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AT HOME, AT LAST
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Dick and Sharon Wade with their dog R.T. on the front porch of their rebuilt home in Poland. The Wade's had a tree of their own that caused their home to be demolished.
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Workers from Stride Tree Service remove a large Maple tree from a house on Lee Run in Poland Wed. High winds felled the tree about 4:45 am. The owners Dick and Sharon Wade were home at the time but were not injured.
By Denise Dick
One year after tree falls through roof, Poland house restored
It took a year, BUT A LEE Run Road couple, and their two pets moved back into their rebuilt Poland home late last month.
“We’re working on getting settled,” Dick Wade said.
A Jan. 30, 2008, windstorm that ripped through the Mahoning Valley knocked a large tree onto Dick and Sharon Wade’s house, causing massive damage.
On Jan. 31, 2009, they moved back into their rebuilt home.
“It’s so good to be home,” Sharon Wade said. “We’re thrilled. We’re very blessed.”
The windstorm earlier this month brought down a tree in the neighbor’s yard across the street. The tree blocked Lee Run Road until road crews cut and removed that portion, but Wade said it didn’t come close to their house.
“I didn’t even hear it,” he said.
Much of the tree remains in the neighbor’s side yard.
Still, high wind and storms make the couple nervous. Earlier this month, they cringed as they listened to the house rattle and the wind howl.
The couple initially moved, along with their pets, into a Boardman hotel, where they stayed for about three weeks.
Two days after the storm, about two inches of snow fell, getting into the gaping hole left by the tree.
The insurance adjuster decided everything should be removed to prevent damage. A tarp was then used to cover and protect the house.
Everything they didn’t take with them from the house — clothes, photographs, furniture, pots, pans and dishes — was boxed up and moved into storage.
“We probably had more than 200 boxes,” Wade said.
Their insurance company later moved them into a furnished condominium in Springfield Township.
In late June, lightning hit the condo — taking some of their electronics as casualties.
“Our friends are afraid to get into the car with us,” Dick Wade joked.
Sharon Wade was taking a shower early the morning of Jan. 30, 2008, when she heard a loud crash.
“It was either a tornado or the loudest thunder I had ever heard,” she said.
She discovered a tree had fallen through the roof and ran to make sure her husband wasn’t hurt.
Firefighters made the couple evacuate, but one of their cats hid, forcing them to leave without her. She was found by firefighters later that evening. High winds persisted throughout that day, causing the tree to shift, worsening the damage.
Eventually the second-story portion of the 1941 home had to be demolished and rebuilt. The first story section was also remodeled.
They took advantage of the rebuilding to add a basement.
“It is nice to have a new house,” Dick Wade said.
The couple continues to unpack all of the boxes. While the storage company labeled them all, the couple found some of the labels didn’t match the boxes’ contents, causing some confusion, but they’re gradually putting things back in order.
The stump from the tree that caused all of the damage remains at the side of the house.
“I’m going to put a plaque on it,” Dick Wade chuckled.