OAK PARK, Mich. -- Several thousand dollars have rolled in for a Michigan family who feared they were going to lose the home whose renovation was seen by millions of television viewers in 2004.
Judy and Larry Vardon said that the money should help them avoid foreclosure on the Oak Park home that was refurbished to better accommodate their blind, autistic son, Lance.
The deaf couple was featured on "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."
The Macomb Daily and The Daily Tribune reported Sunday the couple didn't request money, but donations started coming after media outlets this month reported on their plight.
"I'm afraid I'm going to lose my house now," Judy Vardon, using sign language through an interpreter, told The Macomb Daily. "This house really belongs to Lance. This is his environment. He can't speak out for himself, and I hope we can save this house."
ABC said 20.5 million viewers saw a crew led by host Ty Pennington rehabilitate the Vardons' 980-square-foot house in suburban Detroit from the inside out, including installing cameras and flat-screen monitors allowing the Vardons to monitor Lance.
The Vardons said they were weighed down by a mortgage payment that has almost doubled since the makeover and medical insurance that hasn't covered autism treatment for Lance, who is now 16.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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