Patrick Sharrock, center, and his mother Cindy, in pink ball cap, wor with volunteers in Madison, Ga., at the "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" build for Anaiah Rucker and her family.
Special to the Chattanooga Times Free PressPatrick Sharrock and his parents got a firsthand view this week of what volunteers went through tearing down and rebuilding their Lakeview home in February.
The Sharrock family worked alongside Ty Pennington and the rest of the "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" crew on a build in Madison, Ga., this week, keeping up the furious pace of the reality show that destroys and constructs a home for deserving families in seven days.
"We've gotten to see what people have done at our house," said Patrick, who's 9 years old. "It makes us really, really appreciate it."
This week, the "Makeover" crew is working on a home for Anaiah Rucker and her family in Morgan County, Ga., about 30 miles south of Athens.
Anaiah, who will start fifth grade this fall, is recovering from losing her left leg in a car accident in which she reportedly pushed her younger sister out of the way of an oncoming truck.
Building a house safe for Patrick, who has brittle bone disease, was a major focus of the Lakeview build. In Madison, the Sharrocks worked on an art project, appeared in a fundraising video for the build and helped build a bookshelf to go in the house.
"I think we have a little more respect for how it happened after seeing how quickly the house changes," said Patrick's father, Michael Sharrock. "When you look at the house again, something has been completed and it just changes the appearance of the house dramatically."
Diane Korman, senior producer with the show, said she loves it when families from past episodes get involved.
"We were thrilled to have the Sharrock family drive over three hours to help the Extreme team on the Rucker build," she said in an email. "When families can pay-it-forward and become volunteers, it confirms what heroes they truly are."
As for their house, the Sharrocks are settling in but still unpacking boxes of things that were put in storage for the construction.
"We're just sort of figuring out the gadgets they put in," Patrick said.
When asked if the new house was starting to become routine, Patrick said it hadn't but that's OK with him.
"I don't think it will ever get back to normal," he said.