Home design ideas and supporting women’s education go hand in hand this weekend.
The American Association of University Women Healdsburg Branch (AAUW) is holding its major fundraiser of the year — the Healdsburg Homes Tour — on Sunday, May 5, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The tour starts at the Healdsburg Museum.
The proceeds from the fundraiser benefit local education and scholarships for women and girls.
Ronnie Devitt, who helped organize the tour for AAUW, said the tour presents a bevy of home types.
“The tour was for many years just for historic homes in Healdsburg,” she said.
Now, the homes range from Victorian to neoclassical to styles like ranch homes.
The goal of showcasing a broad range of homes is to display how to use existing framework to personalize a house.
“That includes modernizing, that includes historic preservation, a lot of innovation and a lot of creativity,” Devitt said. “I think this homes tour is good for people who are thinking of remodeling their homes.”
One of the homes on the tour highlights a variety of ways someone can remodel to suit their preferences.
Devitt said that there is a pool that blends in more naturally with its surroundings due to the more gray lining and tile use as opposed to the normal aquamarine.
There is also a sports-themed room that uses the colors of the San Francisco Giants. The home was formerly part of a church and takes advantage of the deep lot to create outdoor living space.
There will be highlights of renovations of historic homes that also incorporate heavy use of contemporary art and a newly built farm house.
“The most surprising home,” Devitt said, “is the new ranch-style home.”
The home has been totally remodeled, according to Devitt. The owners host many social events and have “lots of indoor-outdoor areas that sort of flow seamlessly. The kind of thing you’d expect to see in a modern home on a very large lot, they’ve achieved with a few additions on a smaller home.”
Along with the change to the different types of homes showcased, the people who live in them have changed, too.
“These homeowners are younger,” she said, and added that several of them only moved to town in the last few years.
Opening doors
One couple on the tour is Katie Rossen and Gibson Schied, who live on Mason Street.
“We love our house, and David and Camille Jones are the people who we bought the house from and they did most of the renovation,” Shied said.
She said they have added to the landscaping, but mainly credited the Jones for their work, which happened over the course of years prior to their purchase.
“They took a home that was built in the late 1800s. Maybe even earlier. They made some additions but the character of the home remains. So the original staircase is there. I think some of the original fixtures are there,” she said.
The couple will have lived here two years in August and moved from the Bay Area proper. Schied said they wanted to get away from the bustle and find a place where they could get involved in the community.
She added that being part of the tour was a show of support to AAUW.
“It’s a good organization. I think it’s great for the community to have an event like this where people get to go inside some of the pretty homes or special homes in Healdsburg,” she said.
Schied said that they will be going on the tour while people are looking through their home. No official list was announced of the homes, so she was interested to see what else is included.
Cathleen Stafford is another resident putting her home on Tucker Street on the tour circuit.
“A lot of people have stopped and complimented us on the renovation of the house,” she said. One of the reasons she agreed to be a part of the tour was that proceeds went to women’s education.
Stafford and her husband lost their previous home to the Tubbs Fire and said she felt fortunate that they were able to find a historic Victorian home here in Healdsburg.
“It was exciting for us to land on our feet in a positive way,” she said. “We’re proud of having a home that not only has curb appeal but also has history.”
The inside of her home has been modernized in many ways, but the outer façade remains as it was originally. One thing inside that she said she hopes people appreciate is the original floors.
“I think it tells a story, all the little scratches or imperfections. It’s interesting to think about all the feet that have walked before us on the floors. I think it makes the house a home.
“There are also two sets of pocket doors that are awesome,” she said.
Stafford has lived there about a year and said much of the renovation had been done before they moved in.
“I’ve always wanted a Victorian home … This home inspired me to learn more about the history and the architecture of the era,” she said.
Stafford, her husband and her mother will be on the tour and she said she’s excited to see what other homes are being featured.
“It’s always fun to see what other people do, get ideas,” she said.
Learn more about AAUW at its website, healdsburg-ca.aauw.net.
This story has been updated to include Cathleen Stafford’s interview.
