Dear Portland Rebuilding Together, Thomas and Travis from Turner Construction, and everyone who volunteered,

About 7 years ago I got pnuemonia. I was sick for weeks, then was hospitalized for a week and then took months to recover. As a single disabled mom, it didn't take much time for things to get a bit out of control. It was like I fell into a hole and I tried so hard to climb out but the walls kept crumbling. Sometimes I'd make a little progress but then something would push me back down. I got pushed to the very bottom of that hole a few months ago when I had to spend the month of December in the hospital for major back surgery and then the next 2 months at home in bed. I knew I had to clean up my life, but there was so much to do and I didn't know where to start, not to mention the fact that I couldn't physically do a lot of what needed to be done. In January of this year, a friend told me about Rebuilding Together. She sent in an application for me. Beatrice from Rebuilding Together visited me, and I soon found out that I was accepted. On April 24th a group of about 30 to 40 volunteers spent the day working on my house. Here is a look at some the things that were done for me:

FRONT YARD

Sidewalk... Tree roots were pushing up the sidewalk. Volunteers busted out the old sidewalk and put a new one down. Of course there is no way that I could have done this work myself. I'm sure it would have cost me hundreds of dollars to hire someone to do it for me.

Cement ramp... Years ago I hired someone to lay a cement ramp for me. Turns out this person had no cement laying experience and it came out ugly and too steep. It was unusable to me. Volunteers took out the old and made a new beautiful ramp which is not too steep and which I can use. The new ramp:

Garden on the side of the house... There were lots of weeds and unwanted grass growing there, most of which I could not reach. Volunteers cleaned it up and made it look nice!

KITCHEN

Oh boy. The people who volunteered to work on the kitchen were very brave! That room needed work when I moved in 8 years ago. Before volunteers cleaned it up, it was a complete disaster.

Cleaning... I don't even want to think about how gross it was in there. It's embarassing how bad it was. Whoever did the cleaning in there deserves an extra big thank you! Also, I know the contents of the fridge were disgusting so another extra big thank you to whoever cleaned it out. The new fridge I was given is clean and lovely. I will keep it clean and lovely! I have no before pictures of how bad the kitchen was. But honestly, if I did, I wouldn't post them because it's far too embarassing.

The floor... I'm so thankful all the layers of flooring were removed! I heard there were 5 or 6 layers. I now have only one layer and I'm sure it is the nicest floor that kitchen has seen in decades! This is the old floor:

And this is the new floor:

I love how smooth it is to roll on. Special thanks to Mike from Don Frank Flooring!

Paint... There is nothing like a fresh coat of paint to freshen things up. Even the cupboards were cleaned and painted!

Cupboards before:

Cupboards now:

Lighting... The old fixture I had in the kitchen was terrible. The bulbs burned out every few months. Changing lightbulbs in a ceiling fixture is one thing I absolutely cannot do, so until a friend came by and changed the bulbs for me, I often had a kitchen with no lights. The new fixture with the long-lasting lightbulbs is fantastic!

Window... I'm so glad someone got this window open. I've never been able to open any of the windows in the kitchen. The room often got unbearably hot in the summer.

Work table... Because the countertops in my kitchen are too high, I used to prepare foods in the dining room at the dining room table. Volunteers installed this roll-under work table and I use it all the time. I love it!

Oven... Although I don't have it yet, I am looking forward to my new oven with the dials where I can easily reach them. Thanks for continuing to look for that oven Thomas!

Cat door...

Before:

Cat door now:

My kitchen used to be a place I dreaded being in. It was dark, dirty, and not at all wheelchair friendly. Now it's clean and bright and more accessible!

BATHROOM

Floor... I didn't hear how many layers of floor were in the bathroom, but I'm guessing it was at least 2. And I know it must have smelled terrible tearing it up because while I was in the hospital in December, one of the dogs peed in that room numerous times. I think she was upset that I was gone for so long.

Painting and cleaning... I've never seen the sink and tub so clean! I love the fresh coats of paint!

I'm sorry I don't have any before pictures of the bathroom.

New outlet... I had only one outlet in the bathroom and it was high and above the sink and almost completely out of reach. Every day for years I struggled to reach that outlet to plug my hair dryer in. One time last year while I was reaching, the rods in my spine broke, which lead to my back surgery in December. Of course I didn't want to use that outlet after that, so I used my hair dryer in the living room. Volunteers put in a new outlet that is easy for me to reach. Also, the lightswitch was lowered so that I no longer have to turn it on and off with a hanger. Special thank you to O'Neill Electric for the electrical work!

DAUGTHER'S ROOM

Cleaning and painting.... She loves the new color of her bedroom!

Heating vent.... There wasn't a heating vent in there. A volunteer made

it so she now has heat in her room! Special thanks to American Heating!

MY ROOM

Painting and cleaning.... So pretty and a million times better than pink!

BACKYARD

Wow, what a difference!

Before:

After:

We are going to enjoy our backyard so much this summer! I love my new raised garden beds. So far we have planted onions, romaine, cauliflower, artichokes, tomatoes, rhubarb, parsley, dill, chives, and catnip! To be planted: carrots, basil, pumpkins, sunflowers, and cucumbers. My new ramp is much nicer than the old one. The old one was falling apart and it was slippery when it rained. And, this might seem like a little thing, but it's one of my most favorite improvements:

Whoever came up with the idea to slope these bricks so that I have a smooth ramp to patio transition was brilliant!

Even Gus is loving the new yard!

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!!! I was feeling so overwhelmed when I came home from the hospital in December. I really didn't know what to do and I started to think that my only way out of this mess was to sell my house. Because of your help, not only can I stay here, but I can enjoy it so much more than I ever did before! I'd also like to mention that everyone was so nice. It isn't easy accepting help like this, but your kindness made it much easier than I thought it would be.

Forever grateful,

Shannon

P.S. I know people are curious to know why I'm in a wheelchair, and so I'd like to share my story. When I was 8 years old I was riding in a car with my parents and my sister, and our neighbors. Keep in mind that this was 32 years ago when wearing seatbelts wasn't a big deal. My sister, my neighbor friends Debbie and Patti, and I were riding in the back part of my neighbor's Subaru station wagon. We stopped for a stop sign. The drunk driver behind us didn't stop. Debbie and Patti and I were thrown out of the car. I landed on the road and broke my back, leaving me a T4/5 complete paraplegic. Debbie and Patti landed in the ditch beside the road and both were pronounced dead on arrival. Both moms broke their pelvises. Both dads and my sister had minor injuries. The drunk driver who hit us was not injured.

A note from my daughter:

I don't know how to put into words how much I want to thank everyone that helped on the house. It was a great experience for all of us, I think, and it definitely inspired me to go out and help others. I guess I didn't really realize how much our house actually needed it until after all of the work was done. Thank you for making a difference in someone's life. It changed my life for sure, and I know it changed my mom's as well. Again, thank you.. So much.

~G