DANI Pitches in for House Blessing

Monticello family overcomes multiple obstacles to recovery.

After 3 floods, a heart attack, and the death of a grandson, a local family is grateful to be in a new home. Disaster Assistance for Northwest Indiana (DANI) is coordinating a house blessing for the home at 1904 North East Schafer Drive in Monticello on Wednesday, June 3 at 5:00 pm. The public is welcome to attend.

Randy and Diane Seabolt were flooded out of their trailer located below the Norway Dam on January 8, 2008 and lost everything. They were determined to fight back when a second flood struck about a month later. When his DANI case worker, Frank Hemersbach, contacted him in May, Randy was still working to get a good living situation worked out for his family. “He said that everything was going ok, and that he had things under control,” said Hemersbach.

Then obstacles began to come up. Attempts to get permits and right of way permissions became complicated. Seabolt found that his property had been rezoned after he had purchased it, and a zoning change was needed for him to replace the damaged trailers with a double-wide modular home. On September 26, 2008, his nine-year-old grandson was killed in a bus accident on US 24. On top of all of that, Seabolt suffered a heart attack. DANI representatives testified to support the zoning variance, but Seabolt was still determined to work through the obstacles on his own.

When it became clear that the flood recovery would take longer than hoped, Seabolt and Hemersbach worked on a plan to move the process along. DANI arranged for funding to complete the placement of the new home. Two different volunteer groups from central Pennsylvania helped to enclose the piers constructed to elevate the house out of the flood plain, reside the house, and build access stairs and decks.

Seabolt said “We are so grateful for the help from DANI. Without it, this wouldn’t have been possible. We would do anything we can to help DANI’s efforts with other people in the area. DANI has done so much for us.” When flooding returned in March 2009, the house was safely out of harm's way.

Several other flood recovery projects are underway in the area under DANI’s supervision. Potential volunteers can arrange to work by leaving a message at 877-773-0249 (toll-free) or sending email to director@danifloood.org. Donations toward the flood recovery work are also welcome. A grant from the Indiana Natural Disaster Fund provides for a $3 match for every local dollar raised. Additional information is available at the DANI website, http://daniflood.org.

Case manager, Frank Hemersbach, leaves the new,
elevated home after the House Blessing on June 3, 2009.

WLFI Channel 18 new broadcast a story about the Seabolts on June 3, 2009. It can be seen at It's Home Sweet Home for Local Family.