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Saturday May 17, 2008
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Deerfield Home Gets a Makeover; Family Gets a Lift

If someone had woken you up this morning and said, "Hey, I'm going to give you a new house!" you would probably have pinched yourself to make sure it wasn't a dream, right? That would be like winning the lottery, and the chances are one in a million . . . right?

Well, if you live in Deerfield, Illinois, the chances are closer to one in twenty-thousand.

Ok, so that's not really true, but for one family living in the Village of Deerfield, it became a reality.

"Put together one very run-down house, a deserving family, several opinionated designers, seven days and what do you get? The answer is - Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." That's the tagline for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, an Emmy Award winning reality show on ABC. They find a family in need, and they come through in the clutch.

Geno and Malinda Noyola had been living in an attic. That would seem difficult enough, until you include the fact that the Noyolas have six children. The family had been staying with their grandmother because the house they had recently purchased was uninhabitable. But it also meant that they were prime candidates for a brand new home.

On October 31st, the producers from Makeover knocked on the Noyolas' door and gave them the once in a lifetime opportunity. But being on a reality TV show could be a sticky situation. Tension is always high in the spotlight, but the nature of the show and its non-competitive format help to keep things in perspective. Other reality shows, such as American Chopper or Flip that House, include a monetary incentive, which leads to more drama (and, in theory, better ratings).

But ABC's home show is all about helping those in need. "The whole process required that everyone in our company get involved in one way or another," said Charlie Norwesh of Deerfield. NORCON, Inc., the construction firm hired by the show to lead the project. Norwesh and Jeff Jozwiak of Chicago, founders of NORCON, Inc., were happy to be part of the effort, even though they were given just one month to design the new house on a 25-foot-wide lot. Oh, and they needed to leave 3 feet of space on either side.

"It was one of the hardest things we've ever done, but it was really fulfilling," said Norwesh. "We had 108 hours to build the home. What would normally take seven to eight months took us four days." According to Norwesh and Jozwiak, there were nearly 1,000 friends, family, and NORCON employees that helped with the house, using donated materials and tools.

On November 7th, the Noyolas finally got to see their new home. What had been an 1,800-square-foot house had become a 3,600-square-foot "green home," following the building standards set by Chicago's Mayor Richard M. Daley. A carport was built using some of the lumber from the old floor trusses; the team reused carpet, recycled glass for countertops, cork flooring, solar panels on the roof for efficient energy, and even a rooftop garden.

"We maintained three exterior brick walls, because they were in good shape, but the interiors were terrible," Norwesh said. "They had asbestos, lead paint, plumbing fixtures that were about to fall through the floor, and rats."

A party was thrown for the family and workers on Sunday, January 18th, to celebrate and view the airing of the Extreme Makeover episode.

Norwesh was all smiles that night. "They were such a gracious family. You can't help but love them."

By Joel Servillo

Are you looking to buy or rent a new Chicago Condo?