FREMONT, Calif. (KTVU) -- A Fremont man got a newly repaired roof over the weekend thanks to social media and the kindness of strangers.
On Friday, KTVU told the story about 75-year-old Richard Dubiel. The retired engineer who once worked at Lockhead Martin had spent the past three months working to repair his roof himself.
Richard's neighbor David Perez watched as Dubiel went up and down the ladder, working endlessly to try to get the job done.
Perez posted a picture on Facebook and asked for help. A number of volunteers responded and plans were made to finish the roof on Saturday, Aug. 29th. Perez said that despite the outpouring of goodwill, he wasn’t sure what the turnout would be.
"I barely slept last night," admitted Perez. "I didn’t know if people were going to show up."
He didn’t have to worry. On Saturday, plenty of help arrived.
More than 30 people showed up. They weren’t supposed to get there until 9 a.m., but the first person actually arrived at 6:30 a.m.
One person who came to help has been in the roofing business for years and drove for three hours to be there.
So many people came to help with Dubiel’s roof Saturday that they finished the job by 12 p.m.
When the job was just about finished, they brought Dubiel up to hammer in the last shingle.
Afterwards, Dubiel was at a loss for words.
"I'm just so overwhelmed with kindness and help and the quality of work," said Dubiel. "And I just can't get over the fact people are so generous with their time."
KTVU anchor Frank Somerville (who took the photos featured in this story) drove down to Fremont Saturday because he wanted to see the volunteers come together first hand.
He admitted he had his own doubts in a Facebook post about the event.
"I have to be honest. I was terrified that no one would show up," he wrote. "In fact, I was prepared to keep on driving if no one was there."
His relief quickly turned to joy when he arrived at Dubiel's house in Fremont.
"I can’t even begin to describe the feeling I had when I turned the corner and saw everyone hammering away on Richard’s roof," he wrote on Facebook. "I just got a huge smile. And I remember thinking to myself, 'This is so freakin' awesome.' There was so much spirit; so much positive energy. It was people helping people, neighbor helping neighbor. Just like it should be."