Sitting along a quiet street in Lafayette, an unassuming house with a heartwarming backstory is made into a home by Cooper Gretencord.
Gretencord was diagnosed with diplegic cerebral palsy at 18 months old. For every struggle he overcame, a nail was hammered into the wood to build the life he wanted. Now, Gretencord looks back on the metaphorical and physical project he’s sitting in: a house made just for him by Habitat for Humanity and Sheila Klinker.
Accessible housing is few and far between — even in Lafayette — and that is where Habitat for Humanity of Lafayette stepped up to meet demand.
Gretencord was encouraged by Klinker to apply for a home with Habitat for Humanity. When asked by his mother, Klinker said that she’d be happy to write a letter.
Cooper Gretencord talks about the process he went through to get his new home from Habitat for Humanity. Gretencord mentioned the special consideration that was taken to install extra wide doors and an accessible shower in the home for him.
She wrote the letter to Bob Anderson, the executive director for Habitat for Humanity, detailing Gretencord's contributions to the community and his need for an accessible home.
Klinker has been a long time family friend of the Gretencord family ever since she began frequenting the Cabaret Hair Salon in the '80s. Founded by Gretencord’s grandmother, the hair salon is where both Gretencord and Klinker get their haircuts every Friday.
In addition to Habitat for Humanity’s help with being the home, there is also community service involved, called "Sweat Equity."
“That's your volunteer time,” Gretencord said. He spent his "sweat hours" working at the Lafayette Habitat ReStore, a “home improvement and donation center,” according to Habitat for Humanity of Lafayette’s web page.
Discussing the application process, Klinker said that Gretencord was certainly willing to work hard for the house, and he said he finished most of his hours in the first three months that he was in the program.
However, Gretencord did not work through the application process alone, as Klinker said that the entire community rallied behind him and Habitat for Humanity to help him receive accessible housing.
“He's been given quite a few things, some furniture, as well as the water heater and some other very kind gifts that people have given him,” Klinker said. Contributions like these are what allows Habitat for Humanity to provide a hand up, not a help out, to community members like him.
“We're so close — honestly — I could have (not) done it without her,” Gretencord said when discussing his relationship with Klinker. "In a way, Sheila, this house is yours too.”
Walking into the Klinker House you will immediately notice two things: wide doors and the delicious smell of a slow cook in a crock pot. These wide doors are designed for homes where future wheelchair use is top of mind, and this mentality extends throughout the rest of the home.
Gretencord said he loves the larger hallways, wider doorways, one-story floor plan and walk-in showers that make the Klinker House his forever home.
Recommending these features to others, Gretencord said to “build a house for a handicap(ped) person (as) it might be your forever home.”
The new home of Cooper Gretencord sits along Powder House Lane in Lafayette. Gretencord moved in beginning on February so has been settling into the new space and making plans for gradual additions such as some landscaping for the front yard.
In the future, he plans to add a sidewalk that is large enough for a wheelchair, leading from the garage side door to a patio with a grill to barbecue with his friends.
Gretencord’s family lives in the countryside raising livestock. Unfortunately, accessible housing in the country is scarce, so he decided he needed to move closer to Lafayette to find what he needed.
“I'm not used to living in town,” he said, “I knew when it was my turn to move out.”
He works as a personal trainer for over 20 clients and as the wellness coordinator at the Lafayette family YMCA. At the Wabash Center, he also leads a fitness program for kids and young adults with disabilities once a month on Fridays.
Gretencord said that his parents pushed him hard to be the person he is today.
“After I was diagnosed, the doctors (and the) physical therapists told me that I wouldn't be able to graduate school, (that I) wouldn't be able to live on my own, wouldn't work a stable job, wouldn't be able to walk (and) would (not) be able to do all these things,” Gretencord said. “My mindset is to prove everybody wrong.”