Capturing Christmas

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“Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.”
– Laura Ingalls Wilder

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As if Christmas waved a magic wand over Gordon and Jan Gundaker’s superbly magnificent Chesterfield home, the wonder of the season captures your heart at first glance.

Beginning at the home’s spectacular entry foyer, holiday-adorned displays set the stage for enveloping, sparkling discovery. With the same element of surprise as a classic Christmas window display at Macy’s, the virtual “winter wonderland” enwraps the home with holiday enchantment. “Each room shines with its own character,” says Jan.

The custom-built residence by Lisk Custom Homes is a grand setting for holiday parties and embodies many Old World-inspired architectural features. The design creation features an open floor plan for entertaining ease and exudes a comfortable yet elegant ambience. The Gundakers’ home truly invites the season with gracious warmth.

 “We both enjoy the decorating process, and Gordon loves to shop,” says Jan. “If we see something we like, we buy it because we enjoy looking at it.” Exquisite yet comfortably appointed spaces are the breathtaking backdrops for imaginative holiday scenery.

With an eclectic combination of whimsical décor, the holiday menagerie brightens the Gundaker residence with an abundance of magical surprise. Fanciful design – with bigger-than-life displays – spotlights a cherished season with its childlike spirit. It is a Christmas masterpiece to behold. (Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.)

“Since I was a kid, the Christmas tree was left up until my birthday – March 8,” says Gordon with a smile. “I've always loved Christmas.”

When asked to describe themselves, Gordon and Jan say, “We are family-oriented, and we enjoy taking care of others.” Holiday celebrating begins at Thanksgiving and continues through the season. Multiple family gatherings, including a Christmas Eve get-together at the Gundaker home with kids and grandkids, mark the season of sharing.

 “On Christmas Day, family members drop by, and it's very relaxed,” says Jan. With the advantage of spacious gathering areas for family events (combined, the couple has 9 children, 19 grandchildren and one great-grandchild), the holidays are always a busy and lively time of year.
An after-holiday party at their home extends the festive season to late January. Last year, Gordon and Jan hosted 135 guests at the traditional end-of-the-season party.

Whether planning a fabulous party (the couple has also thrown matchless Halloween parties) or collaborating at Gundaker Commercial Group, the couple's enthusiasm for life and benevolent spirit can't be beat. “We work as a team,” says Jan.

“Everywhere I've worked, I've had an open door policy,” says Gordon. My family and my business have been my life since I was 20. Over the years, our Gundaker ‘family' has become our extended family,” says Gordon.

 Gordon, a leader in the community and chairman and owner of Gundaker Commercial Group, Inc., founded Gundaker Realtors in 1968 and recently branched out with a new division called Gundaker Homes. Due to many developed lots available in the market, the company is now developing homes in the St. Louis and Wentzville areas. “Every time we put someone in a house – we put someone in a ‘home,'” says Gordon.

“To see the growth of the company and the people within it only happens by treating each individual, including our customers, as family,” says Gordon.

The couple's generosity reaches into the community in this season of giving. Dear to their hearts is a Christmas project of which Gordon and Jan are very proud. For more than 20 years, agents at Gundaker branches have purchased and wrapped gifts for foster children through the Missouri Department of Social Services, Children's Division. The gifts are then delivered to the agency. What began with the Gundaker residential division has carried over into the commercial division, and last year, agents filled two truckloads of gifts for hundreds of the area's foster children in St. Louis and St. Charles counties.

The couple is also involved in Friends of Kids with Cancer (Gundaker Commercial Group is a sponsor), and Gordon is a past president of the St. Louis Arthritis Foundation.

“Through giving, we've received so much in return,” says Gordon. “Just picturing the smiles on the children's faces is reward enough.”