A Legacy of Her Own: Ashley Bontrager Lehman
If you spend enough time around the RV world, certain family names pull extra weight. Bontrager is one of them. For decades, that name has been tied to Jayco, a titan manufacturer in the industry. Lloyd and Bertha Bontrager founded the company in 1968, building campers in a barn and a pair of chicken coops in northern Indiana. What started as a small family operation eventually became the largest privately held RV manufacturer in the world. It’s a famous story.
But legacy stories are tricky. They can inspire you — or they can overshadow you. Ashley Bontrager Lehman decided to do something harder: Build a legacy of her own.
Origins in a Larger-Than-Life Legacy
I’ve had the chance to meet Ashley Bontrager Lehman before, and what stands out immediately is that she doesn’t carry herself like someone leaning on family history. She’s thoughtful and intensely curious about where the RV industry is going next. You quickly get the sense that while the Bontrager story may have shaped her early life, it doesn’t define the trajectory she’s chosen.
That trajectory is now unfolding with Ember Recreational Vehicles.
To understand that story, you have to start earlier. She grew up in Middlebury, Indiana, parked right in the heart of RV country. From the outside, it might have looked like a typical Midwestern childhood. But the Bontrager family was inevitably intertwined with the RV industry.
In interviews, Ashley has talked about invitations to Jayco’s annual family board meetings. At first, she sat quietly at what she once described as the “kids’ table” of the boardroom. Over time, those meetings became more serious, with guest speakers and discussions about accounting, strategy, and leadership. It’s an unusual way to grow up, but it meant Ashley absorbed the mechanics of a company long before she officially entered the workforce. Her openness about these stories has been as fun to read as they are informative — they’re her own origin story.
Still, she didn’t initially plan to return to her roots.
The Return to Her Roots
After graduating from Butler University with a degree in public relations and advertising, Ashley moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked on Capitol Hill. For a while, it seemed like her path might lead away from the RV industry entirely. But the pull of home — and of the family business — eventually proved stronger.
She returned to northern Indiana in 2011 and joined Jayco, starting in marketing and steadily working her way up. By 2014, she had become the company’s Director of Marketing, overseeing brand strategy and communications across the organization.
If you talk to people in the industry, marketing roles sometimes get treated as secondary to product development or operations. The industry is functional. It’s driven by building things. Ashley approached marketing differently. For her, it was about storytelling — and RVers love some stories.
Ashley has said one of the biggest challenges for RV companies is helping new customers understand that lifestyle. It’s not just about selling a rig. It’s about showing people what becomes possible once they own one.
That mindset became even more important when the industry exploded during the pandemic. Suddenly, millions of new buyers were discovering RV travel for the first time, and companies had to figure out how to tell that story to a new generation of travelers.
But Ashley’s story took a major turn a few years before that boom.
Branching Off into New Territory
In 2016, Jayco was sold to Thor Industries in a deal valued at more than $550 million. For many families, that would have marked the closing chapter of a long business legacy. For Ashley, it sparked something different. It was the inciting event of her own individual adventure. She had once imagined leading Jayco someday. When the sale happened, that path disappeared overnight. But the desire to run an RV company didn’t disappear with it.
In her own words, the embers kept burning.
That idea eventually turned into Ember Recreational Vehicles. Founded in 2021 alongside industry veterans Chris Barth, Steve Delagrange, and Ernie Miller, Ember set out with a simple premise: build a better RV by building a better RV company.
The timing was bold. Launching a manufacturing startup during a global pandemic — when supply chains were strained and the industry was already running at full capacity — wasn’t the safe play.
But Ember RV quickly carved out a niche.
Their first product line, the Overland Series, focused on off-grid capability and rugged construction. Larger water tanks, solar power options, and stronger chassis designs made them appealing to campers who wanted to venture beyond crowded campgrounds and into dispersed camping areas. It’s the kind of gear you can imagine making your own great off-road stories in.
Leading a Cultural Shift
If you’ve spent time around RVers lately, you’ve probably noticed that shift. More people want rigs that can handle remote trailheads, boondocking spots, and long weekends miles from the nearest hookup. Ember RV leaned into that trend early.
But Ashley’s leadership philosophy goes beyond product features.
One thing that comes up often in interviews is her focus on culture. The company’s motto — “Everybody Matters” — isn’t just marketing language. She has spoken about building a workplace where employees feel valued and connected to the mission of the company.
Those values trace back to her Mennonite family roots and the Golden Rule philosophy her grandparents lived by. Treat people well. Build something with integrity. Focus on long-term relationships rather than short-term wins.
In an industry that still leans heavily male, Ashley’s leadership also represents something meaningful during Women’s History Month. The RV industry has always included women — as travelers, writers, and entrepreneurs — but executive leadership roles have historically been limited. Founding and leading a manufacturing company is still a rare path.
Ashley stepped into that role anyway.
And she did it in a way that feels distinctly her own. She blends data-driven decision-making with an obvious love for the lifestyle itself. She talks about solar packages and composite walls one moment, then about family camping trips the next.
That combination might explain why Ember RV resonates with so many younger RV buyers.
Ashley has pointed out that her generation consumes information differently — through social media, quick videos, and digital storytelling. RV companies that want to reach new audiences have to meet them where they are, which means telling the story of RV life in ways that feel authentic to new travelers.
Shaping the Future RV World
It’s a small example of something larger. The RV industry is evolving, and leaders like Ashley Bontrager Lehman are helping shape what comes next.
What I remember most from meeting her is the quiet confidence she carries. Not the loud, chest-thumping kind of confidence you sometimes see in business. Something steadier than that. The kind that comes from knowing where you come from — and being willing to chart a new path anyway.
That’s what makes her story worth celebrating.
Yes, Ashley Bontrager Lehman is part of one of the most recognizable families in RV history. But she’s not just continuing that legacy. She’s building one of her own.
Marc Acton
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