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Season 4 Finale; Helping Hands

March 30, 2015
Michael & Son
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Over the past 5 years, I’ve had the privilege of working with families in our community as the head of the Michael & Son Cares Program. If you have not already heard of us, we are a local home improvement company that helps disadvantaged families with essential home repairs they cannot afford. From restoring heat to cold homes to surprise visits from celebrities; the Michael & Son Cares Program has brought smiles, tears and hope to dozens of recipients in the D.C., M.D., and V.A area. Not unlike Michael & Son Services, The Cares program has grown by leaps and bounds over the past 5 years. One of our proudest achievements regarding the Cares Program is the creation of the Helping Hands T.V. show, which documents the charitable work of the Cares Program.

The Cares Program, like Michael & Son Services, has modest beginnings. Today you can hardly drive a mile without seeing a signature blue Michael & Son truck. It was not always that way; in fact it all began with one van and a two man team. In 1968, Mousa “Mike” Mansour came to this country with a vision, to build a family business that his children could one day inherit. An electrician from an early age, Mousa’s natural inclination towards the trade was apparent in his work and he landed a Union Electrician job. On weekends and nights Mousa worked side jobs with his 6 year old son, Basim, tagging along as his pint sized apprentice. It was during those impressionable years of watching his father work that Basim Mansour learned the meaning of hard work, dedication and punctuality. He also learned the importance of giving back to the community that kept him in business. Mousa was not a wealthy man but a generous man nonetheless. He would never leave a family without power on a cold night because they couldn’t afford cost. To him, the smiles on the faces of those families he helped was worth far more than any amount of money. These instances that were witnessed by Basim left an indelible impression on him that would influence the way he would one day run his own business.

On June 1st 1990 Mousa “Mike” Mansour suffered a fatal heart attack, leaving his family and community devastated. At the young age of 19, Basim picked up where his father left off and began his own business, Michael & Son Services. Today the company has over 200 employees, offers comprehensive home services and spans four states and our nations capitol. As the business has grown, so has the number of Cares Program recipients. The CaresProgram reaches thousands of people each week through the local TV program “Helping Hands”, however, we hope to inspire more businesses and individuals to give back to their communities in any way they can. If you or someone you know is in need of assistance, please visit michaelandsonhelpinghands.com for more information.

Pulaskifamily mikegreencares1

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Against All Odds

February 24, 2015
Michael & Son
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When Michele Pulaski gave birth to twins Josh and Sarah, she and her husband Jordan could only see a bright future for their family. A few weeks later, the clouds began to gather when Sarah was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis. Sarah’s meningitis caused massive brain damage and as a result she is now left a quadriplegic. She also suffers from epilepsy, hypothermia and is vision impaired. Sarah’s mother was told that she would never have cognitive functions beyond that of an infant. But against all odds, Sarah has defied her diagnosis and 8 years later she is learning to sing songs, play games, and brings a smile to everyone she meets!

Just when the family had begun to adjust to life with a disabled child, tragedy struck again. At the young age of 39, Jordan Pulaski was diagnosed with a rare neuromuscular disease that affects only 200,000 people worldwide. As Jordans condition progressed he began to lose mobility and today, like his daughter Sarah, is quadriplegic and confined to a wheel chair.

Sarah and Jordan worked hard their entire lives and excelled in both their educations and careers. Unfortunately, because Jordan and Sarah require a lifetime of costly medical care, the family is saddled with debt and with both parents only able to work part time, the family was unable to afford essential home repairs.

After watching the NBC program “Helping Hands” the Pulaski’s reached out to the Michael & Son Cares Program for help with a broken water heater and alterations to make their bathrooms handicap accessible. Michael & Son Services stepped in and provide the family with the all the home repairs at no charge.

Along with providing families with free home repairs,The Michael & Son Cares Program also surprised the family with special gifts like floor seats to Wizards games, organizing special events and even hospital visits from celebrities. The Pulaski family surprised everyone when they requested that in lieu of a gift, the Cares Program make a donation to their favorite charity, The National Epilepsy Foundation. Needless to say, everyone involved with the program was deeply touched by the families generosity and concern for others.

Helping Hands documents the work of the Michael & Son Cares Program and their community service program which provides free home repairs to those in need, local showtimes listed below.

Washington DC WRC NBC4

2/28       9:30 – 10:00 AM

Norfolk: WVEC

2/28       9:00 AM

Richmond WTVR

2/29       11:30 PM

Baltimore WMAR

2/28       6:30 PM

Charlottesville WVIR

2/28       9:30 – 10:00 AM

helping-hands-michael-and-son

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Rescued from the harsh winter!

February 17, 2015
Michael & Son
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Betty Parker sits on her front porch as four puppies vie for her attention at her feet. “There is a lot of suffering behind close doors” she says, gazing off into the horizon, “you can only suffer for so long before its time to ask for help.”

As a strong Boston-bred native living in Norfolk, Betty Parker takes great pride in her self reliance. “My father raised me to be independent; I can do anything a man can do” said Betty, “I can even make repairs around the house, to an extent.” That extent was reached when her water heater began to fail and her furnace died. At 67 years of age, Betty suffers from Parkinson’s disease; its slow, methodical march through her nervous system made even the simplest daily task a monumental undertaking. One of those tasks became boiling water multiple times a day for bathing, washing, and cooking.

Betty’s hands trembled under the oppressive weight of the large, cast iron cooking pot she carried over to the sink. She began to demonstrate the agonizing, painful ritual of filling the pot with water and lugging it down the hall and to the tub. As the temperatures began to plummet, Betty was faced with a new tribulation, the prospect of a heatless winter. Wringing her hands beside a small space heater, Betty sighed then smiled. “I’m not gonna complain, there are people out there a lot worse off than I am”.

Many people dismiss the idea of a guardian angel, but in todays cold and detached world, some just earn the title. Meet Sue, a life long native of Norfolk and friend of Betty. Sue has spent her life in service to those in need. Whether it was on an organizational level or personal, you’re sure to find Sue at the helm. When Sue realized that Betty was living without essential services in her home, she immediately sprung into action and immediately starting hitting walls. “Everyone has an excuse about why they can’t help but no one offers solutions.” Sue called just about every state agency and private charity in search of help for Betty, and when those attempts were fruitless she began calling local businesses. After calling nearly every home improvement company in her area, Sue was ready to throw her hands up in defeat. At that very moment something fateful occurred; Sue looked out of her window, and noticed a Michael & Son Services truck pulling into her neighbor’s driveway. She figured it was worth one last shot, and called the number on the truck. “I called on a Saturday and expected to just get a voicemail” said Sue, “but what happened next left me speechless,” she continued.

Sue contacted Michael & Son on a Saturday morning, and by the afternoon had secured heat and hot water for Betty’s home. “I’ve been dealing with not for profits and government agencies for decades now, and I’ve never seen a group work so fast” said Sue. “I knew right away that they genuinely cared about not only Betty, but the entire community around them” she continued.

Today, Betty Parker and her four dogs have a warm house with hot water, today there is one person suffering behind a closed door. The Michael & Son Cares Program is on a mission to not only help those in need, but to inspire others to do the same. We call upon every individual, business and organization with the means to make a difference to do just that.

If you would like to join us in our mission to make a difference, click here to find out how you can help. Also, if you or someone you know is in need of essential home repairs, visit us at michaelandson.com to learn how you can apply for the Michael & Son Cares Program. You can watch the Michael & Son Cares Program in action on the TV series “Helping Hands” every weekend, check below for local listings and air times.

Washington DC WRC NBC4 

February 21st    9:30 AM

Norfolk: WVEC

February 21st    9:00 AM

Richmond WTVR

February 22nd    11:30 PM

Baltimore WMAR

February 21st   6:30 PM

Charlottesville WVIR

February 21st    9:30 AM

 

Michael-and-Son-rescues-elderly-woman-from-harsh-winter

norfolk-virginia-helping-hands-episode

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Charlie Crohare; Bean Bag Extraordinaire

January 26, 2015
Michael & Son
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Charlie Crohare; Bean Bag Extraordinaire

In Helping Hands Season 4, Episode 4 our story features April Crohare, a strong mother of two, who balances volunteering work at her son’s school, being a member of the PTA, and helps other local families with disabilities navigate through agencies, to obtain the correct medical products. She uses her experience to uplift and assist other people, and that we find to be, truly incredible!

The star of this episode however, is her eldest son Charlie, an incredibly brave six year old, who has a disorder extremely similar to that of Miller Dieker syndrome. He has the brain development of a two-month year old baby, and with that, suffers from daily seizures (some lasting up to forty-five minutes at a time.) On top of this, he also suffers from hypothermia, is color blind, and is confined to a wheel chair. Charlie has outlived his diagnosis by many years, and is a ray of hope who inspires us all! Charlie has a younger brother, Mathew, to

The Crohare family had an extension built on to the home, and it’s where Charlie spends most of his waking hours. The room has a wood burning stove that not only irritates Charlie’s respiratory system, but eventually caused a fire, – luckily no one was hurt. When the owner of Michael and Son, Basim Mansour, heard of Charlie’s condition, he knew we had to help. The HVAC department installed a mini split in the room, allowing Charlie to breathe much easier!

We are so thankful to the people who donated their goods to Charlie, and helped to make this episode a true example of Helping Hands. Ahh Bean Bags – who donated a bean bag chair (below is an image of Charlie enjoying his chair), and to Go Bananas who generously donated a music board.

April Crohare found out about the Michael and Son Cares Project after watching an episode of “Helping Hands.” She contacted our Project Manager, Shadi Tahrawi for help, and he was quick to get her information in front of our owner.

If you or anyone you know needs home repairs done by the way of: plumbing, electrical, heating, air conditioning – please contact Shadi at: shadi.tahrawi@michaelandson.com.

Tune in Saturday January 31st at 9am on NBC 4 to see how Michael & Son came to the aid of a family in need. 

Click here to watch this episode!

Washington DC WRC NBC4 

1/31       9:00 – 9:30 AM

2/7         9:30 – 10:00 AM

2/21       9:30 – 10:00 AM

2/28       9:30 – 10:00 AM

3/14       10:00  – 10:30 AM

3/21       10:00 – 10:30 AM

Norfolk: WVEC

1/31       9:00 AM

2/7         9:00 AM

2/21       9:00 AM

2/28       9:00 AM

3/14       9:00 AM

3/21       9:00 AM

Richmond WTVR

2/1         11:30 PM

2/8         11:30 PM

2/22       11:30 PM

2/29       11:30 PM

3/15       11:30 PM

3/22       11:30 PM

Baltimore WMAR

1/31       6:30 PM

2/7         6:30 PM

2/21       6:30 PM

2/28       6:30 PM

3/14       6:30 PM

3/21       6:30 PM

Charlottesville WVIR

1/31       9:00 – 9:30 AM

2/7         9:30 – 10:00 AM

2/21       9:30 – 10:00 AM

2/28       9:30 – 10:00 AM

3/14       10:00  – 10:30 AM

3/21       10:00 – 10:30 AM

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