TV: "Extreme Makeover" picked some great folks!

[dixieagle]

We were thrilled to hear last week that a local family had been surprised by the Extreme Makeover Home Edition crew and selected to receive a new home. The building took place all week, while they sent the family on vacation to Arizona and the Super Bowl!

The family is Catholic, with 8 children, six of them - all boys - still at home. The youngest boy has Down Syndrome; his mom used to bring him to the local Catholic high school to show “pro-life in action” and give wonderful talks. The dad was laid off a while back and the mom works at a local thrift store. The entire family gives to the community by volunteering and helping those even less fortunate than they.

EM really got it right this time for sure! They have tentatively scheduled the show for March 23, but as we all know, those schedules can change. I will keep you posted here, as this will be a wonderful thing to see.

 

[leonie]

It’s nice when trully good people have temporal rewards.

 

[aimee]

I truly enjoy this show and this one sounds especially good:thumbsup:

 

[gam197]

My only problem is that when they do the show, the houses are so elaborate. I think it is fun to watch how they design each room to each person and see the vacations that they are on but why so big. Why not make them a little more modest and do more of them. I know it is for the TV audience but I just wonder how the home owners can even pay the taxes. I suppose if times get tough they can sell them.

The families often start off in a small house or trailer and end up with a half-million dollar home with an extensive landscaped yard.

They did one in my state but it created conflict as the house was big and too close to the neighbor’s boundary.

 

[aimee]

My only problem is that when they do the show, the houses are so elaborate. I think it is fun to watch how they design each room to each person and see the vacations that they are on but why so big. Why not make them a little more modest and do more of them. I know it is for the TV audience but I just wonder how the home owners can even pay the taxes. I suppose if times get tough they can sell them.

The families often start off in a small house or trailer and end up with a half-million dollar home with an extensive landscaped yard.

If you will notice the mortgage is usually paid off by a donor and if all they have to pay is tax each year they can afford it…

 

[gam197]

originally posted** by aimee**
If you will notice the mortgage is usually paid off by a donor and if all they have to pay is tax each year they can afford it…

I guess I’m being a little bit of a Grinch. There is no doubt I would rather have the show on the air as it does make the audience feel good.

 

[KCT]

My only problem is that when they do the show, the houses are so elaborate.

Ever notice they rarely show the neighboring homes? The few times I caught a glimpse of one, the new house looked totally out of place!

I agree, it’s a wonderful thing to do, but I also wish the new homes weren’t so over the top.

 

[lizaanne]

I just LOVE LOVE LOVE this show!!! We used to watch it every single weekend, but since The One True Faith has been airing on Sunday evening in the Detroit area, we have been at the studio taking calls from people watching the show - so we have not been able to see it in quite awhile.

~Liza

 

[lizaanne]

Ever notice they rarely show the neighboring homes? The few times I caught a glimpse of one, the new house looked totally out of place!

I agree, it’s a wonderful thing to do, but I also wish the new homes weren’t so over the top.

Consider it this way - the home they build for these families is large, yes, and a bit more “fancy” than normal standards for most of us. But they are giving these people more than just a fancy home - they are giving them a sort of inheritance. If they ever had to downsize, just selling the contents of the home alone could give them a large amount of money, especially some of the custom made pieces. Also - in some situations, the medically necessary enhancements made to the homes are specialized for these family’s needs. This is something you can’t put a price on if it means life or death for your child, and I’m sure that some of these enhancements mean making a larger home, such as an open floor plan for a wheelchair, etc…

And finally - those families with many children, and more on the way, this allows them to run a business from home, keep all the children home-schooled in the home if they wish, and so many opportunities that being in a tiny home may not be an option.

The only thing I really would prefer to see more of (and they are starting to do this a little bit more I’ve noticed) is recycle things from the old house, and tell where it’s going or how they are able to reuse stuff. In some cases they do destroy a perfectly acceptable home for most families, but it just does not suit the needs of a special needs family. It’s sad to see that go - but I’m glad they are starting to gut them first of anything that is possibly reusable. Something they were not doing much of at the start of the show’s earlier seasons.

I just wish EVERY show was two hours long!!!

~Liza

 

[RascalJones]

We used to watch it a lot. Then I just felt like they were exploiting the families way too much just to get ratings. Seemed like the more hard-luck the case, the longer the episode and bigger the hype.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the houses, I like construction shows. But I can’t take the exploitation of those less fortunate…especially when some of them end up having to sell the house because they can’t afford the taxes and utilities. Then, who wins?

 

[lizaanne]

especially when some of them end up having to sell the house because they can’t afford the taxes and utilities. Then, who wins?

Oh - I bet the family still wins, by a long shot. Let’s see - living in a falling apart trailer with nothing to your name, or selling a half a million dollar house filled with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of furnishings…

I don’t see it as exploitation - these people genuinely need help, and they are getting far more help than they would have otherwise.

~Liza

 

[aimee]

Oh - I bet the family still wins, by a long shot. Let’s see - living in a falling apart trailer with nothing to your name, or selling a half a million dollar house filled with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of furnishings…

I don’t see it as exploitation - these people genuinely need help, and they are getting far more help than they would have otherwise.

~Liza

And the families seek the shows help…so are they being exploited :nope:

 

[dixieagle]

Here is a link to an article in the local paper about the particular family and episode I posted about:

al.com/news/press-register/index.ssf?/base/news/1201947350288250.xml&coll=3

Apparently, none of the Extreme Makeover families has had to sell their home because it became too expensive. Most materials are donated and there is a huge volunteer force. (The local builder chosen is a really good guy, well known locally.) The mortgage on the family’s old home will be transferred to the new one; taxes here are extremely low compared to the rest of the country, so there won’t be that much difference in what they pay monthly. It will certainly be much bigger than the other homes in the neighborhood, but I imagine it can only help everyone else’s property values.

 

[KCT]

Consider it this way - the home they build for these families is large, yes, and a bit more “fancy” than normal standards for most of us. But they are giving these people more than just a fancy home - they are giving them a sort of inheritance.

I think some of the houses are completely out of place in their neighborhoods. I wish they fit in better.

 

[Orionthehunter]

My only problem is that when they do the show, the houses are so elaborate. I think it is fun to watch how they design each room to each person and see the vacations that they are on but why so big. Why not make them a little more modest and do more of them. I know it is for the TV audience but I just wonder how the home owners can even pay the taxes. I suppose if times get tough they can sell them.

The families often start off in a small house or trailer and end up with a half-million dollar home with an extensive landscaped yard.

They did one in my state but it created conflict as the house was big and too close to the neighbor’s boundary.

We are to never say that a gift is too little or too much. We are to say thank you and accept it in the spirit intended.

 

[vince2paul]

There’s similar show in Indonesia, but usually, the house is just nice & modest because the families live in the rural area.
Once, a family member had heart attack when he saw the house. hm… quite sad.

 

[Joe_5859]

I just wish EVERY show was two hours long!!!

In the past couple months, most of the episodes have been two hours. With the writer’s strike, there are no new episodes of Desperate Housewives left, so they just stretch EM to fill the time. One of the positives to come from the strike.

I enjoy the show and think they do a lot of good, but I often wonder when they do theme rooms for the little kids. Sure, the kid loves the room now, but when they’re 16, will they really want a “Horton Hears a Who” themed room? Some of the contstructions they do are quite elaborate and would probably be a pain to take out of the room is they ever wanted to re-decorate.

Not that any of this is a bad thing, I just always think about that when I see the show. It’s how my crazy mind works! :whacky:

 

[lizaanne]

Not that any of this is a bad thing, I just always think about that when I see the show. It’s how my crazy mind works! :whacky:

I’ve thought the same thing. If I were a parent I would not want some of the crazy insane rooms they give some of the kids. I would probably request something cool and fun, but still very practical. And I’ve noticed that there are some homes where they do the kids rooms a bit more “normal” and not quite so over the top.

A kid needs to be able to grow into a room, not grow out of it and then what do you do when you are stuck with a 10 foot Barney in the corner?

~Liza