| Back O' The Page Stories 9/04
By Scott CoverdaleA mother of two boys, aged 8 and 10, recently passed away in Tucson's northwest. Her mother, who lived in New Mexico, decided to come here and raise the boys. Her first decision was to have her daughter's trailer moved to a better park. While she was in New Mexico sorting out her belongings, she had the trailer moved and supposedly set up-paid in advance, of course. When she got here, she found that things had not been done very well. Her water lines had been cut and not connected, her roof connection had not been remade and so leaked in a curtain of falling water. She had no water heater, and several electrical wires had been cut and not reconnected. The company who did the move did not answer her calls or letters. She had no money to try to take the case to court. She was elderly and disabled, and also did not have enough money to pay for repairs. One of her new neighbors knew of CHRPA, so she gave us a call. After looking things over, I sent Roland and Nick (our youth trainee) out to the job and they spent three days repairing her water lines and roof. They also installed a water heater and did some electrical repairs. The client called to say that she had never met two nicer young men than Roland and Nick. I went to visit her later, and she told me that her two grandsons, aged 8 and 10, did not actually know yet that their mother had died, though she had tried to talk to them about it a couple of times. I referred her to Mi Nidito, an agency that helps children go through grief and loss. Her neighbor was so impressed with CHRPA that she talked her employer into making a donation to CHRPA, and they intend to make continued donations in the coming months. This woman has taken on a big project with her two grandsons. Even though it would have been better if the moving company had been held to account, it seems fitting that we help the woman with her immediate need.
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