatherapy.

;-)

**

So .. who will be the new owner of AVNP?* *John Croskey! A man I have

known for many years .. a good customer and friend. He and his wife,

Heidi, own and operate a successful natural products company in PA. He has

done much to turn the heads of many Young Living followers. I trust and

respect John. In a few days he will introduce himself.

 

Martin Watt knows John and they are presently coordinating plans for Martin

to assist him with some technical issues on the AVNP web site .. they are

interesting plans that will benefit the public. New blood almost always

results in improvements to current operations.

 

One of the great experts on management was the late William Oncken, Jr. In

one book he described management time as being who had the monkey. When

ownership of AVNP changes the monkey will jump from my back to John's.

But .. I will still be partially responsible for the care and feeding of the

monkey .. I will stay on as a consultant for a while .. hard to say how long

.. but for a considerable period of time.

 

How will this Change of Command or Passing of the Monkey impact AVNP?

Current operations in AVNP will continue as they are now .. the company name

will not change .. the company location will remain in Friendsville, MD and

there will be no change in the employees. The sources for our products

will not change .. nor will the quality of our products.

 

A minor change will be in ownership of the monkey .. a major change will be

cutting my work week back from 100 hours or so to 30 hours or so. ;-)

 

And there will be some technical changes .. all improvements. John has

plans to improve the web site and shopping cart and install a bit of

automation in AVNP .. stock control and such.

 

There is one admin change I am dealing with right now. In the last couple

of months I have been negligent in that I let some Essential Oil cost

increases slip by me .. some prices on my Wholesale link are close to our

cost now .. and breaking even is not a good thing. I promised John I would

get them straight before he took over and those adjustments will be made in

the next two or three days. Since you folks are wise consumers, I believe

this notice might do much to reduce the joint stock inventory effort we have

planned for next week. ;-)

 

This is not Sayonara .. just a heads up notification. I'll be around for a

while longer and available to continue to answer off line questions. Even

after I decide to no longer be around for everybody .. I will still be

around for the many loyal customers and friends who are the real reasons I

had the opportunity to build AVNP into a successful and credible company.

I appreciate you all.

 

Y'all have a good one .. and keep smiling. :-)

 

Butch ... http://www.AV-AT.com <http://www.av-at.com/>*

 

[Guest guest]

Just wanted to un-lurk to say thank you to you Butch for all the information you

give. Enjoy your time with your little boy and your new schedule as a " retired "

person. The busiest people I know are retired.

 

I am a super novice but enjoy all of the experience and information here and

hope that you will keep letting us benefit from your experience.

 

Margot

[Guest guest]

Awe Butch,

We love you and wish the best for you and yours.

I will support your ownership change in the best

way I can, continue to buy from your company.

Hope you will still be active in thr group!

 

Thanks again,

Connie Hunt

, " Lori VanScoter " <lvanscoter wrote:

>

> Glad for you Butch, but you will be missed! I hope that we can trust " the new

guy " to be as good as you!!!

>

> I do have a Young Living dealer in my little small town area, how to politely

convince my close friends that she is dangerous?? When I visited her little

booth at the local festival, she claimed that " Young Living oils are the purest

oils there are, and the only ones you can safely ingest and use on your face

etc.... " She gave me a handout that made all kinds of quacky claims....very

scary, and even scarier is that people were buying it, literally, someone right

there spent over $65.00 on a detox kit...a friend of mine thinks that I would

just love her because I am into it as well. (hell no) and what does anyone know

about her " detox " foot soaks?

> -

> Butch Owen

>

> Sunday, September 20, 2009 12:37 PM

> Appalachian Valley Natural Products (Anatolian

Treasures) Changes Hands

>

>

> *Howdy y'all,

>

> This might surprise some folks but others figured it was going to happen

> soon because for the last two years .. since I returned to the U.S.A. from

> Turkey .. I have been saying that after 14 plus years in the business my

> life has become too full now and I need time to devote to other

> activities. My priorities have changed .. so I decided that I must adjust

> my activities.

>

> My original plan was to put AVNP to sleep when I decided to retire .. on 31

> December 2009.

>

> I didn't want to pass to an unknown person the company I had built and the

> good name we had earned in 50 U.S states and 90 other countries. At the

> same time, I was uncomfortable in that my decision would put my employees

> out of work at at bad time .. I had notified them of my decision and they

> were looking to be unemployed by the New Year.

>

> It was perhaps fate that the future owner learned of my plans to retire ..

> and after a lot of on line and telephonic conversation .. and him traveling

> from PA to TN to discuss it with me .. it was agreed that instead of closing

> the company I had created in April 1999 .. he would take the helm. A

> win-win decision this was .. for he and I, for my employees and in my

> opinion .. for the AT community.

>

> So .. effective 1 October 2009, I will not longer be the owner of AVNP.*

> :-)

>

> *My feelings on getting out of the business are similar to those I had when

> I made some other major decisions in my life .. like:

>

> Deciding to retire after 30 years in the Army .. and stay in Turkey in 1989.

> Deciding to not renew my management contract with Vinnell, Brown & Root in

> 1995.

> Deciding to not leave Turkey in 1995 .. even though I had a return airline

> ticket in hand.**

> Deciding to open my Turkish Export and Consulting company in 1995 and sell

> it in 2005.

> **Deciding to open Appalachian Valley Natural Products in Friendsville,

> Maryland in 1999. *

> *Deciding to leave Turkey after 19 plus happy years of being a Big Fish in a

> Little Pond .. in 2007.

> **Deciding to sell rather than close Appalachian Valley Natural Products in

> Friendsville, MD .. in 2009. *

> *

> **All significant decisions these and I had mixed feelings on all but the

> last one .. but in all cases I realized they were good decisions and I've

> never looked back with regret. The time was right then and the time is

> right now .. and **though I will miss a lot of things about this industry ..

> especially the good folks I have met and dealt with .. I'm sure that I'll

> not look back on this decision with regret.

>

> Often folks wonder how things would have been if at certain junctions in

> their lives they had turned left instead of right and odds are that if they

> had done so their life would be different now. They might have avoided

> some pain, suffering, trials and tribulations. Some folks (like me) spend

> no time on such thoughts because they **are satisfied with their lives now

> and realize that the tough trip was worth the effort. My life is better

> than I had dreamed it could be. I could damn sure use more money but I

> believe that hitting the Lotto would not change my life much and I know it

> would not make me happier than I am now. ;-)

> *

> *A number of considerations caused me to decide to retire ...

>

> **I am healthy and have no plans of going under snakes anytime soon .. but

> if I go under prematurely I want to avoid my wife having to close out my

> affairs in areas outside Paris, TN. I also plan to sell a lot I have on

> Klamath Lake in Oregon. Was a time I considered retiring there but now a

> team of mules couldn't drag me out of Henry County, TN. ;-)*

>

> *I am going to retire for the THIRD TIME .. but I'm NOT going to sit on my

> butt in front of a TV or PC monitor .. or anything else. I have an

> aversion to recliners and rocking chairs .. I prefer bass boats and deer

> stands.**

>

> I turned 67 years on 13 July. I was employed for 54 of those 67 years and

> since becoming an adult I can't recall having worked a 40 hour week. While

> in the military and as a corporate manager and twice as a company owner ..

> 60 to 100 hours was the norm. Chronologically I am an Old Fart now .. but

> physically and mentally I am a young feller with a young wife and a 3.5 year

> old son .. my oldest son will be 49 in December. *

>

> *I'm not the average 67 year old .. many 47 year olds can't keep up with me

> in the woods .. but if I don't get off my butt and spend more time in the

> woods this will change because I have arthritis and I must be more active.

> It has already begun to change .. I had planned to hunt the early archery

> deer season later this month but last week the doc told me I had a torn

> rotator cuff in my right shoulder so drawing a bow this year is not an

> option. How did it become torn? I was moving some cross ties to build a

> frame. This is not the most strenuous work I have done lately. **Why did

> it become torn? Because I have been sitting on my ass too much and have

> lost some strength!*

> *

> **I also need more time to spend with my Son / Sun, Alexander. A little

> genius he is and there are many things I need to do with him .. things he

> has great interest in doing and learning. He wants to participate in

> everything that interests me and considering the expectations for his age,

> he masters most anything he does. He is so far ahead of his chronological

> age that it is mind boggling. I need time to teach him things he will never

> learn in school. He needs more of me NOW!*

> *

> So .. I'm going to spend more time hunting, fishing, gardening and

> landscaping. Tanya and I **have turned our little mini farm into a show

> place but we have a LOT more to do. I might even play around the outer

> perimeter of County politics.** State or national politics are not a

> consideration .. we already have enough fools in Nashville and in

> Washington, D.C. Here in the Paris / Henry County area we have

> outstanding officials .. transparency in their operations and management

> style and a strong sense of fiscal responsibility. D.C. could learn a bit

> about government if they came here. We have an outstanding mayor .. that

> he is a black man is superfluous information.

>

> **I might also sell Organic vegetables, fruits and berries at the farmer's

> market here during summer months. This year we gave away dozens of bushels

> of produce and canned and froze dozens more.

>

> I might even write a book .. but not about Essential Oils or Aromatherapy.

> ;-)

> **

> So .. who will be the new owner of AVNP?* *John Croskey! A man I have

> known for many years .. a good customer and friend. He and his wife,

> Heidi, own and operate a successful natural products company in PA. He has

> done much to turn the heads of many Young Living followers. I trust and

> respect John. In a few days he will introduce himself.

>

> Martin Watt knows John and they are presently coordinating plans for Martin

> to assist him with some technical issues on the AVNP web site .. they are

> interesting plans that will benefit the public. New blood almost always

> results in improvements to current operations.

>

> One of the great experts on management was the late William Oncken, Jr. In

> one book he described management time as being who had the monkey. When

> ownership of AVNP changes the monkey will jump from my back to John's.

> But .. I will still be partially responsible for the care and feeding of the

> monkey .. I will stay on as a consultant for a while .. hard to say how long

> .. but for a considerable period of time.

>

> How will this Change of Command or Passing of the Monkey impact AVNP?

> Current operations in AVNP will continue as they are now .. the company name

> will not change .. the company location will remain in Friendsville, MD and

> there will be no change in the employees. The sources for our products

> will not change .. nor will the quality of our products.

>

> A minor change will be in ownership of the monkey .. a major change will be

> cutting my work week back from 100 hours or so to 30 hours or so. ;-)

>

> And there will be some technical changes .. all improvements. John has

> plans to improve the web site and shopping cart and install a bit of

> automation in AVNP .. stock control and such.

>

> There is one admin change I am dealing with right now. In the last couple

> of months I have been negligent in that I let some Essential Oil cost

> increases slip by me .. some prices on my Wholesale link are close to our

> cost now .. and breaking even is not a good thing. I promised John I would

> get them straight before he took over and those adjustments will be made in

> the next two or three days. Since you folks are wise consumers, I believe

> this notice might do much to reduce the joint stock inventory effort we have

> planned for next week. ;-)

>

> This is not Sayonara .. just a heads up notification. I'll be around for a

> while longer and available to continue to answer off line questions. Even

> after I decide to no longer be around for everybody .. I will still be

> around for the many loyal customers and friends who are the real reasons I

> had the opportunity to build AVNP into a successful and credible company.

> I appreciate you all.

>

> Y'all have a good one .. and keep smiling. :-)

>

> Butch ... http://www.AV-AT.com <http://www.av-at.com/>*

>

>

[Guest guest]

Butch, I hope you enjoy a long and fulfilling retirement. It is wonderful to see

that you notice the physical changes and want to do something about them, rather

than give in to age (which is really just a state of mind as you are proving).

Will you still be participating in the group on occasion? I am being a little

selfish in wanting you to continue to add your 2 cents as it is too interesting

to give up that easy. Sue

 

, Butch Owen <butchowen wrote:

>

> *Howdy y'all,

>

> This might surprise some folks but others figured it was going to happen

> soon because for the last two years .. since I returned to the U.S.A. from

> Turkey .. I have been saying that after 14 plus years in the business my

> life has become too full now and I need time to devote to other

> activities. My priorities have changed .. so I decided that I must adjust

> my activities.

>

> My original plan was to put AVNP to sleep when I decided to retire .. on 31

> December 2009.

>

> I didn't want to pass to an unknown person the company I had built and the

> good name we had earned in 50 U.S states and 90 other countries. At the

> same time, I was uncomfortable in that my decision would put my employees

> out of work at at bad time .. I had notified them of my decision and they

> were looking to be unemployed by the New Year.

>

> It was perhaps fate that the future owner learned of my plans to retire ..

> and after a lot of on line and telephonic conversation .. and him traveling

> from PA to TN to discuss it with me .. it was agreed that instead of closing

> the company I had created in April 1999 .. he would take the helm. A

> win-win decision this was .. for he and I, for my employees and in my

> opinion .. for the AT community.

>

> So .. effective 1 October 2009, I will not longer be the owner of AVNP.*

> :-)

>

> *My feelings on getting out of the business are similar to those I had when

> I made some other major decisions in my life .. like:

>

> Deciding to retire after 30 years in the Army .. and stay in Turkey in 1989.

> Deciding to not renew my management contract with Vinnell, Brown & Root in

> 1995.

> Deciding to not leave Turkey in 1995 .. even though I had a return airline

> ticket in hand.**

> Deciding to open my Turkish Export and Consulting company in 1995 and sell

> it in 2005.

> **Deciding to open Appalachian Valley Natural Products in Friendsville,

> Maryland in 1999. *

> *Deciding to leave Turkey after 19 plus happy years of being a Big Fish in a

> Little Pond .. in 2007.

> **Deciding to sell rather than close Appalachian Valley Natural Products in

> Friendsville, MD .. in 2009. *

> *

> **All significant decisions these and I had mixed feelings on all but the

> last one .. but in all cases I realized they were good decisions and I've

> never looked back with regret. The time was right then and the time is

> right now .. and **though I will miss a lot of things about this industry ..

> especially the good folks I have met and dealt with .. I'm sure that I'll

> not look back on this decision with regret.

>

> Often folks wonder how things would have been if at certain junctions in

> their lives they had turned left instead of right and odds are that if they

> had done so their life would be different now. They might have avoided

> some pain, suffering, trials and tribulations. Some folks (like me) spend

> no time on such thoughts because they **are satisfied with their lives now

> and realize that the tough trip was worth the effort. My life is better

> than I had dreamed it could be. I could damn sure use more money but I

> believe that hitting the Lotto would not change my life much and I know it

> would not make me happier than I am now. ;-)

> *

> *A number of considerations caused me to decide to retire ...

>

> **I am healthy and have no plans of going under snakes anytime soon .. but

> if I go under prematurely I want to avoid my wife having to close out my

> affairs in areas outside Paris, TN. I also plan to sell a lot I have on

> Klamath Lake in Oregon. Was a time I considered retiring there but now a

> team of mules couldn't drag me out of Henry County, TN. ;-)*

>

> *I am going to retire for the THIRD TIME .. but I'm NOT going to sit on my

> butt in front of a TV or PC monitor .. or anything else. I have an

> aversion to recliners and rocking chairs .. I prefer bass boats and deer

> stands.**

>

> I turned 67 years on 13 July. I was employed for 54 of those 67 years and

> since becoming an adult I can't recall having worked a 40 hour week. While

> in the military and as a corporate manager and twice as a company owner ..

> 60 to 100 hours was the norm. Chronologically I am an Old Fart now .. but

> physically and mentally I am a young feller with a young wife and a 3.5 year

> old son .. my oldest son will be 49 in December. *

>

> *I'm not the average 67 year old .. many 47 year olds can't keep up with me

> in the woods .. but if I don't get off my butt and spend more time in the

> woods this will change because I have arthritis and I must be more active.

> It has already begun to change .. I had planned to hunt the early archery

> deer season later this month but last week the doc told me I had a torn

> rotator cuff in my right shoulder so drawing a bow this year is not an

> option. How did it become torn? I was moving some cross ties to build a

> frame. This is not the most strenuous work I have done lately. **Why did

> it become torn? Because I have been sitting on my ass too much and have

> lost some strength!*

> *

> **I also need more time to spend with my Son / Sun, Alexander. A little

> genius he is and there are many things I need to do with him .. things he

> has great interest in doing and learning. He wants to participate in

> everything that interests me and considering the expectations for his age,

> he masters most anything he does. He is so far ahead of his chronological

> age that it is mind boggling. I need time to teach him things he will never

> learn in school. He needs more of me NOW!*

> *

> So .. I'm going to spend more time hunting, fishing, gardening and

> landscaping. Tanya and I **have turned our little mini farm into a show

> place but we have a LOT more to do. I might even play around the outer

> perimeter of County politics.** State or national politics are not a

> consideration .. we already have enough fools in Nashville and in

> Washington, D.C. Here in the Paris / Henry County area we have

> outstanding officials .. transparency in their operations and management

> style and a strong sense of fiscal responsibility. D.C. could learn a bit

> about government if they came here. We have an outstanding mayor .. that

> he is a black man is superfluous information.

>

> **I might also sell Organic vegetables, fruits and berries at the farmer's

> market here during summer months. This year we gave away dozens of bushels

> of produce and canned and froze dozens more.

>

> I might even write a book .. but not about Essential Oils or Aromatherapy.

> ;-)

> **

> So .. who will be the new owner of AVNP?* *John Croskey! A man I have

> known for many years .. a good customer and friend. He and his wife,

> Heidi, own and operate a successful natural products company in PA. He has

> done much to turn the heads of many Young Living followers. I trust and

> respect John. In a few days he will introduce himself.

>

> Martin Watt knows John and they are presently coordinating plans for Martin

> to assist him with some technical issues on the AVNP web site .. they are

> interesting plans that will benefit the public. New blood almost always

> results in improvements to current operations.

>

> One of the great experts on management was the late William Oncken, Jr. In

> one book he described management time as being who had the monkey. When

> ownership of AVNP changes the monkey will jump from my back to John's.

> But .. I will still be partially responsible for the care and feeding of the

> monkey .. I will stay on as a consultant for a while .. hard to say how long

> .. but for a considerable period of time.

>

> How will this Change of Command or Passing of the Monkey impact AVNP?

> Current operations in AVNP will continue as they are now .. the company name

> will not change .. the company location will remain in Friendsville, MD and

> there will be no change in the employees. The sources for our products

> will not change .. nor will the quality of our products.

>

> A minor change will be in ownership of the monkey .. a major change will be

> cutting my work week back from 100 hours or so to 30 hours or so. ;-)

>

> And there will be some technical changes .. all improvements. John has

> plans to improve the web site and shopping cart and install a bit of

> automation in AVNP .. stock control and such.

>

> There is one admin change I am dealing with right now. In the last couple

> of months I have been negligent in that I let some Essential Oil cost

> increases slip by me .. some prices on my Wholesale link are close to our

> cost now .. and breaking even is not a good thing. I promised John I would

> get them straight before he took over and those adjustments will be made in

> the next two or three days. Since you folks are wise consumers, I believe

> this notice might do much to reduce the joint stock inventory effort we have

> planned for next week. ;-)

>

> This is not Sayonara .. just a heads up notification. I'll be around for a

> while longer and available to continue to answer off line questions. Even

> after I decide to no longer be around for everybody .. I will still be

> around for the many loyal customers and friends who are the real reasons I

> had the opportunity to build AVNP into a successful and credible company.

> I appreciate you all.

>

> Y'all have a good one .. and keep smiling. :-)

>

> Butch ... http://www.AV-AT.com <http://www.av-at.com/>*

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Dear Butch,

 

You are a wise man, and your family is lucky to have you.

Please do continue to spout off here now and then. I always

enjoy your rants and ruminations.

 

Ien in the Kootenays

http://freegreenliving.com

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

hi Butch

 

I received your email today and am so sorry that you're not going to

be with AT... but I do understand.

 

Be that as it may... I'm wondering a couple things...

 

1. what is the coca like?

 

2. which oregano would you recommend for best anti virus

 

 

 

I'm looking to order

 

1/2 oz roman chamomile

 

2 oz pink grapefruit (or is white better for anti virus etc)

 

2 oz Lavender high Bulgaria

 

2 oz lavender high French

 

xxx oz Oregano xxxx

 

2 oz peppermint (best smelling & best anti virus props)

 

 

 

 

 

I am hoping I can get some samples of:

 

plai, neroli, clary sage, jasmin sambac, jasmin grandiflorium and

cardimom

 

Much thanks to you!!! and obviously I really wish you wonderful times

in your new career enjoying your life!

 

 

 

--

 

Laura

 

 

 

Sunday, September 20, 2009, 9:37:19 AM, you wrote:

 

BO> *Howdy y'all,

 

BO> This might surprise some folks but others figured it was going to happen

BO> soon because for the last two years .. since I returned to the U.S.A. from

BO> Turkey .. I have been saying that after 14 plus years in the business my

BO> life has become too full now and I need time to devote to other

BO> activities. My priorities have changed .. so I decided that I must adjust

BO> my activities.

 

BO> My original plan was to put AVNP to sleep when I decided to retire .. on 31

BO> December 2009.

 

BO> I didn't want to pass to an unknown person the company I had built and the

BO> good name we had earned in 50 U.S states and 90 other countries. At the

BO> same time, I was uncomfortable in that my decision would put my employees

BO> out of work at at bad time .. I had notified them of my decision and they

BO> were looking to be unemployed by the New Year.

 

BO> It was perhaps fate that the future owner learned of my plans to retire ..

BO> and after a lot of on line and telephonic conversation .. and him traveling

BO> from PA to TN to discuss it with me .. it was agreed that instead of closing

BO> the company I had created in April 1999 .. he would take the helm. A

BO> win-win decision this was .. for he and I, for my employees and in my

BO> opinion .. for the AT community.

 

BO> So .. effective 1 October 2009, I will not longer be the owner of AVNP.*

BO> :-)

 

BO> *My feelings on getting out of the business are similar to those I had when

BO> I made some other major decisions in my life .. like:

 

BO> Deciding to retire after 30 years in the Army .. and stay in Turkey in 1989.

BO> Deciding to not renew my management contract with Vinnell, Brown & Root in

BO> 1995.

BO> Deciding to not leave Turkey in 1995 .. even though I had a return airline

BO> ticket in hand.**

BO> Deciding to open my Turkish Export and Consulting company in 1995 and sell

BO> it in 2005.

BO> **Deciding to open Appalachian Valley Natural Products in Friendsville,

BO> Maryland in 1999. *

BO> *Deciding to leave Turkey after 19 plus happy years of being a Big Fish in a

BO> Little Pond .. in 2007.

BO> **Deciding to sell rather than close Appalachian Valley Natural Products in

BO> Friendsville, MD .. in 2009. *

BO> *

BO> **All significant decisions these and I had mixed feelings on all but the

BO> last one .. but in all cases I realized they were good decisions and I've

BO> never looked back with regret. The time was right then and the time is

BO> right now .. and **though I will miss a lot of things about this industry ..

BO> especially the good folks I have met and dealt with .. I'm sure that I'll

BO> not look back on this decision with regret.

 

BO> Often folks wonder how things would have been if at certain junctions in

BO> their lives they had turned left instead of right and odds are that if they

BO> had done so their life would be different now. They might have avoided

BO> some pain, suffering, trials and tribulations. Some folks (like me) spend

BO> no time on such thoughts because they **are satisfied with their lives now

BO> and realize that the tough trip was worth the effort. My life is better

BO> than I had dreamed it could be. I could damn sure use more money but I

BO> believe that hitting the Lotto would not change my life much and I know it

BO> would not make me happier than I am now. ;-)

BO> *

BO> *A number of considerations caused me to decide to retire ...

 

BO> **I am healthy and have no plans of going under snakes anytime soon .. but

BO> if I go under prematurely I want to avoid my wife having to close out my

BO> affairs in areas outside Paris, TN. I also plan to sell a lot I have on

BO> Klamath Lake in Oregon. Was a time I considered retiring there but now a

BO> team of mules couldn't drag me out of Henry County, TN. ;-)*

 

BO> *I am going to retire for the THIRD TIME .. but I'm NOT going to sit on my

BO> butt in front of a TV or PC monitor .. or anything else. I have an

BO> aversion to recliners and rocking chairs .. I prefer bass boats and deer

BO> stands.**

 

BO> I turned 67 years on 13 July. I was employed for 54 of those 67 years and

BO> since becoming an adult I can't recall having worked a 40 hour week. While

BO> in the military and as a corporate manager and twice as a company owner ..

BO> 60 to 100 hours was the norm. Chronologically I am an Old Fart now .. but

BO> physically and mentally I am a young feller with a young wife and a 3.5 year

BO> old son .. my oldest son will be 49 in December. *

 

BO> *I'm not the average 67 year old .. many 47 year olds can't keep up with me

BO> in the woods .. but if I don't get off my butt and spend more time in the

BO> woods this will change because I have arthritis and I must be more active.

BO> It has already begun to change .. I had planned to hunt the early archery

BO> deer season later this month but last week the doc told me I had a torn

BO> rotator cuff in my right shoulder so drawing a bow this year is not an

BO> option. How did it become torn? I was moving some cross ties to build a

BO> frame. This is not the most strenuous work I have done lately. **Why did

BO> it become torn? Because I have been sitting on my ass too much and have

BO> lost some strength!*

BO> *

BO> **I also need more time to spend with my Son / Sun, Alexander. A little

BO> genius he is and there are many things I need to do with him .. things he

BO> has great interest in doing and learning. He wants to participate in

BO> everything that interests me and considering the expectations for his age,

BO> he masters most anything he does. He is so far ahead of his chronological

BO> age that it is mind boggling. I need time to teach him things he will never

BO> learn in school. He needs more of me NOW!*

BO> *

BO> So .. I'm going to spend more time hunting, fishing, gardening and

BO> landscaping. Tanya and I **have turned our little mini farm into a show

BO> place but we have a LOT more to do. I might even play around the outer

BO> perimeter of County politics.** State or national politics are not a

BO> consideration .. we already have enough fools in Nashville and in

BO> Washington, D.C. Here in the Paris / Henry County area we have

BO> outstanding officials .. transparency in their operations and management

BO> style and a strong sense of fiscal responsibility. D.C. could learn a bit

BO> about government if they came here. We have an outstanding mayor .. that

BO> he is a black man is superfluous information.

 

BO> **I might also sell Organic vegetables, fruits and berries at the farmer's

BO> market here during summer months. This year we gave away dozens of bushels

BO> of produce and canned and froze dozens more.

 

BO> I might even write a book .. but not about Essential Oils or Aromatherapy.

BO> ;-)

BO> **

BO> So .. who will be the new owner of AVNP?* *John Croskey! A man I have

BO> known for many years .. a good customer and friend. He and his wife,

BO> Heidi, own and operate a successful natural products company in PA. He has

BO> done much to turn the heads of many Young Living followers. I trust and

BO> respect John. In a few days he will introduce himself.

 

BO> Martin Watt knows John and they are presently coordinating plans for Martin

BO> to assist him with some technical issues on the AVNP web site .. they are

BO> interesting plans that will benefit the public. New blood almost always

BO> results in improvements to current operations.

 

BO> One of the great experts on management was the late William Oncken, Jr. In

BO> one book he described management time as being who had the monkey. When

BO> ownership of AVNP changes the monkey will jump from my back to John's.

BO> But .. I will still be partially responsible for the care and feeding of the

BO> monkey .. I will stay on as a consultant for a while .. hard to say how long

BO> .. but for a considerable period of time.

 

BO> How will this Change of Command or Passing of the Monkey impact AVNP?

BO> Current operations in AVNP will continue as they are now .. the company name

BO> will not change .. the company location will remain in Friendsville, MD and

BO> there will be no change in the employees. The sources for our products

BO> will not change .. nor will the quality of our products.

 

BO> A minor change will be in ownership of the monkey .. a major change will be

BO> cutting my work week back from 100 hours or so to 30 hours or so. ;-)

 

BO> And there will be some technical changes .. all improvements. John has

BO> plans to improve the web site and shopping cart and install a bit of

BO> automation in AVNP .. stock control and such.

 

BO> There is one admin change I am dealing with right now. In the last couple

BO> of months I have been negligent in that I let some Essential Oil cost

BO> increases slip by me .. some prices on my Wholesale link are close to our

BO> cost now .. and breaking even is not a good thing. I promised John I would

BO> get them straight before he took over and those adjustments will be made in

BO> the next two or three days. Since you folks are wise consumers, I believe

BO> this notice might do much to reduce the joint stock inventory effort we have

BO> planned for next week. ;-)

 

BO> This is not Sayonara .. just a heads up notification. I'll be around for a

BO> while longer and available to continue to answer off line questions. Even

BO> after I decide to no longer be around for everybody .. I will still be

BO> around for the many loyal customers and friends who are the real reasons I

BO> had the opportunity to build AVNP into a successful and credible company.

BO> I appreciate you all.

 

BO> Y'all have a good one .. and keep smiling. :-)

 

BO> Butch ... http://www.AV-AT.com <http://www.av-at.com/>*

 

 

BO>

[Guest guest]

>Dear Butch,

 

>You are a wise man, and your family is lucky to have you.

>Please do continue to spout off here now and then. I always

>enjoy your rants and ruminations.

 

Couldn't agree more with Ien! You rock, Butch J

 

Greetz,

 

Saskia