ORLANDO, Fla. — For almost a year now, Ms. Theresa DeFairia was on a mission to save her historic home.

​Built in 1940, the wood-frame house sits on a quiet street, nestled on the border of the Callahan and Parramore neighborhoods.

“Ms. Theresa,” as she’s known by her loved ones, bought her home in 1989. But several years ago, it began falling into disrepair as Ms. Theresa stopped paying the utility bills. 

Instead, Ms. Theresa said she used her social security income to feed herself, along with her adopted canine “children.”

“To save my home, I lived outside,” Ms. Theresa told Spectrum News 13 last summer. 

The City of Orlando’s code enforcement team took notice of the home’s dire state last year, threatening to condemn it. But since then, community members have rallied, raising over $40,000 so far to restore the home. 

Now, contractors are finally getting to work. The first step is the demolition phase. After the house’s structure is exposed, engineers and contractors will evaluate next steps. The project will be completed in phases, contractors said, in order to keep structural repairs to a minimum.

“The key is to keep the floor plan just as is,” said Anthony Roy, owner of Orange Avenue Construction, the Casselberry-based company leading the construction project. “If we can do that, then we can make it fairly simple.”

Roy, who specializes in restoring old homes, said Ms. Theresa’s home isn’t a particularly difficult job. But since it is being done in phases, the whole project could take longer than six months. 

The grassroots team that’s banded together to help Ms. Theresa is still fundraising via their GoFundMe. 

The team said they’ll need at least an additional $80,000 to bring the project to completion.

Roy said he can’t wait to see Ms. Theresa walk into her fully-restored home for the first time.

“Somebody who's been living at this home for so many years, to be able to get her back in this home, that’s gonna be a good feeling,” Roy said.

For her part, Ms. Theresa expressed a deep sense of gratitude for the community that’s come together to support her up to this point.

“It takes a village,” she said.

None of it would have been possible without faith, Ms. Theresa said.

“All I can say is, hang in there. Keep believing with me,” Ms. Theresa said. “Keep believing in God and yourselves. Because in believing in yourselves, you believe in God, you see.”

If you’d like to donate to the restoration project, you can visit the team’s GoFundMe.

Molly Duerig is a Report for America corps member who is covering affordable housing for Spectrum News 13. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.