Team Depot helps Soap Lake couple

SOAP LAKE - It started with a new, more accessible bathtub and a volunteer project that changed in midair. It ended with a new bathroom and refurbished living room and kitchen for a Soap Lake couple fighting illness.

Home Depot employees in Moses Lake learned the story of Ray and Verna Lazier when Ray Lazier came in looking for a new tub for Verna, Krystal Johnson said, a manager who worked on the project. The employees have a volunteer organization, Team Depot, that works on charitable projects. A new bathtub at the Lazier house was a perfect project, Johnson said.

Originally Team Depot was going to install the new tub surround, Johnson said, but they changed their minds once they got to the house. "We went out there and met them and decided they could really use our help," Johnson said.

The Lazier house wasn't really set up for someone with limited mobility, she said. "We ended up remodeling the whole thing."

The living room and kitchen got new paint jobs and trim, Johnson said. The bathroom got a complete facelift, not just a new tub but a new toilet and flooring.

The goal was to make it easier to get around, Johnson said. "We wanted to make it as comfortable as possible for her."

Because there wasn't much time for pre-planning, it was a long job, Johnson said, including some 12-hour days. The company allowed some employees to take part during the workday, she said.

"The bathroom was quite a challenge," with the kind of problems that come with an older house, she said. Employees who know plumbing and electrical pitched in. (When it came to plumbing, "it felt like somebody was talking to me in a different language," Johnson said.)

But the final product was worth it. "The outcome was absolutely amazing," Johnson said.

The Team Depot crew also made some new friends. "We were able to connect on a very personal level," Johnson said. "They're absolutely wonderful people."