About

Last year during the first half of April 2023 my husband, his son, his daughter-in-law, and I traveled to the Hill Country to see the wildflowers and all their beauty. We visited Fredericksburg, Johnson City, and the surrounding areas. For each of the six days we traveled to a different destination, and I excitedly took in all of it. We visited lakes and parks, and watched birds wherever we could. 

During our return trip north to Munday, after having passed through Abilene on Hwy. S. 277, I constantly observed the sky, the wheat fields, wildflowers, boulders, abandoned farmhouses, implements, and vehicles. I suddenly realized that our communities have more to offer RV travelers than does the Hill Country! Travelers in our counties could mean more money for our communities.

I began thinking about our places of interest. I called a friend and former customer who lives in Vera. I asked her for the name of the ranch in Vera, where special meals are prepared and served on certain days of the year. She replied, “Ranger Creek Ranch.” Yes! That was it! I explained to her my idea: a person in each community would take pictures with his or her cell phone, write a narrative and when applicable, history, regarding the special place of interest, and send it to a central web person, who would input it on a website. She liked the idea and informed me that Vera had an old Methodist church building. She also told me that she had heard that we live in “The Big Empty,” but she did not know what that meant. I thanked her for the information, ended the conversation, and immediately searched “what is the big empty in Texas?”

An article in the November 2017 issue of “Texas Highways” magazine answered the question. Upon investigation, I found out that the author of the lengthy article was Wes Ferguson of the Dallas area.

A few days passed, and upon returning from lunch to my business, I saw Kyle Bibb sitting on the dock of the old icehouse, waiting there until it was time to return to work.

I began sharing my idea with him. He told me about the couple who had bought their house. (I call it the McNeil house.) The house is located about two miles south of town. The new owner had a large telescope, and he was able to take pictures of the night sky. I believe that the same day I drove to their house to meet them. I drove to their driveway because I saw the young woman trimming the shrubs. The male walked over to where we were. I introduced myself, told them how I knew about them, and began describing my idea: while I mentioned “the photographer would take a picture of an interesting place,” Alex raised his hand, volunteering himself! As I continued to explain that the picture and narrative would be sent to a central web person to input both on a website, Marcella raised her hand! Friends of The Big Empty was born!

Another day I heard about a young lady who recently moved to Munday and who bought the house across the street from Karens B&B. I put some of Joel's tomatoes in a bag and was going to use this as a conversation opener. She was not there. I left the tomatoes, returned later, and met Jessica. I explained my idea, and Jessica was excited. Her mom Mariah had not yet moved from California, but when she visited, the two would ride their motorcycles out in the countryside and take pictures! How coincidental!

I had already met Cindie Kesler one Sunday after worship service. Later I approached her regarding my idea. She had a desire to attract tourism to the Munday area, was a member of “Moving Munday Forward,” she was knowledgeable in all facets of the web and had a lot of ideas. She wanted to be part of the “Friends of The Big Empty.”

One day I heard about the new owners of the Spann, or Parker, house located across the street from the Church of Christ building. I met the couple Brandi and Keith. I immediately shared my idea. Brandy was enthusiastic about it! She excitedly explained that the two would travel on their motorcycle and take pictures! Wow! 

Next, I explained my idea to Becky Offutt. I knew she would contribute to the group in a big way. Since she has lived here a long time, she would be a great asset due to her knowledge of places, her narrative, and her gourmet skills!

Joel and I attended the Earth Day celebration at the Jim Bob Art Park and Nature Trails 1.75 miles north of Benjamin. I learned that the large open space was an ideal place for anyone to take his or her telescope to stargaze. There I met Penelope Bisbee and her brother Steve Bisbee. This was such a wonderful place! Randy Barnett of Knox City, Mary Jane Young of Benjamin, my husband Joel, and I sat at the picnic table that overlooked the 400 acres of their breaks, ate hot dogs with a drink, spent a long time there, and enjoyed the scenery. Now I knew that we had a lot to offer travelers!

After this, I decided I had enough to form the “Friends of The Big Empty” group. I arranged for us to meet in the fellowship hall of the Church of Christ building. I also had invited Penny Bisbee. This was the first time that everyone I had previously invited met each other. The board members of the group are from Argyle, Midland, California, Munday, and Nebraska.