The gratitude of Cora Casey and her foster children was more than enough for the the Houston remodelers who spearheaded the renovation of her home. On the swings, Alex and Cora Casey. Standing, Gene Walton, HomeAid Houston board member (left); Jeff Hunt, Heritage Construction; and Dennis Haws, All Star Construction.

Houston remodelers teamed up with HomeAid Houston recently to extensively remodel the home of Cora Casey, a foster mother to four children with multiple disabilities.

The Remodelers’ Council of the Greater Houston Builders Association took on the project as part of its regular charitable efforts on behalf of neighbors in the community. Their goal was to make the home more accessible for the children.

The remodelers enlisted the aid of many of their suppliers and vendors, as well as other members of the Houston HBA, and together they donated $100,000 in materials and 2,000 hours of labor.

	The Casey yard and home before...

They completed the remodel in 10 days.

“We typically look for two projects a year to get involved with as a council,” explained Jeff Hunt, CGR, GMB, CAPS, of Heritage Construction.

Remodeling Casey’s home was a compelling project to undertake, said Dennis Haws, CGR, of All Star Construction. Haws serves as the council’s charitable projects chairman. He finds the projects for the council and then organizes the details.

HomeAid Houston contacted Haws about Casey last year and asked if the remodelers could help. Haws then met with Casey in December to hear her story himself.

Casey said she had been a foster parent for many years and lived in a home with few accessible modifications. She has been caring for three children who use wheelchairs and a 14-year-old with mental disabilities. As the children have grown, Casey told Haws, caring for them in an inaccessible home was becoming increasingly difficult.

“When I first met Cora,” Haws said, “she told me what a blessing her children were to her. When she talked about them, her eyes lit up.”

“At that moment, I knew we were going to help her,” he said. “All that remained were the details.”

Members, vendors and suppliers donated lumber, plumbing supplies, paint, tankless water heaters, a clothes dryer and a 30 KW stand-by diesel generator valued at $15,000 needed to maintain electrical power for the children's ventilators if the grid goes down.

For the project, the remodelers put their CAPS skills to work improving the accessibility of the first floor and installing two new bathrooms with wheelchair accessible roll-in showers and commodes.

The volunteers also upgraded the wiring, plumbing and finishing, landscaped the backyard and installed a swing set for the children.

Hunt said that Casey and the children were overjoyed with the project, and that their gratitude was reward enough for the job.

Projects like this “help to build camaraderie” among the council members and help integrate new members into the group, Hunt said. “You really get the warm fuzzies.”

	...and after

	One of the remodeled bathrooms with a roll-in shower.

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