A word from the customer

Wilf and Marg Gobert are the proud owners of a home built by Quiniscoe Homes

Quiniscoe Homes constructed this wonderful vacation home on the shores of Lake Windermere for Wilf and Marg Gobert. — Photo courtesy Quiniscoe Homes

Wilf and Marg Gobert are a couple from Calgary who own a piece of property on Lake Windermere. Originally, the property had a three-bedroom bungalow with a half basement on it, but the Goberts quickly realized that this house wasn’t large enough to accommodate their friends and their children’s friends.

“Our two kids, who were middle and late teenagers at the time, used the lake house as a great social convening place,” said Wilf. “At some times we would have 10 to 12 people sleeping overnight.”

Realizing that they needed a bigger vacation home, the Goberts started with the intent to hire an architect in Calgary. The architect told them he would get back to them within three weeks to go over the preliminaries. That was in 1993, and the Goberts have yet to hear from him. But as fate would have it, the Calgary couple met Dave Penner, the owner of Quiniscoe Homes, when they were out for a drive one afternoon. Penner was in the process of building a home for his first customer as well as his own home. The Goberts and Penner got to chatting, and in January 1993, the Goberts signed the contract for Quiniscoe Homes to begin construction.

“Marg and I were Dave’s second customer and we were right on top of communication with him,” said Wilf. “Because we were so responsive to his design inquiries, he actually finished our house before (that of) his first client.”

Natural aspects

The Goberts love their home on Lake Windermere and realize how blessed they are to own a piece of lakefront property.

“We are right on the water with a west-facing view and the evening sun is on our waterfront and our yard," said Wilf. "It is fabulous."

It’s the little things that count

Wilf said one of the great things about working with Quiniscoe Homes when the company was building their dream house was the working relationships that Penner had established with skilled tradesmen throughout the region. Wilf said that because of the expertise of these subtrade workers, the Goberts realized that anything they asked for was possible.

“Dave hired a Mennonite woodworker who came out from Calgary,” said Gobert. “He worked on site for two or three weeks building a wood railing and stairway that looks like the timber framing of the interior of the house. This guy is extraordinary and Dave sourced him—the stairs are like a work of art.”

Positive impressions

Wilf said that while Quiniscoe was building their home, he and Marg would go out to Lake Windermere on the weekends and sleep in the boathouse on their property. There was no running water, toilets or bathing facilities, and the Goberts gently pushed Penner to get their home done as soon as possible. But Wilf had ulterior motives. Every year on the second weekend of August, the Goberts host a party on their property; the party is jokingly called Calgarians on the Lake. Wilf knew there would be a lot of well-to-do people there who worked in the oilpatch and who owned property in Invermere, and he saw an opportunity for Penner to gather new clients. 

“I would say to Dave, ‘We are having our annual party in this new house on the second weekend in August and we are going to hold the party whether this house is ready or not,' ” said Wilf, “and Dave really did push it.”

The Goberts' home was ready for Calgarians on the Lake and Wilf said that Quiniscoe Homes acquired some new customers that night, because they were so impressed by the Goberts' home.

“I think he got eight customers from that party alone and it might be more,” said Wilf. “It turned out very well for Dave.”