Last month, Jimmy Curcuru found an anonymous note in his mailbox from some of his neighbors that was difficult.
The note read, "Please paint me! Eyesore. - Your Neighbors. Thanks!"
The envelop was addressed to their house with "current resident" as the receiver. The note was referring to the home that Jimmy and his wife Marilyn have lived in for 51 years. Jimmy told Washington Post, "It was frustrating to read it, and it was also hurtful. We know that our house needs painting - they didn't need to point it out to us."
Little did the anonymous neighbors know, Jimmy had a heart attack and quadruple bypass surgery roughly 15 years ago that not only left him physically unable to do the repairs himself, but also hindered them from being able to afford to hire someone to do them. And his wife Marilyn developed multiple sclerosis about 30 years ago and is mostly confined to her bed.
Since hearing their story after one of their daughters, Michelle Baran, posted about the story on Facebook, hundreds of people have jumped in to help. Community members offered to paint the home, local retailers offered discounts on renovation materials, and a commenter even created a GoFundMe page for the family to cover costs of updating the house. The fundraising page has raised over $75,000 for the family.
Photo: Getty Images