We don’t just create extraordinary outdoor experiences. We live them.
We share with our customers a love of adventure and making memories that last a lifetime. This Great Outdoors Month, we asked a few of our team members about their favorite ways to get outside and explore the benefits of nature.
Living the dream
“It’s fun to sell fun.” That’s a motto Matt Ellinger has operated by in a career that has spanned both marine and RV industries. “What really hooked me was not just selling the lifestyle,” he explains. “I wanted to experience a lot of what my customers did.”
Today, as vice president of sales for Newmar, he gets to do just that – leading his team to deliver the Newmar Difference while experiencing the products for himself. His memories of listening to seasoned RV travelers share stories about where they’d been and the national parks they loved have come full circle. Now with a family of his own, Matt gets to live the lifestyle he once admired and help others live it, too.
“It’s one of those ‘pinch me’ things where I can’t imagine a better opportunity. We keep a boat in Tarpon Springs and head out to the islands around Clearwater on Saturdays in summer, and we RV and camp in the winter. After a week of business travel, that time with the family to clear your head is incredible.”
As a sales leader, Matt and his family get to enjoy the perks of hitting the road in some of the latest Newmar coaches. “Last year, we went to Margaritaville for the first time and stayed at a campground with a hammock, a tiki bar and two grills,” he recalls. It was December, and my mom was decorating the golf cart with my kids, and we sang Christmas carols. It’s an experience that we still talk about today.”
This year, he’s looking forward to taking out Newmar’s new Grand Star Super C with his family and then getting to relay that experience with new customers.
Discovering new paths
Katie Deutsch, a director of consumer insights & analytics at Winnebago Industries, is an avid hiker. Her spouse is a fisherman, and when they had kids, it became a fun challenge to explore the U.S. together as a family.
“Hiking helps me be in the moment and fall in love with my surroundings. It’s how I reset physically, mentally and emotionally,” she says. “It doesn’t have to be some awe-inspiring place. Just getting outside, moving my body, and hearing only the sounds of nature — there’s something healing and sustaining in that for me.”
Her passion for hiking shows in the incredible places her boots have taken her, including a 12-kilometer hike through the Hao Shimin Trail in Vietnam and a hike in the Australian Outback while doing ethnographic work. Next on her list: the Dolomites in Italy this summer.
“One of the most incredible hikes I’ve done was in Alaska,” she shared. “You pass through what feels like three or four different climates, starting in a rainforest, moving through a cruciferous forest, then over rock, and finally onto a glacier. That kind of transformation during a hike is what excites me about the Dolomites.”
At work, Katie uncovers what drives others and their desire for adventure. She enjoys bringing these insights to life in ways that resonate with customers, and she’s especially energized by working alongside teams who share her passion. “One of the things I really enjoy is getting to work across our different businesses,” she says. “We’re a community of people who love the outdoors, whether it’s boating, RVing or just creating the best possible experiences for others. I gain a lot of energy from working with people who care as much as I do.”
Climbing new heights
Jeremy Lund is a test engineer in the Advanced Technology Group, where he works on research, development and product testing.
Like many of his colleagues, his love for the outdoors began early, sparked by childhood hikes and camping trips with his dad. Later, in engineering school, he found a community of friends deeply connected to the Boundary Waters, where he experienced his first true backpacking adventure. With each new chapter, his connection to the outdoors deepened and unlocked new ways to explore, challenge himself and grow.
“In school, I found out that my friends liked rock climbing and they would go to the gym to get some exercise and just hang out in between classes,” he shares. “I started doing gym climbing and when I left school, I realized I’d rather be climbing outside.”
For the past two years, he’s taken an annual trip to David Lake in the Quetico area, which has become a paradise for climbing routes. “I’m intentionally planning big backpacking trips and heading to mountain areas where I can climb a free cliff or spend a full day at a crag,” he says.
Jeremy proudly calls himself a gearhead and loves how climbing, engineering and problem-solving all connect. His mechanical engineering background and climbing experience are often intersected, especially when it comes to safety and rigging techniques.
He enjoys bringing others along on his adventures and values the personal connections that come from it. His approach reflects why we do what we do at Winnebago, fostering discovery and a deep love for adventure.
Grounding yourself in nature
Emalee Frase, an experiential marketing and brand partnership senior marketing manager at Winnebago Motorhome, works on consumer-facing events, dealer launches, community activations and at the Winnebago Visitor Center and Factory Tour experience in Forest City, Iowa.
“My team goes out and meets our community groups where they are at,” she shares. “I feel so lucky to be able to consistently see the tangible ‘why’ behind the work that we do. Being out with our community and seeing what our product enables in their lives always rejuvenates me and continues to ignite my passion around making our consumers' dreams come true.”
Raised in a small farming town in northeastern Wisconsin, Emalee could often be found outside, and it didn’t matter the season.
“I’d be outside right after breakfast and wouldn’t come back until the sun went down,” she recalls. That love of nature continues today with her adventurous five-year-old Austrian Shepherd George. “For me, being outdoors is grounding and healing,” she explains. “Whenever I need a moment to recenter, I go outside. We live in such a fast-paced and loud world and there’s something so magical about standing in a forest or on a mountain and hearing nothing but the sounds of nature.”
This summer, Emalee will be attending outdoor festivals, going camping and checking off more national parks from her bucket list.
Join more adventures
We’re proud to have employees who embody our calling to Be Great, Outdoors. Their passion for adventure and the outdoors continues to drive us forward every day. Happy Great Outdoors Month!
