Alyssa RobertsJoseph

ENTERPRISE — Alyssa Roberts moved to Joseph just four years ago from the west side of Oregon after growing up north of Seattle.

She’s the retail manager and products buyer for Wild Carrot in Enterprise.

She doesn’t have any family in the county, but she’s not alone.

“I live here with my boyfriend and our dogs,” she said.

Roberts’ favorite thing about Wallowa County is the same as the reason she moved here.

“I love the small community and that everybody looks out for each other and that everybody loves Wallowa County and tries to preserve it and make it better,” she said. “I like that I’m able to be a part of that here.”

With last Wednesday being Ash Wednesday — the beginning of Lent — Roberts doesn’t figure she’ll be giving anything up.

“I live a pretty minimalist lifestyle anyway,” she said. “I’ll just keep doing my thing.”

With daylight saving time coming up March 12, she doesn’t really care one way or the other about it.

“My dog still wakes up before the sun rises anyway,” she said.

As spring draws near, Roberts is looking forward to just the end of winter.

“That and everybody being in a better mood,” she said. “People seem to not like the long winters. I love it when people are happy and I know the sun will help with that.”

When it comes to people thinking about moving here, she has plenty of advice.

“I would say to be respectful of the people who do live here and get yourself involved in the community and help make it a better place,” she said. “We already have tons of people visiting and the more we can make it better, the better.”

— Bill Bradshaw,

Wallowa County Chieftain