You may be familiar with the TV show "Extreme Makeover - Home Addition".
Well, they are doing a home in the little village of Salado, Texas, just south of me. We have done a lot of our dimensional work there and do almost all of the work for Mill Creek which is a Country Club and housing development. That is where they are building the home.
It is being built for a Fort Hood soldier that was almost killed in the shooting there about a year ago. He was shot four times (once in the head) and was not expected to live. Since then he has gone through extensive surgeries and therapy.
The show will be aired sometime in February - around Valentine's Day.
He was engaged at the time of the shooting and the couple plan to be married tomorrow just prior to the house being unveiled to them.
It has been amazing to watch this 3,000 square feet home being built this week. They started last Sunday with a bare lot and will present the home tomorrow afternoon. There is a small city set up around the construction site and they work in three shifts, 24 hours a day. I was blown away by how finely tuned everything is. You can go and volunteer and they give you a T-Shirt and a hard hat and let you help the workers.
Of course, everything is planned down to the minute, so there are trucks arriving with materials every few minutes and tents set up to receive appliances, materials, etc. A hot meal is prepared and served three times a day, plus drinks and ice cream throughout the day and night.
And it's all volunteers and donations. The folks I do the signs for at Mill Creek donated the land (about $70,000) and every piece of material did not cost a dime. Of course, they have advertising everywhere in exchange for the publicity.
FastSigns did the wrap on the bus and Signarama did most of the banners and directional signs. Others donated RV's for the workers.
Beginning next month, another group will be building a home for another Fort Hood soldier right next door to this one. And that one will also be built with all volunteers.
Just being there and seeing all the smiling faces and kind words from everyone is very uplifting. There is still a lot of kindness in the world.
[ December 11, 2010, 02:13 PM: Message edited by: Raymond Chapman ]
Posted by Dave Sherby (Member # 698) on :
Amazing story. How about a little reminder in early Feb. of the show date?
Posted by Dale Manor (Member # 4858) on :
Love to see the Show.
I helped on one of their builds in Vermont while I was there. Very amazing indeed to watch that many people building a new home in that amount of time!
Cool Story Ray
Posted by jack wills (Member # 521) on :
Amen...
Posted by Neil D. Butler (Member # 661) on :
Thanks for the Inside story, they get an amazing amount of work done in such a short period of time. I do like this show, except for that guy yelling all the time, but I know that's just showmanship.lol
Posted by Catharine C. Kennedy (Member # 4459) on :
Fantastic- what a good thing to have happen!
Posted by Dale Feicke (Member # 767) on :
One thing that never ceases to amaze me, is like what Ray said above. How many of us have watched houses being built, all of our lives; and have seen the weeks and months of work involved.
This is choreography, at its finest. To be able to pull a feat off like this, is hard for me to imagine, given how many ways there are for a project to be delayed.
May all those involved in what has to be a monumental endeavor, be richly blessed.
Posted by Raymond Chapman (Member # 361) on :
There are countless stories of giving and generosity that have come from this project. One of the volunteers went into a local craft store to get some candles and asked that they be donated, but the clerk said that they could only give a discount.
The person in line behind the volunteer said that she would pay for them and the candles were delivered to the home free of charge.
As far as all that yelling, it was done only occasionally during the week, and even then he was most courteous and friendly. As was said...it's showmanship. The real guy with the bullhorn was the director and he made sure everything was perfect.
One of my long time friends donated all the T-shirts and printing for the volunteers and those that were sold to the spectators. 100% of the proceeds went to the family.
One of the most notable aspects of the week was how friendly and happy everyone was...even the "big wigs". I never saw a grumpy person or anyone upset with anyone else. It was just a week of giving...and maybe that's where happiness is found.
Posted by Kelly Thorson (Member # 2958) on :
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