Randy Lehnhoff and Marjory Snyder have held a variety of jobs from Alaska to Key West with stops in California, Iowa and Phoenix. But of all the places they liked the most, Utah tops the list and they explain why. Megan Raphael and her husband They have a smaller 22-foot travel trailer and take it on several extended trips every year. But, they’re investigating the full-time lifestyle or at least opportunities to be on the road for longer periods of time.
The first interview is with Dave Meuer, a gentleman from Albuquerque who has been traveling for decades with his wife and six kids as they visited nearly 30 states. The second guests are Brett and Connie Ridgway, who are from Katy, Texas. They had four children who are all grown and on their own, so the couple is ready to play.
Ronnie and Marci Stacy, who are from Dayton, Ohio. They have been weekend warriors for quite a while, but plan to embrace full-time RVing this spring. Olen and Jeanette Criswell, who are from Peoria, Ill. He, too, is going to retire in 2020. However, neither of them wants to spend retirement sitting in a rocking chair on the front porch.
Trey Selman is the executive director of the RV Safety and Education Foundation, an organization that teaches people how to operate their recreation vehicles safely and to follow weight guidelines. Trey describes their RV Academy and the type of online training it provides that includes RV basics, driving safety, tire and weight safety. RVSEF is planning a conference in May in Elkhart to discuss a number of safety-related issues and offer some live training.
Deborah Cole was already retired and waiting for her husband to follow her lead. They have been camping for years; first in a tent, and then in a popup before upgrading to a 27-foot travel trailer. Dee Kettleson has been married 44 years and has two grown sons and seven grandchildren. The family started tent camping when their youngest son was just six months old. They both attended Workamper Rendezvous last October and describe what they learned and how it is preparing them for the RV lifestyle.
Howard and Linda Payne are natives of Louisville, Ky. They both worked professional jobs when, in 2005, they turned 42 and realized they wanted more freedom and flexibility in their lives. They bought an RV and hit the road that August. Since then, they have worked nine different workamping jobs and have some great stories to tell.
Tom Ramler hires workampers to maintain the facility in a variety of different jobs. For example, they might do handyman repair in the dormitories. They can feed livestock used in the agriculture classes. They may work in greenhouses or mow the grass around campus.
Jamie Allnut is the program director for the RV Disaster Corps, an organization that sends groups of RVers to various disaster areas, but only after the initial cleanup is completed. These folks are unique in that they are helping coordinate and orchestrate the volunteer effort on behalf of a broader outreach. These volunteer workampers staff reception centers and long-term recovery centers by organizing where other volunteers will serve.
Mark Ducharme is the general manager overseeing the Xanterra operation at Glacier National Park. He is seeking workampers to staff hotels, restaurants, bars and retail operations throughout the park. Xanterra also hires drivers for its 33 distinctive red buses which shuttle visitors and employees around the park.
Chris and Bill Latimer are from California and have been camping much of their lives. Last year, they bought a 40-foot fifth wheel and started living in it as they downsized from a much bigger home. The Rendezvous showed them how to find and apply for workamping jobs. Ideally, they are looking for jobs that would allow them to work three days and fish for four.
Tim Martin is a sales representative for Kitchen Craft, a company based out of West Bend, Wis., that produces cookware of all types and sells it at big events like RV rallies, fairs and campgrounds. Tim explains what makes the cookware so unique and why people like to buy it. He also outlines ways in which people can make money on the road by doing what he does – demonstrating the products and taking orders.
Johnny & Tracy Bercegeay are from Louisiana and they have been full-time RVing for a little more than two years. They are nowhere near retirement age, and their only source of income is their ability to do seasonal jobs as they crisscross the country. Our second guests are Tommy and Martha Payne, from Tyler, Texas. They are just getting started in the RV lifestyle now that Martha retired and Tommy sold one of his businesses.
