The people behind gotostcroix.com

GoToStCroix.com has been providing information to people who want to vacation or move to St.Croix since 2001. In that short time, it has grown tremendously with the increased use and popularity of the internet. GoToStCroix.com receives over 1.5 million page views a month! These are the people who make the site possible......

Wendy Solomon

Wendy Solomon, a native New Yorker, moved from the big city to the little island of St. Croix in 1997 for what was going to be a six month winter break. What friends and family believed was a crazy but enviable decision has evolved into a 10 year (and counting) love affair with the island of St Croix, its people, culture, lifestyle, and the beautiful scenery that each of the the US Virgin Islands has to offer. Having worked at several of the top 5 advertising agencies in New York, as well as with ABC Television and Fox, Wendy’s professional experience in marketing, communications, graphic design, photography, and customer service training created an opportunity to start a business like no other in the Virgin Islands. Media Mate Inc., established in 1998, has grown to serve travel and tourism-related businesses in the Virgin Islands, such as hotels, villas, attractions, car rentals, tour operators, dive shops, and community organizations.

GoToStCroix.com has become the most widely viewed website on the internet devoted to the destination of St. Croix.

When not working, Wendy and her husband Tom (who is the company bookkeeper, among many other things) make the most of their free time. They enjoy hiking, scuba diving, digital photography, island history and events, world travel, playing with Stella (the dog!), hosting family and friends who come to visit, and home renovation projects that never seem to end. Ironically, one of Wendy’s favorite vacation spots has become – New York City!

Tom Rodenhaver

Tom is not only Wendy’s husband, but also the bookkeeper / financial advisor for www.GoToStCroix.com. At times he also serves as the calm, cool, and collected head that on a bad day, the girls love to hate.

Anna Holley

Anna & Carl Holley vacationed in St. Croix in September 2002 and by November that same year they were living here. Both of them grew up in Austin, Texas, and were looking for a little Caribbean adventure. With guidance from the pages of GoToStCroix.com, Anna and Carl fell in love with St. Croix and now the island is their way of life.

Anna brought to St. Croix her love of history as well as a determination to make a difference in people’s life. She graduated from Southwest Texas State University with majors in Political Science and History.

She has always been a history buff and has learned so much about her island home. In November of 2007, Carl and Anna welcomed a beautiful baby girl to their island life, Savanna Cay Holley.

Anna's enjoyment of all the fun and interesting events, raising a family on St. Croix make her a perfect producer for GoToStCroix.com- you'll see taking pictures at parades and events, writing articles about St. Croix and attending public and private meetings on behalf of the website. Anna is always willing to offer guidance to island visitors to ensure their stay is great.

When Carl does not have sport fishing charters on his boat, the Mocko Jumbie, he helps his gal out by doing whatever he can to make sure everyone knows about our webcams- even having his fishing charters stand in front with their catch! Carl is always there to make everyone laugh and to lend a helping hand in the name of GoToStCroix.com.

Kelly Smith

Kelly Smith was born and raised on St. Croix and has spent most of her life on this beautiful island. Upon graduating from Good Hope High school she left the island to attend classes at Salve Regina University and the College of Charleston. Missing home, Kelly returned to St. Croix in 2001. Kelly has been involved with the local Pony Club for over 20 years and is currently a part time riding instructor and a member of varies local committees. She has a passion for photography and has utilized her skills in capturing striking photographs of St. Croix and the islands many events that showcased on GoTo. Kelly loves working at GoToStCroix.com as there are many different things to do and learn and she gets to use her photography skills! Kelly's husband Jim Smith helps out with the GoTo web cams from time to time and we are truly grateful for him.

Christina Lannen

Chris, as she likes to be called, moved from the sunshine state of California to the sunshine island of St. Croix in 2004, and in 2005 became our full time web-mistress. She purchased some property and plans on building her own Caribbean Cottage complete with small pool to keep cool during our balmy summers. Her web-building talents are extraordinary and in her own words:"I took a few classes, read a great deal, and then set about practicing what was learned. And I keep learning.". If we have a problem with the site or have an idea on how we want things to look or operate, Chris makes it happen. She is extremely skilled in code and provides us with options we never thought were possible. We are truly thankful to have such a talented designer on our team, even if we only see the back of her head most of the day!

When she does not have her nose burried in lines of code, Chris enjoys gardening, playing trivia, going to monthly lunches with her group of girl-friends, and oh yes, pet sitting!

Angela Bailey

Angela Bailey has been a St. Croix resident since August 2005. Angela and her husband Brian moved to St. Croix from California, for a change of pace and to experience Caribbean living. Angela works as project manager and helps oversee the gotostcroix website. With 8 years experience in the advertising and tourism industries, Angela brings valuable insight to the goto team. Angela has a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communications from California State University Sacramento. When she’s not working, you’ll find Angela snorkeling, soaking up the sun and finding a ‘new’ favorite beach.

contributors

These people have helped build GoToSTCroix.com into what it is today. Some have left island, some are still here, but they all still love St. Croix.

Leslie Hillyer

Leslie Hillyer is a born Crucian. Leslie was born and raised on St. Croix and guiltily admits that as a teen, took for granted the beauty, history, and culture around her. Upon graduating from The Good Hope School she left "the rock" to attend Bradley University in Peoria Illinois, where she studied Mass Communications and Photo-Journalism. Tired of the cold and longing for the blue water of the Caribbean, Leslie graduated and returned to St. Croix - this time showing her appreciation of the island through articles and photos showcasing all St. Croix has to offer. In addition to working on GoToStCroix.com, Leslie volunteered with a great organization, CASA of the Virgin Islands. It was through her volunteer work that Leslie realized that she wanted to do more to help the youth of the Virgin Islands. In 2004, Leslie moved to Maryland to pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology and forensics. Leslie plans on returning to St. Croix and giving back to the community that gave her so much. In her words, "there's no place like home".

Stella Solomon-Rodenhaver
(or is it Rodenhaver-Solomon?)

Wendy and Tom adopted Stella from the St. Croix Animal Welfare Shelter in 2005 and she is definitely a rags to riches story. She prances down the boardwalk through Christiansted on several walks during the day. When ever a member of our team needs a break, there is Stella with her leash in her mouth waiting by the door, ears perked, ready to be walked. She is a beautiful solid black Crucian mix with a purple tounge that will lick you to death if you're not careful! In the office, Stella slumbers below Wendy's desk with her own picture window to monitor the tourists walking by and sometimes offers a friendly WOOF! when she hears the office door open.

honorary mentions

Corkey

Corkey Mc Gaughey contributed greatly to the Media Mate office. He was the guy that was called, day or night, when something wasn’t working. Whether it was fixing the air-conditioning, an email application or just listening to business concerns and offering suggestions, he’s the guy that did it all and never asked for anything in return! Corkey lived and worked on St. Croix for more than fifteen years, and sadly left our St. Croix family in August of 2006. Each day was an adventure to him and he greeted each with a smile, though he might have been grumpy by the end of the day

Thank you Corkey for all of your help! We miss you and love you.

Lucy

Lucy was adopted by Tom and Wendy at age one and a half , in January 2004 from the St. Croix Animal Welfare Center.

It did not take her long to realize the amount of love Tom and Wendy had to give and she became queen of the house and office. She came to work daily with Wendy, who then took Lucy on daliy walks through town.

Everyone got to know "the beautiful yellow lab who sat in the doorway at Media Mate". Lucy's beautiful life ended in December 2004 after an un-treatable case of tick fever.

Lucy's memory still lives on at the park in Christiansted, at the beach where she would run and play in the sand, at Tom & Wendy's house where she was ready and waiting in the kitchen for scraps to fall her way and she will forever remain in all of our hearts. We miss you Lu!

Georgia Peach Jeter

Anna adopted Georgia Peach at the Town Lake Animal Shelter in Austin, Texas in 1998. No one knows for sure how old she was at the time, but Anna gave her a dazzling 15 years of life, both in Texas and the Caribbean.

Georgia became a different dog when she made the year round warm weather change. She trotted to the office with Anna, followed her along the boardwalk and jumped happily into a basket to be carried to and from destinations.

Georgia’s health deteriorated drastically due to complications of being a very old canine and her life ended in the Spring on 2007. People still ask about that cute little dog in the window or sometimes search Anna’s bag to see if she is in there. Georgia will always be on our minds.

So there are the people that try to make your visit or move to St. Croix as informed as possible. Please feel free to contact Tom and Wendy, Anna or Corkey with any questions or comments you may have. We welcome your feedback - it helps make the site better, more user friendly and informative.