Hometown News

By Sally Smith
sally@pdgmedia.ca

“We’re only two people,” she said with a grin “but our minds and bodies are going like an army of 10!” says Sue Gordon, 56, sitting in a comfy sling-back Falcon chair in the newly-refurbished Franktown Church on Hwy. 15 leading out of Smiths Falls heading to Carleton Place.

Holding a large old Mason jar on her lap, she explains how the contents of the jar were in rough shape; it jar served as a time capsule and over the 100 years it had been in the Franktown church cornerstone, it broke and water seeped in. But she has agreed, as the new owner of Franktown’s St. Paul’s United Church, along with her partner Johnny Watzlawik, to have the papers and pieces restored by a conservationist at Beckwith Museum.

A decision to sell the church was made in December 2014. The two took possession in July 2015 after it was de-commissioned at the end of June that year. After “putzing around” all winter, the church re-opened as Revival, a home decor emporium on May 28, 2016.

Buying a church, Gordon says, is “daunting.” The zoning had to be changed, the 16 families who supported the church had to be informed, small rooms needed to be designed and built to display the quickly arriving furniture, and all the anxiety and delight that goes along with a new venture needed to be talked through.

It’s quite a story, and quite a vision the two have. Their dream is to be custodians of the lovely old building “until the next generation takes over.” Gordon sees that dream becoming a reality already. “We’re getting more and more young people in all the time.” Just a couple of weeks ago a young couple bought a six-foot harvest table. Gordon’s theory is that mixing the new with vintage pieces makes a room “sing!” Along with that she says it’s important to keep the stories of bygone days alive through “re-purposing” old objects, furniture, and pieces. “Don’t let it stop here when grandma dies!”

The old stone church is full of antiques, collectables and timeless furniture, tastefully displayed in vignettes throughout the main floor of the building. In one small pod visitors find a beautiful old headboard gleaming from the many hands that have rubbed it through the years; partner that with a draped quilt, an old afghan blanket, a softly-lit lamp, a classic book – and you can see it in your own bedroom. Gordon and Watzlawik, 53, look at each other and agree that there is not one piece of furniture in the store that they started with. Business is that good.

Gordon, an interior designer at heart, is convinced that “vignettes inspire people. “We just sold a designer teak desk to a published writer,” she says with some glee. “He said the lines and the look inspired him.”

How do they find their goods? “We scour! We don’t use just one source. We go to houses, estate sales, power of attorney sales; we find people who are downsizing and say they want their furniture to go to a good home.

“We take a look at the good, bad and ugly and sort through it. We go out on call. We literally scour the face of the earth leaving no stone unturned.”

Theirs is not a consignment business. “We own all the inventory in the church. That’s where we get to keep our prices really low,” and to pass that price along to customers. This way “everyone gets to take home a little piece of history; after all, every piece we have has some history!”

Revival has been open four months and will stay open until December. It’ll close January, February and March to open again in April 2017. “Our plan is to install a spiral staircase down to the basement for a downstairs café.” There’s a full kitchen down there that was used to prepare community dinners.

“Our business is ballooning before our eyes. We’re truly blessed,” Gordon says.

Find Revival at 9603 Hwy. #15, Franktown. Call them at 613-914-4404. Look for them on Facebook at @FranktownRevival. The store is open on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Also, the owners are looking for a bell for the decommissioned church. If you know of one, please contact the original one, or otherwise.

Photo Caption Main Image: Sue Gordon and Johnny Watzlawik, partners in the new Revival venture in Franktown. Photo Credit: Sally Smith

Photo Caption: An old table, painted lime green, makes a bright corner in a modern house. Photo Credit: Sally Smith

Photo Caption: Sue Gordon gently holds a 100-year-old cracked Mason jar used as the time capsule in the Franktown church. Photo Credit: Sally Smith

FRIDAY