New Waterford couple purchased former Gardiner Mines church to live in, but now rent it out

Corrina Kelly and her husband, Mike Kelly, of New Waterford, stand in front of the former St. James Catholic Church in Gardiner Mines which they have purchased. Corrina said after living away from Cape Breton for 20 years they moved home to retire and plans were to move into the church and make it their home. However, she said, they made extensive renovations inside and it now houses the Premier Cheer Allstars group in the upstairs with plans still to be determined for the lower floor.

©Sharon Montgomery-Dupe/Cape Breton Post

GARDINER MINES, N.S. — When a former New Waterford couple purchased a church in Gardiner Mines, plans were to put a ‘Home Sweet Home’ mat out front, but that’s on hold for the time being.
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“We were going to live in it,” said Corrina Kelly. “I even had our furniture sent there at first. We were going to make it our home.”

Corrina and her husband, Mike Kelly, former members of the Canadian Armed Forces, had postings throughout Canada and the United States over the years.

“We had been living away for more than 20 years,” Corrina said.

One of her visits home she noticed the St. James Church in Gardiner Mines was up for sale. In 2013 she said they purchased the church and moved home to retire.

“The building has so much potential, there wouldn’t be any need to see it destroyed. “

With pews still in place, plans were to move in and renovate as they went along.

However she said they ended up moving in to her old family home in New Waterford to live with her mother. She said they have invested a lot of money into the former church and still have a lot more to do.

A sign on the church dates the building back to 1949, but other documents it may go back as far as 1947.

“The government needs to open some funding up for people willing to save structures like this.”

She said there wasn’t any insulation in the building at all, it was costing $100 a day for oil plus servicing a furnace that wasn’t working at peak efficiency.

To address that issue, they put a $100,000 geothermal heating system into the building.

 “It still cost a lot for power but not nearly what the oil was.”

She said the building needs a new roof and they also hope to put solar panels in as well. They repainted the yellow and brown walls to a neutral white and grey. Plans include making the former confessional into an office.

“Right now we are going one step at a time.”

In the meantime the church has a new kind of kingdom in it’s midst; they have rented out the upstairs of the former church — which now bears a pink front door and a sign ‘The Palace’ — to the Premier Cheer Allstars, a local cheerleading group. The parking lot spaces have even been outlined in pink.

Corrina said they allowed the group to add these touches, “to help make them feel at home.”


Stacey Madden, co-ordinator of the Premier Cheer Allstars, said one of her cheer mothers knew the new owners and knew the space was empty.

“I was in contact with her almost a year before I decided to take it over.”

Madden watched the renovation process, where the church was gutted. The cheer group — which includes about 100 girls from ages three to 30 — moved into the building in June.

Madden said the main floor is beautiful and bright and now houses the group’s spring floor and tumbling equipment.

“The inside is beautiful, it was all redone,” she said, adding they are very happy there.

“ You can still feel it is a church with the windows and one of our back doors still has a cross on it.”

She said pink is one of their group’s colours, which also includes black, silver and white.

“I wanted it to stand out on the outside as well and make it was pretty as I could.”

She said through social media everyone voted on the name of the building.

“We are called Premier so we thought Premier and Palace goes well together.”

The fairytale aspect was a natural part to add on to a group with more than 100 girls.

“It’s not that the girls think they are little princesses — we like to think the girls are treated like little princesses.”

Premier Cheer AllStars is a non-profit organization dedicated to cheerleading. Madden said cheer training is a combination of gymnastics, stunting and dancing, but skills are not only developed in these areas but also other areas including self-esteem and self-confidence.

She said they compete in tournaments locally, regionally and nationally.

And there’s another business still brewing in the former church — Kelly Kids Thrift Shop.

Corrina Kelly said they opened a thrift shop in the basement to get rid of the belongings they no longer wanted.

“When you’re military and moving a lot sometimes there’s boxes you don’t even get a chance to open for years. We always totally unpacked except for this time.”

She said her children, ages 12, 15 and 16, have been looking after it.

“My kids are entrepreneurs, it’s all designed around them.”

She said the basement is partially renovated and once the basement is partially cleared out she plans have it become a fun zone type of place, perhaps to rent out for birthday parties.

Corrina said a lot of people are always stopping by to see the church.

 “I get approached all the time by people telling me family got married there or were baptized there or are buried in the graveyard, something that ties them to the church.

“They are quite proud of that church. They are appreciative it wasn’t torn down.”

Resource  :http://www.capebretonpost.com/news/local/2017/3/27/new-waterford-couple-purchased-former-gardiner-mines-church-to-l.html

Easily Available Furniture On Rent In Delhi

You need to be careful when you’re taking furniture on rent in Delhi as there are many companies claiming to offer the best.

You need to consider the options that are available for you. So you need to determine your needs and accordingly select from the best available options.

Before you select a company and sign the contract, you need to go through the fine print and ask question if in doubt. It is important for you to understand your responsibilities in case the furniture you hire is damaged. Also, go through the clauses that the company has if you have to move to some other apartment.

Before you select a particular rental company, you need to find out for how long it has been in the industry. It is important to do so, because gaining adequate experience in the industry will help the company to understand and meet your needs and requirements. They will have the knowledge of the ins and outs of the furniture business.

Renting furniture will include upfront fees and monthly payments. After you pay your upfront fees, there is the monthly payment that you’ll have to pay every month throughout your contract. Therefore, you need to ensure that you get the best deal from the best company.

Remember, renting certain types of furniture will cost you more than some others. The amount you pay for furniture on rent in Delhi will depend on the type you rent. To make sure that you select the right rental company, you can compare the prices as well. Also, before you sign on the dotted line, ask if the company is offering any discounts.

Whether you’re looking for furniture on rent in Gurgaon or Delhi, the above discussed points will help you select the right rental company. You can look for a renowned company that is known for providing beautiful furniture on rent that are in good condition.

Resource  :https://furniturerentalnews.wordpress.com/2017/03/28/easily-available-furniture-on-rent-in-delhi/

UCLA trails Cincinnati 33-30 at halftime of NCAA second round

SACRAMENTO — UCLA put forth its lowest-scoring first half of the season Sunday, heading into halftime down 33-30 to Cincinnati in Sunday’s second-round NCAA Tournament matchup.

The Bruins, the third seed in the South region, struggled to find a rhythm against the sixth-seeded Bearcats’ physical defense, shooting just 37.5 percent from the field and making just four of 14 3-pointers.

After jumping out to an early 8-2 lead, the Bruins failed to score for more than five minutes, falling behind in the process as the Bearcats rained down three 3-pointers in that span.

The offense would continue to operate in spurts throughout the half. After a stepback 3-pointer from freshman point guard Lonzo Ball gave the Bruins a lead with just over three minutes, they went scoreless for the next two minutes as the Bearcats jumped back ahead.

Cincinnati controlled the rebounding battle, piling up 19 boards to UCLA’s 12 in the opening period.

Freshman forward T.J. Leaf struggled with the physicality of Cincinnati’s interior players. Fresh off a dominant 23-point performance Friday against Kent State, Leaf dealt with early foul trouble and missed all five of his shots in the first half.

Sophomore guard Aaron Holiday, coming off a double-double in Friday night’s first-round win, was aggressive off the bench, providing five points, three assists and two steals in 13 minutes.

The winner of Sunday’s game will move on to face No. 2 seed Kentucky in the Sweet 16 on Friday in Memphis, Tennessee.


Matt Cummings | Senior Staff Writer

Matt Cummings is a senior staff writer covering UCLA basketball. In the past, he has covered UCLA football, baseball, cross country, women's volleyball and men's tennis. He served as an assistant sports editor last year. Follow him on Twitter @mbcummings15

contact  mbcummings@media.ucla.edu          @mbcummings15

Resource :http://dailybruin.com/2017/03/19/ucla-trails-cincinnati-33-30-at-halftime-of-ncaa-second-round/

Women’s tennis rides doubles success to victory over Oregon

UCLA women’s tennis is on a doubles roll.

The No. 20 Bruins (8-5, 2-1 Pac-12) won the opening point for the fourth dual match in a row, all without dropping a set, and then pulled away from the host Oregon Ducks (8-6, 2-1) for a 4-1 victory Friday.

[Related: UCLA women’s tennis finishes weekend matchups with 4-3 win over Cal]

Sophomores Gabby Andrews and Alaina Miller won their second consecutive doubles match at court two, defeating Oregon’s Marlou Kluiving and Julia Eshet 6-1. Andrews and Miller didn’t finish their first two matches together against Baylor and Stanford, but they have clicked in the past two dual matches. Friday’s win came one week after the sophomores upset Cal’s No. 23-ranked team of Olivia Hauger and Karla Popovic 6-1.

Junior Kristin Wiley and freshman Ena Shibahara clinched the doubles point with a 6-2 victory on court three, their third consecutive victory. Wiley, however, was forced to retire her singles match after losing her first set 6-1.

[Related: Freshman tennis standout Ena Shibahara follows tennis dream to Westwood]

The Bruins dominated the rest of singles play, winning three consecutive straight-set matches at courts three through five. For the dual match, coach Stella Sampras Webster made a slight change to her singles lineup, swapping Miller and redshirt freshman Jada Hart at courts three and four, respectively. The two have alternated throughout the season, with both playing at least six singles matches at each slot.

Hart, who entered the singles rankings at No. 81 earlier in March, only lost two games as she snapped her three-match losing streak. Each of those losses came against ranked opponents at No. 3 singles, but she breezed past Eshet at No. 4.

Andrews also reversed a two-game losing streak at No. 5 singles, defeating Kluiving 6-1, 6-4 to put UCLA ahead 3-1. Miller then clinched the match with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Oregon’s Nia Rose.

Friday was only the Bruins’ second match indoors since January, and the only one scheduled against a Pac-12 opponent this season.

UCLA won’t compete again until March 31 and April 2, when it travels to Washington and Washington State to resume Pac-12 play.

Resource : http://dailybruin.com/2017/03/20/womens-tennis-rides-doubles-success-to-victory-over-oregon/

Editorial: Uncontested GSA elections could jeopardize graduate student services

Two weeks ago, the Los Angeles city elections flaunted the year’s most dismal instance of voter apathy.

And then the UCLA graduate student government election process began.

This year, all four executive positions in the Graduate Students Association cabinet, one presidential and three vice-presidential seats, are uncontested. GSA represents the voice of the graduate student body and provides services such as student-group funding and social events, which means it has notable access to campus administrators to advocate for graduate-student needs.

While GSA has a history of elections with uncontested positions, this year’s bleak participation, in which only four of more than 12,000 graduate students are running, is disconcerting. At a time when graduate students stand to lose many of their student services because of budget cuts and construction projects that ignore their needs, and face possible tuition hikes due to a potential increase in the professional degree supplemental tuition, there is a need for the graduate student body to actively participate in student government, not remain indifferent to it.

The barriers to running for office are minimal; becoming a candidate only requires 50 student signatures. Uncontested GSA candidates automatically get elected as long as one person votes for them, yet no additional students beyond this year’s four bothered to apply, despite contested elections often giving way for greater voter turnout.

[Editorial: Donor-funded projects should consider impact on students]

Increased engagement can help graduate students tackle the issues they face on campus. While GSA elections have generally boasted less-than-stellar participation, graduate students themselves have remained politically active. Be it a student-initiated petition to make more parking spots available to graduate students or the series of protests against the return to campus of Gabriel Piterberg, a history professor accused of sexually harassing two graduate students, they have sought various means for making their needs known to the administration.

And rightfully so. Developments such as the construction of the Geffen Academy – which required the relocation of the graduate student gym – and the cutting of doctoral-student travel reimbursement funds, have shown the administration is complicit with sidelining graduate student services in the name of expanding campus and cutting costs.

Even UCLA’s most recent proposal to construct five new undergraduate housing units would trample on certain graduate student services. One of the proposed apartment buildings would require the demolition of Warren Hall, a laboratory and office building in the middle of graduate student housing.

It’s ironic that at a time when these services are in jeopardy under the administration, graduate students have turned away from their student government. GSA officers frequently meet with the chancellor and vice chancellors to discuss graduate student needs, and have access to resources the average graduate student doesn’t have.

And while many graduate students do not bother taking time away from their research and studies to engage with their student government, it seems counter-intuitive at a time like this that only four people would care to pursue a position that best allows them to advocate for their needs.

Regardless of how busy their schedules may be, graduate students must recognize that their voices and political sway have an impact. But that impact will only be seen if they actively participate in their government, not push it to the side.

Resource : http://dailybruin.com/2017/03/19/editorial-uncontested-gsa-elections-could-jeopardize-graduate-student-services/

Furniture On Rent In Delhi NCR Is Widely Available

There are very few startups that let us Rent Furniture In Delhi and home decor at affordable prices. They are a marketplace that offers furniture, furnishings, appliances and other home verticals that house hunters can book at affordable rentals.

The furniture rental companies lets users rent furniture; sofa etc. and home furnishings for a minimum period of three months. Renting makes sense for anyone and everyone who is looking for off the shelf solutions to furnish their house without spending much.

Nowadays, we have plenty of options to rent houses at the click of a button but none for renting furniture. Buying furniture like sofa etc.requires unjustified spending and it comes with an extra baggage of ‘what to do' with the furniture when you relocate.

Price point and quality are the two strong features of furniture rental companies. At present there are a couple of startups evangelizing furniture rental space. However, they are catering mostly to expats and B2B space (like office, events etc).

In a general scenario if you rent a furnished bachelor apartment (one room, toilet and kitchen) in Delhi NCR, you have to shell out 12K per month while renting an unfurnished one- room apartment costs 8K.

However, if you rent furniture and home decor it will cost Rs 1,500 per month. Going by this calculation you will end up saving close to 30K annually.

Bachelors and freelancers who move from one city to another for long projects are potential segments for these furniture rental companies in Delhi NCR. According to some industry estimates the furniture renting space is worth a 500 million market (only unfurnished apartments and houses) in India.

They have interesting business model and it can be scaled-up in quick time. Increasing demand of furnishing houses and flats will propel their growth as it’s a cheaper option as compared to other alternatives.

Resource : https://furniturerentalnews.wordpress.com/2017/03/17/furniture-on-rent-in-delhi-ncr-is-widely-available/ 

Whether you’re looking For Furniture on Rent In Gurgaon Or Delhi

You need to be careful when you’re taking furniture on rent in Gurgaon as there are many companies claiming to offer the best.

You need to consider the options that are available for you. So you need to determine your needs and accordingly select from the best available options.

Before you select a company and sign the contract, you need to go through the fine print and ask question if in doubt. It is important for you to understand your responsibilities in case the furniture you hire is damaged. Also, go through the clauses that the company has if you have to move to some other apartment.

Before you select a particular rental company, you need to find out for how long it has been in the industry. It is important to do so, because gaining adequate experience in the industry will help the company to understand and meet your needs and requirements. They will have the knowledge of the ins and outs of the furniture business.

Renting furniture will include upfront fees and monthly payments. After you pay your upfront fees, there is the monthly payment that you’ll have to pay every month throughout your contract. Therefore, you need to ensure that you get the best deal from the best company. 

Whether you’re looking for Furniture On Rent In Delhi or Gurgaon, the above discussed points will help you select the right rental company. You can look for a renowned company that is known for providing beautiful furniture on rent that are in good condition.

Remember, renting certain types of furniture will cost you more than some others. The amount you pay for furniture on rent in Gurgaon will depend on the type you rent. To make sure that you select the right rental company, you can compare the prices as well. Also, before you sign on the dotted line, ask if the company is offering any discounts.

Resource : https://furniturerentalnews.wordpress.com/2017/03/06/whether-youre-looking-for-furniture-on-rent-in-gurgaon-or-delhi/

Omaha couple paring down in preparation for lengthy sojourn in Europe

Editor’s note: Omahans John Kelly and Gay Flynn, who recently retired, leave Omaha this month for 10 to 12 months of living and traveling in Europe. Today they describe how they prepared. Periodically they will weigh in from abroad to let us know how the journey is going.

Gay’s father was career Air Force, and she spent seven years in Germany. She traveled extensively all over Europe, and at some point during the seven years she began to consider the idea of coming back after retirement to wander all over Europe for several months. And so the idea of what we’re calling our Sojourn was born.

We met on Okinawa in 1973 when I was assigned to her father’s office and he was my first sergeant. By 1975 our relationship had ended, and while she was developing European travel experience, I settled into life in Southern California and limited my travel to commutes on the 101 Freeway.

It wasn’t until 1994 that life allowed us to reconnect. Gay and I married in 1998. I knew about her retirement dream, but it wasn’t until 2006, after a trip to Ireland, that I was hooked and signed on to Gay’s dream.

When Gay isn’t traveling, she is planning a trip or reading and dreaming about one. Even her career with the National Park Service was as a relocation center and travel programs manager. (John is retired from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.)

Gay started organizing for this endeavor months ago, but really she has been preparing for this day since she first lived in Germany. She is the logistical magician. And me? Well, I get the luggage out of the storage room.
First, the cost question

If Gay is talking about a trip, it usually means she has already started planning, and she has.

It probably began the first time she received a paycheck and immediately put 5 percent of it in savings before doing anything else. When we got together I found 5 percent of my check disappeared into savings, and, over the years, the percentages grew in what I called the “pay Gay first” plan.

It’s a good plan. It provided us the funds to travel. And when we started thinking of how to finance an extended stay in Europe without the income that we had been accustomed to, Gay had already been considering the options and variables that were available to make this dream a reality.

It comes down to budgets. First, she figured out what we had to spend — the annual income from retirement and Social Security, supplemented by what we were comfortable taking out of our savings plans. It’s always wise to consult with financial professionals, and we did. We got some pretty good advice.

In the end, Gay had established a budget, and we agreed that whether it lasted a year, eight months or eight days, after that budget was used up, the Sojourn would be over.

Next she determined expenses. It’s impossible to know exactly how much one is going to spend, but the key thing is that we have arranged so anything we would be paying there we would have been paying here instead. We sold the house and recently gave up the apartment. Now we don’t have a mortgage, and any rent we would have paid here will simply be paid over there. Same with utilities, food and car payment.

So, where are we going to stay? Months ago we booked an Airbnb apartment for our first three months in Germany in a town called Rhens am Rhein for significantly less than the rent we had been paying in Omaha.

How did Gay find an affordable two-bedroom apartment on the Rhine River? The Internet has made research so much easier to find the best deals and options that were never considered before. It also has made communication with these establishments far easier. Airbnb is not the only option for finding reasonable short- or long-term places to stay. There are others, but here are links to three we researched: Airbnb — airbnb.com; Vacation Rentals by Owner (VRBO) — vrbo.com; and FlipKey (owned by Trip Advisor) — flipkey.com.
The downsizing

When we committed to the idea of extended travel in Europe, we realized it was going to require some serious changes in lifestyle. After all, we can’t be hanging out in Europe for months and still maintain a household here, not as a couple of retiring federal workers.

So we sorted all our possessions — room by room, garage and storage — into what had to go and what could stay.

Gay adopted the “How often have we used this?” system. Anything that we hadn’t seen in years, or forgotten we had, would go. Also, since we had decided to move from a four-bedroom house to smaller quarters, she made some hard decisions on furniture. Naturally, the mother instinct in her required her to offer anything of value to the daughter and grandchildren.

Then, the garage sale. Be prepared: It will turn out that anything you valued will have no value at all to the bargain hunters who pick through the merchandise, but an old rotting wood ladder I put aside for the trash was grabbed up. Since downsizing, Gay occasionally goes looking for something, can’t find it, realizes it’s gone, mourns briefly, then moves on.

Part of our downsizing plan was to sell the house. This isn’t always an easy step, as owning a home is what often defines us as being responsible, tax-paying adults. I warmed to the idea immediately upon realizing that I would never have to mow the lawn again. For Gay, this was just part of the big picture. She longed to travel rather than nag me to maintain a lawn or do household maintenance, and she honestly never wanted to weed a garden again. We put our home on the market, it sold and we never looked back.

We realize that is not the normal response, but Gay grew up Air Force and married Air Force.


After the house sold we moved into a two-bedroom apartment and found that we were quite content with what we have. We still have the memories of the grandchildren playing in the old backyard, and there is a real freedom from home-maintenance responsibilities.

We decided we would give up the apartment, put what is left in storage and be vagabonds until our return. Downsizing is the key, and as we face the cost of long-term storage, we realized it was time to downsize again. Just how important is it to have more than one television?
The itinerary

This itinerary has gone through a few mutations over the past year, and to be truthful, I’ve not paid a whole lot of attention, generally nodding approval unless there were pictures to look at.

However, I paid attention when Gay mentioned that we had to be out of the Schengen countries before 90 days were reached. I didn’t even know there was such a country.

Actually, there is no Schengen country. It is an agreement that was signed in the town of Schengen in Luxembourg. The agreement is long and complicated, but among other things, it outlines how long “foreigners” can stay in Schengen agreement countries. Not all EU member countries signed the Schengen Agreement Great Britain, Republic of Ireland and some countries such as Switzerland, which doesn’t belong to the European Union, did sign the agreement. Great Britain is currently in the middle of Brexit, which leaves us further confused for our future in Europe.

So, what does this mean for us?

It means that we are allowed in Schengen countries only for 90 days out of 180 days and then we must get out for at least 90 days before we can go back into Schengen countries. So, our itinerary calls for us to leave the agreement countries and go to Great Britain for 90 to 120 days before returning to continue our travels in Schengen countries.

There is an alternative involving obtaining a visa that allows additional time, but it requires proof of health insurance and financial solvency, etc. Since our travel plans included travel to Ireland and Great Britain anyway, we are electing to jump out of Schengen countries after 90 days in June and return in October.

Do they take this agreement seriously? When we went to Italy on a trip, the Italian customs were a little lax in checking passports and simply waved people through. When leaving, we had to transfer planes in Germany, where they wanted our passports and questioned why we had no stamp showing entry into a Schengen area. Naturally we blamed the Italians, but the German agent was not amused and we received a nice little lecture that it was our responsibility to ensure our passports got stamped.

We are making our home base the first three months in Rhens to answer Gay’s desire to “live like a German” and also to practice our German. But we will be taking day trips even during those months. Things could change, but here is the list of countries we hope to visit: Germany, France, Netherlands, Austria, Spain, Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, Switzerland and Italy.

We are off to meet people and gather experiences all over Europe. Follow us at facebook.com/alongacobblestonepath.

Resource :http://www.omaha.com/living/omaha-couple-paring-down-in-preparation-for-lengthy-sojourn-in/article_8790a25a-de4b-56bb-9a7e-01a829fe64bf.html

You can make a change, you just have to face it’: Penegars simplify their lives

    SALISBURY — When the new year arrived, Sam and Cindy Penegar started tossing around the idea of relocating, and along with it, drastically downsizing their lives.

Just to see what might happen, they stuck a for-sale-by-owner sign in their front yard on Windsor Drive. A couple soon came to see their Eagle Heights home on a Monday and made an offer on it by the following Friday.

By Jan. 26, the Penegars had ordered a “tiny house” and were committed to moving to Surf City at the coast, where they would be 30 minutes from their first grandchild.

To call this a downsizing and a life-changing experience doesn’t do it justice.

Sam and Cindy grew up in Salisbury, and they started dating each other as juniors in high school. They’ve been married 37 years. For the past 27 years, the Penegars have lived in their 2,600-square-foot home.

The tiny house they will be moving into is 399 square feet.

At the coast, the Penegars plan to enjoy their 23-foot boat, wear their bathing suits most every day and live in an RV community on the intracoastal waterway.

Sam says they like the sandbar life.

“We may be growing older,” Cindy says, “but we’re not growing up.”

The closing date for the sale of their Salisbury home is Friday. They expect delivery of the tiny house in Surf City March 15. When they leave Salisbury, the Penegars will have what’s left of their worldly possessions in a U-haul trailer.

“This is my life, this is what’s left of it,” Cindy says, sitting near the small island of containers and boxes in the living room.

In a moment, she corrects herself.

“No, most of it is in my heart,” she says.

The decision to move to the coast wasn’t as difficult as you might think. For a couple of years, the Penegars had a 40-foot trailer in the same RV community — “adult summer camp,” Sam calls it.

And because of their young grandson, the boat and Sam’s parents’ place at Atlantic Beach, the Penegars were spending big chunks of time on the coast.

They realized they were coming home to Salisbury mostly to check on the mail, pay the bills and go to doctor appointments. Within 24 hours of being back, they were missing the coast and the infant grandson.

“I didn’t want to be four hours away,” Cindy says.

They also learned that even when you’re not living in your house much, “your house still gets dirty,” Cindy says. The big, tri-level home requires a good 2,300 steps to clean — they’ve measured it.

The Penegars had a long discussion with sons Tre and Michael and their wives, Kathryn and Lisa, respectively. The suggestion rose that the Penegars should find a place halfway between the boys, but the coast made more sense now.

Plus, the tiny house always can be moved easily in the future. Maybe that will happen, since Michael and Lisa, who live in Denver (N.C.), are expecting their first child in June.

The coast also seemed right because the Penegars already have done what they refer to as their mountain thing. Both sons attended Appalachian State University, so the Penegars bought a house in Boone, where the boys could live while they were in school.

It also served as the couple’s mountain home from which to hike and ski. They sold the house after the boys were through college.

Maybe it was for the best, but the speed in which the Penegars had an offer on their house forced them to move quickly.

“That lit a fire under us,” Cindy says.

At first, they enforced a two-year rule: “If you haven’t used it in two years, get rid of it,” Cindy says.

Penegar was a longtime probation officer for the state until he became permanently disabled in 2012. The multiple sets of stairs at the Windsor Drive house were becoming troublesome because of the nerve damage in his legs.

And though the house has three bathrooms, you have to go up or down a set of stairs to reach them.

Cindy is a retired N.C. Department of Corrections employee who for three weeks — 21 straight days — was a whirlwind on Windsor Drive, working nonstop from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.,

“It’s was overwhelming in the beginning,” Cindy says, “but it’s now more of a relief every hour.  … You can make a change, you just have to face it.”

The Penegars conducted four yard sales in one week. Even though it was February, the unseasonably warm weather cooperated nicely.

They sold their Bow Flex exercise machine to Rufty-Holmes Senior Center. They donated 41 bags of clothes, shoes and linens to the Kidney Foundation. They struck a deal with an auction company to take all of their furniture and sell it at a 30 percent commission.

Getting rid of 27 years worth of life’s accumulation was a monstrous undertaking. The house has five bedrooms, and the 700-square-foot basement alone is way bigger than the tiny house to which they are moving.

Sam is keeping the beautiful grill that was part of his elaborate outdoor kitchen. He also is taking his tools and stereo equipment with him, but that’s pretty much it.

He’s leaving the pool table with the new owners and giving up his cherished French foosball table. Sentimental keepsakes such as the kids’ old report cards were looked at and appreciated before they went into the trash.

“I downsized pictures, believe it or not,” Cindy says.

In taking care of the house and all of its stuff now, the Penegars think they’ve done their children a huge favor for the future, though that really wasn’t their intent.

They’ll miss the Windsor Drive home. This used to be a gathering place for the boys and their friends, as it also was, because of its size, for the extended Penegar family over holidays.

“This was a good house to raise kids in because you can hide,” Cindy says.

Sam says this major downsizing and move just represents another of life’s chapters.

The couple have been surprised at how so many things fell into place — the quick sale of the house, the ordering of the tiny house, the good weather in February and the sale (without advertising) of the 40-foot trailer in Surf City.

“This has all happened so fast,” Cindy says. “I have just had to think it was meant to be.”

Tiny houses fall under a broad definition, Sam says, but he likes the heavy, 2-by-4 wood construction of the Park model by Skyline they have chosen. They bought the tiny house from Camptown RV of Peletier.

Resting on three axles and a tongue, it will be strapped down in the Surf City RV community, not placed on a foundation, Sam says. It comes furnished, and basically all the Penegars will have to do is to turn the key and walk in.

The model includes a living room, kitchen, bathroom, downstairs bedroom and stairs to two small lofts, one of which Sam will use for a music room. Whatever few things she buys new for the tiny house will match, Cindy promises, and she names dishes as an example.

The place doesn’t have a washer or dryer, but the community’s laundromat is close. The Penegars will rent a storage unit for a while, until Cindy can go through and decide on the fate of what’s left.

The couple don’t think they are abandoning Salisbury. They will be returning at times to visit with Sam’s parents and see old friends.

But this experience of leaving and drastically downsizing has been as liberating as it has been bittersweet.

In all the cleaning out, selling, giving and throwing away that has happened in recent weeks, the Penegars found something they can’t explain — a lone seashell in the backyard.

If ever there were a sign or omen, this was it.

“It’s going to always be with me,” Cindy says.

Contact Mark Wineka at 704-797-4263, or mark.wineka@salisburypost.com.

Resource :http://www.salisburypost.com/2017/03/05/can-make-change-just-face-penegars-simplify-lives/