Lake Chelan business earns national recognition for home watch services

Ron Trickett, the owner of Lake Chelan Home Watch, turns “doing favors” into a service Chelan can feel safer with.

COURTESY OF NATIONAL HOME WATCH ASSOCIATION

CHELAN — For the 13th year, Lake Chelan Home Watch has earned accreditation from the National Home Watch Association (NHWA), a group formed in 2009 to set standards for absentee homeowner services in the U.S. and Canada.

At the heart of the business is owner Ron Trickett, who left a successful building career near Seattle more than a decade ago to make Lake Chelan his permanent home. What began with friends and neighbors asking him to “stop by and check on their places” grew into a full-time service, one that combines professional training with the local knowledge of someone deeply rooted in the valley.

Trickett is credited with coining the phrase “neighbors doing favors” during a 2014 NHWA conference, when he recounted working to safeguard clients’ homes as wildfires approached. “Safety always comes first,” he told the group. “A home can be replaced — your life can’t.” That perspective has shaped the way Home Watch professionals around the country talk about their work.

Today, Lake Chelan Home Watch provides scheduled visual inspections for homes around Chelan, Manson, Entiat, Orondo, and Chelan Falls. The service can spot storm damage, leaks, vandalism, or other problems before they become costly emergencies. For seasonal residents especially, it offers peace of mind that someone is paying attention when they can’t be there.

Along with his business, Trickett supports the Manson Chamber of Commerce, Habitat for Humanity, and local efforts to help former inmates reenter society. For him, keeping an eye on unoccupied homes is just one part of a broader ethic — looking out for his neighbors and helping strengthen the community that he now calls home.

Andrew Simpson: 509-433-7626 or andrew@ward.media