“Happiness is to be in love with a bit of this and a bit of that”

Who are you?

Heidi Lapila, Estate Manager, the Saari Residence

How did you end up working for Kone Foundation?

I used to run a florist shop in Mietoinen. That’s how I got to know Hanna, the Saari Residence, and Kone Foundation. In the beginning, I helped the staff with taking care of the park. Then I started to take care of the park on my own as a subcontractor, and when Estate Manager Simo retired in 2013, I took over. As the years went by, I became the new estate manager.

What do you do at the Foundation?

I take care of the valuable and unique cultural environment of the Saari Residence: its buildings, park, and forests. I am also responsible for ensuring that everything is in order with the residents’ accommodations and workspaces.

What is the best part of your work?

Each day is different. I am constantly learning new things and, of course, getting to know the people here at the Saari Residence.

And what is the most challenging thing?

Perhaps fitting building maintenance work into the busy residence schedule. It is almost always the case that one repair job on an old building leads to a second, and a third, and on and on.

If you could have one super power, what would it be and why?

I don’t know about super powers, but stardust and love. You never know what a new day will bring.

BIO:

Heidi Lapila, a woman in the prime of her life, is Estate Manager of the Saari Residence. Heidi has been a cultural worker with an emphasis on the arts, a florist, and an entrepreneur.

She lives on a small farm in Kivikylä with 5-year-old Jimi and Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier Laura. When she has the time, Heidi’s hobbies include looking for her lost garden and creating squirrels in her pottery workshop.

Motto: Happiness is to be in love with a bit of this and a bit of that.