The Show Airs Sunday, November 11th!

Well, the time has come for the national audience to see what this community has done. This Sunday, November 11th, at 8:00pm on ABC, the Marrero family's story will air, and the whole country will get a glimpse of this incredibly fulfilling week.

We knocked on the Marrero's door in Camden on July 29th, and they came home to a brand new haven 7 days later. A place they now call "home", a place with beds, food on the table, a sanctuary for each member of the family, and most importantly a new start.

But as with many things in life, it is the journey that defines the experience, not the destination. On this journey, we encountered more hope and love than we had ever imagined. Our company was thrilled to help, giving up their time and energy to work around the clock shifts. Our vendors and trade partners were lining up to give more and more time, services, materials, expertise... whatever they could. The amazing members of the Camden, Pennsauken, and South Jersey communities gave their love and strength to support the build for 7 days straight. There are many people who deserve a Home Makeover as much as the Marrero's did. Amazingly, these were many of the first in line to help.

On this journey, we learned about the strength of the human spirit. Not only what the Marrero family has endured, and conquered, but also what the human heart is capable of when inspired. Everyone who participated found inspiration in a different aspect of the project, but inspired we stood, ready to make a difference. And in the end, I think we all agree, we received more than we gave.

We consider ourselves blessed to have had this opportunity. We are blessed to have met the Marrero's, their community, and their friends. We are blessed to have met the people at UrbanPromise, and experienced their boundless generosity and love. We are bound together with everyone who participated, the Marrero family, the UrbanPromise family, and our volunteers, for we have all experienced something truly remarkable: the triumph of love.

Thank you for joining us on this journey, and for all of your encouraging support for the project and the family. We hope that you enjoy the final culmination of the experience this Sunday, November 11th when the show airs (8:00pm on ABC).

Welcome Home Marrero Family!

This week has been about love, strength and giving of ourselves. Each of us contributed in one way or another. Some of us lead, some followed, some of us built, some cheered… but we all were a part of making this spectacular dream come true for the Marrero family.

We feel incredibly blessed that our J.S. Hovnanian & Sons family was a part of making a difference for the Marrero family. We would not have even been there if it weren’t for the selfless giving of UrbanPromise Ministries, and the rallying energy of ABC-TV. And we most certainly could not have been so successful without the support, enthusiasm, and STRENGTH of the communities of builders, trades, neighbors of Camden and Pennsauken, and families of South Jersey.

All week we have been talking about the strength of the human spirit. Victor Marrero has always had that strength, and is instilling it in his sons. This week, we all had a glimpse of that strength in ourselves, and this experience has certainly brought out the best in the human spirit. We just pray that we continue to be inspired every day with the same love, energy and strength that everyone has shown this week.

In Victor’s own words: “These last few years have been so difficult. We were so low, if we had been any lower, we would be buried. But you have all brought us up and given us new life.”

Truly, this experience has changed all of our lives, not just Victors and his family’s. So it is with great joy and humility that we finally say: “WELCOME HOME MARRERO FAMILY! WELCOME HOME!”

MOVE THAT BUS

Please join us as we MOVE THAT BUS today around 2:00pm. Everyone is welcome to join the crowd. If you have volunteered this week, please bring your blue shirt!

CONSTRUCTION IS COMPLETE!

We are extremely proud to announce that at about noon on Saturday, we completed construction and handed the keys to the house over to the design team! What an amazing accomplishment for our builder team, our team of contractors and our team of volunteers.

Let's think about this for a second: J.S. Hovnanian & Sons, with enormous help from the community at large, has successfully completed the new Marrero home, from start to finish...in 96 hours! And that was ahead of schedule!

It seemed like an impossible task: Go from an empty lot to a completed house so quickly.
But we have faith in our team, and in our own spirit. So we stood up to the challenge, and look at what we've done. It is amazing what you can accomplish with thousands of people working together towards the same goal, helping each other. We have a saying at J.S. Hovnanian & Sons: "TEAM" stands for "Together Everyone Achieves More." This week has proven that, over and over again.

What an honor it has been to be a part of this amazing experience. We are just overwhelmed with pride and joy for the people who can look at this house and say, "I was a part of that. I helped build that incredible home." This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and words cannot describe how we feel at this moment.

I encourage you to reflect on this experience, however you have been a part of it, and tell us what it has meant to you.

Now, we just can't wait to bring them home, and MOVE THAT BUS!!!!

Many Hands, Many Hearts, One Home: A tribute to our Volunteers

This week has been about having the strength to change. This community should be proud to know that it is bursting with unconditional, energetic, hard-working volunteers. People willing to give their time and hearts to help another human being. From the first day, when there was no house, no designers, they were out there, stocking drinks, picking up trash, cleaning the yard; all with a smile, and all with excitement and love for the Marrero family.

As the week goes on, several volunteers have been coming back day after day They are taking home towels to wash and bringing them back as they come for their second and third shifts. They are driving here straight from a full day's work to get back into their blue shirts and help make this project a success. And they are all doing it for different reasons.

Some of our "die-hard" volunteers are here because they relate to the Marrero's. Some have never met the family, but love to volunteer. Some are with groups who want to go through an experience like this together, to get closer with each other. But they all do have one thing in common: they all take joy in helping other people. And we want to celebrate those people today, because we are so thankful for the dedication and love they have shown this whole week and beyond.

Construction UPDATE – “What more can I do?”

This is the most amazing experience we’ve ever had. Since we started construction, we have had hoards of contractors, skilled hands, and volunteers swarm this house to do their part in making this build a success. With literally hundreds of people in the home at one time, coordination and safety are top priorities. Our construction team is doing an outstanding job of managing this Herculean task.

At the time of this post, we are ahead of schedule (typically the opposite is true). Thanks to all of the community’s support, we have had water, ice, Red Bull, drinks, snacks and anything else you could imagine to feed our workers so they can keep working and keep spirits high. We love your support, and we couldn’t do it without each and every one of you! KEEP IT COMING!!!!!!

Something that has really come out of this project has been the new famous words “What more can I do?” People are so energized out here that, when you ask them to do something, they jump on the task and get ready for more. Every single trade, subcontractor, supplier and volunteer is donating their time and materials to make this home a reality… this is an entirely donated project…and yet each one of them is asking “what more can I do?” What a spirit. What an honor to be a part of something like that.

We are so proud of our construction team, our purchasing team, our site team, our quality controller team, our volunteer team, our check-in team, our Subcontractor support and food team, our VIP team, and of course…you: our cheering section. We love you. We love you, we love you, we love you.

So keep it coming. We love and need your support.

CONSTRUCTION BEGINS!

We’ve come a long way in 1 day. Early Tuesday morning, the design team took the Marrero’s unwanted belongings from their old house and put them in a woodchipper! Actually, to call it a “woodchipper” is to understate the sheer power of this machine! Imagine a gigantic iron monster with crushing jaws and shredding teeth…eating your dining room table. And your couch. And your china closet. Bye, bye Marrero’s old stuff. Hello new house!

By noon, we finally got to start what we were all waiting for. Lead by Stephen and Peter Hovnanian, 400+ people charged down Federal Street in search of one thing: to START CONSTRUCTION ON THE BRAND NEW MARRERO HOME! Stephen called on the strength that each of us has inside, and that Victor and his sons demonstrate every day, to build a quality new place for the Marrero’s to live, in just 4 short days. Then, Peter riled everyone up with an emotional “call to arms” and the feeling was ELECTRIC! The two brothers embraced, proud of what they were doing for this family, and proud to have the support of over 400 people in blue shirts ready to follow them in to battle. The first shovel hit the dirt in early afternoon, and we haven’t stopped since.

Now, the excitement really begins. Now, the minds and bodies, attitudes and emotions of every single person who works on this house will be tested. Now, we must rely on our inner strength to carry us through this extreme build, one that is motivated by what we now know of a remarkable family, who deserves nothing less than the home of their dreams. Marrero family, we can’t wait until you see what you’ll be coming home to!

The Marrero Family

Yesterday we met the Marrero family, and what an inspirational family they are. Victor is a bull; his sons joke that he eats glass for breakfast and nails for lunch. He is tough, because he feels he has to be. He wants to be an example of strength and courage for his sons, wearing the responsibility of his family’s livelihood on his shoulders. He teaches his boys the difference between right and wrong, the courage to do the right thing, and above all, the power of love.

After his second heart attack, Victor could no longer work, but started picking up scraps of metal to sell to junkyards so he could keep food on his family’s table. His determination and his strength are nothing short of miraculous.

And his sons are the evidence of his personal mission. Billy Joe, Joshua, Ethan, Steven and Jonas Marrero poured out of their home when they heard Ty’s long-awaited call on the bullhorn. They were ecstatic, jumping around in joy, with their father in tow, knowing that their dreams were about to come true.

And in the midst of all of this overwhelming activity, which Billy Joe called “too much to process,” they all remained respectful, well-spoken and of course incredibly thankful. But we say again, it really is we who are thankful for the opportunity to be touched by the Marrero’s.

The Extreme Makeover team is here because they believe in the Marrero family. Having had a chance to meet them all face to face, it’s easy to see why they do.

And on Tuesday, we will start building them the home they deserve…

Welcome to the J.S. Hovnanian & Sons Extreme Makeover BLOG!

We are thrilled and honored to be a part of this life-changing experience, both for the Marrero family and for the J.S. Hovnanian & Sons family. Every day on this blog we will be documenting this remarkable week, providing updates nightly, and giving you a chance to leave your comments as a community. We encourage you to check back on our progress daily and leave your well wishes for the Marrero family.