Move That Bus!

ABC's "Extreme Home Makeover" crew has been in Hattiesburg all week building a house for a family in need. The Heathcock family has three children and is struggling to make ends meet while the the father/husband, Sherman Heathcock, serves in Iraq.

When he's not oversees, Sherman works several jobs around town for extra money including working as a sheriff's deputy, a SWAT team leader, a grocery store security guard, a neighborhood watch group organizer, and volunteers his time to provide security for his kids’ school and coach his son’s football and baseball teams. His wife, Gina, works part-time as a paralegal.

The Heathcocks' house, which is exactly one block away from the house I grew up in on 17th Avenue, suffered some damage from Hurricane Katrina while Sherman was oversees during his first tour of duty. This poor family has just a long run of bad luck and is very deserving of this makeover.

The cool part is that the WHOLE city has come together to get this project done. It really is how you see it on TV. Volunteers, including my parents who have kept the website up and running for sponsors/volunteer sign-up/donations, etc., have been working around the clock.

Today is the "Move That Bus!" day as the project comes to a close, and I would loooove to be there. This two-hour episode is set to air during the first round of TV sweeps during February. I can't wait! It's a great thing for Hattiesburg, for all who have been involved, and especially the Heathcock family. I think it's pretty cool.

For more information about the project, visit the website - courtesy of Bice Advertising :) - at http://www.extremehattiesburg.com/.