Glenn and Norma Mentch were longtime Hershey clients. In 1942 they hired Don to design their home at 80 Wisner Road in Irondequoit. Then, in 1950, as their family grew, they asked him to design a new home at 174 Golf Avenue in Pittsford (known as the Winghouse). We recently heard from 2 of their daughters who grew up in the Golf Avenue home. They shared some memories…
“We Mentches, there are 5 children, have wonderful memories of our family home. My older siblings are more likely to be able to offer information about Don Hershey. I was born in 53, the house was built in 1950 when my parents had 3 children. The addition on the back came as the family outgrew the original plans.”
– Laura Mentch
“The addition was built when I was in high school (1955-59). My guess is in the middle of that range, since this photo below shows the swimming pool covered for the winter. My sister, Martha, and I shared the porch. There was a matchstick blind between our beds that so we wouldn’t slug each other. Don Hershey designed the addition, with much input from our parents. When we (parents and 4 children) moved in, there were no interior walls. Our father erected all the walls and kept them looking beautiful by sanding them every few years. It was quite the house for 1950 and passers-by would stop and gawk thinking that it was some sort of storage facility for the trains that ran behind our house. 174 Golf Avenue was a popular spot for summer pool parties, as an in-ground family pool was quite a novelty.
Our father finished a lot of the interior himself, including erecting walls. There were vertical and horizontal beams in place. There was radiant heating in the house, the pipes for which were manufactured during the Korean War. Our dachshund, Heidi, would find the leaks since there were warm spots from the pooling water, and our dad would have to open up the concrete floor with a jackhammer to find the leaks.”
– Sue Larson (Mentch)
Thank you to Laura and Sue for sharing!
174 Golf Ave just listed on Nov. 25, 2018 $249,900. The Don Hershey “Wing House”. Situated on a 1.4 acre setting across from Monroe Golf Club. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions regarding the sale. 585-261-2326