Nonprofit turns house into a forever home

PENDER COUNTY (WWAY) — Friday, one deserving came home to a brand new space. With the help of Custom Home Furniture Gallery, the nonprofit, Welcome Home Angel remodeled 12-year-old Ashari and 20-year-old Bre Jones’ bedrooms. It was a welcome change after sleeping on the couch, Jones said.

“I’ll have more space,” Ashari smiled. ‘And I don’t have worry about sheets flying off of the couch and hitting me in the face.”

Ashari’s older sister, Bre has down syndrome. She loves hugging, singing, and batman. That’s why designer, Katie O’Neal left a few surprises in Bre’s room to make it feel more like a home.

According to O’Neal, “We tried to make it personal and, that was one thing that Bre from the first moment we met her she was like looking at the designs. She said where’s my batman?”

It takes a village to raise a child. Friday, that village dressed in batman masks to greet Ashari, Bre, and their mom, Anechia Wiggins.

“Anechia has worked hard as a single parent,” said family friend, Cheryl Beatty. “She has worked hard. It has taken all of us to raise… that whole gorup over there, all of us. Because she needs a break.”

The remodel included a gym for Bre, whose health insurance denied her physical therapy just months ago. An emphasis on accessibility, the remodel widened doorways for wheelchair use as needed. Wiggins says because Bre is a special child, this will most likely be her forever home.

“Trying to make it accommodating for her not just for the moment, but for a lifetime,” she said. “And in my demise, hopefully her caregivers will live with her and she’ll still be able to be in the comfort of her own home and she’ll have the resources she needs.”

Friday, a family beloved by their community got the space and accessibility they needed to make their house a home.

“I’m grateful,” Anechia smiled. “Very grateful, and blessed.”