By By JESSICA SIEFF / Niles Daily Star
For those who might think the rapid advance of technology is desensitizing people and taking away good quality social interaction: an example that true friendship and honest, neighborly goodwill continues to exist on the streets of Niles.
When members of the community gathered together on Memorial Day, that included Denise and David Halgren. David, serving his country as a computer programmer for the United States Air Force, had just returned from his second deployment. A rough one, as he had only been home for a few months between tours and returned from his second, injured, with a broken leg.
"This was his second deployment," said his wife, Denise. "He got back and he had to leave again." David is on his 13th year of service and, his wife said, he recently reenlisted.
It was before David had departed once again that he and Denise were out with some friends – the kind of friends that last forever.
"A group of us have remained friends since high school," Denise said. About 20 years.
In passing, Denise said her husband was talking about plans for the future and making some much needed improvements to their home – particularly their unfinished basement.
" 'One of these days, we're gonna get the basement finished,' he said," remembered Denise.
The days after David's deployment were difficult, she recalled. With two children, Denise was working full time and going to school full time. She'd leave the house around 7 o'clock in the morning, she said, and wouldn't return until 9 o'clock at night. The Halgren's live on a substantial piece of property and that means a lawn to be mowed and animals to take care of.
"It was very hard," she said.
It was a friend of the family, Amelio Rodriguez, who first approached Denise with a unique idea.
"Something in his brain just triggered," Denise said. Rodriguez asked his friend if she wouldn't mind if he put into action an extreme home makeover of his own: to get the basement finished before David got home.
Together, the two agreed and Denise said Rodiguez went about networking with people he knew, friends neighbors and even strangers to put the plan into action.
Denise, who said that David regularly checked the family's finances, had to do a little extra work of her own.
She had to hide all of her financial disbursements. "I couldn't write checks to anybody, I couldn't use credit cards." She she'd write checks over when at the grocery store making smaller purchases, and paid for materials and services in cash.
"He never put it together," she said.
Rodriguez, having put the word out within the community saw his work pay off as well. Area businesses such as Lowe's and Cookies by Design started supporting the project, Denise said. Many donators asked to go without acknowledgement. Friends and neighbors and family were at the house round the clock to have the basement done in time.
"The beauty of this whole project," she said. "(Was) it kept my spirits up. It gave me something to focus my energy on."
The project took up most of David's time away from home.
"This was literally days before he got here," Denise said. "There were so many people here at the last minute… I would paint until 4 a.m. and then get up as six."
With the basement finished, David came home, slowed by his leg, glad to be back, but understandably not eager to hobble down the stairs.
Denise said she and her two daughters, Megan, 13 and Macey, 10, eased up on the pressure so as not to give away the surprise.
And then David went downstairs.
The group had built an added wall to the basement, "he didn't even notice there was a wall there in front of him where there shouldn't be," as he made his way down the steps Denise said.
A beautiful crest was donated by a complete stranger, she added, the walls were done and David was taken by quite a surprise.
Denise praises Rodriguez and family friend Glen Friel. "They did everything. They just did an amazing job and all with Dave in mind. To witness all this, just the amazing kindness of people right next door to you, all around you … it just renews your spirit. It's amazing what they did for him."
In the end, it was an extreme home makeover unlike any on television.