Single mom gets home renovated as a Christmas gift

Reporter: Sommer Senne
Published: Updated:

Home for the holidays has a new meaning for Erica Tague and her three children.

“Every day, I was looking at parts of my house going, ‘I don’t know if that’s going to hold much longer, but we’ll see,'” Tague said.

Tague was looking for someone to fix her failing air conditioner to keep her and her kids cool.

She reached out to Lee BIA Builders Care in hopes they would help her.

When Leigh Cloud with Lee BIA Builders Care came to the North Fort Myers Home, she knew the family needed more.

“We’re talking all the way from electrical, plumbing, appliances, paint gifts, wrapping, cleaning, bedspreads and laundry,” Cloud, the Executive Director with Lee BIA Builders Care, said.

Cloud and the teams at Lee BIA Builders Care and Lennar Homes went to work.

They remodeled Tague’s home for free in fourteen days.

“The home is completely refurnished, brand new furniture, including all the furnishings and the accessories,” said Ray Kershaw, the Director of Construction for Lennar Homes.

As the tarp was pulled away Wednesday to reveal the home, it felt a lot like Christmas morning for the single mom.

“I have two boys who have special needs, so sometimes, my older son, his legs don’t straighten out,” Tague said. “It’s very difficult to navigate the home in a wheelchair.”

The home includes a brand new kitchen, shower and a bedroom for each of Tague’s children.

WINK News asked Tague what her favorite part of the new home was.

“I do love the kitchen because that’s where I spend most of my time,” she said. “But, the little things, the pieces of my family like old pictures that weren’t necessarily up before, really mean a lot to me.”

The pictures were an added extra touch by Lee BIA Builders Care and Lennar Homes to show the reason for the season.

“It will definitely be the best Christmas ever,” Tague said. “Nothing will ever live up to this. This is it.”

Tague says she was nervous and anxious for Wednesday morning, but she’s grateful to everyone who helped fix up her home.

She told WINK News that the first thing she’ll do in her brand-new kitchen is bake cookies.

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.