Today all the campers were supposed to be out of here by noon.  Mark and I needed to gather up any of the liquids we worked with that might freeze and put them in the heated garage.  We also needed to do one last wipe-down, not a full cleaning, so that the bathrooms would be okay for the winter.  Around 3:00 a couple people came in while we were working.  Other than them, the campground was almost like a ghost town.  Basically only the staff was here.

The “Campground closed” sign was put out at the entrance.  The office was locked, and Kathy closed the game room and adult lounge to decorate and get ready for the end of season staff party.  They always cater a final party to thank the staff for all our work during the summer.  And the best part is that Kathy plans games.

While Tim and Kathy were preparing for the party, Mark got his motorcycle up into the bed of the truck and filled our water tank in preparation for leaving tomorrow.  Then we changed clothes and headed up.  I had my camera so that I could take some final pictures of all my friends together in one place:

The top of the piano in the adult lounge. I contributed the Anne of Green Gables doll to replace the two glass lamps I broke earlier in the summer.

Tim had a cozy fire going in the corner.

From left to right: Kathy Guckenberg (boss extraordinaire), Dave Boldt, Bill Curran, Judy Boldt, and Rosanne Curran.  Dave and Bill didn’t work here, but they were at the party with their wives.

Tim Guckenberg (another great boss!) and Mark.

Rosanne and Judy (with the pit bull puppy, Nala, whose tail was wagging so fast it came out looking like a ghost tail), and Katherine and Bob Plahmer.  Bob isn’t the curmudgeon he looks here.  I caught him chewing.  He has been working in the bakery at Rowleys Bay Resort this summer. 

Joe and Kari Velez with Whitney, Tim and Kathy’s dog.

Here’s a better shot of Whitney who is a Brittney dog.

Kari holding Nala (hers and Joe’s dog). The four women in this picture, along with Kathy, all worked in the office this summer.

Bob digging into the catered dinner in the game room. That’s the pool table the dinner is being served on.

Before I started writing this blog, I went back a few blogs to see if I had mentioned my job change.  You may recall that I said I had gotten hired to do housekeeping for a condominium next summer.  The head of housekeeping for the condos had promised I could have Sundays off and start at $13 per hour.  As soon as she hired me I went out to the truck where Mark was waiting for me and told him the good news.  But right then I began to wonder if I should have gotten in writing that I could have Sundays off.  It nagged me in the back of my mind for a couple weeks, and finally two weeks ago I called to ask if the head housekeeper could put in writing that I could have Sundays off.  She said, “Oh, you won’t be getting Sundays off.  You can have the morning off to go to church but then you’ll need to come in for the afternoon.”

When she said that, I got a really bad feeling about the job.  I went into the office here and told Kathy and Judy about the phone call.  I was asking if either of them had any other ideas about where I could work and get Sundays off.  Judy suggested I try at a farm market called Seaquist here in Ellison Bay.  All through the summer they are closed on Sundays.

So I dressed up and printed a copy of my resume and Mark took me to Seaquist.

Seaquist Farm Market…This is a picture I took last spring before the cherry trees were in bloom.

I found the owner and asked if she could use any help next year.  I handed her my resume and she asked me some questions.  Then she gave me an application to fill out.  I took it home and filled it out, and the next day I dressed up again to return it.  When she saw me she told me she’d been thinking about me the night before.  I asked her why and she said, “I was thanking God for you!”  I knew then that I was hired.

Seaquist is a place I’ve always had a sense was owned by Christians.  Every time I’ve been in there they have been playing hymns in the background.  They sell a number of Christian things, and after you finish buying your stuff and head out the door, there’s a bench with a bunch of Bibles you can pick up for free as you leave.  Besides Christian stuff, they also have a bakery and sell all kinds of fresh baked goods.  They also have all things cherry: cherry donuts, cherry salsa, canned cherries in a jar, etc.  I love going around and looking at everything they have.  Bill worked there one summer and he said they are really nice people to work for.  I’ll miss my friends/”family” here, but I can make new friends now and learn something other than housekeeping!

So tomorrow (Tuesday) Mark and I will be leaving Wagon Trail Campground, never more to work here.  However, the folks here all go into Seaquist on a fairly regular basis and Mark will be coming here sometimes to do RV repairs for the campers, so it’s not like we’ll never see these dear people again.

I have to say that as Mark and I were driving here for the very first time two years ago, we were nervous.  We hadn’t had many good experiences out of all the Workamping jobs we’d had and we didn’t know what we were getting ourselves in for.  It took a month or two of waiting for “the other shoe to drop” before we finally believed that we had landed in heaven.  Wagon Trail Campground has been a haven for us.  We love Tim and Kathy and all the people we work with.  The campers all say wonderful things about how clean the bathrooms are.  One of them even left a thank you card for Mark and me with a $40 tip not long ago!  And Door County is the most beautiful place in the country.  I can say that because Mark and I have been in every state on the continent.  (Well, okay, Hawaii could be more beautiful than this, but I haven’t been there yet to be sure.)

We want to thank Tim and Kathy for hiring us two summers in a row.  To all of you we’ve worked with, we love you!  To any campers who are reading my blog, especially those that don’t mess up the bathrooms, it’s been an honor serving you!  Thank you all for your encouragement and your friendship.  May God bless you to the extent that you’ve blessed us!