Love Thy Neighbor offers Coryell County free home repairs

A Coryell County home with a failing roof, unsafe bathroom floor or broken ramp could be one nomination away from major repairs at no cost. FOX 44’s Love Thy Neighbor program, backed by Gage Construction, selects one person each month for free residential construction or repair work from nominees in McLennan, Bell, Coryell and Falls counties.

The repairs fit the kinds of problems that can make a house harder to live in and more dangerous to stay in. FOX 44 says the work has included wheelchair ramps, bathroom floor repair, ADA-accessible doors, window replacement, porch or roof repair, and replacing rotted wood on siding. That makes the program especially relevant for older homeowners, people with mobility needs and families facing urgent maintenance they cannot afford to tackle on their own.

The effort is not a one-time giveaway. FOX 44 has described Love Thy Neighbor as a continuing monthly project, with one selected household each month receiving the needed work. Gage Construction has framed the effort as a way to give back through practical help, turning local concern into a finished repair rather than a short-term donation. For Coryell County, that means a neighbor, pastor, coworker or family member can step forward with a household that needs help now.

The program is already producing visible results. FOX 44 reported that a recent Love Thy Neighbor project delivered a total roof replacement for Marlin resident Jeneva Tow. That job began in October and involved Spartan Roofing and SRS Building Products. FOX 44 also previously identified Jim Jimenez of Waco as the program’s first nominee and winner, showing the giveaway has already moved beyond promotion and into completed work.

The need in Coryell County is easy to see in the numbers. The county had 83,093 residents in the 2020 Census and an estimated 86,370 residents in 2024, according to U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts. People age 65 and older made up 11.7 percent of the population, and the median value of owner-occupied homes was $177,400. Those figures point to a county where aging homeowners and families on fixed budgets can be especially vulnerable when a roof starts leaking or a bathroom becomes unsafe.

Love Thy Neighbor also sits alongside other repair resources already serving the region. Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs says its Homeowner Reconstruction Assistance program is aimed at households at or below 80 percent of Area Median Family Income. USDA Rural Development’s Section 504 Home Repair program assists very-low-income homeowners and elderly very-low-income homeowners with health and safety hazards. The Area Agency on Aging of Central Texas serves Bell and Coryell counties, adding another layer of support for residents who need help staying safely in their homes.