LANSING, Mich. (WSYM) - A US Army veteran and a mother of two, Karen Alred, is holding on to years of memories in their home.
A home that used to be her fathers, a Navy veteran. Alred lives there with her 15-year-old daughter. And as of recently, the home is in need of serious repairs. The major one is the roof that had been leaking and causing water damage.
Alred had been making repairs to the house herself until it became too physically straining for her, she couldn't move forward with repairs.
"I just knew it had to be done, but I didn't know how. I just prayed to God, it was all him" said homeowner Karen Alred.
Alred said those prayers had been heard by the city of Lansing who contacted local community groups that partnered with Home Depot's volunteer force. Saturday more than a dozen members of Home Depot, Helping our Heroes (community group) and Faith Church rallied around Alred to help with much-needed home repairs.
Leslie Melvin is the Director at Helping Our Heroes, she said the work that is being done at Alred's is both amazing and rewarding, "our goal is to fix her house up and make it more livable and conducive to her needs."
More livable, according to Karen's son, would be starting over and rebuilding it as new. A plan he has voiced many times to his mother. "He is not shy about his plans for my house," said Alred.
The thought of tearing down her home doesn't even cross Karen's mind. She said the home holds too many memories to let it go.
"Everybody in the family has been here at one time or another, and that's one of the reasons I bought it too, so I can keep them in my heart," said Alred.
Although the house is small, Alred's love for it is huge. Her favorite part, she said, is the large backyard because it gives her a place to wind down and relax
"I like to meditate, I have a firepit back there, its a place I can get some piece of mind, helps take away a lot of the stress," said Alred.
Home Depot workers told us that Karen's home will not be done Saturday. They hope to first replace the roof. After that is complete they will repair the ceiling, paint the walls and replace the carpet if they have time. Kate Hanna, the Home Depot department supervisor is dedicated to the cause. The project is part of the Home Depot's annual "celebration of service" campaign to improve the homes and lives of US military veterans and their families. Hanna said they are not going to stop coming back until it's done.
"The scope of the project is a little more than we thought, so whatever we need to do we figure it out, and we take care of her," said Kate Hanna.
