Letter from The New Family Custodian

From the Family Custodian: 

From birth, I crawled the halls of this home owned by my Great Uncle, Melvin Chapman Bowers (Uncle Chap), whose grandfather Job II, an abolitionist and religious pacifist and publisher, laid out the town where the old hotel lies, after renaming it from West Bowersville to Canon, GA. I played in the fertile hills surrounding The Bowers House in the county founded by my 7th great grandfather, Job Bowers The First, who was a Revolutionary War hero killed by The Tories while on leave for the birth of his only son. I gazed in wonder at the stain glass window images installed by Uncle Chap’s father who brought The Universalist Church to Georgia where it is still active 125 years later. 

I am proud that both of my mother’s parents were born in these parts, and grateful to my Bowers relatives and friends who helped me get started as the new family Custodian of this paint chipped, sprawling homestead. My cousins, Ellen Bowers Davenport (a native of Canon) and Phebe Bowers Armas, assist in running the lodging and retreat operations. My loving partner, Dorjan Williams, is The Bowers House Program Director also executive producer of ‘Bowers Hour’ episodic broadcasts featuring the work product and creative output of our residents via their musical concerts, art workshops, literary guild activities and readings and documentation of resident artists’ retreats and activity.

As 2022 rolls in we are facing and discovering necessary health precautions, crucial restoration and funding opportunities, university and professional sponsorship affiliations. We are restoring the historic registry commercial buildings on our city block and expanding our reach and scope and enhanced exposure via programming through ‘Bowers Hour’ and expanding community involved entertainment, enlightenment and activities. The Bowers House offers retreat directors, arts organization and artist/writer residents lodging and peaceful solace to work and focus their creativity. History buffs and curiosity seekers can rent rooms or the entire home when available. Our mission is to offer residencies and encouragement to multicultural/ minority/ underserved writers and creatives via sponsorships and donation supported by visiting guest stays and established retreat and lodging/event rentals. 

Several key creative Ambassadors including Jonathan Hibbert and Marvin Jackson and Roumena Georgeiva (music), Mary Anne Mitchell (photography), Kim Shockley Karelson and Linda Mitchell (fine arts painting) and Max Woo (dance), and many other supporting Ambassadors listed herein, can help you customize your retreat, overnight workshop, artist residencies and lodging requests. 

We appreciate your contribution to our mission by staying at and supporting The Bowers House. We try to ensure your optimized retreat or lodging experience and are prepared and adaptable in setup for your group’s area of interest. Please call me at 954-888-8948 to arrange your stay at

THE BOWERS HOUSE 100 Depot Street Box 74, Canon, Georgia 30520.

Karol Molina/Ryan Lannom are Bleace Kolorful at Retreat

Welcome to BOWERS HOUR, a series of entertainment, educational and arts/music programming that documents the creative output of artist residents and retreats taking place at The Bowers House in Canon, Georgia. This episode features a focus of the multimedia arts and talents of BLEACE (Ryan Lannom) and Kolorful Designs (Karol Molina) during their retreat at the facility during May 22-27 2022 with a live performance for BOWERS HOUR on May 24th in coordination with other artists including Paige Prier, a fine arts painter and her sister, Jess Fowler, a local singer songwriter who owns and runs Peachy Paws in Lavonia. Both women are grandchildren of The Bowers House Writers Guild Director, Charles Prier, whose members also participate in short readings of their current literary works. The varied arts and disciplines featured in this episode and retreat are representative of the new blood and creative studies we need to enhance our goal of making The Bowers House a center of perpetual artist housing and encouragement, in an attempt to provide residency to individuals and groups who might not otherwise be able to be exposed or to afford the facility. BOWERS HOUR programming and the sponsorships and donations we solicit and guest lodgers help accomplish this goal. BLEACE is not only the name of the creative enterprise that produces content management, design, clothing, and film/video creative services, but is the brainchild of author/director Ryan Lannom, who reads from his book series. His partner Karol Molina, who heads up an arts and photography/NFT consultancy, will give a brief talk on her creative processes and content management tips.

Jess Fowler Music at The Bowers House

On 5/24/2022 BOWERS HOUR films the BLEACE-KOLORFUL episode summarizing their week retreat at The Bowers House, concurrent with the art gallery opening of fine arts painter, Paige Prier (above). Paige’s sister, Jess Fowler (right), entertains with a solo intro and finale with pitch perfect sweet vocals and guitar, rounding out the evening with readings and a meet and greet social.

Continue reading “Jess Fowler Music at The Bowers House”

Paige Prier Art Gallery Show at The Bowers House

Display of work by Paige Prier Art

The Bowers Hours episode featuring Bleace and Kolorful Media is also the opening of our second inaugural visual artist and Bowers House Ambassador, Paige Prier, (paigeprier.com) whose work replaces and sends to the upstairs hallways our first Bowers House Art Gallery spotlight artist, Faye Behar Mitchell. The artwork that covers the walls of the old hotel building interiors is available for purchase, often including a stay at The Bowers house or other perks, and we consider guest purchases of these works another form or fundraising and sponsorship support of the facility and our mission. 5PM-7PM gallery.

Continue reading “Paige Prier Art Gallery Show at The Bowers House”

Charles Prier, Director of The Bowers House Writers’ Guild

A number of our Guild members are published writers. Some are self-published, others have materials accepted by publication houses; however, all of our writers are people who write because they want to. Not all of us want to become famous or even want to be published. We just want to express ourselves and become better writers. Published or not, experienced or just beginning, we have the pleasure of being encouraged to write because we love to do it, and we learn to write better through the instruction, encouragement and suggestions we receive each time we get together. Continue reading “Charles Prier, Director of The Bowers House Writers’ Guild”

5 Budget Travel Tips Every Digital Nomad Should Know

First of all, travel off-season. Check with the local tourism office to find out when their off-season starts when flying, either plan well in advance (ideally, 10 months to a year ahead) or at the last minute (two weeks or less before you leave) – these will give you the cheapest pricing. Try to be flexible- you can save on fares by travelling mid-week, or choosing sunny Varadero, Cuba, over sunny Cancun, Mexico. Save your health – check with your credit card company for existing travel or car insurance.

Continue reading “5 Budget Travel Tips Every Digital Nomad Should Know”

Apartment Rental vs Hotel Stay in Europe

Apartment rentals are becoming popular as an alternative form of accommodations when you travel around the world these days. We’ve been lucky enough to stay in all sorts of accommodation over the years from cheap guest houses to five star resorts, and recently had the unique opportunity of staying in both an apartment and a hotel while visiting Venice.

Continue reading “Apartment Rental vs Hotel Stay in Europe”

Why You Should Spend Your Next Vacation in the Mountains

Getting away from clocks, social media, and the clutter of everyday life can be a great way to “reset” your life. There’s something about that sweet, clean, fresh air that city life doesn’t offer. Something about waking up to a few goats outside your door and a wasp convincing you to exit your bed that gives you a great mix of pleasant feelings.

Continue reading “Why You Should Spend Your Next Vacation in the Mountains”

Stay Happy and Inspired Inside the Rural Host Home

While Airbnb started in San Francisco and is often associated with a cheap lodging alternatives in major cities, those in rural areas seem to benefit almost equally. The median annual earning for rural hosts was $6,776 in comparison to the $6,674 median for urban hosts. As the balance of the global population has shifted to cities, so have government resources and business capital, causing a widening gap in economic opportunity between urban and rural areas.

Continue reading “Stay Happy and Inspired Inside the Rural Host Home”