Mel's Monthly Impact Story
Melanie Jirka is WAMY's Community Housing Coordinator and shares this story.
"Sarah, a 60-year-old resident of Yancey County, lives on a fixed income of less than $800 a month. She struggles with blindness and hearing loss and loves to tell delightful stories about growing up in her family home where she still resides.
Sarah's roof started leaking and a section of the living room ceiling was falling in. Neighboring family members tried to replace shingles as they could and covered the roof with a tarp. For 60 years this has been the only home Sarah has ever known but family members were starting to get concerned that she would have to move because the home could soon become uninhabitable. Due to her blindness, for Sarah to learn an unfamiliar environment would be incredibly difficult.
WAMY's Housing Coalition was able to replace the old shingle roof with a metal one, repair the ceiling, and identify other hazards. Sarah is now able to live safely in her home and age-in-place well into her advanced senior years!
Sarah’s bathroom needs to be updated with a walk-in shower, grab bars etc. She is unable to get in and out of the old bathtub without assistance. When funding becomes available, it is Sarah’s wish to be able to shower completely on her own."
Melanie Jirka
Click the DONATE NOW button to support Sarah's project or many others just like this in the four county area WAMY serves- Watauga, Avery, Mitchell and Yancey.
