Home is where the heart is - Volunteers help family committed to sick children

By DIANA PARKER
TODAY’S NEWS-HERALD
The home of Julie and Mark Decker is all about children. If you aren't crazy about kids, you shouldn't be there. On a recent afternoon, at least twelve children and teenagers could be counted in the rooms of the small Lake Havasu City home. The Deckers’ three grandchildren played on the family room rug. Two other toddlers, sons of a homeless mother, were spending the day there, too. On a large lounge chair, Smoketree Elementary School special education teacher Elizabeth Nelson
worked with the Deckers’ youngest daughter, Heather. At the center of it all sat Julie Decker, an island of serenity, and her husband, Mark, who supports the family as an electrician."He thinks he's the only normal one in the family," Julie said of Mark. "We have all these kids — there's nothing normal about any of this." Turns out the Decker children are as special as their parents. Thirteen-year-old Jasmine has cerebral palsy and is blind. Amberlyn, 11, is autistic. Heather, 4, was nearly paralyzed by cysts on her brain stem and spine. All came to the Deckers because their biological parents couldn't care for them or had abandoned them. In the loving care of Mark and Julie and the rest of their family, the children have thrived. Committed to sick children What has become a life's calling started with the Deckers' son, Bryce, who was born in 1993 with so many medical conditions the family called him Mr. Gadget because of all the devices he needed to survive. Bryce wasn't expected to live a year. When he needed a kidney transplant, Mark gave one of his own. Bryce defied the odds by surviving to the age of nine and a half."We spent a lot of time in the hospital with him and we'd see these kids lying in bed, and no one would even come visit them," Julie said. "(Mark) and I were stunned. We were really surprised no one would be there with these kids when they were going through these traumatic things. We knew the only reason Bryce did so well was because he had a family that loved him." The Deckers figured if they had what it took to care for Bryce, they could take care of other children, too. Three months later, they became foster parents to Fabian, now 17, Jasmine and Amberlyn. The couple later adopted the children."We decided we liked having them around," Julie said. At one point the family had eight children living together in a modest four-bedroom home, she said."Several years ago the community got together and built (an) addition, and that actually allowed us to adopt three more children," Julie said. The family — which includes son Tigh, 25, and daughters Aria, 23, Carrissa, 20, and Natasha, 17 — tried
to finish the now six-bedroom house themselves. New carpet had to be torn out because it worsened the children's allergies. And there were other setbacks. In the midst of the construction downturn, Mark lost his job. In September their daughter Brianna, 9, passed away."Everything slammed us at the same time, emotionally and financially," Julie said. Work on the house — which now had unfinished, concrete floors — stalled. Worst of all, the condition of the house prevented Julie Decker from helping even more children. The fruits of good karma Late last year an acquaintance recommended that the Deckers become the next family to benefit from the energies
of Havasu Hopes, a community-based non-profit that fixes up the homes of people in need. For ten days — from Jan. 11-20 — as many as 200 volunteers,
including a couple dozen Lake Havasu City firefighters, swarmed over the Decker house. The installed tile floors, painted inside and out, built a backyard shed and play area, erected a porch roof and laid a new cement driveway. Volunteers spruced up Julie's garage laundry area, where she does an average of five loads a day, and put in an air conditioner. They spread landscaping gravel in the front yard that had once been bare dirt. The firefighters installed sprinklers throughout the house.
"The fire department was huge in this — they did a lot. Actually the whole community did. You wouldn't believe the people out there raking rocks," said Havasu Hopes President Cindy Gray. Businesses and individuals donated everything, including ceiling fans and light fixtures, cabinetry and furniture. The family's spartan bedrooms ere transformed into comfortable sanctuaries. Havasu Hopes treasurer Kathy Chalmers estimated the value of labor and materials for the project exceeded $100,000.
"How do you say thank you for something so amazing?" Julie told a crowd of tearful volunteers as the family moved back into their renovated home Jan. 20. "You've not only bought time for me and my family, you've made it possible for me to help more people, to reach out to more children." You may contact the reporter at parker@havasunews. com.