|
| |
|
|
A need, a dream, and now a house
January 20, 2001 - Sarasota
Herald-Tribune - Harold Bubil
A house is not a home until there's someone living in it, but John King's
dream wasn't a house until there was a roof over it.
Now that there is one, the Sarasota home builder is hoping that his
project -- to build a specially designed home for Paul Salter
and his family with donated materials, labor and services -- will move
along quickly now. King, owner of Rampart Homes, acknowledges the pace of
construction has not been as swift as he hoped it would be when ground was
broken in September. It was a concrete shell for a bit too long.
"There have been twists and turns in the road," he told a dinner
meeting of the Home Builders Associations of Sarasota and Manatee Counties
on Thursday night. But last Saturday, crews lowered the roof trusses on
top of the house -- a milestone in the project that will give Paul Salter
a sense of freedom that he sorely lacks in the small home his family now
inhabits.
Paul was left without the use of his arms or legs after his neck was
broken during a youth football practice in 1999. Now a high school
freshman, he was there to watch Saturday until the work was done.
"When we set the trusses," King told me, "he was there the
entire day. It didn't go very quickly, and it was a little cold and windy,
but he insisted he stay there until the last truss was set."
Paul's upbeat attitude has impressed a lot of people, and it drives
King to get the house built. "One of things I'm inspired by
with Paul is that he asks a lot of great questions about
building," said King, a remodeling contractor who envisioned the
project when he was asked to put an addition onto the Salters' old
home on Camphor Avenue. He found it unsuitable for remodeling.
"He wants to know what the difference is in the different types of
plywood, what's going on with the trusses, why we have the straps, what's
going on with the concrete, the tie beams, what they cost.
"He's a genuine kid. He's got a bit of a wit, a little bit of
sarcasm. He's feisty. I think the most amazing thing about him is if you
get caught up in the conversation, you lose track that he's disabled. He
has given me no indication, at any time I've been with him, that he's
disabled verbally or in his attitude. His spirit is up, and that is what
energizes me and motivates me."
King has needed that motivation, because although many people in the local
home-building industry have promised to help, in some cases those promises
have been easier to make than to keep.
"A lot of it is, people promise us this stuff, and I know they are
coming from a good place at the time that they sign up," said King,
touching his heart. "But it gets down to the nitty-gritty and either
they're busy or there's something that comes up.
"I had three framing crews lined up to help. I had talked to them
almost to the day that they were supposed to be there. One guy falls off
the face of the Earth and I can't find him for anything. Another guy has a
personal problem and absolutely can't get there.
"The last guy," said King, incredulous, "has an accident in
his car the day before he is to start. So it ended up being one guy on the
job."
It's a sign of the times in the building industry. While U.S. home starts
last year tailed off from the record-breaking 1999, construction remained
white-hot in the Sarasota area. And it was restricted by a labor shortage.
King, who is donating his time and expertise as well, knows what it's like
to give until it hurts.
"It's tough," King said. "Some of these folks, especially
some of these framers, aren't all that well off. So this is time they're
giving up when they could be with their families, or at a job somewhere
else. They're making their living, they've got their own families."
Progress report
With the plywood sheeting on the roof and the windows delivered Friday
from PGT Industries, King is ready to start on interior framing, plumbing
and electrical work.
"Our big needs now are drywall, landscaping, furniture," said
King, who this week accepted a plaque on behalf of the Sarasota HBA from
the Suncoast Center for Independent Living in recognition of the Salter
effort. "I have a dream about possibly a pool, which would be
tremendous for Paul because he is pretty much in the wheelchair all
the time. His nurse could hold him, and it would be great.
"And I would like a really nice front door, and automatic door
openers."
The 2,100-square-foot house will be a tremendous boost for Paul,
his parents, Glenn and Gail, and his siblings, Dixie and Jason.
"When you look at where they're at now, those are cramped quarters.
His life is pretty much in his chair, and for him to be able to get around
and have that space in his home ... that's his domain, that's where he's
at.
"Psychologically, you keep anybody in a confined area and it gets
old. Not being able to move around literally in a 10- by 15-foot room,
that's pretty darn tough. By the time you get furniture in there, that's
not a lot of space. I'd like to be able to create an environment not only
inside his home, but outside his home, so that he has a place to be
safe."
King said Paul's attitude "is super. He's doing great. The
whole family ... I think the house gives them a feeling of hope, so
there's not all this despair in their lives. I felt bad that it wasn't
moving faster. I wish I had a whole bunch of personal money so I could
just call up and hire people to do it."
King hopes to have house done by next Christmas. "I will do
everything I can to make that happen, but I am at the mercy of donors and
suppliers and workers."
Industry donors
Among those who have "come to the table," said King, are these
industry donors:
Abbotts' Back-Hoe Service; Al Harris Pest Control; Alvin Sommers Masonry;
Action Signs; B.O.S.S. Portable Toilets; C&M Road Builders; Cox
Lumber; Custom Air Heating & Air Conditioning; Daniel Muffley
Construction; Danny Baker Trucking; Environmental Designs Unlimited; FPL;
Fastening Systems; Florida Blueprint of Sarasota.
Also, Gulf Coast Masonry; Gulf to Bay Plumbing; JL Concrete Design; JJ
Crane Service; Kimley-Horn & Associates; Leads Lunber; Lee
Wetherington Homes; Millstone Form and Pour; Michael Saunders &
Company; Peter Glunk Construction; PGT Industries; Paragon Electric
Service; PSI engineering; Reed W. Mapes Inc.; Sampey & Burchett Inc.,
Surveyors; Singletary Concrete Products; Sarasota Pre-Cast Products; Stark
Truss; Southdown Inc.; Scotty's Lumber; Sarasota Bank; Taylor Woodrow
Communities; Whetstone Engineering & Testing.
How to help
If you'd like to donate money, materials or labor for the Paul Salter
house, contact John King at Rampart Homes, (941) 925-4835. Checks, payable
to Sarasota Bank, Paul Salter Construction Escrow Account,
may be mailed to the bank at 2 N. Tamiami Trail, Suite 100, Sarasota, FL
34236.
All
content © 2001 Herald-Tribune Corp. and may not be republished without
permission.
|
|
