New House

WASHINGTON COUNTY -- The Washington County Commissioners agreed Tuesday to pay as much as $314,900 to buy a home needed for the widening of Longmeadow Road near its intersection with Marsh Pike. The county reached the agreement after more than a year of working with the family that owns the house at 19329 Longmeadow Road, Real Property Administrator Joe Kuhna said. The house is one of three that will need to be torn down for the widening project, Kuhna said. The other two, on either side of the remaining house, were purchased by the county last year, he said.

By DAN KULIN / Staff Writer photo: JOE CROCETTA / staff photographer The living room walls are splashed with three or four different colors, as the painting has taken a couple more weeks than expected to finish. cont. from front page And they're planning on converting the attic into a bedroom. Lorie and Wes Zufall are responsible for all the fixing up at their first home, but they wouldn't have it any other way. It's their first Thanksgiving as homeowners and the Zufalls are thankful they own the place they call home, and thankful for the people at the Hagerstown Home Store who helped them turn their hopes of homeownership into a reality.

SOUTH MOUNTAIN, Pa. -- All work at the Drumm family house paused at 2 p.m. Tuesday for a Veterans Day service, something that many people said was especially poignant because Matthew Drumm served as an Army Airborne Ranger. An American flag fluttered above the house being constructed as part of ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. " American Legion members paid tribute to veterans with a ceremony and prayer. "Hands down, (the family is) going to appreciate they were right there in front of their house," said Jessica Biddinger, whose husband, Travis, is Matthew Drumm's cousin.

HAGERSTOWN -- Of the dozens of homes along Lanvale Street, one stands out from the crowd - not because of its design or color scheme but because it is being built with the help of popsicle sticks. The structure is a Washington County Habitat for Humanity Faith House, a project of the area's faith community. Congregations have provided skilled labor and other forms of volunteering. But when it came to raising money for construction needs, a unique fund drive was conceived. Known as Lumber for the Lord, local churches sold two-by-fours for $2.50 each and raised about $1,700 for the new house.

SOUTH MOUNTAIN, Pa. -- Framers started working on the Drumm family's new house as the sun rose Monday morning over the "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" set in Quincy Township, Pa. The project foreman reported being an hour and a half ahead of schedule, primarily thanks to chemical additives that cause concrete to harden quicker. As snowflakes fell sporadically on South Mountain, a half dozen men watched as the concrete dried for three hours starting at midnight. The Drumms learned last Friday morning that they had been selected for the Emmy-award winning show on the ABC network.

HAGERSTOWN - Of the dozens of homes along Lanvale Street, one stands out from the crowd - not because of its design or color scheme but because it is being built with the help of Popsicle sticks. The structure is a Washington County Habitat for Humanity Faith House, a project of the area's faith community. Congregations have provided skilled labor and have volunteered in other ways. But when it came to raising money for construction needs, a unique fund drive was conceived.

ROUZERVILLE, Pa. -- After a week of smiling at the dozens of volunteers building her a new house in Beartown, Donna Rook said her face is growing sore. Her heart, however, will never tire of saying thank you, she said. Volunteers from local churches and the Chambersburg Project began "The Donna Project" in early June. If everything continues to go smoothly, Rook should be moved in by mid-July, President Ken Haines said. The Donna Project was the first time the Chambersburg Project built an entire house, he said.

ROUZERVILLE, PA. -- Hugs, applause and tears of joy were plentiful when Donna Rook walked into her new house Thursday with the key in hand. Volunteers with the Chambersburg Project tore down Rook's mold-filled, partially collapsed house June 15. Two hundred people donated time and materials to build a new 864-square-foot wood-frame construction home in its place. "God put it together," construction leader Ken Haines said. The Chambersburg Project, in its 11th year, typically sends teenagers to Franklin County, Pa., homes one week every summer for repairs such as porch stabilization and gutter replacement.

SOUTH MOUNTAIN, Pa. -- The Drumm family has a new home. When Monday started in Quincy Township, there was little more than a giant hole and concrete basement walls at the property. Yet, as supper was being served to volunteers, shingles were being prepared for installation on the roof of a 2,500-square-foot house. "The whole thing is mind-blowing. We must've cried for an hour and a half, my wife and I," said Donald Elower, who watched construction at the new house that will be given to his daughter, her husband and their three sons.

o Read more Cheryl Weaver columns at washingtoncountyliving.com Fun Fest Day set for Saturday St. Paul's Reformed Church in Clear Spring will hold its fourth annual Fun Fest Day Saturday from 3 to 6 p.m. The event includes food, music, games, prizes, rides and a moon bounce. The event is free, but donations will be accepted. The Washington County Antique Tractor Association will have barrel rides. Music will be performed by the Sonshiners and the Mount Moriah Men's Baptist Choir during the fest, followed by a concert by the Bumbaugh Family from Zullinger, Pa., at 6 p.m. The church is at 14106 National Pike, five miles west of Huyetts Crossroads and three miles east of Clear Spring on U.S. 40. For more information, call 301-842-3462.

The Clear Spring High School Class of 1957 will hold its 55th class reunion Saturday, Sept. 8, at the Clear Spring American Legion building starting at 5 p.m. All class members and spouses are invited to attend. Several teachers and former principals will also attend. A buffet-style dinner will be served. The reunion committee encourages all classmates to make reservations by contacting Pat Hull at 301-842-2940 or Frank Carpenter at 301-252-5800. 'Courageous' to be shown Hilltop Christian Fellowship will show the movie “Courageous” Friday, Sept.

Only painter's tape and carpet ready for shampooing prevent Lydia Kovach from calling her new house a home. On Sunday, Kovach ceremonially received the keys to 522 S. Main St., a house in the Borough of Chambersburg that was rehabilitated by Habitat for Humanity. Organization officials and Franklin County, Pa., dignitaries crowded into what will be her living room. Kovach's house is the 29th completed by Habitat for Humanity of Franklin County. “Without everybody pulling together, these things wouldn't happen,” said David Spang, president of the local board of directors.

Hagerstown Imaging, which provides diagnostic imaging to patients from across the Tri-State area, held a grand opening on Friday of its new location in the Varsity Professional Center in Hagerstown. The ceremony and open house - attended by Hagerstown-Washington County Chamber of Commerce, Washington County government officials and members of the health care community - was held at the facility located between Robinwood Medical Center and Hagerstown Community College at 11236 Robinwood Drive, Suite 106. The new facility has an advanced, 16-slice, open design Positron Emission Tomography - Computed Tomography, or PET/CT, scanner, the company said in a news release.

Name of business: Inn at Red Hill Owner: Cindy Neugebauer Address: 4936 Red Hill Road, Keedysville Opening date: Oct. 27, 2011 Products and services: Bed and breakfast featuring elegant lodging, and freshly prepared, hot breakfasts served each morning. Whenever possible, locally grown foods will be used. The inn is ideal for wedding photos, small business meetings, getaways for couples, and girls' or guys' getaway weekends. Target market: Weekend travelers from the Washington, D.C., and Baltimore areas; visitors to sites such as Antietam National Battlefield, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, the Appalachian Trail and Shepherdstown, W.Va.; and recreation enthusiasts such as cyclists, hikers, kayakers and rafters.

If the newly redrawn districts of the 100-member West Virginia House of Delegates could be challenged in court for being "ugly," Del. Walter Duke says he could provide at least a couple examples in the Eastern Panhandle. Otherwise, the retired school teacher turned state lawmaker said Tuesday that he believes one of the only legal arguments to the House redistricting plan he would make is the newly approved redistricting plan's failure to adhere to the one-person, one-vote principle.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. -- Five years after an Ohio-based developer came to town with a vision of affordable housing, Chambersburg officials broke ground Thursday on two new housing projects in the Elm Street District. PIRHL LLC. of Cleveland, Ohio, together with the Interfaith Housing Alliance Inc., the Housing and Neighborhood Development Service (HANDS), will build a 32-unit senior housing complex adjacent to South Gate Shopping Center and 40 units of rent-to-own town houses on Redwood Drive.

WASHINGTON COUNTY -- The Washington County Commissioners agreed Tuesday to pay as much as $314,900 to buy a home needed for the widening of Longmeadow Road near its intersection with Marsh Pike. The county reached the agreement after more than a year of working with the family that owns the house at 19329 Longmeadow Road, Real Property Administrator Joe Kuhna said. The house is one of three that will need to be torn down for the widening project, Kuhna said. The other two, on either side of the remaining house, were purchased by the county last year, he said.

ROUZERVILLE, PA. -- Hugs, applause and tears of joy were plentiful when Donna Rook walked into her new house Thursday with the key in hand. Volunteers with the Chambersburg Project tore down Rook's mold-filled, partially collapsed house June 15. Two hundred people donated time and materials to build a new 864-square-foot wood-frame construction home in its place. "God put it together," construction leader Ken Haines said. The Chambersburg Project, in its 11th year, typically sends teenagers to Franklin County, Pa., homes one week every summer for repairs such as porch stabilization and gutter replacement.

ROUZERVILLE, Pa. -- After a week of smiling at the dozens of volunteers building her a new house in Beartown, Donna Rook said her face is growing sore. Her heart, however, will never tire of saying thank you, she said. Volunteers from local churches and the Chambersburg Project began "The Donna Project" in early June. If everything continues to go smoothly, Rook should be moved in by mid-July, President Ken Haines said. The Donna Project was the first time the Chambersburg Project built an entire house, he said.

o Read more Cheryl Weaver columns at washingtoncountyliving.com Fun Fest Day set for Saturday St. Paul's Reformed Church in Clear Spring will hold its fourth annual Fun Fest Day Saturday from 3 to 6 p.m. The event includes food, music, games, prizes, rides and a moon bounce. The event is free, but donations will be accepted. The Washington County Antique Tractor Association will have barrel rides. Music will be performed by the Sonshiners and the Mount Moriah Men's Baptist Choir during the fest, followed by a concert by the Bumbaugh Family from Zullinger, Pa., at 6 p.m. The church is at 14106 National Pike, five miles west of Huyetts Crossroads and three miles east of Clear Spring on U.S. 40. For more information, call 301-842-3462.