St. Jude Dream Home Opens to the Public

Tickets have gone on sale for the 2009 St. Jude Dream Home campaign in Middle Tennessee, and the house itself, under construction by Southern Land Company in Franklin’s Westhaven neighborhood, will be open to the public Saturdays and Sundays beginning May 16. Hours will be 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sunday.

Since its inception in 2004, the Middle Tennessee St. Jude Dream Home campaign has become one of the leading ones in the country, raising more than $3 million for the Memphis hospital for children. In 2007, Southern Land Company Homebuilding was named St. Jude Builder of the Year.

The focal point of the campaign is the home being built and donated by Southern Land Company. Valued at approximately $550,000, the 3,158 sq. ft. home features a deep covered front porch that offers a place to sit and chat with neighbors or to put an end to the day with a favorite book. The classically inspired proportions and scale of this brick house is complimented by the Italianate details of the bracketed eaves, porch columns, and heavy window surrounds.

The foyer opens into the formal dining room, study, and stairs and then leads you to the open family living area. A walk-through butler’s pantry connects the formal dining room to the kitchen. An island in the kitchen maximizes work space and is centered on the fireplace in the family room.

The master retreat on the first floor offers a master bath with luxurious shower and tub, double vanities, large closet, and plenty of light, with access directly to the rear covered porch and courtyard. The two bedrooms and den upstairs make this an efficient, flexible, and functional layout for today’s style of living.

The home is located in Westhaven, the Southern Land Company community off New Highway 96 West in Franklin.

Tickets are being sold for $100 each and ticket buyers will also have a chance to win a $1,500 American Express card and 20 additional prizes, each with a minimal value of $1,000. Visitors to the St. Jude Dream Home may sign up free to win a $5,000 furniture shopping spree from American Signature Furniture. All proceeds from the St. Jude Dream Home campaign go to St. Jude’s Children Research Hospital.

To reserve tickets online, visit http://www.stjudedreamhome.org or call 800-746-6713. Only 16,000 tickets will be sold.

Prize winners will be selected during a live broadcast on Fox 17 on June 28.  The Big 98 WSIX and Greater Nashville House & Home & Garden™ are sponsors again this year.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is internationally recognized for its work in finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic diseases. Founded by late entertainer Danny Thomas, St. Jude is based in Memphis. No family ever pays for treatments not covered by insurance, and families without insurance are never asked to pay. For more information visit http://www.stjude.org.

Southern Land Company, based in Franklin, Tennessee, is a full service development firm with more than 335 employees between its  
Tennessee and Texas offices. The private firm was founded 21 years ago by the current CEO, Timothy W. Downey. To learn more about  
Southern Land Company visit http://www.southernland.com.

St. Jude Dream Home tickets on sale:  Through June 28 ticket price: $100
location: Franklin’s Westhaven community for information: 800-746-6713, http://www.stjudedreamhome.org