Special Project

I have finally had time to blog again. It has really been a busy two days.

Adrienne and I worked on a special project for the Carpenter Family. If any of the readers of this blog followed last years blog, they will remember the the first SEI group worked on building the Carpenter's home.

Well the Carpenters home was almost ready to move into - and the family was so excited to get out of a trailer and start their new lives. When they went to get their donated furnishings out of storage, they found out they had been stolen. Can you imagine the heartbreak this family must have felt. Their dreams were brought so low after their home was completely wiped out by Katrina - and just when they thought they are about to turn a corner, they get hit again.

So the folks at SEI thought it would be a great idea to help furnish the Carpenters' house while we were down here.

So on Wednesday, Adrienne, Mimi and I went to talk with the Carpenters. When we told them we were going to help them - they were ecstatic. Holly, Brian and their 3 boys: Jessie, Joshua and Jacob couldn't believe that were going to offer them such a gift.

As we walked thru their home, we all realized how fortunate we were. They had one couch in the family room. The whole family was sleeping on mattresses on the floor. They had no real furniture except a few hand me down dressers to store their belongings. It was a sobering experience.

So with lots of information and a small budget, off we went shopping for the Carpenters. We spent the whole day in Gulf Port with specific criteria: Get as much as we could to turn this house into a home and do this all by end of day Thursday. That meant we had to find a furniture place that delivered....quickly.

After an exhausting day of running around, we felt we had been very successful. We found a furniture company that had very reasonable prices and was willing to deliver for free the next morning. As well, we still had money remaining to apply warm finishing touches like pictures, flowers, rugs, blinds, curtains, etc.

On Thursday, Adrienne and I went over to the Carpenters home - so excited to transform their house. The Carpenters spent the day away from the home - so we could surprise them. We had a lot of work to do. They furniture truck was coming at 10 AM and we had to clear out their house. So we went to work - and used already sore muscles to get everything outside.

At 10AM, we called in the troops and Robb, Antonis, Anne and Mimi came by to help with the new furniture and lend a hand. Anne and Mimi spent time outside planting the potters and flowers to go out on their front porch. They looked so warm and welcoming...it was a great start. Robb and Antonis were put to good use while waiting for the truck. They started on all the windows and got the miniblinds up in no time.

Finally the furntiture arrived......and most of it in pieces. Boy we had a lot of work to do in a short amount of time. Robb, Mimi and Anne needed to go back to the build site...but we recruited Anotnis to stay with us for the duration. He was a trooper...two bossy woman and tons of work to do.

So we got to it, building bunk beds, assembling furniture, putting up curtains, moving furniture, making beds, decorating. Antonis was very creative - as we ran into a few technical difficulties - and his quick thinking made it all come together.

We had hoped to be complete by around 3:30...but at 4:00 it was clear we still ahd about an hour and 1/2 to go. We called the Carpenters - and they were just so excited to see the results - they had no problem waiting for a few more hours.

Their home looked incredible. With just a small budget, we were able completely furnish their home. The living room now had a couch, loveseat and and oversized lounge chair with ottoman. Two end tables and a coffe table rounded out the room - and pictures and decorations finished it off. In the kitchen, a kitchen table with six chairs now allowed the family to share a meal together. The bathroom had all new towels, bathcarpets, shower curtain and decorations.

Jessies room had a "real bed" with a headboard where he could keep books and other personal things. He has his own desk and a dresser and end table. New bedding made the room complete.

Jacob and Josh's room now had bunk beds. I'm sure it will be a battle of sharing the top bunk! Jacob loves Sponge Bob ...so of course we had to find Sponge Bob bedding, a table and chairs where they could color and a cute night light/lamp. Josh really loved Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...but after searching in 4 different stores for this bedding...it was no where to be found. So we settled on a sports theme and played up football.

The parents bedroom had a cheery poster bed with a beautiful matching dresser and mirror and end table. It had some minor scratches and marks - so we were lucky to get such a bargain. We put on a light bedding with dark green sheets and lots of pillows!

The timing was perfect. At about 5pm, the SEI camera crew stopped by. They set up their cameras - and were ready for the Carpenters when they opened the door and saw the transformation. As well, a group of SEI volunteers stopped by to give support. It was quite a festive time.

At about 5:30 we were ready and the Carpenters were on their way.

When they walked in the door - we knew right away that all our hard worked paid off. Holly and Brian were brought to tears - and we received the biggest hugs! The kids were thrilled. Jacob and Josh piled on the top of the bunk bed - and Jessie was so happy with his new room.

SEI interviewed the Carpenters - and we hope that someday soon you can hear their story. We hope you will be as moved as we were !