The Community We Want in 2024
We hope you and your family are enjoying a wonderful holiday. So many questions await us in 2024. Will inflation relent? Will the housing market shift? Will conflicts around the world come to an end? And yet, there is one question we can answer through programs like HomeFront: What kind of community do we want in the New Year? We wanted supporters like you to be the first to hear of a very special project we just completed to give you a glimpse of what's possible.
Pablito waiting to come home.
Project: Bring Pablito Home
We often receive compelling cries for help that can’t wait for our Spring or Fall volunteer group HomeFront Days. Thankfully, we developed our Critical Pro Repair (CPR for Homes) service for just such cases. Pablo and his wife, Norma, are a young, hardworking couple of very limited means. They recently got some very crushing news. Their two-year-old son, Pablito, was diagnosed with a serious and aggressive form of cancer. Doctors recommended immediate stem cell treatment. The protocol would dramatically weaken the little boy’s immune system. When Pablito’s doctors learned that the family’s Danbury home had no working heat, they cautioned he would not be able to return home until it was addressed. The gas furnace they had was 66 years old. Quotes to replace it ranged up to $11,000 - well beyond the family’s means. It was looking like Pablito would be in the hospital indefinitely.
As fate would have it, Pablo, the father, became aware of HomeFront. He reached out and we went right to work on their behalf. Connections with a manufacturer and supply house gave us access to a replacement furnace at an unbeatable discount. Our long-time relationships with pro plumbers, installers and an electrician were the next piece of the puzzle. Finally, we were able to make use of two generous anonymous donations to bring Pablito back to a warm home that would give him the best prognosis!
While putting all of the pieces together, we got some exciting news that accelerated the timetable. Pablito was cleared to come home before Christmas as long as we could get the heat working! Our pro bono helpers juggled emergency holiday repairs with their paying clients to make it happen. The dad worked alongside them.
Pablito's dad working along with volunteers.
A generous plumber donated hours over days to make it happen.
On Christmas eve, the bundled up little boy returned to a home with plenty of heat. And while you can’t put a price on it, we were able to deliver this life-saving service at almost one-fourth of the quotes this family received. Pablo described it as “the best Christmas gift because it allowed my son to come home.” But it’s the smile on Pablito’s face in his own room at home that makes it all work while.
Starting 2024 on a High Note
Through HomeFront, we really do get to decide the kind of community we want. For every family like Pablito's, there are seven more qualified families in need awaiting our help. We thank those who have made their gifts already to help us determine how many families we can help like Pablito’s in 2024. We're so close to having the resources to tackle many more urgent winter repairs than last year. A donation of any amount can put more smiles on faces in the year ahead. Not every urgent need is as costly as a new furnace. Some of our neighbors are desperate for grab bars or carbon monoxide detectors or new front steps. And HomeFront’s Board believes so strongly in the need to jump on more urgent repair needs this winter that they have agreed to match every dollar donated up to $30,000 by December 31st. On behalf of families like Pablito’s, we thank you for considering a donation and wish the arrival of many blessings to your home in the year ahead. We can’t wait to share more stories of hardships turned into long-term peace of mind.
