Backyard makeover winners selected

Most people are realists. If they enter a contest, they might spend a few minutes daydreaming about how nice it would be if they won, but they don't count their chickens before they are hatched, so to speak.

When they get the word they have one of the winning entries, it is generally mildly shocking, but thoroughly pleasing surprise. That was certainly the case with the top three prize winners of the Daily Herald's recent Get Your Summer On outdoor makeover package. They saw the notice for the contest, looked at their yard and decided to give it a try because without help, they knew that their yards would not improve anytime soon.

"Over the 24 years we have lived in our house, we have had various dining sets with umbrellas and we even had a small screened enclosure that the wind destroyed," said Lori Palmer of Bartlett, winner of the grand prize, valued at $8,700. "The deck served its purpose as a kid-friendly spot for many years. We even had a blow up pool or two on it."

"But now we are ready for a grown-up space. It needs a spark and I'm not sure where to begin," she said in her entry letter.

Palmer was looking for direction, mentioning in her letter that their 593-square-foot deck had plenty of space to hold a party, but that it desperately needed a center piece like a fire table, as well as colorful furniture or cushions.

The Palmers won't have to "make do" much longer because they won a Weber on Wheels catered party ($2,500 value), an outdoor furniture package from Steinhafels Furniture in Vernon Hills ($2,000 value), a Littman Brothers Lighting (Schaumburg) package ($2,000 value), a fire bowl from Northwest Metalcraft in Arlington Heights ($2,000 value), a $100 gift card from Lurvey's Garden Center in

Des Plaines and a $100 gift card from Binny's Beverage Depot.

The real estate agent and her retired husband, Dan, are looking forward to shopping for a comfortable outdoor couch and a companion chair or two, as well as that fire bowl that Lori envisioned. They are also excited about the lighting package, which will allow them to install new low voltage mood lighting on and around their deck, replacing an old lighting system that Dan installed years ago.

"It is so old that Dan has to scrounge the internet every time he needs a replacement part or bulb," Lori said.

Once they have all of their new furniture, lighting and the fire bowl, the Palmers plan to invite family, friends and neighbors to the catered Weber party in their refurbished yard. But Lori said they have been so blown away by winning that they have told very few people about it, just in case it was all a dream.

The second prize winner was Lauren Metz of Volo. She won a package valued at $5,375.

In her entry letter, Metz said: "We would love help with our backyard. As the wife of a military spouse, I don't have a lot of free time and our yard is a bit of a challenge. We have a hill in our backyard that makes it difficult to figure out the best way to set it up. As a result, there is nothing back there. It's a blank slate!"

"My husband is in the Navy and is gone a lot, so I don't have a lot of help with ideas or completing home improvement projects. I would love for my kids and I to use our backyard this summer. Please help!" she continued.

In response, the Daily Herald prize committee chose the Metzes to receive a $2,000 gift certificate for outdoor furniture from Steinhafels Furniture, a fire bowl from Northwest Metalcraft ($2,000 value), a $1,200 Toro lawn mower, a $100 gift card from Lurvey's Garden Center and a $75 Binny's Beverage Depot gift card.

"We had been saving money but we weren't sure if we were going to use it to get a patio or to get some outdoor furniture," Metz said. "Now we can do both and complete our vision for our yard. We are ecstatic. In fact, we went to Steinhafels last weekend and saw several things we like."

Lauren is a social worker with Advocate Healthcare and her husband is a chief fire controlman at Great Lakes Naval Center. They have two young children.

The third place winner was Mary Kiaupa of Arlington Heights. She won a prize package worth $650.

"We need help with what to do with our patio and backyard," she wrote in her entry. "For starters, we love the sunlight but we get a lot of afternoon sun and we have not figured out a way to keep the extreme sunlight off our patio when hosting a late afternoon gathering. We are also transitioning from toys and items for younger kids to a more grown-up backyard and we could use help."

The Kiaupas won a decorative metal cooler from Northwest Metalcraft (value $500), a $100 gift card from Lurvey's Garden Center, a $25 Northwest Metalcraft gift card and a $25 Binny's Beverage Depot gift card.

She and her husband, George, have lived in their split-level home with their children for 11 years and they are looking forward to getting rid of the play set at last and renovating their yard.

"Winning this prize will encourage us to get going on the yard and not keep putting off the renovation until 'next year,' " Kiaupa said. "Our youngest is 11 and we also have two in high school, so they can help us with the renovation."

Mary is a teacher's aide and administrative assistant at a Catholic grade school and George is an engineer.