I recently received this letter with a donation to Barthmobile.

quote:

You have a mighty fine web site that is well maintained and it appears you have recruited some highly skilled individuals, I'm impressed.

"it appears you have recruited some highly skilled individuals"
My first thought was... it's just little old me... but, that's not true in the truest sense. So, I decided to put into written word, what my mind was thinking and the flood of emotions that came from within those thoughts. Here it is...

It's nice to get letters of support and compliments on the running of our site. I want to publicly thank our "Unnamed Group" of Basement Dwellers who choose to help out on the implementation and feedback on our site. My Friends downstairs have been quite valuable and insightful when I needed feedback and help.

We are fast approaching the 2yr mark since I took over the reins from Dave. I have tried to keep things familiar but fresh... It has been a balancing act for the past 2 yrs. I am enjoying the challenge and I wanted you to know that this has been fun, for the most part, and a little challenging to boot.

This year, the 2nd anniversary falls on the weekend when I will be away from my computer. Back on the one year anniversary of Dave's decision to move on, I posted this letter to the "Basement Dwellers" I wanted to share this with you now so you might know where I was coming from and how I felt back then.

quote:

Originally posted by Bill N.Y. on 8/1/08:
Well, it's been a year since Dave turned over the website. I wanted everyone down here to know that I appreciate all your help.

Dave started the transfer around 7/26 and then sent letters out to the membership on the 27th I didn't start paying the Bills until 8/1/07.

Thank you all, I appreciate you allowing me an opportunity to bounce things off of you and your help in making this site what we have today.

I want you to know 2 additional things now that 12 months has passed.
1) I was scared for the first few weeks ~ I know, it sounds crazy but I had this pit in my stomach every time I signed on for the first month.
2) I was really hoping Dave would change his mind.

Having you down here since 08/26/2007 helped me out more than you can imagine. It gave me the insight I was looking for and helped put my mind at ease.

Go ahead, pat yourself on the back. It's been a very good 12 months.

I didn't plan on this, but now that I sit here and write this to you, my extended family, I get this choked up feeling inside. I think of this as my baby, but I know that I'm just the current caretaker for Dave's creation. I couldn't imagine how Dave must have felt when he turned the site over to me. How when I think about this, I get this feeling of sadness if I had to do that too.

What makes this site so great? It's you. That's right, it's you: your valuable content... your level headed responses... your desire to help your fellow RV owner... your rallies... your support... your understanding... everything that you bring to the table...

Here is another letter that I received recently... redacted a little but the flow is still the same.

quote:

Bill, you've been doing a super job with Barthmobile, & there is a whole lot more activity on the site among our new owners over the past few years. We've pretty much completed the shift from the original owners... our new owners seem to be more interested in restoration, than... owning a luxury machine. I have a notion the gatherings you've had, have been... looser & ... friendly than the... rallies I [have] attended.

Keep up the good work. You're doing a fine service, & I'm quite amazed you're able to keep it up while running a demanding business, too.

I can't take all of the credit for this nor would I try, all I've done was offer to keep this site financially afloat while adding content and playing with a few scripts. Because of this, I've gotten pretty good at learning "web building" stuff.

I believe that the punishment for getting my Barth for $500 was to keep this site afloat if the donation stream ran low. Thankfully, for the most part, your donations have kept that from being a bigger issue.

While the preceding paragraph was meant as a lighthearted joke, the following is not.

I hope all is well and that our friendship on this site has made a difference in your life. I know that this is a sappy post, but this is how I felt when I posted it and I wanted to share my thoughts for the day.
Cheers.

I didn't think it was too sappy. I only cried a little bit.

Seriously, Bill, great job and this is a site I enjoy telling people about. It's also been a valuable tool when a gremlin sticks it's head up in the Barth.

Nick

Take a bow Billy, you have earned it and deserve it. Without you a lot of us would be clueless on keeping our Barths purring down the road......

Bill, yes, you operate a very fine site. What more can I say? but DITTO to all the GOOD things said above. Dick

BillNY, We love you.

And so say all of us! and he has cool service trucks

When I first tripped over my Barth and purchased it, I absolutely had no clue as to the whats, hows, and whys of my little orphan. Bill personally called me twice, here in Kansas City, at work, to settle my newbee nerves. Needless to say I was very impressed. Along with Bill's commitment, and the wisdom of you alltimers my family and I now fully enjoy this new addition to our family. I too brag and share about Barthmobile.com to anyone who seems intrested. It truley is a fellowship.

KUDOS to you Bill NY, don't know where Barthmobile would be without you, and to ALL of the other members who contribute, stand up and take a bow, the information shared here is definately PRICELESS...

Tina

Bill,

Quality beats quantity every time. It started with the Barth coach itself; it lives on with this site and all the fine folks who contribute to it.

Thanks for all you do.

Bill, the site truly is a wonderful little community - more helpful and friendly than any I've seen in the three yrs. since I've been "surfing" for motorhomes. Your personality is truly engaging and fun also. Thanks so much for keeping the site going.

HI Lorelei, Did you ever purchase a Barth?

Yes, we did purchase a coach - a Regency 36 in Georgia, and drove it to Eloy (hell of an adventure), where the engine seized after a fuel line was severed. It will make a nice apartment on our little 2 acre parcel in the Redwoods.