A Dream Fulfilled

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Conner Cox, 15, finds the front loading appliances more suited to wheel chair restricted access. Bob Pennell / Mail Tribune photoBob Pennell

November 29, 2009

By Sarah Lemon

Mail Tribune

The phrase "home for the holidays" has a special meaning for one Medford family.

Crystal Rogers and her two children in April abandoned a dilapidated dwelling with numerous obstacles to day-to-day living. They returned last month to a house custom-built by volunteers to accommodate the family's physical disabilities, which are characteristic of dwarfism.

"It's a lot easier," says Connor Cox, Rogers' 15-year-old daughter. "We're not trying to ram wheelchairs through hallways."

Laminate floors allow Cox and her 46-year-old mother to cruise between the home's three bedrooms. An open floor-plan makes navigating the home's 1,200 square feet even easier. Capable of reaching the counters, sink, stove and oven, Connor even had aspirations of cooking her first Thanksgiving dinner.

"I can do laundry. I can do cooking. I can do dishes," Connor brags.

"I'd like to see it," teases 25-year-old Shawn Cox, who bore the sole responsibility of caring for his mother and sister in the old home on Beekman Avenue.

In a unique effort for its local chapter, Habitat for Humanity demolished the home Rogers bought almost 20 years ago and assumed ownership of the property after paying off Rogers' $44,000 loan. Maximizing the land value, Habitat partitioned the plot and built a second single-family dwelling next door for another client. Rogers purchased her finished home from Habitat for its appraised value, minus her equity.

"We're really grateful to Habitat for making this all possible," Shawn says.

It was a dream several years in the making. Family members concerned about the state of Rogers' old home nominated her for ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," which chose another Oregon family as beneficiaries, Shawn says. Friends tried to raise community support, even courting construction companies to donate labor and planning auctions to purchase materials and raise funds, but volunteers' enthusiasm flagged.

Habitat for Humanity was approached about the family's predicament, but local representatives said the project didn't fit their usual practice: purchasing land and building for families working toward owning a home. Because Rogers already was a homeowner, Habitat turned down her plea. But after a couple years and a couple more pitches to Habitat, the group's board of directors changed its mind and the family's future.

To fulfill their agreement with Habitat, Shawn and Connor both worked on the job site, pounding nails, painting, organizing volunteers and ultimately logging more than the 500 required sweat-equity hours. Volunteers, many from local Lutheran congregations, put in nearly 2,000 hours building both homes. A grant from Thrivent Financial and contributions from local Lutherans furnished nearly $83,000 in funding with the stipulation that Rogers' home was finished by Dec. 31.

"To have it done early was a great blessing," says Jason Burley, a Thrivent financial associate in Grants Pass and project volunteer. "We're very happy with the results."

No one could be happier than the home's occupants, separated for the duration of building. While her children worked, Rogers, whose health exempted her from physical labor, spent the construction phase with her sister in Springfield. Shawn stayed in Medford with his uncle, while Connor shuttled between the homes of friends and neighbors. The family was reunited under one roof the day before Halloween.

"I was so happy," Rogers says. "I missed them badly."

She still misses sharing a room with Shawn, who extols the benefits of having his own space. He's also relishing the respite that comes with his mom and sister's newfound self-sufficiency.

"It's nice not to have everything on my shoulders," he says.

Rogers no longer relies on Shawn to hoist her into the bathtub, while Connor has cheerfully taken on chores such as laundry that were impossible for a wheelchair-bound resident of their old home.

"It took him a few days to teach me," Connor says of learning Shawn's methods for housework.

One of Connor's first kitchen forays produced brownies for the Quezada family — Valentin, Araceli, Ana Laura, Alondra and Alejandra — who moved into the property's second Habitat abode about a week after their neighbors. Connor and Shawn worked on the Quezada home along with their own.

"They're awesome; they're really great," says Shawn.

"The Quezadas are a dream come true, actually," adds Susie Lee, Rogers' family partner with Habitat.

Both families can share the real dream come true: a new home in time for the holidays.

Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail slemon@mailtribune.com.

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