Roof and Working Furnace for Sandy

Hi, my name's John.

What I'm Asking For:
I'm raising money for my elderly neighbor, Sandy, and her disabled son, Larry. They live two doors down from me, and their house is falling apart.

Larry and Sandy:
Larry has extensive nerve damage in his spine which renders him unable to walk without a walker, and is in constant pain. Sandy does the best she can - I often see her struggling to carry groceries to her house, and I run over to offer help whenever I see her.

She's a proud woman, though, and doesn't want to impose or seem weak. I'm grateful for those times when she agrees to let me help. She was initially reluctant to let me make this gofundme campaign, but she eventually agreed, and only then because she said she was worried about Larry.


While the house needs extensive repairs, the two immediate concerns are:
1. Their gas furnace has not worked for two years - it's entirely broken. We need to replace it.
2. Their roof has not been replaced in decades. It, too, is falling apart. They have water damage from leaks.

We've contacted basic charitable services (volunteer organizations, government grant programs), but the winter is coming quickly, and they haven't gotten back to us yet. There's also no guarantee

For the past year, I've been maintaining their lawn and helping them clean up in and aroundthe house (I dutifully take their trash to the curb every Wednesday). Unfortunately, the roof and the furnace are outside of my means, both monetarily and labor-wise. They have been without heat for two winters now. This winter is supposed to be even colder than the last two in Pittsburgh. I honestly don't know what else to do.

Specific Costs:
I'm raising this money to specifically:
1. Get a new gas furnace professionally installed (around $2000)
2. Hire a licensed and bonded contractor to completely replace their roof (around $6000)

"Stretch" Goals:
Any extra money will be used to weatherize the house further:
- Basic foundational repair; repointing brick and concrete block, seating cracks; I can do this myself
- Level concrete walkways around the house that have a washed out foundation
- Repair or replace broken windows
- Replace water damaged drywall and carpet upstairs
- Insulation
- Upgrade electrical system to within code
- Seal up water leaks in the basement and improve drainage (French drain)
- Replace their front and back doors, which are rusted through

Their back basement door has been broken for years, and was replaced with a piece of plywood.

They've also been without a back gutter for awhile. Water buildup on this side of the house leads to a lot of the basement's flooding.

The view of their fence from the back alley shows how washed out the concrete foundation is. This will crack soon if I don't get a retaining wall built and backfill the foundation.

Crumbling concrete walkways surround the whole house, and any exposed brick hasn't had mortar for awhile.

Partially Funded? No Problem:
gofundme's donation model means even if the project is partially funded we're able to withdraw and utilize the funds. This means that once we hit $2000, we can withdraw that and get started on the furnace. We don't have to wait to fund the entire project before we get started.

Contractor:
I have a few specific companies in mind for repairs - all of whom have done work on my home. I'm not affiliated in any way with any of them, besides being a previous customer. Their work has been fantastic, and their prices have always been on the lower end of received quotes. I'll choose whichever of these companies provides the lowest quote, since I know their quality is good.

If you live in the Pittsburgh area and have a recommendation for a licensed and bonded contractor (especially if they've done good work on your home) please let me know.

Thank You:
My family has always been a family of helpers. We don't have a lot of stories about family heroes, but the stories we have are always about helping other people: giving food to neighbors during the depression, saving a kid on the subway who was being beaten up, taking in a woman who had no place else to go.

I try to keep up with this legacy, and I like to think I'm doing a good job, but there are some things that are beyond my abilities. I don't have a lot of money - all I can do is ask for help.

If the repairs cost only a few hundred dollars, I might be able to handle it myself, but several thousand is outside of my reach.

Please help - anything you can give means that an elderly woman and her son will be able to be comfortable this winter.

Thank you so much. Give what you can. If you can't give anything, at least share this fund. It takes no time, and it might make a difference in two people's lives.

-John Filleau