Success soars from strengths
Many couples have found a playful dynamic while making a living together and sharing some of their favorite things.
Couples with similar interests, including each other, have opted to start businesses together, combining their lives and love, and also their careers.
Girl meets garageWhen Walter Dawson parts his lips and lets out a whistle, his wife Linda knows it's a call for her, and she loves to answer every time."He'll do the whistle, and I'll come down, and I tease him about it and say, 'Can't I get a sexier whistle?'" said Linda, who works in the office at Dinnerbell Garage in Penn Township. Walter works in the shop downstairs.In the 30 years Linda and Walter have been married, part of that time co-owning the business, the two said they have never argued and continue to be each other's biggest supporters.Linda, 49, said it all began when Walter started borrowing tools from her father when Walter worked for her uncle at a garage."Walter had Friday nights off, and he would bring the tools back those nights to get into the door. You know what I mean?" she said, laughing.As owners of their own garage for 12 years, the couple said the dynamic between them is fun-loving, peaceful and just a good time."I love it," Linda said. "Even though people say we work together all day, they say 'Don't you get tired of it?' and I say 'Absolutely not.'"Walter, who does mechanical work on everything from trucks to motor homes, said he couldn't be more thankful for the business partner he has found in his wife. He said the key to their success and peaceful partnership is clear communication."We get along so great because she is my best friend," he said. "I have always felt that way, and I know a lot of guys who have businesses with their wives, and they don't help them, but my wife does anything I need."He said their business is successful because they always talk about their goals and needs and help each other to simultaneously achieve them."She just has a bubbly personality, and she is just fun to be with," Walter said. "No matter what we do, she is the life of the party."
Steve and Mamie Ogle started a life together, and later, followed a calling together.Steve, 53, of Butler said he was taking a shortcut through Eastern Michigan University campus in 1975 when he saw Mamie, 53, selling tickets for an event at the student union."I saw her, and it was love at first sight for me," he said.The young man immediately asked her out to a family barbecue. Mamie, who was a vegetarian at the time, declined the invitation. After asking her out two more times, the couple finally had a first date, and the rest is history.Today, the couple act as co-pastors at Butler's Community Life Church, and they said their journey together is focused on supporting each other and finding faith in God.The nondenominational church meets at McQuistion Elementary School. The church office is in the couple's home.When they were 35, the couple attended Bible college together in Oklahoma, came back to Pennsylvania and worked for 10 years at a church in Cranberry Township. In November 2004, they started their own congregation.Mamie said when the two share the pulpit, she tends to be the more serious of the pair, but her husband said that all changes when they go home."I am outgoing, and Mamie is more reserved, and it's a good balance," he said. "Everyone thinks I am the clown, but it's her, not me."He said their partnership at the church works in perfect harmony because the gifts God has given Mamie compliment his own."As we work together, we build off of one another, and it produces something wonderful," he said.
Richard and Joanna Fortune combine their love of Chinese medicine — and of each other — at their co-owned business, Fortune Acupuncture and Herb Clinic in Cranberry Township.Richard, 57, of Butler met Joanna, 37, at a medical conference in Dallas, Texas, five years ago. He said his wife's intelligence and beauty were obvious from the moment they met.When he learned she was knowledgeable about Chinese medicine after a group lunch, he decided to call her and offer to show her the country, as Joanna is originally from South Korea.They were married a year later and today work at their business on Route 19."We're both trained in traditional Chinese medicine, so we make a good husband-and-wife team," Richard Fortune said. "One of us can take a break. Another can fill in," he said, adding they also can accommodate clients who prefer a male or female practitioner.He also said the two share a great dynamic and have a healthy balance of strengths between them."She is better at computer and management of the business, and I am good at research in foreign medicine," he said. "We have this balancing act going on where both of our expertise fulfill the needs of the business."Joanna said she is happy to have an expert's advice in working with her husband, but it's much more than that."We have different specialties, and we can help each other, but most of all, I love being with him all the time," she said.
When Nancy Welsh moved to a house in Baltimore five doors down, Gordon Welsh was instantly smitten."She moved into the neighborhood, and I just pounced on her and kept coming to the doorstep," said the 74-year-old Baltimore native, now married for 54 years.The couple moved to Zelienople 18 years ago and decided to open their business, Complete Travel on Main Street, after selling encyclopedias door-to-door together for about 20 years.Gordon said any long-term partnership is a challenge, but they always seem to work it out, and they'd "rather fight than switch."He also said each of their skill sets compliments the other."My wife is the better of the two of us in sales experience and foresight," he said. "She has a vision of what can be and is more optimistic than I am."Nancy said the best part of their partnership is their daily ability to celebrate the same passions."We both have a love of travel, and along with that, the curiosity as we are helping other people fulfill their dreams — we also have that opportunity through traveling," she said.She also said she cherishes the friendships they have cultivated along the way as they continue to travel with others."Some of our best friends are people who travel with us to many exciting places," she said.
Armando and Angela Navarro are newlyweds and have transformed their business, Compadres Mexican Restaurant in Springfield Township, Mercer County, into a family affair.The two met when Angela Navarro, 21, of Arizona began working as a hostess at the restaurant, owned by Armando Navarro, 27, originally from Mexico.They started off as friends and then built on their time together to build a relationship in and out of the workplace. They were married in September.Their son, Adan, who is 1½ years old, was born the August before they were married and often can be found scurrying around the restaurant on Route 208.When they talked about the dynamics of their relationship at work, Angela laughed and said, "Do you want the truth?" She now works as a server, answering to not only her boss, but her husband."We get along fine at work because we keep our work and our personal lives separate, but sometimes the worker and the boss bump heads," she said.Armando said he always treats his wife like any other worker, in which Angela replied with a laugh, "Yes, he does."He also said the best thing about working together is the fact that he gets to see her much more than he would otherwise."I spend all of my time here, and I am here 24-7, so if she didn't work here, I wouldn't see her that much," he said.Angela said they always help to keep each other motivated throughout the workweek, and make a good team."When I don't feel like getting up, he tells me to," she said. "We always push each other."
