Alex, a friend of John’s purchased a large farm in Benton, PA that had been neglected for several years and was in need of major repairs in some cases.
The first task John and his crew of 4 were tasked with was repairing a covered bridge. After the bridge was stabilized a new cedar roof was in order.
Pretty.
The property had a veterinary clinic complete with exam rooms and kennels. The kennels were converted into a mews for the son’s falconry hobby.
Great care must be taken to insure that the inside of the housing and other perching equipment will prevent bodily injury and feather damage as well as keep out natural predators. Bars, chicken-type wire, and new siding complete the outside.
Inside, John installed cameras, timers, heating, new lights and easy-clean type metal wall covering. Viewing ports and feeding ports allow for monitoring of the birds. That was a huge project for him but satisfying.
The workshop was the next critical project, well the roof anyway. Just like on the covered bridge, cedar shingles were installed.
Before replacing the roof on the backside of the shop, the roof line was extended to do 2 things: protect the generator and electrical boxes from the weather and hide the hardware from view of the main house.
There was an isolated home on the far side of the property that was vandalized over the many years of neglect. The owner decided to repair the house rather than demo it.
So it was gutted.
The 4-man crew then got busy building it back up.
John put in heaters, water tanks, electric, and repaired the water pump. Windows, drywall, painting and fixtures were next.
Siding and a deck complete the project. It is an adorable little house!
The a project John was working on towards the end of our stay in Pennsylvania is one he will not be around to see finished.
That is the heavy equipment shed. It was mostly just a roof covered area, and they were enclosing it, adding large bay doors and people doors.
Just down from the main house a pavilion was going to be erected. So the 4-man crew laid the foundation, beautiful brick floor.
One of the nice things about working at the farm is all of the wildlife hanging around. These 3 turkeys are tame and followed the guys around hoping for some hand outs.
Oh look, they are showing off.
Anyone who thinks there is a shortage of dear in the area should check out the Benton area. We would see at least 100 white tail deer EVERYDAY! The woods, the corn fields even the roads were filled with deer, it was amazing.
There is a pair of white deer that hang out on the farm property. Since it is considered bad luck to shoot a white deer, these 2 should be around a while.
The 2 little girls that will grow up on the farm truly live in a magical place.
