MS Disabled Young woman Seeks Housing Grant Money For Home Repairs
by Melissa Schlaepfer
Last March, my newly constructed accessible home was ready for me to move into. Under the impression that being in a brand new home cleared me of any problems with my living situation, I soon found out that I had a whole bunch of new problems. 1. I had to drill a water well because my home is in the country. I soon found out that my water has an incredibly high iron content -- 8 parts per million. It will cost me anywhere from $4500 - $9000 to fix because I have to install a very expensive water treatment system. My toilets, sinks, showers and white clothes are orange/yellow and my blonde hair even turned red! 2. My roof is very pitched with all kinds of peaks and valleys. So, when it rains water pours off of my roof like a waterfall, washing away my flowerbeds, my driveway and even my basement is wet because of the water rushing off the eves. I need to install gutters around my entire home, which I cannot afford. 3. I need to install piping at the bottom of my lawn/driveway because the water run-off is washing my driveway away down to the neighbor's yard. The town does the work but I need to pay for the pipe -- another $500! 4. My house sits on a hill and my driveway is washing away every time it rains. I paid $1000 this past spring for someone to put down driveway mix. I also had someone come and tamp down the new mix. I haven't been able to pay him yet! I am in need of a more permanent fix like blacktop or concrete. Also, because of the wash outs, my driveway has eroded two ditches out of my lawn on each side. 5. I still don't have a bathtub! I can't afford it. I don't even have shower doors! I have a nasty now-orange, shower curtain. 6. I need a retaining wall built outside my basement doors because the water is washing all under the door. 7. To top all of this off, the engine in my VW Beetle just went and I have no idea how I am going to pay for the repairs. I receive SSDI and work part-time. I make as much money as the government allows me to. My legs are totally useless and I think my arms are starting to get weak and they cramp up a lot after only four hours of work a day. I am scared to death that I might not be able to work much longer and I have a $1000 a month mortgage plus bills, vehicle expenses, food... and the list goes on. My boyfriend does stay with me and helps me out but I feel like I am never going to get ahead of the game here. Any help that I can get would make a world of difference to me.
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