Big house in the little woods
CAMERON - In 1995 not long after Don and Rhonda LeFebvre married, they sat down and made a vow to each other: together they would build their dream home, a place to suit them the rest of their lives.
Today, the 2,800-square-foot oak log house the couple designed and built with their own hands is a testament to their commitment to each other and their love for the land it rests on.
Rhonda and her two sisters had inherited some 76 acres of timber south of the Coldbrook Christian Church, along with farm and pasture land that had been in Rhonda’s family for more than a century when her ancestors settled the area. Rhonda’s great-greatgrandfather, Thomas Wallace, ran a gristmill along nearby Cedar Fork Creek about 150 years ago. Rhonda and Don used just three acres of the timber for their home.
Don, a woodworker and then president of the union at Maytag, knew he wanted to build their house by hand.
“I had always liked log construction, with my love of wood,” he said. “This house is designed for people to feel darn comfortable - and they do. … A log home fits the space here, it’s part of the nature, the environment,” Don said. “It’s just gorgeous out here in every season.”
Anatomy of a house-raising
Don had never built a house but he says Rhonda’s confidence in him helped him through the ordeal.
“We each had our dream home in mind and we both drew out floor plans,” Rhonda said. “And the plans were so similar you wouldn’t believe it.”
They began by gathering their friends and family - and they have plenty of each. Rhonda estimates that 60 people helped them in some way with the project, with the bulk of the work taking less than a year. They started by clearing a lot on a rise above the road.
“We stood there and she was walking around, saying, ‘this is the kitchen, and here will be the bedroom, and at first I just couldn’t see it,” Don said.
They broke ground in early 1999, and poured a basement. They worked with Gastineau Log Homes of New Bloomfield, Mo., to refine their blueprints and the company hauled four semi-truckloads of oak logs from Missouri that arrived in July. The first challenge came when the trucks couldn’t navigate - nor turn around - on their twisting drive that rose to the foundation.
“I couldn’t sleep that night, I didn’t know what to do,” “I said, ‘I can’t build a house,’ ” Don said. Rhonda encouraged him. “We don’t know if we can do it until we try,” she told him.
Their neighbor, Steve Purchase, who lives just south of U.S. 34, agreed to let the trucks park on his land and one by one, they brought the logs to the building site. As the logs were cut the framework slowly took shape. Don enlisted the help of his friend Gary Wagher, who helped practically nonstop from July to November 1999, and his son, Patrick. Dave Volkers, another friend, was in it for the long haul, helping erect scaffolding as the sides went up. The group worked night and day for five weeks that summer, when Don took time off work. Then, they were there every weekend and every night. The couple and their friends did virtually all of the work themselves except for the plumbing and electrical work, Rhonda said.
‘Let’s find out what we can do together’
Rhonda, who has multiple sclerosis, is physically limited in the work she can do, but she stood on ladders, first caulking and then staining and applying urethane sealant to the logs from the inside, working as hard as she could.
“I wanted to be a part of it,” she said.
“I figured if she could do what she does, I could work hard, too,” Don said. “We’ve never been a couple to give up. We say, let’s find out what we can do together.
“The joy in our home is that Rhonda and I did it together. It’s a joy, knowing that two people could really plan something and then pull it off.”
With Rhonda’s MS in mind, the couple has made the home in ways it will suit them as they age. The interior pocket doors are a little wider than average to accommodate the wheelchair that Rhonda expects to someday need. There is an unfinished basement but for now the couple uses the main floor space - the great room, den, bedroom, bath, kitchen and dining area.
They have incorporated personal touches in its design, too.
For the front doors, Don incorporated an important part of Rhonda’s family’s past - a very old set of doors with unusual wrought iron work in four pieces inset into the panels. The doors, possibly of Dutch design, came from the old farmhouse of Rhonda’s grandmother, Sarah Wallace, who lived just north of the LeFebvres’ home.
Half-moon windows high on the great room’s 17-foot wall look out toward the timber that stretches to the north. The openness of the home’s design lets light throughout. Upstairs are two bedrooms, a bath and lounging area - a large space that frequent visitors enjoy as if they have their own suite, Don said.
“I’m so glad we can share it with friends,” Rhonda said.
By Thanksgiving, the roof went on and the house was stabilized for winter. The couple moved in May 5, 2000. Now Don’s son lives with them, and they feel a personal need to share their home with others - to help people realize they can fulfil their dreams.
The house is nearly finished, though not to Don’s specifications; some interior trim must be painted and other details await his attention, he said.
The house is both heated and air-conditioned by a geothermal system that runs on three wells drilled below it. A series of vertical pipes transports natural water underneath the house to keep it comfortable year-round. “It’s one of the most efficient systems and that’s why we chose to do that,” Don said.
Built to last
“We’ll be in it the rest of our lives,” Don said. “They say these houses are guaranteed for 100 years. We hope someone else can enjoy it, too.”
Don, who’d had an interest in woodwork since he was a teen, had built many small pieces, and lots of furniture. He made two large wooden crosses for Galesburg’s First Presbyterian Church, where the couple are members.
“Building something that has a significance to the customer is important to me,” he said. “Each piece is individual, it fits their needs. I enjoy the design work as much as the wood work.”
