Fred and Darus Juarez certainly have the entrepreneurial spirit. The couple, who moved to the Rogue Valley in 2011, now own four businesses serving the valley. Their bread and butter, Budget Blinds, offers interior design for beauty and privacy in your home, specializing in automated solutions (“Alexa, close the blinds please”) for your windows.  

It was May 1985. My youngest sister had just bought a brand new Nissan Sentra in Colorado, while I had never paid more than $250 for a car in my life. But I was ready to become a grownup, and I immediately went to Jim Sigel Chevrolet and told them I wanted to buy a Nissan Sentra. The salesman took me out to the lot, and seeing that it registered six miles on the odometer, I was thrilled. He went to get the keys for a test drive, and I said, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll be back tomorrow with the cash.” Easiest sale they ever had, and I loved that car.

Just ask any professional football player about the dangers of head/neck trauma and post-concussion syndrome, and you’ll come away with a newfound respect for the brain and spinal cord. For Marklan Linmemeyer, LMT, CST, it’s personal.

It’s been almost 39 years since I first met Rick Chapman. I was making the rounds in July 1986 trying to sell ads for the first issue of the Sneak Preview when I walked into his inner sanctum at Plaza Quilting, Sewing & Vacuum Center. We instantly recognized each other from the softball days, and he entertained me with stories from his Navy days, 1968-72, when he served on some of the last diesel submarines from World War II.

Mailbox Plus, LLC, located at 1051 NE 6th Street, Ste 1C, has been serving the Rogue Valley since 2000 and has been family owned and operated for almost 25 years.

“Mailbox Plus first sprouted its roots as ‘The Mail Center’ on the north end,” said owner Chelsea Milner.