A stay-at-home dad’s dream of winning a new home for his growing family
came true when Hinsdale resident Eric Makstenieks learned he was the
winner of the 2011 Home and Garden Television Dream Home. The home is nestled among the ski slopes of Mt. Mansfield in Stowe, Vermont.

An avid HGTV fan who entered the giveaway nearly every day during the seven-week entry period, including from the hospital the day his now six-week-old daughter was born, Makstenieks and his wife were at home with their children when HGTV’s Monica Pedersen knocked on the door to surprise him with the news. Viewers can see that moment during the national broadcast of the HGTV
Dream Home Giveaway 2011 special on March 19 at 7 p.m.

Makstenieks, his wife Catherine and their two children look forward to making their first trip to the vacation spot of Spruce Peak at Stowe Mountain Resort in Vermont.

“This is surreal,” said a shaken Makstenieks. “This is too good to be true!”

Makstenieks, whose name was drawn from more than 76.5 million entries, the largest in the history of the giveaway, will receive the HGTV Dream Home 2011 grand-prize package with an estimated value of $2 million, pending final verification of compliance with official rules.

In addition to the new, custom-designed and fully furnished home, the
grand prize package includes a 2011 GMC Acadia Denali and $500,000.

Viewers can get a sneak peek of what the home looks like on the inside in this week's Viewfinder and get a 360-degree virtual tour and read blogs about it at HGTV.com/dreamhome, where they can preview the 2012 HGTV Dream Home.