By Sarah Brown
Lebanon Local
The story goes that the Kerrigones had paid a $4,000 deposit to a Eugene company to paint their house, but the company then declared bankruptcy and dropped contact, never returning the money or even starting the job. When friend Shyla Malloy heard the news, she rallied the community to paint the house while the Kerrigones were away, unbeknownst to them.
According to Malloy, an estimated 60 people converged on the house for five days starting the weekend of Sept. 23 to not only complete the task, but also trim the landscaping and perform minor repairs.
“It just exploded into this huge, beautiful outpouring of love and services for this amazing couple that does so much in our community,” she said.
Head high school football coach Troy Walker brought his team out, saying he makes it a requirement that his players help the community.
“I want our boys to experience this,” Walker said. “I think it’s a very valuable lesson.”
It’s also one of those “little things” that help build camaraderie among the players, he added.
In addition to donating time for the work, some people donated money for food and paint while local businesses donated services and products, including LR Glass & Windows, Schmizza Pizza, Turn Pro Painting and Weyerhaeuser.
“It was overwhelming,” Michael said about the experience. “I came home and it looks like a totally different house.”
While he expressed gratitude for the gift, he said there are others in need in the community whom he hopes would also be beneficiaries of the generous spirit of these types of volunteers.
“It inspires me to hope to be a better support to this community because I love it here,” he said.
