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Dane Kolbeck: A House Built with Love

by Legacy Staff

What began as a school project for teen Sicily Kolbeck sadly, suddenly turned into a memorial.

What began as a school project for Georgia teen Sicily Kolbeck sadly, suddenly turned into a memorial.

Kolbeck began building a tiny house as a way to bring together various disciplines she was learning in school. Her mother, Suzannah, also Sicily’s teachers, told 11alive.com that Sicily conceived and carried out the project on her own, with a little help from her father. Dane was something of a handyman and shared tools and expertise with his daughter.

But collaborating with a middle schooler wasn’t always easy. According to CNN, the first few weeks of construction were “rocky.”

“Dane was impatient, and it was hard for him not to snatch the buzzing tools away from his daughter. Meanwhile, Sicily was exasperated when his well-trained hands homed in on her house. It took a little while, but they were starting to understand how to work together.”

Then, suddenly, Dane was gone, killed in a car accident in February 2013.

As Dane Kolbeck’s family and friends struggled to deal with their grief over his death, Sicily knew what she had to do. She decided to honor her father’s memory by completing the house that they started together. Working on her own, Sicily completed her tiny house, dubbed “La Petit Maison.”

Not long after, she and her mother moved to Baltimore. The tiny house found a new home in Delaware, close enough for weekend visits. Recently the Kolbecks put the tiny house up for sale. We hope its new owner appreciates all the love and dedication that went into building this remarkable tiny home.

Originally published April 2014

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