Coach and wrestlers restore hope for Canandaigua homeowner
CANANDAIGUA, N.Y. – The sounds of hammers and nailguns echoed across Canandaigua Lake, as dozens of local volunteers took time out of their Saturday to help one of their own.
Homeowner Jessica McCormick said, “I was feeling let down, hopeless. Didn’t know what I was going to do next.”
McCormick says she was scammed by a previous contractor out of $4,000. After putting her plea out online, she had her guardian angel appear – in the form of a high school wrestling coach.
Canandaigua High School wrestling coach Michael Cuppernell said, “She put a post out on one of the community Facebook pages a while ago, about how she was taken advantage of by a roofing contractor. And I was kind of following the story a little bit. And then, you know, the last time she had made a message, it was kind of like a last-ditch effort just to get the roof fixed. And I said, well, this is something that we know a little bit about. And we got the labor force to do it. So I reached out to her and figured we’d give her a hand.”
Cuppernell says part of what he teaches his players is how to take care of their own.
“We rely on our community a lot. You know, they give us a lot of support, both financially, you know, and it’s important that the kids understand that we have to be more than just a wrestling team. We got to give back to the community. And I want the community to see that, you know, we’re not just asking for donations, it’s that we’re willing to put our money where our mouth is and get out and lend a hand when needed,” Cuppernell said.
In addition to the dozens of wrestlers who gave up their time, McCormick and Cuppernell also received help from Stagliano Builders, FORE Recycling, and nearby Pizza Sangiorgi, who offered free lunch and bathroom access to the workers.
Lynn Castillo of Pizza Sangiorgi said, “Chuck and Annie own this business, they’ve been the owners here for 15 years. Chuck and Annie do whatever they can to support the community. That’s why I love working here. I feel like everybody here also loves to support Chuck and Annie. And it goes both ways. So, Yeah, it’s just a huge part of what they do and who they are as business owners.”
Wrestler Mason Humphrey said, “Just really shows you how much, you know, Canandaigua, and all the other like contributors, we’re all family here. And if one of us can’t help out doing physical work, you can always help out in other ways. It just really shows the support that they give us. So it’s nice to know that everyone else wants to contribute to something.”