Ghosts and goblins welcome

We are working at a fever pitch to get ready for this weekend's Halloween Festival.  For those of you who don't know the history, we started the event 11 years ago when our sons were 4 and an infant.  There were no events for little kids in the area and given the community like setting of our sales center, it seemed to be a perfect fit to host a halloween party.

So that's the humble beginning.  It was going to be us and a few of our closest vendors and a small trick-or-treat fest at our sales center.  Our office is off the street and so parents wouldn't need to worry where the candy came from or having their kids run into traffic.  And then the call came... Jackie Mitchell was a neighbor of Eric's from VT and she had Audrey Magram call to see if we would be interested in doing some fundraising for the Ronald McDonald House in VT.  She went on to explain that they got little support from our side of the lake, and many of the families that use their facility are from our three counties.

So, I started to think.  I had just started planning this little party- and maybe the two ideas can do hand in hand.  The first years were pretty modest, and we were humbled by the support of the community and our vendors and companies we do business with.  When Della Honda moved next door, we asked for their help and as a good neighbor they offered us their service waiting area  for the magic show and service bays for the car seat checks.  The Adirondack Safe Kids Coalition no longer has the trouble they used to to get staff for the event now that it is indoors and out of the rain and cold.

We had commited to the event for ten years which has now come and gone.  There are other events in the area around Halloween, so I was thinking that there wasn't really the need for the event anymore.  But then in early September we started getting calls from past supporters and families asking if we were having it again.  So... here we go again!

This year we expect to surpass the $35,000 mark for donations we have sent over to the Ronald McDonald House Charities and their support of families in need.  I have heard how families have been touched by this facility and others like it and I feel blessed that I have only seen the house from afar.

Our staff has shrunk a bit since home buiding is off somewhat these days, and my home responsibilities with two growing boys have certainly grown, but it is an event near and dear to my heart so I will continue to be a one man band and plug away a bit each day starting in August and working up to the Saturday before Halloween.  Much of the planning is now complete- what can be done is now done.  All that there is left to do is....  THINK SUN!!!

A peek at history

We found the blueprints for my Dad's family camp recently.  Growing up, we would travel to Chateaugay Lake and camp, but the great camp was long since gone.  I remember seeing the foundation but that was all that was left of this magnificent camp.

There is something magical about the lake.  I still am drawn to it all these years later, and time moves a little slower at camp- something we could all use a little more of these days.

I grew up seeing pictures of the camp.  The management at Republic Steel used the camp to entertain out-of-town executives.  There were massive parties in the dining room that could seat 30-40 people and had this incredible floor to ceiling stone fireplace.

My Dad said today that the library in the camp was larger than his first home.

It's funny, how similar log cabins are today.  These prints could be from now versus the 1930s.   And I just wonder how much it would cost to rebuild today!

An inside look

This weekend, I am headed to the Bill Lake Home Show in Sprakers, NY.  We are lucky to have them so close as our customers can easily get an inside look into how modular homes are constructed.

Not only does our manufacturer allow customers to come tour his facility- he encourages you to- and even bribes you.  You will get a $750 discount for attending the show or during a time that better suits your need.  And if that weren't good enough, you actually could win up to $12,000 off your new home.

Over the years PHO has been lucky- we have had a $6,000 winner from Champlain two years ago, which allowed them a couple of extra luxuries they might have decided to forgo.

So if you are considering building a new home, come join me on Saturday and you will be convinced- having your home built indoors and with professional supervision is the way to go!