Meet Crazy Bear Lesia Yachtorowych | Co-Owners and Partners

We had the good fortune of connecting with Crazy Bear and Lesia Yachtorowych and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Crazy Bear, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?

Living in a small town, miles from any major city, has many advantages as well as some disadvantages. There are very few job opportunities, so you must be creative in your thought process and delve into what makes you happy and earn some income. Coming from a business management background, both my wife and I felt we could successfully operate our own small businesses while enjoying what we do.

The Town people wanted a place for people to stay and many have asked us to open a Bed & Breakfast, and our home is the perfect venue to do just that! The building, located on the main street of Walsh, was originally built as a hotel back in 1929 known as The Oasis Hotel. Fully updating and remodeling our 6,000 sq ft home was the biggest undertaking and renovations have been fully completed, offering a spacious peaceful environment for our guests. One of the highlights we enjoy is meeting people from all over the world, including athletes from The Race Across America! But what makes us happiest is seeing how relaxed our guests are when they stay with us, receiving feedback on how peacefully they sleep here, how beautiful our home is and that they want to return to our Bed & Breakfast.

I also have a passion for creating art, including paintings, Native American art, jewelry, and custom art framing. My wife, Lesia, enjoys working with crystals, creating customized crystal jewelry, and offering therapeutic sessions and wellness circles, working with sound vibrations & frequencies to help others live a loving and happy balanced life. So, we have also opened a shop on the main floor filled with art, crystal jewelry, crystals and collectibles for our guests and customers to enjoy and purchase, if they so desire. We are blessed to have the ability to do what we feel so passionate about while running our business.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?

Our hard work and excitement to open this 4-bedroom Bed and Breakfast to make our guests as comfortable as possible is at the forefront of our endeavor. We want people to feel right at home and wanting to come back. Price is secondary, we are even told we ask too little for guest stays. For those that ask for breakfast, both Lesia and I have extensive knowledge and experience in meal preparation. We both have traveled the world and have picked up an array of breakfast menus; so, each day, you can find something different prepared; most of all delicious, nutritional; leaving taste buds wanting more. We were excited to decorate each room by theme: Moonbeam Room, Dreamcatcher Room, Starry Nights Room, and Northern Lights Room. All rooms have linens and wall decorations to match their theme. We have a huge dining room so that our guests can not only enjoy it as an eating area, but also a working area and even for meetings. A comfortable sitting room is available to just relax. The yard features an 8-foot privacy fence and a large firepit for relaxing and cooking over the fire or enjoying smores is also available. We have had requests to invite family and friends in to enjoy a get together; even up to over 30 guests on occasion. We live on the premises; therefore, we are here for our guests, to assist our guests with their requests. As we continue with our Bed and Breakfast, we are constantly learning and changing how we do things to ensure that all our guests have the best experience possible while streamlining the work to make it easier on ourselves.

Our gift shop is supported by the people of Walsh and surrounding areas as well as by guests who stay here. Quite a few of our customers have become good friends and isn’t that what life is all about?

But the biggest challenge is that it takes time, patience, and perseverance to grow an entrepreneurial business in a small town. Our shop has slowly grown and evolved into an art gallery & jewelry store through word of mouth, arts and craft shows and some social media. We may be a little old-fashioned, but we love the personal touch of meeting our customers face-to-face and allowing them to experience art in person. It is so good for the heart and soul. Our plan is to continue to work hard, creating things that make people happy and spreading the word about our business. We are grateful and blessed to have the ability to spread positivity to others through what we create and offer in our little shop, known as IAMindful Gifts.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
In Walsh, we would take a relaxing stroll to enjoy our beautiful green park and then enjoy our Saturday Farmer’s Market that offers a variety of foods (homemade baked goods, jams, sauces, meals, fresh produce) as well as locally created goods (birdhouses, rugs, greeting cards, wallets, graphic t-shirts, horseshoes, skincare products). We would then stop by Piccadilly’s for refreshments and continue walking down the main street, enjoying several little shops along the way.

Within a short driving distance from Walsh, there are areas of interest abound in all four directions: Within a 30-minute drive north to Two Buttes, CO that was established in 1909 as a trading center for farms. It has a reservoir for boating, swimming, and fishing. John Martin Reservoir just west of Lamar; also has boating, swimming, and fishing. It has a nice park area for picnics. Out west of Walsh is Picture Canyon, named for its prehistoric rock art. South of Walsh about 3 hours is Amarillo, TX…which is world famous, boasting about a large 72 oz steak contest. To the east is Dodge City, KS that was made famous by the likes of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holiday, and numerous outlaw gangs. This is the town that also featured in the TV show “Gunsmoke”. Still today there are western gunfight reenactments.  Noteworthy fact:  The Longhorn Saloon featured in the TV Series owned by Kitty; the current bar actually was the reception desk in the Walsh Oasis Hotel that was sold years later to be used in the Show.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Shout Out to: The friendly and kind people, residents, businesses, and friends of the Town of Walsh. Without their love and support, we would not be able to sustain our business. We even have people in other towns and businesses who promote us. What a great way to grow our business.

Website: www.Walsh-Inn.com (update coming soon) and www.iamindfulgifts.com (update coming soon)

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamindfulgifts

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WalshInn & https://wwwfacebook.com/IAMindfulGifts

Image Credits
Professional Photos taken and provided by Trish Brown of Walsh, CO