The lovely folks at our beloved local magazine paid us a visit last fall to shoot a 10 page feature on our little project. It rained. and rained. and rained. But they were all troupers! We were amazing that they were able to capture some great shots in between downpours…. quote: “Talk about a labor of love. The resurrection from near-collapse of this modest one-room cottage is a perfect example of such a labor. The last remnant of a 1920s Beardstown, Illinois, “cabin court” composed of multiple tiny frame houses just like it, it is a relic of an era…

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WHEN IS SOMETHING TOO FAR GONE?  An old car, a decrepit piece of furniture, a rusty old tractor,  an abandoned cottage is never beyond hope.  They just need to find someone who’ll believe in them. Tom Surratt believed. He didn’t see a worthless geriatric farm machine that was too far gone  (like so many elderly people we pass by every day).  He had a gift to see the youth, the former self, the beauty in everything.  He saw his grandson one day driving that tractor down Main street in the annual Beardstown Fall Fun Festival Parade. He didn’t see  a rust bucket of a pick-up…

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