Penney Kathleen Smith Sales of Coeure d’ Alene, Idaho, a great friend and sister solo RVer, died on Tuesday morning, Nov. 3, 2009. I’ll miss her, her spirit and our friendship.
I received a telephone call while I was camping in Zion National Park that she was in her final hours. Because she wasn’t taking calls, I asked that she be told where I was and that I was thinking of her.
Her friend said, “She’ll love hearing that.”
Penney treasured camping in National Parks. Our last RV trip together was to Glacier National Park in Montana a little more than a year ago.
According to her obituary in the Coeur ‘d Alene Press, Penney loved to travel. “She saw many countries of the world: numerous Pacific Islands, New Zealand and Australia to Iceland, much of Europe, Morocco and a wonderful visit with her son Mark in Cyprus. Her favorite way to see the west was to tour in her RV. She drove from Alaska to Arizona and many other places in between. Among her favorite adventures was to the national parks, like Glacier, Yellowstone, and Volcanoes in Hawaii.”
Penney also was an advocate for ‘Women RVers’ and enjoyed taking her two granddaughters, Sydney and Lindsey on road trips in her 1999 slumber Queen class C motor home. In 2007 she organized a gathering called: “RVing Women, Wannabes.”
“Very seldom do women RVers have an opportunity to get together and share experiences,” said Penney. “This is also a chance for women who are just thinking about traveling in an RV to find resources.” Read an article I wrote about her and the conference by clicking here.
Happy trails, dear friend and thanks for the memories.
Photos: (Top) Penney Sales, left, and Julianne G. Crane on an RV trip to Glacier National Park. (Bottom) Penney Sales, center, and her granddaughters Sydney, top, and Lindsey before leaving on a road trip in 2007 (Mark Sales).