3152 Malaspina Promenade

The property was registered to Thomas Booker of Vancouver from 1915 to 1918. A house was built in 1917.  

The second owner was Emily Wootten of Vancouver who purchased the property in 1918. She named the house The Nest. 

The Nest

In 1930 it was sold to Elmer Charles Lee (wife Kay) of Seattle, secretary of the Powell River Company. In 1935 he extended the house on each side. Elmer and Kay had two daughters, Norma (m. Wood) and Gloria (m. Horrigan). 

In 1949 Elmer Lee purchased a second front lot to the east from the estate of Walter Vaughan-Robinson who had owned it since before 1930.                                                                                            

Two back lots were acquired from the Vaughan-Robinson estate in 1951.  Outbuildings were constructed for storage, a diesel generator and offices, and a small house was built for a succession of Chinese cooks, each of whom were known as “Ma.” The property was sometimes mistaken for a hotel by island visitors due to its configuration. 

Aerial view showing configuration of the buildings

 In later years Norma’s sons Charles, Lee and Hiram and Gloria’s daughter Glenna spent summers at Savary.

In 1980 the property was transferred to Elmer Lee’s daughter Norma Wood. Norma was a well loved member of the Savary community and spent much time at Savary during the summers  and after her retirement from teaching. She grew flowers and vegetables in her back yard, often in friendly competition and sharing with the neighbours next door. 

Norma sold the property to her good friends Peter Armstrong and Daryl Duke in 2003. 

The house showing the acacia trees (ca 1960). It was later painted blue.

The house was demolished in 2004, leaving green space which they called “Norma’s Meadow.” Two acacia trees were left in honour of Norma and her friend Mary Beth Peters who also spent many years in the house.

The property was transferred to Wendy Armstrong in 2011. In 2012 Wendy had a new house built, designed by Chart and Pat McCulloch and built by Murray DeGraag of Malaspina Construction, which she named SummerHill. In the front stand the two acacia trees. 

A guest house was added behind the main house in 2014, designed and built by Murray De Graag, and named Mini SummerHill. 

Published 2026