(Los Angeles – September 28, 2009) In
many ways, the Reztlaff family is the typical
American family - two working parents and three children. However what
they face on a day-to-day basis is anything but typical.
Roger and Lisa
Reztlaff’s middle child, 16-year-old Jacob, is in a fight for his life.
The now wheelchair-bound teenager was diagnosed with brain cancer in May
2008. Additionally, he and his rother, 22-year-old Eric, both suffer from
severe autism.
In the midst of learning
about Jacob’s diagnosis, the family also learned that their home equity line of
credit was being retracted due to declining home values in the Santa Fe Springs
area. Since then, medical bills and full-time
adult care costs for Eric have consumed the family’s limited finances.
Several home improvement project that were underway have been stalled as they
deal with the more pressing obligations.
A family friend heard about
the Angie’s List Wishmakers program and reached out for help.
“It has been a
rough few years for us, so when we heard that we were nominated for the
Wishmakers program, it was like a little ray of sunlight breaking through the
dark clouds,” said Lisa Reztlaff.
Angie Hicks, founder of
Angie’s List (www.angieslist.com), began the program
five years ago.
“It’s our way of giving back
to the communities we serve,” Hicks said. “We
work as a liaison between families in need and highly rated service companies
in the area that are willing to volunteer their time and service for a worthy
cause.”
After hearing about the
Retzlaff’s struggles, Los Angeles-based, California Construction
Center (www.californiaconstructioncenter.com)
stepped forward to replace the family’s mix-and-match kitchen floor. The entire floor is being donated.
General Manager,
Oz Zilberberg felt compelled to do what he could for this family in need. “This
family deserves so much more than they have. It was an honor to be able
to help them out. I only wish we could have done more.”
Anyone wishing to help the
Reztlaff family wish additional home repairs can contact them via email at: lretzlaff@mac.com .
Previous Wishmakers projects include:
- Helping a Chicago family move
into a new home after their home was foreclosed and the death of their
11-year old daughter.
- Painting the home of a Carmel, Ind.
family who faced financially difficulties due to medical ailments and the
loss of a job.
- Building a room addition
on to the home of an Indianapolis
family whose little boy has the “Bubble Boy” disease and has to live in
sterile isolation.
- Repairing the car of a
disabled Navy veteran in Deland,
Florida to help him get back
up on his feet after a long, up-hill medical battle.
- Removing and properly
sealing exterior lead paint and replacing gutters for a Rochester, N.Y.
woman who operates a child care center out of her home.
- Finishing flooring and
installing doors in the home of a St.
Petersburg, Fla.
woman in frail health who has spent her retirement fund taking care of her
Alzheimer’s-stricken mother.
- Improving the kitchen and
organizing the home of a Boston,
Mass. woman who cares for
drug-addicted and HIV positive newborns.
- Improving kitchen
countertops and installing a portable dishwasher in the home of a legally
blind Portland, Ore. man.
- Making a Kansas City, Mo.
backyard safe for young children, including an infant with a congenital
heart defect.
- Installing a safety rail
and improving the gutters and trim of the home of a Washington, D.C.
woman with multiple sclerosis.
- Landscaping for a widowed
Bellingham, Wash. woman with two young children.
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