When Jake and Jennifer Van Gieson were looking for a home for their young family, they knew that Thornblade was the community in which they wanted to raise their three children.  But that was over five years ago, and their family has grown since then.  Sadly, they’ll be moving from the home they’ve loved for years... but not as far as you think.

Jake is a native of Greer, South Carolina, and his family were original members of the Thornblade Club.  Jennifer is from Spartanburg, where her family were members of a similar club where she and her siblings enjoyed similar amenities as Thornblade. 

“We’ve seen so many changes in the Upstate since we were kids,” they say.  “The biggest change is all the growth that has happened over the past 10 years. It is crazy that roads we'd been on for years that were quiet country roads are now growing with neighborhoods and commercial properties.”

Real estate development is something the couple is quite familiar with.  

“I have been in residential real estate since 2005,” Jennifer says.   “I graduated from the University of South Carolina with a degree in marketing and real estate and went to work for a small office in Spartanburg.  I have never done anything other than real estate, and I can't imagine having a different career. I get to meet so many wonderful people and every single day is different.   Jake graduated from Clemson University with a degree in Marketing.  He went into real estate in 2007 and has also been doing real estate ever since! He started his own commercial division of Reedy Property group a few years ago.”

The couple were met through mutual friends in 2009 and were married in 2013.  Their first child, daughter Savannah, was born one day after their first anniversary.  Since then, they've added four more children to their family.

“In addition to Savannah, who is ten, we’re parents to daughters Charlotte, nine, and Amelia, seven.  Our sons are Houston, four, and Jackson, ten months.  Our older kids are very involved in sports. All four older kids play flag football, and all the girls play soccer.  Charlotte and Amelia play softball, and Savannah recently made her school volleyball team.  They also all do swim team; Houston will have his first season of guppies this summer. The girls are alike in that they love skin care and makeup!  The dynamic is great because the girls are all very close in age and are huge helpers with Jackson. Houston is also very good at helping. Outside of sports, they all love the outdoors, especially being at the beach or the farm.”

Parenting five children takes teamwork, and recently, Jake and Jennifer have become a team at work as well.

“We launched a residential real estate division of Reedy Property Group at the end of February,” Jennifer explains.  “It has been wonderful to now be under the same company.  We have lots of friends and family to work with us, so we’ve loved being all together.  The kids joke that Jake is now my boss!  On a more serious note, Reedy Property Group also supports Just Say Something, a nonprofit we’re extremely passionate about.  Their mission is to help youth, parents, and communities have ongoing conversations about risky behavior, drugs, and alcohol, and they do a wonderful job.”

As busy as they are, though, the Van Giesons still find time for activities they enjoy.  Jake makes time to coach most of the kids’ sports teams, and Jennifer has returned to tennis, a sport she’s played since high school.  They even find time for the occasional date night.

“Our favorite local spot is City Scape Winery,” they say.  “We love to be outside, and they usually have someone playing music, which is a huge plus!”

As much as they love their home in Thornblade, the Van Giesons realize that they would like to be closer to the pool and tennis courts, and soon, they’ll be moving their family of seven to a new home…in Thornblade.

“We have so many great friends in the neighborhood, and we love the community feel here,” they say.  “The kids are very excited about the new pool opening, and their favorite part of the neighborhood is pool evenings with friends and family and evening golf cart rides.  We knew as soon as we were married that we wanted to make our home in Thornblade!”