Ole Geneva Dairy Barn

Thanks for the link Sandy. I had a great time meeting everyone and shopping. The food was fantastic, but I have to say I was a little leary about whether he was getting the right permits for his building. Being the daughter of a Building Contractor it did cause me concern for future visitors, but I didn't feel unsafe myself. I have to say I'm not surprised, but I am disappointed that he wasn't able to pull it together. I wish him the best of luck as his heart was and is truly in the right place for this business.

Lynne

Wow,,, that is sad. I just can't bring myself to believe some of "the responses" at the bottom of the page. Seems untrue after I personally had a great ol time there. Craig was ery nice to us. I know that 4 of us got a limo ride to the barn which made my time even greater. Craig personally drove me to the airport on my day to leave. Even asked if I wanted to join him and his friend for lunch before I left. His b-day is same as mine. He sent me a return Christmas card @ Christmas time and I called him on his birthday after I sent him a homemade card for his birthday. He has repeatly asked if we were coming on another retreat there. Seemed everything was ok then. Wow, just hard to believe.

cowchipper

Divorce can be brutal. I suspect the ex-wife may be behind some of this.

At any rate perhaps some of those who attended the retreat could vouch for him in his time of need. You all seem so positive about the retreat and his treatment of you and with all that negativity it would balance it out some so he doesn't look like the creep of the century.

I've got to say that I feel sorry for Craig, but I'm not totally surprised either. Things were really tense between him and his ex-wife at the time we went. We weren't even sure for a while who was running the show, who was getting the money and indeed if we would be able to go. I do hope that he can make the upgrades that are required and get the permits he needs and get his business going again.

M-C

Thanks for sharing that link Sandy. I am disappointed too, hearing this news. I was scheduled for that whole weekend,had my deposit sent in already, and I ended up only going for one day, because of my FIL death. He didn't charge me for the whole weekend as contracted, due to my circumstances. He was very nice, and helpful with our things going up and down the steps, and the food was great! I cant believe some of the comments that other visitors left with the article. I didn't go there expecting 5 star accomodations, I went because it looked homey and comfortable, and to visit with my RCS friends. It's sad that it had to be shut down, and I hope he gets his life together.

Linda

I would have to say that the place needed a "woman's touch" and, sadly, I guess it took about a yr and a half to really start showing it. I do find it odd that it took the county 2+ yrs to figure out he was running a business and didn't have proper zoning. I'd have to wonder about my county officials if I lived there.

I thoroughly enjoyed my stay and loved the food. The man even brought his raw peanuts from home to boil for me. Now that's above & beyond. Craig was nothing but accomodating to all of us. I can't help wondering though what all of our oppinions would be today had we rebooked and returned this past spring. Hopefully he can work things out. I felt like he had a real knack for this sort of thing. He was a great host for us, he was just dealing w/ a lot of life issues. Guess they caught up to him.

Thanks for sharing this article Sandy. I could imagine your surprise when you saw the headline.

Katr> I was so disappointed when I read this news article concerning the Ole

Wow! Thanks for sharing this Sandy. I too have mixed feelings about this. It is such a shame. I really had a great time. I came home shouting to all my scrapbooking friends what a great place it was.

I agree with the points about a "woman's touch", but I think Craig did a marvelous job making us comfortable. I don't think anyone can complain about the cooking! I was happy with my room and don't feel like it was anything against what was advertised or expected. I wasn't impressed with the bathroom, but I could see he was working on improvements and I didn't go there for the bathroom accommodations.

It wasn't until after our visit that he installed the web-cam in the scrapping room. My first thought was "I'm glad it wasn't there when we went". I enjoyed the slumber-party atmosphere, scrapping in my PJs. I would not be as comfortable with a web-cam in the room.

One article complained about the Spa and Message services. While I personally did not partake in these services, others in our group did. I didn't think these were off base of what was advertised on the website. I didn't see that the manicure/pedicure/massage would have been any different if it had been conducted off-site.

It is a shame about the troubles with the county. I can't help but wonder if the ex-wife has had anything to do with that. I know that I shouldn't think that way and I hope it is not true. I question Craig's judgment on how some of these situations where handled (e.g. moving cars, continuing to operate business as usual, etc.)

I can sympathize with the people getting angry about being sent to a hotel. I would be too. I'll give Craig the benefit of thinking he was trying to fix the situation. However, I think he should have called the party immediately, explained the situation and offered to refund the deposits and let the party decided if they wanted to be put into the hotel.

I hope these articles don't turn people off scrapbooking retreats. I had a super time at the Ole Geneva Dairy Barn and I hope to go to more weekends.

As for Craig, I wish him well.

-- Amy L.

Well that's a bummer. I really enjoyed my stay there last year. He was very accomodating to us and made us feel very welcome. Craig really had a knack for what he did, and I really hope he gets life stuff straightened out and can continue to do what he likes to do.