High above Colorado’s Homestake Valley, UW–Stout alumna and CTE STEAM educator Diane Deering-Gaston has created more than a mountain retreat. Gaston designed Chalet Homestake View to be a fully off-grid, sustainability-focused property designed to support education, environmental stewardship and community service. Built through innovative construction methods and guided by a commitment to giving back, the project reflects how thoughtful design and applied skills can reach far beyond the footprint of a building.
That mindset was shaped years earlier at UW–Stout, where Gaston arrived with a strong interest in hands-on learning. Encouraged by instructors who recognized her aptitude for technical and creative work, she pursued a technology education degree and quickly found confidence in Stout’s polytechnic approach. Courses grounded in materials, processes and real-world application pushed her to master tools, machines and systems that would later become second nature. Gaston learned to approach challenges through process, iteration, and experimentation. Years later, those same skills would play a central role in turning a long-held dream into reality.
The idea behind Homestake View began decades earlier as Gaston’s vision for a bed and breakfast. Together with her husband Bryon, she spent more than a decade planning, saving and refining the project while navigating rising costs, supply shortages and shifting constraints. Drawing directly on her Stout education and her career as an educator teaching design, engineering and fabrication-based courses, Gaston embraced flexibility, redesigning the space multiple times and breaking the project into achievable phases.
Ultimately, the couple chose an innovative prefabricated chalet built in Austria and assembled on-site in just nine days. Gaston and her husband worked side by side with master carpenters during the build, deepening their understanding of the structure and reinforcing the hands-on philosophy that defined her time at Stout. The approach allowed for precision, efficiency, and dramatically reduced construction waste.
Sustainability was a guiding principle throughout the process. Leftover construction materials were repurposed into furniture and finishes, while wood harvested directly from the land became tables, benches and gathering spaces. The property operates entirely off-grid using solar power, advanced water conservation systems, and carefully selected appliances designed to minimize energy use. Every system is monitored, evaluated and improved, turning the chalet into a living learning environment. For Gaston, it mirrors the way she teaches: encouraging students to test ideas, adapt to constraints and learn through doing.
Gaston’s impact through Chalet Homestake View extends well beyond the chalet’s infrastructure. A portion of the charges for stays supports community partners and service members, with plans to offer donated nights to veterans and nonprofit organizations. Gaston also coordinates local highway cleanups, works with river conservation groups and builds partnerships focused on protecting water sources throughout the region.
Education remains central to the Gaston's mission. Drawing on her experience teaching hands-on, project-based courses, Gaston envisions Chalet Homestake View as a future service learning site where students and outdoor education groups can engage directly with land stewardship, fire mitigation and sustainable practices tied to the property.
The community surrounding Chalet Homestake View is equally intentional. Fellow UW–Stout alumni played a meaningful role in bringing the project to life, reflecting the lasting relationships Gaston built during her time at Stout.
“When I think of StoutProud, I think of community,” she says. “It’s taking what you’ve learned and using it to help others. It’s the people you meet, the support that stays with you and the confidence to build something meaningful.”
From UW–Stout’s hands-on classrooms to a purpose-driven place in the Colorado mountains, Gaston’s journey illustrates how applied education, adaptability and service can create impact far beyond a single career or project.
