Happy ending -- times two --for recent stories

A story without an ending is half told.

Here are the endings, both happy, of two stories that some Dundee Township residents have heard recently.

Last week, volunteers of the FISH Food Pantry were concerned they didn't have any hams to give their clients for Easter. Word got out to local residents, and their concern didn't last long.

On Wednesday, a resident bought 40 hams and donated them to the Carpentersville-based pantry. Another bought 10 hams and did the same. That same day, another family bought bags of produce and donated them.

"It was such a blessing," said Martha Rodriguez, FISH vice president.

"The community responded so quickly. One mother who home-schools her children bought bags of apples, oranges and bananas. She said the children paid for the fruit with their birthday money."

Not only did they learn a lesson on sharing, but the volunteers learned all they have to do is ask for help.

The pantry gives a month's supply of food to low-income families living in Carpentersville, East and West Dundee and Sleepy Hollow. Since the winter was long and few seasonal workers have started working again, demand has been high.

Volunteers receive their food and money from private and community donations.

But they didn't have enough to buy hams -- until last week.

"We even have some hams left over," Rodriguez said. "We'll be giving those out, too."

The pantry is open from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

The conclusion of another story concerns the historic home at 204 S. First St. in West Dundee.

For the past dozen years it has been bought and sold a couple of times. In between owners, the 35,000-square-foot home has been vacant. Now, it has an owner.

Karen and John Weir bought the sprawling flagstone and wood frame house this month. They've already moved into it with their four daughters.

"We went through it once and fell in love with it," Karen said.

"We were living in a smaller house on Highland Avenue in West Dundee, but we were bursting at the seams. We had one bathroom -- and now we have four full baths and two half-baths.

"It's like we hit the lottery with bathrooms."

The home also has four fireplaces and a guest house, and the corner lot it sits on had West Dundee's first well.

Living in an old house will not be new to the Weirs, because their former home was built in 1860; their "new" house was built in 1842.