MOUNT VERNON — With a white Christmas tree beautifully decorated by siblings Courtney Gump, 14, and Dylan Snyder, 7, their mother, Kim Hyatt, is ready to celebrate the holiday with her family and give thanks for all her blessings.
One of them, Hyatt said, is their new home.
After losing her house to foreclosure earlier this year, Hyatt returned to Hillside Apartments, where she had been a resident not once, but twice before. This new lease, not even 30 days old, is not only offering Hyatt and her family a new roof over their heads, but also a new lease on life. A life made much easier for the family as it moved into a handicapped-accessible apartment.
“When they raised the payments on my mortgage, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to stay,” Hyatt said. “I heard they were redoing things here, so I thought I’d come back.”
For Hyatt, that decision couldn’t have come at a better time, especially with several apartments slated for renovations for handicap accessibility.
“She was very patient,” said Susan Moore, community manager, regarding Hyatt’s wait to get her apartment. “She applied in March and had to wait until this month to get the call saying we were ready for her to move in.”
Through all of those months, Hyatt called Moore nearly every day to check the status of her application and to see how things were progressing. She said the waiting was well worth it.
“Even though I felt like I bugged [Moore] to get in here, I was anxious to get in here,” Hyatt said. “Everything is new, everything is nice. It took a lot of time, but they did it right, especially for a handicapped person. I was very, very pleased when she called and asked if I was ready to move in. It’s my destiny to be here.”
“You guys did a great job,” Courtney told Moore and Donna Denning, regarding her ability to move her wheelchair freely along the first floor of the apartment as well as within the community. “I have friends all over the complex and I can go see them.”
Denning is the human resource director for Kno-Ho-Co-Ashland Community Action Commission, which owns the community.
Courtney’s younger brother, Dylan, can also enjoy the new additions to the community, including the new playground. He said he also likes having his own bedroom.
“It’s safe here. If he wants to go out and play, I don’t have to worry as much,” Hyatt said.
A Mount Vernon Middle School student, Courtney now has freedoms she didn’t have before, such as her own large bathroom and easy shower access.
“When we lived here before, I had to carry her upstairs to go to the bathroom and for showers. The half bath downstairs just wasn’t big enough,” Hyatt said.
Even though her previous house had room for Courtney and a first-floor bathroom, the bathroom was small and not as easy to negotiate as they would have liked.
“We were always fighting over the bathroom,” Hyatt said. “This really makes living easier for all of us.”
A slight slope in the sidewalk up to Hyatt’s apartment makes maneuvering Courtney’s electric wheelchair much easier.
“At the house we had ramps and they were great, but they were sometimes hard for Courtney. There are no ramps here and she can just get out and go,” Hyatt said.
Other features of the apartment include an emergency signal in case Courtney needs immediate assistance, handicapped parking right outside their door, an open lower cabinet area so she has access to the kitchen sink, and a traditional back door instead of a sliding glass door that leads out into a built-up patio that is flush with the door.
“They thought about her; not just me, but her,” Hyatt said. “I was really amazed.”
The change in the back door from the traditional apartments not only means Courtney has a way to get out and enjoy the back patio, she also has a second exit in the case of an emergency.
“We have the sink where I can get to it and the fridge,” Courtney said.
“It’s very independent living for her,” Hyatt said. “We are trying to make her as independent as possible. That’s all I want for her, is to be independent.”
Courtney, who never seems to be without a smile, said she is happy to be in her new home.
“She is happy here; we all are, even Dylan,” Hyatt said.
