As we kick off the New Durham Estates blog, we believe that sharing the story of how our community began is essential. Every community has a story, and ours starts with a leap of faith, a sold house, two people with a dream, and a dedicated family that believes in creating the best community possible..

The Beginning

In 1966, Mel Fath was working for Mobile Oil and attending Purdue University when a union strike led him to a part-time job selling mobile homes. That temporary job changed everything and sowed the seeds of a community. Mel saw a future for himself and his wife, Thelma, a teacher with a master’s degree from Purdue, where they could build something of their own.

After a conversation with Fr. Wirtz about a 12-acre plot of land at Highway 421 and State Road 2 in Westville, Indiana, Mel knew he’d found the perfect spot. To make it happen, he and Thelma sold their own home for the down payment and moved into a rental house, living lean while they installed the first eight home sites at New Durham Estates.

“I would come home from school and find a handle or lamp missing,” Thelma recalled with a laugh. “Little did I know, it was being used in a model home.”

Those early days were all hands on deck. They operated from their kitchen table, staged model homes with their own furniture, and lived right in the community they were building. “I would come home from school and find a handle or lamp missing,” Thelma recalled with a laugh. “Little did I know, it was being used in a model home.” The first 72 sites filled up in just two to three years.

Growing Phase by Phase

Success led to expansion. The Faths proposed a second phase that would further develop the community, including an office, a retail center, a large lake, and 260 new sites on 100 acres. After an initial denial and some financial adjustments, they were approved and developed the second phase, which filled within three years.

By 1998, a third phase was underway. Mel purchased a Baptist Church and School, renovating them into office space and a community center. The 85 sites in this phase filled over the next eight to ten years.

Today, New Durham Estates South represents the fourth phase, a new vision featuring homes on permanent foundations with crawl spaces and attached garages, attracting those looking for quality, affordable homes and in a beautiful community.

A Family Legacy

From the start, Mel built homes on concrete slabs instead of runners, a decision that’s served the community well for nearly 50 years. But the real foundation has always been family. “We treat them as family,” Thelma says of their employees and residents. “The residents were our neighbors. We put forth a great effort to make New Durham Estates a wonderful place to call home.”

“The residents were our neighbors. We put forth a great effort to make New Durham Estates a wonderful place to call home.” -Thelma Fath

That philosophy carried into the next generation. Their son Gary started helping at age 12 and eventually took over day-to-day operations in 2001, officially taking the reins when Mel and Thelma retired in 2013. Now the third generation, Liz, Tom, and Ryan Fath are continuing the legacy, bringing fresh ideas while honoring the same principles of hard work, family, and community.

When asked for advice, Mel and Thelma keep it simple: “Work hard, work together as a team, never give up even when things get hard, and always be there for each other for support.”

For nearly 60 years, that’s exactly what they’ve done, and what the Fath family continues to do by building something special, one home and one family at a time.