Posted by Hometown News, FL on October 11, 2008 at 15:36:10:
Rachel Ray Show remodels Palm Bay pantry
By Jenet Krol
Staff writer
PALM BAY - Laurie Willis could not pass up a bargain at the grocery store.
Whenever she had the opportunity to grab a "buy one, get one free" special, or buy something in bulk, she would.
And while being economical is a smart thing to do, when there is so much piling up on the pantry shelves that it becomes a struggle to use them, it's another story.
"My pantry overflowed with all of the sales," said Ms. Willis. "I'd buy things at the grocery store that I thought I needed, and I'd have it at home already."
The eldest of seven children, Ms. Willis was used to watching her mother buy in bulk.
"I followed that," she said. "I forgot we only had four in our family."
It was so bad, that Ms. Willis actually outgrew her six foot tall by three foot wide pantry and converted the kitchen table to her "snack table."
"The people at the Rachel Ray Show laughed at me and said they'd heard of a snack drawer, but never a snack table," she said.
When Ms. Willis saw that the Rachel Ray Show was having a contest to find messy pantries, she knew hers would qualify.
"I thought, 'oh my goodness, is my pantry a mess," said Ms. Willis. The producers at the Rachel Ray Show agreed.
Christie Cunningham, who does remodeling for the show, arrived at Ms. Willis' house along with carpenters from Mr. Handyman, a national franchise.
Chuck Maute, the owner of the Brevard County Mr. Handyman, located in Cocoa Beach, worked on the project.
"It was a real fun project to do," he said. "It was a brand new experience for us and it was great to help Laurie get organized."
The handymen replaced wire shelves with Melamine wood laminated shelves, added new light fixtures, added wrought iron brackets for the shelves, a ladder and installed pull out baskets.
"The baskets were an alternative to having things disappear into a void. It's difficult to bend over to and see what's on the lower shelves. So instead, you can pull out a basket and see what exactly is in there," he said.
The work was completed in 13 hours, with crews working nonstop, thanks to a rush put on by the approach of Tropical Storm Fay.
Ms. Willis had to throw away more than $500 worth of expired food.
"I had food in there from 2006 and 2007," she said.
A label-maker and food-saver were added to the panty to help keep Ms. Willis organized.
So far, she's been able to keep it uncluttered and has been cooking more with food from her shelves.
"I don't want to get it back to how it was before. I like it straightened and organized. I used to open the door and see a mess. Now I go in there and can find things that will go (well) with our dinner."
For information on Mr. Handyman, visit www.mrhandyman.com.
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