Joshua Brummett faced early challenges. Born at just 28 weeks, he spent four months on and off life support in a neonatal intensive care unit. Josh has cerebral palsy and a cortical visual impairment.
Today, he’s a happy, smart, growing 13-year-old, but like any family with teenagers, they struggled with new challenges.
Josh uses a wheelchair, but the family’s Parker home lacked a ramp. Furthermore, it was getting harder for his parents to carry him to his bathroom upstairs.
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The Brummetts reached out to the Home Builders Foundation for help making the home more accessible and easier for Josh to navigate.
The Brummetts’ home was one of the 20 where over 200 volunteers gathered to build ramps in August 2018 as part of HBF’s annual Blitz Build. Van Dyk Construction led the crew of volunteers on the Brummetts’ ramp.
The Brummetts moved Josh’s bedroom to the main level of the home, but they lacked an accessible bathroom downstairs. Richmond American Homes came in to renovate a first-floor powder room into a full bath.
“Every time I push Josh’s wheelchair down the front ramp, or take him into his bathroom for a bath, I am humbled by how big of a difference it makes to not have to carry him up and down the stairs or tip his wheelchair back to get down the front steps of our house to leave,” Joelle Brummett, Josh’s mom, said in a statement.
She credited the “village of people” who came together to complete the project. Together, they “helped create these accessible spaces for him” and are “truly remarkable human beings. They give me hope for a brighter future for Josh and for all of us,” she added.
HBF noted that these modifications are about more than convenience. They make the home safer for Josh, as well as his caregivers. The total value of the modifications exceeded $20,000, but through the efforts of HBF, Van Dyk, Richmond and a crew of volunteers, the family’s home was renovated at no cost to them.
Both the Home Builder’s Foundation and Richmond Homes really did something special. Way to go! And, way to go Colorado Builder for running this story!