Contessa & The Toad Got Hitched – One Last Time!

Impossible as it seemed to us – and to almost everyone that knows us -it’s true! This fall, Captain Bill & Admiral Jann stood in the parking lot where we have hooked up Contessa and her Toad time and time again as we headed off on another adventure, only this time it was the last time!

When we returned from our unimaginably wonderful 2 1/2 month journey this summer to the National Parks of the Northwest and the Canadian Rockies, Captain Bill said he didn’t want to be gone from home that long again. We talked how thankful we are for our home and how much we love being here, about the trips that we want to take in the near-to-medium term and the other things we want to do that didn’t include a motorhome. We prayed about it, talked about it, prayed about it, talked about it – you get the idea! In the end, our approach was – let’s just see what happens if we list it. Knowing that we had missed the window of demand for motorhomes that exploded during the height of COVID and the continuing increased cost of diesel fuel, we weren’t at all sure what the market might be like for a 15 year old, 43′ albeit lovingly maintained beast.

So, we posted it on a single RV sales website – and she sold in two weeks – at our asking price – for cash – for more than we paid for it 6 1/2 years ago! That is when you KNOW that it is God’s Plan and you are simply “following the plan” even though you didn’t know it when you began. We are so thrilled that the lovely couple from Winston-Salem fell in love with her and will care for both Contessa and the Toad. They had sold their home and are planning to be full-time for at least the next five years, spending time with family all across the southeast.

We’re not sure what the next chapter might be for The Captain & The Admiral, but we are looking forward to a winter here at home in our wonderful Western North Carolina. We had an absolutely gorgeous fall, as though the mountains were affirming our decision! Depending upon how cold it gets, we can always get to Florida easily enough.

Bill has been immersed in our St. Philip’s Foundation as Treasurer and completing an endowment structure to support the future of the church as well as all the ministries that the Foundation currently enables. The Chancel Choir brings him great joy and he has been quite busy these past weeks preparing for all the music of the Christmas services. He has overcome a major disappointment with his 1936 Chris Craft and a less-than-reputable engine repair provider – and simply had to “let it go”. There are new projects and endeavors to pursue now that his workshop is available again after many years and he has time to use it!

Jann divides her time between joyful endeavors at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church, the Shop of St. Philip’s Thrift Shop and Gravy (a retail project of the Boys & Girls Club here in Brevard). The joys of living in a small town where she knows people & they know her as she walked down the street or runs the register at the Shop or Gravy is a never-ending thrill for her.

So, while we still have moments of sadness when we gaze over the river to where Contessa should be, we have wonderful memories of glorious adventures and we eagerly anticipate whatever the Lord has in store of us! We are hopeful that friends and family will find their way to our little slice of heaven to explore and visit!

We wish you all the Happiest of Christmas Seasons – and the Joy & Peace that only God can provide!

Much Love,

Bill & Jann