Lyn and Tom Deardorff came to Sand River in late summer of 2020, right in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. They bought their residence without ever having visited Santa Fe or Sand River. After viewing the listing agent’s extensive video, they fell in love with their future home and Sand River Cohousing.
Before becoming part of the community, they lived in Atlanta, Georgia for nearly 50 years. Once their kids had grown and (finally) moved away, Tom and Lyn sold their big rambling old house and moved into a loft in a converted cotton mill, where they lived for ten years. Next, they were part of a townhome community for three years before relocating to Santa Fe.
Lyn has a business background, having served as an accountant and CFO for various corporations. She has also served on boards of local nonprofits. In her retirement years, Lyn founded The Learning Kitchen and invited local food artisans, teaching some of the “lost arts” of the food world, such as preserving, fermenting, baking, pasta making, healthy eating, and other culinary arts. Tom spent his early professional years in marketing and advertising before pursuing one of his passions: entertainment. He was an on-air radio personality, a stage and film/TV actor, a commercial voice-over talent, and a singer with a big band. He then professionally pursued a lifelong avocation—the underwater world—teaching both recreational and technical scuba diving. He purchased and operated a small manufacturing company that made sophisticated dive gear for military and scientific divers. Upon retiring, he became a professional tour guide in Atlanta then joined Lyn in The Learning Kitchen, teaching bread baking and soft pretzel making.
The couple chose Sand River and Santa Fe after extensively researching cohousing. They have eagerly thrown themselves into many of the activities of the community. Lyn is involved in the business aspects of Sand River and serves on the Board of Directors. Tom loves working with the Meals Team and the housekeeping operation of the common house. Both love the social aspects of Sand River, including community meals, coffee hours, and happy hours.
Tom and Lyn say that Sand River and Santa Fe truly feel like HOME.
