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DENVER — This past year may have had its fair share of issues, but Contact7 did its part to help.
Community help
- Contact7 called in assistance for an Air Force Veteran named Ethel Jones, who was dealing with a mold problem in her home. Thanks to Rebuilding Together Denver, Ms. Jones received help with mold mitigation, cleanup, and other household help.
“It’s nice. It’s really nice,” she said with a smile.
Neighborhood handyman William “Bo” Soto had a garage full of tools stolen from his Edgewater home. Contact7 profiled his attempt to get back on his feet, and viewers stepped up to donate hundreds of dollars worth of tools to him.
“Are you kidding me? Oh my God! Are you serious right now?” he said when surprised with the donation.
When a shady contractor took more than ten thousand dollars from a Westminster woman and disappeared, she thought her job would never get done. Until a different contractor saw our story and volunteered to do the work without taking a dime for labor.
“It’s a miracle,” she said.
Tara Smith and her two kids went without power for more than a week at their Denver apartment complex, yet still received a rent bill for the entire month. She wasn’t able to work during those days, at home with her kids, and was worried she wouldn’t be able to afford the payment. Two viewers saw her story and donated a thousand dollars so that Smith could make that payment.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you so much,” the single mom said.
The Rooney family paid a fencing company $1,200 for a new fence and received nothing. When another fencing company, Split Rail Fence, heard about their struggle, they came in to build the overdue fence at no charge to the family.
“I think its awesome,” Audrey Rooney said.
When a nine year old girl left her prized baby doll in the back of a pedicab in Denver, she was devastated. Until the American Girl Company heard about her, and stepped up to donate a new doll and give the girl a shopping spree. Local pedicab drivers also chipped in to help
“I’m happy,” nine-year-old Clare said.
Les Thomas was going through the hardest month of his life. The Air Force Veteran was suffering from kidney disease, and was also getting evicted from his town home over alleged missed rent payments while he was in the hospital. He was “hoping for a miracle,” and one came. After his story aired, Contact7 reached out to a moving company that volunteered their services to move him out. Viewers also donated more than $17,000 to his GoFundMe in just 48 hours.
“I’m almost speechless. I don’t even know some of these people but the goodness from their heart and generosity they’ve shown me, every time I think about it or tell someone about it brings me to tears,” Thomas said.
Making change
Contact7 was also involved in holding businesses and people accountable and creating change for those in need of help.
Here is a short list of some of those changes in 2019:
- Changes were made to a dangerous Aurora intersection after multiple crashes
- A woman received the awning she paid for after a company dragged its feet for over a year
- A railroad crossing that viewers said was popping tires was inspected and fixed
- Broken mailboxes in Aurora were repaired the next day
- An owner was reimbursed after their car was wrongfully towed
- An elevator at a Denver high-rise in on the road to being repaired
- A jewelry store that gave away a family heirloom replaced the item
- A woman living with rodents in an apartment was moved to a new unit
- Patients were helped by another practice after a dentist left his patients high and dry
- And many more
