Serenity Log Homes in Florence, Alabama, owned by DeWayne and Sherry Crumley, has been honored as the Honest Abe Log Homes Dealer of the Year for 2023. Since joining as Honest Abe dealers in 2017, the Crumleys have consistently expanded their dealership, driven by DeWayne’s lifelong passion for log homes. For him, selling these homes was a seamless and natural progression.
“As a child I loved playing with Lincoln logs, and one of fondest memories is watching “Bonanza” with my dad and loving the log home that the Cartwrights lived in,” he said. “Growing up in Middle Tennessee I watched the log home industry and would visit homes being built as I could. I knew that once I was old enough, I would be a homeowner. Then came the studying and the process of learning all I could about log and timber homes. Back then there was no Internet, so I had a lot of travel time, a lot of site visits and a lot of reading.”
His fascination and dedication paid off.
“I met a man who was building a log home, and we became best of friends,” DeWayne recalls. “I studied and talked to people and to log home dealers. I figured out that Honest Abe had the best quality and the best people more than any other that I had visited, and I had visited a lot!”
DeWayne & Sherry Crumley. Serenity Log Homes
DeWayne built his first Honest Abe log home in 1985 and says that the people who own it now “love it and have had no problems with it.” He and Sherry built a log home around 1993 and lived in it for more than 15 years, raising their children in the home of their dreams.
Sherry believes the beauty of God’s Creation is reflected in the wood of a log home.
“When we built our log home, I fell in love with the ambiance,” Sherry said. “When we had people visit, they would comment on how comfortable our home felt, and the warmth of the wood made them feel right at home. We even had several tell us it just made them want to take a nap.”
DeWayne says that he and Sherry became dealers because they wanted to help others achieve that feeling.
“During my career God has allowed me to travel and deal with Fortune 500 companies all across the USA, and one thing is common – everyone is looking for a place of Serenity and Peace to call home,” he said “A place to get away from the rat race and enjoy life. I also learned that if you treat people right, provide them with the correct information and a great product then you will not only make business partners but also friends. And that is how I built my business.”
Not only is DeWayne a dealer, he is pastor of Friendship Baptist Church in Killen, Alabama, and a real estate agent. Read more about DeWayne here.
“After working a family-owned business for more than 20 years, God opened doors for me to get into real estate, and thanks to God I have been successful not only in residential but also commercial and farm real estate,” DeWayne says. “God has partnered me with a group of great people at EXIT River City Realty, and I know this is a plus. EXIT River City Realty has one of the best, if not the best reputation, in the Shoals Area for dealing honestly and treating people like family. I know this relationship gives me an advantage over other dealers. I thank God for that.”
In 2023 DeWayne was the number one EXIT realtor in the state of Alabama and number one in his MLS.
He attributes his success to “persistence and hard work.” He’s sold a number of family-size log homes. He’s built several log cabins for campgrounds and resorts, and the Crumleys are getting inquiries about tiny homes for retirees and those who want to live a simple life.
“We’ve had a lot of success with our timber frame pavilion sales,” says DeWayne, who built one for his and Sherry’s home (pictured above) to use as a model as well as enjoy with his family.
DeWayne’s Dealer of the Year prize is a Disney cruise.
By Claudia Johnson, Honest Abe Log Homes
