Remembering Marilyn Jo (Faulkner) Nauman

This week has been one full of sadness for the Faulkner Family.

As some of you may already know, Marilyn Jo Nauman, the dear sister of Bob, Dick, and Judy passed away on Monday from cancer and other complications.  

Her obituary reads:

Marilyn Jo (Faulkner) Nauman, 76, passed away April 22, 2013 after a short illness. Marilyn was born in Kansas City, Mo. She graduated from Witchita State University. For more than 30 years, she worked as a tax preparer at H&R Block Premium until her retirement in 2012. Marilyn was predeceased by her husband of 50 years, E. Bruce Nauman. Survivors include her daughter, Cindy (Paul) Baglow of Niskayuna; her son, J. Michael (Rene) Nauman of Little Rock, Ark., as well as six grandchildren, Melissa (Mark) Arsenault of Pottstown, Pa., Brandon Baglow, Laura Baglow and David "Buddy" Baglow of Niskayuna, and Edward Alexander and Rachel "LaLa" Nauman of Little Rock and one great-grandson, Anthony Forlano of Niskayuna. She is also survived by one sister, Judy (Woody) Blake and two brothers, Richard Faulkner and Robert (Marilyn) Faulkner, all of Kansas City. Calling hours will be from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Friday, April 26 at the Daly Funeral Home, 242 McClellan St., Schenectady. Funeral services will be Saturday morning at 10:30 at the Daly Funeral Home. Burial will immediately follow in Parkview Cemetery in Schenectady. Memorial contributions may be made to the City Mission of Schenectady, 425 Hamilton St., Schenectady, NY 12305.

But Marilyn Jo was so much more than what her obituary says.

In addition to being a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend, she was so many amazing things that made her the incredible woman that she was.

The Faulkner Siblings (from left to right: Dick, Judy, Marilyn, and Bob.)

She had a passion for traveling that ran deep in her veins.  Through her life her journeys led her to all corners of the earth.  She had countless stories from the experiences she'd had all over the world.
She loved dollhouses and had collected several beautiful ones in her home.  Whenever she would visit her family in Kansas City, she would always take them to the local dollhouse museum.
She had such a special relationship with her granddaughter, Melissa.  She was so incredibly proud of her and all that she had accomplished.

Marilyn Jo with her daughter, Cindy, and granddaughter, Melissa.

Marilyn Jo seeing Melissa in her wedding dress for the first time.

She spent many a night on the phone with her sister, Judy, talking about anything and everything.  Many times they would look at the clock only to realize that they had been talking for hours and it was well past midnight.

She was also incredibly fond of her dog, Manny, a gentle giant who kept her company in her New York home.

She was cultured and refined, extremely smart and well-read.
Beautiful inside and out.
A compassionate and accomplished woman who lived a full life filled with lots of love and family.

Marilyn Jo with her great-grandson, Anthony.

While we feel that she was taken to soon, we find comfort in knowing that she is in a better place, with GrandMary and Granddaddy and her loving husband, Bruce.

We will miss you, Marilyn Jo!

Word From the Herd: An Eventful Weekend

Most people know Faulkner's Ranch for our Pumpkin Season.  Others know it for our company picnics and weddings.

But did you know that we actually host a variety of parties and events from benefits to milestone parties to team building and awards ceremonies?

Early in March we hosted two unique (and very fun!) events.

The first was with the Lee's Summit Basketball Association on March 3rd.  They celebrated their board appreciation dinner here at the ranch.  One of the most special moments of this event was when they recognized one of their referees for the way he handled himself during a stressful situation at a game.  A random fan saw his behavior and felt that it should be commended.  They wrote a letter to the board to let them know how this awesome 21 year old stayed composed and set an example for everyone watching.

Applause for a job well done.

The next event was one of our favorites of the year - The Sears Power Rama Training!

"Schmitty" polishing up the new lawn mowers.

This event, which took place over the course of three days, was a lot of fun.  Each day, the Sear's lawn and garden sales associations would come in to train the Sears employees on their products.  One of the reasons that we love this event every year is that it signifies one thing - Spring is coming!

The Sears employees and truck drivers are so incredibly nice.  They are all so fun and friendly to work with.  The truck drivers even went out of their way to give one of the Faulkner grandchildren, Miles, a special tour of their big rig.  Wasn't that nice of them? And not only that, but they also gave him a t-shirt which totally made his day.  He even wore it to school the next day!

So, as you can see, we do more than just pumpkins here at Faulkner's!

Are you interested in having your special event at Faulkner's Ranch?  Just give us a call at 816-761-5055 or visit our website today.

Have a great day, ya'll!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

Oh So Pinteresting: Vol. 12

It's time for another round of Oh So Pinteresting Saturday!

Check out our favorite pins from this week and be sure to follow us on Pinterest!

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Have a great day, ya'll!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

Word From the Herd: Chili Cook-Off

Recently at the Ranch we hosted a super fun (and super yummy) event...A CHILI COOK-OFF!

That's right! On March 23rd, we teamed up with Keller Williams Charities (KW Cares) for their chili cooking contest.  For just $20, you and your team could enter your special recipe.  Tickets to the event were only $5, which also got you a hot dog bar.  Hot dogs and chili...mmmm!  So good!  In addition to the delicious food there were also raffles and door prizes (a great addition to any event).

All of the proceeds went to the charity, so guests weren't just treating their tummies to some yummy chow; they were also helping out a good cause!

It was a snow day which made for absolutely perfect chili-eatin' weather...

There were 28 entries in all.  So much good food to try!

We even entered our own chili...

It smelled so good!  We used pulled pork as our special ingredient.

The Faulkner's actually had two entries with Cousin Lisa's entry, Mimi's Chili.

Unfortunately, we didn't place, but we did have a ton of fun working the event together that night!

David Coffelt was the emcee for the night.  He did a fantastic job!

And of course, we can't forget the woman behind it all, Nancy Baalman! She was truly a joy to work with as we planned this event.

Now, I bet you're all wanting to know who won, right?

Well, the judges had a tough job eating all of that incredibly delicious chili.

Accepting bribes? ;o)

But they finally picked a winner!  There he is, the man in red with the red hot chili!

He was a ton of fun.  In fact, we knew that he was going to win when we met him.  His chili had tri-tip steak (yum!) and he did such a fantastic job of promoting his chili.  He really sold it!

Congrats! Congrats! Congrats!

This was such a fun (and delicious) night!  Thank you Keller Williams for choosing Faulkner's Ranch as your party place!

Interested in having your special event at Faulkner's Ranch?  Just click here for more information or give us a call at 816-761-1234!

Have a great day ya'll!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

How to Throw An Awesome Retirement Party in 10 Steps

Here at the ranch, we do more than just company picnics, weddings, and birthdays.

We LOVE helping people celebrate the important milestones in their life.

That's why when Sandy Hoffman came to us about celebrating her husband Gary's retirement at Faulkner's Ranch we were absolutely thrilled!  Sandy works for us part time helping with events and she is by far one of the nicest ladies that you will ever meet.

We had so much fun helping her celebrate this big event.  Everything from the decor to the guests to the  special touches was executed with perfection.

Here is what she had to say about the big day:

"Everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves; the guys were like a bunch of old women!  Tall tales galore!"  

Wanna know how to throw an awesome retirement party?

Just take a note from this party and follow the steps below!

1.  When everyone arrives, ask them to sign in.  But don't just have them sign any old thing!  Do what Sandy did and have a framed picture available for them to sign.  This not only will serve as a "guest book" down the road, but it will become a beautiful keepsake that they can hang in their home.

2.  Get the drinks flowing!  Open up the bar right away.  Make sure that you have plenty of options.  It's always good to start with soda, beer, and wine, as well as some water, iced tea, and lemonade.  That way you have something for everyone!

Sandy's granddaughter is served by her mom and watched by her brother.

3.  Have some fun decor!  Choose decorations that pay tribute to the retiree's line of work.  We love the use of construction cones and signs for this party.

Meet Mr. Electricity!  He came complete with hot sticks, boots, lineman belt, and a hard hat!

4.  Now open up that buffet!  It's time to serve the food!  Take a note from this party and open up both sides of the buffet at once.  That way everyone gets to start chowing down sooner.

5.  Once the food has been served, turn on some tunes and let everyone sit down, eat, and talk each other's ears off.

Eat and talk....and eat some more! 

Family Chow Time!

Gary and His Friends

6.  By the way, be sure to invite special people!  Include family, friends, co-workers, and other groups that the guest of honor is involved in.

The Lions Club members all showed up to support Gary.

7.  During the party, let the retiree show off his work skills to his party guests.

Gary shows off the safety demo to interested party goers.

8.  Then pay tribute to the person of the night with a video and a display of memorabilia.  Include things like pictures, uniforms, awards, and work ID's.

9.  And don't forget to give a heartfelt speech.  You can even ask the guest of honors closest co-workers and friends to each say a little something.

10.  Then just enjoy the rest of the night as your guests chat away and have a great time!

And who said women were bad about talking?

We're so glad that we got to celebrate this special day with the Hoffman's!

Once again, congratulations to Gary on his retirement!

Way to go, pardner!

Are you interested in throwing a special party for one of your loved ones at Faulkner's Ranch?  Just click here for more information or give us a call at 816-761-1234.

Have a great day, ya'll!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's

Word From the Herd: Spring Chicks

It's Spring, so you know what that means?

Babies, Babies, Babies!

They're everywhere!

Here on the farm we've got lots of adorable new little ones...

We even added a brand new member to the ranch family last night!

Meet Stormy!

This sweet little thing was born during last night's Spring storm.

We are happy to announce that mama and baby are doing fine!

But wait, there's more!

We've even got some new little chicks in the Faulkner family!

Kelly Jo, our director of social media, brought her baby girl by the farm the other day to say "Howdy!" to her cousins...

Don't you just love that adorable cowboy hat from Cousin Christy?  Yee-haw!!!

And a big congrats to Farmer Loneman, our hayride driver of 11 years, on the birth of his new granddaughter...

Such a sweetie!

Gotta love the cuteness!  Spring has officially sprung!

Have a great day, ya'll!

~ Your Friends at Faulkner's