Marilyn and Russell Rapp
Last fall, Marilyn Rapp’s then-boyfriend asked her to marry him and move to a new city for a new life.
That’s a lot of new. But she said yes to it all.
“You have to take a chance, try something new, or you’ll just stay where you’re at,” Marilyn says. “You get complacent. It’s like having your eyes shut.”
The couple bought a house in Spokane in December, married in January and moved from Reno, Nev., in February. A month later, they’re living off savings while they settle into their California-style, split-level home on the South Hill.
“We budgeted for that,” says Russell Rapp. “We’re getting to know the community, getting to know the people.”
Marilyn, a graphic designer, says she plans to start looking for work soon. Russell, who restores antique furniture, says work will come.
“Whenever I’ve gone someplace, business usually finds me,” he says. “It’s a vocation and an avocation for me.”
Why Spokane?
Russell Rapp, a Colorado native, says he grew to love the area during childhood fishing trips. He likes the sense of heritage, the way Spokane residents seem drawn to restoration whether its their own Craftsman-style homes or downtown’s Davenport Hotel.
“It’s got a real sense of background and history,” says Russell, adding that he and his new wife love to pack a bag and head off in their truck for a weekend of discovery. “We’ve been here four weeks, but we’ve already taken a drive over the Bitterroots, gone down to Missoula, went over to Grand Coulee Dam.”
“It’s like a hub,” Marilyn says. “Any direction you go, you find something new.”
Real estate
Russell says he loves his work but taking on an old home was not part of his new life plan.
“I don’t want to come out of my shop in the afternoon and have to paint the eaves because they need it,” he says. “If you work in an ice cream shop, you don’t want to come home and have a banana split.”
Their two-story home built in 1972 has a shop and a big area downstairs perfect for an art studio, Marilyn says. “It has a lot of light and space.”
Settling in
Twenty years ago, Reno was a friendly place, Russell says. “Now, people are moving in and moving out. It’s growing so incredibly fast.
“People don’t know each other anymore.”
“I thought I would miss the Sierras, the big mountains at the base of Reno,” says Marilyn. “But I don’t because of the feel of mountains and nature here.”
In fact, the people have been so friendly – she already knew two from her high-school days – she can’t think of a thing she misses, she says. “Reno has become so transient and aggressive. I don’t miss that intensity.
“Spokane is a refreshing change.”
Looking ahead
Russell visited Spokane last August and sent Marilyn, an avid gardener, photos of Manito Park in bloom. Now, she can’t wait to start planting, she says. “Planting a garden is like painting on an open canvas.”