Men's Club Service Auction Nets New Kitchen for Family

Andrea and Todd Sperl’s kitchen was approaching its 60s when the couple decided it was time for a makeover. Their Huntington Woods home, which was built in the 1940s, needed an update, especially in the cooking and entertaining area — a space the Sperls and their two children consider the heart of the home. 

“If you look at how a kitchen was designed, say, 50 or 60 years ago, you can see it was pretty much a one-person space,” said Christine Ryan, owner of in Clawson. “But not any more — kitchens are the hub of the house."

Ryan was part of a team that helped to renovate the Sperls’ kitchen.

It all started when the couple purchased their kitchen makeover at last year’s Huntington Woods Men’s Club (HWMC) Service Auction.

Ryan Cabinetry (cabinets and design) and Genesee Cut Stone & Marble Co. in Flint (granite countertops) were major contributors to the auction item, along with the city of Huntington Woods (permits and Dumpsters), in Berkley (appliances) and the HWMC “Demo Crew” (“highly unskilled professionals who volunteer to demo the old kitchen,” Todd Sperl explained with a laugh).

"Tony Lehmann leads the 'Demo Crew' with the usual HWMC suspects,” said Sperl, who added that the crew also included Bruce Lister, Carl Sullivan/Ben Sullivan, Scott Kube/Kyle Kube, Dan Desmond, Dennis Carlesso, Rob Hurley, Jim Dwan and Bob Paul.

This year’s HWMC Service Auction is March 26 at the , and once again, a lucky bidder could go home with a new kitchen, so to speak.

“The Sperls’ project was relatively reasonable," said Ryan, whose company oversees design and installation of cabinetry for everything from kitchens and baths to media rooms, offices, closets and more. "They took existing space, made minor interior modifications and opened up the area by removing a wall or two."

"Todd and Andrea were great as far as being patient and working with us through the process,” added Ryan, who specializes in the layout end of the renovation. “We try our best to keep the timing very tight and work as fast as we can.”

Ryan’s goal was to turn the kitchen in the opposite direction (see accompanying “before” photos). Her plan included raising the floor in the attached former breezeway to make one large space with a huge island and attached mud room.

Builders took down two walls to open the kitchen to the dining room, explained Ryan, a Huntington Woods resident who grew up in Windsor, Ontario. Her husband, Patrick, heads up the 15-year-old company’s installations.

For the past decade, the HWMC has auctioned off a kitchen remodel as part of its annual Service Auction.

Roughly 60 percent or more of the money raised at the auction goes back into a major community project. Examples have included pool updates, solar panels for the Recreation Center and new playscapes.

Doubling the size 

The kitchen overhaul required not only the removal of two walls and various soffits, but workers also rewired 50 percent of the home’s electrical system and created a raised ceiling.

In the end, after a 3 1/2-month renovation, the team doubled the size of the kitchen and added a much-needed mud room where the Sperl children, ages 4 and 10, can hang coats and throw backpacks.     

“People are finding it’s entirely possible to get more out of the same space with interior modifications and with good design,” said Ryan.

In designing new spaces, Ryan often will draw a plan that pushes the client out of his or her comfort zone, along with plans that are more traditional and expected.

“I enjoy the challenge of transforming an inefficient layout into a functional space,” she said.

Ryan often suggests that clients consider a more open floor plan, which was created in the Sperls’ case by removing a wall and combining spaces.

“Most people are interested in increasing the function of how a room works,” she said. “Can you comfortably work together with another in the space and encourage help? Does most everything have a place? An organized, clutter-free area in itself feels bigger.”

Even more space can be found by going vertical, Ryan added. “It’s very common in remodels for clients to want to remove the soffits and raise the cabinet-mount height to the common 8-foot ceiling,” said Ryan. “This adds extra shelf space at the top.”

That storage can be used for items you don’t use every day, she added.

“When we met with Christine (Ryan), we told her what our needs were and that we especially wanted a mud room,” Andrea Sperl said. “It was very collaborative.”

Todd Sperl, the managing partner of Huntington Woods-based Lean Fox Solutions, which works to improve patients’ health care experiences, admires his wife’s knack for selecting decorative accents and colors.

Andrea Sperl, who specializes in marketing and design for Lean Fox Solutions, and her husband opted for neutral tones for the cabinetry, countertops and most of the walls so that Andrea could choose colorful accents, such as a lush floral-print window treatment that complements the couple’s collection of Fiestaware.

Ryan works with Canada-based AyA Kitchens & Baths, so many of Andrea Sperl’s inspirations came from the AyA catalog.

“I also went to homes in Huntington Woods and Specialties Showroom to get a feel for how things look together,” Andrea Sperl said.           

The lady of the house spotted the material for her cheerful window valance at Calico Corners in Bloomfield Hills. She commissioned seamstress Paula Kube of Huntington Woods to create the valance.

Sperl then reupholstered her dining room table chairs with the same fabric.  

“The green in the fabric inspired me to paint an accent wall in the kitchen that color as well,” she said.

The couple chose subway tile from The Home Depot for their backsplash.     

As for furnishings and accent pieces, Andrea Sperl’s parents are antiques dealers in Davison and often spot pieces for their daughter and son-in-law’s home.

“They know we like Fiestaware (new and old) and retro pieces, too,” Sperl said, including the midcentury Modern Heywood Wakefield dining room table, chairs and side table.

“I like 1940s and 1950s styles,” she added.

Mission accomplished

“The weekend the project was completed, we were in the kitchen with the kids cooking, and they were saying, ‘What can we do to help?’ ” Andrea Sperl said with a laugh.

“The open flow makes it so easy for all of us to be in the kitchen at the same time and not on top of each other,” her husband added. “And when we have parties, everyone’s in the kitchen. Even if I clear the family room and there’s a big game on, they still congregate here.”  

Their daughter, Allie, who’s passionate about baking, is perhaps most appreciative of the new heart of the home, as it gives her an organized place in which to create her custom cupcakes. (Incidentally, HWMC auctiongoers will have a chance to bid on Allie’s delectable treats).

Todd Sperl, a past president of the HWMC, is looking forward to going to this year’s auction and party.

“This is my first year in five years off the HWMC board,” he said, “so I’ll be going really just to enjoy the event.”

He certainly doesn’t need to bid on a new kitchen. But anybody who does is in for a treat.