About the Hassingers
The Ray Vernon Estate of Havice Valley has a rich family-oriented heritage. Harry and Bessie Hassinger were married on March 15, 1921. They began housekeeping in the William Hassinger homestead in Treaster Valley, which is a mere one valley away from Havice Valley. All of their children were born there. Harry and Bessie always had a love for the land and valleys around them. Earlier in life, Harry farmed and worked at a saw mill before beginning his career in the Department of Forest and Waters. During that time, he also oversaw the CCC Camps. All the while, Bessie enjoyed gardening, baking, cooking, and raising the children.
In 1939, Harry bought the Hassinger Farm from the First National Bank at a cost of $3900. The original farm consisted of about 600 acres. There was quite a bit of work to be done at the new farm. In the words of Ray, “Mom would pack Glenn and me a lunch and Pap would drop us off at the farm in the morning, give us instructions on the chores to be done, then pick us up in the evening. We were only 10 or 11 at the time. We would cut brush and clear fields throughout the day.” He had a not so fond memory of one time when he and Glenn got into some poison ivy while clearing a fence row. “It was the worst case I had ever had!”
In 1949, the Hassingers built a camp, which still stands today, in Havice Valley. It became a place for rest and relaxation and was rightfully named The Hassinger’s Shady Rest as it was built along a cool, babbling creek among pine and oak trees.
Ray and Glenn were a mere 19 months apart in age and spent quite a bit of time together. They worked at their own saw mill, had a coal delivery business and each worked other jobs as well; Glenn at The Standard and Ray at the Viscos and School District. In 1953, Ray and Glenn, along with their wives Phyllis and Greta, purchased the farm from their father at a cost of $7500. Several pieces of the farm were given to their children as they had wished to take up housekeeping in beautiful Havice Valley.
We were fortunate enough to be given about four original acres to begin our life. In 2015, as some of the land was again being divided, we were blessed with a few more acres to add to our piece of Heaven. This leads us to today. We wanted to share our majestic view with others and thus decided to build a venue that could be used to celebrate special moments with family, friends and our community. We began our dream of building such a venue years and years ago. And, we finally can welcome the opportunity to share our little piece of heaven with you. Come join us in celebration of the Ray Vernon Estate.