A New Start in New Hampshire

A family's intrepid journey to achieving their dream retreat at Mount Sunapee becomes more meaningful when good news arrives.

The Gonyas' lot slopes down toward the woods and Lake Sunapee below. "The shape of the land helped us determine the style of our home," explains Cindy. "The Coventry Cascade model with modifications was the perfect size and offered everything we wanted."

Written by Hayley M. Abernathy

Photography by Joe Hilliard

Decades ago, Cindy and Peter Gonya would pack up their young kids and leave behind their New Hampshire Colonial for turns on the slopes of the state’s rural Sunapee region. “We are a ski family,” explains Cindy. “When we went on vacations with our kids, we always stayed in ski-in/ski-out, alpine-style condos. It was our happy place.” Inspired by those ski lodges, Peter dreamed of retiring to a log home of his own one day. He fed that goal by continually perusing log home magazines and websites.

After Peter’s 20-year service in the U.S. Navy (followed by 25 years as a commercial airline pilot) and Cindy’s two-decades-long marketing career in the financial industry came to a close, the couple finally could anticipate moving. Naturally, their gaze turned to the Sunapee area. Its scenic lake beach at Mt. Sunapee State Park, adjacent to the Mount Sunapee Resort, would give Cindy a hint of the coastal ambiance she missed from her home state of Florida, along with mountain views and plenty of snow skiing. “It was the best of both worlds,” she recalls. “A location we would both love and the kids would visit no matter the season.”

Choosing the region was easy; finding the perfect lot to build on took more than a year. Thankfully, the wait was worth it. In a community where all the homes sit on at least two acres, the Gonyas’ property in the small town of Newbury is private and quiet. From the approach, the lot is level, then it slopes perfectly for a walk-out basement. Between their lot and the lake beyond, wooded conservation land assures their continued privacy. From this rural perch, the couple enjoys a view of both the water and Mount Sunapee above it.

With a picture-perfect site secured, Cindy and Peter began working with Coventry Log Homes, based in Woodsville, New Hampshire, to design their dream retirement home. They adapted an existing floor plan to match their wish list and capture the best views. “We settled on the Cascade design with a modified prow bump-out with a lot of glass,” recalls Richard Titorenko, a Coventry sales representative. “They’ve got a tremendous view up there.” The modified prow expanded the great room and allowed for the addition of a gas fireplace surrounded by stunning floor-to-ceiling Boston Blend stone. They also customized the upstairs by removing one bedroom and relocating the bathroom to achieve a larger, more open loft.

However, as the couple started to see their log home dream finally come to fruition, they received life-altering news and decided to put everything on pause. “Cindy was fighting breast cancer,” Peter explains somberly. “It was devastating to put a halt to our dream,” adds Cindy. “We just didn’t know what was going to happen or what the future held at that point.”

Naturally, Richard and the entire Coventry team were understanding. Cindy began treatment right away, and following surgery, eagerly returned to planning their home. The design process became a welcome distraction during the ensuing radiation treatments. Two years later, Cindy was joyfully declared cancer-free.

The experience gave the couple a renewed perspective. “Life is too short. Let’s go for it!” Cindy recalls of the attitude that fueled their momentum as their 2,280-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath home began to take shape. Coventry’s kiln-dried 8-inch eastern white pine D-logs and truss-and-purlin roof system provide the desired ski lodge feel (with a hefty, 90-pound snow load), and three tiers of windows in the great room capture the one-of-a-kind view.

For Peter and Cindy, finding a trustworthy and flexible builder was key to their project’s success. Chris Osgood of Mike Osgood & Son deftly accommodated changes during construction. For example, he added more (and larger) windows to the walk-out basement so the couple could add another bedroom in the future. And when the Gonyas realized during interior framing that their scissor-switch staircase to the loft would be walled in, Chris opened it up, adding further to the home’s airy layout.

In late 2023, the Gonyas moved into their completed home, an event made even more special after Cindy’s triumph over breast cancer. Now, they make the most of retirement in the Sunapee region they love, where Peter’s long-held vision of their own “ski lodge” has come to fruition.