A Fort Myers homeowner received the holiday gift of a lifetime with Lee BIA Builders Care and Lennar partnering to complete a special home renovation project just in time for the holidays.
Valentina Pereira, 77, has lived a life marked by resilience, courage and unwavering selflessness. Originally from Portugal, she moved to the U.S. at 18, overcoming many challenges as she proudly raised five children on her own. She worked tirelessly as a seamstress while earning her U.S. citizenship and volunteering in her community to help unwed mothers and offer companionship to elderly individuals. Despite tremendous personal loss in recent years, including the passing of her youngest son and sister, Pereira continues to demonstrate strength and faith.
Despite her resilience, Pereira’s home had become increasingly difficult for her to maintain, leaving her overwhelmed and living in unsafe conditions. The home, which was severely damaged by past hurricanes and tornadoes, required window and door replacements, a new roof and HVAC replacement, as well as essential interior repairs to restore the house to a safe, livable condition.
Builders Care and Lennar stepped up to provide these critical home renovations – plus many additional special touches – at no cost to the homeowner, providing the grandmother of eight with a home that now reflects the peace and dignity that she has selflessly brought to others throughout her life.
Although Pereira thought that they were installing just a new roof and a garage door, she was surprised to return to a home that had been completely transformed. In just two-and-a-half weeks, Lennar completely gutted and restored the home’s interior to new condition with appliances, furniture, décor and more. The home also received exterior touches including fresh paint, landscaping and refreshed paint on a beloved eagle statue. Final touches included festive holiday decorations, gifts under the Christmas tree and a fully stocked pantry.
“I am just enchanted with it… I couldn’t ask for anything better,” Pereira said. “I kept praying and I kept praying and He heard me.”
Lennar has partnered with Builders Care for the past two decades to provide the gift of holiday home renovations to a local homeowner each year.
“This is very special to me, doing this project every year, and it’s something our team looks forward to. It’s part of our culture to go and help and give back to the community,” said Ray Kershaw, director of construction for Lennar. “Valentina really has a special place in my heart, and it was very exciting and very rewarding to see their expression.”
Improvements were made possible thanks to the generous contribution of Lennar and a number of local partner suppliers and contractors. Project partners included 84 Lumber, Accurate Grading, All-American Shutters & Glass, ALLTRAXX, Banko Overhead Doors, Blind Ambitions of SW Florida, Blue Water Construction of SW Florida, Caloosa Cooling, Carrigan Brothers, CCA Roofing, Cemex, Clive Daniel Home, Coastal Waste & Recycling, Elite Electrical Contractors, Franceschi Marble and Granite, Ferguson Plumbing Supply, Fort Myers Sod, GMS, GMZ Masonry, HomeTeam Pest Defense, Jacqueline Virtue Art, Juniper Landscaping, L&W Supply, Mabri Painting, Midwest Food Bank, Nilles Design Group, Professional Electric of Southwest Florida, QXO, Raymond Building Supply, Rice Insulation & Glass, Royal Manufacturing, Sherwin Williams, Signs In One Day Cape Coral, Timberlake Cabinetry, Twin Metals, USA SiteWorx, Wayne Wiles Floor Coverings and West Coast Pressure Washing & Cleaning. Lee County Community Development also supported the permitting process for the project, allowing work to be completed swiftly for this homeowner.
“Year after year, Lennar and our project partners step up to provide holiday magic to a homeowner in need, and we are so grateful for their efforts to provide this transformative gift for Valentina,” said Leigh Cloud, executive director of Builders Care. “This is life-changing for Valentina, and we’re thrilled that she will be able to enjoy a safe, comfortable home for the holidays and for years to come.”
To learn more about Builders Care and its mission, visit LeeBuildersCare.org.
About Lee BIA Builders Care
The mission of Lee BIA Builders Care is to provide emergency construction services at no cost to needy and deserving elderly and/or disabled homeowners, and their families, who cannot obtain repairs through traditional means. Lee BIA Builders Care offers a full range of no-cost emergency construction services to improve the safety and health for needy seniors and disabled individuals of all ages by enlisting the expertise and donated services and materials of contractors, sub-contractors and businesses. To date, Lee BIA Builders Care has put more than $5 million in construction services back into the community at no cost to homeowners in need. Builders Care is funded through financial donations, grants and donated services and materials to provide emergency construction services to qualified homeowners throughout the community. Lee BIA Builders Care is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization under the charitable arm of the Lee Building Industry Association. Lee BIA Builders Care is headquartered at 6835 International Center Blvd. #4 in Fort Myers. Donations can be made online at www.LeeBuildersCare.org. More information is available by calling 239-938-0056, and by following Builders Care at www.Facebook.com/LeeBuildersCare.
About Lennar Corporation
Lennar Corporation, founded in 1954, is one of the nation’s leading builders of quality homes for all generations. Lennar builds affordable, move-up and active adult homes primarily under the Lennar brand name. Lennar’s Financial Services segment provides mortgage financing, title and closing services primarily for buyers of Lennar’s homes and, through LMF Commercial, originates mortgage loans secured primarily by commercial real estate properties throughout the United States. Lennar’s Multifamily segment is a nationwide developer of high-quality multifamily rental properties. LENX drives Lennar’s technology, innovation and strategic investments. For more information about Lennar, please visit www.lennar.com.
