Wild ideas come naturally to Kendall Ronzano. In her spare time, the busy York School junior is building a miniature house on a trailer. No, she’s not moving out of her Westside home just yet. Ronzano plans to donate the house — or auction it off and donate the proceeds — to a local homeless family.

Inside the space of a large walk-in closet, the house packs the basic requirements for shelter into 117 square feet. Eighteen feet long and 7 feet wide, the Lusby Tumbleweed Tiny House design includes a covered redwood porch, a galley kitchen, dining space, shower, bathroom, and lofted sleeping space, all mounted on a trailer.

“I think it’s really important for everyone to learn how to build a house,” Ronzano said. “We pass by the homeless shelter every day on the long commute [to York School], and it just reminds me how instantaneously someone can lose their home. A lot of times it’s because of the economy. And so I thought, you know what, maybe somehow I could build this house and then give it back to them.”

Utilizing fundraising skills she learned for post-9/11 disaster relief and a supersized dose of determination, the 16-year-old already is knee-deep in the project, which she calls NerdGirlHomes. The tiny home, which was started in May, is framed; installing the shower and putting up plywood for the walls are next. Read full story