It's a Team's Life
Elkhart, Kansas
For many of those years we lived in Elkhart and on the outskirts of Elkhart, the county seat with a population of 2,205. Morton County has a population of 3233 and is one of the larger counties in Kansas with 729 square miles. In the middle of Morton County is the Cimarron National Grasslands with 169 square miles.
For many years I was able to stay home with our girls who kept me pretty busy as they attended swim classes, library events, and numerous other children’s activities. Through most of this time we had one vehicle and the girls and I spent a lot of time walking. Living in a small town made getting around easy and the girls and I were a common site on our daily commutes.
Once the girls went to school I went to work at the Morton County Courthouse in the newly formed Appraisers Office as a clerk and in time started a new department Data Processing that I was the supervisor for many years. As a two income family we moved to the outside of the city limits and purchased a property with some acreage, which is when we started acquiring horses, pigs, sheep, cattle and various other animals.
Our girls became vary active in school as well as outside of school. They were involved in 4-H from seven years old through high school graduation. When kids are from a small area they are encouraged to play all sports through school as well as play softball as soon as school is released for summer. Our lives needless to say were very busy and fun.
Some of my favorite highlights of Morton County and Elkhart is that the nearest traffic light is 33 miles from Elkhart. The only fast food chain in all of Morton County is a Pizza Hut. We had a bowling alley when the girls were small and they were both on a league, but as the girls started into school the bowling ally closed. The nearest theater is in Guymon, OK, which is 42 miles away and was a big event when we had time to see a movie on the “big screenâ€.
As you can imagine the school is small and when Bob graduated there were 58 kids in his class, which was the largest class to that date. Both of our girls went from Kindergarten through graduation with many of the same friends. One of the great things about Elkhart is we all learned to use our ingenuity as we did not run down to the store to pick up an article of clothing. Our nearest clothing store was in Guymon and if we needed a pair of socks that is where we went. Elkhart has a nice grocery store in town and we could “run to town†to pick up a container of milk.
We also learned to make our own fun and entertainment and we had many BBQ’s and gatherings enjoyed each other’s company. Many hours were spend “dragging†main street and seeing the same cars over and over again and giving a short toot on the horn each time to say “Hi!†I would not even want to guess at the mileage that was driven each night up and down Main Street.
We have many wonderful memories of the area and how the many people there molded our lives and how we see other people. The generosity of the people in the area is amazing. I had a motorcycle accident and broke my leg in a couple of places and had to be transported over 100 miles to have surgery. Family and friends stepped in to take care of our girls, our animals, clean the house, bring us a home cooked meal each night for a week, and do anything we needed. I was in a hip cast for eight weeks and was not able to drive or walk on that leg and there was always someone ready to step in and pickup groceries or take me to or from work.
Us and our girls have moved from the area due to jobs and Brandy being in the military, but all of us know we would not be who we are today without the background we had in such a wonderful place. We are reminded when we go back to Elkhart of how many people still care about us and are interested in what we are doing and where we are going. Bob’s mom still lives in Elkhart and we are able to park out truck next to her house. His mom also has a fantastic pond and yard and I enjoy sitting outside reading and listening to the waterfall.
We have found that visits like these are one of the great side benefits of trucking, as we never know when or where we will be. We like to take advantage of these situations when they arrive and feel as if we see family more through trucking than we would if we took a vacation every year.
Bob & Linda Caffee
Leased to: FedEx Custom Critical 

TeamCaffee

Saint Louis MO
Expediters 6 years been out here on the road 11 years
Expediting isn't just trucking, it's a lifestyle; 

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