by Angela Moreno-Tijerina

It’s an old adage, but sometimes we don’t realize the  value of something until it has been taken from us.  On December 11, 2001, the Youth Ranch’s General Store burned to the ground, along with the items stored in it.  Left behind was a charred slab and countless memories for all who had known the Ranch -- residents, employees and friends.

The store had been the Ranch’s hub for 20 years. It was the meeting place, the distribution center, a visitor’s information office, and even housed staff in an upstairs apartment. The store was the first stop for new residents and  staff.  It housed everything from children’s clothing to household items and food.

Care packages were prepared for newly arrived children, and applications were available for potential employees.  Ranch families waited in the parking lot for school buses and to share news.Supplies for special occasions like Christmas and Halloween were stored in closets.  A walk-in freezer kept a meat supply.  One room housed camping and fishing equipment.

Fortunately, no one was inside the building at the time of the fire.  But so much was lost that night.  In addition to the inventory, the special functions of the “GS” went up in the same 60-ft flames. 

Searching through the charred remains several days later, one of the female staff who had lost some personal items in the fire, found a piece of a Bible page reduced to a barely readable verse from Samuel: “In my distress, I called upon the Lord; to my God I called.  From His temple he heard my voice, and my cry came to his ears.”

She framed the small piece of paper and gave it to HCYR Director Gary Priour, who had helped volunteers to build the Store 20 years earlier.  Says Priour, “We were brought together by our loss -- people helping people, and we were reminded that the things of the Lord stand forever.”

After the fire, everyone went to work finding closets and attics to store pots and pans.  Says Carol Priour, who helped stock items in the store, “We had to stuff things in every corner imaginable, but with the store gone, nothing was easy to gather for any occasion, whether it was Christmas, or the arrival of a new child in the middle of the night who had nothing but the clothes on his back.” 

It was not clear at all how the much-needed structure would be replaced.  Because of a cost-based insurance policy (early buildings were built with a lot of volunteer help), the Store could not be rebuilt until someone funded it. Meanwhile, the new Leakey campus was exploding with progress, and building efforts were focused there.

Ed and Trudy Brune decided to help with the new campus in the spring of 2002. They have helped make Oma Bell Perry’s dream of a school and home for abused children come true.  In just two years, they have funded two children’s homesteads, a grandparents cottage, and the Ed Brune Charter School.  With all their investment at Leakey, we would never have asked them outright to rebuild our General Store in Ingram.

But as Ed and Trudy talked, they felt led to add the Ingram campus to their list of projects.  As a result, the new store opened last month on the same spot as the old one.

  The Brunes are truly a remarkable couple, in more ways than one.  Not only have they given to keep progress moving at both campuses, they are kindred spirits with the Youth Ranch.  Both share the Ranch’s faith-based approach to life’s challenges, and have become true partners in the HCYR ministry.

Ed dreamed of starting a children’s home in his youth. He shows interest in every aspect of Ranch development, from program to long-term planning.  Trudy does the choosing of colors and decorating for the new buildings, and is always bright-eyed about Ranch events.  She arrives beaming like a child during her first trip to a circus. 

A lover of thrift stores, Trudy is delighted that the new Ranch store bears her name.  She is frugal, but wants the children’s needs met, and sees the store as just the right vehicle. She herself still sparkles when she talks about the purse she bought at the Youth Ranch Thrift Store for a dollar two and a half years ago -- her introduction to the Ranch ministry.  Revealing the zippers, compartments and shoulder strap of her purse, she still loves a good bargain.  

In the fall of 2003, the Brunes announced their plans to fund the rebuilding of the General Store, one that they “wanted to look like an old-fashioned, country store”, Trudy explained.  “We wanted it to be a place where you want to stop by and shop, when you first see it.”  Thanks largely to Ed and Trudy’s vision, and work on the design, the building achieves its purpose, and is once again “the gathering place”.

Shares Trudy, “We love the work done at the Youth Ranch and I am glad we have been able to help. This new General Store is something I am proud to be a part of, and to have my name on.”  

The 5000 sq. ft. “Trudy Brune General Store” is a multi-purpose three-level facility, with room and amenities to serve many needs.  The basement is a drop-off location for large donated items like furniture that will be moved out to the children’s residences.  Off to the sides of this large open area are “special occasion” rooms -- one for Halloween costumes, one for Christmas decorations, and another for formalwear, such as tuxedos and prom-type dresses that Carol has collected throughout the years. 

Says Carol, “I am so glad we have these nice clothes for our children to wear to formal events, like Homecoming dances and sports banquets.  Our children are just as special as any other, and we want them to be able to not only participate in events any other child would, but to look just as good and feel just as beautiful.”

The ground level of the store is where the day-to-day activity occurs.  As soon as you walk into the store, just as Trudy envisioned, you want to start shopping.  Racks of clothing, shoes and accessories are pleasantly displayed and off to the side sits a table with two rocking chairs.

You can almost imagine a couple of gentlemen enjoying a glass of lemonade or playing a game of  checkers while their wives shop. The clothing is for the children, who come to “shop” for their necessary apparel and look for other needed items.  There is a separate room for linens and items such as dishes, toasters and pillows. 

 Both children and staff are cheerfully greeted by Laurie Lanier, new manager of the store.  A long-time houseparent with her husband Doug, Laurie knows about the needs of growing children as well as the daily household items that must be replaced on a regular basis. Every day she sorts new loads of donated clothing and household items to put on the shelves.  

At the rear of the ground floor is a large sorting and storage area where items can be brought in, laundered and mended, if need be.  Summer clothing no longer has to be put away when cooler weather comes – it simply moves to the back of the storage area and rotates out as the weather changes. 

There is also a staff lounge for off-duty personnel to enjoy.   Many of the dedicated staff who follow the calling to come to the Ranch leave behind worldly possessions such as houses and cars, living in a manner similar to missionaries in foreign lands.  The lounge provides staff a place for fellowship, snacking, or watching a movie.

The second story is used to display donated artwork that will eventually adorn the children’s cabins.  There is also an office upstairs that occupies the same space as the original office of HCYR in the old store.  It was there that Gary Priour hired long-time staff member Joyce Dommert, as well as his future bride Carol, twenty years ago. For him personally, this may be the most special place in the building.  Many have heard him tell the story of walking out of his office and down the stairs to see “the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.” 

 The children of the Ranch have shown interest in the store, not just as an area to obtain a new pair of jeans, but also as a place to help.  Several stop by after school and help with the sorting and washing of clothes, items they know will be used by them or their “brothers and sisters” at the Ranch. 

One cabinet contains special incentive items the children can earn, as opposed to the clothing and other items the children are given as needed.  These items range from giant stuffed bears to jewelry and porcelain dolls given as positive reinforcement when a child reaches a milestone personally, or has had an especially productive week at school and/or at home.

While the store has space for various “departments”, items are needed to fill the store full.  Items needed include new and “gently worn” clothing for boys and girls, ages 6-18, household furniture including couches and bedroom furniture, and other household items. 

How fitting it is that what started as a woman purchasing a $1 purse from our Thrift Store has turned into the creation of a supply center for our children.  A public dedication is set for October 25, in conjunction with an Auxiliary luncheon at the HCYR dining hall.

Photos: (left) Newly opened Trudy Brune General Store was built on the exact site of  the original store, which burned in December, 2001; (right) Racks are filled with new and like-new clothing.  Children can find much of what they need in their very own store.