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Paperwork: This Robyn has a very special nest built with the bonds of sisterhood · Illinois Valley - Shaw Local

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  Speaker 1: Paperwork. This robin has a very special nest built with
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  Speaker 1: the bonds of sisterhood. Written by Lonnie Kane. This article
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  Speaker 1: is being read by an automated voice brought to you
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  Speaker 1: by Everlit. Life shrinks when you get older. It's called
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  Speaker 1: downsizing because the big stuff is no longer easy to handle,
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  Speaker 1: especially when you are alone, especially when you are a woman.
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  Speaker 1: Big houses with big yards, big bills, and big long
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  Speaker 1: lonely days. This was the reality for Robin Edmiston Yerian,
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  Speaker 1: but then the Texas woman embraced it all with guts
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  Speaker 1: and a big heart. Now her story is being told
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  Speaker 1: and retold. I have to join that drumbeat. Her tale
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  Speaker 1: took a turn as she faced the financial storm that
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  Speaker 1: swallows many women who are retired and single and on
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  Speaker 1: a tight budget. She moved into a tiny home to
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  Speaker 1: cut costs, but in 2022 she moved that tiny home
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  Speaker 1: into a community she created for herself and for other
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  Speaker 1: women rowing the same boat. Her home is now in Cumbee,
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  Speaker 1: a small town in East Texas. But she is surrounded
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  Speaker 1: by very special neighbors living in the tiny home community
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  Speaker 1: she created and named The Bird's Nest. A nice link
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  Speaker 1: to her first name, Robin. It's all women. It just
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  Speaker 1: kind of evolved that way, Robin told CBS News reporters.
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  Speaker 1: 85 to 90% of the people living in tiny homes
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  Speaker 1: are retired women on a budget, on a fixed income.
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  Speaker 1: And so I knew the audience would be big. She
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  Speaker 1: bought five acres in the rural setting about 65 miles
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  Speaker 1: northeast of Dallas. She pulled $ 150, 000 from savings and retirement
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  Speaker 1: funds to develop the land with septic, electric, water, and
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  Speaker 1: paved roads. The site has 14 concrete pads that she
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  Speaker 1: rents out for $ 450 per month. I live here and
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  Speaker 1: want a community of friends that are like-minded, kind, and respectful,
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  Speaker 1: she told the U.S. Sun. Our amenity is community. Because
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  Speaker 1: we all vet new members, we all choose good people.
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  Speaker 1: It provides a safe place for women to live without
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  Speaker 1: being afraid and looking over their shoulder when opening their
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  Speaker 1: front door. When a spot opens, they get up to
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  Speaker 1: 500 applicants. There have been up to a dozen women
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  Speaker 1: ages 60 and up nestled in the bird's nest where
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  Speaker 1: there are no men. Robin is in her 70s now.
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  Speaker 1: Most of the women are single, divorced, or widowed. They
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  Speaker 1: share a community outdoor kitchen, gardens, fire pits. chickens and
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  Speaker 1: the kind of bond that builds with close friends. We
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  Speaker 1: help if someone is sick or needs a ride to
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  Speaker 1: physical therapy or a doctor's appointment. We let dogs out
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  Speaker 1: and babysit them when others vacation. We provide everything a
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  Speaker 1: best friend would, she told Sun reporters. It's all about
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  Speaker 1: women empowering women, Robin told People magazine last year, people.com.
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  Speaker 1: We can't knock women down. We have to embrace each
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  Speaker 1: other and take the extra step to be kind. We
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  Speaker 1: all eventually gather in the evenings, every night it seems.
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  Speaker 1: Just to touch base with everybody, see how their day went,
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  Speaker 1: we have to respect each other, and we all do.
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  Speaker 1: Her bold move has become an inspiration for other women.
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  Speaker 1: Robin was excited when the New York Times helped spread
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  Speaker 1: her idea across the country. She shared the article on
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  Speaker 1: her Facebook page with this note, The women here are strong,
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  Speaker 1: independent women who have made the choice to take care
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  Speaker 1: of themselves and not necessarily all were in a toxic,
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  Speaker 1: not a term I would use here, situation. I simply
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  Speaker 1: offer them an affordable place to live out their dreams,
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  Speaker 1: just like other tiny communities do, such as Tiny Lots
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  Speaker 1: on the Prairie and Namaste Hideaway, both owners I know
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  Speaker 1: personally that offer a peaceful place to live. Lots of
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  Speaker 1: comments followed, praising her efforts, with a few women seeking
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  Speaker 1: advice on how to start a tiny community where they live.
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  Speaker 1: Robin wanted financial security and a circle of friends. She
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  Speaker 1: made that happen. Now she wants to see the idea spread.
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  Speaker 1: I hope it does, but I can see the challenges.
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  Speaker 1: It's not just about concrete pads and paved roads with
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  Speaker 1: all the hookups. To have a grand and proper nest,
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  Speaker 1: you will need a robin. Lonnie Kane, retired managing editor
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  Speaker 1: of the Times in Ottawa, also was a reporter for
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  Speaker 1: the Herald News in Joliet in the 1970s. His paperwork
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  Speaker 1: email is lonniekane at gmail.com. Or mail the News Tribune,
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  Speaker 1: 426 2nd Street, LaSalle, IL 61301.