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Whitewater Warehouse's
Rogue River Press Kit |
"The family that plays together, stays together."
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Some families talk about their
commitment to each other. Others live their loyalty.
The De Nault family fits into the latter category.
In their play time, in their business ventures,
in their friendships, in their personal lives…this
is a family that understands the value of togetherness.
The De Nault's world would have
provided great copy for author John Steinbeck. This
family has weaved a rich tapestry of decades-old
traditions, pride, and devotion to one another.
They are also a family filled with characters. Sitting
down to an evening's meal with the family during
their 2003 Rogue rafting trip was an education…in
psychology, business dealings, and fierce personal
loyalties. Their high-intensity dinner conversation
ping-pongs from high finance, to property holdings,
to a grandson's upcoming wedding (and every other
possible subject in between).
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The family's patriarch,
John De Nault Sr., was introduced to Rogue River
rafting by his friend Fred Turner. That was nearly
25 years ago…and the family's annual rafting/lodge
trip tradition with White Water Warehouse continues
today. "I like having family around me. I enjoy
the wilderness experience. And, I'll tell you, over
the years this trip has provided a lot of laughs,"
says John. |
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John's son, John "Jack" De Nault III,
speaks to why the river is a cunning teacher. "The
folks in our family aren't spectators in life. We
like being physically involved and interacting with
our environment. Our yearly Rogue adventure allows
each generation to learn from the other. Early on,
dad understood the power of this teaching tool. This
isn't simply a rafting trip for us. It is a coming
together of different personalities and knowledge.
The trip provides us a small window of time, free
from the pressures of the outside world, to re-connect,
appreciate and learn from one another's differences." |
| What 25-year rafting
history would be complete without thinking back on
the great memories? Maybe these are tales the outfitter
wished she hadn't heard…but, here goes. "Remember
the fingernail marks that Tim left on the wall at
Devil's Staircase after he bit it in the rapids?"
"Oh, and what about the time in early August it was
so cold that we started a fire in the lunch salad
bowls!" (BLM administrators please note this was years
ago before fire restrictions!) "Bears. Lots of bear
stories over the years but the top one has to be 15
years ago or so when a lodge employee shot clean-through
one of our dry bags late one night because he swore
it was a gigantic bear!" "The trip Harper (a former
WWW guide and De Nault family friend) attached a trolling
motor to the back of his raft and pulled all 20 inflatable
kayaks through the quiet waters."
This stranger walks away from
the dinner table with a renewed spirit that family
may, indeed, be alive and well in America. Well,
at least this confident clan is thriving. The De
Nault's are a family unit that have elevated playing
together and staying together to an art form.
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