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Kippie and her
friend Andrea Silverman
walk
Kippie’s dogs, Griffie and Henry, near
her home in Essex. •
Kippie and
Richard Helzel
at their home in Essex,
Connecticut.
A FEW YEARS AGO, Kippie Helzel, MAS, vice
president of sales at supplier CPS/Keystone (UPIC:
keystone), and her husband, Richard, were at a tran-
sition point. Living in Westlake, Ohio, they had
recently experienced the passing of both of Richard’s
parents and didn’t have any other family members
nearby. With their two sons in college, it seemed
like a good time to make a move.
HOW INDUSTRY VETERAN KIPPIE HELZEL FINALLY FOUND
THE PERFECT HOME BASE
By Julie Richie
The
Right
Roots
CLOSE
UP
76 •
PPB
• APRIL 2016
CONNECT
“We had been going to Essex [Connecticut] for many years to
visit friends, and from the first time we went, my husband Richard
and I thought, ‘we love it here, this is our kind of town!’ Historic, on
the water—the quintessential classic American small town,” she says.
One Friday night Richard was casually looking online at real
estate in Essex just to see prices, and he saw a small historic house
that seemed like a great opportunity. “We had our friend preview the
house for curiosity’s sake, and the conversation started. We went from
‘we can’t’ to ‘why can’t we?’ and we decided to look at the house. But I
was in Dallas at the SAGE Show, so Richard went alone to look with
our friends, and by that Thursday at 5 pm we had bought a house that
I hadn’t even seen!”
The house was wonderful but a bit small. Fortunately, Helzel says,
“Within three months a [bigger] house came on the market around
the corner from us, and although Richard was out of town, I jumped
on it and we bought that house without him seeing it! It is the perfect
house for us. We love it.”
Built in 1860, the house has original wide plank floors, a fireplace
and lots of character, but was fully updated and modernized a few
years back.
“Moving to Essex is one of the best decisions we ever made. We
live in one of the prettiest towns in America and our dogs, Griffie and
Henry, enjoy walking all the streets and woods around us,” she says.
With their oldest son, Barrett, currently at home after graduating
in December from the University of Vermont, and younger son,