A convenience store owner in Racine is stepping up to help his elderly neighbor after learning she lost thousands of dollars trying to fix her fence.
The homeowner, 71-year-old Ruth Schoenfeld, told TMJ4's Tahleel Mohieldin that she hired a contractor in late April to repair her fence, but that the contractor was incarcerated halfway through the project, leaving Schoenfeld out $2,500.
"I mean, I'd paid them the whole thing," Schoenfeld said. "I never ever done anything like that, but they—it just kept feeling that I was almost pressured into having to give that."
“My reaction was like, that’s sad," business owner Gurminder Singh said. "You should not do that to no one in the first place and especially her, you know, elderly woman.”
Watch: Racine homeowner loses thousands on unfinished job; neighbor steps in to help
Schoenfeld was only able to recover some of the materials that she already paid for, but two months later she still needed help finishing the job.
Help came in the form of her neighbor, Singh.
Despite her offer to pay, Singh refused to take Schoenfeld's money, instead offering to build the fence for free, minus the cost of additional materials.
Singh also called in local contractor Hilreio Ascncio to assist.
"I said let's go. Let's get it done for her," Ascncio said, believing Shoenfeld deserving of the support. "She always says hi to us and everything. She's a nice lady and they need a little extra hand."
The new fence was nearly complete Thursday, leaving Schoenfeld feeling good not only about her home's appearance but also about her community.
This story was reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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