From left: Ky, Sophie, and Tommie warm up in the morning sun.
J.D. Gilkey sold the family home and has been driving around the country researching his family's genealogy. He says his travels have brought him to 500 Walmarts in the U.S. and Canada. His R.V. broke down earlier in the month and he spent the last of his savings repairing it. He’s stranded at the Flagstaff Walmart until his next social security check comes in.
“We sold everything we have and decided to find, as we put it, our American dream,” says Josiane Simpson. She, Jared Holfeltz, and their son Gabriel are currently living out of their car. Jared hopes to start a contracting business helping rebuild after natural disasters, but he recently hurt his wrist working a construction gig. So their dreams are on hold for a few weeks while his wrist improves.
Al Van Abbema sold his house to live out of his R.V. He travels around the mountain states in the warm months and spends winter in southern Arizona.
Sheldon and Jacquie Britton from Phoenix, AZ enjoy their morning coffee by the gas fire in their "fifth wheel" camper trailer. They are on their way to Milwakee for the 110th Anniversary of Harley-Davidson. “I have everything in there that I require without having to pack a suitcase and take it into a hotel,” Jacquie says. “I have full-size walk-in closets. …I even have my china if we’re entertaining somebody.”
Arther Ellis bought this school bus on Ebay for $2,500. He fetched it from Inglewood, CA and is bringing it home to Fairfield, TX.
From left: Megan Hoffman; Sophia Stauffer and her boyfriend, Alex Daby; Deanna Bunch and Kerouac (dog). They were traveling from Prescott, AZ, to Montana. Each of them plays at least one instrument, and they fund their travels by “jamming” on street corners. Sophia describes the nomadic life as an opportunity to “do what I want to do and not have to worry about all the bills and worry about what’s happening next.”
Joe Torpey has been alternating between stays in a Walmart lot and spots in the woods for the past seven years. Due to a back injury he received several years ago, he’s had a tough time finding work. “This car saved my life,” he says of his 1998 Ford Taurus station wagon. He fears that his car will break down, because he doesn’t think he’ll last living on the street.
Jack Spano and and Dawn Lovingood are Army veterans from Colorado. They are in Flagstaff visiting the veteran's hospital.
Linda and John Lefco are from southern Arizona. They are retired, and getting away for a few days for their anniversary.
Dave Gooding, Liz Deno, and Shaggy (dog), from Georgia, are on their way to Montana. “You meet a lot of good people who like to help out, so when people do that,” Liz says, “it’s like a karma broker. You give people an opportunity to give good karma back.”
Heiko Bergman, from Germany, rented an R.V. with his family to tour the southwest. A nearby R.V. park was full the previous evening. The people who ran the R.V. park recommended that they try the Walmart parking lot.
"These are the best years of my life," says retiree, Leroy Morris. He lives off a social security income in his small R.V. with his dog, Maggie. He spends summers in the Flagstaff Walmarts and winters in southern Arizona.
Will Buffit does exterior detailing on semi trucks and trailers all over Arizona. Though he has a house in Holbrook, AZ, he lives out of one of his three mobile homes much of the year.
Caleb Goodaker-Craig from Austin, TX, a painter on an 11,000-mile solo bike trip. “I was riding through to check out Walmart, and I met an older guy who invited me for a glass of wine. He let me sleep between the truck and his R.V.”
Rick Keller (75) says he doesn't live in his R.V. for economic reasons, "I belong in the woods." He lives in the woods, but comes to Flagstaff weekends to restock. "I just pray that the Lord keeps me alive one more year, because these are such exciting times," he says, referring to the Arab Spring.
Stephen Pike and girlfriend Christina Plascencia are traveling north with no destination in mind. They started in Bisbee, AZ. They were kept awake by a street cleaner driving in circles through the parking lot the night before. Stephen says, "I think he's a subliminal irritant - keeping us up, instead of asking us to leave."
William White is shipping pet store fixtures from Flagstaff to Las Vegas. He says he gets good sleep in Walmart parking lots. "When you have forty or fifty trucks in a truck stop, it's like trying to sleep in a beehive."
“My wife threw me out, because I’m a drunk," says Sal. “I drink too much vodka.” He currently works odd jobs and lives out of his pickup.
Captain John inspects the shocks on his recently acquired R.V. When his mother came into some inheritance she offered to buy him some property, but he declined, asking for this R.V. instead. Ever since he lost his job as a merchant marine master captain, he's been living out of different vehicles doing odd jobs.