October/November 2013 - Inspired Woman Magazine

with all hands on deck the first phaseof Wolf Run Apartments is completeand Wolf Pup Daycare broke ground onAugust 7th.“Once you start the good going outhere, it just spreads,” Katie says as sheexplains that the daycare and apartmentproject operate under Wolf RunVillage, a non-profit organization runby a five-member board of communityleaders. Katie works with the board, thecity, county and school system to makedecisions on fundraising, rent and whoqualifies as tenants.Ask her about deadlines and she’lladmit she’s pushing them, but it hasn’tbeen in the direction you’d assume.“I have seven people moving in onFriday and Saturday. That’s the contractor’sdeadline, but a few of them needto get in early,” Katie explains. “Thesepeople don’t have anywhere else to go.So she pleads their case with thebuilders, explaining each unique situationand convincing the workers to dowhat they can to meet their needs.“I’m so emotionally invested in this,”Katie says. “This is more than justanother project to me.”The same goes with the daycareproject, a 17,000 square foot, twostory facility that is scheduled to openits doors in the spring. When a kitchenwasn’t in the plans, she sat down withthe architects and explained the importanceof providing the children withhealthy meals.She did the same with her plea for kidsizedtoilets.In addition to overseeing the project’scompletion, Katie will serve as thebusiness manager for Wolf Pup. Shereceives two to three emails a weekfrom parents looking for more informationon the daycare.Her biggest concern? Keeping itaffordable.One of her goals is to set up a yearly$10,000 scholarship to be awarded tofamilies who fill the requirements.“With a community daycare like thiswe need to plan for the lowest commondenominator so it’s accessible foreveryone,” she explains.With a bachelor’s degree inEnvironmental Science and a master’sdegree in Atmospheric Science, Katieadmits that she, too, could be workingfor the oil and gas industry, but she’sdedicated to seeing this project through.“Right now I’m the person availableto get this done,” she says. “And I’mgoing to keep doing it the best I can untilsomeone else comes along who can doit better.”Settling inKatie doesn’t deny that moving toWatford City from a community of600,000 has been an adjustment.Within one and a half miles of her homein California, Katie had access to threemajor grocery stores and five major drugstores.When she moved to Watford City shefound herself ordering some of her foodonline because the small grocery storesdidn’t carry it.This summer Watford City opened aCashWise grocery store and will soonbe home to two new chain restaurants.Katie doesn’t take this for granted. Shereadily admits that those additionsmade her life easier.It’s the same vision she has for WolfRun Villages.“Those who can visualize the future,those who can see that it will get better,those are the people who make it here,”she says.And at the end of the day Katie appreciatessmall town living.Ask her about the future and she’lladmit she doesn’t know where the nextten years will take them, but for nowshe’s got a job to do.She’s got deadlines to meet.“There are so many different typesof people moving in and out of thiscommunity, it’s amazing to think howa place like this can impact the rest ofthe country.”She picks up her notepad, stands upand heads for the door.“I’m happy to be a part of the history.”Jessie Veeder is a singer,writer and photographerwho lives and works onher family’s cattle ranchin Western ND with her husband, Chad.OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2013 INSPIRED WOMAN 29