Neighbors Helping Neighbors in Small Kansas Town

This past week, ABC's Extreme Makeover Home Edition have been in Kansas.

Patrick Tutwiler was shot in the neck by an Iraqi sniper and returned home with a traumatic brain injury, post traumatic stress disorder, memory loss and speech problems. Less than a year later, their modest home was hit by the tornado of June 11, 2008 that destroyed a large part of Chapman, Kansas. Patrick and his wife, Crystal, pulled the family into a closet and used their bodies as human shields while the tornado tore the house apart.

Patrick, Crystal, their four children and nephew moved to a nearby military base temporarily until Patrick was given his official military discharge. Because of Patrick’s injuries and his current part-time employment, the family’s finances cannot afford to rebuild or purchase a new home.

Now it is up to “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” to build this dedicated solider a safer and stronger place they can call home.

- Rebuild Chapman

Last Tuesday, TY Pennington and the others from the show, showed up at Fort Riley, Kansas to announce to the Tutwiler Family, who have been living on a military base ever since their house in Chapman and the town was devastated by a tornado, that they will have a new home built.

On Wednesday, the crew arrived in Chapman to begin work on the Tutwiler's new house. Now tomorrow at about 2 pm, the family is expected to be back from their Disney Cruise to the Bahama's, to see their new home. While, I would love to be there to see this (and possibly be seen on camera in the crowd), I have other obligations. I however, would love to issue best wishes to the Tutiler family and wish them home. It is my hope that you will enjoy it, and I look forward to seeing the two hour special, tentatively scheduled for Jan. 25, 2009.
Not only, will the program replace the Tutwiler's family home, they also will rebuild the town's community center as well as at least do some work on a church that was damaged in the tornado.

The Topeka Sears store was utilized in this program as well.

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