Who we are:
Mary (married to Ron) grew up in
Indianapolis and has had a love of historic homes since visiting the
Lanier House as a small child. She works as a project manager in
information services. Her interests in genealogy and
Indianapolis/Indiana history got this project started. Mary will be
sharing blogging duties with Eric.
Ron grew up in a nearby suburb of
Indianapolis. He and Mary worked to restore a beautiful turn of the
century home in Michigan, where he gained first-hand knowledge of the
joy and pain required. He works as the VP of Marketing in the family
business. He will be sharing his extensive experience in home repair,
mechanical systems and marketing during the project.
Amanda (married to Eric) lived near
Indianapolis until she was 8 when her family moved to an historic home
in southwestern Michigan. During her childhood, she visited many
beautiful old homes throughout the Midwest. It became her dream to
someday rescue an elegant old home, preferably one with a large library.
She is the president of the family business and the primary driver of
this project.
Eric grew up in Florida and
Kentucky. He has a long time love of architecture and historic
buildings. He brings an eye for beauty and love of all things old to the
project. He is the VP of Operations in
the family business and a professional land surveyor. His knowledge of
standards, architecture and woodworking will be critical to our success.
Just a few facts:
The Horner House was built in
1875-1876 by Abraham Horner. It is a beautiful example of Second Empire
architecture. The house, close to the historic Irvington neighborhood,
was once considered a jewel of Indianapolis. Over the past half century,
she slowly sank into disrepair, sitting empty and eventually boarded
up. At one time, the house was chopped up into 5 apartments. Then it was
used mostly for storage. Finally, the city assumed ownership. It was
boarded up, deserted, left to the elements, tagged by a gang. The
elements and time were rapidly impacting her potential to be preserved.
Then, the nasty winter of 2010-2011, with the heavy snow and multiple
ice storms, resulted in the partial collapse of the back wall. Time was
running out to find anyone willing to take this gem back to her original
beauty. On March 9, 2011, we discovered that Indiana Landmarks was
looking for someone to purchase the house, to save it from demolition,
and so our journey began.
About our blog:
We all have a strong sense of
community and believe that it’s everyone’s responsibility to give back.
Ideas for our blog started right at the beginning of the project. The
goal is, by blogging our experiences, discoveries and successes, we can
inspire others to begin their own preservation project. We hope to prove
that you don’t need to have a lot of money to get started, as long as
you’re willing to work hard, and plan carefully. To
prove that an ordinary person can preserve our city and state, one
house at a time, without having to win the lottery to do it.
Your input, help and comments are
very much appreciated. Any donations will be gratefully accepted. Please
join us on our journey and pray for our success.
