A brief history of how I came to call Roanoke home.

Strong Roots

I was born and raised in Roanoke. My father also grew up here, and my mother moved here when she was young.

Both of my parents (now divorced) still live in or in the vicinity of Roanoke. Well, my mom actually still lives in the same house where I grew up.

And those of my grandparents still alive also live in Roanoke, with several other relatives scattered throughout Virginia from here to Richmond.

I went to college at Virginia Western and Radford University and then came back to Roanoke looking for work and my place in the world. Sometime later I purchased my first home in Roanoke City, found a rewarding career, and never had a chance or consideration to look back. I suppose I could be called a “young professional” that Roanoke is looking to attract, or keep.

The big city isn’t for me

I have on occasion visited a big city and within a matter of hours realized that that kind of life just wasn’t for me. Things move too fast there, and just seem to always be moving. When visiting Chicago, I remember looking out of the window from the hotel room and at all hours of the night seeing automobiles pass and even a handful of people scurrying about.

Here in Roanoke, I like that the sidewalks tend to for the most part roll up at a modest hour. I like that various parts of the city basically shut down on Sunday, and on a holiday. I love that except for about an hour or maybe two out of the day (and even that’s a stretch), there is really no traffic to speak of around town.

Making the choice

Each of us live where we do primarily from choices that we make along the road of life. I don’t think it’s accurate to say we just “end up” certain places as much as we may move to a new area to take a job, or we pick up roots in search of a higher quality of life. All of us have our own reasons.

I also don’t think it’s entirely accurate to say that we choose the city where we live. Sometimes the city chooses us.

How did you come about to call Roanoke home?