[ad_1]
BEMIDIGI – Evi Thompson was 18 years old when she took her first airline flight. She was a newlywed who had flown from her native Germany to meet her American husband in New York City. She never left her seat, never knew it was okay to use the bathroom or eat the food she was served on an eight-hour flight.
To make matters worse, when she arrived at JFK airport, her husband was nowhere to be found. Jeff Thompson had a problem with his discharge papers from the US Army, and couldn’t make it on time. Four hours later, after Evie sat behind the Swiss air traffic control, the pair finally met.
It’s surprising that Avi wants to get back on the plane. After forty-seven years, she retired from a career as a travel agent that took her to seven continents and 132 countries. Suffice to say, air travel is not a problem for her.
On January 1, Evie sold her business, Cruise Masters of Minnesota, to co-worker Kathryn Wicker. While she and Jeff still plan to lead a few trips this year, they are transitioning into retirement. Jeff retired in 2016 after 40 years as a UPS driver, but since 2003, Evie has helped lead Cruise Masters cruises.
When asked what she misses the most, Evie quickly replied, “Oh, definitely the people. Clients, guides, escorts, cruise directors. People who have traveled with us have started as customers. Many of them are now our best friends. Seeing the world, that was good too. But this was secondary to the people.
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
The sentiment is shared with some frequent travelers.
“Evie is great,” said Susan Lind of Bemidji, who has been on several Cruise Masters cruises with her husband, Kevin. “There are many places we would not go if we did not know someone who would guide us and know that she would get us there and come back safely. Jeff and Evie are so much fun to travel with. It’s a team, and they’re both a lot of fun.
Jim and Joe Hanko of Bemidji made several trips with the Thompsons.
“You always knew when Evie was in the room, and I mean that positively,” Jim said. She was often the life of the party. She made her journey easier and more enjoyable. And Jeff was a great partner. He would sit back and let her do her thing, and help her when asked.
This partnership began in 1975 when Jeff and Evie were married in the Swabian Mountains of Geslingen, West Germany. He was 21; She was 17. They met at the disco last year. Evie and her friends were enjoying the disco music. Jeff’s room was standing nearby.
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
After the kerfuffle at JFK Airport, the couple headed to Jeff’s family farm south of Ward. Evie appears as untamed as she did on the TV series “Bonanza” and when she realizes that’s not the case, she tells Jeff that they need to move quickly.
That’s when they landed on Bemidji and made it their permanent home. Jeff enrolled at UPS and Evi at Bemidji State University. Three years later, Suma cum Laude majored in German and minors in French and Russian.
“I was going to be a language teacher, but…I didn’t want to be in Grand Forks to get my master’s degree, so I decided to take a job here,” Evie said.
From 1980 to 1990, she worked briefly at Restaurant Hostess and First National Bank Bemidji before joining the staff at Bemidji Pioneer. Evie worked as an advertising writer and advertising manager.
Then came a call from Jean Humeniuk, owner of the Travel Chalet. She asked Evie if she thought about becoming a travel agent.
“I laughed and said that I like to travel, but I don’t think I want to be a travel agent,” says Evie. The next day, she visited the Travel Chalet to see what Humenick had done, and began a 32-year career in the field.
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
After the first five years, AV’s wrists gave away all the typewriter and computer work, and Humenyuk suggested that she start selling cruise ships, which at the time were managed by telephone. That led to the founding of Cruise Masters, the travel chalet division. In the year In 2001, Evie bought Cruise Masters and two years later began escorting teams with Jeff.
Their first group trip was a doozy. They were traveling from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Chile around Cape Horn. All went well until they reached the fjords of Chile and the storm hit. Other ships decided to stay there, but their captain chose to go, and the result was in danger.
“We call it a perfect storm trip,” said Avi, referring to how the 80-foot swells tossed the ship, creating chaos on board. “For 48 hours our ship drifted into the ocean. We were in our beds in our stateroom, praying for the tossing to end. Plates, glassware and wine bottles were broken, the food in the galley was all spilled, the gift shop latches fell and broke…a real mess.
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
“We always have a welcome home party after our trip and everyone says ‘that was great’ afterwards. They still talk about it.
With Evie making the arrangements and Jeff doing whatever was needed, Cruise Masters trips were mostly planned to perfection. Evi was able to solve almost any problem.
Mary Melchior of Bemidji testifies. She and her husband, Bob, took many trips with Evie and Jeff.
“On one of our trips, we ate at an outdoor restaurant and the next day I tried to use the credit card,” says Mary. “They couldn’t accept it because it was a big charge. Evie went in and called the credit card company. She may be small but she has a loud voice. And everything was taken care of.”
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
Frequent traveler Trish Quistgaard explained that EV was often open to making small changes to plans.
“One time when we were in Cambodia,[my husband]John read an article about the recently opened temples at a place called the Holy Mountain,” Trish said. “She talked to a local tour guide and they arranged the trip. We had food boxes and our journey consisted of riding motorbikes over natural rocks. She always puts in a little extra. You’re just holding onto things.”
Jeff Thompson beams with pride when talking about his wife’s travel career, and laughs when he thinks about EV’s first airline flight. He knows she has found her true passion and making travel fun for everyone.
“When we’re in a room and you hear Evie’s laugh, the whole room gets a little smile on their face,” says Jeff. “She had a little laugh that everyone loved. She’s a joy to be around.”
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
Courtesy / Evi Thompson
[ad_2]
Source link
