FRANCES LABAW, R.N., J.D. 
(509) 773-8057   
P. O. Box 112/733 Turkey Ranch Road
Goldendale, WA  98620
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September 23, 2004 

Chris Herman
Winter Sun Design
6848  23^rd Avenue N.E.
Seattle, WA  98115

Hello Chris,

This is a letter of thanks.  You are a unique counselor.  You put aside preconceived notions and find answers that suit your clients’ needs.

I woke this morning in my comfortable new home in Goldendale, WA.  I have lived here for three weeks during which time the interior temperature has varied from 67o to 74o with the heat pump off.  The exterior temperature during the same time has varied from 41o to 90o. 

It is hard to know where to begin in thanking you for your guidance in building my passive solar home.  Although we never met face-to-face, you worked from drawings and telephone conversations alone, you provided me with the essential information needed to achieve my plans. 

Good fortune led me to you.  I began with twenty bare windswept acres of agricultural land, no water, no power, mostly weeds.  I wanted to build a home which existed in harmony with the environment.  As we worked together, you listened so very carefully to my ideas.  You gave me copious information that filled the gaps between my dream and the reality I faced.  You heartily supported my goals. 

With your informational tools in my hands, I created a passive-solar, south facing, bermed home.  I have a fixed 2,200-watt photovoltaic array on the garage roof and an evacuated-tube solar water heating array on the house roof directly above the bathrooms.  Every day the sun shines through the windows and warms the concrete slab; the warmth pleases my feet well past midnight.  Your ideas are everywhere I look from the double thick sheetrock on walls painted dark colors to the attic fan propelled by a nearby 21 inch solar panel.  There is much more.

All of the passive solar features in the house fit intuitively with my way of life.  I will not list them further, because my intent here is to thank you for the gift of your clear comprehension of my needs, and your clear communication of the solutions for this project.

Thank you.

Frances LaBaw