by Gretchen Wing
Special to the Weekly
Asha Lela, Dennis and Meg Ryan, and Lexi and Kirm Taylor are just a few Lopezians who are grateful for the beautiful natural haven they found on Lopez. And all of them honored the island by building their homes with materials from their land.
Lela, the Ryans and the Taylors own three of the seven homes on this year’s 12th annual Lopez Island Home Tour, the primary fundraiser for Lopez Center. The theme this year, if there WERE a theme, could easily be “Living the Dream,” as all seven sets of homeowners moved to Lopez from elsewhere. Their gratitude prompted them to integrate Lopez’s past, both natural and cultivated, into their homesteads, as well as to provide amenities for the next generation.
Back in the late 70s, Lela named her property “Ravens Rook” in a nod to her winged Shark Reef Road neighbors. She cut and hand-peeled the rafter poles for her octagonal home from the forest around her; other trees were milled for lumber. Both Lexi and Kirm Taylor’s two-story home, and the new bunkhouse on Dennis and Meg Ryan’s property follow that building model, incorporating on-site cedars and firs. The Taylors’ big fireplace is made of stones from their five-acre parcel.
Those homes not built of Lopezian materials still emphasize Lopezian beauty, like Anne Hietbrink and Beth Shirk’s “jewel box” home on Bayshore Road, built by Mike Krajack. They say their second-floor master bedroom feels like sleeping in a tree house. The homesite maintains its original trees, including two majestic madronas which dominate their water view. Laura and Curtis Walker’s Fisherman Bay house features wrap-around decks, allowing them to enjoy both sunrise and sunset as well as the abundant wildlife that visits their low-bank beach. They left the shake siding unpainted to better blend in with their beach environment.
Lopez’s historical heritage is another prominent facet of some of this year’s homes.
At the old Iowa-style farmhouse Kip Greenthal’s family bought in 1960, they had to peel off seven layers of wallpaper to restore the original wood paneling! Large, paned windows frame the fields, the barn, and the old orchard, showcasing nearly 135 years of cultivation. The Ryans’ farmhouse, north of the village on Fisherman Bay Road, dates from 1914, and in completing its recent renovation, they honored the building’s original design.
Some homes on this year’s tour reflect Lopezian culture in more subtle ways. The Walker home’s original owner asked a Seattle architect to create a barn-like effect, tall and shake-sided. And in the village center, Diana and Ed Sheridan’s Hamlet home sits within strolling distance of nearly every cultural amenity on the island.
Another common aspect of many of this year’s tour homes: welcoming the next
generation to Lopez. Lela’s home contains her childhood piano, now played by all four of her Lopezian grandchildren. The Taylors’ home contains a downstairs study that doubles as a video or game room for grandkids. And the Ryans are doing their part to make sure their house will be there for future generations, no matter what Mother Earth has in store for Lopez: their home and studio building are made with insulated panels and rammed earth walls, making them virtually fire, water, and earthquake proof.
Speaking of her home, Asha Lela says, “I see a reflection of my dreams and of myself manifested in a form that has a permanence that shaped my life.” That sentiment likely extends to all of this year’s homeowners. So perhaps “Lopez: Past Meets Future” is a more appropriate theme, if there WERE a theme.
The Home Tour takes place on Saturday, Sept. 12, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with all proceeds benefitting Lopez Center. Well over half the funds the Lopez Home Tour Committee raises from the tour comes from sponsors, whom the committee wishes to thank: 87 sponsors this year, 14 more than 2014! Tickets for the tour are available at the Saturday Market, on the LCCA website or at the Center.
