"How long are ya home fer?" This is the familiar, oft repeated question I got when my brother introduced as his sister visiting from Ontario. Every time I heard it, I felt the warm Newfoundland welcome behind it, and the feeling that Newfoundlanders think everyone comes originally from The Rock! (I secretly wish we did.) My brother Joseph McGarr and sister-in-law Cheryl moved from Ontario to Black Duck Brook on the Port au Port Peninsula in 2007. They'd vacationed there, at the invitation of friends and BDB natives Danny and Anne Benoit, for twelve straight summers. The people and the place hooked their hearts. Joseph held the secret desire to retire there but was hesitant to share that with his wife until the call of The Rock got too strong and one day he dared to pop the question: "Cheryl, how would you feel about going to live in Newfoundland?" Her simple answer? "When?" He was overjoyed. Now you can't pry them out of the place. Joseph has become known in Black Duck Brook in part for his fine work with wood, replicating well-know Newfoundland objects. He has crafted a replica dory that can be found in Mainland's Tea By the Sea, lawn decor for neighbours, a table centrepiece for a wedding, and his latest effort, a lighthouse with adjoining innkeeper's home. The lid of the innkeeper's house is the lid of the McGarr's garbage box. This turned the heads of the waste collection guys when they first saw it! Many stop to marvel at it as they drive by. The model required hundreds of hours of cutting small pieces of wood; all from repurposed 2-by-4s! Six coats of paint and final detailing by Cheryl's more delicate hand competed the work. Then, using their big ATV, Joseph and Cheryl slowly and carefully dragged the model to its current site at the foot of their drive. A little leveling finished the work. Within two days, a big blow at the time of hurricane Dorian tested the structure. It withstood the test solidly. Joseph said "I was a Millwright by trade back in Ontario. If I'd known the pleasure of working in wood, I'd have started with that rather than metal." But this does not prevent him from being a resource to his neighbours from Lourdes, Winterhouse, and beyond for his millwright know-how. He and Cheryl are "Come From Aways" who are now "here to stays."   Submitted By: Cheryl Lyon