By Nikki Schoenbeck nikki@opcfla.com
CLAY COUNTY – Sunny Flaherty is a free spirit living an unconventional life out of her van. For the past 4½ years, Flaherty has been traveling the country while living in her van. Although some people might find this odd, Flaherty believes it’s both exciting and freeing.
Flaherty grew up in Orange Park and attended Oakleaf High. She originally lived in a van to save money. But what started as a way to save money has quickly transformed into a beautiful way to travel across the United States.
“I couldn’t really afford rent, so I decided to live in a van instead. I’ve been able to save money that way and travel the country which is really nice,” she said. “I went to school for a while in St. Augustine and then I took a semester off. I thought I was just going to take a break to travel for a little bit, but I love traveling so much. I just never went back.”
Flaherty’s favorite part about “van life” has been being able to live a nomadic life while exploring all the national parks the country has to offer. At one of the national parks, Flaherty found her cat, Bryce, which was abandoned by her previous owners at Rainbow Point in Bryce Canyon National Park.
“My favorite national park would probably be a tie between Glacier because that was number No. 1 bucket list item before I started traveling was seeing Glacier National Park. It is so beautiful, words can’t even describe how beautiful it is,” Flaherty said. “And then another one would be Bryce Canyon National Park because that’s where I found my cat Bryce and rescued her from there.”
Along with Bryce, Flaherty also lives with her boyfriend Jordan Summerline, who is also from Clay County, and their dog, Momo. Flaherty and Summerline were high school sweethearts who continue to have a strong relationship.
“I really have an amazing partner. Being in a small living space is really a make it or break it situation and especially when you’ve been doing it for 4 ½ years,” she said.
While Flaherty now spends more money traveling, she is still saving money by not having to pay for rent or utilities. Flaherty and Summerline can make money while traveling by doing jobs that can be done either remotely or temporarily.
Flaherty makes her income by being a digital artist and designing items such as logos on merchandise. She also generates money from her Tik Tok account which now has more than 70,000 followers. Summerline will also work in restaurants for a few months to build up more savings.
Flaherty and Summerline have traveled to all the lower 48 states and will soon travel to Canada. Along with traveling domestically in their van they also plan on traveling internationally as well.
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June 23, 2021 at 11:00PM
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Home Sweet Van - Clay Today Online
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