Back Home In Indiana, The Church Lake Home, Syracuse Lake

Back Home In

Indiana Relishing a resort-like retirement

These Adirondack chairs around the firepit add just one of multiple outdoor seating areas, all surrounded by beautiful landscape, stone— and panoramic views of the lake.

story + photos by Sue Pais

If embracing sports, icons and history, and enjoying good health, friends, and family are goals in this game of life, then the Church duo wins as champs.

Although both raised in Indiana, the husband’s career led them to a 27-year residence in New Jersey. There, they raised four children, enjoyed proximity to Yankee stadium, and were busy with their careers and daily lives. But each summer they’d return home to Indiana, to their modestlysized summer home on Syracuse Lake. Yes, summers meant visiting friends and family, enjoying the lake lifestyle— and ensuring their children experienced lake life in Indiana.

Enjoy a peek into the home of Andy and Lydia Church.

This courtyard is tucked on the side of the house, free from any wind, private, relaxing— with a trickle from the fountain for added ambiance. It’s a great location to breathe in serenity— and share a bottle of wine.

Just one of many jaw-dropping memorabilia within the Stadium Club room, these stadium seats were Andy’s actual season ticket seats before the old stadium was torn down in 2008.

The Stadium Club room is exquisitely oneof-a-kind. “I enjoy the Stadium Club for watching my favorite sports/teams as well as relaxing with friends around the bar and fireplace,” Andy said. “My goal was to create a relaxing adult sports pub environment… the theme is centered around Yankee Stadium and the Yankees.”

Since his years as a young boy, Andy followed the New York Yankees. Raised during the Mickey Mantle era, this was fairly commonplace, but when Andy’s career later moved him to New Jersey— with close proximity to Yankee Stadium— it only endeared his affection for the Yankees all the more. He began to collect memorabilia, preserving moments and memories within the sports world. The collection grew to a rather staggering number of relics— from sporting icons throughout history, as well as additional collections centered around music and an affection for American history. Andy’s ancestry, after all, dates back to the Revolutionary War. In 2015, Andy finished his 38-year career with Enterprise Holdings, retiring from his role as president/general manager of their New York-New Jersey-Connecticut operations. Lydia, too, retired. Aside from her role as wife and mom, her other true love was teaching. With both bachelors and masters degrees in health education and a certificate in special education, the majority of her career was sharing knowledge and encouragement to others.

With retirement came a move of grand slam proportions. Thus ensued an expansion to the Church summer home— resulting in their full-time resort-like residence of today. “When it came time to retire, we could think of no better place to enjoy our retirement and welcome friends and family,” Lydia said. “So, we bought the house next door, tore it down, and expanded our original lake home.”

And now that renovations are complete, enjoy they do. The ideal day for the Church family? You might have guessed. “It’d be a sunny, hot summer day with family and friends,” Andy said. “Kids (and adults) would be screaming while doing some tubing. Water sports, swimming, grilling outside, and a NY Yankee versus Boston Red Sox baseball game on TV.”

The game would certainly be watched in Andy’s ‘Stadium Club’ room— tastefully dotted with impressive New York Yankee sports memorabilia, complete with a beautiful bar, stone fireplace, game tables, and so much more— all in a woodceilinged room of warmth and memories that beg family and friends to settle in, have a drink, and stay a while.

From the lake home’s steam shower to the swim spa, gym, outdoor kitchen, courtyard, elegant piano room, sunroom, office, multiple outdoor seating areas, large yard, and so much more, “I can’t really pick a favorite area of my home,” Lydia said. “I put so much heart and soul into each (area), and they all serve a purpose. I just feel so blessed to live here.”

And with their now-grown children living and working all over the United States, the Church’s hope is that the residence will bring the kids back home to Indiana

These beautiful sliding doors are six layers deep, decorated with part of Andy’s sports memorabilia collection. “This (concept) was copied from a store in Yankee Stadium, Steiner Sports Memorabilia,” Andy said. “I thought it was a great way to display numerous pictures in a small area.”

Although Andy plays the piano, Lydia can too— with the press of a button. This self-playing piano with overseeing bust of Ludwig van Beethoven adds a classical element to this exquisite, formal living room.

Shout-outs from the homeowners:

• Helman-Sechrist, our architects who patiently worked with us to make our dreams and ideas a reality. • Debbie Carpenter from Sweet Water

Interior Design who put in countless hours working with me from New Jersey to pick out paint colors, tile, flooring, plumbing fixtures, lighting, and so much more. • Most important of all, a HUGE thank you to Sam Beachy and Steve Hapner from Reliance Construction for making this whole building experience a joy.

Their knowledge, talent, professionalism, and attention to detail are remarkable.

Sam is very creative as well and came up with some great ideas that made the whole project either look or function better. Everything was done on-schedule, and the worksite was always impeccably clean. They took pride in their work and respected our property and belongings.

Building a home in one state while living in another is not an easy task and they went above and beyond doing so many kind, thoughtful little things to make everything run smoother for us. – Lydia Church

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for a little R&R. “We’re hopeful the relaxed vacation lifestyle here will lure them home often,” Lydia said. “It’s hard for us to do anything but enjoy the summer here,” Andy said. The completed renovations of this lake home is their reward— for a life of hard work, dedication, appreciation, and giving back to others. Now, they can revel in the history they’ve built. And simply, enjoy.

One might wager that perhaps even “the Mick” would say this: the Church’s did, indeed, hit a home run.

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