Hello everyone!
YEA!
We have sheetrockers to install our drywall! Thank you Eric! And thank you to the Courier-Herald for running the article last week that he saw and responded to!
Shingles!
Our new shingles were delivered and conveyored to the rooftop this morning! It'll be great to not have to worry about springing leaks in our newly restored building! Would anyone be able to install the shingles for us sometime in the next few weeks, please? It would be sincerely appreciated!
Thanks to Tile Tech and Sterling Exteriors for the donation of materials and to Doug and Jeff for going the extra mile to conveyor them onto the roof for us so they didn't have to be schlepped up by ladder! And thanks to Cindy Van Meter of CR Gutters for referring us to Tile Tech.
Flooring materials:
We were planning to install vinyl flooring in the building but are struggling to find donations of about 1200 s.f. of mid-grade vinyl which seems to run about $20/s.y. retail. Do you know anyone that may be able to assist us please?
It seems everyone in the flooring industry is struggling right now...well, it's not just the flooring industry either, but this is the area we've had the most difficulty procuring materials. Another option would be ceramic tile...a neutral color is what we're looking for and we do have someone who can install it if we are able to have the materials donated. Thank you for any help anyone can offer!
Thanks to Cindy Morris for the donation of some insulation!
Finally:
Many of you will remember last year Lions 4 Kids sponsored three families for the holidays in addition to providing clothing and gifts for a couple hundred other local children. One of our sponsored families in particular touched a nerve with many: a single mom with cancer raising two teens, living in a run-down rental house on a pittance. They were facing a year with no holiday celebration.
The outpouring of support for the family was astounding and boy, did they have a Christmas!! Thanks to our amazing community they got the "full meal deal", complete with tree, decorations, stockings, food for the main meal and stuff for the pantry, treats for their kitties, and gifts galore for all three, delivered by Santa Claus. It was an incredible experience for those of us who got to share in the delivery, and the mom told me later that on Christmas night the three of them sat together and cried at the outpouring of love and kindness that made the holiday so special.
The boy, Alan, was enrolled in a welding program concurrently with finishing his senior year at Sumner High School and many of you donated all the clothing, boots, gloves, and other specialty items that he needed to pursue his future livelihood.
Many of you have inquired over this past year as to how the family is faring. I had tried reaching the mom multiple times with no response but knew the children's father who lived in Arizona had offered to take the family in to help relieve the mom of some stress as she battles her illness, so I figured they were moving and settling into their new environment and schools.
I received a call this morning from the mom who advised that Alan died on April 20th. He was apparently doing brodies in the desert with his four-wheeler, lost control, landed in the Colorado River with the bike on top of him and drowned. He had just turned 19 two days before. The family is devastated of course. The mom is still battling her illness but stable. Jessica, the daughter who is not yet 17, is taking high school classes on-line and despite the terrible turmoil in her life, is excelling.
One thing the mom mentioned is that Alan LOVED his Carhartt clothes and his boots that were provided for him last Christmas and he wore them everywhere. In fact, he died in them. A shrub will be planted in our new Serenity Garden in memory of Alan. He was one of Our Kids.
A sad irony is that another local family suffered the loss of a son a few years ago during the holidays and made a very generous memorial donation to help purchase items for Alan's welding training. He too will be remembered with a special planting in our Serenity Garden.
Carol
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