There was once a time when J.P. and Nola Girdner must have felt that their entire lives had become unraveled. Confused, saddened, disappointed, and frightened, the couple discovered a serious health problem that would shake up their lives forever. The Girdners, along with their four children, would have to pull up stakes and leave everything that was familiar: their home, farm, church, and friends, and move to an unknown place, knowing that they would have to completely rebuild their lives, and they faced questions that few people would ever have to confront.

Placing their trust in the God that they had so faithfully served, the Girdners set out on a thousand-mile journey that would take them to the wild Arizona Territory, where they eventually settled on 90 acres of undeveloped land along the banks of lower Oak Creek. Through years of grueling, difficult work, the Girdners began to build a ranch that would be their home for the rest of their live