McCarthy “Heart Hats� build new outdoor pathways, patio and an elevator

The McCarthy Building Companies of Newport Beach community service program, “Heart Hats,� joined with Jezowski & Markel Contractors/Marne Construction, Conco Concrete Pumping, Standard Concrete, Pinnacle Disposal and California Sanitation to donate labor, materials and general contracting services to build a patio and walkways to accommodate Alec (Bunk) Wurth and his wheelchair at his family home in Orange, Calif.

Bunk suffered a serious spinal cord injury in 2006 while playing rugby and is paralyzed from the shoulders down. Initially after the accident, Bunk was able to move his shoulders and breathe on his own; however, since the surgical repair to the vertebrae and in the weeks following the injury, bruising elevated up the spine to the C2 level, which is currently rendering him unable to breathe on his own and dependant on a ventilator. Bunk’s parents currently provide care for him at their home in Orange.

McCarthy “Heart Hats� learned about Bunk’s need for construction assistance at his home from a McCarthy employee who is a good friend of Bunks. The Heart Hats also read about Bunk on a website that was created for him after his accident. The website says that he is now in his late 30’s and that Bunk grew up in Orange, Calif. He is an excellent and dedicated special education teacher, a strong athlete, a committed friend, and a devoted son and brother. Bunk taught for eight years at the Speech and Language Development Center in Buena Park, a school for children and young adults with language, learning, and behavioral disorders that often result in complex educational needs. Bunk has been a hugely positive influence to hundreds of students and their families. He holds each and every student in the highest esteem, and loves every one of them for the unique and special role each plays in our greater world.

“McCarthy Heart Hats were impressed by Bunk’s former athletic ability and his background teaching others with disabilities. We knew he needed our help, so we wanted to do whatever we could to make his situation more comfortable,� said McCarthy Scheduling Coordinator Diane Henke. McCarthy employees Diane Henke, Linda Osborn, Jim Metoyer and Michael Flick were among the McCarthy Heart Hats who lead this philanthropic effort for Bunk.

To help Bunk safely and more comfortably maneuver around the house in his wheelchair, McCarthy and its subcontractors built a new sidewalk. They also built a new patio so Bunk will have a therapeutic place to get outside and soak up some sun during the day. The walkways and patio will also allow Bunk to participate in family activities at the house. Previously, he had to watch from a distance while younger visiting family members played in the backyard.

Once the concrete was dry, Bunk had a chance to test out the new walkways and patio. “He was visibly excited to get out onto the patios and paths,� said Bunk’s mom Sally Wurth. “He was twirling his wheelchair around in circles, sunning himself out on the newly poured patio and going around the outside of the house giving us his opinion on just about everything.

“This improvement project has been totally responsive to what Bunk felt was important and needed for him to access his environment. We are enormously grateful and cannot thank McCarthy enough for the support in obtaining the lift and providing for the paths and patios. It has made such an immense difference for Bunk.�

The lifetime healthcare costs and living expenses to care for someone in Bunk’s condition is estimated to be about $2.5 - $3 million, a small part of which will be covered by insurance. This figure does NOT include the renovations that are necessary to make Bunk’s family’s home accessible to him. The construction project, part of which McCarthy and other contractors are helping with, involves making the Wurth’s 115 year old home accessible and usable to Bunk. McCarthy and its subcontractors previously installed a new elevator/lift to allow Bunk to get to the second level of the house which is being renovated by various construction volunteers. McCarthy’s volunteers completed their portion of work through the builder’s Heart Hats community service program, which enables employees to dedicate time and resources to community involvement on paid workdays.

Other subcontractors who McCarthy enlisted to help with construction of the new elevator include: Apollo Electric, Bali Construction, Inc., Bapko Metal, Inc., Briggs Electric, Canyon Insulation, Capparelli Contracting, Clark Pacific, CMF Custom Metal Fabricators, ISEC, Letner Roofing Co., Martin Integrated, McMahon Steel Company, Inc., Murray Company, Nevell Group, Inc, PCI Performance Contracting, Premier Tile & Marble, Raymond, Rebar Engineering, Inc., Seeley Brothers Millwork Doors Hardware, Shaw &Sons; Concrete Contractors, Standard Drywall, The McIntyre Company and Trilogy Architectural Products.

“We are glad to be able to help someone who has contributed so much to our community,� said McCarthy Project Manager Michael Flick. “We hope the improvements we made to Bunk’s family home will make life a little easier for Bunk and his parents who provide daily care for Bunk.�

More information about Bunk Wurth and how you can support him can be found at bunkwurth.org. If you know of anyone that is as worthy as the Bunk Family that needs help, please write to McCarthy Heart Hats coordinator [email protected].