 A few months later, however, on March 1, 2007, he sent his Architect George Ridgway and his contractor Joe Pritchett of Pritchett Brothers, to a meeting of the "Friends", it was announced that billionaire Bill and Gayle Cook would fund the restoration if the "Friends" would accept the offer.Restoration of the mill began in earnest in May 2007 with Tracy Wells as foreman of the project for Pritchett Brothers.The first task was to remove the old equipment, tools, and the remaining features of the general store and fabric-making, including two carding machines.