Beatrice Rios and Bob Kephart are two of 22 people whose homes were selected for repairs by Neighbors Helping Neighbors. The good Samaritans join forces for a week in June to help make life a little easier for Refugio and Woodsboro families.

Rios says she’ll always be grateful to the group. A hard-working member of the community, Beatrice worked for Refugio ISD for 30 years before her retirement. Her husband Joe Rios was a well-known and respected carpenter in Refugio before his death nine years ago. Repairs and upkeep around the Rios home were taken care of regularly during their years together. The couple was self sufficient and enjoyed helping others.

This year Beatrice will turn 79. Her step isn’t quite as quick as it used to be but she keeps her home neat, clean and orderly. But some chores are beyond her physical ability and skills.

The faucets in her kitchen and bathrooms were leaking and wouldn’t turn off properly, the flooring was weak around the commode. The frames around two windows were rotting.

“I don’t know what I would have done if they hadn’t helped me,” she said. “I’m so grateful. They were all so nice. I called people to come do the work but they never showed up.”

Like all the NHN families living on a fixed income, money to pay for expensive repairs is hard to come by.

The selected families are all deserving, said the Rev. Michael Mumme, a coordinator. Choosing projects can be difficult.

Some residents donate their time and skills, others donate materials, still others donate money to purchase materials. This year NHN tackled everything from plumbing to carpentry.

“I always come away with more than I could ever give,” said Gerald Morgan, a charter member of NHN, who likes to stay out of the limelight.

Left in the wake of NHN’s labor are grateful home owners, including Bob Kephart of Woodsboro.

For the second year, NHN reached out to give Kephart a helping hand.

A native of New Jersey, Kephart purchased his home in Woodsboro, sight unseen.

“When I decided to retire, I’d get on the internet and look for houses in the south,” Kephart said. “I wanted to get away from the cold weather.”

A carpenter, Kephart worked in construction before failing health led him to a less strenuous occupation at the night shift in a book store. Like Rios, Kephart is not stranger to hard work.

In New Jersey during the winter, temperatures often plummet below freezing and snow covers the ground. Kephart mode of transportation was, and remains, a bicycle. He doesn’t drive.

“It got really cold riding the bicycle to work every night,” he said.

For 35 years, he rode his bicycle to work in rain, sleet and snow but looked forward to moving to a warmer climate for retirement.

During one of his computer searches, he found a place on Craig’s list in Woodsboro. Never having visited Woodsboro or stepping a foot in the home, he purchased it and hired a van to move his things.

“The pictures on the internet looked fine,” he said.

At the end of his journey, he found a home in dire need of repairs.

His first reaction: “it’s a chicken coop.”

Undaunted, Kephart rolled up his sleeves and got busy. But living on a fixed income of social security limits the funds for costly repairs or materials. Failing health limits his labor.

When NHN stepped in to lend a helping hand, Kephart couldn’t have been more elated.

“They are great people, really nice people and boy did they work,” he said. “Glen Boenig worked on the roof. I tried to help by handing him things he needed. He’s a wonderful person.”

NHN members covered his porch with a metal roof, built steps and replaced several windows.

“There’s no telling how long it would have taken me to do the work, even if I was able to do it,” he said.

Kephart’s determination to renovate his home runs deep.

When the kitchen cabinets were ruined from a leaking room, new ones were too expensive for his budget so he bought a table saw instead.

“I’m going to build them myself after I save some more money,” he says.