Spirits high as work begins at Nick’s House Swarthmore
SWARTHMORE » Cheryl Colleluori stood atop the steps on the porch of 200 S. Chester Road Thursday to begin a new chapter in the HEADstrong Foundation that began with her son, Nick, and his desire to help so many others as he lay dying of cancer.
“What a beautiful day it is in Swarthmore,” she said. “A couple of drizzles are certainly not going to diminish the spirit today as we gather for this momentous occasion of the HEADstrong Foundation.”
The Ridley-based foundation has helped thousands of others through its residential program at Nick’s House in Holmes as well as other programs such as in-hospital activities and holiday dinners for patients battling cancer and their families. It was founded after the 2006 death of Nick Colleluori who conceived of the idea for HEADstrong while fighting non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
Six years ago, the foundation opened Nick’s House in Ridley, which provides temporary housing for individuals receiving care in the region and their loved ones.
On Thursday, they broke ground for the $1.5 million renovations that will take place on the seven-bedroom Swarthmore home to allow that many more families free temporary housing.
“When we entered this home for the first time over a year ago, we immediately felt the warmth and knew that our three-year search to expand Nick’s House was over,” Colleluori said.
Many have offered their services free of charge to renovate the 1893 structure into a modern-day accessible home. Target Construction is the building manager, Design Management Construction Inc. is the architect, Dave White is providing the heating, ventilation and air conditioning, IBEW Local 654 will install the electrical system and Ruppert Landscape is providing that detail.
The renovations are moving forward even as a pending lawsuit against the project will be heard Aug. 3. The suit stems from a group of homeowners from eight Swarthmore residences who contend the borough’s December approval for the project did not meet the standards of the federal Fair Housing Act.
Thursday, however, was a day for looking forward while acknowledging the feats of those present.
Having known the family for 30 years, Delaware County Councilman Dave White said, “It’s not remarkable what they’re doing here because the whole time I’ve known them, they’ve been giving back.
“What is amazing,” he said, “is how they turned probably the largest tragedy to ever happen to a family ... they managed to turn that into hope – hope for people that are fighting the same disease that their son (did).”
Those words stuck with Donald Conneen, founder of Design Management Construction.
“The enduring love I’ve experienced in the Colleluori family for Nick, for the vision he’s had is truly, truly inspirational,” Conneen said. “It’s said that the most difficult thing for a mother is to lose her child. I had that experience years ago telling my mother that my brother had suddenly passed away a few days before Christmas. Mom never recovered.”
In Cheryl Colleluori and her family, Conneen said he saw something different.
“It’s just fantastic watching what they’ve done with their grief and how they touch people with that,” he said.
Having worked with her on this project, he said, “I quickly came to see a mother who tears the scabs off the wounds of grief every morning literally to fulfill her promise to her dying son.”
The architect also said he couldn’t wait to showcase the home when all of the renovations are complete, whether it would be the kitchen pantry transformed into a fully accessible bathroom or the elevator or even down to the banisters on the staircases.
Throughout the event, he spoke of how he remembered his mom, Caryl, and his brother Stephen.
“I had to tell my mother a few days before Christmas,” Conneen said. “I remember my mom looking at me, saying, ‘How does a mother lose her son?’ And, it always frustrated me because I didn’t have an answer. She died 53 weeks later, I think of a broken heart.”
It make have taken 20 years but on Thursday, Conneen had the answer he would’ve given to his mother’s inquiry.
“If she were here today,” he said, “I’d say, ‘Mom, this is how you do it.’”