A Kingston-area couple is getting a brand-new bathroom thanks to the kindness of a few local people.
Last November, a Perth Road couple hired a contractor to make their bathroom wheelchair accessible, but the work was so poorly done that the couple ended up with water problems and could not use their new shower.
After a Global News story on the renovation aired, some Good Samaritans stepped forward to help Maggie and Bill Hollingsworth, both of whom use wheelchairs.
“We’ve dealt with stress for two years now,” Maggie said.
In an interview last November, Maggie said the couple’s shower had problems after the original upgrade.
“It’s not draining properly. (Water runs) out my bathroom floor and down my hallway,” she explained.
Unable to find a solution with the original contractor, the Hollingsworths went public, and their plight caught the attention of Kingston general contractor Carl Dale.
“We fixed up the base of the drain because the water was sloping out into the room, going out of the bathroom and down the hallway,” Dale said.
“We reconfigured the main floor.”
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Dale has donated his time and some building supplies — about $2,000 out of his own pocket.
“It’s important to give back,” he said. “We can work, make money but we need to help people that need help.”
Interior designer Sandie George has also donated her time to the project, working with the couple to make their bathroom functional and safe.
“The flooring for the bathroom area is a porcelain non-slip tile as well as the shower tile. (It) is mosaic with a little bit of roughness and texture to avoid slipping,” George explained.
The washroom cabinetry will also be custom built.
“The vanity itself will be wheelchair accessible with a bank of drawers on either side,” George said. “There will be a cabinet with drawers that pull out for accessibility for the homeowner.”
The support has restored the Hollingsworths’ faith in their community after what they say has been a very stressful time.
“I was elated that Carl and Sandie came together to do my bathroom so it is safe and easy access for us to be able to use now,” Maggie said.
After less than two weeks of work, the bathroom is almost finished, and now the question is: Who will have the first shower in the couple’s new bathroom?
Maggie says it’s going to be Bill — so that he can get in and out quickly, and she can have a quasi-spa day all to herself.
“It will finally be stress-free to be able to go on with our lives without all the interruptions,” she said.
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