By Paul Fallon
FAIRMONT — It was out with the old — but not yet in with the new — at the “Extreme Makeover Home Edition” site on Montgomery Avenue.
Contractors moved furniture from the Turner family home Friday in anticipation of today’s demolition. The demolition will take place between noon and 3 p.m.
Volunteers are streaming in to assist with the project, said Judy Eli, the non-construction site coordinator who oversees volunteers. Eli added that about 150 non-construction volunteers have already participated in the project so far.
Although the non-construction volunteers will not help with the actual building of the house, they will be asked handle a myriad of other tasks.
“We’re basically the gophers,” she said.
“Volunteers will be used to pick up debris or move items at the site,” she added. “They also will help transport food and water to the site.”
Volunteers are rallying at the old Salvation Army building at Bellview Plaza. Volunteers must stop by the plaza to fill out paperwork before heading to the site, Eli said.
“Then they’ll (volunteers) stay here until we get a request for volunteers,” she said.
Prospective volunteers can also go to a Web site in order to sign up to help with the project. The Web site, wvextremehomes.com, was designed by Citynet. Over 700 people had signed up to volunteer on the Web site, according to John Dahlia, Fairmont deputy mayor.
One volunteer who stopped at Bellview Plaza on Friday to offer her assistance has a personal connection to the Turners. Brenda Kent is one of Richard Turner’s cousins. She said she was ecstatic that the Turners had been selected to receive the ABC show’s dream home.
“It’s just so wonderful,” she said. “They (Turner family) really deserve it.”
“I’ll be up there doing anything I can to help,” she added.
Erin Webb was also volunteering her time. Webb, a Morgantown resident, heard about the project at her workplace. Webb is employed with Omni Associates, the architectural firm which helped design the new home.
“I wanted to be a part of this and do what I could to help this family,” Webb said.
Webb, who has worked two days already, plans on volunteering at least three more days. She added that she was not surprised by the level of support exhibited by businesses and individuals in the community.
“People in this area are very charitable,” she said.
Volunteering for the program was not limited to just adults. Quinn Loudin, a 17-year-old student at South Harrison High School, was also on hand to help out. Loudin said she was looking forward to volunteering a few more days if she could fit it into her basketball schedule.
“I like helping people out,” Loudin said. “This is a really good project.”
Many local companies are also getting in on the giving. Huffman Corporation is handling the general contracting. Other contractors are also donating their time to help. According to Mark Eli, Huffman Corporation project manager, all of the labor is being donated along with much of the building material.
“About 95 percent of the material has been donated,” Eli said. “And what hasn’t been donated, Wayne (Huffman) is taking care of.”
Huffman said that about two years ago he had prayed for the opportunity to help with just such a project. He added that when the chance came up to participate in the “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” he just couldn’t pass it up.
“Why wouldn’t you want to be a part of something like this?” Huffman asked motioning behind him at the site work.
The 600-square-foot home the Turner family occupied will soon be replaced with a 2,800-square-foot house with four bedrooms and three bathrooms. The house will be also be a two-story in a colonial style. Approximately 350 workers are toiling to complete the home, Eli said.
Constructing a home in such a short period of time presents an abundance of obstacles, said David Stephenson, director of business operations with Omni Associates. He added that one of the biggest obstacles was the size of the work site itself.
“It’s a very small site, and it slopes severely,” Stephenson said.
Stephenson went on to discuss the speed at which the project was being completed. Not only will the home be finished quickly, but the design was also undertaken with speed in mind.
“Typically a project of this size would take months,” he said. “We did it in weeks.”
Stephenson compared the home makeover to an old fashioned barn raising where everyone in the community chipped in to help complete the project.
“The community really pulled together,” he said.
It is not just the local community and surrounding areas that are helping out. The Pella Corporation out of Pella, Iowa, is donating 19 windows, an entry door and a patio door, said Dave Modtland, senior engineer with the Pella Corporation. Kathy Krafka Harkema, corporate public relations manager with the company, said the windows and doors would add a historic look to the home while being energy efficient.
The Pella Corporation has donated items for “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” structures since the show started. The company has traveled from coast to coast with the show’s crew.
“This is the first time we’ve been to West Virginia,” Krafka Harkema said. “It’s beautiful here.”
Pella has donated items for the show since its very first season, Krafka Harkema said. She added that company officials plan on continuing the relationship.
“This show brings the Golden Rule to life,” she said.
Pella not only donates the windows and doors for the show they also provide any future service if it is needed, Modtland said.
