The Osler Family Finds a Home in Clay Center

Any military wife can tell you that her job isn’t an easy one. There are a lot of hardships to endure and a lot of questions that will most likely go unanswered. So when Anita Osler moved to Clay Center and her husband was deployed to Iraq shortly thereafter, it was comforting to know that they had moved to such a supportive community.

“It just feels like home. You know all your neighbors and everybody pitches in when someone’s in trouble. You just don’t find that anymore,” Osler said. “And there is amazing military support here.”

Shortly after moving to Clay Center, Osler began writing articles for the local newspaper, the Clay Center Dispatch. With the intent to better inform her friends and neighbors about life in the military, topics included what it was like to be a military wife and protocols to be followed when a death occurs overseas. The response was overwhelming.

“I was amazed at how many people just started coming out of the woodwork, saying, ‘Please tell us more! We never get to hear anything, except what’s on the news,’” Osler said. “I’ve really enjoyed doing it.”

The Oslers settled in Clay Center after deciding they no longer wanted to live on post. But, the home buying process for enlisted soldiers can sometimes be a difficult one. The Oslers were told by realtors in larger nearby cities that they would have to wait six months to meet with a Veterans Affairs inspector. They were surprised at how effortless their realty transaction seemed when they found a house in Clay Center.

“With the rural grants and the military assistance, and the lenders here knowing how to work with the VA, it went really smooth,” Osler said.

Osler has found that the community’s close proximity to larger cities definitely has its advantages. She recently earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology by completing courses offered at Ft. Riley, and loves the fact that you can get “the big time shopping without the big town headache” in nearby Manhattan or Topeka. Osler also feels that it’s the perfect place to raise their three-year-old son, Louie.

“There’s a sense of community here. All the other parents know all of each others’ kids. We wanted Louie to grow up in a place like that.”