About Us
The family behind Hilltop Haven and the DaVina story
DaVina Vista, Hilltop Haven, and Four Generations on Sylvan Lake
We're David Harges and Christine DeSavino. We founded DaVina Vista, our family-owned hospitality company, to share thoughtfully designed homes and beautiful properties with guests the way we've enjoyed them ourselves... starting with Hilltop Haven, our flagship property on Sylvan Lake.
This isn't a vacation rental we bought as an investment. Hilltop Haven has been in our family for over 50 years. Sharing it with guests is a way of carrying forward something my parents started.
How We Got Here
The connection to this lake goes back further than 1974. In the 1920's and 30's, my grandparents (my dad's parents) used to come to Sylvan Lake from Fort Wayne to enjoy its many attractions and dance at one of the old lakefront dance halls. My dad was on this lake too as a young boy in the 40's, camping on Camp Big Island with the Boy Scouts. He got homesick and my grandmother had to come up and bring him home early. But that experience didn't deter him... decades later, he bought land on this same lake, and eventually made it his home.
In April of 1974, my dad was asked by a friend if he'd like to buy a lakefront piece of land that included a small island on Sylvan Lake. He said yes, and within a few weeks the property was ours. I was two years old at the time, and over the next several decades my parents (Lee and Sanna) and I spent every summer turning this property into something special.
For the first sixteen years, we didn't have a house on the property at all. Every summer weekend, we lived out of a small camper at the top of the hill, working to develop the property bit by bit. We built a new footbridge to the island. Then a small metal garage. It wasn't until 1990 that the original house went up. In 2004 we expanded with a game room, a three-season room, an additional bedroom, and a full garage replacing the original metal one.
In 2018, the entire hillside was transformed with new landscaping. In 2024, after a two-year renovation, the home was reborn... an upscale lakefront home with natural finishes, live-edge furnishings, an indoor cedar hot tub, and a complete refresh of every space.
Through all of it, the property was where our extended family came together. Christine and I started bringing our two sons, Aidan and Tristan, when they were small. Like me, they grew up at this lake... spending summers, holidays, every season we could get here with aunts and uncles, dear friends, and of course their grandparents.
That's four generations of family woven into this lake. Now it's a place we're honored to share.
The Story of the Island, Its House, and the Tornadoes of '74
Prior to our purchase of the property, a small house stood on the island, and an original bridge connected the island to the mainland. Several families had enjoyed that house over the decades.
In April of 1974, just days before my mom and dad first visited the land & island, the Super Outbreak of 1974, the worst tornado outbreak of the 20th century, ripped across the Midwest. One tornado came directly across Sylvan Lake, destroying the original footbridge and the house on the island, and continued northeast across the lake taking out another house on Round Island, then swept across Camp Big Island taking out the same Boy Scout pavilions my dad had slept under as a child. (Years later, after the Sylvan Lake Association acquired the island to preserve it from development, my dad was among the volunteers who helped clear the old remains and build the walking trails that visitors use today.)
The destruction from the tornado extended into the lake itself, driving debris from the destroyed homes into the water. Since Sylvan Lake is actually a large reservoir, dammed in the late 1830s for a proposed canal system, the state lowered the lake for several years after the tornado so the debris could be cleared from the lake bed. In those same early years, our family spent countless weekends clearing tornado debris from the property and from the island.
The tornado had taken down all but two of the trees on the island. What you see standing there today, the mature canopy shading the fire pit and the Adirondack chairs, grew almost entirely from the root systems of the trees that were destroyed. They're a little over 50 years old now. The island rebuilt itself.
When my dad and mom bought the property weeks after the tornado, only the foundation of the house remained on the island. They chose not to rebuild, and we filled in the foundation instead. Since then the space has stayed open... a quiet green place that grew back on its own terms, and now belongs to the guests who stay here.
We rebuilt the footbridge. We didn't rebuild the island house. Some decisions make more sense with 50 years of hindsight.
In Honor of Lee and Sanna
My mom passed in 2016, and my dad in 2026. They built this place with their hands, their time, and their love.
Christine and I, with our family, are honored to carry it forward and share it with guests who'll create their own memories here.
Every time a guest checks in, every time someone tells us they had the best week of their year here, every time we hear about a wedding or anniversary celebrated, or a family reunion enjoyed among multiple generations on our property... it's a way of keeping what my parents started alive.
Our Philosophy
We want other families to enjoy Hilltop Haven and Sylvan Lake the way we've enjoyed it for half a century. That means a few things to us.
Real privacy. Whichever layout you book, the entire property is yours. No shared spaces, no other guests, no surprises. The home, the island, the pier, the grounds... yours alone for the length of your stay.
Quiet hospitality. We respond fast, we know this house and this lake well, and we love helping guests make the most of their stay. Whether that's a dinner reservation, a winery recommendation, or just the best spot on the property to watch the sunset.
Genuine care for the property. This place has been a labor of love for our family for 50 years. Every detail of the renovation, every piece of furniture, every system in the house was chosen with the next 50 years in mind. We hope guests feel that.
Respect for our neighbors. Sylvan Lake is a quiet community. We have wonderful neighbors who are great friends. We respect their privacy and ask the same of our guests. It's part of why this place stays special.
DaVina Vista's Future
DaVina Vista is a hospitality company we founded to share thoughtfully designed homes with guests. Hilltop Haven is our flagship property. As we grow, we plan to add other properties under the DaVina Vista brand... places we believe in, with the same care, design, and hospitality philosophy that defines this one.
For now, it's just Hilltop Haven... and we're glad you're considering joining the long list of families who've made memories here.
David, Christine, Aidan, and Tristan