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Strong Sisters

Unger family working on historic hotel renovation

ELKINS -- Anyone visiting downtown Elkins this summer has likely seen the humongous boom lift being used for renovation work at the Tygart Hotel. Making use of the piece of equipment is the father and daughters team of Past Respects, a company based in Spencer, working on the bricks on the front of the building.

Frank Unger and his daughters, Savannah and Marleigh, have spent several weeks this summer "repointing" the bricks of the historic hotel. Part of that work has involved using the large lift to reach the upper floors.

"It has been enjoyable," Savannah Unger told The Inter-Mountain. "I always enjoy it when we work together as a family. Elkins is a really pretty area too, so just the drive up here is nice. The project in general was a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be. It is a huge building."

Marleigh Unger became certified to use the boom lift specifically for the project. She said the lift runs 85 feet up and it has to be fully extended to go all the way up to the sixth floor of the Tygart.

"It was a little bit scary at first," she said. "It gets a little bit shaky up there with the wind and everything. My knees got a little bit weak the first time I was on it."

Both sisters said being on the lift has given them a unique view of Elkins and the surrounding area.

"This has been one of the most pretty scenic places we have worked," Marleigh Unger said. "When I am up in the lift on the sixth floor, I get to look over and see the windmills. That is like my favorite thing."

"Elkins is a beautiful town in general. When you are up there you can see all the buildings, you can tell they care a lot about architecture and preserving history," Savannah Unger added.

Savannah Unger serves the team's mortar mixer on site. The mortar is mixed by hand and the first days the group was at the hotel, before the lift arrived, they had to climb six flights of stairs.

"It was a little bit rough the first couple weeks, but then the lift came and that made it a lot easier," Marleigh Unger said.

Savannah Unger added, "Marleigh and I were talking about how a lot of people now don't want to do anything that is hard. You see how huge the wall is and it is kind of intimidating how much there is to do, but once you get started and doing a little bit at a time and you start seeing progress and you can feel accomplishment.

"One day last week, we were out there dying, it was so hot. I think it hit 90 degrees, we were baking in the sun and those kind of experiences make you appreciate things you take for granted everyday."

The heat also caused the team to add another step to their mortar process. They explained you cannot put wet mortar on a dry hot brick because it pulls the water from the mortar. They rigged up a hose so they could keep the bricks moist.

Along with the front of the building, the group also worked on the chimneys on the hotel. Their goal has been to complete one floor a week and currently they have the third through the sixth floor completed.

Both sisters encouraged girls to take a look at all types of work.

"To all the young girls out there, you can be a lift operator too," Marleigh Unger said.

The sisters said safety has been their biggest concern. To work on the lift they have to be concerned about the safety of those around the lift, both pedestrian and vehicular, they said.

The sisters, who are both college students, started working with their father on projects at a young age. Savannah's first time working with her father was when she was 8 years old and Marleigh's first job was at 10 years old.

Past Respects focuses on masonry and structural restoration. They have performed work in Elkins in the past, including the Delmonte Hotel and the Grace Sunderland residence.