By Tori Pfeifer
Photos Courtesy of Zweiacker and Associates
The importance of giving back is knowing that everything contributed to the cause goes towards something bigger than just yourself. No matter what it may be, everyone involved is bound to get a good feeling knowing they are helping to make a difference. In Bryan College Station, local home builders, Pitman Custom Homes and Magruder Homes, are doing just that by bringing the community together to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Since October 2018, the two have collaborated to create The St. Jude Dream Home® Showplace, or more commonly known in B/CS as “The Hope House,” to benefit the hospital’s cause: fighting childhood cancer.
“The goal is to build this house with the help coming entirely from people in our community to get as close to zero cost as possible,” says Jimmy Pitman. “All the proceeds from the sale go directly to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and our goal is going to be anywhere between four and five hundred thousand dollars.”
In the spirit of bringing people together, both company’s builders have worked together throughout the project. Additionally, countless other vendors, subcontractors, and businesses have donated supplies, materials, and labor to help make this home a charitable success that serves a meaningful cause.
“Our trades have both been phenomenal,” says Pitman. “A lot of [the guys] are working for free or at a very discounted rate to give back to St. Jude … They’ve come out here to work weekends or continued to power through the different weather conditions we’ve had, and this is all volunteer time.”
The B/CS community has also taken advantage of many opportunities to get involved with the completion of the house, whether it’s volunteering their time to build; bringing meals to the workers on site; or making monetary donations to the cause online. On top of that, an online poll gave people a chance to vote on various elements of the home during the building process; this made the St. Jude Dream Home® Showplace a genuine, community-driven project with almost 1,000 people having contributed in some way.
“What’s really cool is seeing some of these people that step up even if it might be a busy time for them,” says John Magruder. “From an emotional standpoint, seeing everybody come together has been a really incredible thing.”
Building and designing the home would not have been possible without help from the B/CS community, and support from the Pitman and Magruder families, whether it was getting people involved on social media or choosing design elements.
“Our better halves have led the charge on designing the home,” Pitman says. “The amount of care, effort, attention to detail, and passion that Tyan Magruder and my wife, Courtney, have put into it is tremendous.”
The St. Jude Dream Home® Showplace has quickly become a project that is extremely meaningful to the Pitman and Magruder families, especially after traveling to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, to learn more about the impact the hospital has on children and families.
“One of the most rewarding parts of this project was actually prior to it starting because we knew, going into it, that this would be a big deal,” says Magruder. “Getting into Memphis and listening to the parents of St. Jude children on both sides was really uplifting.”
After the trip, both Pitman and Magruder were able to understand how much St. Jude does for children and families from the moment they walk through the doors to the moment they leave. Magruder says childhood cancer survival rates have risen to 80 percent since the hospital opened in 1962. Alongside their incredible patient care, he continues to say that St. Jude children and families have never had to know the burden of paying for hospital treatments, travel, lodging, or meals while receiving care at the hospital — all thanks to generous donations.
“There are infinite ways to value someone donating to a project like this,” Pitman says. “It goes into families, their ability to focus on their child, and to not have to worry about the financial aspects.”
The St. Jude Dream Home Program is one of the largest fundraisers for the research hospital and has raised more than $400 million with the construction of more than 400 homes around the United States. The Magruders and Pitmans are the first to do the St. Jude Dream Home Giveaway spin off, St. Jude Dream Home® Showplace, in Texas. Their goal is to continue this charitable tradition by building one home each year for the program.
Although the construction site is closed to the public until the reveal, Pitman and Magruder plan to show the St. Jude Dream Home® Showplace in the Spring Parade of Homes™ on April 27-28 and May 4-5. As the project comes to a close, Pitman says, and Magruder agrees, “Through a donation or with a project like this, our community has the ability to make an impact on changing the world and changing the outcome of our fight against childhood cancer.”
