Photo courtesy of Winnetka Heights Home Tour.
What do you do when a nearly 90-year-old house in a Historic District is struck by lightning, forcing a complete restoration?
Debbie and Jim Epperson, owners of 127 N. Montclair Ave., will be showing off the answer during the 35th annual Winnetka Heights Holiday Home Tour on Dec. 9.
The Epperson’s home is one of six that will be featured on the tour, with a seventh home available to VIP tour-goers. The tour will run from 12 – 6 p.m.
“Not only is every home on the tour historic but they’ve also been meticulously preserved,” Home Tour communications chair Taylor de la Fuente said. “On top of that, (attendees) also get to see everyone’s unique holiday decorations, and a lot of homes will include information on their family traditions.”
De la Fuente said the holiday traditions on display during the home tour is one of many things that make it unique. In the 2022 tour, one home displayed antique Christmas ornaments that had been passed down for generations while another home covered their bathroom in pink, Santa-print wallpaper.
“It’s not just decorations bought straight from Home Depot,” de la Fuente said. “There’s a lot of really unique stories.”
The home tour will kickoff at the historic Turner House, where guests will check-in and receive their tickets and a map of the tour.
General admission tickets are $20 if purchased in advance, or $25 if purchased on the day of the tour. VIP tickets are $40 if purchased in advance, or $50 if purchased on the day of the tour. The VIP ticket will include refreshments, in addition to access to the seventh home.
While the tour is walkable, 2023 will be the first year a shuttle will be provided from the Turner House to the furthest house on the tour. The lit-up bus will make the tour more accessible than it has been in past years.
The home owners of all six homes will be available to talk about what makes each home unique during the tour.
One highlight, according to de la Fuente, is a home with an original photograph of Anthony Bourdain on display. The photo was taken shortly before the famed Chef’s death.
And the Epperson’s home, newly restored after a September 2022 lightning strike but boasting the original light fixtures, was once the home of W. H. Adamson, the beloved principal of his namesake high school.
“Every home has a story, but then the home owners themselves have a story,” de la Fuente said. “And they’re there to tell that story.”
