Jun 19, 2008 9:10 pm US/Mountain
Westminster Foster Family Gets Home Makeover
Firefighters, Volunteers From Home Depot Help To Brighten Home
WESTMINSTER, Colo. (CBS4) ―
The Westminster Fire Department and Home Depot are teaming up to help out a local foster family.
Tammy Ybarra and her partner Amy Wheeler have taken in 16 foster children during the past 3 years.
"I think the biggest thing we see is hope. They get to leave our house and they have hope," Ybarra said.
But with that many children coming and going, the house has gotten a bit worn down. One day, Tammy answered the phone and found Home Depot on the other end.
"She said 'You've been selected for our foster home makeover' and I said 'You're kidding, right!'"
With more than $2,000 in donated materials from Home Depot and dozens of volunteers from Home Depot and his own Westminster Fire Department, Capt. Dave Sagel set to work.
Every year, for the past 6 years, Sagel has searched for and found a foster family who he feels truly deserves the home makeover.
"These families open up their hearts to these kids and they open up their homes to these kids and many of them are busy working and doing what they can and things get away from you," Sagel said.
From the patio roof to the basement walls, the volunteers tackled everything in Ybarra's house that needed fixing on Thursday.
"It's just been utterly incredible for us," Ybarra said.
Foster children will now have a much nicer home to return to, and the family is already planning to help out on the next makeover project.
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