Help for the Flying U

So I'm biting the bullet & I'm going against my every comfort zone & belief, I'm COMPLETELY mortified, but I'm humbly asking for help to save our Store...I do not have the courage or strength to ask in person, so I have resorted to this method...apologies in advance for the 'novel', I know no other way :(

I simply CANNOT tell you how hard this is for me, anyone who knows me, knows that I just DO NOT ask, nor do I accept help, it is not in my nature or belief....I'm beyond stubborn & determined to do everything on my own. Unfortunately with this situation, it has come to the point, that there is just not any other option. We have made it this far, but day-to-day is not good enough anymore..But more so, this affects more than just me.

With that being said, I figured I had only 2 options, both are beyond painful & both are making me physically & mentally ill...

Option #1: I breakdown, asking & hoping for help knowing that I will judged & ridiculed behind my back (by my friends, family & community) yet knowing that I've done everything I possibly can to save our business up to this point.

OR

Option #2: I don't ask, let our business fail, by means of selling or closing, but in the meantime, with this option, we give up not only what I, along with what our amazing friends & community have fought for, what I have given my heart, soul, sweat & tears the past 2.5+ years....serving our amazing community, we could also lose employment for our dedicated employees (two of which moved here after my husband passed to help us run the Store) & the loss of the home that my brother & his family are currently living in, his job & reason that he moved here to help make this Store/RV Park the best it can be.

My goal is to stop with the band aid fix & too not only catch up, but also get ahead so that we can move forward & never be in this situation again, especially with the upcoming 'slow' season that will come sooner than later.

I will not be discussing things in detail with anyone & will direct our employees the same...below you will see a little more detail. If you feel that you need more direct questions or concerns answered, please feel free to reach out to me directly, if you choose to donate, we are forever indebted to you.

Backstory: My brother, Jache & I bought the Flying U, a small gas station/RV Park in a small town with a population of approximately 300, Friday, September 13th, 2019, going into the ‘slow’ season (for the benefit of Jaches’ 3 boys) with basically the shirts on our backs, POOR decision? Possibly, as we only borrowed enough to pay the AMAZING previous owners, we had NO float, NO reserves, NO extra…nothing but the hopes, dreams & visions in our hearts, minds & souls….what we knew is we had HUGE shoes to fill in order to make the previous owners, our community, our family & friends proud.

We have somehow succeeded in making our bills, vendors (that are ALL AMAZING), payroll the past almost 3 years, as well as purchasing some new coolers & equipment that was needed. We added a pavilion for the campground use & we also installed a 24-hour gas pump (honestly, some days, these are more of a curse than a blessing! lol)

The Original Plan????: I already had my ‘real’ job as a full time real estate agent, Jache was still living in SL & had planned to come down permanently after his youngest ‘little’ graduated, so my AMAZING & perfect husband was supposed to run the ‘day to day’ at the Store, with the cooking, customers & ‘good ol boys’ coming in for morning coffee & lunch. I did my best to do all of the office work, vendors, payroll, taxes, etc….unfortunately, as most know, my perfect husband passed on March 26th, 2020 ☹

SO, along with our amazing friends & community, I have tried to hold things together with our mortgage, taxes, vendors, RV Park, Store and a million other things a day over the past 2.5+ years (this is in addition to me trying to working my ‘real’ job that pays my personal bills, plus getting a full time job here & there for insurance)….it felt like we’d fix one issue, then there’d another ☹

I’ve made a MILLION mistakes (I'll likely still make more, just not to this realm); my biggest & most regrettable mistake, is not talking to Jache or asking for help from others sooner.

Owning a small business is BEYOND HARD & TRYING (YET BEYOND WORDS,SO BEYOND REWARDING) please don’t let anyone tell you any differently…

Did we buy at the ‘wrong’ time? Maybe. Is there ever a ‘right’ time? Probably not? Should we sell or close? Maybe. Would someone else do better? Maybe.

One thing I know without a doubt is that we still have a STRONG vision to do amazing things with this Store & in this Community. I will be 1000000% honest, although there are many days that I think it would just be easier to lock the doors & be done…THAT IS NOT ME & I am NOT ready to quit…We LOVE this Store, We LOVE our employees, We LOVE our Community & We LOVE our travelers, I know without a shadow of a doubt that we CAN & WILL make this business successful. This Store & Community, give me a purpose in life.

I believe that our customers & community love & support us, which is what keeps me going. All of these people are the one reason that has kept me going. I would NOT be me today, without ALL of you.

Recap: We bought entering a ‘slow’ season for a gas station/RV Park in our area, we found out in February 2020 that my husband was ill, then enters COVID mid-March, after a LONG almost 2 months of caring for my sweet husband 24/7, while still trying to run the Store and trying to work my ‘real’ job, he passed in March 2020, the rest of 2020, to say the least, was a blur & COMPLETE $%^#show….We had HIGH hopes for the 2021 season...COVID & the election, did not help us in any way...here enters Spring 2022…although even HIGHER expectations…BEYOND ridiculous fuel prices….Store is currently slower than anticipated, RV Park is currently slower than anticipated.

Along with this, as with ALL businesses in the US, higher prices, inventory shortages, staffing shortages, yet the mortgage, weekly & monthly bills to keep the Store running, payroll, taxes (IRS/State/Payroll),etc. are still expected & due.

I have done each & everything that I can think of to keep things afloat with NO reserve, losing the extra income of the Airbnb has really hurt us this year (clearly my brother made a HUGE sacrifice to move here, selling his home to build here) unfortunately the rising cost of materials has halted that plan for a moment, therefore, clearly he needs a home for his family until he can build or find a home.

I’m humbly asking for help in getting the Flying U on track, whether we are able to raise $1 or however much, regardless of what does or does not happen, I can promise to EACH & EVERY person, that I WILL pay back each & every cent. In all honestly, depending on the amount, it may not be next week, or even next month, but I WILL pay back every cent.

Intentions: With anything we are able to get, my intention is to get us back on track with our debts, this includes our mortgage, insurance, taxes, loans paid down or off to reduce monthly payments, vendors, etc., then if possible still have a little cushion to not ever allow us to get in this position ever again. In the event that we can, I would also like to do some improvements that we have wanted & needed to do (roof, paint, clean up & improve the RV Park).

I would love to get this Store where it needs to be so that I can then concentrate on my ‘real’ job more & have a healthy balance between the two.

We always say it takes a village to make good things happen so I guess I’m humbly asking for the help of my village, regardless of how big or small. So I guess I'm going big or going home.