The co-owners of the historic Highlander Motel on Route 66 in Williams, Ariz., committed suicide within days of each other last 
month, according to media reports in Europe.
The husband-and-wife team of Alan Aernoudt and Sandra Driesse of Belgium bought the motel in March 2011. Once they moved there months later, they quickly went to work renovating the rooms of the lodging business that was built in 1950.
The must have done a bang-up job operating the motel. It’s ranked No. 2 by TripAdvisor and No. 3 by Yelp in a highly competitive market.
However, Driesse in particular became acutely homesick. According to a report in AD Maakt Sterk, based in the Netherlands (translated from the original Dutch):
Sandra came back a few times to Belgium, because she could not get used in the United States. But Alain swallowed his melancholy and remained stubbornly work. When Sandra a few weeks ago finally returned to her homeland, she broke. They hanged himself last weekend. Her husband, who was left alone in the American motel, robbed his own life when he learned that his great love was gone.
Word about the deaths trickled out in recent weeks to the Route 66 community. In fact, several comments on the motel’s TripAdvisor site offered condolences.
The motel’s previous owners, Fred and Judy Brane, reopened the motel today and will run it until it is sold. During a phone interview Thursday, the deaths clearly still weighed on Judy, who called it “a tragedy” and “heartbreaking.”
A substantial number of immigrants operate motels on Route 66 and America in general. Many of them go into the business with great entrepreneurial enthusiasm where they’re clearly inspired by the free enterprise system.
However, the hospitality business isn’t for everyone. You’re essentially on call 24 hours a day, and it can be draining for those whose aren’t suited for it. I recall one immigrant motel owner in western Oklahoma who had stacks of empty Crown Royal whisky boxes behind the counter. One got the impression the loneliness of his vocation was getting to him.
This sad story shouldn’t dissuade people from considering their own business on Route 66. But it should serve as a cautionary tale to think long and hard before making such a commitment — especially whether you have the mental fortitude for it.
And, for goodness’ sake, if you’re thinking about suicide, please contact these people or these people.
What a shame. To have a business such as this revived and then to take your own life is just un believable
Just a tragedy, but hopefully the business will continue
We are deeply saddened to hear of this news. We offer our heartfelt condolences to the family of Alain and Sandra. Words just can’t begin to express our sorrow.
May the Lord who is merciful show mercy. This is AWFUL! Two fine people came from the old country to live the American Dream just to have it end like this? What went wrong? I’m so sorry for both of them.
What sad news. Condolences to their friends and families. I have nothing but admiration for those who operate motels, especially those who come here from a different culture. It is such a demanding business! The Route 66 community is greatly indebted to all motel owners and managers; 66 just wouldn’t be the same without many of these places.
Very sad story. Shattered dreams and lives.
Mercy on the dead. It may sound strange, but nothing really had to be wrong objectively for them to be unhappy: the U.S. is a land of opportunity in many ways, but if you’re an immigrant, be aware that it is most definitely NOT like wherever you came from. And if you’re given to homesickness, as the Driesses clearly were, leaving home thousands of miles behind you, moving to a small town here, and then running a demanding business where there’s little traffic — no matter how much you love the place and the work — may not be for you.
Loneliness and isolation tend to magnify the difference between here and wherever you came from, and homesickness can make it feel much worse. That’s not to slight small towns or the U.S. or wherever you came from; it’s just to point out that there’s already more than enough culture shock just getting to America. Getting here and then moving yourself to a small town may actually be much harder than moving here and living in a big city, where you might actually run into other immigrants from home and feel less homesick.
Moving away from home is never easy on anyone. It sounds like this particular move was tough on both people, but harder on her — and the loss of her made the rest of it unbearable for him. Very sad for all concerned.
ps — Ron is right. If you’re depressed enough to consider suicide, TELL SOMEONE and get help. Depression and suicide are unnecessary evils; they can be treated and prevented. Clinical depression goes untreated far too often, even in the U.S., but it’s a matter of brain chemistry gone wrong. Even if the reason for your depression is external (i.e., objective conditions in your life, not something organic in the brain), by the time you’re considering suicide it has become organic — and you need medical attention to correct that chemistry. There’s no shame in that. Don’t let this happen to you or someone you love: seek treatment when you need it and encourage it for others when they need it. Don’t take no for an answer. Nobody has to die of depression — not today.