HUDSONVILLE, Mich. — A West Michigan family received a new generator installed at their home Monday completely free of cost thanks to Lowe's.
Thirty-year-old Jim Albright enjoys video games and hanging out with his English sheepdog, Dash. He works for Ottawa County in their information technology department.
Albright is doing this all while living with a genetic disorder: Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Because of this, he needs to use a ventilator and other medical devices at all times to breathe properly. This can become a potentially disastrous situation when the family home loses power.
Without a generator running, his equipment will stop working.
The family had to call 911 in July when storms ripped through the area and took out their power. First responders were able to get a temporary solution in place. Albright's mom Deb knew they would need to buy a new generator soon.
Albright and his mom happened to be at Lowe's a while after the storms had cleared. They were looking at some of the generators in store when some Lowe's employees began to chat with them.
They talked a bit about the situation they were in and about what they might be looking to buy in the near future.
"I would have had to find some way to save or take a bank loan or something," Deb Albright said of the situation. "With all the medical bills we have out-of-pocket it's been difficult."
But they never had to figure out how they would pay for a new generator.
Lowe's got in contact with the family and told them they would take care of it.
“It's just probably the best thing I could have happen,” Jim Albright said.
Team members from Lowe's came out to the family's home Monday and got the generator installed.
Samuel Rich, District Service Sales Manager of West Michigan for Lowe's, was out on site helping the process along.
“There will be no need to switch things on and off. Storms, power or no power, they will be fully up and running,” he said of the new unit.
Rich says this work is important for the big box home improvement store.
“There are big businesses on every street corner of this small area, right, and if all of them stepped up to help the local community, we’d all be a better place," he said.
Here is everyone involved with the project who helped to make it possible:
•Lowes of West Michigan (Grandville, Kentwood & Plainfield locations)
