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Hi! We've created this page to let you know a little more about us.
We are Craig, Tashina, Emma & Aine Rihl.
WHAT WE CAN OFFER & WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
Do you own a valuable piece of property (or know someone who does) and want someone there that you can rely on? We will provide:
LONG-TERM SECURITY
Our most valuable asset to the absentee and on-site property owner is to manage and protect your property from vandalism and decay with a permanent presence. We specialize in property security. If and when the property owner comes to visit, we make sure the property is ready for them. We would like to make a long-term commitment to the right situation...
MAINTENANCE
We will do basic preventive property maintenance such as building maintenance, barn care, fence repair, road maintenance, painting, light carpentry, vehicle & machinery maintenance, solar electric or hydro electric repair (if off the grid), and anything else that needs care. Any major maintenance we would hire outside vendors with owners approval. We are also familiar with the care of vessels and will do preventative maintenance such as varnishing woodwork, polishing bright work, engine maintenance, electrical systems maintenance and other minor repairs...
LANDSCAPING
We will enhance your property with basic care such as grounds keeping, mowing, maintaining pastures, weeding, invasive plant control, watering, irrigation, planting and pruning...
ORGANIC GARDENING/PERMA-CULTURE
We can add aesthetic and edible bounty to your land by planting fruit & nut trees, vegetables, flowers, herbs etc...
FARM/DOMESTIC ANIMAL CARE
We love all animals, have much experience with horses, donkeys, goats, sheep, pigs, cows, dogs, cats, rabbits, ducks & chickens and a willingness to learn more about them and others...
VALUES
We value honest, clear communication, good humor and a mutually beneficial relationship for everyone. To keep it simple, we like to create a maintenance/care schedule that is acceptable to everyone. At our first meeting we like to sit down and work out what that maintenance and care schedule will be. That way everything is laid out and in the open. We like to feel like everything is very clear. We help you. You help us...
We seek a long-term stable sanctuary in which to grow. We prefer very rural or very remote (boat or airplane accessible properties will be highly considered). We envision a garden spot, clean water, electricity (either on or off the grid), high speed Internet (but we can do without the Internet and electricity), private living quarters, (we could provide our own remodeled 34' Airstream if needed), a salary commensurate with responsibilities (negotiable), and simple bathing & clothes washing facilities. However, we are open to any possibilities from tropical to sub arctic, from islands to mountains, absentee property owners to other compatible arrangements with property owners on either land or sea...
MORE ABOUT US
Ours is a simple lifestyle with positives attitudes. We have a good deal of experience as caretakers providing security. We are a very dependable and resourceful team with a wide variety of skills. We enjoy doing preventative maintenance. What we don't know, we are glad to learn. We are flexible, open minded, and have "common sense". We work extremely well unsupervised. Organized and clean, we actively pursue a healthy lifestyle. We enjoy our privacy and completely respect yours. We love all animals and have a good deal of experience caring for them. As a family we enjoy the peace, quiet and beauty of nature. We spend our leisure time in nature walking, bird watching, biking, gardening, meditating, reading, swimming, nature projects and experimenting with arts and crafts...
CRAIG...I have over 40 years experience property caretaking/security. I am a Board Certified (AADP) Holistic Health Counselor/Natural Nutritionist. I graduated with honors from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition in NYC June 2007. I have also graduated from Peninsula College in Port Angeles, WA in July 2013 with honors in Graphic Design, Digital Photography, Advanced Digital Photography, Videography, Digital Layout & Design and Digital Image Editing. I am also a crafts person and am creatively handy. I have been a caretaker of a variety of properties: A 40 acre homestead with a hunting lodge and small cabin on the Duckabush River on the Olympic Peninsula near Brinnon, WA providing security and property maintenance, a cabin for a Cree Native American woman near Olympia, WA providing security and property maintenance, a live-in caretaker on an organic farm near Tenino, WA installing and maintaining a market garden, a remote cabin in the Cascades Mountains near Darrington, WA providing security and property maintenance, a townhouse on Capital Hill in Seattle, WA providing security and property maintenance, a seasonal B&B on the "back side" of the of Mount Desert island near Seal Cove, Maine providing security and property maintenance, a 40' trimaran named "Wingsong" in Great Cruz Bay, USVI providing security and vessel maintenance, a 32 acre estate north of Hilo near Hakalau, HI providing security and property maintenance, a very remote 160 acre estate with an airstrip and 3 log houses near Inchelium, WA providing security, property maintenance, a 3 acre homestead near Mountain View, HI remodeling the house and restoring a tropical landscape and a variety of house-sitting and boat sitting positions in the towns of Olympia & Port Townsend, WA and Volcano, HI (including a sailboat named "Cheeta", motor boat named "Spirit of the Blue", and a houseboat named "Large Barge" Recently, we have been caretakers of a 5 acre farm property near the town of Port Angeles providing security and farm management...
My responsibilities have been from security and general maintenance to creating and maintaining a small family garden and a large market garden. I have taken care of creatures from house plants to horses to teenagers. I know how to set up maintenance schedules for properties and vehicles to keep them in top shape...
I am also an avid writer. I am starting a book writing projects about what I learned at Institute of Integrative Nutrition and other subjects...
I have been a commercial salmon, oyster, shrimp and sea urchin fisherman in Alaska, Washington and Maine, a roofer, a commercial driver (with a current class A license and TSA security clearance, I can pass any background check), house re-modeler and a market gardener. I am an excellent researcher with great computer skills, a digital photographer and have a working understanding of alternative energy. I enjoy working with solar power and/or hydro power systems and am at ease living off the grid. I am also skilled at basic carpentry and mechanics...
I am an avid lover of nature and I take great joy in learning about earth's ecosystems. I have had a passion for hiking and traveling and have explored North America, Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean. I also am a experienced metal detectorist specializing in beach and shallow water detecting...
I am also an excellent and experienced gardener with knowledge of Perma-Culture, French Bio-Intensive and edible landscaping...
And lastly, I love to home brew hand crafted, small batch Meads, Wines and Beers to enjoy very modestly and roasting our own green coffee beans for the very best fresh morning brew!
TASHINA... I have experience caretaking two properties in Hawaii. One was a 30 acre property in Hawi and the other was near the town of Volcano. My responsibilities were basic security, taking care of animals and maintaining gardens...
I am a certified Waldorf teacher and have taught at a Waldorf inspired charter school in Hawaii. Currently I am devoted to giving our daughters the best start in life that I can. I love sharing our children's wonder of the world and I appreciate the time we spend together as a family...
I grew up living part time with my father on a small isolated community farm outside of Baker, NV and part time with my mother in different National Parks. From this background I gained a love of farming and wild places. Besides teaching I have spent time working in the back country of Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Great Basin National Park. I have also worked on both an organic noni farm and an organic anthurium farm in Hawaii...
I love to use my hands to express my impressions through drawing, painting and whatever other mediums catch my fancy. Like Craig, I graduated from Peninsula Collage with honors with dual degrees in graphic design and web design/e-commerce specializing in photography and video production.
I also have a secret addiction to yarn and all things fiber related such as weaving, spinning and knitting and have recently acquired a reproduction sock machine selling my creations at local farmers markets and on my online Etsy store...
I have experience gardening and love perma-culture. I have raised goats, chickens, ducks, pigs, cows, and rabbits, and I am even handy with tools and machinery. I am a quick learner, responsible and dependable...
I love the outdoors and being immersed in nature. Wide open spaces always beckon me and inspire me. Traveling has had a special passion for me. I have traveled throughout the American west and have traveled extensively in Australia, India and Switzerland...
And lastly, I have a not so secret love of cooking healthy meals and making healthy baked goods...
We are available starting September 1st 2020. Feel free to contact us by e-mail at: caretakers4@protonmail.com or call us at: 360-207-9028 if you have any questions, would like a reference or to arrange a meeting...
We ended a 5 year farm management position in January 2020 where we raised & processed livestock, (sheep, pigs, rabbits, goats, chickens) maintained gardens (raised beds) & orchards (apples & cherries), cleared & maintained pastures, did general maintenance & upkeep on a farm house & barn, maintained a woodlot and cleared & controlled Scotch Broom. Presently we are on the road since March driving a semi-truck for Azure Standard delivering organic food around the USA. We are now ready to land and not be on the road. We are now ready for our next caretaking adventure...
With much love and peace to you...
