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The Cerda family in Las Vegas woke up the morning of March 10 to a call from Ty Pennington and the crew from Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and on March 19, they went to sleep in a completely rebuilt, environmentally friendly home designed around the special needs of their children. 

While Wright Custom Home/Wright Engineers and more than 500 volunteers were demolishing and then framing out a new house in northwest Las Vegas, the Cerda’s were relaxing in Maui and trying to adjust to the change in their future.  Occasional video showed them limited progress on the building and they had no idea what the final structure would look like. 

After exiting the limo that whisked them home from McCarran International Airport, Chuck Cerda kissed the Extreme Makeover bus.  Surrounded by family, friends and well wishers, the Cerda family shouted “Move that bus!” and for the first time, saw their new two story home in Las Vegas. 

The Cerda’s children, Molly and Maggie, both suffer from Combined Immune Deficiency Disease (CIDD) which makes them more susceptible to lung and upper respiratory infections.  Because of their condition, the girls have limited contact outside the home that makes it even more important that the house be in pristine condition.  The HVAC system will filter the air better than a standard home heating/cooling system.  An advantage that was noticeable soon after entering the residence when Terri Cerda realized her daughter Molly wasn’t having breathing difficulties and didn’t require a nebulizer treatment. 

In addition to the valley volunteers that helped to build the new house, many local businesses contributed build related or maintenance assistance.  Walker Furniture donated furniture for the main rooms; Alarmco donated security services; Freedom Exterminators gave pest control treatments; and The Soroptimist International of Metropolitan Las Vegas provided a musical touch, donating oboes, a flute and $2,000 worth of music lessons for the girls. The four Las Vegas Raising Cane’s restaurants encouraged customers to donate a dollar to every ticket and gave the funds directly to the family to assist with ongoing expenses. 

However it wasn’t just the Cerda family who benefited during the home build.   The United Blood Services bloodmobile parked at the spectator site and visitors and volunteers took the opportunity to donate to the Vegas valley blood bank.  And the Three Square food distribution center in Las Vegas was the recipient of a non-perishable food collection also conducted at the spectator site. 

Extreme Makeover: Home Edition currently plans to air the Cerda family episode on May 10.  The television series airs Sundays at 8 p.m. on Las Vegas ABC affiliate KTNV channel 13.