Gaston Alive Magazine

GA!: Out of all the places you have ever been-what is your favorite all time trip?
Rebecca: This is a hard question to answer. I’ve been so lucky to travel around the world over the last 21 years since I’ve owned Creative Travel. I would have to say my favorite destinations are Switzerland, New Zealand and Panama. But there are still so many places to explore. My husband, Tony, and I have set a goal to one day take a year off and travel around the world.

GA!: Rebecca, why should we call Creative Travel, instead of booking travel online?
Rebecca: Well first, you probably already have a full-time job! At Creative Travel, we know the destinations and how to find the best values. Everyone thinks they will save if they book online but that is not true. The prices on the internet are not better than what you can get from your local travel agency. Most importantly when you book with Creative Travel, if there is a problem with your vacation you have someone close by, on your side to help resolve any issues. Travel is an adventure, after all.

GA!: What kind of getaways are the most popular and what do you sell at Creative Travel?
Rebecca: Our most popular vacations are cruises, all-inclusive packages to the Caribbean, Disneyworld, Las Vegas and Europe. We offer brides and grooms expert assistance with honeymoons and destination weddings. And, because we are a full-service travel agency we have many clients that call us just for airline tickets. Our corporate and missionary travel accounts for a great deal of our business.

GA!: What are some of the best deals right now to help beat the winter blahs?
Rebecca: Cruising is by far one of the best deals. One low price includes your accommodations, transportation, shipboard food, entertainment, port charges and taxes. It’s just so easy. And the best part is that you unpack once, but you visit many different destinations during the cruise. Sometimes our cruises are as low as $70 per person per day.

Another great value is all-inclusive resorts. These packages may include roundtrip air, airport transfers, accommodations, non-motorized watersports, nightly entertainment and best of all – a great variety of unlimited food and beverages. A four night package to Jamaica or the Dominican Republic starts around $800+.

GA!: I’ve always wanted to go on a cruise. How can I save money?
Rebecca: We are lucky to have many great cruise ships right in our “backyard”. No need to buy a plane ticket to Florida. You can sail to the Bahamas from Charleston or Jacksonville starting at just $429 for 5 nights. Or drive to Port Canaveral– just eight hours away – for two of the best new ships to the Caribbean, starting at just $549 for a 7-night cruise. Booking your cruise at least five months in advance will get you the best prices.

GA!: What if I want to do something different or a little exotic–any ideas/deals?
Rebecca: River cruising is becoming extremely popular. For an exotic vacation I would recommend a land/river cruise vacation to Vietnam, Cambodia and the Mekong River. How amazing to visit Angkor Wat, the UNESCO World Heritage Site, plus Siem Reap, Phnom Penh and more.

Or if that’s a little too exotic, you can enjoy the timeless beauty and grace of the Old World with European river cruises along the Rhine,
the Main, the Danube and the Seine. See the tulips and windmills throughout Holland. Explore Austria and Germany, or all the way in to Eastern Europe to Hungary and Slovakia. Right now, our clients can take advantage of the 2 for 1 pricing currently offered.

GA!: I’ve never done an escorted tour-tell me about that…
Rebecca: An escorted tour is like traveling with a good friend who really knows the treasures of the area and shows you the destination like an insider. You get the benefit of paying just one price for all your accommodations, transportation, sightseeing and many meals. The tour directors are outstanding and really make the difference between a good vacation and a great vacation. A nine-night Italian Discovery vacation to Venice, Florence, Rome and more starts at just $2235 plus air.

By David Hamrick

34 W Myrtle St • Belmont, NC 28012
www.creativetraveler.com
704-825-1865

We met recently with Jay McCosh, owner of the Christmastown Thomas Kinkade Signature Gallery in McAdenville to find out more about the exciting new painting called “The Lights of Christmastown”.

GA!: Jay, congratulations on the new painting! I understand that it has been a four year process-was the painting your idea originally?
Jay: Growing up in Gastonia, McAdenville was an annual tradition for us as it is for many people. When we relocated the gallery here from Carolina Place four and a half years ago, I instantly thought based on Thom’s work that it would be a natural choice as it already resembles much of Thom’s work and when you add the element of Christmastown to it, the idea seemed more than obvious. So the first chance I got I started pitching the idea to the company.

GA! Tell us a little about the process of how the painting came about- you took hundreds of pictures of McAdenville…
Jay: The last few years when Thom’s brother Patrick would come for an event here in the gallery in December I told him it was his penance to come to McAdenville this time of year every year until Thom painted it. So, early 2010 Pat finally got the “go ahead” from Thom that he would do it. Since then Pat and I have planned the painting and I took hundred of photos of all the elements

I thought we needed to include in the painting, from different angles and different times of day and different seasons.

GA!: WasThom’sbrotherPatrickinvolved?
Jay: As well as helping to plan the painting, he was also Thom’s
Art Director on this one, since he had spent so much time here over the last few years and felt so strongly that Thom should celebrate this town on canvas.

GA! What about the number of pieces available as compared to a normal Kinkade piece?
Jay: Being this is such a special piece, the number is extremely low compared to his normal releases.

GA!: How can folks find out more, or see the actual artwork?
Jay: They can call us, stop by or check out our website at www.christmastowngallery.com

GA!: For those that haven’t been, tell us a little about your gallery.
Jay: The gallery started over in Carolina Place Mall over 16 years ago. When the former gallery owner retired I took it over and we were only there a year when a great opportunity came to move it here to McAdenville. Since the initial move we have already moved once within McAdenville with 4 times our original space here in town. Now we are the only Thomas Kinkade Signature Gallery in the Charlotte area, with over 100 of his pieces on display at any given time.

The Christmastown
Thomas Kinkade Signature Gallery
1291/2 Main Street • McAdenville, North Carolina, 28101
Ph: 704-823-1550 • www.christmastowngallery.com

GA!: Nan, for those that haven’t been yet- what is Blythe Gallery?
Nan: Our shop specializes in unique items for your home. You can find a beautiful antique English chest, a great transitional pottery lamp, art for your home and lots of unique Holiday decor. We are always searching for great antiques, well made new furniture and special accessories that personalize your home and bring it to life. Blythe Gallery is fortunate to be located in a wonderful old home on Main Street in historic Belmont. Each room is furnished with chests, chairs, lamps and accessories which gives our customer a feel for how these will look in their home. I believe this is helpful to buyers as huge showrooms can sometimes fool the eye when determining proportion.

GA!: What would do folks need to know, or would be surprised to learn, about Blythe Gallery?
Nan: Folks need to know that quality furnishings need not cost more than mass manufactured goods shipped into the states. We offer true antiques (items over 100 years old) but we also find vintage furniture made right here in North Carolina from the 20’s, 30’s and 40’s that is made of solid, kiln dried, hand carved wood that is built to last.

I think folks may be surprised to learn that we sell lots of gifts! In fact we specialize in “gifting” and now offer a Gift registry for folks getting married, having a baby, husbands wanting hints for Christmas, and birthday wishes! Our vendors search for unique, clever, or beautiful items that are reasonably priced. We arealways searching for new and fun items for our customers. This year, the singing hats seem to be one of our best sellers. They are fun for all ages.

Many regular shoppers know it is near Christmas when Scotty’s annual shipment of Benne wafers, cheese wafers and key lime cookies arrive. Yum! These unique cookies are made by a Charleston Bakery who has been turning out these goodies for over 100 years. A bag of these cookies makes such a great hostess gift, and they are already flying out the door.

By David Hamrick

Blythe Gallery • 117 N. Main Street, Belmont, NC 28012
704.825.8809 • blythegallery@att.net • Hours: Mon. – Sat. 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

GA!: That’s a mighty cute little fellow on the cover…
Jim: Thank you! That’s Max, our son who is four. He’s quite a ham, who loves to play with my tape measure. So, if you want to know how wide a box of cereal is; just ask Max. He loves to play sports and go fishing. He says when he gets bigger he wants to work with me and already has several sets of his own tools. My wife, Vicki is my best friend and we have been married for seven years this December. I am so thankful for her. I could have never been successful without her support. We are so blessed to have Max, who is our only child. We live in Belmont and love the warmth and sense of community you will find there.

GA!: So you are a local guy- did you go to school here?
Jim: Yes, I grew up in Kings Mountain and have lived most of my life in Gaston and Cleveland counties. I’m very proud of where I grew up. I was so fortunate to live in such a great town growing up as a child.

GA!: Jim, tell us a little about your business-actually you have two divisions, is that right? When did you start the business?
Jim: I started the business in 2003 with my best friend, Daniel Honeycutt, who I grew up with in Kings Mountain. We were both in the banking industry and decided to start our own gutter business. Daniel and his wife Susan were such a big part of what our company has grown to be today. Unfortunately, Daniel passed away unexpectedly last year and that has been extremely difficult to no longer have my business partner and best friend to talk to everyday. We miss him dearly.

Yes, we have two divisions. The company has moved in a new direction over the last several years. Bobby Horne joined the team and is our general contractor who heads up our construction jobs. He has been in the construction business for 22 years and manages all of our beautiful bathroom and kitchen renovations and new construction. Along with the construction, Bobby also oversees our siding and deck installations. On the gutter and roofing work side, we offer shingle roofing, flat roofing and metal roofing for residential and commercial. We are certified GAF and IKO shingle installers, as well as, Duro-Last installers that is a PVC flat roof application. We are a multi faceted company that can handle your needs from the ground up.

GA!: Jim, we’ve had quite a few storms in the last several months, has that kept you busy?
Jim: Whew, absolutely! We have been so busy, but, again thankful. It’s been really nice that our customers chose us because we are local and offer good service at a fair price. We take pride in doing the job right. We are finding that once we complete a new roof on a home, we usually get the neighbor and the neighbor’s neighbor. Nothing is better than a customer calling or sending you a letter telling you how very happy they are about the work and how good you are at cleaning up.

GA!: What does GGCI specialize in, is it kitchen and bath remodels, or?
Jim: Bobby is a stickler for details, so when he works with folks on their new kitchen or bathroom, he puts a lot of heart and soul in what we do. Bobby builds every job like it was his own. We understand that folks want an excellent job done in a timely manner. With that in mind, we give everyone an estimated completion time up front, and we use only the best products available. If budget is a consideration, we look for workable options that won’t sacrifice quality.

GA!: What makes you guys different-why should folks call you instead of someone else?
Jim: When you choose us, it’s one call. It’s nice to know that if something goes wrong you have just one person to call. We offer turn-key services that most companies can’t. We are also local and can use about any neighborhood in the area as our showroom. We have completed over 200 roofs in Gaston county this year alone.

Customers can always be assured that the material and quality workmanship is the best over other competitors.

GA!: What about products-is there a difference?
Jim: Yes, we take pride in using local companies when we can for our products. Some contractors will use the cheapest building materials possible and sell them for a premium price. We use local lumber yards for all of our specialty work, for example: solid doors, cedar posts and railing. You can’t always find specialized items in the chain stores. I would tell consumers to ask detailed questions such as, “how thick is the siding you install”, “is this product warranted if you go out of business”. We have negotiated great pricing with our vendors and have buying power that allows us to pass on the savings to our customers. The products we offer are warranted and we are certified to install them.

GA!: Jim, I know you do some beautiful copper work…tell us about that.
Jim: When we got into the metal roofing business, it included copper. We do a lot of half- round copper guttering and also build custom cupolas, finials; we even built copper fireplaces and hoods for kitchens.

GA! I’m thinking of having some work done, what are some important things to consider when hiring a contractor like yourself?
Jim: Things that are important to ask for when seeking professional workmanship are:

• 1. Ask for references, always.
• 2. Ask to see some work they have completed recently.
• 3. Insist on a certificate of workman’s compensation and general liability.
• 4. Ensure any competing estimates include the same quality materials and installation when price differences vary. Experience and quality are important to lasting results.

GA!: What do you do when you are not being a contractor?
Jim: I enjoy being a Dad more than anything, so soccer games and fishing are big. Max caught a huge bass this year and his face said it all. Before the storms I used to play golf. My wife and I like to ride motorcycles. We enjoy going to Key West and hanging out with our friends and family.

GA!: What is the funniest or most unusual thing that has happened to you in the roofing and remodeling business?
Jim: I don’t think it was funny but definitely unusual. We installed a new roof, all new gutters and gutter guards on a home in Gastonia this year. The work was completed on a Wednesday, then Thursday night a storm came through and destroys all three. So, we did it again the following week. Very unusual situation and proves how mother nature is unpredictable.

GA!: I know you have a great team-tell us about them.
Jim: We broke all the rules of business. I have surrounded myself with great friends. I have four sales team members, not including Bobby and myself. Tom Lilly, who I have known for 16 years. Bryan Leftwich and Wayne Jenkins for 25 years. Then, our latest addition Andy Leigh for 15 years. Our office staff consists of Maggie White and Lindsay Horne. We have over 40 guys in the field who have been part of our team over the last eight years. I have been so fortunate to have had solid people surrounding me. They truly make us all successful.

910 W. 1st Street • Lowell, NC 28098 • 704-879-4384
www.gutterguysconstruction.com