On August 11, Estie Johnson* drove home from work in a rainstorm.
That might have been the end of the story if she hadn’t met her husband at home dealing with their leaky roof.
“I called a repairman,” Estie said, “but he wouldn’t come until the rain stopped, because there wouldn’t be anything he could do. In the meantime, my sister-in-law texted that her basement was flooding, so we checked ours, and sure enough, we ended up with about six inches of sewage backup down there.”
After the storm, restoration companies were so inundated, Estie and her husband did their own clean-up and sanitizing. Material things like power tools, family memorabilia, and stored items were lost, but the damage also included the basement floor, the stairs, and the furnace.
The roofer, when he came, told them their whole roof was rotted, which was another big-ticket repair. “We had a lot of expense in materials, supplies, and repairs,” Estie said. “Our insurance would cover a lot of it, but not all.”
Estie and her husband used funds set aside for their anniversary vacation and came to JIFLA for the rest.
“JIFLA was quick, helpful and compassionate,” Estie said.
“As emotionally difficult as this was, it could have been worse. With their help, we were able to move forward quickly with the restoration, and it gave us time to work with the insurance company on our claim. We are getting back to normal because we had great community support.”
*Name has been changed.