| Anoka group revives ‘Thriller’ for Red Bull Flugtag crowd |
|
The “Back for the First Time” team hauled their flying coffin in a full sized semi truck to reach Harriet Island for the Red Bull event. Submitted photo
|
One of the more creative endeavors to hit Minnesota since the milk
carton boat race began some 39 years ago entertained, launched, flew
and ultimately floated as Red Bull brought its Flugtag event to Harriet
Island July 24.
| TJB Homes gives ‘Extreme Makeover’ |
|
|
| Wednesday, 29 August 2007 | |
|
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Staff writer Ask Tom Budzynski about the thrill behind building a 5,600 square-foot home in front of one billion television viewers in just 96 hours and he hits the nail squarely on the head. “It’s about giving back,” he said. “It’s about being there for someone. It’s about how each one of us can be a hero for someone every day of our lives. “We can’t all be heroes for all the people. But we can all be heroes for someone. That’s it,” Budzynski said as the roar of construction rumbles behind him on the Swenson-Lee property in Minnetonka. The Swenson-Lee family of nine, brought together by tragedy last year, is the recipient of the 100th episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” (EMHE), to be telecast Thanksgiving weekend. And Budzynski and his TJB Homes, Inc. of Blaine is the builder for the project. TJB Homes got the call from EMHE producers last month and at first, Budzynski was convinced the project and the speed at which it had to be completed “was just too much.” But his son and business partner Jason made some calls, did some research and put the word out, convincing his dad that it could, indeed, be done. By the time the construction crews arrived at the Swenson-Lee property/EMHE production set, TJB Homes had lined up 16 Anoka County contractors, sub-contractors, companies and businesses, each eager to give their time and expertise, their energy and know-how to get the job done. “Ninety percent of the people working on this project are from Anoka County,” Budzynski said. Jason shares his dad’s desire to “be there for someone” and the family dynamics that drove home the EMHE project energizes TJB Homes, as well. TJB Homes is a family company owned and operated, managed and modeled by Tom Budzynski and his sons Jason, Justin and Rick and daughter-in-law Tiffany Budzynski. When the Budzynskis see a family in need, their engines start running, the wheels start turning and with 5,000 rpm speed, needs are met. But they didn’t go it alone. When TJB took on the EMHE project, Budzynski immediately contacted the expert sub-contractors and companies with whom he does business on a daily basis. Sure enough, those Anoka County businesses stepped up to the plate without hesitation. Among them, Riccar Heating and Cooling, based in Andover. Jim Arent, general manager and part owner of Riccar, said, “There’s lots of energy on this project. It feels good to give. We always want to help somebody and this project is helping a family who’s been through more in the last year than 10 families – 100 families – should ever go through in their entire lifetimes.” (Vicki and Erik Swenson, parents of three with one on the way, took in Vicki’s sister, Terri Lee’s, four children after Terri and her boyfriend were murdered by Terri’s ex-boyfriend last year.) When word got out, phone lines at TJB lit up with calls from more local businesses who wanted to “help out, bring something, do something – anything!” to further the philanthropic cause, Budzynski said. “This is about how we can be heroes – all of us,” he said, sweeping his arm toward the job site where 150 workers nailed and hammered, drilled and assembled as crews completed sheathing, put up walls and positioned scaffolding beneath the cool blue summer sky Friday afternoon. Bella, a new Italian restaurant in Blaine, called and volunteered to feed the midnight demolition crew Aug. 23. Pizza Mill, also in Blaine, delivered dozens of pizzas to fill the empty stomachs of framers on the job at 10 p.m. Friday. And Majors Sports Bar, another Blaine eatery, not only fed construction workers on the job site, they made a pledge to feed the Swenson-Lee family for life – with not a dime ever coming from the family of nine. The building project is a philanthropic project like no other. Every piece of material, every tool, every machine, every minute of every man hour is donated to the project. “This isn’t about TJB Homes. This isn’t about Extreme Makeover. This is about helping a family. This is about who we are,” Budzynski said. “Yeah, we’re not worried about who knows we’re out here,” said Chris Weiss of TLM Cabinetry, based in Ramsey. Weiss described the passions and adrenaline energizing his crew as he paused near the special projects tent on the job site. Inside that tent, the TLM crew put special finishing touches on the cabinets they would install in the home’s kitchen, bathrooms and laundry rooms. The TLM cabinetmakers also worked alongside EMHE’s Ty Pennington, fashioning a custom-made bench as part of Pennington’s special surprise project for the home. To see TJB’s home-building effort, dial up channel 5 (ABC Television) and watch “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” 7 p.m. Nov. 25. Sue Austreng is at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|