PLEASE HELP! "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" is coming to Tampa Bay!

Posted Oct 10, 2010 4:23 PM

Link to this discussion

Hi Crazy Bears!

Yes! That's right! Ty Pennington and "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" is coming to the Tampa Bay area, and they are looking for a needy and deserving family to put on their show!

If you've never seen "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition", basically the show selects a truly deserving family that regularly puts their own needs aside to help others... this family is usually in a very bad situation... maybe their house is falling apart or their kids are very ill... and the show sweeps in, sends the family on vacation, and while they are away, the show build the family a BEAUTIFUL NEW HOUSE! And they usually do some other huge thing too, like paying the kids' college tuition, or paying off all of their medical bills. I've never met a person who has seen the show and hasn't cried from watching it!

Why don't we nominate the most deserving family in Tampa Bay? Many of you have met Lela Lilyquist at the Portamento of Hope soup kitchen... we volunteer there twice a month. The Crazy Bears do a lot to help their community, but this lady is incredible! I have never met anyone with such tireless determination to help others. She has brought so much good to the Brandon community, in her work with the poor and the homeless, and in her constant fight for social and economic change in Tampa Bay.

Those of you that have volunteered at the soup kitchen can see that the Portamento of Hope is in a tattered state, and I recently found out that Lela's own home is in a similar state of disrepair. Since Lela and her family have contributed over $300,000 of their own money to Portamento of Hope, she cannot afford to fix her home.

Click on any of the links below to read more about Lela and her contributions to the Brandon community:

news article
Portamento of Hope
Saving the Oak Tree Memorial Park
Commissioner's Commendation to Lela
news article

Please help me nominate the Lilyquist family for "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition!"

I have put together a formal letter and a petition to submit to the show, nominating the Lilyquists as a truly deserving family. The text of the petition is at the bottom of this email.

If you would like to help, please email me your:

Full Name
Phone Number
City, State

Feel free to add your own personal statement if you wish, and I will append it to the petition. Your information will not be posted publicly.

Thanks for your help!

Queen Bear
Brandon-Valrico...Let's Do Something!

We nominate the Lilyquist family of Brandon, Florida as candidates for “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.” Lela, her husband Floyd, and their daughter Katherine have demonstrated pure kindness, altruism, and self-sacrificing generosity to the Brandon and Tampa Bay community. Even in the face of adversity and their own financial hardship, the Lilyquists relentlessly push for social and economic transformation in the Brandon area.

Lela founded Portamento of Hope, a soup kitchen, thrift store, and education center through which Brandon’s homeless seek a hot meal, clean dry clothes, and the support they need to get themselves off the streets and on to the next chapter in their lives. She also regularly and successfully petitions the local government to confront the homeless issue in Tampa Bay. In addition to her work with the homeless, Lela also frequently brings food, clothing, and toys to the children of local low income families and schools. Lela has also fought for years to turn a five-acre parcel of oak trees in Brandon into a memorial park to honor soldiers, veterans, and those who perished in the terrorist attacks of 9/11.

The Lilyquists have depleted their savings, tapped into their retirement fund, and taken a second mortgage on their own home in order to finance their humanitarian endeavors. Portamento of Hope needs a “cabana room” in which the homeless can shower and do laundry, and the existing facility is in tatters due to its age and water and termite damage. In addition, the Lilyquists’ own home is in desperate need of repair, including water and termite damage, and roof and siding repair. The Lilyquist home also needs a new drain field for its septic system. Due to their contributions to their community, the Lilyquists are deep in debt and cannot afford to fix their home nor the Portamento of Hope facility.

The Lilyquists have devoted their lives to improving the lives of others. Now, they need a helping hand. Won’t you please help them?

Brandon-Valrico...Let's Do Something!

Log in

Sign up