A father of five and former basketball coach found himself getting slower and noticed it was becoming harder to move around as his muscles were deteriorating.

In early 2021, Frank Cawley was diagnosed with a rare inflammatory disease called Inclusion Body Myositis. 

 “I can’t really walk,” said Cawley. “My lower extremities, my legs have become incredibly weak, my arms and my fingers are starting to get the same way. It’s just affecting everything that I do.”

Cawley had contacted the Home Builders Foundation following his diagnosis to help renovate his home for a wheelchair. 

When renovations looked to be too expensive, he and his family found a wheelchair accessible house in Castle Rock where the foundation had helped make modifications for the previous homeowner. 

Cawley  realized that additional modifications were needed to accommodate his wheelchair. 

The foundation upgraded Cawley's ramp to make it more stable and installed an automatic door. 

“Those might not seem like gigantic things but just to have the confidence that I’m not going to fall,” said Cawley. “They need to know that they helped me because they gave me kind of a renewed purpose to help others.”

Cawley  is one of many who have received life-changing assistance from the Home Builders Foundation. 

The Home Builders Foundation is a Denver metro nonprofit organization that works with the homebuilding industry to modify homes for people living with long-term physical disabilities. 

 “We coordinate efforts to make the modifications for the clients living with disabilities by soliciting in-kind donations, dollar donations and skilled labor to do the work for those clients,” said Beth Forbes, Home Builders Foundation executive director. 

The foundation supports projects related to access.

These projects include widening door frames, inserting showers for more accessible wheelchair access, adding lifts to help navigate staircases or access one level to another and ramps. 

“Thinking about access in and out of the home, not just for safety and security, in case of an emergency but also so that the individuals living in their homes can get out and access their community,” said Forbes. 

The 2023 Inspiration House is a collaboration between Shea Homes and trade partners that benefit the Home Builders Foundation. 

The contributions from the trade partners in addition to a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the home will be donated to the foundation.

“We take that donation and turn it around to help many clients in the Denver metro area that need our help modifying their homes,” said Forbes.

The house is being built in The Canyons, a neighborhood in Castle Pines, east of I-25 for anyone to purchase. 

The home is part of Shea’s Reserve Collection, featuring three bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, a study room, finished basement with a wet bar and covered deck. 

The 3,200 square foot walk-out home sits on a corner homesite with views of open space and mountains. 

“We go out to our trades and we ask for donations in time and material,” said Scott Czarnek, Shea Homes’ construction manager and Home Builders Foundation board member. “We have 32 trade partners that have committed donating time and material and we valued that at about $170,000.” 

The home is expected to be finished by the end of the year. 

In addition, the Home Builders Foundation is celebrating their 30th anniversary. 

The foundation has helped more than 2,000 individuals with modifications. And as the foundation's work extends beyond the client but to their family, friends, neighbors and caregivers, the foundation estimates they have helped between 8,000 to 10,000 people, said Forbes. 

According to Forbes, not only has the foundation seen a significant rise in applications over the last year requesting services, but costs of doing projects has also increased due to supply chain and labor shortage issues.

Donations can be made to the ninth Inspiration House at https://hbfdenver.org/inspiration/inspiration-house-2023-donation/. 

“The funds that they’re raising through the groundbreaking are going to help just countless, countless numbers of disabled individuals across the state,” said Cawley.