Ryan Bilyk, his fiance Sarah Tofflemire and their son, Christopher. (Photo courtesy of Ryan Bilyk)Ryan Bilyk, his fiance Sarah Tofflemire and their son, Christopher. (Photo courtesy of Ryan Bilyk)
Windsor

Tecumseh couple buys home in Honduras; will be featured on HGTV

Imagine leaving your life behind here for the sunnier climes of the Caribbean, and having a film crew document it for a TV show on a popular specialty channel.

Ryan Bilyk insists he and his fiance, Sarah Tofflemire, are not the type to seek the limelight, but when they bought their new home on the Honduran island of Utila, the real estate agent would not let it go.

"He hooked up with Caribbean Life. He's done 12, maybe 14 episodes with them. He approached me repeatedly," said Bilyk. "We sat on the fence on it. Sarah did not want to do it. I thought well, this is a neat memento of our purchase down there, so we decided to go for it. It's kind of a rite of passage that if you buy a place on that island, he's coming after you to do a show."

A photo on the island of Utila, Honduras courtesy of aboututila.com. A photo on the island of Utila, Honduras courtesy of aboututila.com.

Attracted by lower housing prices than other Caribbean islands and a property tax of just $100 a year, Bilyk bought the home in January. Soon after, filming for the HGTV show "My Caribbean" began.

"Yeah, the four-day film, 12-hours a day so I mean, it's 48 hours. Literally, it was 15 minutes of film [used in the episode]," he laughed. "It was awkward. I have no on-camera experience."

Honduras is one of a handful of Central American countries that have figured prominently in the news over the past several months as waves of asylum seekers flee violence for the hope of a better life in the United States, but Bilyk told BlackburnNews.com life is very different on the islands. Utila is the smallest of the three so-called "Bay Islands" off the coast; an oasis from the troubles that plague the mainland.

"The Bay Islands, where we bought are insulated from the mainland," he explained. "It's totally safe. We already don't lock the doors when we're there."

Bilyk still is not sure when the family will move in. He is a driver for Fiat-Chrysler and has worked at the Windsor Assembly Plant for 24 years.

"We're just waiting to hear if the axe is going to fall on my department. We were put on notice that they were going to outsource our entire department, and that got the ball rolling," he said.

His soon-to-be wife, Tofflemire is a nurse, and she has a 10-year-old son.

The episode is expected to air in the U.S. on October 7, and a few weeks later in Canada.

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