Hang out at the Yahoo group OrganicBeekeepers and absorb info until next
Spring.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/organicbeekeepers/

I've also found the Feral Bee Project group to be helpful as well:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/FeralBeeProject/

And if you're interested in Top Bar Hives:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/tophive/

I like TBH hives - but am moving to a long-hive design similar to the
JHH hive using Dadant deep frames with modified top-bars in the TBH
style so from the outside it looks like a Tanzanian TBH. Entrance on one
short end and up high - that keeps the brood area in a predicable
location - nearest the entrance, and allows me to go in from the back of
the hive and work the honey without disturbing the bees too much, a lot
like the TBH hive.

There may be ways to desensitize the immune system to stings after such
an occurrence, but everyone is a bit different. I know of at least one
beekeeper who is allergic and she suits up to work the bees and keeps an
epi pen handy. Not sure how far along she is on working with her allergy
- if it is possible to reduce the reaction or even eliminate it. There
are benefits to bee stings tho. It has been shown to have medicinal
value and there are a great many beekeepers that simply don't get the
flu or colds anymore - tho that's strictly anecdotal. It could be as
simple as spending more time outside or perhaps the therapeutic effect
of working bees, or it could be the occasional sting (which really
doesn't hurt but itches) or perhaps something in the raw honey or all
the above. It's certainly a worthwhile thing to pursue, beekeeping, and
not nearly as difficult and expensive as I've had some failed beekeepers
tell me. I visit my bees once ever month or two, make sure their
brood-area is big enough, examine for pests and harvest surplus honey
and that's pretty much it. Dee Lusby works nearly 900 hives by herself,
only with occasional help from students. So, it's not a taxing thing to
do, and if you garden you will never have pollination problems again!

Of course, working with bees doesn't mean getting stung all the time. I
got stung on my ear once while examining a cutout opportunity, and got a
little sting thru a wet glove while performing another cutout and that's
it. I work my hives very respectfully and don't wig out if the bees buzz
around. It's a very internalizing act and builds up internal discipline
to how you react to things too. I'm not afraid of stings - working in a
t-shirt and no gloves - but I don't encourage stings either. It's kinda
like a game to me. I know sooner or later I'll get stung again - but how
long can I make it between stings is the challenge. Others seem to get
stung nearly every time they go out into the apiary. Not sure if they're
more careless with their bees or if the difference between my long hives
and their Langstroth hives means more bees flying around and landing on
them with more opportunities for getting stung. Nevertheless - if you're
not allergic, stings are nothing to fear. Pinch the stinger out (don't
bother with trying to scrape it, that makes no difference and speed of
removal is what makes the difference so just pinch it out rapidly) and
move on. It'll itch some, but big deal - you won't notice it after a
couple of days and it's not all that bad anyway. Unless you don't notice
the sting and leave it in - then it'll itch a bit worse. But it's miles
away from wasp stings, which do hurt quite a bit.