Woman quits Coast Guard career to open ice cream truck with over-the-top toppings

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What did Reana Borthwick want to be when she grew up? For her, becoming an astronaut, athlete, or actor just didn’t make the cut.

“When I was young, I think having an ice cream truck was always the dream for me,” she says. “But it felt like a fairytale.” 

Last spring, that fantasy became reality when Reana finally opened the window of the Drifters Creamery truck, which lives off the country road of Cobble Hill on Vancouver Island. People now come from all over the Island to sample her soft serve and specialty sundaes, made from organic dairy products and dressed with over-the-top-toppings, like salted caramel pearls, freeze-dried fruits, and Belgian chocolate goodies.

“I make it fresh everyday, and I make it with love.”

Reana Borthwick of Drifters Creamery/Jordan Kawchuk

Whether it’s serving vanilla, chocolate, or a seasonal favourite like mango, Reana comes across as if she’s been doing ice cream for decades. But Drifters is a fresh adventure and a complete career flip from her former life. 

Reana’s venturesome spirit comes from the Coast Guard, where she worked for years on ships as a rescue specialist, lighthouse technician, and buoy tender — an ocean away from running a dessert truck.

Then, life finally threw enough at Reana for her to jump ship.

In 2021, she took a year’s leave of absence to support her mother-in-law’s treatments following a cancer diagnosis. At the same time, the pandemic hit and only added to a climate of uncertainty. It was during this precarious time that Reana’s priorities shifted.

“I think just being out of the routine of going to work allows you to focus on your dreams,” she says. “And with a sick family member, you really realize that life is really short.”

Almost overnight, Reana decided it was time to realize her ice cream dream. It took two years of hard work to finally open and serve her first cone. She began by carefully developing her brand and committing to organic and quality products. Then, she meticulously researched soft ice cream chemistry with experts and tested, tasted (and re-tasted) her mix until it was perfect.

“Yeah, I ate a lot of ice cream then,” she laughs.   

Reana Borthwick of Drifters Creamery/Jordan Kawchuk

The biggest piece of the Drifters puzzle was also the toughest — finding a roomy enough truck for all her machinery and materials. When she finally located the ideal van for sale from a former Vancouver caterer, she snapped it up, and she and her husband worked tirelessly on its transformation. 

Over the course of a year, they reimagined and rehabilitated a dreary flatbed into a fully functioning stainless steel ice cream truck, complete with air conditioning, coolers, sinks, and top-notch soft ice cream machines. Like her product, the Drifters truck had to be the cream of the crop.

“I’ve always given 110% percent to my job in the Coast Guard, so I needed to give this my all.”

Drifters Creamery/Jordan Kawchuk

Testimony to her commitment is a singularity in focus. Reana never gave into pressure to add distractions like coffee, pastries, or popcorn like other dessert food trucks tend to. Instead, her artisan soft serve is the star of the show that people gladly line up for.

“We now have tour buses stopping,” she says. “I remember one group of 30 biker guys all waiting for their ice cream!”

When she first moved to the Valley, Reana was disappointed that proper soft ice cream wasn’t available outside fast food joints. She also saw that local shops only sold third-party hard scoops, which she calls “way easier and cheaper.” 

“I find soft ice cream is just more enjoyable to eat and has a different texture,” says Reana. “Especially in making sundaes.”

Drifters’ sundaes are careful creations close to Reana’s heart. Take the “Blue Lagoon,” where her vanilla soft serve is covered in blueberry puree, white chocolate sauce, freeze-dried blueberries, and Bernard Callebaut white chocolate curls. Or take the “Capt’n Crumble,” a decadent apple pie of a sundae. Or the “Overboard,” a complete chocolate freak’s fantasy. 

“The best part of my day — hands down — is seeing the regulars and the kids… their faces enjoying the ice cream,” says Reana. That’s my biggest reward.”

“If you have a dream, just go for it. It’s better to try and fail than to do nothing at all.”