By Donna Cornelius
The Independent Presbyterian Church Holiday House Tour is always a high point of the Christmas season for church members and tour-goers.
The 2015 edition of the event ends the year on an especially festive note. The tour, along with the church’s Christmas Eve services, marks the culmination of IPC’s year-long Centennial Celebration.
The church began hosting special events in January and has held them every month to celebrate IPC’s 100th anniversary. (See story on page 10).
While the holiday tour isn’t quite as old as the church, it’s got a long history, too. This is the 66th year IPC has hosted the event.
Four houses and the church will be open for the Dec. 12 and 13 tour. Tour hours are 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturday and 1-5 p.m. on Sunday.
Tickets are $30. You can buy them through the church website, www.ipc-usa.org, or stop by the reception desk at the church at 3100 Highland Ave., Birmingham. Proceeds from ticket sales will help fund the summer learning program at the Children’s Fresh Air Farm, an IPC mission since the farm opened in 1923.
The summer learning program tries to meet challenges faced by disadvantaged children, including summer learning loss and nutritional deficiencies. About 80 campers participate in the program, which offers academics, enrichment, physical education and spiritual development.
“The children we are serving, all living in poverty, are at a very real risk of losing grade-level skills during the summer, such that by the time they get to high school, they could be three grade levels behind,” said Gini Williams, Children’s Fresh Air Farm director. “Standardized tests from our program show that the average gain was one month progress in grade level skills in reading and one month in math in 2015. Considering that typical summer learning loss is two to three months, these students entered the fall term far ahead of where they would have been without the program.”
Homeowners opening their houses for the tour are Mr. and Mrs. Rob Howland, 2801 Shook Hill Circle; Mr. and Mrs. Robert Jolly, 2805 Shook Hill Circle; Mr. and Mrs. David Roth, 3241 Dell Road; and Dr. and Mrs. Tommy Thomson, 3121 Brookwood Road.
Independent Presbyterian Church
Founded in 1915, the church was designed by Warren, Knight and Davis architect William Warren. IPC members will decorate the sanctuary and parlor. Christmas tea will be available for ticket holders both days of the tour in the church’s Great Hall.
The Howland Home
This Mediterranean-style house is home to Rob and Mary Beth Howland and their three children, ages 10 to 15.
While the house has some formal elements – French limestone and walnut flooring, vaulted ceilings and deep moldings – the Howlands emphasize family living and casual entertaining.
The house in Shook Hill Estates was built in 1998. The Howlands, its third owners, renovated the kitchen, adding an island and hood made from pecky cypress and a Calcutta marble and mother of pearl backsplash.
The house’s former living room now is an office/study.
The Howlands replaced most of the house’s lighting fixtures. There is an unusual Baker “bracelet” chandelier in the foyer and a gilt silver and platinum chandelier in the dining room.
Designer Lisa Flake helped Mary Beth Howland add personal style through wall coverings.
The spacious family room on the lower level of the main house offers a venue for watching football and movies or for gathering with relatives and friends.
Upstairs, each of the bedrooms reflects the personality of the child who lives there with playfulness and color. There’s also a den for teen girls and a “guy room” for 10-year-old Lewis Howland.
The main living spaces open onto a loggia, pool and formal gardens.
Adjacent to the main house is a guest house, which provides another spot for entertaining.
The Jolly Home
Also in Shook Hill Estates is the Jolly home, designed by Bruce McLeod and built in 2006.
The house is an example of refined French architecture. Its interior was designed by Tricia Willis of Place Inc. Landscape architect David Brush created the design for the grounds surrounding the home.
Mary Elaine Jolly grew up in the Florida panhandle, and her casual elegant coastal style is reflected throughout her home in the subtle nod to shell motifs seen in her antique furniture.
The house includes distinctive details, including antique glass pocket doors separating the dining room from the kitchen. The master bath showcases custom cabinetry hand painted to look like an antique armoire.
Mary Elaine lives in the house with her husband, Robert, and three children.
The Roth Home
The Roths’ home is on a quiet, private lot with sweeping views on Dell Road. It was built in 1942-43 by Jean Erskine Ramsay LaClair and Houston Lincoln LaClair on a tract of land originally owned by Jean’s uncle, Erskine Ramsay. The LaClairs lived there until 1985, when Barbara and Robin Harbin bought the house.
During the Harbins’ almost 30 years in the home, Barbara Harbin captured several generations of children with her signature black-and-white and hand-tinted portrait photography. The Harbins remodeled the kitchen, designed by Cyndy Cantley, in 2004.
The Roths bought the house in 2013. They worked with landscape designer Hilary Ross to simplify the front landscaping and added potted boxwoods on either side of the newly renovated front porch.
The studio space formerly used by Barbara Harbin was reconfigured to accommodate Kathleen Roth’s letterpress studio. Designed by architect Taylor Davis, the former in-law suite was transformed into a sunny contemporary and creative space with new steel joists to support a 1,200-pound press.
The Roths added paneling in the foyer and stairwell, updated a guest bathroom and converted a formal living room into a library for David Roth.
