FI MessiahLifeways UnscriptedMagazine Fall2024 - Flipbook - Page 14
WHEN THE WORLD
CAME TO VISIT
Messiah Village residents Bill Umberger and Nancy LeRoy recount
the fond memories and life lessons they learned as Airbnb hosts.
A
A few years into retirement, Nancy LeRoy
During those five years as Airbnb hosts, they
was growing antsy. She looked at her
welcomed more than 1,200 people from around
husband, Bill Umberger, and said, “I’m bored.
the globe—from China to Russia, Peru, Europe, Italy,
Let’s open a Bed & Breakfast.”
The couple had worked much of their careers running
Africa, and elsewhere, for all types of reasons. As Bill
and Nancy like to say, “The world came to visit.”
an interior design and general contracting business
Knowing they were regularly letting strangers into
together and given their backgrounds, were well suited
their home, came with some initial apprehensions.
for such an endeavor—as spontaneous of an idea as
But as they met and interacted with guest after
it may have been. But Bill wasn't fully convinced, as
guest—people of every size, shape, religion, and
opening a B&B would require coming out of retirement
sexual orientation—these apprehensions quickly
and taking on the heavy workload of starting and
melted away.
managing a new business.
Soon thereafter, they learned about Airbnbs, and
“What we decided was God would send us the
right people,” they said. “And He did.”
the far-fetched became more plausible.
M E E T I N G A R O U N D T H E TA B L E
At the time, they were living in their custom-
Leaning into the hospitality of B&Bs, which is
built house in Fairview Township, from which they
not mandatory nor do all Airbnb hosts choose to
previously ran their business. The unused office space
embrace, they offered a cold continental breakfast
nicely transitioned into two bedrooms, and they added
every morning as part of their amenities. Nancy would
a new bathroom to the space and completed a few
set the table the night before and prepare a sweet
minimal cosmetic updates. After photographing some
treat baked item, and Bill would prepare the coffee
well-positioned listing images and creating an enticing
fresh in the early hours, toast English muffins, and
description, they were ready to give Airbnb a try.
offer other small morning bites. Gathering around
“The first day we listed it, we got a bite—a
the table with their guests, many over-breakfast
reservation—which was unbelievable to us,” Nancy
conversations lasted between an hour and a half
remembers. “I said to Bill, ‘Now what do we do?’
and two hours.
And from there, it went on for five years.”
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