On Monday morning, one Gainesville family will experience a life-changing wake-up call.
“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” will make its way to The Gator Nation and surprise one of the five Gainesville families being considered for a total home makeover.
The Emmy Award-winning TV show will build a house for a needy Gainesville family in one week with the help of host Ty Pennington, trade partners, sponsors, hundreds of volunteers and Ark Remodeling & Construction, the selected build team for the project.
“It is an honor to take on the challenge of building a house within a week for a very deserving family in our community,” said Ricky Strickland, president of Ark Remodeling & Construction. “We are committed to taking care of people and making a difference in everything we do.”
Strickland said he is proud to support bringing the Gainesville community together, even in tough economic times.
Last Wednesday, an informational pep rally was held at Grace at Fort Clarke, a Methodist church, for all volunteers. The show’s executive producer, Conrad Ricketts, explained what was happening with the project in terms of schedules and different tasks for those involved.
Strickland said that because so many organizations around Gainesville had already signed up as partners for the project through material and monetary donations, the pep rally was a way to bring everyone together.
Linda Michalisin, vice president of public relations for Frankel Media Group, said the advertising agency found out about the project coming to Gainesville in the middle of November.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for our community, especially around this time of year, to help a deserving neighbor in need,” Michalisin said.
“Everyone in the Gainesville community has wanted to be a part of this exciting event since this city was first chosen,” she added. “College students, families and high school students are coming together to make this a reality.”
Five families were narrowed down by community nomination in August when the show had a casting call in Gainesville.
Today at 10 a.m., one family will be chosen by ABC and updated on arkextremebuild.com.
One of the most important criteria ABC uses in determining which family will be chosen is choosing one who gives back to its own community, regardless of its struggles.
The family will be sent on vacation for one week while the project is completed, which takes more than 100 hours, she said.
Supplies are still needed, including scissors, brooms and masking tape. Anyone interested is encouraged to visit arkextremebuild.com to see what is missing.
