December 3, 2020
“If it hadn’t been for Meals on Wheels Central Texas and The Home Depot Foundation, our house would have fallen apart,” says Marcia Rachford.
Ms. Rachford and her husband, Peter, bought the North Austin home in 1984. “We loved it. It was just the right size for us,” Ms. Rachford recalls. But within the past few years, the house began to pose serious problems for the couple. By that time, Mr. Rachford, who served in the United States Air Force in the late 1950’s and early 60’s, was in ill-health, and mobility issues made it challenging for him to get in and out of the house. Getting in and out of the bathtub was also an arduous process.
On top of all of that, the Rachfords needed a new roof and new siding. But they lacked the money needed to fix their problems. That’s when they turned to Meals on Wheels Central Texas (MOWCTX) and The Home Depot Foundation for help. “When we got accepted, I was just floored,” says Ms. Rachford of the day she learned her prayers had been answered.
The MOWCTX Home Repair Program, using funds generously provided by the Foundation, installed a new roof, new siding and windows, and converted the bathtub into a walk-in shower. Workers also installed ramps to the front and back doors.
Ms. Rachford, her husband’s full time caregiver at the time, says the repairs made a world of difference in her ability to care for him. Earlier this year, Mr. Rachford passed away. A few months later, on Veterans Day, a dozen Team Depot members erected a flagpole in the front yard of the Rachford home. When they competed their work, Ms. Rachford watched as they raised Old Glory, the flag snapping in the wind over the little house she and her late husband loved so much.
Asked what the home repairs mean to her, Ms. Rachford says “It means I can stay in this house until I die. I can’t thank [MOWCTX and The Home Depot Foundation] enough.”