By Bonny Burrows
A desire to be self-sufficient has seen Roy and Deb Dunn leave everything behind for life on the road.
The Pakenham couple and their four children aged 12 and under hit the road on Saturday 13 January for a two-year journey around Australia, where they will focus on growing their businesses and bonding as a family.
Leaving behind their house, Roy’s full-time employment with Star News, and their possessions, the family admits life on the road will be a big change, but is something they feel they need to do.
“We wanted to get to a point of self-sufficiency, but to do that I needed to be relieved from full-time work,” Roy said.
Initially, the family were going to “rough it”, but considering they would be living and working on the road decided to splurge on a new car and van, courtesy of the profit they made selling their home.
“We decided if it was going to be our home for the next two years was important to be comfortable,” Roy said.
The couple, as Roy puts it, “have their fingers in a few pies”.
Roy runs a business which builds and maintains websites for a subscription fee while Deb manages an essential oils company. They also breed labradoodles.
They both love what they do, and want to spend the time on the road dedicating their energy to building up their businesses to create “a good, solid income”.
“And not only that, but as a dad I want to spend time with the kids,” Roy said.
I think it’s a shame that more often than not, it’s the woman at home. Don’t get me wrong, Deb is an absolute superstar as does a much better job than I could ever do, but I think it’s a shame a lot of husbands miss out on the milestones.”
The children, who are home-schooled by Deb, are excited for the venture, which will see them travel to Western Australia, back to Victoria and Queensland, visiting family and business clients along the way, before the family settles down on New South Wale’s South Coast.
However, like any child, 12-year-old Noah is apprehensive to leave his friends.
“He’s still very keen and happy to move, but he’d prefer to go straight to Eden,” Roy said.
“The three girls (Esther, 10, seven-year-old Zara and five-year-old Olivia) are really excited to go.
“We’re all really excited.”
