Why Tributary Felt Familiar to One Virginia Couple

October 20, 2025 | Read Time: 4 minutes

Michael and Elizabeth Carey did not arrive in North Florida looking for a completely different way of life. What ultimately made the area feel right was something more familiar: water, woods and the kind of quiet natural surroundings they had known back in Deep Creek, Virginia.

At Tributary, that familiarity took on a new form. The nature-centered community has welcomed hundreds of families from elsewhere, and for the Careys, preserved landscapes and mornings near the water became part of what made North Florida begin to feel like home. Their path there, however, started in a much less permanent way.

A Journey South that Started with a Camper

Michael grew up in Deep Creek, Virginia, where his family’s roots stretch back to the 1800s. When the plant where he worked closed after COVID, he was offered a transfer to Florida. “We hooked up our fifth wheel and moved down,” he said. “We’d already paid for the campground season in Virginia, got three weeks in, then they said, ‘Hey, we want you here September 1st.’ So we just pulled down and settled in Jacksonville.” For the next 18 months, the couple lived in their RV at a KOA resort. Elizabeth, a teacher, started working for the Nassau County School District.

Searching for a New North Florida Home

Once they knew the north side of Jacksonville would be their home base, the Virginia couple began the search for their forever home. “We’d looked at Tributary early on, and coming from Deep Creek with all its water and woods, this felt like home to us,” said Elizabeth. “There are so many open spaces and preserves between the homes, which is beautiful. My husband kept saying, ‘I don’t want a two-story house,’” she laughed. “But everything about the one we toured from the builder was perfect — it faced the pond and even had room for his truck in the driveway.”

A Florida Community with Nature at Its Doorstep

For Michael and Elizabeth, one of Tributary’s most endearing qualities is the way nature is woven into daily life. “The neighborhood’s a perfect balance between community and wildlife,” Michael said. “We see deer, a few wild hogs, herons, a cormorant, ducks…I love the wood storks.”

Mornings on the patio have become a favorite ritual. “I’d sit out waiting for the sunrise, and now I have a hummingbird that comes to visit,” Elizabeth shared. A neighbor’s father even built them a birdhouse as a gift, and soon a family of bluebirds nested nearby. “We’d hear them every morning, chirping to welcome us — until their dad would tell them to shush.”

Meet-Ups for Four-Legged Neighbors

Michael says the master-planned community’s Pawsome Dog Park has been a favorite spot for both their pups — and their neighbors’ dogs, too. “Our dogs have little neighbor friends, and there are lots of dogs in this community,” he shared. “They even like to go on the golf cart rides to their friends. At the park itself, the small-dog section is bigger than most I’ve been to. I could throw a frisbee pretty far, and it would still be in the dog park.”

Finding Connections at the Amenity Center and Beyond

For Elizabeth and Michael, the Lookout Amenity Center quickly became a favorite weekend spot. “We come on Saturday and Sunday mornings to the pool,” Elizabeth shared. “I do my laps, and he walks around to stay active.” Over time, the pool deck became more than just a place to connect with others. Elizabeth loves watching families gather for birthday parties and cookouts. “To see their happiness, to live vicariously through them at their stage of life, and to be at our stage of life with people we connect with…it’s just special.”
“We’ve met some of our new family here,” she continued. “We do Mother’s Day together, we celebrate the holidays together, and we love them so much we didn’t even put a fence between our houses. Tributary really has felt like home.”

A Growing Community Offers More Ways to Put Down Roots

The Careys’ experience is one story within a 1,550-acre community that continues to add new residential opportunities. Single-family homes are currently offered from the $400s by David Weekley Homes and Lennar, with model homes open daily for buyers who want to see how the homes, amenities and preserved landscape come together in person.

Those interested in hearing more from residents can request a complimentary copy of the Explore More lifestyle magazine. Additional community information is available at TributaryLiving.com, with updates also shared on Facebook and Instagram.