Avery Whitman moved to Copperland, CA with her family at eleven years old.
Avery is tall for an eleven year old. She has golden-blonde hair, freckles that her mom calls "sun-kisses," and dark blue eyes. She wears glasses that are a bit too big for her face, and shoes that are a bit too big for her feet. Her parents tell her that she would grow into these soon, but Avery doesn't mind them much.
Growing up in the small rural town of Craigs, CO, she loved to help work on her parent's small farm. Her mother, Penelope, sold fruits, veggies, pickled & fermented things, preserves, and the occasional baked good at the farmers market. Her father, Jack, tended to the farm during the day, and ran a butchers shop directly off their land. Jack always dreamed of opening his own restaurant. Moving to Copperland would allow his dreams to become a reality.
For a time, as the family gets settled in, Penny will work with her childhood friend at the Plum Avenue Market, a local market & cafe, as a baker.
Avery's brother Russell is nine years old, two years behind her in school, though he is almost as tall as she is already. He has dark, almost black hair, Avery's same blue eyes and freckles, and their father's dark, suntanned skin.
Moving to this new place doesn't seem to bother Russell quite as much as it does Avery, as he mostly plays outside, and makes new friends easily. The move hasn't seemed to affect Avery's parents as much either. Penny grew up here, and knows a lot of people. Jack, will no doubt find his niche as he always does.
A strong, working man, with a boisterous laugh, Jack has always been an excellent story teller who always knows exactly what to say. Penny, though usually quiet, has the most enchanting smile, and contagious laugh. She is always kind, helpful, and naturally elegant, though a bit rough around the edges. Avery would not have it any other way. Her brother Russell seems to feel the same way about their father. Always trying to mimic his father's laugh and ruggedness, Russell often finds himself getting into trouble while he's off on one of his common misadventures.
It is mid-August when the Whitman family moves to Copperland. While her parents say that the weather here will make gardening much easier, the heat alone makes Avery want to run back home to the Craigs. She never thought she'd ever be so uncomfortable in her own skin - and it's not just the heat.
As soon as they arrived to their new home on 537 Bonneville St., the Whitman family was welcomed by many of their neighbors, and Russell made a new friend right away. Penny decided to sign Avery up at the local Girl Scout troop to help her meet new people.
Troop 1223, is a Junior through Senior level troop. Avery signed up as a sixth grade Cadette even though she is about to go into the seventh grade. Worried that they placed her into the wrong level, she knew she would have to speak to someone. At her first meeting, she saw a girl who looked about her age, wearing a tan vest with only a few patches on it.
Hannah had just turned twelve, and was about to bridge over to the seventh grade Cadette level. She is shorter than Avery, with curly brown hair, dark freckles, and bright green eyes. To Avery, she seemed like the easiest person to approach in the room.
Finally gaining the courage to talk to someone new, Avery introduced herself.
"Hello, my name's Avery Whitman. I just moved here from Colorado."
"I know you!," said Hannah, "You're the girl from the family that just moved in down the street. My mom told me that I should say hi, but I had to catch my cat. He's always running outside when I leave the door open."
"Oh, no! I hope he doesn't run away."
"Chester does just fine outside, it's my mom who doesn't approve. Anyway, he always comes back."
Avery sighed, "Well, that's a relief. Hey, can I ask you a question?"
"Shoot!"
"You see, I'm going to start junior high next month, but I'm still only eleven, so they signed me up in the sixth grade level here."
"Oh, that's no big deal," Hannah laughed, "they always do that to the newcomers, just to make sure that we can keep up with everything around here. I'm new to Girl Scouts, too. My mom said I needed something to get me out of the house this Summer."
"Same here," said Avery, "my brother's already made friends on the street, so my mom wanted to help me out by signing me up here, though I'd do just fine staying home all Summer. I mean, we only have a month left 'till school starts, anyway."
"Well, I'm glad you're here," said Hannah, "most of the other girls have been here since they were just kids. It's hard to fit into a group that's known each other since they were in diapers!"
"Ouch."
"You're telling me. Oh well, looks like it's time to head home. That's my mom over there... and all of my siblings. Oye, looks like we're due for a family night." Hannah waved to her mom.
Avery waved, too. "Okay, then. I guess I'll see you at next week's meeting."
"Alright! Gotta go!," Hannah yelled as she waved back to Avery, running towards her family, dragging her backpack on the ground.
"Bye!," Avery said as she gathered her things.
As she rode her bike home, she couldn't stop thinking about what she had said to Hannah. She hoped she hadn't said anything silly - anything that might make Hannah not want to be her friend. It's not that she was desperate, she just never had much luck with friends back home.
"Well, I guess this is home now," she thought as she peddled to the rhythm of her breath.
