Here is a report from http://www.wcpo.com/ about Day 1 of the "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" Project Aker...
Reported by: Lynn GiroudPhotographed by: Jason Garrison, Jeremy GloverWeb produced by: Neil Relyea
The Extreme Home Makeover folks are hard at work on Manor Drive in West Chester.
The whole ABC crew rolled onto the street just off Cox Road Wednesday morning and have been busy ever since.
Overnight and all day Thursday they'll be clearing out the house on Manor Drive, getting it ready for demolition.
The family, Greg and Ginger Akers, and their three children, got the surprise of a lifetime Wednesday morning – and in just one short week – their lives will be drastically changed for the better.
"Hi ABC we're the Akers family!"
It was the most nominations ABC's Extreme Home Makeover has ever gotten for any family.
Twenty-five-thousand people nominated the Akers family, of West Chester, and on Wednesday, Ty Pennington and his crew came knocking on their door.
"Oh, I'm very excited, this is a dream come true, it's amazing," said Ginger Akers.
"Today's the big day for us, finding out that we will get this new home that will accommodate these girls and take so much pressure off of the entire family, kind of give us a new lease on life, really," said Greg Akers.
"We're gonna be building your house," said Ty.
Seven-year-old Brooke and four-year-old Faith both have spinal muscular atrophy.
brooke gets around in a 200-pound wheelchair that doesn't fit inside the house, leaving her primarily bedridden.
"That house is like a jail to her," said Ty. "And her freedom is when she's outside, so our goal is to get some of that independence and freedom back."
Their mom, Ginger, has to carry the girls around the house – and has already suffered a hernia.
"She can't keep doing that," said Ty. "I lifted Brooke around the house today – and I can lift some weights, not a lot, but just after 15 minutes of that – I was like my God, man, how do you do this?"
Adding to the family's challenges, the Aker's son, 11-year-old Christian, has been diagnosed with Chron's disease.
"We can't cure illness or disease, but we can make life easier for people and that's our goal this week," said Michael Moloney, of Extreme Home Makeover.
Thanks to Dallis Designer Homes and an army of volunteers – in one week, the Akers' bi-level home will be torn down and their dream home will go up in its place.
Manor Drive has been transformed into what looks like a Hollywood sound stage.
And as the Akers family set off in style Wednesday night, headed to San Francisco, they can't wait to return home to their dream come true.
"It's gonna be awesome, when we come back and move that bus!," said Akers.
What a day that will be next Tuesday as the family returns and everyone will yell, 'Move That Bus!' to reveal a beautiful, new home for this deserving family.
If you would like to come out and watch this amazing transformation, you can, but the show producers are asking that you wait until Friday afternoon when they'll have shuttle buses available.
You can park at the Voice of America museum lot and the buses will bring you there for a front row seat for this Extreme Home Makeover!
Stay with 9News and WCPO.com for complete coverage of the Extreme Home Makeover in West Chester.
Copyright 2008 The E.W. Scripps Co. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Extreme Home Makeover folks are hard at work on Manor Drive in West Chester.
The whole ABC crew rolled onto the street just off Cox Road Wednesday morning and have been busy ever since.
Overnight and all day Thursday they'll be clearing out the house on Manor Drive, getting it ready for demolition.
The family, Greg and Ginger Akers, and their three children, got the surprise of a lifetime Wednesday morning – and in just one short week – their lives will be drastically changed for the better.
"Hi ABC we're the Akers family!"
It was the most nominations ABC's Extreme Home Makeover has ever gotten for any family.
Twenty-five-thousand people nominated the Akers family, of West Chester, and on Wednesday, Ty Pennington and his crew came knocking on their door.
"Oh, I'm very excited, this is a dream come true, it's amazing," said Ginger Akers.
"Today's the big day for us, finding out that we will get this new home that will accommodate these girls and take so much pressure off of the entire family, kind of give us a new lease on life, really," said Greg Akers.
"We're gonna be building your house," said Ty.
Seven-year-old Brooke and four-year-old Faith both have spinal muscular atrophy.
brooke gets around in a 200-pound wheelchair that doesn't fit inside the house, leaving her primarily bedridden.
"That house is like a jail to her," said Ty. "And her freedom is when she's outside, so our goal is to get some of that independence and freedom back."
Their mom, Ginger, has to carry the girls around the house – and has already suffered a hernia.
"She can't keep doing that," said Ty. "I lifted Brooke around the house today – and I can lift some weights, not a lot, but just after 15 minutes of that – I was like my God, man, how do you do this?"
Adding to the family's challenges, the Aker's son, 11-year-old Christian, has been diagnosed with Chron's disease.
"We can't cure illness or disease, but we can make life easier for people and that's our goal this week," said Michael Moloney, of Extreme Home Makeover.
Thanks to Dallis Designer Homes and an army of volunteers – in one week, the Akers' bi-level home will be torn down and their dream home will go up in its place.
Manor Drive has been transformed into what looks like a Hollywood sound stage.
And as the Akers family set off in style Wednesday night, headed to San Francisco, they can't wait to return home to their dream come true.
"It's gonna be awesome, when we come back and move that bus!," said Akers.
What a day that will be next Tuesday as the family returns and everyone will yell, 'Move That Bus!' to reveal a beautiful, new home for this deserving family.
If you would like to come out and watch this amazing transformation, you can, but the show producers are asking that you wait until Friday afternoon when they'll have shuttle buses available.
You can park at the Voice of America museum lot and the buses will bring you there for a front row seat for this Extreme Home Makeover!
Stay with 9News and WCPO.com for complete coverage of the Extreme Home Makeover in West Chester.
Copyright 2008 The E.W. Scripps Co. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
1 comment:
CONGRATULATIONS AKERS FAMILY!
MIRACLES DO HAPPEN! WE ARE SO EXCITED FOR YOU!
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