Save Carrie and Matts house

Hi, I am Mark, and I am raising money for the second trip to make repairs to Carrie and Matt Veech's home and make it safe for them and their elderly parents. They are living in a house built in 1917 In Charleston, Illinois. This is not a want to remodel. It's an absolute need to repair to keep them in their home. The house has serious structural issues we had to address, and it is essential to make the house wheelchair and walker friendly and safe to live in. We have started repairs and continued to find more severe issues with the home that must be fixed asap to keep them in. You can check out the process from the start by scrolling down this page and clicking the ( read more ) script.

Carrie has a pacemaker and aneurysm constantly monitored and back and neck problems. She is the primary caregiver for both her parents in their 80s who live in the home also. Matt has a very rare condition most do not survive after surgery. He has had Whipple surgery where parts of his stomach, liver and pancreas were removed. Matt was in Barns hospital for over a month a few years ago. He recently has had both knees repaired and has difficulty getting in and out of vehicles and climbing stairs. He also helps care for his parents in their mid-80s.

 We went to help them in September 2021 and found their 1917 Craftsman-style house in desperate need of structural and basic repairs they can not afford to do with all the hospital bills and monthly expenses they have. We have managed to repair the front part of the structure so it's safe and fixes the sagging floors in the front half of the house. Because of the mobility issues of both elderly parents and Matts's knee problems, we need to finish leveling the floors and make the house wheelchair and walker friendly. The first fundraiser is to pay for current repairs required to complete the ground floor, repair wiring and plumbing and repair damaged walls where the house dropped almost 4 inches from a rotten main support beam. If it had not been for a Home Depot charge account, the store in Mattoon's help getting us the best prices they could, we would not have got what we did last year completed. We are at a stopping point until we can raise money to complete the repairs, and we need help !! Depending on how successful this fundraiser is we may be able to replace the heating system that is patched together badly. They need all the help they can get to be able to live in their home for years to come. We are starting with what must be done to keep them in a safe house. This is not a want to remodel. It is an absolute necessity for them. Please share with all your friends. 

The photos below show a significant improvement. It no longer feels like you are walking on a trampoline. I haven't figured out how to edit the photograph order, but the photos represent what we did last summer.

With mostly scrap lumber, we could hide the gaping hole in the wall from the chimney and construct a built-in for the TV and shelving. We also replaced the old front door with a wider door for easy access with a wheelchair or walker. At this point, Beth had started drywall repair and paint.

We just finished the new wood floor in the living room. Beth was trimming out the base molding.