March 13th, 2021

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Halverson House Family –

 

 

         It’s with great sadness that we have to announce that we are postponing any further Halverson House Club events until the most recent edicts from the Village of Vernon are dealt with. Let us start by saying that this DOES NOT affect any wedding or rental events (currently scheduled or those looking to book) and they are only “citing” us on our self-hosted events such as the Family Halloween, Family New Years Eve, Harvest & Valentine’s Dinners, & upcoming brunches. Some of you have been following our struggles as we went through the process of getting our approvals and developing our site and while we hoped to have put those issues in our past, we seem to have not. These events, although not a significant portion of the “business model” for our site, are a significant portion of the MISSION of our business and FAMILY. Many of you have been served by our family. Whether it be greeted by our 6 & 10 year old sons and their cousins flagging you into a parking spot, our parents taking you for a hay ride or clearing your table or checking you in, our brother in law sharing his knowledge and passion for wine, our sister and cousin filling your drink order, or our curious 4 year old sneaking around a corner to see all the fancy dresses or better yet, a “wedding kiss”. It has been so fulfilling to see our dreams for this site take shape from the weeds and dirt and at times seemingly endless repairs, to be a place where others are impressed with because of it’s beauty. But even more than the joy we’ve received from the compliments we’ve gotten with respect to the physical beauty of our property, is the acknowledgement by so many who walk through our doors that our family and its service is what makes this place different. We’ve often been told, “what vision it took” to take the very bare bones of this property into what it is today when looking at the before and after pictures, but what we want to say is that vision for an old cow barn to be a great wedding location is nothing compared to the vision we have for this site as to how it can celebrate and serve families.

 

        The reach of Halverson House, and the Alexes, truly will reverberate far beyond a really fun wedding day for a couple and their guests. Our couples are prayed for throughout their planning process. They’re served by a couple who knows that a strong marriage is sometimes all that can get you through the most difficult of times. They’re continued to be thought of, prayed for and hopefully connected with the place “where it all began” months and years after. Beyond our wedding couples, we have served families who comment that they’ve never really been to an event like ours. It’s not that we are anything special other than having hearts to serve families. With those families’ help we have donated an SUV stuffed with food and clothes for a Milwaukee food pantry. We’ve donated our site free of charge to church groups and even a homeschool high school prom for a group of 150 kids who have little normal in a “Covid world” after their original date and location were cancelled. And we’ve even donated something as simple as our parking lot and time to park cars for a Waukesha shelter bonfire event held at a neighbor’s house. And these are just the tip of the iceberg of how our “vision” of service is taking shape. We dream of being able to host brunches and donate a table to a family in need, free of charge, so they can enjoy a meal they otherwise never would have been able to, maybe at a time when being a family was all they could celebrate. We see opportunities to partner with an orphanage in Peru to use proceeds from our events to fund their efforts to provide a home for children a world away. And even more than our funds, we see the opportunity to hopefully be able to use our “off season” to take our own abilities and talents to them and help serve with the very place we have been contributing to. It’s for all of those reasons, and the moments when we receive a “thank you, we enjoyed our time at Halverson House” that make dealing with roadblocks such as our current situation with Vernon worth fighting for.

 

        All told, we have learned one thing throughout this process which is now going on 2+ years. It’s not in our hands. And we know that the single person at Vernon who is waging this war monitors our website, so hopefully he is still reading because it means he heard what was said and hopefully begins to understand who we truly are and what our mission here is. We also want him to know something we slowly came around to throughout the many ups and downs and honestly, points of despair. Everything to this point has happened for a reason. Sometimes it has taken weeks or months for it to be revealed to us, but it has been. And now, having been through what we have, we can keep moving forward because we know that all we can do is follow God’s lead. He has brought us to this opportunity and he will see it through. It has been a freeing feeling for our family to realize that when it feels like things are out of our hands and we’re running out of control, it’s not because we’re about to crash, it’s someone else has the wheel, all we need to do is have our seatbelt on and be ready for where we’re heading. And for the one person who thinks they’re going to throw us off course. You haven’t and you won’t. We don’t say that in an antagonistic way, but rather in confidence that we know God is in control as much as you feel you may be. It’s undeniable that you have “shaken us to the core” many times over the past year or two, but we’ve always made it through, oftentimes better and stronger for it. As much as we believe that God fights for us, we also have come to realize that there is a real spiritual battle that still goes on in our world. Just as we are not “good”, the other side isn’t “evil” although evil and good can be worked through all of us. You have been in our prayers for months and now years. Our heart goes out to you and any others who are in opposition to us and our family. Our prayer is for your hearts to be changed and your eyes opened to know who we are and what we are here for.

 

       For everyone else still reading this post we thank you. And we often get asked “how can we help” when you hear our story. Right now we’re asking for your prayers, sharing this link and our story and ask that you be ready and willing to speak on our behalf as to what Halverson House is and how it has impacted you, or want it to be able to impact others in our community and world. We will let you know how and when that will take shape in the coming days. If you feel lead to do something now, feel free to send a letter or email to the Village of Vernon in support of Halverson House at clerk@villageofvernon.org or W249 S8910 Center Dr Vernon, WI 53103. We have always conducted ourselves with dignity and respect of others, even those in opposition to us, and ask that you do likewise in your comments.

 

        Acts 5:38-39 – “For if their purpose or activity is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will find                                    yourself fighting against God.”

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        Proverbs 16:3 – “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans”

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        Galatians 6:9 – “Don’t grow weary in doing good. At the proper time you will reap a harvest”

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Harvest season seemed to have had started for us, but must need to take a break for more to grow. Until then....

 

The Alexes – Mike, Joi, Leighton, Nora, Oliver, Annie & Zeke