Citywide remodels home for family of teen with cancer


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MAGNA — As 15-year-old Alexis Gould struggles with cancer, it's hard for her siblings to focus on anything else.

Alexis, the oldest child in her family, was diagnosed with stage 3 neuroblastoma in September and is now in her fourth stage of chemotherapy treatments.

While Alexis' three younger siblings don't show animosity or jealousy toward the attention Alexis receives, mother Emily Gould said she believes it is healthy for each of them to focus on themselves every once in a while.

Citywide Home Loan's Makeovers from the Heart program is providing that opportunity for the Gould children by inviting the kids to re-design their rooms.

Photo: Scott G. Winterton/Deseret News
Photo: Scott G. Winterton/Deseret News

"It is creating for them this little atmosphere that is just focused on them," Gould said. "I want them to realize that they're more than just Alexis' siblings, that they are individuals, that they are special, so this project kind of brings that to the forefront."

Gould said she thought her 8 and 10-year-old daughters would enjoy the renovation, but was surprised that her 13-year-old son spent a good amount of time surfing Pinterest to plan his room design.

"It's given us this huge project to focus on that has nothing to do with cancer, and that's the most incredible thing," she said. "They could paint my house purple with pink polka dots and I wouldn't care because the impact it has had on my children is unbelievable."

More than 30 volunteers, all Citywide employees and their families, stripped the house to its bones Friday.

Remodeling will begin Monday, and according to Citywide CEO Teresa Whitehead, the exterior and interior will be redone including new electrical wiring, sheetrock and flooring. Air conditioning and a new bathroom will also be added.

Last year, Citywide stopped its tradition of hosting "lavish Christmas parties" and started a new tradition using those same funds to give back to the community by remodeling rooms in Utah homes, said Shan Lassig, Citywide director of the construction division.

"We're happy to have a philanthropic heart and soul and give back to a family that is in dire need," Lassig said.

Photo: Family Photo
Photo: Family Photo

Citywide received 30 nominations to make over a room in the Gould house as part of Makeovers from the Heart. But instead of fixing one room, organizers decided to redo the entire 1970s house for the "deserving family," Whitehead said.

The home completion is scheduled for Dec. 20, but Whitehead said volunteers will work "around the clock," if needed, to get the family home for Christmas.

If the project is completed on time, there is a chance that Alexis will get to see the house before going to the hospital for her fifth stage of chemotherapy, her mother said.

She said each member of her family is grateful for Makeovers from the Heart because it has helped them create new memories together.

"It's giving us a fresh start. It's giving us something new," she said.

Contributing: Alan Neves


Tori Jorgensen is a Deseret News intern and current communications major at Southern Utah University. Find her on Twitter @TORIAjorgensen Email: vjorgensen@deseretnews.com

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