Homeowners Take Advantage Of Housing Rehab Program
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
PIERCETON - When a neighbor brought information about the town's owner-occupied housing rehabilitation program to Jeff Sponseller, he figured his property might qualify.
Sponseller, who is deaf, and his wife, Barb, who is deaf and blind, put their hands together - one way they communicate by signing into each other's hands - and decided to apply for the low-interest, eventually forgivable loan.
The couple have lived in their 100-year-old, three-story home, that was originally Jeff's grandparents' home, for 31 years. They will celebrate their 32nd wedding anniversary this summer.
The grant funds provided for roofing, new windows and siding, a gas chimneyless-furnace, a hot water heater, plumbing repairs and a remodeled bathroom.
Pam Kennedy, formerly a Warsaw building inspector, is now programs manager of Housing Opportunities of Warsaw Inc.
She came to the Sponseller project in the middle of construction, so to speak, completing the work of Jake Murray, who took another position elsewhere.
"After working with the Sponsellers," Kennedy said, "we realized there might be another group of people who could benefit from the housing program. We're not sure they're being reached."
In addition to signing, the Sponsellers communicate through a wireless radio transmitter-pager he carries. If the phone or doorbell rings, if the fire alarm is activated or if a loud sound occurs in the house, the pager vibrates a corresponding number of times. A panel of labeled lights on the pager indicates the situation, too.
Barb also has a hand-held "buzzer" that activates the pager.
The pager signal travels about 150 feet. Kennedy discovered that aluminum siding acts as a shield against the pager signals.
"That was interesting," she said, "and something to take into consideration. Vinyl siding is fine and won't block the signals."
HOW and Warsaw Housing Opportunities routinely approve grab bar and ramp installations and widening doors to 36 inches for elderly people who qualify for the loans.
"They may be using walkers now and know a wheelchair is the next phase. These improvements keep them in their homes and independent a lot longer.
"We'd like more people with handicaps to come forward," Kennedy said. "We may not be serving their needs."
Grant applications may be available through more foundations, too, she said, because many are quality-of-life-oriented.
The Sponsellers already had many devices in their home to help them communicate but Kennedy was worried about the lack of smoke detectors. State codes specify a smoke detector on every floor of a home.
The couple had only one smoke detector in their home, on the second floor. Not unusual in appearance, the device is connected to a vibrator stuck under the mattress of their bed.
Additional smoke detectors had to activate Jeff's pager, too.
"Basically, we needed to build on what they already had," Kennedy said.
Kennedy contacted her peers in other jurisdictions asking if they knew of a supplier.
They did, and everyone gave the same name - E.F. Rhoades & Sons - right outside Pierceton.
"There he was right in our back yard," Kennedy said of Frank Rhoades, the owner.
Rhoades plans to work with HOW in special circumstances.
"I'm glad to do it," Rhoades said, of his community service. "Our focus is on industrial and commercial accounts, though."
With the aid of a pair of glasses, Jeff has fairly good eyesight. Barb's tunnel-vision is very blurry but she can see colors. She is legally blind.
With the aid of an LED (light emitting diode) machine that displays illuminated blue letters about 2-1/2 inches high, Barb can communicate over the telephone as long as the caller has a similar system.
The couple met at the Indianapolis School for the Deaf when they were children. Jeff lived in Pierceton, Barb lived in Fort Wayne.
While Barb was visiting a Pierceton friend they reunited years later, although they didn't remember each other as children, began dating and married in 1969. They have three children: Forrest, Perry and Garthrey.
Kennedy had planned to make her final inspection last week but a glitch in the bathroom prevented that.
Things still aren't quite put back together because Jeff decided to drywall the dining room on his own, so all the furniture is pushed to the middle and parceled out to other rooms.
The Pierceton Town Council - Jerry Kreger, Ron Hall and Terry Hill - have decided to apply for another $200,000 grant. The funds are about gone from this round and 13 homeowners are on the waiting list.
Certain income restrictions apply and residents may qualify for the program if they own their own home and it is within the Pierceton corporate town limits.
The loans are awarded at 3 percent interest and are completely forgivable if the owners occupy the home for another 10 years. [[In-content Ad]]
PIERCETON - When a neighbor brought information about the town's owner-occupied housing rehabilitation program to Jeff Sponseller, he figured his property might qualify.
Sponseller, who is deaf, and his wife, Barb, who is deaf and blind, put their hands together - one way they communicate by signing into each other's hands - and decided to apply for the low-interest, eventually forgivable loan.
The couple have lived in their 100-year-old, three-story home, that was originally Jeff's grandparents' home, for 31 years. They will celebrate their 32nd wedding anniversary this summer.
The grant funds provided for roofing, new windows and siding, a gas chimneyless-furnace, a hot water heater, plumbing repairs and a remodeled bathroom.
Pam Kennedy, formerly a Warsaw building inspector, is now programs manager of Housing Opportunities of Warsaw Inc.
She came to the Sponseller project in the middle of construction, so to speak, completing the work of Jake Murray, who took another position elsewhere.
"After working with the Sponsellers," Kennedy said, "we realized there might be another group of people who could benefit from the housing program. We're not sure they're being reached."
In addition to signing, the Sponsellers communicate through a wireless radio transmitter-pager he carries. If the phone or doorbell rings, if the fire alarm is activated or if a loud sound occurs in the house, the pager vibrates a corresponding number of times. A panel of labeled lights on the pager indicates the situation, too.
Barb also has a hand-held "buzzer" that activates the pager.
The pager signal travels about 150 feet. Kennedy discovered that aluminum siding acts as a shield against the pager signals.
"That was interesting," she said, "and something to take into consideration. Vinyl siding is fine and won't block the signals."
HOW and Warsaw Housing Opportunities routinely approve grab bar and ramp installations and widening doors to 36 inches for elderly people who qualify for the loans.
"They may be using walkers now and know a wheelchair is the next phase. These improvements keep them in their homes and independent a lot longer.
"We'd like more people with handicaps to come forward," Kennedy said. "We may not be serving their needs."
Grant applications may be available through more foundations, too, she said, because many are quality-of-life-oriented.
The Sponsellers already had many devices in their home to help them communicate but Kennedy was worried about the lack of smoke detectors. State codes specify a smoke detector on every floor of a home.
The couple had only one smoke detector in their home, on the second floor. Not unusual in appearance, the device is connected to a vibrator stuck under the mattress of their bed.
Additional smoke detectors had to activate Jeff's pager, too.
"Basically, we needed to build on what they already had," Kennedy said.
Kennedy contacted her peers in other jurisdictions asking if they knew of a supplier.
They did, and everyone gave the same name - E.F. Rhoades & Sons - right outside Pierceton.
"There he was right in our back yard," Kennedy said of Frank Rhoades, the owner.
Rhoades plans to work with HOW in special circumstances.
"I'm glad to do it," Rhoades said, of his community service. "Our focus is on industrial and commercial accounts, though."
With the aid of a pair of glasses, Jeff has fairly good eyesight. Barb's tunnel-vision is very blurry but she can see colors. She is legally blind.
With the aid of an LED (light emitting diode) machine that displays illuminated blue letters about 2-1/2 inches high, Barb can communicate over the telephone as long as the caller has a similar system.
The couple met at the Indianapolis School for the Deaf when they were children. Jeff lived in Pierceton, Barb lived in Fort Wayne.
While Barb was visiting a Pierceton friend they reunited years later, although they didn't remember each other as children, began dating and married in 1969. They have three children: Forrest, Perry and Garthrey.
Kennedy had planned to make her final inspection last week but a glitch in the bathroom prevented that.
Things still aren't quite put back together because Jeff decided to drywall the dining room on his own, so all the furniture is pushed to the middle and parceled out to other rooms.
The Pierceton Town Council - Jerry Kreger, Ron Hall and Terry Hill - have decided to apply for another $200,000 grant. The funds are about gone from this round and 13 homeowners are on the waiting list.
Certain income restrictions apply and residents may qualify for the program if they own their own home and it is within the Pierceton corporate town limits.
The loans are awarded at 3 percent interest and are completely forgivable if the owners occupy the home for another 10 years. [[In-content Ad]]