John & Thelma

Pinball

"We Make a living by what we get....We make a life by what we GIVE!"

More kudos to you! "pay it forward"
Al

John R. Hall

Senior heat day

I went out with a contractor friend of mine -- Kelly -- who was taking part in the annual "Al Keats Senior Heat Day" in the Detroit area. This is a program sponsored by the Northwest Detroit Chapter of the ACCA where seniors and needy people get free furnace tune-ups and repairs. In some cases, they get the whole furnace replaced.

The lady in this picture with me is Thelma, a 99-year-old home owner who is fiercely independent, living alone with no relatives nearby and in very poor living quarters. Her 21-year-old boiler was being serviced this day (also attached pic). It is still in pretty good shape although all of the valves are shot because of the poor water quality and the fact that the system has not been cleaned and flushed in who knows how long. Kelly cleaned the burners, replaced a thermocouple and will return later next week to clean out the system and replace a relief valve.

While in the basement we noticed bad cracks in the foundation, allowing a lot of critters and elements to enter (a lot of droppings, a dead mouse, etc.). The pad under the boiler had shifted, causing an uneven burn of the flame. Kelly managed to adjust the flames to make them run as smooth and clean as possible. She also had a number of areas where black mold was growing -- the basement was a virtual feeding ground for mold. It was an unhealthy environment for either of us to be in.

She had a water heater breakdown earlier in the week and the plumber she called came out and replaced it, charging her $578 for the 40-gallon water heater. The invoice did not break any charges down, only a water heater and the labor for two people. We looked at the invoice and shook our heads in disgust, feeling she had been taken advantage of by the plumber. Now I know people can say that this is a fair price and I won't argue with that. But if you saw the condition of her home and her frail health, you would think that a local plumber would have empathized with her and knocked off a couple of hundred bucks. The story is not going to end there if I have any say about it.

She is turning 100 in January and I want to throw her a party -- by bringing my wife and children to meet the oldest person they may ever meet (I've never met anyone her age). I will also bring a copy of my book (Angels Working Overime) because she loves angels. She gave Kelly and I a guardian angel lapel pin which we both put on right away -- I was touched. I also hope to gather an army of volunteers to help me clean up her basement and make her home a little more comfortable to live in -- maybe as a birthday gift.

I just thought my friends here at The Wall would like to see and hear about a truly classic person. I'll update you on her story when she hits the big 100.

eileen

wonderful

i think it's wonderful what you do, and what you plan to do for this woman. kudos to you!!!

rb_6

She is a

Queen.

...and you - a Knight in Shining Armour.

Exactly the person we talked about in our article Sir Knight.

lchmb

a true gentleman

You sir are a true gentleman!! I wish this country could learn to take care of it's elderly from a man like you!!! I recently serviced a wonderful ladies furnace. She asked me how old I thought her to be (I know, worst question in the world) when I said late 70's she laughed. This woman still drive's her car, take's care of herself and is 94 year's old. She ended up with the annual for free...She make's the best cookies a tech could want!!