BATON ROUGE — The LSU volleyball team traveled to East Bernard, Texas, near Houston, a few weeks ago to volunteer as part of ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” to help construct a new home for former Tiger standout Katie Kubena’s relatives.
Head coach Fran Flory, four members of the current LSU team, two former players, the team manager and athletics trainer, as well as one member of the Tiger women’s soccer team participated as volunteers for five hours on Sunday, Jan. 22, as Royce Builders constructed a home for Katie’s uncle, John Kubena, his wife Monica and their four children.
“In a world of negative reality series on television, “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” is a refreshing change,” said Flory. “Volunteering to help the Kubena family is one of the most rewarding experiences of my lifetime. We all read and hear about these things occurring, but to actually be able to contribute in some small manner was truly rewarding. I know it is something I will never forget and I’m quite sure our team members will carry this for a lifetime as well.”
Katie, who had volunteered on the project earlier in the week and was staying in Houston with her grandfather, was a four-year letterwinner for the Tigers from 1999-2002. The former setter was a three-time Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll selection and 2001 second-team All-Louisiana honoree. She is one of only three players in LSU history to record 3,000 career assists. She earned her degree in elementary education in May 2004 and is currently teaching at local elementary school.
Two of John and Monica Kubena’s children, seven-year-old identical twins daughters Sara and Tara, are battling leukemia. A statistical anomaly for both twins, who were diagnosed at three years of age, to have the same non-genetic disease, the family has been faced with mounting medical bills as they travel back and forth to Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston for lengthy stays with both girls. Luckily, Sara is in remission, although she still must undergo frequent testing, but Tara has relapsed and is still undergoing chemotherapy and treatment.
The six-person family was forced to move into a two-bedroom trailer adjacent to John’s dad. In addition to lacking space, Tara had to stay at the Ronald McDonald house and had been unable to return home with her family because of the special air quality she required due to her illness.
The lives of the deserving families are forever changed when they learn that they have been selected to have their homes radically remodeled by “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”. The viewers witness not only the unbelievable transformation of the house, but during the final and emotional reveal, they see how the home makeover has impacted the lives of the deserving families.
Each episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” is a race against time on a project that would ordinarily take at least four months to achieve, involving a team of designers, contractors and several hundred workers who have just seven days to totally rebuild an entire house — every single room, plus the exterior and landscaping.
Houston-based Royce Builders, along with an army of over 1,000 volunteers, including the Tigers, stepped in to complete construction of a new, two-story home for the Kubenas. Removal of the existing trailer home ended on January 19th, with the trailer being donated Brandon and Missy Dancer, John’s niece, and construction of the new home was completed on January 24, finishing a home that would have normally taken six months to complete.
“I think this was the opportunity of a lifetime,” said Lauren Leaumont, one of the current LSU players that volunteered. “It was a great experience. We got to see first hand that when people come together with a common goal at heart that anything can happen, and happen quickly. To see something go from almost unlivable to an amazing, high tech home was inspiring. I can’t wait to see the finished product when it airs.”
The episode, which featured host Ty Pennington and designers Michael Moloney, Tanya McQueen, Ed Sanders, Preston Sharp and Eduardo Xol should air this Sunday, Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. on ABC (WBRZ-TV Channel 2; Baton Rouge cable channel 5).
The LSU volleyball program representatives: Flory, current student-athletes Leaumont, Lauren DeGirolamo, Kassi Mikulik and Kate Spytek, former Tigers Jelena Mijatovic and Regan Hood, manager Annie Beth Lemoine, trainer Tamara Copes and women’s soccer player Sara Pollock, daughter of gymnastics coach D-D Breaux, left Baton Rouge at 5 a.m. on Jan. 22, in a 15-passenger van and drove to Texas. They arrived around 11 a.m. and met Katie, who was driving in from Houston.
Despite rainy, cold weather, the girls assisted with several tasks. They moved wood, assisted as they made acrylic bubbles for one of the girl’s rooms, laid sod in the front yard and scrapped spackle from the floor so that carpeting could be installed. They stayed until 4 p.m. when they were replaced by a new crew of 25 volunteers.
“There were tons of people there volunteering and each time you looked up from what you were doing something else was either added or completed,” said Flory. “Every person working on the house was a volunteer. Companies from the area asked workers to donate their time to build the home and it is amazing what can happen when people come together like that.”
Anyone wishing to contribute to the Kubena Family Medical Fund, there are three ways to donate. People can make on-line donations at www.extremeroycebuilders.com, call (281) 589-0045, or drop off donations at any Royce Builder’s location in and around Houston.
Attached: Photo from the worksite. Pictured (back row left to right): Lauren DeGirolamo, Tamara Copes, Kate Spytek, Kassi Mikulik, Jelena Mijatovic, Fran Flory, Sara Pollock, Lauren Leaumont and Regan Hood; (front row l to r): Annie Beth Lemoine, Katie Kubena.