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Chip & Joanna Gaines help remodel woman's home after Harvey

HOUSTON - Nine weeks after Harvey, help is still coming to Houston. Chip and Joanna Gaines, stars of HGTV’s Fixer Upper, are tackling one of their most important projects yet.

“Full speed ahead. Man, we pulled into town and these boys said 'Hey, let’s go to work,'” recalled Chip Gaines. “I said, 'Great you’re speaking my language.' Now, Jo on the other hand, she got her nails done this morning.”

“No I didn’t,” giggled Joanna Gaines.

The couple known for their energy and knack for construction, descended on the home of 81-year-old Doris Davis.

Davis' home took in two feet of water when Harvey hit Houston in late August.

“Honey, it’s like an explosion that you didn’t know about! I mean, I wasn’t expecting this, honey,” said Davis as she sat in her driveway as construction crews worked on the home she purchased in 1999.

Rebuilding Together Houston is organizing the effort and Exxon-Mobil employees are volunteering their time.

“You have to help everybody get on their feet. Because you’re only as good as the weakest link in the community and that’s what we’re about,” said Bryan Milton, President of Fuels and Lubricants for Exxon-Mobil.

Unity, nine weeks after Davis felt completely alone.

“I don’t know if I was so frightened, from all this going on, I really could not move,” remembered Davis of the moment water flooded her home. She says she was paralyzed by fear.

She stayed in her home for three days as the water rose. Her grandchildren, worried for her safety, posted pictures of Davis on social media and asked friends to check for their grandmother at nearby shelters.

Later, Davis’ family learned a neighbor rescued the elderly woman then took her to a hospital for care.

In about four weeks, the repairs will be done and Davis and her three dogs will be able to move back in.

But two months after the storm, a reminder of the work ahead.

“Houston is going to be better than ever,” said Gaines. “You know, it’s just going to take a lot of effort and a lot of hard work and I just don’t want people to forget about what’s happened here.”


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