Leukemia survivor Joey Stott choked back tears last week as she tried to explain what she felt when she first saw her bright new home and the thousands of volunteers and friends who helped build it.
"When the bus first moved and I saw the house it was..Wow!. It was hope. It was rejuvenation," she said during a Sept. 17 press conference. "Seeing the house for the first time was like seeing a dollhouse. I have a feeling it's going to take us awhile to grasp how this has touched our lives."
Standing under an old shade tree just yards away from their brand new, white, yellow and "green" home, the Stott family told members of the media what it was like to be a featured family of ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.
"We'd liked to thank everybody who was dedicated to volunteering and taking time away from their families and their lives to help ours," said Joey. "We have a home thanks to this community. Thanks to Extreme Makeover and thanks to Hasken Construction. Oh, good Lord, there's just not enough words to thank everyone."
Fresh off a week-long vacation to San Franciso, Calif., courtesy of Disney Vacation Club, Joey, embraced her husband Philip, daughter Kaila, and sons Jonathon and Michael, as she recalled the "Reveal" of the new 3,000 square foot home.
"We took our blindfolds off, and it was just a sea of smiling faces and a huge wave of love," said Joey.
"It was so quiet!" said Philip. "I can't believe they got so many people to be so quiet."
The family saw the home for the first time on Wednesday when they were ushered in by TV crew members, blindfolded.
One day later, they were busy unpacking suitcases and getting familiar with their new digs.
Philip was very excited about the home's many "green" qualities.
"It's surreal," he said. "The geothermal heating and cooling and wind energy will run our heat pump and all of our appliances, which are Energy Star compliant. The craftsmanship and quality of what our community has put together is just amazing."
The Stott children were also impressed.
"I was blown away," said Jonathon. "You've been on vacation and you know it's been going on and then you see it for the first time and all the efforts of all the people coming together to make this beautiful house for us. It's just the most amazing thing ever."
Organizers estimated that more than 3,000 volunteers—tradespeople and other volunteers—worked together to build the house in 106 hours.
The building effort was led by Rick Hasken, who owns Hasken Construction, LLC, Freeport, along with his wife, Laurie.
"There are those who say that the spirit of community is a thing of the past," Hasken said. "I'm proud to say that's certainly not true in northwest Illinois."
The effort to help the Stott family continued on Thursday.
Mark Finnegan, president of Finnegans' RV Center in South Beloit, the company that provided trailers for the on-site production staff and construction volunteers, presented the Stott family with a check for $11,000.
Finnegan tearfully related how he had lost his father to cancer and how he sought donations to help Joey's family when he heard of her own plight with leukemia.
"Use this however you want," he said. "From all our love...from 100 strangers."
Brian Saunders, owner of Saunders Oil, Warren, Illinois, presented $2,500 in fuel cards to the family.
He said he knew the cards would come in handy with three teenagers and a mother commuting to college in Platteville, Wis. Saunders also provided on-site fuel during the building project.
"We just wanted to show our support," he said after the presentation.
Susan Atherton, Highland Community College (HCC) Foundation executive director, and Joe Kanosky, president of HCC, announced the Joey Stott scholarship fund in the amount of $25,000.
The scholarships will enable all three children to attend Highland and help other financially-strapped students as well.
"You kids are going to college," said Joey, smiling.
Margaret Larson, director of Stephenson County's U of I Extension Office, said Joey's new kitchen had been equipped with all the "bells, whistles and gadgets" necessary for preserving the organic vegetables the 39.9 acre farm produces.
She also said the Extension personnel would be helping the Stott family achieve their dream to be organic farmers.
And, finally, Tom Wilhelm, the bone marrow donor from Colorado who literally saved Joey's life four years ago, was on hand to congratulate the family.
"I helped out with the garden," said Wilhelm, who had spent the week helping at the build site. "They tried to keep me busy, but every time we needed a hammer or something there was someone there wanting to help."
A registry for bone marrow donors was also held during the build.
"The number of people who signed up really exceeded everyone's expectations," Wilhelm said.
Joey said the "knock on the door" from the show's star, Ty Pennington, came just in time for the family.
"The night before Philip and I were preparing a list of things that needed to be done before winter to make our old house livable," she said. "We were preparing to sell some of the sheep."
The next day the family heard Pennington outside their door.
"We heard 'Stott Family' and we just bolted out the door and we're like 'where's Ty!," she said.
According to a press release, The Extreme Makeover: Home Edition episode filmed during the week will air in December 2009 or January 2010.
"We can't wait to see the show and all the smiling faces," Joey said. "You've helped my family take the leap to a green life."
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