Meet your new neighbors

Keith Wilson and his wife Annie purchased their Tehachapi home last year. They were attracted to the experience of four seasons and the great weather. Keith felt the new house needed a little work and has been upgrading it a bit at a time ever since. They still have a house in Inyokern, California, which they plan to sell and Annie still has her house in Palmdale. Even though the couple has been married for five years, Annie’s children are finishing school there and it is convenient to her job as a chemical operator making sealant for aircraft. It was through their work that the couple met. Until recently Keith worked in aerospace as a senior quality assurance technician specializing in avionics, a job he had held for fifteen years.

Keith was born in Des Moines, Iowa, and has also lived in Cedar Rapids. His mother was an executive secretary and his father worked in paper sales before becoming a wood craftsman. As a hobby his father collected post office box doors and turned them into art pieces. Keith still has several of them. Keith has a brother who is a rocket scientist in Ridgecrest and another brother who is caring for their mother in Inyokern.

Annie was born in Guatemala and came to the United States while in her twenties. Her oldest son, Helder, attends Antelope Valley College, while her daughters, Marilyn and Monseratt “Monse”, attend Palmdale High School. Marilyn is trying to decide between college and the Navy and her sister still has a couple of years of high school to complete. The family also has an English bulldog named Chestie in honor of World War II Marine Lieutenant General “Chestie” Puller.

Keith joined the Marine Corps in 1979, was active for ten years and was a Staff Sergeant when discharged. During that time he was part of VMO-2 squadron as a Bronco mechanic and with HMA 369 as a mechanic on Hueys and H1J Cobras. He has also worked as an eye level repair avionics technician. After 9/11 he wanted to reenlist.

He joined the Army National Guard in Lancaster and was again given the rank of Staff Sergeant. With a group of heavy equipment mechanics he was deployed to Iraq from May 2003 to May 2004. During that time he ran maintenance teams and convoy operations but was injured and had to return to the states. After his years in aerospace, he is now looking for a new adventure.

Keith loves music of all kinds and has played drums since high school. He has a collection of guitars and a drum set, all from 1965, in his living room.

Welcome to Tehachapi, Keith and Annie!

When I asked Chris and Jeanette Cott what brought them to Tehachapi, they said they liked the change of seasons, but primarily because it was close to “home”. Home for them is Bakersfield, even though they moved here from Las Vegas, Nevada. Chris will also be employed nearby in the field of information technology. However, no move is ever smooth; they said that they had to spend two weeks at the local Marriott before they could get into their new house.

Jeanette was born in Santa Ana, California, but went to high school in Bakersfield. She has a brother and a sister and they both live with their families in Bakersfield. Chris was raised in Bakersfield and has a brother and a sister there. Between them they have six nephews and one grand-niece. Chris and Jeanette also have three boys, with sixteen-year -old Aaron and twelve-year-old Noah still at home. They also have their dog, Daisy, a three year old Shih-Tzu.

Chris enjoys dirt biking and RC (remote controlled) cars, while Jeanette likes reading, scrapbooking, and home decorator crafts. Chris told me the big project planned for their back yard is a RC car track for his collection of electric 1/16 scale cars. He has over eight waterproofed cars, four of which are four-wheel drive. It sounds like quite an ambitious undertaking but one that this family of boys will enjoy. Jeanette, on the other hand, would like to have chickens. That will be an interesting combination.

A big Tehachapi welcome to the Cott family!

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 our hostess to come by and give you lots of helpful information, some valuable coupons, gifts and 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.