Nonprofit builds home for family in need
Project began as just a repair
By Eddie Trizzino
Eagle Staff Writer
Home repair projects had been building up for Patrick and Diane O'Donnell at their house on Glade Mills Road in Middlesex Township, where they have lived since 1993.
Last year, the whole house came down. This week, a new one went up in the same space in just a few days.
The O'Donnells' home was the subject of a “blitz build” from Hosanna Industries, a Pennsylvania nonprofit that helps people in need with home repairs and reconstructions.
Diane O'Donnell said she heard through her church that Hosanna Industries helped people in need with construction projects, and contacted it last spring for help fixing a hole in her roof. She wound up getting a little more help than that.
“They suggested we start over,” Diane O'Donnell said. “So, they knocked it down and they built us a beautiful new home.”
After evaluating the O'Donnells' home, Hosanna Industries sent a group of staff members and volunteers to the site for reconstruction after the family had moved all of their belongings out.
Started Monday
Demolishing it and setting up a new foundation took a few months, but they started building the new house Monday and it was completed by Thursday.
“The process this week was a blitz build, and this is just a highly compressed building process,” said Becky Hetzer, director of mission resources for Hosanna Industries in
Gibsonia. “We saw they had a nice-sized lot they could potentially build on, so we encouraged them to work with us on building a new home.”Hetzer said the O'Donnells' home was “beyond healthy living conditions,” which is why the nonprofit went for a new house instead of just repairs.While constructing a new house is expensive, Hetzer said Hosanna Industries assists a client in working with a local bank, in this case Mars Bank, to take out a mortgage that also helps pay for construction. The mortgage always costs less than the value of the home, Hetzer said.“The mortgage they get is to cover the cost of materials and for Hosanna's involvement,” Hetzer said. “That way, it creates instant equity for the homeowner.”Donated suppliesThe new home has two bedrooms and one bathroom. Diane O'Donnell said several other companies donated supplies, such as a washer and dryer and a refrigerator, due to Hosanna Industries' connections.The best part, however, is that the bathroom and the house's side door have been made handicap-accessible for Patrick O'Donnell, who has mobility difficulties.“They made a bathroom that is handicap-accessible, with wide doorways and more room,” Diane O'Donnell said. “They moved the larger door to the side, so I can back my car up and I can move him in more easily.“It's perfect for us. I am so grateful.”Hetzer said the nonprofit's work is not yet completed because staff members still make themselves available to help with ongoing repairs and financial questions.“People aren't just numbers,” she said. “We help them through the whole thing.”The nonprofit dedicated the house Thursday, and Diane O'Donnell said she and Patrick will move back in this coming week. While the demolition of the old house, which she thinks was built in the 1940s, was bittersweet, she said she is excited to live in the newly constructed home.“We're looking forward to making new memories in the new house,” she said.
