Blessed Home Project offers more than just help, it offers a lifeline | KD Sunday Spotlight

MOON TOWNSHIP (KDKA) - A non-profit is focused on helping people during their darkest times and the organization is leaving a positive mark on families struggling with loss or illness.

Mary Alice Medlin said the Blessed Home Project was there for her family when she needed them the most.

"You get overwhelmed; it makes you feel so good, you feel so relieved, and it helps so much," she said.

Medlin, the former West Allegheny teacher and Moon Township resident said it started a few years ago when her son Jordan nearly died.

"He was quite ill," she recalled. "We called the ambulance and it took him to Mercy Hospital and his heart stopped in the ER. It took eight minutes to revive and sadly he had an oxygen brain injury so he's a quadriplegic. [He] can't speak, can't swallow, and he lives at home now."

Medlin then learned she had breast cancer. She went through chemotherapy and then months later her husband died.

Through all this tragedy, Blessed Home Project stepped in to help.

"Quite honestly, I couldn't do the things I did," she said. "I liked to clean, I liked to be busy, I was retired and in good health, so my house was sort of neglected. When they came it was such a blessing because it was so thorough."

Melissa Laughlin said her non-profit's goal goes beyond cleaning homes for free.

"We offer connection, it's not we come in, do a quick cleaning, and bye have a nice day," she said. "We sit, we listen, everybody we're servicing is going through a difficult situation."

Laughlin said they always check in after every visit.

"We send texts, we send emails, we send prayer cards, we do random phone calls where we check in and say, 'Hey, how's it going?'" Laughlin said.

Medlin said she'd like to see them every day but "they're busy!"

The non-profit is always looking for volunteers and people willing to help go into these homes and make a difference whether it's cleaning or lending an ear.