Susan Santangelo, for one, will not be wishing for a white Christmas this year. 

        She, her husband John, two daughters and two dogs are currently living in a camper in their backyard.  And if it snows, that could spell disaster.

        "My greatest fear is that the water hose freezes.  We got a heated line but if it snows and lays or it gets really cold…Mother Nature has been very gracious so far.  But it's not an all-season camper."

        The Santangelos have been forced to call their camper home since Labor Day weekend when the water line to their refrigerator broke while they were on vacation.  For several days water ran all over their Perkiomenville rancher until Susan and the girls arrived home separately late Sept. 7.

        The first thing that hit her when she opened the front door was the smell.

        "It was dark and the smell of the house being wet, it hit me.  After I turned off the alarm I heard the water running.  It was running like a waterfall.  I was trying to turn everything off in the basement.  I was hysterical.  I didn't know where to start; what to do."  

        In the light of day, reality hit.  Their hardwood floors were twisted and buckled, carpets saturated and moldy and the walls were wet two feet up from the floor.  Many of their possessions were soaked, and a lot had to be tossed.  The water had run along the first floor and down into the basement, where it damaged electronics and many items in storage cabinets, in addition to the flooring and walls.

        "It has been hectic, frustrating and stressful," Susan Santangelo said of the ordeal.  "Really it's been a nightmare.  It was hard to know where to begin with the cleanup.  And to not be able to sleep or shower in the house…"

        Luckily for the family, as their insurance company hired a remediation company to come in and get rid of the water, a friend took it upon himself to contact Home Depot in Pottstown to see if the chain could help donate supplies in the rebuilding effort. 

        "We're usually the one helping others but he went on behalf of my husband to Home Depot knowing that my husband wouldn't go himself," Susan said of John, a Marine Corps Desert Storm veteran.  "We're so grateful." 

        Home Depot then contacted Pennsburg-based veterans' organization Vets for Vets, to see if they would be willing to partner on a project at the home.  Vets for Vets' founder and administrator Jake Leone enthusiastically agreed and the Santangelos were awarded a $9,000 grant from Home Depot to help rebuild. 

        On Dec. 11, five volunteers from Vets for Vets and eight from Home Depot, headed by Pottstown store manager Jessica Morrotto, arrived at the Renninger Road home.  They immediately began cutting out all the drywall, tearing the flooring out and gutting the bathroom as well as parts of the basement. 

        Santangelo said the abundance of willing hands spurred some tears.

        "We're very overwhelmed and very grateful and thankful for the generous time given; the grant that was received.  There are a lot of men and women donating their time and talents.  It's overwhelming.  I was crying when I left the driveway this morning.  But until it happens to you, you don't know how meaningful it is.  It's very heartwarming to know there are people there who care and help you when you need help.  It's certainly appreciated."

        "I volunteer because it's the right thing to do.  When there are people out there in need and we have the opportunity to make things right for them, that's what I want to do," said Matthew Miller, a Home Depot staffer for eight years.  "That's what Home Depot wants to do.  We do the best to make people's lives easier.  We try to do the right thing for the community."      

        Leone said the goal is to have the drywall and everything framed in, as well as the first layer of spackling, done by Christmas.  Mold remediation is being donated by Ed Voce of Voce Cleaning LLC of Quakertown.  The next portion of the work will include the installation of tile, a vanity and toilet in the home's bathroom.

        With two or three more workdays, and about a dozen volunteers, Leone said he thinks the work can be completed sometime early in the new year.

        "We are absolutely looking forward to completing this project for the family," he said.

        And while the novelty of living in a camper has started to wear off for her two young daughters, Santangelo said the family is looking at the bright side of things.

        "It's a good way to start getting rid of stuff," she joked.  "And we've talked to the girls and, while they were very upset in the beginning, they are happy to help pick out the paint color for their 'new rooms.'"

        As for Christmas, the family said they're excited to spend time together with a makeshift tree in their bare living room, which was recently spruced up with a carpet remnant. 

        "We'll be happy just to get the repairs done and start getting things back to normal," Santangelo said.