We loved to pack up the kids and take off when our children were little. It started out with simple “Sunday afternoon drives”, that grew into weekend jaunts; then as the years progressed they blossomed into full-blown camping trips that involved several other families with kids too. We had so much fun that when we took our third sabbatical (compliments of Intel) we bought an RV and packed up the kids once again (now there were five boys) and hit the road for three months. To this day I will tell you it was the best things we ever did.
It was on this adventure that John said, “This is what I want to do when I retire.” I thought, OK; great, I can retire and see the world in an RV. Then he said, “Let's buy an RV Park”. I lovingly said,” YOU’RE NUTS!” Several years passed, he still had his RV Park dream and support I did by finding us a park to buy.
When we purchased this business in September of 2004, it was a run-down derelict. But we saw the potential in it. Kind of a "jewel in the rough" so to speak. We knew it would take a lot of work, time and money. We had two out of three. Ready or not we took the plunge and retired early to tackle this new challenge... it would be OUR challenge. We were done with corporate life and working for someone else.
Of course, our kids, the neighbors, friends, and most family members thought we were certifiable because we were moving to the country to buy what looked like the "Haney Place" from the old TV sitcom, Green Acres. (Actually, this park was named Green Acres when we bought it! How ironic is that!) But they loved us anyway and wished us well.
It’s been well over ten years in the revamp and we’re in the home stretch. The kids are grown, the landscaping has matured and Molly, the best Lab ever has passed at 14. There’s still more to do and the list never seems to grow any shorter, but when guests find us-they find an oasis in the valley.
