Volunteers stay free in Cumberland mansion for helping clean it up

CUMBERLAND ISLAND - Bernie Huber and Mary McGuinn pay for their stay in a 22,000-square-foot mansion on Cumberland Island in sweat and elbow grease. <br> <br> The couple have volunteered 40 hours a week for the past year, scraping peeling paint, repairing termite damage to wooden pillars and manicuring the grounds. <br> <br> The retired couple are repairing Plum Orchard, the sprawling mansion built by the Carnegie family a century ago. <br> <br> The National Park Service has spent more than two million dollars to repair the mansion, which was donated after Congress established the Cumberland Island National Seashore on the 18-mile barrier island near the Florida border in 1972. <br> <br> Park Service analyst Andy Ferguson told The Florida Times-Union of Jacksonville that another six million dollars is needed to complete renovations to the mansion&#39;s interior. <br> <br> The Park Service likely will take bids from private donors to raise the money, in return for a long-term lease to use the mansion. Some suggested turning the mansion into a bed-and-breakfast hotel or a corporate retreat. But Ferguson said the mansion must remain open to the public for periodic tours. <br> <br> The renovation is slow. It took months for Huber and McGuinn to clear the surrounding brush of fallen tree limbs and debris. Plum Orchard today has a new roof and windows and fresh paint. <br> <br> Huber and McGuinn live in three rooms for free in return for their labor. But when they&#39;re not working, they&#39;re enjoying the beaches, hiking trails and fishing the mostly undeveloped land has to offer.