Nancy Deucker wears many hats. There’s the gardener, who likes to get her hands dirty growing delicious Purple Viking Potatoes that people line up for when she gives them away. There’s the investor, who started trading stocks after her grandfather gave her two shares in Southern Company for her sixteenth birthday. There’s the entrepreneur, who achieved her childhood goal of becoming a veterinarian, opened up her own practice and stayed in business for 27 years.

It was during the time spent managing her veterinary practice that Nancy began looking for a stress-relief getaway. That’s when she discovered the property she now owns in Harrison County, Ohio. “Some people find themselves, their inner selves, in a lot of different ways. Mine is getting out in nature, listening to the birds, just being at peace outside,” Nancy said.

Along with buying the land, Nancy also made sure the assets below the ground were included in the sale. “That was fifteen years ago. At that time, there was not a word being said about oil and gas in Ohio,” Nancy said. “But I made certain, whenever I purchase a property, that I have all the mineral rights.”

It was a decision that would prove wise. A few years later, Nancy started getting all kinds of letters and phone calls from companies expressing interest in her minerals. “A group of us got together and hired an attorney who developed a lease contract, which was sold to Gulfport. There were enough of us to have a unit,” Nancy said. “But after that no drilling was occurring on our property.”