Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
The home built by the 1996-97 Builder's Trade class at Tippecanoe Valley High School belongs to Blake and April Myers. Located on 100 N., Akron, the Cape Cod 1-story home sits on 80 acres with a pond.
It has three bedrooms and 2 baths. The upstairs bedrooms feature dormer windows. The master bedroom has a large walk-in closet with a whirlpool bath in the master bath.
The kitchen boasts a lighted soffit above an island cooktop, a built-in desk and bookshelves, a pantry, and a recessed buffet with plate display shelves above. A bay window in the breakfast nook gives the room an airy atmosphere and provides a view of the outside.
The eye-catcher in the living room is a large stone fireplace topped with a hand carved mantle depicting a mountain, trees, a log cabin and deer in 3-D. The Myers saw the mantle in a shop in Gatlinsburg, Tenn. while they were on their honeymoon and ordered it for their new home.
April is the daughter of Building Trades instructor Ken Murphy and his wife, Linda. Murphy added a special touch to the home. Intended as a surprise, he began working on fretwork with his scroll saw for the riser returns. The fretwork contains pictures of various animals. After the first square took him eight hours to complete, he decided to seek the couple's input before continuing. They liked the idea and helped choose the scenes for the remaining squares. Murphy pointed that one of the squares is signed "TVHS 97."
Nineteen Valley students helped build the home. They are Jonathan Ellenwood, Darek Snyder, Michael Fincher, Johnathan Kamp, James Lozano, Jason Parker, Ryan Reese, Geoffrey Reeser, Jason Skees, Adam Wagner, Rex Wilhite, Jason Beverly, Joel Francis, Scott Cooksey, Matthew Michael, Kevin Miller, Luke Plank, Wayne Small and Jason Smith.
An open house is scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m.
