All around the country local home builders construct a home with donated labor and materials to create St. Jude Dream Home Showplaces that are sold and the net proceeds donated to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
The first Milwaukee-area home is nearing completion and on Wednesday, June 25, there will be a floor signing party during which sponsors, city leaders and community members who helped make the home a reality will sign the foundation before the flooring is installed.
The home is a two-story farmhouse-style place in Bella Vista Estates, N66W21277 Sagebrush Dr, in Menomonee Falls, and the event will take place from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m., with a program from 11:15 to 11:30.
The more than 4,000-square-foot house includes a formal dining room, chef-inspired kitchen, architectural details, spa-like primary suite, a finished basement, three-car garage, four bedrooms, two flex rooms, three baths and two half-baths.
It was built by Stepping Stone Homes and will be open for public tours as part of the 2025 Metro Builders Association Parade of Homes beginning on Aug. 9.
This year’s sponsors include Metro Builders Association of Greater Milwaukee, Adams & Generac, Akuitse Home Builder and Remodeling, ALME, Blaze landscape, Coello & Associates Inc, Dave Jones Plumbing, Digitek Digital, Floortech of Racine Inc, GA Construction, GM Home Improvements, Hallmark Building Supplies, Halquist Stone, Hubble, Ideal Drywall, Inc, James Electrical Contractors LLC, James Hardie, KG Stevens, LA Landscaping , Lakeview Organizing, Lukas Biskup, Marios Carpentry, PermaStructo Inc., Ridge Exteriors Inc., RJ Thomson Construction LLC, Sawyers Excavating LLC, Stonecraft Studios LLC, Trees on the Move, Water Doctors, WI US LBM Operating Co 3009, LLC, Wisconsin Building Concepts, Wingspan Glass, Brizo, Shaw Industries, Trane, Bosch and Kichler.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
