Staff writer
A house at 406 N. Cedar St. sits on I-beams, lifted off the crumbling foundation it now sits behind.
It appears to be readied to move to a new location, but it’s actually being readied for its owners’ future retirement.
Jeff and Theresa Cady, who both grew up in Beloit, moved to Marion so Jeff could work with his father, Jerry, at Jerry Cady Agency, selling crop and hail insurance.
“In 1999 we decided we wanted to move to Marion,” Theresa said. “We were living in Shawnee — we were living in the city and wanted to raise our children in a small town.”
Their children were 12, 10, 7 and 6 at that time.
After partnering with his father in Marion, Jeff Cady established a second insurance office in Salina in 2012. The couple moved to Salina, but Jeff splits his time between the two cities.
Holidays for the family remain divided between Beloit and Marion, and Jeff’s brother, Brad, lives in Marion.
“They’re a very tight, close-knit family,” Theresa Cady said.
When the couple first moved into the house on Cedar, the two-bedroom house made for tight quarters for the family of six. Marion didn’t offer three- to four-bedroom homes in the family’s price range.
“In those days, there really weren’t a lot to choose from,” Theresa Cady said.
Eventually the family who owned the house next door moved and the Cadys moved to the larger home. They didn’t sell the smaller house, though.
Instead, they rented it out, used it as a day-care center, and hung on to it.
Not only does the couple have a lot of memories connected to their happy days of living in the house, it’s conveniently located right across the street from their church.
“I’ve always liked that little house,” Theresa said. “Jeff has, at times, wanted to get rid of it and I’ve said ‘no.’”
At one time, there was a small fire in the house, caused by a rug being atop its floor furnace.
“That’s one of the reasons I am renovating the house, to remove the smoke damage,” she said.
But obviously the renovation isn’t stopping there. The crumbling foundation has to be replaced and the house has been removed so a new basement can be poured and finished.
“We’re actually going to make that basement a livable space,” Theresa said. “We’re going to put in a laundry room, a bedroom, and a bathroom.”
Additionally, all the house wiring will be replaced, the septic system will get work, and a new porch, similar to the old porch, will be built.
One thing that won’t change is the floors.
“My favorite part about the house is its wood floors,” Theresa said.
The couple hopes to retire about 10 years from now, but they are planning their retirement nest now.
“When we retire, we don’t want to have to worry about improvements,” she said.
Jeff Cady said he hopes the new foundation will be ready in about three weeks.
“The basement will be done and then the house will go back on it,” Jeff said.
“After the house goes back on, we’ll get with our contractor and decide which job will be done next — we just haven’t done that yet.”