Penny and Ken Hawks, the winners of Whisper Creek Cabin, the 2009 Southern Living Choose Your Home Giveaway, were also in residence for the week with their extended family from North Carolina. The Hawks are from the New Orleans, and very generously prepared a jambalaya feast at Sky Valley Lodge for their friends and the Whisper Mountain team. The spicy meal was perfect for the cool evening spent watching the sunset over the mountains and enjoying the beautiful cool evening weather.

We enjoyed a perfect Friday night with a fireside meal on the outside terrace at the lodge. With a full moon over the mountain, firelight bouncing off the stone, and candles spreading their warm glow, we were tempted to spend the night right there on the terrace! Honestly it was one of the most relaxing and beautiful evenings that we have spent in a long time. We hope that all of our residents find the time to make these kind of memories on the mountain.

– Troy and Charlie Ball, Whisper Mountain

(L to R) interior designer - Steve Chambliss, Troy Ball, Charlie Ball, winners of the Whisper Creek Cabin - Penny and Ken Hawkes. The picture is taken inside of the winning Whisper Creek Cabin.

Charlie and I are so excited that Whisper Creek was selected to be the winning home of the 2009 Southern Living Choose Your Home Giveaway. It makes us feel very good that so many people voted to win our beautiful cabin at Whisper Mountain. Over 5.4 million entries were cast in this sweepstakes. Whisper Mountain had the most email subscriptions of any of the other houses and was the second most viewed community on MyHomeIdeas.com and Southern Living’s websites. That tells us this cool mountain air, stunning location and dedication to doing it right resonates with many people. We want to thank Bill McDougal and the rest of the Southern Living and MyHomeIdeas.com, Steve Chambliss, our outstanding interior designer and Haven Custom Homes for making this dream a reality for us and for the winner Penny Hawkes.

Living in Asheville
Get to know more about life in the beautiful town of Asheville, North Carolina.

Art in Asheville
Enjoy the beautiful local artwork in galleries and museums in the area.

Explore the Whisper Mountain community
Discover what the Whisper Mountain community has to offer, including the trails, the views, and Sky Valley Lodge.

Whisper Creek Cottage site
Site of the winning home of the 2009 Southern Living Giveaway.

Birmingham, AL (August 4, 2009)  – Penny Hawkes from LaPlace, La., has won the vacation home of her dreams in the Southern Living Choose Your Home Giveaway presented by MyHomeIdeas.com.

“I didn’t think it was real when I got the phone call, I thought one of my friends was playing a joke,” said an excited Hawkes. “Then I started crying when I got off the phone, I was so shocked.”

Hawkes, who turns 50 in August, entered everyday, and chose the home plan Whisper Creek located in Whisper Mountain near Asheville , N.C.

“I’m originally from North Carolina , and my parents are still there. I never entered to win the other homes, only the one in Asheville ,” added Hawkes. “My husband and I have talked about retiring and going back there, so this really is a dream come true.”

Southern Living and MyHomeIdeas.com partnered with local developers to build four beautiful homes in four distinctly different communities across the South: Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Ga.; Habersham, outside of Beaufort, S.C.; Traditions Club in Bryan, Texas; and Whisper Mountain near Asheville, N.C. Each community was chosen for its unique style and the variety of family activities and cultural opportunities offered in the area.

Readers can still tour the communities, online at Southern Living or My Home Ideas.

Meet Penny Hawkes, the lucky winner of our Choose Your Home Giveaway Sweepstakes.

Sara Essex, Article by Cathy Still Johnson // southernliving.com

Penny Hawkes received the best 50th birthday present ever. (Officially, it’s August 24th.) Winner of the MyHomeIdeas.com and Southern Living Choose Your Home Giveaway, this lucky entrant chose the Whisper Mountain’s Whisper Creek Cottage for herself, her husband, Ken, and their family to enjoy. Now residents of LaPlace, Louisiana, the Hawkes family has ties to the mountains and are finally getting a chance to come home. “I was born in Huntersville, and Ken and I met when we were both working in Charlotte. Their careers took them to California and then to Louisiana, but Penny says, “We always said we would retire to North Carolina.”

Big Win

Persistence paid off for Penny Hawkes. This devoted winner visited MyHomeIdeas.com and SouthernLiving.com every single day to enter the Choose Your Home Giveaway Sweepstakes. With more than 5,400,000 entries, her name was the first pulled from the hat. “The Whisper Creek Cottage was the only house I entered for,” Penny says. “I called my friend, Arlene, and told her to enter too. I said, ‘Someone’s got to win, and it should be us,’ never imagining that it would really be me. I’ve never won anything in my life.”

There’s No Place Like Home

Jean Allsopp, Article by Cathy Still Johnson // southernliving.com

The mountains have always held a special place in Penny’s heart. She’s from there, after all. Though she’s running LaPlace Optical, a thriving eye care business in LaPlace, Louisiana, she’s anxious to make an escape as soon as possible to meet her new home. Her parents, North Carolina residents, are equally excited that the Hawkeses’ dream of retiring to their home state will come to fruition. “When I found out I won, I called my mom and told her I was coming home,” Penny says.

Welcome Home

The mountaintop community of Whisper Mountain covers more than 270 acres in one of the most beautiful and culturally diverse areas of the South. Just 17 miles outside of Asheville, North Carolina, the Blue Ridge Mountains have long been a go-to for outdoors enthusiasts and those who just need a cool, breezy retreat.

On the property, Penny and her family will find creeks, meadows, trails, and panoramas of the mountains and valleys below. The center of the community, Sky Valley Lodge, will serve as an extended gathering spot for the Hawkes family with its spacious decks and cozy gathering area around a stacked stone fireplace. ” I hope to make it up in time to celebrate my birthday,” Penny says. “And after that, I plan to spend as much time there as I can.”

Oh, the Places She’ll Go!

Joe DeSciose, Article by Cathy Still Johnson // southernliving.com

With close proximity to Asheville, Penny and her family will have the best of both worlds: a private mountain getaway and a city center brimming with culinary delights and a thriving arts and music scene.

She’s likely to embrace local favorites such as Tupelo Honey Café, beloved for its shrimp and grits and pecan crusted chicken, Biltmore House and Biltmore Village, America’s largest home and adjacent shopping area, and the Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center, a LEED-certified building with interactive maps of the area’s sights and activities. “I’ve been to Asheville a couple of times, but I’ve never gotten to spend a lot of time there. It will be fun to get to know the city better,” Penny says.

A Great Getaway

Charmed by the house and its location, Penny says, “It looks like a little cabin in the woods.” She’ll find out soon that the house is just that―set over a creek with spectacular mountain views. Perfect for a family getaway or just relaxing on the porches, Penny and her family may find themselves relocating sooner rather than later.

Jean Allsopp, Article by Cathy Still Johnson // southernliving.com

Back to Her Roots

Designed in the mountain Arts-and-Crafts style, Penny’s new home is made of natural materials pulled from the site. Poplar bark dresses the facade, and the ceiling of the master bedroom. Locust tree columns support the front porch, rhododendron branches form porch railings, and salvaged barn roofing give that timeworn appeal that adds to the home’s indigenous look. And because it’s a North Carolina HealthyBuilt home, it’s just as environmentally friendly as it looks. “I love that they used recycled things and composite siding,” says Penny. “I didn’t want a house that would require a lot of upkeep.”

Family Gatherings

Jean Allsopp, Article by Cathy Still Johnson // southernliving.com

“My daughter, Hannah, was in Gatlinburg when I got the call that I had won,” Penny says. “Everyone there said they were already planning Thanksgiving at Whisper Creek.

“I’m so excited about the kitchen,” says Penny. Part of the modular home system delivered to the site, the kitchen features cabinetry that wraps around one side of the great room. A granite-topped island will suit casual meals for Penny’s family―or serve as the Thanksgiving buffet.

“I love the area, and I love my family. We usually make it to the mountains two or three times a year, but now, we can all spend more time together,” Penny says.

Just Relax

Inspired by the architecture of homes throughout the mountains of Western North Carolina, Whisper Creek Cottage blends well into the history of this region. With shakes and lap siding accented by a stone chimney and Craftsman details, the house is very much at home in the Whisper Mountain community. “I can’t wait to be able to sit in the chairs on the porch and relax,” Penny says.

Private Retreat

Impressed by the master bathroom, Penny is looking forward to checking out the walk-in shower. “It looks awesome!” says Penny. The tiled shower was delivered intact as part of the modular home system―and it has an eye-level window with a view.

»» Take a virtual tour of the bathroom on southernliving.com

Out and About

“I look forward to being able to get out and walk on the trails,” Penny says. “I can’t wait to watch my grandson running around out here. Whisper Mountain looks like a great place to just get away. My brother and sister-in-law live nearby, so they got a chance to see it. She said that it is to die for!”

Guest List

“More than likely, someone will always be there,” Penny says. Her parents have joked that they’re going to sell their house in nearby Huntersville and move in. Does she have a sign-up list yet for guests? “Not now,” says Penny, “but I am sure I will be getting a lot of calls after this is released.”

Whisper Creek House Plan

You can have your own version of our winning house by purchasing the plans for the 2 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home.

»» See the house plan on southernliving.com

Some of the 25 graduates of the class of 1945 have been gathering consistently since their 44th reunion held in Mars Hill. Their 50th was held at the Deer Park Restaurant on the Biltmore Estate, and their 52nd through 62nd were held at Mr. Jarrett’s picnic area on his property in Leicester. The switch to Whisper Mountain, past the log cabins that form the Welcome Center and Poplar Ridge House, seemed to be a return to earlier times, to a time these octogenarians remember from their childhood here in the mountains.

Mr. Jarrett recalled walking with his father past several vacated log cabins off of Little Pine and listening to his father tell him, “You remember this… all of the empty log cabins we have passed… I won’t live to see it, but you will see people come back to the mountains.” Forrest was gone from the mountains about 40 years and now points to Whisper Mountain and says, “It’s true!”

Mrs. Sprinkle, who retired from teaching in 1992 reminisced about how things have changed in the mountains. She observed that all of the local towns had their own schools, and travel from one town to another was not easy over dirt roads. Children walked to school and everyone seemed to know everyone else. Forrest Jarrett noted changes as well, adding that during World War II, many families left the mountains to find work in Baltimore and Norfolk in the shipyards and airplane factories. Some returned, but many did not since industry in Asheville was limited. According to Jarrett, the auto industry of Detroit offered more possibilities for employment and many families never returned to the mountains after the war. Mary Sprinkle added that by 1974 many of the area high schools had merged because of a declining population, and observed “that the character of the mountains communities seemed to change without their own schools.”

What hasn’t changed is the resilience and strength of the people who have remained in Madison County. Mrs. Sprinkle quoted the inscription above the elevators of the Buncombe County Courthouse, “Men to Match our Mountains,” and observed that it was true even today.

At Whisper Mountain, the development and design of our small community of Western North Carolina properties has been a labor of love dedicated to the creation of a lifestyle that makes conservation and preservation a major priority. Our goal has been to not only build an exceptional community of North Carolina mountain homes but also to engage our residents with ways to actively support:

• land conservation
• wildlife preservation
• forest preservation
• conservation of natural resources
• preservation of open space

The Community Garden: A Vision of Mountain Heritage Merged with Green Living

The Whisper Mountain organic community garden sits on the site of what was once a historic farm with an old apple orchard, tobacco barn and a spring-fed stream with views of the adjoining farming valley and long range views of the Black Mountains. Built on the lowest elevation found on the Whisper Mountain property, at 2600 feet, the garden space gets optimal sun exposure and has a longer growing season than the higher elevation homesites. The garden site was also once home to the oldest standing structure in Madison County. So we believe by preserving the old Tobacco barn, the scattered apple trees, the spring and streams still found on the property we also preserve a piece of Appalachian mountain history.

Whisper Mountain residents will be given their own individual plots to maintain at the garden, similar to European-style allotment gardens. There will be restrictions against the use of any inorganic pesticides and standards for the quality of seeds planted in the garden. It has been decades since the garden property was farmed or the land disturbed so the soil is rich, fertile and ripe for planting. We hope to see a wide variety of flowers, fruits and vegetables grown each year to help residents live a more sustainable lifestyle that is in harmony with the land.

Appalachian Mountain Plants Found in the Mountains of North Carolina

Choosing the plants, vegetables and flowers that will grow in the community garden will be based on the land conservation goals of the Whisper Mountain community. A focus on native species, heirloom seeds and high quality starters will help residents reap a beautiful, healthy and delicious harvest. Below are some resources for residents who want to explore gardening on land in Western North Carolina.

Garden Asheville
A social network of the Asheville Citizen Times-local gardeners come together.

The Asheville Botanical Gardens
Visit to learn more about local plants

The North Carolina Arboretum
Offers a variety of botanical and garden classes to help anyone interested in understanding Appalachian mountain plants and the Appalachian mountain climate.