"Is this a park?" Teri Weber asked her husband, Paul, as she stepped out into the back yard of the ranch home in Kirkwood's Windsor Acres neighborhood. "No. It's part of the house," Paul replied. "What do you think?"
In October of 1998, Teri and Paul were ready to put their house-hunting search on hold until the spring. "I had two-year-old twin boys, and I was pregnant with my daughter, who was due in December," recalls Teri. "We had been looking for a ranch style house for over a year, and we just weren't finding anything." So, when the Weber's real estate agent told them there was one more house they needed to see, Teri was skeptical. Her first thought upon seeing the house was, "Oh. This needs so much work." Paul adds, "If you opened the kitchen door and kept walking, you'd fall down the basement steps." But then Teri saw the back yard. "I was in shock over how beautiful it was. The yard and the pond were perfect for Jack. We got this house because of Jack."
Jack is the Weber's 24-year-old son with special needs. At the time the Weber's bought the house, two-year-old Jack was not walking, therefore, a ranch-style home would pose fewer obstacles for Jack. The Weber’s faces light up when they talk about Jack. "Jack brings out the kindness in people,” says Paul. “He brings out the curiosity and love. It's interesting when you realize there are no perfect families. Every family has special needs. Some are just more visible. Teri and I have always said that because Jack's needs are so visible, we think it's less of a struggle than families facing hidden mental anguish."
"We were so blessed to find this house," states Teri. "The outdoor space is perfect for Jack. He loves the fountain, and we fish." When Teri and Paul discovered that Kirkwood allows one domesticated farm animal per acre, Princess came to live on the Weber's two-acre land. "We decided to get a horse for Jack because he was in a therapeutic horseback riding program. Princess was a rescue horse and pretty much our lawnmower."
Considering how spacious and serene the back yard is, it's no surprise that the Weber's love when people come over to enjoy the space.
Historically, neighbors have been "coming over" for generations. Teri recounts the history of their pond. "The pond was owned by the Nepper's, who were one of the three original orchard farmers in the area. In the late '40s and early '50s, everyone came over to Nepper's Pond to go skating and fishing."
The three Weber kids, Jack, Joe, and Kelly, grew up with a back yard that became a gathering place for family, friends, and neighbors. "When the kids were little, we had bonfires," Teri remembers. "We fished, ice skated, played hockey. That space was used for so many things."
Over the past 22 years, Teri and Paul have happily opened their back yard to host weddings, huge family celebrations (Paul comes from a family of nine kids), and neighborhood events. The annual neighborhood Easter egg hunt is one of Teri's favorite events. "We hide 500 – 600 eggs in the back yard. The entire neighborhood comes over."
It makes sense, then, that the Weber's have continually expanded and updated their outdoor living space.
"One of the first things we did was build the patio with a built-in fire pit by the pond," Paul explained.
Jerry Pense, a horticulture teacher at Meramac, designed the landscaping around the patio around the fire pit. The Weber's added another sitting area centered around a fire table. That space eventually expanded to include an adjacent outdoor kitchen built by Ryan Leeker, the owner of Petra Masonry. John Jacobson, the owner of Liquid Assets, updated the pool and the hot tub area. Patti Porter, the owner of Rusted Chandelier, accessorized the space. And the tiny back porch that Teri stepped onto 22 years ago has been expanded into an enormous 3-season outdoor living room.
"It's been an idyllic place for our kids to grow up," reflects Teri.