With the mild winter and early spring no one was disappointed that the 36th Annual Home Show sponsored by the Kenai Peninsula Builders Association (KPBA) and Spenard Builders Supply (SBS) came in March this year. “We kept thinking a late winter blast would show up but it didn’t, so we are enjoying an early building season and I guess the builders cut a deal with Mother Nature and it’s looking great for an early construction season. Actually we seem to be catching a tail wind from last year’s late fall and there are no signs of slowing down. The fact that winter went south means right now supplies are good and prices are down and the banks are lending at a very reasonable rate. So spring is here and so is the building season” said SBS Kenai store manager Jeff Warton. “The fun part of the Home Show is going around and seeing the new things and materials that you might not ever know existed in construction. With advances in technology and new materials comes more energy efficient buildings and more cost effective building which means better value for the home owner is this is a great showcase for those materials,” Warton said.
The theme of this year’s show was “Be Inspired!” and the show certainly lived up to its theme. “KPBA was pleased to present a great show and very full arena with over 100 booths. Attendance was extremely strong and we were happy to see the large number of families present,” reported Cindy Rombach, KPBA executive officer. Joe Gallagher from Homer Electric Association presented $500 cash to Carol Louthan, this year’s winner. Carol took her entry form around the show to KPBA member booths to have her form stamped, and ended up being the 2015 lucky winner. “We started the Home Show stamping 15 years ago as a fun way to spotlight our KPBA member exhibitors, and it’s still going strong today. HEA is our original sponsor, and continues to support this popular Home Show tradition,” said Rombach.
The Annual Garden Shed Raffle to benefit the KPBA Scholarship Fund was won by Scott and Gloria Walden. “Gloria purchased their winning ticket at the show. Scott and Gloria have been attending the Home Show for 20 years, and were extremely excited when Tom Seggerman delivered the shed to their home. This year the KPBA will be awarding four $1,000 scholarships to area youth who are pursuing building related careers. Our thanks to the community for supporting this worthwhile fundraiser through the years,” she said. Additionally, door prizes were given away every ten minutes throughout the weekend, and hundreds of show-goers walked away with everything from hefty gift cards to local building supply companies, greenhouses, local restaurants and coffee houses, to power tools and handmade birdhouses. “The gas grill sponsored by First American Title was won by Shira Voight of Soldotna; the mountain bike sponsored by Stewart Title was won by Kate Maestre of Soldotna. Several outstanding booths were awarded ribbons – Best of Show, Designer Interiors; Most Informative, Wisdom & Associates; Best Large Booth, Alaska Remote Builders; Best Double Booth, Creative Designers; Best Single Booth, Alaska Seasoning Company. The Central Peninsula Garden Club had an exceptionally popular booth this year. Students from Tustumena Elementary spent many hours making a delightful series of vegetables out of paper Mache and colorful spring flowers out of tissue. They were displayed throughout the club’s booth, complete with brightly lit green stems. The booth was a huge hit and enjoyed by all! KPBA is already planning for and looking forward to the 37th Annual show – Happy Spring!” said Rombach.
