CHURCH MEMBERS LEND HELPING HANDS FOR HOME REPAIRS HEALTH PROBLEMS KEPT OCCUPANTS FROM DOING THE WORK.Byline: Amy Raisin Staff Writer NEWHALL - Patrick Diaz moved into the small house on 14th Street in 1952, long before arthritis ravaged rav·age v. rav·aged, rav·ag·ing, rav·ages v.tr. 1. To bring heavy destruction on; devastate: A tornado ravaged the town. 2. his spine and a stroke left his wife paralyzed par·a·lyze tr.v. par·a·lyzed, par·a·lyz·ing, par·a·lyz·es 1. To affect with paralysis; cause to be paralytic. 2. To make unable to move or act: paralyzed by fear. on her left side. The couple still lives there with their adult daughter, but she, too, has suffered serious health problems in recent years that have prevented the family from making badly needed repairs to the aging house. The next time it rains, however, the family will not have to endure the steady stream of water that leaks through their decaying roof - thanks to the efforts of a little church on the corner. ``Their daughter, Sylvia, comes to Bible study Bible study may refer to:
Together with members of four other churches, from San Fernando San Fernando, city, Argentina San Fernando (săn fərnăn`dō), city (1991 pop. 144,761), Buenos Aires prov., E Argentina. It is a district administrative center in the Greater Buenos Aires area. to El Segundo El Segundo (ĕl sēgŭn`dō), industrial city (1990 pop. 15,223), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1917. Its products include navigation and computer systems, aircraft parts, office machines, telephone apparatus, and , congregants from Sonshine arrived at the Diaz house at 7 a.m. Saturday and started stripping the roof down to the beams. Others went to work clearing a backyard area that, over the years, had become a junkyard of old appliances, car wheels, trash and overgrown overgrown said of a part that has not been kept trimmed. overgrown hoof overgrown hooves put unusual stresses on bones and tendons and allow for distortion of the wall and sole. vegetation. The debris quickly filled a massive trash bin the size of train car. ``I've tried to clean some of it up, but there was so much to do and it never really made a difference,'' said Sylvia Diaz, 37, whose legs are badly scarred after a near-fatal bout with flesh-eating bacteria flesh-eating bacteria A variant of Streptococcus group A, which causes toxic shock-like syndrome. See Toxic shock-like syndrome. in 1998. As an estimated 30 volunteers worked in his yard and on his roof, 80-year-old Patrick Diaz rested in a hospital-style bed in his front room, hooked up to a bag that helps empty his bladder. Asked what the assistance means to him, the former owner of a shoe repair shop paused before answering. ``You want my opinion,'' he asked. ``I can never thank them enough. And God. I can't tell them thank you enough for coming here and helping us like this.'' By noon, the yard - covered as much as five feet with debris in some areas, according to volunteers - was cleared and new sheets of wood were nailed to the exposed beams on the roof. New shingles shingles: see herpes zoster. shingles or herpes zoster Acute viral skin and nerve infection. Groups of small blisters appear along certain nerve segments, most often on the back, sometimes after a dull ache at the site; pain becomes will be delivered during the week and installed on the weekend when volunteers return. Harms, a Valencia resident in the insurance business, said she derives more pleasure from helping others than from being idle. ``This valley has too much wealth to let other people live in a substandard environment,'' Harms said. ``It's nice to help people by giving money to a cause, but it's a much different feeling when you get out there and get your hands dirty. Everybody needs a little help at some time.'' Amy Raisin, (661) 257-5254 amy.raisin(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- color) From left, Frank Durham, Daniel Kingery and Al Durham replace a roof in Newhall for the Diaz family, whose health conditions keep them from undertaking the repairs themselves. (2) From left, Dean Granzar, Patrick Loakimedes and Kevin Connolly fill a trash bin while helping a Newhall family. Tom Mendoza/Staff Photographer |
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