Author: robyndexter

Ladue News Feature Stories

A Novel Idea

robyndexter

UNICEF estimates that an average of 353,000 babies are born every day around the world, and an estimated 264 million children aren’t getting an education. What if each of those babies were given a library card and access to his or her local library’s resources right from day one? St. Louis County Library is making that a reality in the metro area with its Born to Read program.

As the library expanded its efforts to reach as many children and families as possible, it created a new program in 2015: Born to Read. Library director Kristen Sorth says this program was implemented to reach families “at the earliest possible moment” – and what could be earlier than the moment a new family member enters the world?

“We want to convey the importance of reading and introduce reading into the daily routine at the beginning of a child’s life,” Sorth says. “That’s why we came up with the idea to reach parents at the very first moment they have with their newborn in the hospital.”

The Born to Read program ensures that every baby born in St. Louis County receives a library card. New parents at participating hospitals receive a bag that contains a book, early literacy information, a library card, a Cardinals beanie and a voucher for two Cardinals tickets, along with other items.

The program started with just a few hospitals but has grown to include Mercy Hospital South, SSM DePaul Health Center, St. Clare Health Center, Missouri Baptist Medical Center, SSM St. Mary’s Health Center, St. Luke’s and – most recently – Mercy Hospital St. Louis, which was added in January.

“We know hospitals and maternity wards are busy, so we worked with them to come up with the most convenient way to deliver this information,” Sorth says. “We came up with the idea for this bag and expanded [what came in it] as we started talking to private funders and organizations in St. Louis that wanted to be a part of it.”

Born to Read is funded primarily through the St. Louis County Library Foundation, along with other area organizations and corporations like Cardinals Care, Great Southern Bank and Delta Dental, to name a few.

The program’s funding has allowed bags to be delivered far and wide in St. Louis County, with 47,000 families receiving a bag and library card since Born to Read’s inception. Hospitals handed out 12,000 bags in 2018 alone, and the addition of Mercy Hospital earlier this year will bring another 9,000 babies into the Born to Read family in 2019.

“I think having a child hear words and make a connection starting at birth means they’re going to have a great chance at staying on track in school,” Sorth says. “When they get to third and fourth grade, if they’re not at the right reading level, it’s hard for them to catch up. It’s important to get them interested and hear how words translate into stories.”

Sorth says the feedback from both parents and hospitals has been great over the years.

“We get a lot of people who send us photos of their babies in the hospital with their Born to Read bags,” she says. “Hospitals love it, too. The American Academy of Pediatrics includes reading to babies as one of the things doctors talk to new parents about. For the doctors, this is a really easy way to talk to parents about reading from the start.”

The Born to Read program serves as the initial kickoff to a child’s lifelong library experience, as well. As the child’s first birthday nears, parents receive an invitation to come to the library for a birthday celebration, where they receive another free book, the parents talk about early literacy with library staff, and staff members introduce the parents to all the programs the library features, like 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten. Library communications manager Jennifer McBride notes that it has seen an increase in attendance for parents and young children and hopes that increase is due to programming like Born to Read.

“Attendance at our children’s programs was up 10 percent in 2018 over the previous year,” she says. “I can’t attribute that directly to Born to Read, but it has definitely helped spread awareness of all the early literacy resources and programming available at the library.”

With an increase in foot traffic at the library, Sorth and her team hope to build on the programming that’s become so important to the organization’s mission.

“We really want to continue Born to Read long-term,” Sorth says. “And we want people to know that the library offers so many additional tools for caregivers to encourage kids and keep them engaged and learning.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Happily Ever After Stories

Happily Ever After: Gertie and the Pontious Family

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Once upon a time, a Lab/Great Dane mix was lying on the side of the road. She had been hit by a car and went unattended for three days, waiting for someone to notice she needed help and was in pain. Eventually, ActNow Rescue picked her up, naming her Miracle because it was a miracle she’d survived. The dog would need immediate surgery on her injured leg to try to save it, however.

Out in St. Peter’s, Rachel Pontious and her family had fostered for ActNow for years. When she found out about Miracle, she immediately agreed to foster the recuperating 90-pound dog.

“I don’t understand how anyone could leave a dog on the side of the road in pain,” she says.

The pup came to the Pontious family right after her leg surgery, so she was under “cage rest” for a few months, meaning all she could do was go outside to use the bathroom, which even proved challenging at times. At one point, one of the pins in the dog’s leg came poking out, and she had to have another surgery to correct it. It wasn’t easy for Miracle, but she continued to get better – and make friends.

Rachel’s 5-year-old son has autism and never developed a bond with either of the other two Pontious dogs. However, Miracle was different.

“She’s the only dog he’s ever shown interest in,” Pontious says. “She loves him, and he loves her. … She needed to be ours.”

Gertie

The Pontious family has had the dog, now renamed Gertie, for a year. They assume she’s 2 or 3 years old and has “the sweetest demeanor.”

“She’s so gentle and loves everyone,” Pontious says.

The road to recovery has been a long one for Gertie, who still has two bad back legs. Her cranial cruciate ligament (similar to the ACL in humans) went out, and she had to undergo yet another surgery for it. But her life is improved drastically, now that she knows the love of a family and other dog friends.

“She loves to play with other dogs, chew on bones and go on car rides,” Pontious says. “She just loves attention and loves to eat. She’ll bark if it’s dinnertime and we haven’t fed her.”

Pontious also notes that Gertie’s very intuitive about the feelings of her people and is great at comforting those around her.

“She knows when I’m sad and how to cheer me up,” Pontious says. “I just love how sweet she is and how loving she can be.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Ladue News Feature Stories

For the Love of Art

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Sarah Kelley and Mary Beth Bussen have known each other for more than 20 years, but they never dreamed they’d be running a shop together. But here, in 2019, the duo operates Union Studio in St. Louis’ Botanical Heights neighborhood, selling a wide variety of handcrafted goods and fine art. The best part? Everything in the shop is made by area residents.

Years ago, Bussen had been using the space at 1605 Tower Grove Ave. for her own personal textile work, sharing the storefront with another artist and maintaining a small retail footprint. Within her first year in the space, though, Bussen knew that she needed to figure out the focus for the storefront and that she’d need additional help.

“Just as I was writing up a job description and making the decision to expand the retail, [Kelley] walked in and said she was looking for a job,” Bussen says. “I wanted to create ongoing access to the high-quality work of artists in the community, and once [Kelley] came aboard, we really expanded that.”

When they first started Union Studio in April 2014, the duo carried the work of eight artists in the corner shop. Today, they carry more than 80.

“We’ve grown the retail aspect of things substantially in the last four years,” Kelley says. “What’s been nice about this space is, everything’s always happened organically. The combination of the community’s response and artist interest has led us to take on more and cultivate more relationships.”

Visitors to the shop will find a new selection of wares regularly, as the duo shifts out their supply to feature new pieces frequently. From local granola to pottery to handbags to skin care, Union Studio has a little something for everybody. Although the selection does change out regularly, there are a few things customers will always be able to find in-store, known as the Union Studio Collection. The set of items includes Al Westcott’s handleless mugs, Christiane Danna’s leaf earrings, Stone Leather Goods’ envelope purse and more.

“When people first walk in, we always ask if they’ve been in before,” Kelley says. “We tell them that everything is handmade and all artists are from St. Louis. [Bussen and I] personally know each and every person whose work is in here, and our customers have come to expect and cherish having that story to go with [their purchases]. I think that’s something really special.”

Oftentimes, customers use Union Studio as a gift shop and are drawn back repeatedly by the ever-changing selection, Kelley says. She notes the popularity of the shop’s “pantry” section, which features things like local honey, tea and granola.

“People like to give gifts that can be consumed and don’t have to have a place in somebody’s home,” she says of that popular exceptional section, which functions rather like an elevated impulse-buy area.

Customers are also drawn to the shop’s selection of clothing and accessories, including cozy pants from Annamaya Clothing by Alison Hyde, colorful pieces by Olivia Rae Designs and intricate jewelry from makers like Leia Zumbro and Jenny Walker.

The duo spends a lot of their time interacting with customers, taking the time to get to know them and find out what pieces they’re drawn to in the shop.

“There’s something special that happens in this space,” Bussen says. “People really are drawn to the work and the people that are doing it, whether it’s a cord wrap for your earbuds or a piece of large art for your home. I think people don’t always know what they’ll find, but they’re confident they’ll find something.”

As they celebrate their five-year anniversary this spring, the Union Studio ladies seek to open up the conversation even further.

“I think five years in, the shop is still ever-changing in its dynamic, but we want to have more sit-down conversations, whether it [be] with the artists or other business owners or members of the community in general,” Kelley says.

Bussen agrees, noting the reflective and loyal qualities in the shop’s customer base, along with the artists she and Kelley work with.

“We have a whole group of artists who are creative and generous to take a chance with us,” she says. “When you look at the people we have engaged in this space, it sure seems like there’s so much work to be done. Whether the work occurs in this physical space or broader, I think our hope is that we can start to understand what we can do with all these incredible people.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Ladue News Feature Stories

Herb Your Enthusiasm

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According to a recent Harvard Business Review study, only 10 percent of Americans love cooking. Many see it as a chore and dread preparing meals for themselves and their families. Luckily, a Fenton-based company headed by nutritionist Hayley Sohn is on a mission to provide area residents with healthy options delivered straight to their doorsteps.

Sohn studied nutrition and exercise physiology at the University of Missouri and up until a few years ago was working as a nutrition educator, working with senior centers and children – teaching organizations like the Girls Scouts about healthy food habits.

“What I was always teaching people was that you need to be cooking at home if you’re going to be taking control of your health,” she says. “I realized people just don’t cook at home anymore. They’d tell me they only eat fast food and wanted to know the healthiest options there. I knew there had to be something else.”

As a trained nutritionist, Sohn was and is passionate about crafting healthy meals. She’d make and bring her lunch to the office every day, and her coworkers started to notice.

“They asked me if I’d cook a little extra, and they could buy it from me,” she says. “I realized this is the solution to what I was coming up against.”

When she was considering a career change in September 2017, she brought it up to her boyfriend, wanting to do something else.

“I think you’re already doing it,” Sohn recalls him saying.

Last January, Sohn officially started Basically It, a healthy subscription meal service company that delivers to the doorsteps of those in St. Louis County on Mondays. The ready-to-eat gluten-free meals range from $11 to $14 each (comparable to meal delivery services like Blue Apron and HelloFresh), with a one-week trial of five meals costing $70. Options include three-, six- and 16-week plans, along with a one-week trial option. Sohn and her chef, Shaquila Remtula, create four seasonal menus a year, with five menu options a week. Sohn serves as the nutritional guide, and Remtula crafts the tasty recipes from there.

“[Remtula] has an awesome culinary history,” Sohn says. “She’s lived all around the world and brings some of those flavors to the food.”

Right now, some of Basically It’s selections include options like chicken with Italian white beans, turkey meatloaf with cauliflower mash, cranberry-almond spinach salad, beef souvlaki (a type of Greek meat skewer) with charred broccoli, and a steak-and-asparagus quinoa bowl. Sohn and Remtula are currently working on their spring menu and have even put out a contest on Facebook to see what options their clients, often busy professionals or empty nesters, would like to see on the menu. Some that were brought into consideration include salmon cakes and an avocado-mango salsa.

“We try to showcase what’s coming out that season,” Sohn says. “For the spring menu, we’ll see a transition from winter to lighter foods. We’ll be phasing out the squashes and bringing in a lot more greens and pinks and reds, which I’m excited about.”

Sohn says vegetables are her favorite foods to experiment with because they have a “bad reputation.”

“I love experimenting with ways to use them that transform them into something you don’t expect,” she says. “Outside of that, I love exploring different flavor profiles from around the world and seeing how herbs and spices can work together. Those are so powerful and dense in nutrients.”

Sohn and Remtula’s flavor profiles and meal choices clearly have been working. In the year-plus since Basically It’s inception, customers have left rave reviews.

“The feedback about the food has been phenomenal,” Sohn says. “We’re really focused on making our food fantastic and good for you, too.”

In the coming year, Sohn aims to grow and expand Basically It to reach more people. She highlights the philosophy within the Basically It food: the “no diet” diet.

“You don’t have to be following a fad diet to be eating healthfully,” she says. “You should be eating in a way that fits your life. You can eat and be healthy and not be restrictive.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Ladue News Feature Stories

A Whole Llama Love

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Peru-born St. Louisan Daphne Benzaquen always thought she was going to be a doctor. She was on a pre-med track in college, and because her father’s a doctor, she figured she’d follow in his footsteps. But after college, she realized she wanted to pursue business instead and earned her MBA at Washington University in St. Louis. In her second year at Wash U, Benzaquen wanted a unique backpack to take to classes – one that no one else would have that also suited her needs. She was unsuccessful in searching for such a backpack, but her failure to find something just right sparked her curiosity. She’d always heard that the artisans in the mountains of Peru were known for their leather products, and she wondered if she could have someone make her the perfect backpack.

“I cold-emailed several eruvian] manufacturers I found online” she says. “I figured it was worth a try.”

With no design experience, Benzaquen did her best to communicate to the artisans what she was envisioning for her backpack and sent them makeshift designs. Since she often spends Christmastime in her birthplace of Lima, Peru, Benzaquen took a side trip on her next visit to the mountains of Arequipa to meet with five of the manufacturers she’d been in contact with.

“Some of the manufacturers had totally changed my design, and some had not worked on my design at all,” she says. “I didn’t even want to go to my last meeting because I was so frustrated but ended up going and that manufacturer had created a backpack that most closely resembled my design.”

Benzaquen liked that he worked with llama leather and baby alpaca fur – something that would be unique and different for the metro area. In addition to her backpack, Benzaquen realized she could make more designs to send to Arequipa and spent the next year sending designs back and forth. She procured her own hardware for the pieces, as the copper color she desired wasn’t common in Peru.

“I knew if I was going to put my name on it, it had to be me,” she says.

From a few rough designs and countless emails from St. Louis to Arequipa, daph. was born. The company name, drawn from her own, also serves its purpose as an acronym: durable, authentic, polished and handmade – pillars that are most important to Benzaquen’s business. After two years of designing, communicating and creating and one year after her manufacturing trip to Peru, daph. officially launched online on Dec. 16, 2017.

“It was one of the scariest day of my life,” Benzaquen says with a laugh.

She hadn’t told many people about the brand she was building, keeping her work to herself outside of her immediate family.

“I got so many texts and feedback the day the website launched,” she says. “I even got one of the first purchases that day. That’s when I knew I had made something people like and that I had to keep going with it.”

Outside of the backpack, her first set of releases included bags like the anita., the angelica., the cristina. and the mosy. – a baby alpaca fur clutch. The original collection was inspired by the “cheerleaders” in Benzaquen’s life – like the best-selling nicole. belt bag, named in honor of her sister, which is a small and stylish bag that can be used as a crossbody, clutch or belt bag. The pieces showcase the high quality and durability of Peruvian leather, even incorporating design elements inspired by Incan ruins in pieces like the Moray Circle Purse. The bags vary in color and price range, from the $125 Nazca envelope case to the Mosy clutch, which retails for $425.

Continuing to expand on her original concepts, Benzaquen released an Exclusive Release Alpaca Fleece apparel line last October featuring three pieces: an alpaca zip-up sweater, an oversize alpaca vest and a baby alpaca layering cape. The alpaca textiles are out of her hometown of Lima and offer a more sustainable alternative to cashmere with the same soft feel. Benzaquen called the apparel release a test, but since she’s “basically sold out of all of them,” she plans to do more. She’s already started on her winter 2019 designs and is finalizing designs for this fall, as well. In the nearer future, she has a travel capsule planned for an April release.

Although she grew up in St. Louis, Benzaquen’s Peru roots are important to her, and she’s taken great care to incorporate the South American country into the mission of her brand. A portion of each purchase goes back to communities in Peru, with proceeds going toward a new cause each year. In 2018, Benzaquen chose Peruvian American Medical Society, and daph. helped fund a special needs school in Tarapoto, a town in north-central Peru.

“I had never been to the jungle, but I was lucky enough to go in August, and we were able to inaugurate this multisensory wing that part of the daph. purchases help build,” she says. “That felt so good … like I’m really making a difference.”

In 2019, she plans to work with an organization like Supporting Kids in Peru to help economically disadvantaged children in such Latin American municipalities as El Porvenir and Alto Trujillo get educational support.

Benzaquen says she would never describe herself as a risk-taker, but she’s proud of herself for taking the plunge and starting her own business.

“I always say, ‘Fail fast; fail forward,’ – if something doesn’t work, at least you tried and can move onto the next thing having learned something along the way,” she says. “As corny as it sounds, if you don’t try, you’ll never know.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Happily Ever After Stories

Happily Ever After: Zoey, Chaka, Timmy and the Brands Family

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Once upon a time, the Brands family found themselves without dogs after their three senior pups crossed the rainbow bridge one after the other. Kenna Brands and her family waited more than a year before even considering bringing new four-legged friends into the family. One day, she convinced her husband to go look at a dog at PetSmart. When they arrived, however, the dog they came to see wasn’t there – but a little 5-year-old French bulldog was. The pup was scared and had been a puppy-mill dog, but the Brandses took to her right away. Due to some health issues, she wasn’t available for adoption right away, but the foster group agreed to bring her out for a home visit. When the All About Paws member brought the bulldog for a visit, they also brought a Xoloitzcuintli (commonly known as a Mexican hairless dog, or Xolo) to keep the bulldog company.

“[The Mexican dog] showed up in her PJs and had a little white mohawk and a sweet, soulful face,” Brands recalls. “She was in our house for about 10 minutes, and we knew she was supposed to be here.”

They called All About Paws and said they wanted to adopt both dogs. The 3-year-old Xolo, now named Zoey, came to the Brands family in early March 2018, and the bulldog, now named Chaka, a few weeks later.

“Zoey has been awesome with helping Chaka learn how to become a dog,” Brands says. “Zoey wants to play so much, and Chaka didn’t know how to play.”

While the Brands family was acclimating their two new family members, they kept in contact with All About Paws. And that’s when they got the call about Timmy Tornado, another Xolo who was 1 year old. They brought Timmy over for a visit, and “Timmy and Zoey turned our backyard into WrestleMania,” Brands says with a laugh. And so, the Brands family grew by another member as Timmy joined the family in September of the same year.

One of the things that endeared the Brands family to Timmy was his patience with Chaka, who’s slower to warm up to people and other dogs due to her background of abuse.

“He plays softer with her and gives her snuggles,” Brands says.

In the months that they’ve had her, Chaka has adapted to her new family. It was harder for her than for the other two, and Brands said she almost cried the first time the pup came over to her asking to be held.

“When you see that from a mill dog, it’s so rewarding,” Brands says. “Her love is so pure.”

Hairless Zoey and Timmy are spending their winter months lounging around in their pajamas, though Brands says Timmy doesn’t seem to realize he’s hairless and loves to play in the snow. Brands says their skin is soft like a baby’s, and they need to be rubbed down with coconut oil after their baths. But the family has come to love the interesting-looking dogs and their quirky personalities – particularly how they all get along together.

“We just love our dogs so much,” Brands says. “We’re so grateful for All About Paws.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Ladue News Feature Stories

Restoration St. Louis Has Passion For Preservation

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Amrit and Amy Gill started their careers in construction, but along the way, they became what Amy Gill calls “building huggers,” fascinated with architecture and the historic spaces around them. In 2001, the husband-and-wife team founded their own development company called Restoration St. Louis, with the mission of strengthening and enhancing communities by redeveloping neglected neighborhoods and making them great places to live, work and play.

“We get very entrenched in every neighborhood we renovate,” Amrit Gill says. In the years since the company’s founding, the Restoration St. Louis team has braved historic undertakings like restoring The Moolah and The Coronado in midtown St. Louis and dozens of projects in The Grove business district of St. Louis’ Forest Park South East neighborhood.

“We’re renovated over 400 historic properties in the Midwest,” Amrit Gill says. Along with the St. Louis area, the Gills have also done a variety of projects in Davenport, Iowa. Of those 400-plus projects, all have a common theme: They have soul. And they have to because historic renovations often cost at least twice as much as new builds.

“In a new build, you don’t have to get rid of lead and asbestos,” Amrit Gill says. “You don’t have to worry about how the column grids are. You do it the way you want it. But [historic projects] take a lot more day-to-day attention.”

One of the Gills’ recent labors of love is the brand-new Hotel St. Louis, which opened just before Christmas in downtown St. Louis. Originally built between 1891 and 1893 by Adler and Sullivan, Architects, the Union Trust Building underwent a $68 million facelift from the Gills and their team. It’s now a Marriott Autograph hotel – St. Louis’ first – and features 140 rooms, 14 apartments, one penthouse, two restaurants, a pool and a spa. It also features meeting rooms and a grand ballroom.

The building had been in the same family for 122 years and went up for sale quietly. The broker called the Gills and asked them to come look at it, and they jumped at the chance to lovingly restore the piece of St. Louis history. The Gills put in a bid, and though they weren’t the highest bidder, they were selected in April 2015 because the Cella family “wanted to keep it in the hands of a St. Louis family,” according to Amrit Gill. Although it took a while to get the financing and tax abatements together, Restoration St. Louis was able to start construction on what would become Hotel St. Louis in July 2017. Eighteen months later, it’s now open to the public. But during those 18 months, the team integrated as much St. Louis history, architecture, art and visuals as they possibly could into the space – while paying homage to its designer, the father of the high-rise.

“[Louis] Sullivan made tall buildings tall – those are Frank Lloyd Wright’s words, not my words,” Amrit Gill says. “He was doing things on the cutting edge. He didn’t know how everything was going to work out, so he overbuilt everything. Even the basement [of Hotel St. Louis] is crisscrossed with 30-inch steel I-beams. We had to cut through the steel to do things like put the elevator in.”

The original building already contained several aspects honoring the city of St. Louis, like the fleur-de-lis cutouts in the staircases. The Gills made it their mission to move what Sullivan had already done forward and give the entire hotel as much of a St. Louis feel as possible – down to the minibars stocked with local favorites like Billy Goat Chip Co. chips – just one of the 165 local companies represented in the hotel.

On entering, visitors to the hotel view a lobby that’s equally luxurious and welcoming. Deep blue hues serve as the accent colors throughout the hotel, and arch-shaped patterns can be found scattered all around. Stained glass is currently being installed in the lobby ceiling that paints a colorful canvas for all who enter. Upstairs, the rooms’ custom wallpaper pattern is taken directly from the architecture of the outside of the building, and windows look out to stunning views of Busch Stadium and other historic downtown St. Louis landmarks.

“I think it’s just beautiful,” Amy Gill says, looking out over the hotel lobby. “To me right now, it’s a moving piece of art. It’s changing every day.”

Although the hotel has been open for a little more than a month, features are still being finished and added every day. In addition to the lobby restaurant, Union 30, the Restoration St. Louis team is preparing a restaurant that will open on the rooftop at the end of February. They’re also finishing work on the hotel’s spa and ballroom.

But it’s not just the hotel keeping the Gills and the Restoration St. Louis team busy. Amrit Gill says they have 26 projects open right now, including working on the Seven Gables Inn in Clayton, as well as residential projects. No matter what they’re working on, though, the goal remains the same: Stay true to the mission.

“Most communities need strengthening and enhancing forever, so we want to stay true to that goal,” Amrit Gill says. “The young people within our organization are our future, so we want to make sure they believe in the mission as much as we do and are as passionate as we are.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Ladue News Feature Stories

Provisions St Louis Offers Luxe Necessities

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When the Northern California wildfires struck Sonoma County in late 2017, Ross and Debra Hunter decided it was time to rethink their California lives. They had founded and operated a shop called Provisions 707 in the area, and although the shop remained intact during the fires, their customer base had largely been displaced. One of their loyal customers had packed up and moved to Kansas City, raving to the Hunters that it was the best thing she ever did. The couple thought it would be a good idea to check out Kansas City as a new place to live and decided to visit St. Louis, too, this past March.

“We just fell in love with St. Louis,” Debra Hunter says, thinking back to that initial trip. During their excursion, they dined at Brasserie in St. Louis’ Central West End neighborhood and knew it was the right part of St. Louis in which to start their lives anew.

“I remember saying, ‘We need to figure out how to relocate and open a business here [in the Central West End],’” Ross Hunter says.

In the final days of summer, the Hunters packed up their belongings and moved a few thousand miles across the country to become Midwesterners. Debra Hunter had fallen in love with the set of storefronts along Euclid Avenue and kept her eye on real estate opportunities in the area. When she saw a spot had opened up at 228 N. Euclid Ave. – the former site of faux leather company Fauxgerty, which recently relocated to the city’s Lafayette Square neighborhood – the Hunters jumped at the opportunity to lease the space for their business.

Provisions St Louis opened on Nov. 15, offering the “sights, scents and textures of life’s necessary luxuries.” Visitors to the natural light-filled space are greeted by inviting scents and the warm tones of a record player. Floating shelves display everything from leather carry-on bags to cookbooks, while the other side of the room offers skin care products, alpaca scarves and gorgeous ceramic dishware.

“Something we all have in common is giving – from birthdays to holidays and everything in between, we hope to provide a selection and user experience that exceeds our customer expectations,” Ross Hunter says. “We are a lifestyle store and want to offer the community usable but elevated goods.”

The shop offers brands from around the United States, including many products the Hunters have brought with them from the West Coast.

“We’re bringing our original aesthetic here, but we’re still finding our way with St. Louisans,” Debra Hunter says. “We want to make sure we’re offering things that resonate with our customers.”

One thing the Hunters are big on is skin care for both women and men, so Provisions St Louis offers it in many different forms. Men’s skin care was one of the original focal points of Provisions 707, so the couple knew it was important to bring some of the predecessor’s American-made, small-batch items to the St. Louis shop, as well. Visitors will find brands like California’s Birchrose + Co and Colorado’s Native Nectar Botanicals on the shelves, along with accessories like Timex watches, colorful pocket knives from Santa Fe Stoneworks and vegetable-dyed wallets from Il Bussetto. Tables in the middle of the room display picturesque books like Ian Schrager’s Studio 54 and William Claxton’s Jazzlife. More quirky offerings include Snoop Dogg’s From Crook to Cook (which the Hunters have already had to reorder) and Abby Reisner’s Ranch: An Ode to America’s Beloved Sauce in 60 Mouth-Watering Recipes.

Just weeks after opening, the Hunters got to experience the unrivaled enthusiasm the Central West End has for its businesses with the return of the annual Window Walk. Ross Hunter estimates that he and his wife had a few hundred people through the store on Dec. 8 – with a few returning the following day to re-examine and purchase more goodies and gifts from the shop.

“It was really awesome and fulfilling at the same time,” he says.

In the few months it’s been open, Debra Hunter notes that feedback on the shop has been “so great.”

“We feel strongly about being a brick-and-mortar shop and not selling online right now,” she says. “We really like the sense of community and enjoy talking with people.”

In the coming months and years, the Hunters hope to expand their outreach into the community and start teaming up with nonprofits – something they had done and were passionate about in Sonoma County.

“Right now, everything is so new and fresh,” Debra Hunter says. “We want to know if we’re offering what our customers need. But it’s just been so cool already. I just feel like this is the best place for us.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Happily Ever After Stories

Happily Ever After: Ziggy and the Brose Family

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Once upon a time, a medium-haired Maine Coon mix named Ziggy was searching for his forever home. He had initially been adopted months ago from a Petco, but later showed up at the back door of a volunteer with The Cat Network, a cat rescue group that’s been helping stray and abandoned cats find their forever homes since 1991. The volunteer and other Cat Network staffers were able to trace his microchip information, but the contact info turned out to be bogus.

So Ziggy came under the care of The Cat Network, which found him a great home. Unfortunately, when the family welcomed a new member after adopting Ziggy, allergies and asthma prevented them from keeping the cat. Ziggy returned to The Cat Network six months after being adopted.

Over in Olivette, Allison Brose and her 4-year-old, Lydia, were out running errands and stopped into Bentley’s Pet Stuff to pick up a few Christmas presents for the cat of Brose’s sister and brother-in-law. Upon entering the shop, Lydia fell in love with a huge orange cat that was up for adoption.

“He reminded me a lot of the cat we used to have before my kids were born, Charlie,” Brose recalls. “He was a huge gray Maine Coon and was so sweet.”

While the Broses hadn’t been talking about getting a pet anytime soon, Brose felt in her gut she should inquire about the cat in Bentley’s. She contacted The Cat Network and soon heard back from the group’s secretary, Kristi Hill. Unfortunately, the Bentley’s cat was in the process of being adopted. But the timing ended up being just right because Ziggy had just come back to The Cat Network, and Hill asked if Brose would be interested in meeting him instead.

“I showed the pictures to my husband and kids, and they were all so excited,” Brose says. “We made plans to go meet Kristi and Ziggy at Petco. She stayed there with us for an hour while the kids got acclimated to him.”

Ziggy was only without a home for 23 hours. The Broses adopted him just before Christmas and welcomed the cat into their home for the holidays.

In the few weeks since his adoption, Ziggy has settled into his new home with ease. Brose calls him a “gentle giant” and says having Ziggy is almost like having a dog because he loves to be around people and inserts himself into whatever happens to be going on around the house. Brose says he’s extremely tolerant of his new younger housemates, who are 8, 6 and 4 years old.

“They’re so gentle with him, and he’s always trying to be around them,” Brose says.

Ziggy’s current hobbies include jumping onto and off countertops, playing in the shower, watching squirrels and hanging out in the bathroom and kitchen sinks. Brose says it feels like he’s been a part of the family for much longer than just a few weeks and loves that he’s so social.

“I just feel like he was meant to be,” she says. “I wasn’t searching for a pet, but this fell into place.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.

Ladue News Feature Stories

Period Restoration Revamps History

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Since 2009, Period Restoration has been making a name for itself for its team’s ability to respect and restore the historical integrity of the Gateway City’s older homes. Co-founder Randy Renner Jr. has been passionate about breathing new life into these grand traditional houses for years, but nothing could’ve prepared him for what would become his largest challenge to date: the restoration of 4969 Pershing Place.

It all started in the summer of 2015, when Renner and his team were invited to take a look at creating luxury condominiums just off Kingshighway Boulevard.

“I thought the concept was incredible,” Renner says. “The space lent itself to what we were envisioning.”

The property at 4969 Pershing Place sits just inside a gate in St. Louis’ Central West End neighborhood, boasting a gorgeous façade and nearly 11,000 square feet of living space. It was built for a widow and her four children in 1902 – just in time for the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis – and was designed in the hôtel particulier style as a grand sort of town house. About 30 years later, the woman’s grandson designed what was later turned into three apartments – one on each floor of the house, with living quarters in the basement for a caretaker.

It was fortunate for the Period Restoration team that this division and conversion had taken place many decades prior, as the historic neighborhood otherwise wouldn’t have allowed the company to develop what would become three luxury condos with the guidelines set by the Central West End Historic District.

“This was kind of a one-time shot,” Renner says. “This was already set up as apartments, so we knew we could make them really special luxury condos.”

They began the tremendous project in winter 2015, starting with demolition.

“We reconfigured every floor to accommodate the new floor plan,” Renner says. “We wound up doing a lot of structural work.”

Perhaps the biggest undertaking was a $300,000 custom-built, four-stop commercial elevator and a 35-foot-tall deck that features space for every unit off the back of the building.

“There’s not a deck in St. Louis like it – and not just structurally,” Renner says. “We did the ornamental ironwork to match the Juliet balconies on the front.”

While creating a match like that can be tricky, for Renner, it’s just part of the job.

“Our specialty is old restoration work just like this,” he says. “We retrofitted new mechanicals and did all new plumbing and complete rewiring … new components that can be difficult to do in an old house.”

Another time-consuming aspect of the project was the building’s windows, all of which were restored. Renner notes that it took about 15 months to take out every window to be reglazed before rehanging it.

Though its architectural presence on the street is in itself stunning, the inside features even more unique and historical offerings. The first-, second- and third-floor condos are 2,209, 2,508 and 2,748 square feet, respectively, and feature intricate crown molding, open floor plans and ceilings that reach as high as 14 feet. Wood flooring has been meticulously restored throughout, and Period Restoration wowed with custom cabinetry and elegant marble countertops.

Renner and his team completed the restoration of 4969 Pershing Place in the fall of 2017. Open house attendees were wowed by the floor plan, bathrooms and kitchen spaces.

“It’s always rewarding when someone wants to purchase one of your products,” he says. “Everybody loved that building.”

The second-floor condo sold right away, and the third floor followed soon afterward. The first-floor unit was the last to sell, this past summer.

“We really pride ourselves in not just talking the talk,” Renner says. “A lot of people talk about doing preservation work, but we do it well and put in the money to do it. It’s very rewarding for us.”

This story was originally published at laduenews.com. Read it on LN’s website here.