I bought a condemned house at 700 E. Stanford Avenue for $8,900. And then spent some years - quite a few years - putting $20,000 or so into it to get it fixed up.
$2000 worth of windows, $7,500 for a roof, water heater, furnace, sinks, electrical, plumbing - everything. It adds up.
It was a bit of effort, to say the least, and there were times I wasn't sure it would be done. I lived in the basement for awhile, before there was plumbing and full electric, even though the City didn't want me to.
But if I had rented a place to live, I'd have had less per month to throw at repairing things. And the house needed so much repairs, I was basically just having it built back up around me.
The City Inspector asked how come any time he came by I was here. I said that sometimes I worked so late into the night that I might fall asleep for a bit. I confess now on facebook that I was really living there, in an "unsafe" house, so I could fix it. He knew I was all along. Eventually he took me to administrative court claiming I wasn't fixing it up fast enough.
I explained how I was eating two packets of Top Ramen per day at lunch at work, where I had access to hot water and a microwave. The rest went to repairs that were being made absolutely as fast as possible. I had all my receipts and pay stubs. It showed over 95% of my paychecks going to repairs and while I did buy other stuff like shampoo and toothpaste, a lot of receipts were for Top Ramen!
I got my extension. That house was uncondemned two months later. That house was not only fully repaired, not only pays the City good taxes each year instead of costing Springfield money, but has helped over two dozen people since in their path to sobriety and learning about Jesus Christ and our Church.
Before it was a sober living house, there was the whole adventure of me finding my own sobriety first, with the aid of AA, and the even more invaluable aid later of the Church. But this isn't that story today, though it is a great one, and I've shared it before in testimony meetings.
When I was living at that house, finishing it up, there was a very old man living at the 634 E. Stanford house right next to it. He had lived there as a child, never really left home, and when his parents died, he moved up stairs to their bedroom - it's only a one bedroom house - and lived the rest of his life there.
He was a hoarder, and let the house break down around him. He let the plumbing and the electricity go. He used the restroom at the gas station on the corner and borrowed my phone when he needed to make a call. And sometimes he used my bathroom, but he had his pride and liked pretending that all was well over there.
I was able to have him over to dinner a few times, but not enough to thaw him out into confiding how bad it was. I gave him a ride to his doctor's appointments a few times, when he let me. Or if I found him halfway there by cane and badgered him into letting me take him the rest of the way.
When he died, I waited awhile, curious as to what his relatives would do with the place. I saw nothing happen. I finally looked up who had it through the city records, it was a brother of his, about the same age. Old enough that his grandson handled the affairs.
I wanted to buy the house. I had absolutely no money. I offered $3,000.
The grandnephew of my deceased neighbor thought $9,000 might be fairer. I agreed, but pointed out that there was thousands of dollars worth of clean up, and then thousands and thousands more in electrical, plumbing and such.
He agreed, and dropped it to $3,000.
Then I asked him the next day if I could do it "contract for deed". And pay $300 per month for 10 months. I explained that it would be easier financially for our Foundation. And true enough, it obviously would be! He kindly agreed.
Finally I asked that due to the legal owner being very old, and such contract for deeds having gray areas to them in the event of death, if we could close on the house with the first $300, and have title transferred, then have a personal contract (notarized) with his granddad for the remaining $2,700, and the balance to go to him if his granddad died in the meanwhile.
He agreed. Which is the whole story as to how I bought a house a few years ago for $300!
I did then make those $300 a month payments, about halfway through his granddad did die, and I made the rest of the checks out to him.
I cleaned the whole place. A first floor and basement were choked with three dumpsters full of trash. I had help from the Missionaries who found it quite adventuresome! I made sure that anything in all the horrible trash that had any kind of sentimental value was salvaged.
Old pictures, some military memorabilia, various keepsakes. I boxed them up and gave them to the grandnephew, and he was pretty surprised and happy with all that, since it pertained to his ancestors that he hadn't really ever got to know.
Many of you reading this know the rest. Moving out of the completely fixed house at 700 E. Stanford Ave. so that it could be used as a sober living home called "The Liahona Home". The non-profit being re-named "The Liahona Mission" to reflect my conversion to the Church and the new mission of aiding others in finding sobriety - and learning of the restored gospel. And moving into 634 E. Stanford, which while not condemned, definitely should have been.
The initial wave of fix ups, new bathroom put in upstairs where an empty hole had been, getting half the electrical done where none existed. When I moved in, we asked the Relief Society for a lot of water jugs, and those were used as there was no plumbing at the time. The toilet worked mechanically, so if you wanted to flush it, you had only to pour water into the tank!
But the Liahona Mission was up and running, people were being aided. And after a few more months, the plumbing worked so that there was cold running water and no more need for the jugs. And showers were had for a $10 a month gym membership at Planet Fitness. And the next March, a kind Brother at Church who I home taught asked the address of the place and then had a water heater shipped over from Lowes!
One of the guests of the sober living home then came over to install it. Other repairs proceeded as paychecks allowed, and as donations came in or as program fees could afford. Never enough, as is usual in any such projects. Or as I've told some, "There's a reason why it's called a 'non' profit!"
But part time job this, and temp job that, donation this, donation that, and the rest of the electricity was put in. And the rest of the plumbing. And then even more electricity put in the basement. And then plumbing put in down there. And the bathroom that many have heard about, and quite a few have helped with.
So here we are. Of two broken down, ready-to-be-bulldozed, one condemned, the other condemnable, dilapidated worthless wrecks doing nothing but costing the taxpayers of Springfield money, there are now two houses, one fully functioning and aiding people, and the other hovering on the brink of being able to, both paying property taxes!
This house at 634 E. Stanford needs (besides minor and scheduled finishing up of the remodeled basement) one roof.
Just one roof. Ball park that will take about $1,200 in material, and I am hoping that a combination of Church and Sober Living house volunteer labor will be up for the taking down of the old shingles and the putting up of the new.
Given how life usually is, the $1,200 that would cover stuff like shingles and nails and a dumpster and tarps will end up being closer to $2,000 because once someone competent in roofing is out to look at it he'll say, "But it'll also need x, y and z, and if there's damage under the shingles that I can't see, we'll need plenty of z, y and x as well!"
Knowing I'd need this kind of money, I've worked from January through this month of May earning a bit over $2,500 by doing personal aid and tutoring work at LLCC.
The City, ever helpful as usual, has contributed a $365 fine and a 35 day deadline on this due to expire approximately the 15th of June.
The State, ever helpful as usual, has contributed NOT paying me the $2,500 they owe me for work done this past semester until the budget is approved.
And so here we are - one roof needed. More specifically, $1,200 - $2,000 needed. To say donations would be helpful would be an understatement. I have, from the start, been reticent about donations, and never even took any until we were already aiding people at the first house. There have been donations - and most helpful ones - since then. But it was felt important to be up and running and helping others before receiving donations.
This is the last big thing the Liahona Mission needs. Oh, true, there will always be other projects and such, no one is going to stagnate or stop striving, other improvements and such will be made. But this is the last big and crucial "have to" instead of "want to" project that is to be done. The last with a deadline! This roof is the big one, the thing that puts the tiny little non-profit over the top into a self-sustaining and relatively self-supporting entity that can only grow, and never be threatened with closure for some repair not being able to be afforded!
The whole of the time I've spent on these properties, it's always been, "Do this or we shut you down, get this or we shut you down, jump through this hoop, dodge that beam, pay this fee, get that permit, comply with this or that or we shut you down." And it's all been done. Heck, as I told the City Attorney once, "It's not like I don't want to do all these things, it's the doing of them as fast as they say that is killing me!" But all that is - 99% - over! All but one more thing. One last thing.
This roof.
This roof is so needed. When it's done, there'll be two nice, fully restored houses put in service of aiding our fellow men. And fellow women!
I'm specifically asking for that aid now. Not hinting and hoping, but flat out asking. By donation, or by loan, and I mind not either, I need the funds for this. If by loan, I can pay off at a rate of $300 per month, same as when I purchased the house in question. Someone could literally charge this on a credit card, and be paid back interest and all, in less than 10 months. Or a variety of people could donate/loan various amounts that add up to all that.
Call or text or email. Any time of any day. The hope - the urgent need - is that the work on the roof start no later than June 10th, a Friday, giving that evening and Saturday for this. And some few days after for finishing before the 15th. Any material/financial aid is appreciated. As is willingness to volunteer labor-wise. As are all of your prayers - because make no mistake, this final "have to" project is a make or break.
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