The Die Heimat Country Inn
What is better than a stay at the Die Heimet Country Inn and attending the grand opening of the amazing Homestead Folk Art Museum? The grand opening was on April 7th, at the museum, where visitors learned about the cultural heritage of the Amana Colonies.
The Die Heimat Country Inn, and the Folk Art Museum are located next door to each other right on the main street in the town of Homestead Iowa! One of my favorite memories of Homestead is coming to a tractor show where Allis Chalmers was at one end, and Minneapolis Moline at the other. While the Falther’s Day tractor show takes place elsewhere in Amana now, that memory remains!
Thank you to Die Heimat and Visit Amana Colonies for hosting me and thanks to Elise Heitmann Executive Director of Visit Amana for planning my visit!
Homestead
Homestead is part of an amazing historic heritage, with the seven Amana Colonies one of the oldest communal societies in Iowa. Founded by German settlers seeking religious freedom in 1842, the Village of Homestead was added in 1860.
It was the proximity to the railroad and stagecoach made Homestead attractive as a way to ship Amana products like their sought-after wool. It was this proximity that made the colonists want to add Homestead to the Colony.
What fascinated me was that the colonists sent a message to the elders in New York asking permission to buy Homestead. The note in our room about Homestead states the rest of the story! “Communication being as slow as it was back then, by the time word came back saying, “No, we don’t think you should make the purchase,” they had already done so.”
Die Heimat
Die Heimat was erected in 1846. After being purchased by the Amana settlers, it was used as a communal kitchen, one of 60 throughout the colonies. In 1932 when the colonies changed to a non-communal society the building became a private residence. Harold Pitz bought the building in the 1950’s converting it to a motor inn. Since that time, and through several updates, the building was owned by many. June and Mark Hershberger owned the Inn since 2014, with the Fuson’s purchasing it this year.
The Fusons!
The beautiful country inn we stayed in was recently purchased by Karin and John Fuson. Karin had seen the inn while working as a traveling nurse. Her husband John is an IT Infrastructure professional.
Karin Fuson said, “I wanted to be a Bed and Breakfast owner for the last ten to fifteen years, and I have been looking at ones for sale. I was a single mom, a nurse, and I met John and married him, we have been married a year and a half. We both love to travel. We have been to several states and to Europe, we were married in Italy.”
Living in Colorado prior to Iowa, Karin said, “I love Colorado, but it is busy and expensive. In the back of my mind, I knew I wanted to do this.”
Karin’s new husband was on board with purchasing this Iowa bed and breakfast. The Fuson’s met with the Hersberger’s and loved what they saw. “I love that it’s so rural but only 25 minutes to the big towns like Iowa City.”
Settling in
Spending last summer in Homestead, they learned the ropes, and Karin, who is originally from Arizona, spent a couple weeks shadowing the Hersberger’s before taking over. “We bought the Inn in February but opened on March 20th. Our first guest came that same day.”
Busy since the opening, Karin said. “I am liking it. My greatest joy is visiting with the guests at breakfast.”
We certainly loved our breakfast that she prepared, and I especially loved her scones that she had available at check-in! While Karin enjoys cooking, she said her husband John is the real cook. Learning to cook from his grandmother in North Carolina where he grew up, she said, “He loves to cook and is writing a book.”
Together this blended family has five kids. Living last summer in Homestead, Karin and John met a lot of locals and made friends. “Everybody is great. We know quite a few locals. I am also a real estate developer. I have a contractor here from Amana. Most of our workers are local and are really helpful”
Future Plans
The Fusons are settling in and have big plans. “We are hoping to put in an outdoor gazebo and more outdoors and evening events like BBQs, and ice cream socials,” Karin said.
They also plan to add transportation to and from the airport as an added bonus to staying at Die Heimat. This option will also be available as a football package for the popular Iowa Hawkeye games. They offer an electric charging station for guests, have two rooms on the first floor, one with a rolling shower for those needing this amenity. Several other rooms are available.
Besides the usual tourists that come to the colonies to experience their history and culture, Karin hopes to offer the Inn also as a place for traveling nurses to come to stay. “It is only 25 minutes from the hospital.”
While I have been coming to Amana for many years, I learned several stops nearby from Karin I never knew about. There is a distillery in Swisher, Iowa, great golf courses, and a sportsman club! At Die Heimat they offer several rooms with a variety of options, this is a great stay for a family reunion, church group or girls’ getaway. We may need to check out some of the new stops! The new Homestead Folk Art Museum is a great one.
We will be definitely coming back!
