ROAMING WITH THE ROTHS

Justin Roth ‘99 and family’s adventure to full-time RV living

Have you ever dreamed about simplifying life, taking your family, belongings and hitting the road? That’s exactly what Justin Roth ’99 and his family have done!

Justin and his wife, Erin, have four children. Evan is nine, Jonah is six and twins Jocelyn and Levi are four. Erin is from Ballwin, Missouri and has a graduate degree in nursing. Justin and Erin met as students at Southeast Missouri State University. Justin earned his B.S. in Industrial Management.

He shared, “I will start by saying I am very proud to have graduated from Valle Catholic. My parents were originally from Ste. Genevieve, but I hadn’t lived there until 1990 when I was going into 4th grade. I think the transition into a small school like Valle made it very easy for me at that age, and it was apparent very early on what a tight knit community we had there. Not enough can be said about the value in a small class (41 students), and how that helped shape my path and who I am today.

After Valle, I moved to Cape Girardeau to attend college. While there I was a member of the Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity. Joining a fraternity was not in my nature, but ended up being one of the best things I’ve ever forced myself to do! Without establishing the social life we had down there, I wouldn’t have met my future wife, Erin.

Even at the point of graduation I couldn’t really commit to a life path, but knew I wanted to have some experiences before settling somewhere. I worked in Cape at Nordenia USA for a little less than a year before taking a management training position in Springfield, MO with what is now Dexter Axle Distribution. This would allow me to be within reach of Erin while she finished college, and then promised to ship me off somewhere random in the U.S. after the one year program … what I wanted at that time.

When the program was complete, it was decided I was headed to Boise,

Idaho to manage the warehouse there. Wait... where?? After looking at a map and the company agreeing to fly me out for a four-day visit before committing, the rest is history!

My first day exploring the mountains and lifestyle of Boise had me looking at apartments and excited beyond belief. I couldn’t wait to tell Erin what a great place it was. Well, that didn’t quite go as planned! Her initial response is something I’ll never forget. There was no way she was starting her adult life in Idaho … especially when she had friends in places like Chicago, where she could live out her early adult life in a vibrant city. Fast forward a bit … Erin took an interview in Boise, and during her trip fell for the area just as I had. Whew! Almost messed that up! We were married four years later in 2011 and could have never predicted the path we were headed toward!

At this point we were happily married, living in Boise, and climbing the corporate ladders. I was still with the same company, moving into the Branch Manager role. Erin, after working as a floor nurse at the largest hospital in Boise for a handful of years, had quickly worked up to a director position. She was in line for even larger roles in her future. By 2017, we were well accomplished in our careers, had two children, and a big new house. Everything we thought we could want, right? But something was missing. We couldn’t figure it out at that time, but there had to be a next step. We were working our tails off, making good money, but couldn’t figure out how to translate it into happiness. In hindsight, with our crazy schedules we had no business having a third child, but that’s what we decided to do! That must be the plan …

The changes all started here.

I’ll never forget the day Erin peeked her head into my office door to tell me that our third child was actually twins. I realize now it was a blessing, but I can tell you there is nothing that can prepare you for the whirlwind of emotions when you find out. This has to be a mistake … there’s no way we can do this. Something had to change. Our work schedules were not going to allow for this unless we hired a full-time nanny. While that did cross our minds, I think we both knew it was time to start prioritizing family first, even if it meant stepping back in our careers.

It’s now 2018. We just had our amazing twins Jocelyn and Levi. The wheels have already been turning on possible RV travel for a few months now. Erin watched regular families live out their dreams on Instagram, traveling the country with no regret or fear of the unknown. It looked so carefee, but pulling the trigger on something so crazy. We maybe had 100 conversations on this before the stars just aligned for us in 2019. It boiled down to one question. At the end of our life will we regret doing this, or not doing it? No brainer. If we are going to live our parental years stressed out, let’s do it WITH the kids instead of in an office. We put our house on the market in June 2019.

The big RV launch was August of 2019 after selling our home and closing out that chapter in our careers. Erin was starting a new job with Cecelia Health, which is basically remote nursing, contacting patients over the phone. I was about to be Mr. Dad … full time. What a change! I went from managing a staff and operation to, well, basically the same thing at home, except now l also had to change smelly diapers all day and my front yard was different every week or so. Looking back, I think this was where my real journey as a father started. We woke up together, played together, did school together, and explored together. Every day was a new experience for all of us, and we got to share it.

As we left Boise, I’m not sure Erin and I thought we’d make it more than 3-6 months traveling. We could always re-establish in Boise if it didn’t work, and we also still had our cabin back in Donnelly, Idaho in case we needed a place to stay. Our first RV was actually a 32’ Class C, which seemed plenty big until the twins started walking and climbing out of their cribs. We started around Lake Tahoe, traveled California top to bottom, boondocked off grid for the first time in Arizona outside Sedona, then on to Ste. Genevieve for Christmas with family.

Our initial goals had been met. It was time to decide if we go back to Idaho or continue this crazy trip and winter in Florida. Personally, I’m thinking Cardinals Spring Training and beaches! When we arrived in Florida, it just felt amazing. We were meeting hundreds of other families doing exactly what we were doing. It seemed like every night we’d end up having a firepit conversation with a group, meeting families from all different backgrounds and listening to their stories.

The part I feared the most in all of this was the social aspect for our kids, and boy was I wrong. Evan was now 6 and Jonah was 3. They were meeting new kids almost daily, and couldn’t wait to get schoolwork done each day and get outside. At times we didn’t turn on a TV for weeks. One night at a get-together, one of the families said there were suddenly some RV openings in the Keys. We quickly grabbed a reservation and were so excited. Fast forward a couple weeks, literally the DAY before we were to check in, we found out all non-residents of the Keys would be evacuated and shut down due to Covid-19. We ended up spending six weeks “locked down” at an RV resort on the Peace River in Wauchula, Florida. It was one of the highlights of our entire travels. The uncertainty of closures at that time meant it was nearly impossible to travel back to Idaho. RV parks weren’t letting new people in. States were potentially quarantining travelers. It was too risky, so we stayed put and ended up spending that time with several other families, making lifelong connections. Definitely a time and place our family will never forget.

By May, we were about to melt in Florida, and had embraced the lifestyle for the time being. We needed a bigger rig so Erin could work behind closed doors and I wouldn’t have to keep the kids outside all day, every day. We found a great deal on a 42’ 5th Wheel in North Dakota that was everything we could ever need. We headed North, stopping back in Ste. Genevieve to sell our Ford Expedition and Jayco Class C (thanks for the help Mom and Dad), and to buy a six-seat, oneton dually truck to tow our new 5th Wheel. We named our new home “The Mansion”. Yeah, it was still a family of six in an RV, but this felt SO different. It was like a small, two-bedroom apartment. Trust me when I say just a little extra space was welcomed!

Our initial voyage was around 18 months of continuous travel, wintering in Florida 2019/2020 and then back in the Southwest for winter of 2020/2021. We landed back at the cabin in Idaho for summer 2021 with a new adventure in mind. We had a cabin that we had purchased in 2014 during the downturn in an absolutely beautiful area of Idaho up in the mountains looking over Lake Cascade, and sitting directly below Tamarack Ski Resort. This is a HUGE camping destination for people living in Boise, so we decided we’d tap into the market a little and start our new seasonal business, White Pine Camping Co.

We had a contact through traveling who had started a “glamping” business around Fayetteville AR, and used them as a resource to get started. Our new lifestyle had afforded us the freedom to try something new and bold. Why not? The basic concept is to offer a complete, fully-furnished camping setup for those who don’t want the commitment of buying equipment or who just want some comfort with their outdoor experience. Through our experiences on the road, we understood all the basic comforts needed, and the amenities campers may want to really feel comfortable. The business has now endured two very successful seasons and is well known in the area as a different way to get away with the family or spend some quiet time as a couple.

Since our business is seasonal, we still have the ability to travel in the make more lasting connections with new and old families along the way. winter. Last year we opted to travel for our third consecutive winter, taking one more crack at Spring Training and The Keys. Two days before the game we had tickets to in Jupiter, Florida, it was announced the season would be delayed due to a player strike. Ugh. We visited the field and watched the minor league practice. The Keys were packed from all the people who had missed during closures the previous years. Couldn’t get in. All of that said, these were first world problems. We had a blast exploring all the areas we had missed before and continued to

This winter we finally decided it was time to stick one out in the Idaho mountains at the cabin. We did a full remodel on the cabin last summer to give it more of a “home” feel, and since we’re a couple miles from a ski resort, the kids are enrolled in lessons, and we get a new adventure this winter right at home.

It’s funny that word “home” has certainly taken on a new meaning for our family, but I can tell you it has nothing to do with where we are. We’re not rich in the ways many people associate the word. We gave up the dollars for a different kind of life right now. Will it prove to be the smart financial decision long term? I don’t know … don’t care. What I do know is that we have zero regrets, and we have never been tighter as a family. We are seeing our kids grow up, and they are getting experiences they will hopefully appreciate as they grow. There is nothing wrong with a traditional life dreaming and preparing for retirement, but it’s just not the path we took. We still find ways to bring income and save money, but it’s not traditional and that’s ok. We only get to do this once.

This coming summer we’re currently deciding between our business and filling in our travel map. The kids are pretty pumped to visit Maine so I guess we’ll see soon!”

Follow the Roth’s on Instagram: @the_roaming_roths.

To find more information about White Pine Camping Co., visit whitepinecamping.com.