Active Wait List

By Robin McFadden, Lot 195

August 2019 – Giddy with excitement I clutch the membership application receipt as I practically skip back to my rig.  My new friend Rick, tells everyone I am ‘on the waitlist’ and I grin as people congratulate me.

Year one goes by quickly as I get immersed into my full time RV life and travels.  It’s now 2020 and I ‘got a lot’ at the Rovers Roost SKP CO-Op in Casa Grande, AZ.  As Covid causes states to shut down, and RV parks and campgrounds close nationwide, I’m relieved and grateful to have a place to call my own, and hunker down for the duration.  Then the heat comes and it’s time to leave.  By then, the states have loosened restrictions, so me and my virus free mobile living unit head to cooler climes.

Year two and I check the active wait list on the Timber Valley website once every month or two.  It doesn’t feel like I have made much movement this year, but frankly I don’t remember where I started on the list.

Years three and four and I start to reconsider.  I go to other SKP parks, and weigh the options of buying a house or buying land and building.  So many choices. My pro/con list gets bigger and bigger.  I still have time to decide.

I get the email!  I’m 25th on the list.  Back to the pro/con list. More research.  I start checking the Timber Valley website several times a month.  I read and reread the rules and the bylaws.  I join the Facebook group.

I look at the various volunteer opportunities looking for options of how I can contribute remotely.  I check the Active Wait List weekly.  When a lot is posted for trade, I look at it and check its location on the park map, even though I am not yet at the top of the list.  I hope I’m not the only one who does this!

I’m now in the top 10 and it starts getting real.  Time to make sure my finances are in order.   I open a new checking account with the same bank that holds my money market accounts and am relieved to see I can transfer money instantly on line. I’m ready.

November 2023 –  4 1/2 years.  I’m at the top of the list!  I  email Kim to confirm she has my current contact information and address since I won’t be ‘home’ for two months.  She tells me if no one wants to trade for the lot listed on the website, it will be mine.

Today, less than a month after signing the paperwork, I’m enjoying my first stay on my lot.  It’s a short visit this time, however I’ll be back this summer for a longer visit. I’ve met my neighbors, and look forward to getting to know them better.

It was a long wait on the Active Wait List but it makes getting a lot that much sweeter. I’m looking forward to spending more time here and contributing what I can to Timber Valley, and making new friends.  See you all in the summer!