“It doesn’t seem like it, but when they said he wasn’t going to have any movement at all, to get that back, is huge.”
“In terms of progress, that is a huge, huge step for him,” said Brian’s mom, Dawn. He's also started getting “little flickers” in his leg muscles – not enough to move yet, but it’s something he didn’t have before. Keefer is also getting a lot of core strength back, he said, enough to be able to sit up on the couch without any help. But, now, his left arm is strong enough that he can drive his wheelchair with a joystick. When he first moved into his new home in 2011, he could only move his left index finger. More: A dream to unite family inspires eclectic home in southcentral PA And, over the last few years, he's started to notice that his hard work is paying off. With his equipment close by, he can do three to six hours of therapy exercises every day. The therapy room, alone, has been a game changer, he said. But he never could have imagined how much. Six years ago, Keefer knew this house was going to change his life. View Gallery: Photos: Keefer's 'Extreme Makeover' house in 2011 "Just being able to be more independent, that’s been the most helpful thing."Ĭheck out these photos from the filming of Keefer's "Extreme Makeover" episode in 2011. “It’s neat to be able to talk to the house and have it help me out," he said. On his command, a 127-inch projection screen slides down in front of the doors to his therapy room so he can watch movies.
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He also uses voice commands to raise and lower his bed and turn the lights and TV on and off. “I can talk to the house and have the doors open so I can go right outside,” he said. More: 1800s horse stable, restored into loft home, now a trendy York space And some of his other doors and gadgets are controlled by voice command. The doors to his therapy room have motion sensors so he can roll right through them without any help, he said. The bedroom, bathroom and therapy room are all connected by a track built into the ceiling with an overhead lift that, with a little assistance from his dad, can carry him from one room to another and help him get into his bed, shower and therapy pool. He even has his own entrance so he can come and go without traveling through his parents’ house.īut, the "Makeover" gave him much more than his own separate wheelchair-accessible living space. Keefer now has his own bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, living room, guest room and therapy room complete with an indoor pool and underwater treadmill. View Gallery: Photos: Keefer's 2011 Extreme Makeover house in 2017 Take a look inside the home (story continues below): Locals were eager to help, some even taking vacation to rebuild the house in the rain. In just one week, the show brought together hundreds of volunteers dressed in togas and blue and white face paint to help transform the Keefers’ awkward 1970s two-story family home into a rehabilitation paradise with a fully furnished living area just for Keefer. In June of 2011, “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” changed all of that. But, most of the time, he was stuck in the same room for hours every day.
His family didn’t have a wheelchair-accessible van, so he couldn’t leave the house or go see his friends. He spent almost all of his time confined in one or two cramped rooms in his parents’ Newberry Township home because his wheelchair wouldn’t fit through narrow spaces and doorways to go anywhere else. Watch Video: Brian Keefer six years after 'Extreme Makeover'
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