03 Sep New Hope Gets Creative to Help Church Secretary and HU Student Son

Steve Clark, reporter for the Huntington County Tab
Reprinted by permission from the Huntington County Tab, Huntington, Ind.

Rev. Ray Seilhamer, senior pastor of New Hope United Brethren Church (Huntington, Ind.), jokes that Barbara Hilterbrand has changed her mind “1300 times” regarding the renovation of her house in Huntington.

Despite Hilterbrand’s wavering, her final vision for the house has remained the same: make it accessible for her son.

Hilterbrand’s son, Jeff, was born with spina bifida and gets around using a power wheelchair. Spina bifida is a birth defect that occurs when a baby’s spinal column does not close all the way. It can result in leg weakness or paralysis.

Hilterbrand is the secretary for New Hope United Brethren and Jeff is a student at Huntington University. New Haven residents, Hilterbrand decided earlier this year that it was time to make the move to Huntington.

She purchased a house near the church on May 28, but knew upon doing so that some modifications would need to occur before she and Jeff could call it “home.” Chief among those modifications was providing a bathroom for Jeff that he could access with his power chair.

Members of the church saw that the Hilterbrands, fellow members, were in need and stepped up to help them out. Alan Brown, Marv Beady, and Paul Buzzard have been major players in the house’s renovation process, with Seilhamer, Ken Hippensteel, George Cole, Ed Hanna, and Dave Walker making key contributions as well.

Work commenced on the house in early June. The crew’s solution to the bathroom issue was to place it in the kitchen, up against the wall where the house’s existing bathroom was located, enabling them to take advantage of the plumbing that was already in place.

Installing the bathroom in the kitchen, however, drastically reduced the space for the actual kitchen.
That’s when the crew got creative–deciding that the wall between the kitchen and garage would be knocked down and that the garage would be converted into a kitchen/living space for Jeff.

The crew removed the garage door and replaced it with a door, window, and wall air conditioner. The floor was raised so that it is level with the rest of the house. The walls are now paneled, a ceiling has been installed, and wood flooring is in place, which is better for Jeff to get around on than carpet.

“The power chair can really destroy things fast,” notes Hilterbrand. “So, I feel like everything’s durable in his area.”

The bathroom area contains a large shower and ample room for Jeff to maneuver his power chair. A sink that’s low and out from the ground and easily accessible for Jeff is ready to be installed. The house will be ready to live in by the end of the month, upon the completion of some trim and painting work.

Jeff is looking forward to moving in.

“I am a senior at Huntington University. I’ve been going there for two years and we’ve had to drive back and forth from New Haven,” he explains. “So, this will definitely cut back on costs for gas and stuff like that.

“As far as changing my life, I can’t even describe. I’ve lived in houses all my life where the bathroom has always been inaccessible, basically.”

Seilhamer jokes that he and the rest of the crew are anticipating a nice meal now that the renovation process is almost complete. “I really think that with all the money that Barbara saves now from driving back and forth from New Haven, that the men are expecting a steak dinner and we’re just tasting that already,” he chuckles.

Steaks or not, something that Hilterbrand does have an abundance of is gratitude.

“I cannot give enough thanks and say ‘thank you’ enough,” she states.

“Just remarkable,” she continues, looking around the house. “Remarkable.”