After Moves Across Country and Across Town, the Martinez Family Finds Their Ideal Home at Carnes Crossroads
February 9th, 2017
They came from opposite ends of the country, a Pennsylvania girl and a West Coast boy. But she’s been in the Palmetto State for over 25 years now, and he’s called himself a South Carolinian for nearly four decades. And together, they’ve just landed in their perfect place in the Lowcountry.
In December 2016, Anna and Marvin Martinez turned the key to their new home in the St. Thomas Park neighborhood. Their relocation to Carnes Crossroads from the other side of town was driven by the head and the heart.
“We wanted a safe, family-oriented place to raise our children,” recalls Anna, “and loved the house designs and the plot layouts.”
In addition to an adult son, Anna and Marvin have two daughters – a high school student and another just gearing up to enter elementary school. This means the family balances activities at both ends of the spectrum: fast-focused commitments for teen Courtney and a flurry of exploration for preschooler Olivia. Add in Anna’s job at Blackbaud, Inc. on Daniel Island and Marvin’s work at the Berkeley County Courthouse in Moncks Corner, and the net result may not always resemble a typical slow-paced Southern life.
A desire to make time to stop and smell the azaleas was all the more reason to hone in on Carnes Crossroads. Anna and Marvin recognized that participating in community gatherings, like the “First Friday” Family Socials at the Green Barn or impromptu meet-ups at the pool, would foster friendships with neighbors and create memories their kids would long cherish. And the more quiet times, taking in the sounds of nature on their back porch or strolling the easy neighborhood trails, would encourage mindful moments together.
Nestled a short distance from the most beloved Carnes Crossroads amenities, the Martinez family’s coastal blue house is their happy, accommodating haven. Anna hardly knows how she lived without some of the home’s more noteworthy hand-picked appointments, from the spacious open kitchen with double oven to individual baths for each member of the household (with special swoon over the luxurious master bath shower).
“We continue to enjoy all of the special design changes that David Weekley offered,” Anna shares. “They allow our family to be able to gather together during the big football game, while also allowing us each separate spaces.”
Anna and Marvin have found that the landscape of Carnes Crossroads is undeniably an extension of Charleston, and not just in terms of physical beauty. They’ve long known the Holy City to have a charm that is welcoming, compassionate, and strong – and that spirit has certainly seeped into the collective character of their neighbors. It’s an attribute that only further endears these “nearly natives” to the new community they confidently call home.