By DIANTÉ MARIGNY
editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com
For nearly two decades, South Padre Island has been more than a winter escape for Lorn Bergstresser…it has been a place of reflection, creativity, and connection.
Each year, Bergstresser and his wife, Laura, travel nearly 2,000 miles south from their small hometown in Manitoba, Canada, trading snowbanks and subzero temperatures for ocean breezes and island sunsets. Like many seasonal residents, they are proudly known as “Winter Texans,” spending about five months a year on the island, a rhythm they’ve kept for roughly 17 years.
“We’ve looked at a lot of places,” Bergstresser said. “Florida is beautiful, but it’s expensive and crowded. Arizona is nice, but there’s no water. Here, we have everything we want.”
What ultimately keeps them coming back, he says, isn’t just the beach.
“It’s the people,” he said without hesitation. “The climate is great, the atmosphere is laid-back, but it really comes down to the people who live here. We’ve made so many friends. The kindness here is real.”
That sense of peace and community has also made South Padre Island an unexpected creative haven.
Bergstresser is the author of The Millionaire Janitor, an award-winning motivational novel released in March 2024 that blends storytelling with life lessons about wisdom, values, and decision-making. While the idea for the book began elsewhere, much of it was written during one winter on the island.
“I don’t write on the beach…that’s a little tricky,” he said with a laugh. “But I sit at my makeshift desk, dictating on my laptop, looking out the window at the water. It’s hard to imagine a better place to think.”
The book came about at the encouragement of Joel Glover, founder of an organization called Free Enterprise Warriors, which helps aspiring entrepreneurs and startups. Bergstresser, an avid reader and longtime book editor, had edited several of Glover’s books over the years.
“One day he told me, ‘Lorn, I want you to write a book. I’ll even give you the title,’” Bergstresser said. “I never expected to write a book myself.”
But the project quickly became personal.
Having spent decades organizing youth sports, volunteering, and working closely with young people, Bergstresser witnessed firsthand how early-life decisions can shape an entire future, for better or worse.
“The choices we make in our late teens and early twenties affect the rest of our lives,” he said. “I wanted to write something that might help young people make wise decisions early on.”
The Millionaire Janitor follows a young man born to an unwed mother in South Chicago, raised in poverty but guided by strong values and wisdom instilled by his mother. Through education, relationships, work, and financial discipline, the story emphasizes what Bergstresser calls the “Seven Pillars of Life”: wisdom, values, family, career, finances, health, and purpose.
While money plays a role, Bergstresser is clear that wealth is not the true goal.
“It’s not just about finances,” he said. “It’s about living well…making decisions that allow you to build a meaningful life and, eventually, enjoy it.”
That message has resonated. Since its release, the book has received multiple awards, including gold, silver, and bronze honors from various organizations. The recognition he treasures most is a Gold Medal from Reader’s Favorite.
Published through Elite Online Publishing, the book is available on Amazon and through major bookstores.
Bergstresser’s own life reflects the book’s message of humility and adaptability. He has worked as a janitor and a baker, volunteered in construction, grown up and later raised a family on a farm, and spent years as a clinical researcher before transitioning into web conferencing and editing. Each chapter of his life, he says, taught him something valuable.
“There’s dignity in all kinds of work,” he said. “Every experience shapes you.”
Today, Island life is slower. His wife spends time painting. Her artwork visible on his social media, while they visit friends, attend church, and enjoy the simple pleasures of the community. Bergstresser still makes it to the beach, though not quite as often as he once did. He fondly recalls tossing a football on the sand with strangers, including former Texas Longhorns players and even an NFL player.
“Fun things just happen here,” he said.
Bergstresser is already working on his next novel, Diamond Nine, another motivational fiction project centered around an independent baseball league in West Texas. Like his first book, it will explore how early decisions shape futures, weaving in ambition, love, and the challenges of turning ideas into reality.
As for a future book inspired directly by South Padre Island?
He smiled at the suggestion.
“That might not be a bad idea,” he said.
For now, Bergstresser is content doing what he’s done for years: returning each winter to the island that feels like a second home…a place where stories flow as easily as the tide, and where wisdom, like the shoreline, is shaped slowly over time.
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