A Family Portrait
June 18, 1999
l-r back row:  Margo, Herb, & Jeffrey Wondo with teddy, Gramps & Grandma Pierson
l-r front row:  LeRoy Cook & Gillian Wondo

A blended family, Herb & Margo married three years ago. 
Jeffrey was born eighteen months ago and Margo's parents, in their early 70s  visit frequently occupying the den between their Winnibago travels
throughout Canada and the US.

LeRoy, Margo's child from her first marriage, lives with Herb & Margo full time while Gillian lives with Herb's ex-wife; but stays with Herb & Margo every second weekend and holidays officially.  Times are changing though and since entering her early teens Gillian been lobbying to live with them year round.

The Wondo's are just your typical blended family in 1999. 

Currently everyone in the family is in good health.  Grandma is experiencing a touch of arthritis and Gramps' doctor recently told him he should watch his chlorestorol and get more exercise.  LeRoy did break his leg last winter -- snowboarding out of bounds at Cypres, but he seems to have fully recovered although it was awkward having him sleep on a bed they had to move into the family room of their existing house when he couldn't navigate the stairs.  LeRoy's accidental incapacitation drove home the need for a full bathroom and den/guest room on the main floor of their future home.

When the Herb & Margo started to plan a new home that could satisfy their changing family needs and the ebb and flow of their circumstances, they realized that the future would certainly  include the possibility that one or
both of Margo's parents could become physically challenged in the next
few years.  Certainly, as she is an only child, her parents would both be
living with them sometime in the future.  She wouldn't have it any other
way, but it certainly posed some challenges for maintaining privacy and
the needs of toddlers and teens alike that they hadn't considered when
they originally decided to merge their lives.

Herb & Margo run a small marketing firm that specializes in real estate promotion and sales.  They had worked with several really good designers and builders
in the past.  They had been keeping a "DREAM HOUSE" binder with all kinds of ideas for items they wanted to include in a new home of their own. 
Everything from in-floor radiant heat to a really neat residential elevator
was included in the file that had been building through Home Shows and Developer Show Homes for years.

It was clear they needed the advice of experts in the area of gerontology and family lifestyles.  At the BC Spring Home and Garden Show they sat in on the sessions at the "Answers by Association Stage" hosted by Gail Ferrier, and listened to a presentation by developer  Patrick Simpson and architect Mary Ann Clarke-Scott about the User Friendly Home more>more>more>

Watch for the cartoon series about the WONDOs and the NIMBYs
... coming to your community newspaper soon ... Eco Park

Front Elevation of  NEW  User Friendly Demonstration Home
Main Floor Plan        Upper Floor Plan

MORE PHOTOS>>>             Visit the WONDO Family > > >

Book Review         Order the Book

The USER FRIENDLY DEMONSTRATION HOME
at 2281 SW Marine Dr., Vancouver, BC, Canada

Opens October, 1999
may be viewed by reservation only
Reserve NOW!    Call       604  264  8878

More Details    --   Who's Involved?

Associations       Management Team       Suppliers         What is a User Friendly Home    
History of User Friendly   Homes          HOW TO GET INVOLVED   Order the Book    
Demo Home Floor Plans         Photo Gallery         News Release        Articles   
User Friendly Home Page

HOME