May I suggest you look into the Abilene, Texas area?
Here you’ll find two hospitals (Abilene Regional Medical Center, and Hendrick Medical Center), and numerous medical offices surrounding both. They are on far opposite sides of town- Hendrick is much older, and far larger. I’ve been doing the vending at ARMC for over eight years, and have seen many of the same faces there over that entire time.
A nurse here probably doesn’t make as much as one in New York- but you don’t need to. I suspect that you would be shocked at how low the cost of living is here.
You will also find three universities, two colleges, and an Air Force base- all of which lead to the town having a fairly large population of transient(ish) young people. The place is a magnet, though- many people move back here after moving away (myself included- it’s just so *easy* to live here!).
As to culture, there’s far more available here than many people realize. All three universities have theater departments (two of them I know myself to be excellent), and both amateur and touring plays/musicals are available. Not to mention the assorted rodeos/western events. Oh, and guns shows every three months or so :)
Plenty of small surrounding towns as close or as far away as you like. I live in one of them (grew up here), and it takes me twenty minutes from my door to my work. I’ve never seen a traffic jam here in my life.
Conservative area? Check! Churches? Check! (take your pick- well over a hundred in Abilene alone.) Gun culture? Check! We’re bitter clingers to the end, around here! If you and your sis move here, I’ll promise to take you shooting myself.
Yes, it’s *HOT* here in the summer, but hardly ever humid. The winters are mostly mild, and you and your sister would be afforded great amusement watching us Texans try to cope with what would seem mild weather to you (we always get a kick out of yankees complaining about 80 degree weather). We did get iced in for four days last winter- that’s about as bad as it gets, usually.
I admit, you’d probably get come comments on your accents, but not as many as you might suspect. With an Air Force base and all those schools here, it’s not at all unusual to hear a strange accent. The only problem, usually, is that New Yorkers talk faster than we can listen :)
Oh, and if you ever feel the need to be in a big city, Fort Worth is less than two hours down I-20, and Dallas not even another hour further.
Yes, Abilene is like a small-town city. No overpasses, etc. Such an easy city to drive. I didn’t even think of it, yet I take my parents to their doctors there, occassionally.