EXTREME MAKEOVER HOME EDITION - New Orleans Woo!

This week marked the end of the season as well as the end of the two-year quest to do an extreme makeover in each of the fifty states.  It's a good thing they finished - Ty's voice was about to give out. 

There's just only so much yelling one guy can do.

Louisiana was the destination this week and the goal was not one, but two makeovers - a storm damaged church and the battered home of a family of volunteer New Orleans firefighters.

Ty, his caffeinated crew of designers, a coalition of home building professionals, and an army of volunteers in hard hats descended upon the two work sites screaming "WOOO!"  (pictured below)  You see what I mean about Ty's voice needing a break?  That's a lot of WOO.

Since this was a two-hour season finale, we took lots of heart-warming detours on the road to finish the Usea family home and Pastor Willie Walker's church.  You gotta hand it to Extreme Makeover Home Edition - no show on TV is such a shameless booster of community involvement and giving.  It's pretty nice, really.

Anyway, after countless man hours of labor during the course of the week, the Walker church and the Usea home are reborn, better than ever.  Both buildings are built to be hurricane proof - they're constructed of reinforced and resistant material, they have a curved design that minimizes wind damage, and they're jacked up above the flood plain.  These buildings aren't going anywhere.

The Walker church was truly impressive, with a beautiful domed ceiling in the main hall and a fully stocked food bank to help the surrounding community.  The Usea family home was big enough to accomodate several generations of big hearted firefighters and, of course, everyone got tricked out bedrooms of their own.  I particularly liked one of the daughters' castle bedroom - what kid wouldn't want that?

The Extreme Makeover fifty state quest may be over, but the show's mission will carry on next year.  I wonder what challenge they'll set for themselves next season - and whether Ty's voice is up for all the hollerin' required.

--Dave Campbell

Comments

[jacque rasey]

On last nights show you showed film from the time
of Katrina and we saw our
son in a coast guard boat working the rescue
anwould like a copy of that show. PLEASE
Thank you Jacque Rasey
8093 W.Azusa
Dos Palos, Ca
93620
209-387-4400

[jeansing]

Love the show, Love the show, Love the show. With all of the reality shows on T.V. today, this is the only one actually worth watching. Imagine... humans actually behaving human. What compassion and what a feel good show for all of the family to watch. My Husband and I have started shopping at Sears again because of their sponsorship for such a special and wonderful use of resources. Hopefully you inspire more of us to get out and do something.... any one thing... for someone else in need.

[orville]

i love this show i wish u guys would come to the bahamas cause i want my grammys house to get redo cause 13 years ago the house was burned down an since it was gettin build piece by piece it is not funching very well.She was even roobed the good thing is she was not home.An since then there was a hurricane it blew a tree on to the roof and broke it up and in side sheetrock was just hanging from the roof but now it is fix but not all the way.I just wish i could be like you ty cause i want to build my grammy a brand new.In a week not piece by piece so not evey thing is not working propley i just wish i could do it i am just a kid so i just wish.

[Melvin J. Burmaster]

your program referenced use of permeable material for the driveway which is of interest in Louisiana. Where is such material available?

[cheyanna hurd]

hey.!
ummm.
i dont know if u guys would read these.
but i thougth i would let u know that i need a home makover.
well we dont need a new house but the inside is messed up.
cause we were in the middle of redoin our house lyke 2 years ago and my parents got a divorce so he moved out and just left us.
so we had totry to work together and it really didnt work out and he wasnt makin it better. he was supposed to help with the repairs but he never did. cuz he signed somtihng on a contract to help us with it or made a deal with my mom. so yeah.
i dondt know where to go try to see if u guys could help us. so i thought i would put it on here.
so i hope u read this and email me. theres more to the story but i dont want to put it on here.
but please can u help us.!!!
=]]

<3
cheyanna

and again please and thank you.!

[aurora villanueva]

hi i allways see your show my fam is a realley low in come fam we allways move i had a real bad life but we got a home but has real bad incect problum our lifes has allways been hard i have a dauther thats 16 and a soon thats 8 and twins 5 i realy love my children but real hard 4 me allways had problums paying bills but we maneged some how when was pregnet with my triplets i didnt now i had 3 but we allways had problms 1 baby died but i gave thanks to god i had to more but i gave birth 5 weeks early because thay where dieing they had a birth defect they had holt oram simdrum thats 4 figers no thums and little cruket hands bouth babys and in bouth hands they ars idenical twins i though it coudent get wores for me they had 5 hole in there hearts the bouth of them i was in a big deprecion i left one here with my sister and had to go to hospetol 3 1/2 hours form i live to dricol hospetol she was bearly 3 mouths old she had a open heart sug but didnt work out they had her 2 weekes in icu they oprator agin they put a pace maker 2 mounths latter we came home i thougth it was over but no they allways had problums at 2 1/2 years old the same baby that had sugery needed a new pace maker becase the old on was out of battery so we went back for sugery again to dricol they are ok but managing to do stuf becase they cant do lots of stuf like they ask me why are they like that i tell them ur special little grils god send u like that but i allways cry alone so they wont see me i allwayes dream for a nice home for my famiy when i see your show i imagen i could have one to i allways say i wish that could be our home next then i though it coudent get wores for us my husbend got sick to he got a lite strock and had problums beathing had to operat him to he had a open heart sug when he was 21 we where barly married like 13 years ago were 3 months married but like in 2007 he got a surgery for a pace maker becase his heart wasent working to good till now he still has problums with short of breth so thats my story i hope you all can make my only dream come true my god bless you all and your staff for helping pepole and evry one in volved in this good deed i know god blesses you i hope god dosent for get me to all the persons reading my story god bless you all god is god don't loss your faith in him i hope you all read my story i hope you all can help me to if it isent my time still god blees you all [sorry to all of you dont know how to spell right]

[Rosaura Perez Marquez]

good afternoon
I am a Mexican and observe its agenda and is very emotional, apologize for the inconvenience by my poor English, but I want to mention that in Mexico more on CD. Juarez Chihuahua there are many people with few resources and have a more not have to, I eat like a journey that would take into account and I and also the need for my mom who has a small room where she lives and he needs many things
please I would like to send a photo but not as I do, having to send them later, I am a young 27 years and have been fighting for the two succeed, we lived on the street years ago, and I look forward to and shortly after I had to work and my mom is a very poor lady who for years had 9 children all went to USA and we know nothing of them only a sister who is very far and we are hardly alone and I have to charge Now, my mother has asked me to want to see a child in special José Carmelo Gomez who entered the Army and one day came to bid farewell to my breast and then ever since we saw and took years and I would like to know that my breast, after which you deem it.
Rosaura Perez and my mother Rosa Marquez

Pineapple Street Col 6354. farmer
CD. juarez Chihuahua Mexico border with El Paso TX.
Calle Piña 6354 col. Granjero 32690
Mi casa es su casa

[catherine holz]

although i live in australia i love watching this show. i,m not a big fan of reality shows but this is a great show, you help people in need and change there lives to give them a better quality of life i only wish we had something like it here, i don,t have a favourite episode because there all equally great and some of the house,s a magnificent keep going for as long as you can and give people hope for their future