Meet Your New Neighbors

Holly Jarvis spends most of her time in Newport Beach, California, which has been her home for the last thirty years and where she works in real estate investment as a mortgage broker. She is an equestrienne and has been horse camping in Bear Valley Springs for some time. It is always such a great experience that when she began to think about a place for a second home she immediately thought about the Tehachapi area as a possibility. To make a long story short, she took possession of her new Bear Valley home in the middle of September, and is starting to remodel it to make it her own. The house overlooks a huge meadow, and she says that the house really makes her feel like she’s camping. The day I visited, UPS delivered a new swing that will hang from the large oak tree in her front yard.

Holly was born and raised in, and around, Wheaton, Illinois, then studied business and photography at Principia College in Elsah, Illinois. She married and came to California at the age of 21. She and her husband raised their family in Orange County. He passed away a number of years ago, and she found herself a single mom, who happened to be very good at business. She has recently become an empty-nester, since her son James is in Illinois attending Principia College and her daughter, Jenna, is in Oregon. Her household now consists of her Appaloosa trail horse, Keeley, and a rescued fourteen-year-old Australian Shepherd named Lucky.

Aside from riding her horse on the trails, Holly loves RV camping and any outdoor adventure. She said that her “feet are in the dirt every day”. She has traveled all over the world, and has been on every continent except Antarctica.

About five years ago, while playing Backgammon online, Holly met a musician from Pennsylvania. The friendship has developed and Bill, aka Billy G, is now considering moving to California, even though his family and recording studio are still back east. For now he is traveling back and forth and helping Holly turn her new vacation home into the refuge she envisioned.

Welcome, Holly and company. I know you will enjoy your new retreat.

Dan Brown comes to Tehachapi from Weldon, near Lake Isabella. Although retired, Dan had over an acre of fruit trees to tend to, until they finally became too much to care for. He and his service dog, Kelsey, decided to move closer to his sister, Suzanne, and her sons, who all live here in Tehachapi.

Dan was born in Torrance, California, and grew up mostly in California. He became a Marine at the age of seventeen. He said his mom had to sign for him in order for him to enlist. He was a Marine for eight years and while at Camp Lejeune he learned to drive all kinds of trucks, a skill which would eventually become his livelihood. Along with many other boys, he was sent to Vietnam. Proficient with an M60 rifle, he said that he is credited with 183 kills. However, he also suffers from “shell shock”. He says that the sound of helicopters still bother him.

After the war, he spent over 30 years driving heavy duty trucks. He has driven for major transporters like Roadway, and driven both tankers and refrigeration trucks. He has even transported jet fuel, which is considered a specialty .

Dan has four grown children. His two daughters and a son live in Bakersfield, and he has a daughter who lives in Idaho. He has six grandchildren.

At one time, Dan supplied fine collector quality model cars to stores in Bakersfield. As a result, he now has shelves of these models which are still displayed in their original packages. He also has several of the more unusual models on display on a table in his living room. He says that Kelsey has been known to send them flying as they are displayed in front of the dog’s favorite viewing window. Dan says that someday he may try to sell the collection online but, in the meantime, they are quite a conversation piece.

A big “Welcome to Tehachapi” to both Dan and Kelsey.

If you have moved to the Greater Tehachapi Area within the last six months and would like to know more about your new community, call (661) 822-8188. We will be happy to make an appointment for a hostess to come by and give you lots of helpful information, some valuable coupons, gifts and much more. Many families and individuals who come to the area are pleasantly surprised with the amount of knowledge they gather about their new home. Publishing your welcome article is completely voluntary and is not a requirement of being welcomed.