Karin Holder can easily list the things that drew her and her family to Whitefish two years ago.

That list has only grown for the Holders as they've assimilated to the Flathead Valley.

Holder had an opportunity to buy into the Edward Jones investment company and open an office in Whitefish, spurring her family to pack up and leave Great Falls, where they'd lived for 14 years.

Edward Jones isn't the Holders' lone business venture, though.

They also own Above the Rest Outdoors, a web-based bowhunting information site which includes an outdoors television show.

It's a family business, but Karin's husband David spearheads the operation.

The Holders find archery a great family adventure. Karin and David have taken their sons to archery shoots and hunting practically since each boy was born.

"It's a way for our family to spend quality time together," Karin said. "And it teaches them patience, planning and perseverance."

They offer instructional videos, hunting videos and product review videos on the website. The site also features information about equipment and strategies to help hunters take game with bows, where to hunt, what gear to take, how certain types of gear works, even places they've had luck hunting.

The Holder children are part of the family business. Warren, a sophomore at Whitefish High School, and Easton, a sixth-grader in Whitefish, have each been bowhunters since age 2. All four Holders are avid bowhunters.

Warren's "real passion is archery," his mother says.

As the family looked at Whitefish, they saw things they wanted in their community - mountains, outdoor activities, hunting adventures and a good place to raise children.

Virginia natives, they found Great Falls didn't have the hardwood trees and forests they'd been around most of their lives. While hardwood trees are largely absent, Whitefish does offer plenty of other trees, Karin said.

The Holders had visited Whitefish for vacations before moving to the community.

"We always really liked the valley. It always felt good, right and natural when we were here," she said.

They moved west in part because of David's hunting interests. Hunting opportunities were shrinking in Virginia as the population grew and open space disappeared.

Their first move actually took them more south than west, to Arkansas, where they lived for four years as David worked as a firefighter.

They moved from an area with a population "in the millions," to a town of 2,000.

"It was culture shock like you wouldn't believe," she said. So, they decided to relocate and "found Montana."

David got a job with the Great Falls Fire Department so they headed to Montana. He retired from his fire position in 2009, opening the door for their move to Whitefish.

Holder has worked for Edward Jones for almost eight years. Joining the company "changed my life," and "gave me a new direction," she said.

"I've always loved to help people and solve problems," Holder said. "Here I help people with their problems and build relationships."

David also works as the western promotions coordinator for Primos Hunting, the largest animal call company in the world, Karin says.

Besides her two business ventures, Karin participates in community events. She's currently a student in the Leadership Flathead program through the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce, is a member of the Whitefish Chamber of Commerce, an Edward Jones mentor and trainer, and a member of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

In Great Falls, she was active in the Spirit of Women organization through Benefis Hospital. That outreach program offered health and business education to women. She'd like to see a similar program set up in the valley so she could participate.

Reporter Shelley Ridenour may be reached at 758-4439 or by email at sridenour@dailyinterlake.com.