Customer Spotlight: Felix and Gail Mathieu

Allow us to introduce ourselves, we are Felix and Gail Mathieu and we live in Louisiana. Both of us were still in school when we met while pursuing careers in medicine, and we got married in 1961 right after graduation. I had finished in nursing, while Felix, now a M.D., still had many years of training in two areas of surgery before he finished. A few months before completing his training, he was drafted. This was during Vietnam. For the next two years, he proudly served our country! Upon discharge, he returned to complete the few months of surgical training that was needed. After he finished, we moved to his hometown of Houma, Louisiana and he was able to start his private practice. In 1969, we were living in an area that was part of Southeastern Louisiana, referred to as “ Cajun Country” and well-known for its great food and colorful history. In and around the swamp area, there are an abundance of bayou’s and lakes, filled with all kinds of amazing wildlife. Hunting, fishing, and boating are a big part of life here. Because of our location, the oil and seafood industry are very prevalent, which is vital to our economy. 

This is CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT by Felix and Gail Mathieu. Felix and Gail purchased their Foretravel U320 from MOT in 2005 and this is a glimpse of what life is like in “Cajun Country.” 

At that time, Felix and his partners were busy with work and did not get a lot of time off. So on weekends he loved to fish, hunt, and be on his boat with our two sons, friends, and other family. As we all know, time passes and things change. We built a home and our two sons grew up, and Felix still worked hard and had the same time off. Little did we know that our life was about to go in a different direction! In 1991 Felix was driving and we were headed home. Parked and for sale, by owner, was a 30 foot RV and I said on impulse. “Let’s call and go look at that!” Felix, looking said, “What are we going to do with that?” I casually said, “You could take more time off, we could travel, and if you don’t like it, sell it!” After some thought and discussion, we called and had it thoroughly checked out. The engine was in great condition with low miles. It was small, comfortable, and had everything we would need; it was immaculately and tastefully decorated. 

So, we bought it and after the first trip, having had so much fun, we were hooked. We kept it 3 years and it broke us into the RV way of traveling. We eventually upgraded to a 33 foot diesel pusher, loaded, new, and a great buy. We had moved on to our second coach which we ended up keeping a couple of years. Now, we had seen a Foretravel that some friends had and were so impressed that we drove to the factory to look and knew we wanted one. There we found a 36 foot Grand Villa diesel pusher, it had everything we were used to, so it became ours. This is what we had really wanted. We were thrilled. Felix began taking more time off and we traveled more and put some serious miles on that coach in the 7 years we owned it. It was truly a condo on wheels. In 2005 we knew David had opened Motorhomes of Texas, so while we were in town we stopped by to say hello, offer our congratulations, and take a tour of his very impressive facility.

As David graciously took us around, Felix spotted a diesel pusher, a U320 on the lot. It had Aqua Hot, a bigger engine with more power than our coach, was still in warranty, and was loaded with all the conveniences of home. The walnut cabinets and neutral interior were perfect and with colored accessories, I knew the look could change instantly. That’s it, we unloved the Grand Villa and now had our fourth coach. This was how our long association with MOT began. After a few years and lots of travel, the coach was looking a bit faded, and we wanted a new look. 

David sent us over to Xtreme Graphics to meet the owners, the Stallings. Their team worked tirelessly to get the design and colors just right for the sleek new look we wanted. The windows were changed out to a darker tint and double panes, and we had the European head and tail lights upgraded to complete the look. Everything was done to perfection! It was stunning and we were thrilled! We are now in 2016 and have had our coach for twelve years, and thanks to MOT and their service team, our coach stays in safe and excellent condition. There are things we continue to have done, inside and out, as needed or wanted, and our yearly service is always done at MOT. Everyone is so polite, helpful, and they make sure all that gets done is to our satisfaction. Our thanks to David and all our friends at MOT as we continue to travel in this beautiful God given country of ours.

P.S. Thanks to all of you who took the time to read our story. We look forward to seeing you in the lounge at MOT or as we all go “on the road again.” Sincerely yours, Felix & Gail