Home Is Where the Heart Is

July 2, 2015

3:25 PM

Photo courtesy of Mary Jane Hitt

Home Is Where the Heart Is

House built in 1924 is one of the highlights of annual tour

Mary Jane Hitt and her husband, Bill, live at 15 W. Plum St. and will open their doors to visitors as part of this year’s Tapestry of a Town. The Hitts have owned their prairie-style bungalow home, which was built in 1924, for about two years and moved to Westerville for their retirement.

Mary Jane says the historic structure was owned by the same family for 50 years. After it was purchased by neighbors living next door, it was given a complete makeover. However, the Hitts eventually stepped up and bought the 2,600-square-foot home after it was put on the market again.

The home has three bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, a sunroom, and outdoor living space featuring a deck, patio, a fire pit and other amenities.

“It’s just the perfect size house for retirees who have family in the area,” Mary Jane says. “This is a home that you walk in, and you are at home. It just feels good; it feels cozy and warm, and it just feels like the place we enjoy and our guests enjoy.”

Photo courtesy of Mary Jane Hitt

Home Is Where the Heart Is

Mary Jane also says she believes it’s always enjoyable to take a peek inside someone else’s home, whether it’s a public space or private property, and thinks Tapestry of a Town will be an enjoyable time for the general public.

“It’s just fun to get ideas and translate them into your living environment, and it’s for such a great cause, and it’s just fun to walk the streets and see other people doing the same thing, just out and about on a Sunday afternoon,” she says. “So I would say the more the merrier. We’re going to have our doors open and hope that lots of people will come.”

Historic homes like the Hitts’, businesses and city buildings in Westerville will be showcased as part of the third annual Tapestry of a Town event July 26, which offers a firsthand look inside various structures while also showing off their character.

The event, hosted by the Westerville Habitat Partnership, will bring visitors to 11 different sites in the city as part of a self-guided walking tour. All proceeds directly benefit projects supported by Habitat for Humanity.

Kay Hedges, who serves as co-chairwoman of the event, says Tapestry of a Town was created after the partnership thought there might be an opportunity to show off different sites in Westerville that people might not know much about. The organization also holds an annual progressive Christmas concert through three of its partner churches.

Hedges says Tapestry of a Town’s mission is to not only raise money for Habitat, but also highlight homes and businesses in an effort to help people learn more about them.

“I think everybody wins with our event. We’re really proud of it, and it seems to have been well-received,” she says.

Photo courtesy of Mary Jane Hitt

Home Is Where the Heart Is

The first event in 2013 drew about 400 people, guided through the city by a map that allows visitors to start where they wish. Pictures of the sites, addresses and background about each location are provided, while docents and greeters are on hand to provide further information.

Almost half of the sites on the Tapestry of a Town tour, which runs from 1-5 p.m., are residences. These locations proved to be popular with attendees in 2014. Nearly all the locations this year are located on the west side of State Street, and many sites are clustered together in an effort to make the tour more convenient for visitors.

Hedges says Tapestry of a Town showcases the best of Westerville and what it has to offer.

“I think Westerville is such an interesting town, and one of the reasons we called it the Tapestry of a Town is that we think there’s so many interesting sites in Westerville,” she says. “There’s a lot of history that is centered here, and we’re really proud of that and we’d like people to be aware of the town where they live and how interesting it really is. I really like seeing people learning about the uniqueness of Westerville and really appreciate people supporting Habitat, because every penny we raise goes toward the building projects of our program.”

Tickets for Tapestry of a Town, which are $10 each, can be purchased at the Westerville Convention and Visitors Bureau, 20 W. Main St. Tickets will also be available for purchase during Sunday morning services in July at Central College Presbyterian Church, 975 N. Sunbury Rd.; Church of the Messiah United Methodist, 51 N. State St.; Church of the Master United Methodist, 24 N. Grove St.; First Presbyterian Church, 41 W. College Ave.; and Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church, 100 E. Schrock Rd.

For more information on Tapestry of a Town, visit www.tapestryofatown.org.

Matthew Kent is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.

Tapestry of a Town Sites

Local History Museum at the Westerville Public Library

110 S. State St.

Private residence, formerly a B&B

93 W. College Ave.

Private residence, moved from Otterbein University’s campus

112 N. West St.

Residence of Otterbein president

111 N. West St.

HGTV house, private residence

119 S. Knox St.

Private residence

15 W. Plum St.

Battelle Fine Arts Center/Riley Auditorium

170 W. Park St.

First Presbyterian Church

41 W. College Ave.

Ohio Art Market

30 N. State St.

Hanby House

160 W. Main St.

A Gal Named Cinda Lou

20 N. State St.