Today we’d like to introduce you to Leanne Comeaux.
Hi Leanne, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am the Canadian girl who came to Texas for a week and met her Texan cowboy/firefighter and fell in love. Our story is one for Hallmark, even a friend just wrote a song about it. Things fell into place during the 4 1/2 years long distance relationship, we got married in 2016. I moved down at the end of that year.
I got my dream job working as the property manager and equine specialist for the Lone Survivor foundation for 3 years. Then was lost as to what I would work at when they cancelled my position. I worked as Life insurance/Medicare sales for a while and didn’t like it. I stopped in to visit a friend in Galveston who owned Escape the Island. While there I realized that the Bolivar Peninsula needed something like this. It is indoor, people are happy and laughing when they finish and escape the room and there is nothing for people to do indoor other than bars and restaurants. Nothing for families. I decided I wanted to build an escape room on the peninsula and started the journey.
It took me 6 months to secure the building I am in, then about 1 1/2 months to build and design a room and opened March 2022. Once up and running I started to plan the second room. I designed it from scratch myself, had what I wanted built. Funny thing was when I was out looking for items, things I bought were perfect for what I ended up creating. It isn’t easy to write a room from scratch but it is rewarding when it all comes together. My second room opened in July 2022. The first room Escape the Asylum was about 2 1/2 years old when I changed it and Escape the Shipwreck is now ready to be changed out and hope to have that done soon.
Last year, 2024, we had a dumped dog which we named “the ferry dog”. I had tried to catch it along with many other people, but no one could get near it. Then one day he was on my street. A storm was headed and I knew, by looking in his eyes, I could not leave him and had to catch him and get him safe. I spent 8 days trying to catch him and almost had him. He had different ideas. Once he was strong enough, I was finding him, feeding him, making sure he had clean water daily. Then I couldn’t find him, someone else did. He was swimming across the ship channel. It was such an emotional and beautiful ending to what in most cases of the dumped dogs that I wrote a book. “Rescue me, Bolivar the Ferry Dog”. I have never written a book but something had been telling me to. I thought it would be about my horse and working with LSF or even about my story with Malcolm but no this was it. I guess that means I have 2 more books in me which need to get down on paper.
My business is at 3 1/2 years. It is a struggle due to not being in the center of town and seen by more people. This year I built a maze and had a scarecrow contest. It is definitely getting the attention of people driving by which is helping more notice the Bolivar Escape Room.
Other than that, I am a member of the Port Bolivar Volunteer Fire Department, Malcolm is the Fire Chief. We got voted Volunteers of the Year by the Bolivar Peninsula Chamber of Commerce as we tied in votes so they gave it to both of us. I am on the Chamber board of directors.
I started the Bolivar Arena Association and am the President. This is a non-profit and we are building a rodeo arena at Swede’s Park (home of the Texas Crab Festival). This is a huge work in progress and I am thrilled to see it coming to life. PBVFD in 2021 and 2022 put on Bulls on Bolivar as a fundraiser but the biggest obstacle was not having bleachers or an arena. We didn’t go forward with doing it again due to the cost. We decided to talk to the TCF about them giving us land to build an arena. Malcolm and I spoke to them, I put a proposal together and got a group of people to start it all up. We are now one year into it and have setting for 1000 people in bleachers we secured and purchased along with a few small ones donated.
Now between the Escape Room and the Arena, I believe I have lots of work ahead of me. The Escape Room I run on my own, it gives me a job I love. The Arena, I have a Board of Directors, which is great to have others who share my vision and dream as we bring the BUCK Back to Bolivar!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Smooth road, not at all. When I moved from Canada I couldn’t work for about 9 months waiting for the paperwork to go through. Then my job which I loved, my horses loved and I would have worked at for ever, was cancelled. This was hard as it was such a sad thing. The horses and the veterans were and are amazing together. To be completely out of a job and looking for one for the first time in 34 years was hard. My job in Canada I had been at for 29 years. I couldn’t do what I did up there because there just wasn’t that industry here. I did get a job and my insurance license but I never did like it. It was very depressing actually.
Running your own business has it’s own struggles. I love being able to do whatever I want but sometimes just having someone to run stuff by is hard not to have. Trying to get people to know you are here and getting them in the door is hard. Figuring things out because I can’t afford to hire someone to do it for me, in some ways is great, in other ways, its been a learning curve.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
The Bolivar Escape Room is located in Port Bolivar just 6 miles from the ferry. It offers a one-of-a-kind entertainment experience where creativity, teamwork, and local spirit come together. We specialize in immersive escape adventures that challenge guests to think, communicate, and collaborate while having fun. Each game is a one-of-a-kind room, thoughtfully designed by me, inspired by the coastal character, history and community of the Bolivar Peninsula.
The experiences, including Escape the Shipwreck, Code Red Rescue, and the seasonal Escape the Maze & Scarecrow Invasion, are built to engage players of all ages and skill levels. What truly sets Bolivar Escape Room apart is our commitment to originality — every puzzle, theme, and storyline is unique to Bolivar, reflecting the area’s charm, humor, and resilience.
I am proud to be known for creating memorable, interactive adventures that bring families, friends, and teams closer together. I will always keep my rooms family friendly because that is who I built it for. Beyond the games themselves, our brand is built on fostering connection — encouraging people to unplug, work together, and make memories through shared experiences.
At Bolivar Escape Room, I believe fun should have meaning. We invite clients to step inside, take on the challenge, and unlock not just the room — but your sense of adventure.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
As a child, all I was interested in was horses. I think it was my first word. I grew up in the country, a small village called Cheltenham, which is in Southern Ontario, Canada. I spent hours a day on my pony or horse. At times my friends and I would take off after school, forgetting about the time change, and our parents had to come get us and drive in front and behind us to get us all home safely. I was in Pony Club and eventually ended up showing jumper on the “A” circuit. My first job was with Lothlorien Farm and Sue Grange. Sue taught me so much while working for her. To teach me to bandage correctly she placed a horse on the cross ties, bandaged one leg and said I would only be done when the other 3 looked and felt like that one. I never forgot how to bandage or how important it was. I moved on to Woodbine Race Track, tried galloping race horses and although I loved it, it really wasn’t for me. I got a job at Greenhawk and took over the running of the store at the track. I worked there for 29 years until moving to Texas. I moved from the country to the Beach in Toronto. At 40 years old I started rowing and have never been so fit in my life. That started with doing Viking boat races and working with under privileged kids from Toronto. I switched to kayaking as it was easier to just go and do, not have to organize with others. I met a bunch of people and groups. We would all meet and take off for the weekend camping and kayaking all over Ontario. It was a great time in my life. I bought my first house which was all of 725 square feet with about the same size backyard. Then I met a cowboy while on vacation… the rest is history
Pricing:
- 13+ $25/person
- 8 – 12 yrs old $20/person
- 7 & under are free
- Maze $5
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.bolivarescaperoom.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bolivarescaperoom22/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BolivarEscapeRoom
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/bolivar-escape-room-bolivar-peninsula
- Other: https://www.bolivararena.org
