Life comes full circle... Krallmans return to Oak Hill Court
January 10, 2024
Story by Adriana Keeton, [email protected]
Sharon and Jon Sanders handed over the keys to Oak Hill Court and RV Park last month to Mike and Martin Krallman, grandsons of original owners Leonard and Dorothy Krallman. Photo: Sharon Sanders
In 1950, Leonard and Dorothy Krallman purchased the property where Oak Hill Court and RV Park now sits on Hwy. 112 just outside of Roaring River State Park, and after almost 75 years, the grandsons of the Krallmans purchased the property back from Jon and Sharon Sanders last month.
Leonard and Dorothy Krallman moved to Cassville from Kansas City in 1950 after Leonard returned from WWII, where he served in the Army Supply Corp in the European Theartre. They purchased the 27 acre parcel of land that Oak Hill Court and RV Park now resides after visiting friends in the area and, according to grandsons Mike and Martin Krallman, their grandparents refurbished one house, which is now cabin 2, and built the remaining cabins.
The property has changed hands over the years and improvements have grown the property to now include two rental houses, twelve cabins, a pool, and 24 RV campsites on the nine acres utilized according to Sharon Sanders.
“The last few years, it has grown so much and the demands of life...we started seriously thinking about selling it in the beginning of 2023,” said Sharon. “The whole time we owned the property, we knew we wouldn’t have it forever,” said Sharon. “Every time we talked about selling it, I just knew we wouldn’t have to list it...that God would send us a buyer. My heart is in this place and we have built relationships with these people. We didn’t want someone to come in and completely change things.”
The Krallman brothers were raised on the property and have so many great memories with their grandparents and guests.
“Our grandpa was the textbook example of a grandpa, he wasn’t only there for our guests, he was always there to take us boys fishing, golfing or to get a hair cut or ice cream,” said Mike Krallman. “He was always there to keep us in line at the pool. One day, grandpa left the north house coming to the office and he cut through the pool area, mostly to check on us boys to make sure we were behaving. Little did he know that the cat that did not like him much was waiting on him to cross in front of the chair he was hiding under....when grandpa entered the pool area, the cat jumped out at him and he fell over into the pool, he was not happy, but us boys thought it was the funniest thing we ever seen.”
The brothers went on to share other memories of their time being raised on the property and are excited to continue to make memories with their families and guests to Oak Hill Court.
“One of the big things about Oak Hill Court is that it has always been a family business and has raised multiple generations of kids in the last 74 years, to include Jon and Sharon’s,” Mike said. “It has also been the place where thousands of families have built vacation memories together and we already see familiar names on reservations for 2024.”
“The families that come to find a place from the daily stresses of life at Oak Hill Court, they don’t know what they gave us was a blessing by getting to know them and their stories,” Sharon added. “Our guests were there for me when my momma passed away, when my daddy passed away and when my niece passed away. They are like my family. I have no doubt that the Krallmans will offer the same type of family atmosphere that we and our guests have grown to love.”
The Krallman family will run the day to day operations at Oak Hill Court, in addition to Four Seasons Inn and Suites, in Cassville, which they have owned for the last few years. They do plan to make some changes in the future, but for now, they plan to re-open the gift store/general store and modernize portions of the existing property.
Jon and Sharon Sanders will remain in the Cassville area. Jon works for the United States Postal Service in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Sharon joined the Making Memories Tours team this month.
Leonard and Dorothy Krallman moved to Cassville from Kansas City in 1950 after Leonard returned from WWII, where he served in the Army Supply Corp in the European Theartre. They purchased the 27 acre parcel of land that Oak Hill Court and RV Park now resides after visiting friends in the area and, according to grandsons Mike and Martin Krallman, their grandparents refurbished one house, which is now cabin 2, and built the remaining cabins.
The property has changed hands over the years and improvements have grown the property to now include two rental houses, twelve cabins, a pool, and 24 RV campsites on the nine acres utilized according to Sharon Sanders.
“The last few years, it has grown so much and the demands of life...we started seriously thinking about selling it in the beginning of 2023,” said Sharon. “The whole time we owned the property, we knew we wouldn’t have it forever,” said Sharon. “Every time we talked about selling it, I just knew we wouldn’t have to list it...that God would send us a buyer. My heart is in this place and we have built relationships with these people. We didn’t want someone to come in and completely change things.”
The Krallman brothers were raised on the property and have so many great memories with their grandparents and guests.
“Our grandpa was the textbook example of a grandpa, he wasn’t only there for our guests, he was always there to take us boys fishing, golfing or to get a hair cut or ice cream,” said Mike Krallman. “He was always there to keep us in line at the pool. One day, grandpa left the north house coming to the office and he cut through the pool area, mostly to check on us boys to make sure we were behaving. Little did he know that the cat that did not like him much was waiting on him to cross in front of the chair he was hiding under....when grandpa entered the pool area, the cat jumped out at him and he fell over into the pool, he was not happy, but us boys thought it was the funniest thing we ever seen.”
The brothers went on to share other memories of their time being raised on the property and are excited to continue to make memories with their families and guests to Oak Hill Court.
“One of the big things about Oak Hill Court is that it has always been a family business and has raised multiple generations of kids in the last 74 years, to include Jon and Sharon’s,” Mike said. “It has also been the place where thousands of families have built vacation memories together and we already see familiar names on reservations for 2024.”
“The families that come to find a place from the daily stresses of life at Oak Hill Court, they don’t know what they gave us was a blessing by getting to know them and their stories,” Sharon added. “Our guests were there for me when my momma passed away, when my daddy passed away and when my niece passed away. They are like my family. I have no doubt that the Krallmans will offer the same type of family atmosphere that we and our guests have grown to love.”
The Krallman family will run the day to day operations at Oak Hill Court, in addition to Four Seasons Inn and Suites, in Cassville, which they have owned for the last few years. They do plan to make some changes in the future, but for now, they plan to re-open the gift store/general store and modernize portions of the existing property.
Jon and Sharon Sanders will remain in the Cassville area. Jon works for the United States Postal Service in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Sharon joined the Making Memories Tours team this month.